Background and Early Career
Lu Yan was born in 829, during the reign of Emperor Wenzong. His family was originally from Wei Prefecture (魏州, headquartered in modern Handan, Hebei) and claimed its ancestry from the mythical emperor Shaohao, although the traceable ancestry went back only to the Jin Dynasty (265-420) official Lu Jia (路嘉). Subsequent ancestors of Lu Yan's served as officials of Northern Wei, Northern Zhou, Sui Dynasty, and Tang Dynasty. His grandfather Lu Jideng (路季登) and father Lu Qun (路群) both served in a number of posts in the imperial government. Lu Qun died in 834. Lu Yan had at least one older brother, Lu Yue (路嶽), who also later became an imperial government official (although a comment by the former chancellor Cui Xuan (see below) implied that Lu Yan was the 10th born son and so must have had eight other older brothers). Both Lu Yue and Lu Yan passed the imperial examinations in the Jinshi class during the middle of Dazhong era (847-860) of Emperor Wenzong's uncle Emperor Xuānzong.
Lu Yan was said to be highly intelligent in his youth. As many of his father's friends later served as regional governors, he often wrote them, and it was said that it was because their influence that he was promoted quickly. At one point, when Cui Xuan served as the military governor (Jiedushi) of Huainan Circuit (淮南, headquartered in modern Yangzhou, Jiangsu), Lu served under him as assistant governor. It was said that Cui recognized Lu's talent and made the remark, "Lu Ten will one day be in that particular office ." It was said that thereafter, Lu was recalled to the capital Chang'an to serve as an imperial censor with the title Jiancha Yushi (監察御史), and thereafter would remain at the capital. Early in the Xiantong era (860-874) of Emperor Xuānzong's son Emperor Yizong, Lu served as Tuntian Yuanwailang (屯田員外郎), a low-level official at the ministry of public works (工部, Gongbu), and later an imperial scholar (翰林學士, Hanlin Xueshi), then a highly prestigious position. However, it was said that when Cui heard this news, he commended, "Alas, Lu Ten is an imperial scholar already? How can he live long given this?"
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