Collected Illustrations of the Three Realms (Volume 27)

Fu Bi, whose courtesy name was Yanguo, was a native of Henan. While serving as the Military Commissioner of the Jingdong CircuitAnfushi; a high-ranking regional official responsible for maintaining order and civil administration, a massive flood struck the Heshuo regionThe lands north of the Yellow River. Fu Bi distributed relief and saved the lives of more than five hundred thousand people. This achievement was celebrated throughout the empire and became the standard model for disaster relief.

In the second year of the Zhihe era [1055 AD], he was summoned to court and appointed as Joint Manager of Affairs with the Secretariat-ChancelleryTong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhang Shi; one of the highest executive offices, effectively the role of Chancellor and Grand Academician of the Hall of the Collection of Sages. He was appointed at the same time as Wen Yanbo.

On the day the imperial decree was proclaimed, the scholar-officials congratulated one another in the imperial court. The Emperor remarked to the Academician Ouyang Xiu, “Since the public sentiment is so favorable, is this appointment not far better than choosing a minister based on dreams or divination?” The Emperor is referencing historical legends where rulers claimed to find their ministers through divine visions or oracles; he suggests that Fu Bi's obvious merit and popularity are a more "sage-like" way to govern.