[ Rescued Mao Jie from jail but unable to restore his rank. Supported Cao Pi’s succession and ascension.
Officer Details
Wade-Giles: Ho Hsia (Yang-shih)
Simplified Chinese: 和洽 (阳士)
Pronunciation: He2 Xia2 (Yang2shi4)
Cantonese (Yale): Wo Hap (Yeung-si)
Cantonese (Jyutpin): Wo Hap (Joeng-si)
Birthplace: Xiping in Runan
Other Names: He He, He Qia
Name Notes: Also known as He Qia. Appears as He He in the Brewitt-Taylor edition of Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
Rank and Titles
Palace Attendant; Prefect of the Gentleman of the Palace; Minister of the Household; Minister over the Masses; Grand Master of Ceremonies
Literary Appearances
Romance of the Three Kingdoms: 66
Sanguozhi: Wei 1, Wei 3, Wei 12, Wei 23
Hou Han shu: 65, 68, 69
Zizhi tongjian: 66
Biography
He Xia, styled Yangshi, was initially nominated Filial and Incorrupt by Xu Shao and invited to appointment by He Jin, but he refused to go. In about AD 190 when many gentry were traveling to Yuan Shao’s Ji province, He Xia, suspecting that Ji would soon succumb to war, instead traveled to Jing.
He Xia joined Cao Cao’s staff in AD 208. There he argued against the rigidity of the sumptuary codes applied by Cui Yan and Mao Jie. Later in AD 216, serving as Palace Attendant, he offered support to Mao Jie, rescuing him from jail, after Cui Yan had been put to death.
When Cao Cao died in AD 220, He Xia served as Gentlemen of the Palace overseeing household security for the kingdom of Wei. He helped to arrange a smooth succession for Cao Pi and was among the sponsors of a stele commemorating Cao Pi taking the imperial title. As a result he was enfeoffed and named Minister of the Household in the new empire. He would later receive additional honors from Cao Rui.
1: Source: de Crespigny, Rafe: A Biographical Dictionary of Later Han to the Three Kingdoms (23-220 AD)