Original text
Chen She family
Sima Qian? [Han Dynasty]
Chen Shengzhe was a native of Yangcheng, with the courtesy name She. Wu Guang was from Yangxia, with the courtesy name Uncle. When Chen She was young, he tried to farm with servants. He stopped plowing on the ridge, and he felt regretful for a long time. He said, "As long as you are rich and noble, you will never forget each other." The servant smiled and said, "How can you be rich and noble if you work for servants?" She Taixi said: "What a shame! How can a sparrow know the ambition of a swan!"
In July of the first year of the Second Emperor's reign, he sent Lu Zuoshi to garrison Yuyang, and nine hundred people settled in Daze Township. Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were both appointed as village commanders. It will rain heavily, the road is blocked, and the time has passed. If the deadline is missed, all laws will be cut off. Chen Sheng and Wu Guang Naimou said: "If you die now, you will die, and if you make great plans, you will die; if you wait for death, how can the country die?" Chen Sheng said: "The world has been suffering from Qin for a long time. I heard that the second generation has a young son, so he should not be established, but he should be established. It was the young master Fu Su. Fu Su sent the foreign generals to him. Now they heard that he was not guilty, but the common people heard that he was a good man, and they did not know that Xiang Yan was a Chu general who had meritorious service and loved his soldiers. , the people of Chu pity him. He may think that he is dead, or he may think that he will be killed. Now I sincerely claim that I am the master of Fusu and Xiang Yan, and I will sing for the world." Wu Guang thinks so. It’s about divination. The diviner knew what it meant, and said: "Everything is done with one step, and it is a success. But what's the ghost of the divination with just one step?" Chen Sheng and Wu Guangxi thought of ghosts and said, "This teaching will impress everyone first." They wrote it in Dan Shu silk. "King Chen Sheng" was placed in the belly of a fish that someone caught. The soldier bought a fish and cooked it, and found a book in the belly of the fish, so he thought it was strange. He also ordered Wu Guangzhi to set up a bonfire in the nearby Cong Temple at night. The fox croaked and shouted: "The great Chu is rising, King Chen Sheng." All the soldiers were frightened at night. On the same day, the words "stroke" often refer to "Muchen Sheng".
Wu Guangsu loved people, and most of his soldiers were servants. The general was drunk, and Guangguo said many words that he wanted to die. He was angry with the general and ordered him to humiliate him in order to anger the people. Wei Guo whipped Guang. The captain's sword is upright, he rises widely, seizes and kills the captain. Chen Shengzuo killed two lieutenants. He summoned the disciples and said: "When the rain comes, all of you have missed the deadline. If you miss the deadline, you should be beheaded. If you don't behead, the dead will be garrisoned for 16 or 7. And if a strong man does not die, it will be enough. If he dies, he will be famous, and the princes will Xiang Ning has the right to do it!" All the disciples said: "I accept the order respectfully." They falsely called the young master Fusu and Xiang Yan to follow the wishes of the people. If you show favor to the right, you will be called Da Chu. They formed an alliance for the altar and offered sacrifices to the captain's head. Chen Sheng established himself as general and Wu Guang as captain. Attack Daze Township, collect it and attack Qi. Under Qi, he ordered Ge Ying, a native of Fuli, to lead his troops to the east of Qi. Attack Qi, Feng, Ku, Zhe and Qiao. Let's withdraw our troops. When Bi arrived at Chen, he had six to seven hundred chariots, more than a thousand cavalry, and tens of thousands of soldiers. When attacking Chen, Chen Shouling was not around, so he only guarded Cheng and Zhan Qiaomen. If he failed to win, the chief minister died, so he moved to Chen. In a few days, he ordered the three elders, heroes and others to come and take care of things. The three elders and heroes all said: "The general is strong and strong, he attacks the unjust, punishes the Qin Dynasty, and restores the state of Chu. It is fitting that he should be king." Chen She was made king and named Zhang Chu. At this time, all the prefectures and counties who harassed the Qin officials punished their chief officials and killed them in response to Chen She.
Translation
Chen Sheng is from Yangcheng, with the courtesy name She. Wu Guang was from Yangxia, and his courtesy name was Uncle. When Chen She was young, he was hired to plow the land with others. One day, he stopped plowing and went to rest on the high ground on the edge of the field. He sighed for a long time due to disappointment and said, "If anyone becomes rich in the future, don't forget each other. "The hired companion smiled and replied: "How can you be rich as a farmer?" Chen Sheng sighed and said, "Hey, how can the bird know Honghu's ambition?"
