Chen was born in 1365 in
Linchuan County,
Jiangxi province. He obtained the positions of
juren (举人) and
jinshi (進士) in 1393 and 1394 respectively after taking the
imperial examination. In 1396, Chen was sent on a diplomatic mission to the western region of
Qaidam to establish border defence. In 1397, he was sent by the
Hongwu Emperor as an envoy to
Vietnam. From 1406 to 1411, he served in the Wenyuange (文渊阁), the imperial library in the
Forbidden City, as an editor of the
Yongle Encyclopedia. Buddhist idols and temples in
Turfan were described in 1414 by Chen Cheng. In 1414, 1416 and 1420, Chen Cheng led a Ming mission to the court of the
Timurid dynasty at
Samarkand. == Works by Chen Cheng ==