, was from Jiexia Village, Fenyi County, Jiangxi Province. His ancestral home was in Shaowu, Fujian Province. He was the son of Grand Secretary
. Yan Shifan had a short neck, was obese, and was blind in one eye.
Life
His mother's name was Ouyang. His eldest daughter, Yan (1547–1602), married Kong Shangxian, the Duke of Yansheng, and received the title of Mandated Lady.
Shifan was well-versed and had a remarkable memory, which earned him his father Yan Song's trust. He drafted memorials for the emperor and was proficient in Taoism, skilled at writing green words (a form of religious poetry). This endeared him to the emperor, leading to his appointment as Left Minister of Works. When Yan Song's wife Ouyang passed away, Shifan returned home to observe mourning, which led to Yan Song's memorials and proposed Taoist green words no longer aligning with the emperor's preferences. Zou Yinglong impeached Yan Shifan for indulging in licentious behavior during his mourning period. As a result, Yan Shifan was exiled to Leizhou, and Yan Song was dismissed from office. According to some accounts, Yan Shifan secretly returned to his hometown and conspired with Wang Zhi and Japanese pirates, engaging in rampant debauchery.
In the 43rd year of Jiajing (1564), Emperor Jiajing ordered Lin Run to inspect the Jiangnan region. Lin Run learned that Yan Shifan had been committing numerous crimes in his hometown, including over twenty cases of robbery and assault. He submitted a memorial impeaching Shifan for "riding in carriages and wearing imperial robes, harboring treacherous intentions, and defaming the government with Luo Longwen day and night, misleading public opinion." As a result, Yan Shifanwas imprisoned. The Minister of Justice Huang Guangsheng and the President of the Board of Pardons Zhang Shouzhi, among other officials, intended to impeach Yan Shifan for the deaths of Shen Lian and Yang Jisheng. This aligned with Yan Shifan's wishes because he had told his subordinates: "Spread the word about the Shen and Yang cases. As long as they sue me for these two cases, I will be able to leave prison. Although my father drafted the edicts for their execution, it was still approved by the emperor. Mentioning them would be criticizing the emperor's incompetence, allowing me to be released."
However, Xu Jie removed the charges related to Shen and Yang because Emperor Jiajing was naturally suspicious and might think the officials were blaming the emperor. Therefore, Xu Jie required that Yan Shifan be impeached for colluding with pirate leader Wang Zhi in the south and Mongol forces in the north, intending to launch a rebellion by land and sea from both directions. When Yan Shifan learned of these charges, he cried out: "I am surely going to die."
In the 44th year of Jiajing (1655), Yan Shifan and his accomplice Luo Longwen were executed. The search of Yan's property revealed over 30,000 taels of gold and over 2 million taels of silver.
Anecdotes
Shifan enjoyed pretentious elegance and was well-versed in ancient literature and antiques. It is said that he once possessed the "Along the River During the Qingming Festival."
A person in Suzhou owned a work by Zhao Boju called "The Back of the Red Cliffs." Local officials sought to present it to Yan Shifan, but the owner was unwilling. Wen Zhengming advised his friend not to provoke trouble and painted a copy titled "Imitation of Zhao Boju's The Back of the Red Cliffs" for him to keep.
Shifan was notorious for his promiscuity, and the term 「meat spittoon」 originates from him. He emulated Fu Lang, waking up every morning with dozens of concubines lying naked before his bed, their necks raised and mouths open to serve as his spittoons. After Yan's property was seized, the county officials found countless new white linen handkerchiefs under the bed. Those who knew said: "These are dirty towels. Each time he had intercourse with a woman, he would discard one, counting them at the end of the year." It is said that there were as many as 900 white linen handkerchiefs in a year, suggesting that Shifan engaged in sexual activity multiple times daily. Some believed that Ximen Qing was modeled after him, and since Shifan's studio name was Donglou (East Tower), novelists used 「Ximen」 (West Gate) as a metaphor.
Shifan once said: "There are only three talents in the world: myself, Lu Bing, and Yang Bo."
The book "Wild Records of the Wanli Era" records that Xu Jie, to ease Yan Song's suspicions, promised his second daughter to Shifan's favorite youngest son. After Shifan fell from power, Xu Jie hinted for Xu Fan to poison his daughter-in-law who had just reached marriageable age.
Family
• Father: Yan Song
• Eldest daughter Yan (1547 – 1602) married to Kong Shangxian
• Second son Yan Shaoting (1547 - 1617)
• Grandson: Yan Yuncong (1599 – 1657)
Literary Works
Film and Television Works
References
• 嚴世蕃 (Chinese)
The text above incorporates content created automatically using artifical intelligence.
Yan Shifan (1513 – 1565), courtesy name Deqiu, and studio name Donglou, was from Jiexia Village, Fenyi County, Jiangxi Province. His ancestral home was in Shaowu, Fujian Province. He was the son of Grand Secretary Yan Song. Yan Shifan had a short neck, was obese, and was blind in one eye.