In July of the first year of Qin II, the imperial court recruited poor people to garrison Yuyang, and 900 people were stationed in Daze Township. Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were both included in the relegated garrison team and served as the small leaders of the garrison team. It was raining heavily and the roads were blocked, so we were probably delayed. If you miss the deadline, you will be beheaded according to the law. Chen Sheng and Wu Guang then discussed: "Escape now is death, uprising is death, the same is death. Is it okay to die for state affairs?" Chen Sheng said: "The people of the world have been suffering from the rule of the Qin Dynasty for a long time. I heard that Qin II He is the youngest son of the First Emperor and should not be made emperor. It is the son Fusu who should be made emperor. Because of Fusu's repeated admonitions, the emperor sent him to lead the troops. Now some people heard that he was not guilty. Most of the people heard that he was wise, but they didn't know that he was dead. Xiang Yan was a general of the Chu State. He had made many military exploits and loved his soldiers. Some people in the Chu State loved him. He died, and some people thought he had escaped. Now if we pretend to be the team of Prince Fusu and Xiang Yan, there should be many people responding." Wu Guang thought he was right. So the two went to divination. The fortune tellers understood their intentions and said: "You can succeed in all your major affairs and build meritorious deeds. But have you ever asked the ghosts and gods about your matters?" Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were very happy. They considered the matter of divination and said: "This is just teaching us to use ghosts and gods to intimidate everyone." So he wrote "King Chen Sheng" on silk with cinnabar and put it in the belly of the fish caught by others. When the soldiers bought fish and cooked it, they found silk books in the belly of the fish. They were already surprised by this. Chen Sheng secretly sent Wu Guang to the temple in the jungle next to the camp, holding a lantern at night and shouting in a shrill voice like a fox howling: "The great Chu will rise, and Chen Sheng will be king." The soldiers were terrified all night. The next day, there was a lot of discussion among the soldiers. They just pointed and looked at Chen Sheng with each other's eyes.
Wu Guang has always loved soldiers, and most of them are used by him. One day, the general escorting the garrison soldiers was drunk. Wu Guang deliberately said that he wanted to escape many times, which made the general angry and asked him to humiliate himself in order to anger the soldiers. As expected, the general whipped Wu Guang. The general unsheathed his sword. Wu Guang jumped up, took the sword and killed him.
Chen Sheng assisted him and killed two generals together. So Chen Sheng summoned his subordinates and said: "You have encountered heavy rain and have missed the deadline. If you miss the deadline, you will be beheaded. Even if you can only avoid beheading, ten percent of those who go to guard the border will definitely die." Sixty-seven. Besides, it’s enough for a strong man to die. If he dies, he should achieve great fame. Are princes, generals and ministers born with noble blood?” All the subordinates said: “I am willing to obey your orders” and pretended to be the prince. Fusu and Xiang Yan's troops obeyed the people's wishes. Each of them showed his right arm as a sign of uprising, and was known as the Great Chu. A high platform was built with earth, and the oaths were sworn on the platform. The heads of two generals were sacrificed to heaven. Chen Sheng established himself as general, and Wu Guang was appointed captain. They attacked Daze Township, gathered the rebels in Daze Township, and then attacked Qixian County. After Qi was captured, he sent Ge Ying from Fuli to lead an army to capture the area east of Qi County. Chen Sheng then attacked Qi, Feng, Ku, Zhe, Qiao and other places and captured them all. Collect soldiers along the march. By the time they arrived in Chen County, there were six to seven hundred tanks, more than a thousand cavalry, and tens of thousands of soldiers. When Chen County was attacked, the county guards and magistrates there were not there. Only the Shou Cheng led his troops to fight against the rebels in the city gate. Shou Cheng could not win and was defeated and died. Only then did the rebel army enter the city and occupy Chen County. A few days later, Chen Sheng ordered to summon local disciplined village officials and talented squires to come together for a meeting. The village officials and squires said: "General, you personally put on your armor and armed yourself with sharp weapons to defeat and destroy the cruel and unjust Qin Dynasty and restore the state of Chu. You should be crowned king according to your merits." Chen Sheng was then supported. He established himself as king and declared to the outside world that he wanted to expand the Chu Kingdom. At this time, the people in various counties and counties who had suffered greatly from the officials of the Qin Dynasty rose up to punish the local chiefs and killed them in response to Chen Sheng.
Notes
Shijia: A type of biography in "Historical Records", mainly biographies of princes and generals. Although Chen Sheng was born as a farm laborer, he was the first to rebel against the Qin Dynasty and made great achievements. He also established the "Zhang Chu" regime, so he was given an important historical status and included in the "Aristocratic Family".
