西南夷列傳

The chieftains of the southwestern Yi numbered in the dozens. Among those with tied-hair customs who farmed and lived in settlements, Yelang was the largest to the southeast, Dian was the largest to the west, and Qiongdu the largest to the north. Beyond these, to the west, the Sui and Kunming peoples wore their hair loose, followed their herds, had no fixed settlements or rulers, and ranged over territory thousands of li across.

In the time of King Wei of Chu, General Zhuang Qiao led troops up the Yangtze, conquering the Ba and Qianzhong regions and reaching Lake Dian. Finding the lake plain fertile and vast, Qiao was about to return when Qin seized the road home. Stranded, he made himself king of Dian, adopting local dress and customs. During the Qin dynasty, a road called the Five-Foot Way was cut through to these peoples, but when Qin fell, the Han abandoned the region.

In 135 BC, the envoy Tang Meng discovered that Shu merchants were smuggling goods to Yelang, which controlled the Zangke River — a waterway leading to Panyu. He proposed using Yelang's soldiers and the river route as a flanking strategy against Nanyue. The emperor approved. Tang Meng traveled to Yelang, presented lavish gifts, and the Yelang marquis agreed to accept Han officials. Sima Xiangru also persuaded the Qiong and Zuo peoples to accept Han administration.

But the road construction required corvee labor from Ba and Shu that lasted years, killed many workers through starvation and disease, and provoked repeated revolts. Gongsun Hong, sent to investigate, recommended abandoning the project. The Han withdrew from the western Yi territories, keeping only Yelang.

Later, Zhang Qian, returning from his mission to Central Asia, reported seeing Shu cloth and Qiong bamboo staffs in Bactria, brought overland through India. He urged opening a route through the southwest to reach India. Envoys were sent to Dian, where the king famously asked: "Which is greater, Han or my kingdom?" The Yelang marquis asked the same question — both living in such isolation that they imagined themselves rulers of great states.

After the destruction of Nanyue in 111 BC, the Han turned to pacify the southwest. The Qielan lord, fearing military service far from home, revolted and killed the Han governor. Eight colonels of Ba-Shu troops suppressed the revolt and pacified the southern Yi, establishing Zangke Commandery. The Yelang marquis, who had leaned on Nanyue for support, submitted and was made King of Yelang.

The Qiong and Zuo lords were also destroyed, and the terrified Yanmang people requested annexation. Four new commanderies were established: Yuexi from Qiongdu, Shenli from Zuodu, Wenshan from Yanmang, and Wudu from the White Horse Di people west of Guanghan.

The envoy Wang Ranyu was sent to pressure the King of Dian. The Dian king's neighboring vassals, the Laokuang and Mimo peoples, refused to submit and attacked Han envoys. In 109 BC, Han troops crushed them and approached Dian. The King of Dian, who had been cooperative from the start, surrendered his entire kingdom. He was made King of Dian with an official seal and allowed to continue governing his people. The Han established Yizhou Commandery.

Of all the southwestern chieftains, only the kings of Yelang and Dian received royal seals. Dian, though smaller, was the most favored.

The Grand Historian remarks: The Chu heir Zhuang Qiao first opened the way. When the Han exploited the Dayuan (Bactrian) connection, they commissioned Tang Meng. The strange customs of Laokuang and Mimo gave way. Yelang was the greatest, Qiong and Zuo the most powerful. Once commanderies were established, credit endures for ten thousand generations.