Ji Shao

Ji Shao (253 – c.9 September 304), courtesy name Yanzu, was a politician of the Jin dynasty (266–420). He was the son of Ji Kang, one of the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove. Although his father was wrongfully killed by the ruling Sima clan, Ji Shao rose to become a prominent minister within the Western Jin court, reaching the position of Palace Attendant. He became embroiled in the War of the Eight Princes and immortalized himself by sacrificing his life to protect Emperor Hui of Jin at the Battle of Dangyin. Opinions on Ji Shao varied among contemporary and later scholars; he was praised for his exceptional loyalty to the emperor at Dangyin, but also criticized for going against the Confucian principle of filial piety by serving the family that killed his father.