Yangcheng: Southeast of present-day Dengfeng, Henan.
Yangxia (jiǎ): present-day Taikang County, Henan Province.
Try to farm with others: I was once hired to farm the land with others. Servant, hired.
On the ridge where plowing has stopped: Stop plowing and go to the high ground to rest on the ridge of the field. Go, go.
Regret and regret for a long time: sigh and hate for a long time due to disappointment. Disappointed, frustrated, unhappy. In other words, modal particles.
If: you, refers to Chen Sheng.
Sparrow: Sparrow, here is a metaphor for a short-sighted person. Honghu: Swan, here is a metaphor for a person with great ambitions.
The first year of II: BC. After the death of Qin Shi Huang, his youngest son Hu Hai succeeded to the throne and was called the Second Emperor.
Luzuo: refers to the poor. In ancient times, the poor lived in Luzuo, and the rich lived in Luzuo. Suitable for garrison: Sent to guard the border. Suitable, through "relegation". Yuyang: Southwest of present-day Miyun, Beijing.
All are in line (háng): They are all included in the banished team. You should do it, you should be on the list of conscripts.
Tun Zhang: The small leader of the garrison team.
Death: escape, escape.
To launch a big plan: to initiate a big event, refers to an uprising, to raise, to carry out, to carry out.
Etc.: Same.
Die for the country: die for the sake of the country.
Bitter Qin: Suffering from Qin (rule).
Shuò: Because of repeated admonitions. Count, many times. Remonstration, in ancient times, subordinates gave opinions or suggestions to superiors, admonished them.
Shangshiwaijiang (jiàng) soldiers: The emperor sent (him) to lead troops outside. Above, the honorific title given to the emperor by his subordinates refers to Qin Shi Huang Ying Zheng.
Xiang Yan: A general of Chu in the late Warring States period, the father of Xiang Liang and the grandfather of Xiang Yu, the overlord of Western Chu. He once defeated Qin general Li Xin.
Pity: love.
Creative background
This article is excerpted from "The Chen She Family". Sima Qian's "Historical Records: Tai Shigong's Preface" says: "Jie Zhou lost his way and Tang Wu made it; Zhou lost his way and made Spring and Autumn Period. Qin lost its power, while Chen She became prosperous, the princes were in trouble, the wind and clouds were rising, and Qin died. Clan. At the top of the world, he was the 18th member of the Chen She family. "It means: Jie and Zhou lost their royal power and Tang and Wu rose up, and Zhou lost their royal power and the book "Spring and Autumn" was published. Qin lost its way of governing, Chen She launched an uprising against Qin, and the princes rebelled one after another, and the Qin Dynasty was finally destroyed. The end of the Qin Dynasty began when Chen She launched an attack. So he wrote the eighteenth chapter of "Chen She Family".
Appreciation
This article uses the activities of Chen Sheng and Wu Guang as clues to describe the entire process of Chen Sheng's uprising in detail.
The article "Chen She Family" is written in the order of the development of events. When writing about the process of the uprising, first write about the reasons for the uprising and the planning before the uprising, then write about the outbreak and development of the uprising until the establishment of the political power. The context is very clear. In the description, the method of writing is adopted: cause and effect. When writing about the motivations of the uprising, first write about the harsh punishments of the Qin Dynasty; when writing about the occurrence of the uprising, first write about the cruelty of the generals, etc. They are all reasonable and effectively highlight the justice of the uprising. The article also fully demonstrates the process of the uprising, its massive momentum, and the spiritual outlook of the uprising leaders through descriptions of typical details, thus leaving a deep impression on people.
This article vividly describes the historical process from the Dazexiang Uprising to the establishment of the Zhang Chu regime, and reproduces the heroic nature of the two uprising leaders Chen Sheng and Wu Guang. Chen Sheng has a high level of class consciousness and has "lofty ambitions."
This is reflected in the dialogue with his companions while working as servants, and in the speech he gave to his subordinates after killing two lieutenants, especially the words "Princes and generals would rather have their own kind", which is a powerful denial of the feudal hereditary system. and criticism. It is precisely because of his vision and the inspiring nature of his words that he can achieve the effect of "respecting and accepting orders" every day. As leaders of the uprising, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang were both able to assess the situation, be resourceful and decisive, and make careful plans and arrangements for the uprising.
