During Tang

It is not known when Yao Yanzhang was born, but it is known that he was from Ru'nan (汝南, in modern Zhumadian, Henan). The progress of his initial military career was not clear — but, presumably, like Ma Yin, he was initially conscripted into the army of the late Tang Dynasty warlord Qin Zongquan, who controlled his home region, and then, after Qin declared himself emperor of a new state, was sent south on an expedition commanded by Qin's general Sun Ru; after Sun was defeated and killed by Yang Xingmi, Yao, presumably as was in the case with Ma, followed Liu Jianfeng, who headed southwest, eventually taking over Wu'an Circuit (武安, headquartered in modern Changsha, Hunan), where Liu became its military governor.

In 896, Liu was assassinated by his soldier Chen Zhan after carrying out an affair with Chen's wife. The officers killed Chen and initially offered leadership to Liu's strategist Zhang Ji. However, at the time that Zhang was about to accept leadership and enter the headquarters, his horse bit his leg. Believing this to be a bad omen, he instead recommended Ma to take over leadership. As Ma was then, under orders Liu previously ordered, attacking Shao Prefecture (邵州, in modern Shaoyang, Hunan), which was then occupied by the officers Jiang Xun (蔣勛) and Deng Jichong (鄧繼崇) (who had previously rebelled against Liu's rule), Zhang sent emissaries to formally summon Ma back from the Shao campaign. Ma initially hesitated. Yao, who was then serving under Ma in the Shao campaign, persuaded him to accept, stating, "You, Lord, were effectively three people in the same flesh with General Liu and Commander Zhang. Now the General suffered disaster, and the Commander hurt his leg. The will of heaven and the wishes of the people are all on you; who can it be other than you, Lord?" Ma therefore left the officer Li Qiong (李瓊) to continue to the Shao siege while he himself returned to Wu'an's capital Tan Prefecture (in modern Changsha, Hunan) to accept command of the circuit. (Zhang, after transferring command to Ma, himself assumed command of the Shao campaign, and captured the prefecture and Jiang in 897.)

In 898, it was under Yao's recommendation that Ma launched a campaign to try to capture Heng (衡州, in modern Hengyang, Hunan), Yong (永州, in modern Yongzhou, Hunan), Dao (道州, in modern Yongzhou), Lian (連州, in modern Qingyuan, Guangdong), and Chen (郴州, in modern Chenzhou, Hunan) Prefectures. Yao also recommended Li Qiong as the commander of the operations, and Ma agreed. Ma's army was able to thereafter capture all five prefectures and take them under Ma's control. After the end of the campaign, Ma commissioned Yao as the prefect of Li Prefecture (澧州, in modern Changde, Hunan). Later, Ma made him the commander of the Jingjiang Circuit (靜江, headquartered in modern Guilin, Guangxi) army.

During Chu

As of 910 — by which time Tang had fallen, and Ma Yin was effective the ruler of his own state (Chu, as its prince) that formally was a vassal to Tang's successor state Later Liang — Yao Yanzhang was referred to as the prefect of Heng Prefecture (橫州, in modern Nanning, Guangxi), in addition to being the commander of the Jingjiang army. That year (or slightly before), the warlord who controlled the Lingnan region, Liu Yin the military governor of Qinghai Circuit (清海, headquartered in modern Guangzhou, Guangdong), had sent his brother Liu Yan to try to capture Rong (容州, in modern Yulin, Guangxi) and Gao (高州, in modern Maoming, Guangxi) Prefectures, respectively, but Liu Yan was repelled by Pang Juzhao (龐巨昭) the military governor of Ningyuan Circuit (寧遠, headquartered at Rong Prefecture) and Liu Changlu the defender of Gao. However, Liu Changlu believed that he eventually could not withstand another attack from Liu Yin, and therefore, in 910, wrote Ma and offered the prefecture to him. Ma sent Yao to welcome him and escort him to Chu territory. When Yao passed through Rong Prefecture, Pang's officer Mo Yanzhao (莫彥昭) tried to persuade Pang to ambush him, but Pang refused; instead, Pang killed Mo and also surrendered his circuit to Ma. Ma made Yao the acting prefect of Rong, and Yao had soldiers escort Pang, Liu Changlu, and their families to Chu's capital Changsha.

In 911, at Ma's request, the Later Liang emperor Zhu Huang commissioned Yao to be the deputy military governor of Ningyuan. However, that year, Liu Yan against attacked Rong. Ma sent the general Xu Dexun to try to aid Yao. But Yao, believing that the defenses could not hold, took the people of Rong and its treasury and returned to Changsha, allowing Liu Yin to take over Rong and Gao.

In 913, Yao commanded a Chu navy in attacking E Prefecture (鄂州, in modern Wuhan, Hubei), then belonging to Chu's northeastern neighbor Wu. Wu sent the general Lü Shizao to aid the E garrison. Before Lü could reach E, however, Yao withdrew.

In 921, Chu came under the attack of the non-Han tribe known as the "barbarians of Chen and Xu" (辰漵蠻, i.e., from modern Huaihua, Hunan). Yao led an army against them and defeated them.

