Half-Sleeve Jacket original: 半臂 banbi

The Veritable Records original: 實錄 Shilu; historical annals of the imperial reigns state that during the Daye era of the Sui Dynasty 605–618 CE, palace officials neiguan (内官): eunuchs or court officials serving in the inner palace frequently wore the half-sleeve jacket. By removing the [outer] sleeves, the long sleeves of the undergarment remained visible.

Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty reigned 618–626 CE reduced the length of the sleeves and officially called it the half-sleeve (banbi). It is what we call a beizi original: 背子; referring here to a specific short-sleeved over-garment today. In the region between the Yangtze and Huai Rivers, it is sometimes called a chuozi.

Scholars competed to wear this garment, which was first formally regulated during the Sui Dynasty. Today, its common name is the dahuo dahuo (搭護): a cross-collared, short-sleeved robe or jacket; it is also referred to as a beixin beixin (背心): literally "back and heart," the Chinese term for a vest or waistcoat.