Collected Illustrations of the Three Realms: Portraits, Volume 7

Wen Yanbo, whose courtesy name was Kuanfu, was a native of Jiexiu in Fenzhou Located in modern-day Shanxi Province.. In the second year of the Zhihe era [1055], he was reappointed as the Minister of Personnel and served as a Joint Manager of Affairs with the Secretariat-Chancellery and Grand Academician of the Zhaowen Pavilion These titles signify the highest level of administrative power, essentially serving as a Grand Councilor or Prime Minister.. He was appointed to these positions alongside Fu Bi Fu Bi (1004–1083) was another highly respected statesman and diplomat of the Northern Song Dynasty., and the entire imperial court celebrated, believing that the right men had been chosen for the job.

In the third year of the Yuanfeng era [1080], he was appointed as Grand Marshal (Taiwei) and was again assigned to govern the Henan region. Before his departure, the Emperor held a banquet for him in the Qionglin Garden The Qionglin Garden was an imperial park in the capital, Kaifeng, used for hosting grand celebrations and honoring high officials.. Twice the Emperor sent high-ranking court messengers to present him with poems to see him off on his journey. People of the time considered this a supreme honor.

After a long period of service, he requested to retire due to old age. He was granted retirement with the title of Grand Preceptor (Taishi) and resided in Luoyang. At the beginning of the Yuanyou era [1086], the Empress Dowager Xuanren, acting on the recommendation of Sima Guang Sima Guang (1019–1086) was the preeminent historian and conservative leader who compiled the Zizhi Tongjian., commanded Wen to return to oversee the management of important military and state affairs. He was required to attend court once every six days and participate in the Classics Seminar (Jingyan) These were formal lectures where scholars explained Confucian classics and history to the Emperor. twice a month. After holding this position for five years, he retired once more.