"It will rain heavily, the road is blocked, and the time has passed. If the time is lost, all laws will be cut off" is the direct cause of the uprising by Chen She and others. When facing a certain death situation, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang made a decisive decision, plotted an uprising, and were determined to lead the people to find a way out, which shows that they grasped the timing of the uprising very well. During the conspiracy between the two, Chen Sheng made an incisive analysis of the current situation and grasped the social background of "the world has been suffering for a long time." On the basis of this analysis, it was decided to use the banners of Prince Fusu and Xiang Yan - because "the people often heard about his virtuous people, but did not know his death", "Xiang Yan had many meritorious services, loved his soldiers, and the people of Chu pity him", " Either you think you are dead or you think you are dead." If this slogan is put forward, "it is appropriate for more people to respond." Inspired by the soothsayer, they carefully planned two "supernatural" events, including the book on the fish belly and the roar of the fox in the campfire, and deceived the eyes and ears of other soldiers. The double act they performed together to kill the general successfully ignited the fuse of the uprising, which shows that they are good at planning.
The words "all prefectures and counties have suffered from the officials of Qin" in the following text correspond to the above "the world has suffered from Qin for a long time", "all punish their chief officials and kill them in response to Chen She" and the above "should "Many responders" echoes each other. The echo between these two sentences shows that Chen Sheng's analysis is completely correct and reflects his ability to discern the current situation. It was Chen She's ability of planning and insight that caused the uprising to respond to hundreds of calls and quickly spread throughout the country.
Chen Sheng and Wu Guang asked someone to tell fortunes when they were plotting the uprising. Later, under the hint of the fortune teller, they staged two scams: Dan Shu and Hu Ming. This kind of deception to create public opinion in order to overthrow a regime is not uncommon at the juncture of dynasty changes in Chinese history. When the general public has a strong sense of fear of destiny, the perpetrators want to "power the public" and use various deceptions to present themselves as supermen who are destined by heaven. This is the most cunning and effective method. However, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang themselves were not superstitious about destiny. "Princes, princes, generals, and ministers should have their own kind" was their true thinking. When the author Sima Qian narrated Chen Sheng and Wu Guang's divination, he specifically pointed out that "the divination person knows what it means". If he "knows what it means", then "everything is accomplished and successful" and so on. As for "the ghost of divination", He was clearly participating in a conspiracy. "The Chen She Family" makes such deceptions obvious in its writing, and "The Chronicles of the Great Ancestor" also has reservations about myths such as snake-slaying created by Liu Bang. This all reflects Sima Qian's progressive view of history.
The two generals were not at fault in the Dazexiang uprising. Their conflict with Wu Guang was premeditated by the leader of the uprising, but they still inevitably died in the end. This is because they are representatives of the Qin Dynasty's forces. In the face of cruel class struggle, they acted as the opposite of the rebel army, so they could not escape the fate of becoming victims. After capturing Qixian, the first county seat, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang promptly sent Ge Ying to lead his troops to open a new battlefield to the east of Qixian in order to quickly open up the situation, and at the same time lose no time to establish the country as king and establish peasant power. All these show that they used strategies and tactics properly in the early stages of the uprising and successfully assumed the responsibility of leaders. Chen Sheng was strong and tenacious in battle and took the lead, while Wu Guang "loved others and most of his soldiers were users." These are indispensable qualities of a leader, which are clearly reflected in Chen Sheng and Wu Guang.
The above-mentioned character traits are expressed through the narration of specific events or details. It is not difficult to see that when "Historical Records" writes biographies of each historical figure, it not only records the major aspects of his life, but also pays attention to revealing the details. The spiritual outlook of the characters also displays the background and environment related to the characters' activities, thereby reproducing the true picture of social life at that time. This is the main embodiment of the literary nature of "Historical Records".
About the author
Sima Qian (145 BC or 135 BC ~ unknown), with the courtesy name Zichang, was born in Longmen (Xiayang of the Western Han Dynasty, which is now Hancheng City, Shaanxi Province). Hejin City, Shanxi Province), historian, writer and thinker of the Western Han Dynasty. Sima Tan's son was appointed as Taishi Ling and was honored as Shi Qian, Taishi Gong and the Father of History by later generations. He created China's first biographical general history, "Shiji" (originally known as "Tai Shi Gong Shu"), based on his historical knowledge of "studying the relationship between heaven and man, understanding the changes of ancient and modern times, and forming a family story". It is recognized as a model of Chinese history books. This book records a history of more than 3,000 years from the Huangdi period in ancient legends to the first year of Yuanshou, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. It is the first of the "Twenty-Four Histories" and was praised by Lu Xun. "The historian's swan song, the rhymeless Li Sao".