Zhang Jun (張濬) (died January 20, 904), courtesy name Yuchuan (禹川), was an official of the Chinese dynasty Tang dynasty, serving as a chancellor during the reigns of Emperor Xizong and Emperor Xizong's brother Emperor Zhaozong. Early in Emperor Zhaozong's reign, Zhang was a major advocate for the imperial campaign to regain power from the regional warlords, but was removed after commanding a disastrous campaign against Li Keyong and forced into retirement. Late in Emperor Zhaozong's reign, with Emperor Zhaozong physically controlled by another warlord, Zhu Quanzhong, who had designs on taking over the throne as emperor (and eventually did, founding Later Liang), Zhu, while formerly an ally of Zhang's, was concerned that Zhang would encourage other warlords into a coordinated campaign against Zhu to stop his takeover, and so had his ally Zhang Quanyi slaughter Zhang Jun and his household.
Early life
It is not known when Zhang Jun was born. His family was originally from Hejian (河間, in modern Cangzhou, Hebei) and claimed ancestry from Zhang Er (), an ally of Han dynasty's founder Emperor Gao during the Chu–Han contention, who carried the title of Prince of Zhao in the early Han times, but his traceable ancestry only went back to the Northern Zhou official Zhang Xian (), who was bestowed the Xianbei surname of Chiluo (), but whose son Zhang Zhao () later reverted to the surname of Zhang during Northern Zhou's succeeding dynasty Sui dynasty. Zhang Zhao's descendants served Sui and Tang dynasty. Zhang Jun's grandfather Zhang Zhongsu () served as a Zhongshu Sheren, a mid-level official at the legislative bureau of government (中書省, Zhongshu Sheng), but his father Zhang Duo () either did not serve in the imperial government at all, or served in a very minor office. He had at least two younger brothers, Zhang Yong () and Zhang Hang ().
It was said that Zhang Jun had an open and careless personally. He studied literature and history extensively, and often spoke in grand terms; because of that latter characteristic, the well-learned did not have good opinions of him. As a result of his poor reputation, he was not initially able to start an official career, and he became a hermit at Mount Jinfeng () and the time studying strategies left by Guiguzi, hoping to use those strategies during troubled times.
Early career
During Zhang Jun's time as a hermit, he met the eunuch Yang Fugong, the director of palace communications, and Yang recommended Zhang to be Taichang Boshi (), a scholar at the ministry of worship (太常寺, Taichang Si). Zhang was subsequently made Duzhi Yuanwailang (), a low-level official at the ministry of census (戶部, Hubu).
In 880, as the major agrarian rebel Huang Chao approached the Tang capital Chang'an, Zhang claimed to be ill, and he took his mother and his family to take refuge at Shang Prefecture (商州, in modern Shangluo, Shaanxi). When Huang subsequently attacked Chang'an, the powerful eunuch Tian Lingzi took then-reigning Emperor Xizong and fled toward Chengdu, where Tian's brother Chen Jingxuan served as the military governor (Jiedushi) of Xichuan Circuit (). Meanwhile, while Emperor Xizong was fleeing through Xingyuan (興元, in modern Hanzhong, Shaanxi), his train was running out of food supplies. Li Kang () the magistrate of Hanyin County (漢陰, in modern Ankang, Shaanxi) met the emperor, with several hundred mules bearing food, to supply the emperor. When Emperor Xizong asked how Li Kang, as a mere county magistrate, could think of this, Li Kang credited Zhang for reminding him. Thereafter, Emperor Xizong summoned Zhang to his presence and made him Bingbu Langzhong (兵部郎中, Bingbu Langzhong). Zhang thereafter ingratiated himself with Tian as well, including prostrating himself before Tian, but embarrassed himself on one occasion when Tian pointed this out in public. This also offended Yang, as he and Tian were rivals, particularly because Zhang, after ingratiating Tian, was no longer paying attention to Yang.