According to the "Records of the Grand Historian" (Shiji), Confucius had three thousand disciples, among whom seventy-two mastered the Six Arts (Liu Yi: rites, music, archery, charioteering, calligraphy, and mathematics), known as the "Seventy-two Virtuous Disciples." The ten most accomplished among them were called the "Ten Philosophers of Confucius's School."
Those distinguished in virtuous conduct include: Yan Hui, Min Sun, Ran Geng, and Ran Yong.
In matters of governance, those who excelled were: Ran Qiu and Zhong You.
Those outstanding in speech were: Zai Wo and Duanmu Ci.
In literature, the outstanding ones are: Yan Yan and Bu Shang.
Confucius had as many as three thousand disciples, among whom seventy-two were worthy individuals, and many became high-ranking officials and pillars of their respective states. After Confucius died, "the seventy disciples scattered and traveled among the feudal lords; the greater ones became teachers, ministers, and chancellors, while the lesser ones befriended and taught the scholar-officials."