In his article "Human Rights in Ancient Chinese Law," Hsing Yi-tien points out that the emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han also placed a high value on human life, including the lives of slaves. The emperor declared: "It is in the nature of things that humans are precious.
邢義田在「中國古代法律中的人權」文中指出，東漢光武帝也服膺「人為貴」之義，曾下詔：「天地之性，人為貴。