Yang Nengge

• Yang Nengge, styled Jiliang and also known by the sobriquet Jianhou. He was a member of the Han Army’s Plain Red Banner. In the 16th year of the Daoguang reign (1836), he passed the imperial examination as a jinshi (ranked 23rd in the second class). He was appointed compiler at the Hanlin Academy and served as chief examiner in Guangdong and Zhejiang, eventually holding the position of Zanshan. In the 4th year of the Tongzhi reign (1865), he was promoted to Inspector of Gansu, and the following year he was transferred to the Governor of Jiangning. An accomplished calligrapher, he studied the styles of Wang Xizhi and Yan Zhenqing and developed his own distinctive style.