His most important works are commentaries on Lao Tzu's Dao de jing and the I Ching. The text of the Dao de jing that appeared with his commentary was widely considered as the best copy of this work until the discovery of the Ma-wang-tui texts in 1973.
He served as a minor beauracrat in the Wei kingdom, one of the Three Kingdoms, and was married with a daughter. He died of pestilence at the age of 24.