remarks and praised him. Wu Yan went on to serve as Prefect of Dunhuang, and Administrator of Yanmen. He was eventually appointed the Interior Minister of Shunyang (順陽; south of present-day Xichuan County, Henan). The Prince of Shunyang at the time, Sima Chang (司馬暢), was said to be very arrogant and extravagant. Chang had charged many of the previous Interior Ministers before Wu Yan of crimes they had not committed. However, he was unable to do so with Wu Yan, who upheld the law and practised strict punishments on criminals to the point that many feared him. Sima Chang did not dare slander him and instead only recommended him to become a Cavalier In Regular Attendance Without Assignment (散骑常侍) to send him away. In 290, the Inspector of Jiaozhou and also a former Wu official, Tao Huang died. Wu Yan was appointed Commander of Nanzhong and Inspector of Jiaozhou to replace Tao Huang. Tao's death sparked a rebellion in Jiuzhen Commandery led by Zhao Zhi (趙祉) who ousted the Grand Administrator of Jiaozhou, but Wu Yan managed to quell the revolt. He spent more than twenty years in Jiaozhou, where he maintained the peace around the region. Near the end of his life, Wu Yan requested to be replaced, so he was appointed as the Empress's Chamberlain (大長秋) before he died in office. His last known activity was in 307, when the general, Li Zhao (李釗) was sent to quell a tribal rebellion in Ningzhou (寧州, modern Yunnan and Guizhou) that had broke out the prior year. Wu Yan sent his son, Wu Zi (吾咨), to assist Li against the tribes. Anecdote Animosity from Lu Kang's sons Emperor Wu once questioned Wu Yan on who was better between Lu Kang and his cousin, Lu Xi (陸喜). Wu Yan remarked, "In moral prestige, Kang is inferior to Xi. In meritorious deeds, Xi does not compare to Kang." After Wu Yan was stationed in Jiaozhou, he sent gifts to Lu Kang's sons, Lu Ji and Lu Yun. Ji wanted to accept them at first, but Yun stopped him, citing his poor upbringing as well as the remark he made about their father. Ji agreed, and the two began speaking lowly about Wu Yan to others. However, one official, Yin Yu (尹虞), admonished the brothers for judging Wu Yan by his circumstances and ruthlessly slandering him for a minor disrespect. The brothers, realizing