In 927 — by which time Later Liang had fallen, and Ma was the vassal of the succeeding Later Tang — the Later Tang emperor Li Siyuan gave Ma the greater title of King of Chu. With that greater title, Ma established a governmental structure that mirrored the structure of the imperial government. He made Yao and Xu his chancellors. Yao died in 939.

Notes and references

• Spring and Autumn Annals of the Ten Kingdoms, vol. 72.

• Zizhi Tongjian, vols. 260, 261, 262, 267, 268, 271, 276.

唐朝年間

姚彥章生年不詳，汝南人。少年時沉勇倜儻，有智略武略。乾符年間，黃巢起事，姚彥章家鄉的奉國軍節度使秦宗權招募豪俊，姚彥章與馬殷等便加入其麾下。姚彥章善用鐵槊，其鐵槊重百餘斤，上馬時舞得疾如旋風，觀者都認為他是壯士。後來秦宗權稱帝，派孫儒南渡淮河，姚彥章在孫儒軍中，助其攻占廣陵。後楊行密于宣城敗殺孫儒，姚彥章和馬殷都追隨孫儒別將劉建鋒向西南行進，最終占領武安軍，劉建鋒成為其節度使。姚彥章領聽直軍，最受親信。

乾寧三年（896年）四月，劉建鋒因與長直兵陳贍妻私通，被陳贍所殺。諸將殺陳贍，迎行軍司馬張佶為留後。張佶正要入府接受推戴時，他的馬突然對他又踢又咬，傷其左髀。他自認為這是惡兆，轉而推薦馬殷為留後。當時馬殷為都指揮使，奉劉建鋒先前所命，正在攻打先前反叛劉建鋒的將領蔣勛和鄧繼崇占據的邵州。張佶與姚彥章商議迎馬殷，于是派姚彥章率所部去邵州以牒文召歸馬殷。馬殷起初猶豫，姚彥章勸他受任：「公和劉龍驤、張司馬是一體，現在龍驤遇禍，司馬傷髀，天命和人望都在公這裡，舍公其誰？」馬殷便留下親從都副指揮使李瓊繼續攻打邵州，命姚彥章率眾先回，自己也回到武安軍部潭州，接手軍鎮。張佶複為行軍司馬，代馬殷主攻邵州事，並于次年克邵州，擒蔣勛。

姚彥章以功遷長直都指揮使。光化元年（898年）五月，因姚彥章推薦，馬殷發起戰事，意圖占領衡州、永州、道州、連州、郴州。姚彥章還推薦李瓊為嶺北七州游奕使主此事，馬殷同意。馬殷軍隨後占領這五州並將它們置于馬殷控制之下。馬殷後又任姚彥章為靜江軍行軍司馬、監軍府事，遷檢校工部尚書、橫州刺史。

楚國年間

唐朝滅亡後，馬殷成為自己領地楚國的實際統治者楚王，名義為取代了唐朝的後梁的封臣。控制嶺南地區的清海軍節度使劉隱曾派弟弟劉龑試圖分別占領容州、高州。但劉龑被寧遠節度使龐巨昭和高州防禦使劉昌魯所退。但劉昌魯自認為終究不能抵擋劉隱再次進攻，于開平四年（910年）寫信給馬殷，以州歸附。龐巨昭也遣小吏間道納款于馬殷。十二月，馬殷派時任澧州刺史的姚彥章與捉生指揮使張可求領馬步軍八千人去迎接龐巨昭、劉昌魯等三千餘口到楚地。當姚彥章行經容州時，龐巨昭裨將容南指揮使莫彥昭試圖說服龐巨昭伏擊之，龐巨昭拒絕，並殺了莫彥昭，也以軍鎮歸附馬殷。馬殷以姚彥章權知容州事，姚彥章到高州，遣士兵護送龐巨昭、劉昌魯及其家族、士卒千人到楚都城長沙。

乾化元年（911年）十二月，在馬殷請求下，後梁帝朱晃任姚彥章為寧遠軍節度副使，權知容州。當月，劉龑反攻容州。馬殷派都指揮使許德勛以桂州兵援助姚彥章，但姚彥章不能守，帶著容州的百姓和府庫回到長沙，使得劉隱接手了容州和高州。

乾化三年（913年）八月，姚彥章指揮楚水軍攻打楚國東北鄰國吳國治下的鄂州。吳派池州團練使呂師造為水陸行營應援使。但呂師造尚未到鄂州，姚彥章即撤軍。

龍德元年（921年），楚國遭受辰漵蠻攻擊。十二月，姚彥章率軍相抗，將其擊敗。

後梁滅亡後，馬殷又成為其後繼者後唐的封臣。同光二年（924年）九月，馬殷弟馬存被任為遙領寧遠節度使，可見姚彥章已不在任。天成二年（927年）八月，後唐皇帝李嗣源加馬殷為楚國王。馬殷因而建立了一套參照帝國政府的政府結構。他以姚彥章為左丞相，許德勛為右丞相。長興二年（931年）閏五月，由衡州刺史遷昭順軍節度使（時屬吳，遙領）。四年（933年）十月，以昭順軍節度使兼武安軍副使為檢校太尉、同平章事。清泰二年（935年）二月，加兼侍中，後晉天福四年（939年）五月卒于昭順軍節度使任上。

評價

• 《十國春秋》論曰：彥章具述天人，指畫進退，贊襄之力居多。

注釋及參考文獻