Background

It is not known when Li Yinheng was born. He came from a prominent aristocratic family, and both his great-grandfather Li Jifu and grandfather Li Deyu were chancellors. Li Deyu, in particular, was particularly powerful during the reign of Emperor Wuzong of Tang, controlling the affairs of state. After Emperor Wuzong was succeeded by his uncle Emperor Xuānzong, however, Li Deyu lost power and was eventually exiled, as was his son (Li Yinheng's father) Li Ye (李燁). Because of this, Li Yinheng was unable to obtain important offices early in his life.

After the fall of Tang Dynasty, Li Yinheng served under Zhu Wen, the founding emperor of the succeeding Later Liang, as You Bujue (右補闕), a low-level advisory official at the legislative bureau of government (中書省, Zhongshu Sheng). In 908, Emperor Taizu sent him as an emissary (assisting Zhao Guangyi) in officially bestowing the office of military governor (Jiedushi) of Qinghai (清海, headquartered in modern Guangzhou, Guangdong) and Jinghai (靜海, headquartered in modern Hanoi, Vietnam) Circuits on the warlord Liu Yin, who controlled Qinghai and who was nominally Emperor Taizu's vassal. When Zhao and Li arrived at Qinghai, Liu kept both of them on his staff and did not return them to Later Liang proper. (Li was willing to stay because he saw the Central Plain region as still being in turmoil.) Liu subsequently engaged him in much of the strategic planning and made him an assistant to Liu in Liu's role as military governor.

Career under Liu Yan

In 917, Liu Yin's brother and successor Liu Yan declared himself the emperor of a new state of Yue (soon changed to Han, and therefore the state became historically known as Southern Han). He commissioned Li Yinheng, along with Zhao Guangyi and another official, Yang Dongqian, as chancellors with the designation Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi (同中書門下平章事), with Li receiving the secondary office of deputy minister of rites (禮部侍郎, Libu Shilang). That was the last historical reference to Li, who was said to have died in office, but with no indication when he did.

Notes and references

• Spring and Autumn Annals of the Ten Kingdoms (十國春秋), vol. 62.

• Book of Southern Han (南漢書), vol. 9.

• Zizhi Tongjian, vols. 267, 270.

家世

李殷衡生年不詳。他來自顯赫的官僚家族趙郡李氏，曾祖父李吉甫和祖父李德裕都曾任宰相。李德裕在唐武宗年間尤其有權，掌控國政。武宗崩，唐宣宗繼位後，李德裕失權，最終被貶，兒子李燁即李殷衡的父親一同被貶。因此李殷衡不能在早年得到重要官職。

唐朝滅亡後，李殷衡效力後梁開國皇帝梁太祖，為右補闕。開平二年（908年），太祖派膳部郎中趙光裔充官告使，李殷衡為副，出使控制清海軍且名義附庸于梁的軍閥劉隱，授其清海軍和靜海軍節度使。趙光裔和李殷衡到清海軍後，劉隱將他們留在自己的幕府，沒有送他們回梁。李殷衡因中原多兵戈，于是樂于安居嶺南。劉隱對他敬重禮待，多次讓他參與軍事規劃，署為節度判官。

效力劉䶮

貞明三年（917年），劉隱的弟弟和繼任者劉䶮稱大越皇帝（不久改國號漢，故史稱南漢）。他任李殷衡、趙光裔和楊洞潛為宰相，授同中書門下平章事，以李殷衡為禮部侍郎。不久，他卒于任上，但卒年不詳。

軼聞

李殷衡的姐夫唐朝宰相劉瞻有子劉贊，少孤，也不聰明，李殷衡督促他讀書，常打他，也沒有長進。一次，劉贊逃到嵩山，遇到一白衣老人，老人說：「給你開心，聰明必定過人十倍。」從此劉贊每天背誦一卷書，又有文才，後來中進士，後梁年間充崇政院學士，還對李殷衡念念不忘，也是一樁異事。

評價

• 《十國春秋》論曰：（李）殷衡為衛公之後，左右霸王，無咎無譽。

注釋及參考文獻