The History of the Three Kingdoms was written by Chen Shou in the Western Jin Dynasty. Chen Shou was born in the 11th year of Jianxing, Liu Chan, and died in the 7th year of Yuankang, Emperor Jinhui. He works as an official in Han Shu. At the age of 30, the Han Shu regime perished. After entering Jin, he was an official. Before Chen Shou wrote The History of the Three Kingdoms, there were some historical books about Wei and Wu, such as Shu Wei, Wei Lue by Yu Huan and Wu Shu. Shu Wei and Wu Shu in The Romance of the Three Kingdoms are mainly written according to these historical books. The regime of Shu did not set up historians, and there was no special person responsible for collecting materials and compiling the history of Shu. Shu Shu's materials were collected and edited by Chen Shou. Chen Shou's writing time is close to the Three Kingdoms, and there are not many achievements for others to learn from. In addition, as a private writer, he has no access to a large number of documents and archives. When we read the History of the Three Kingdoms, we will find that Chen Shou has the difficulty of lacking historical materials and the content is not sufficient. Chen Shou didn't keep a diary. If you want to understand the system of laws and regulations in the Three Kingdoms period, you have to turn to the Book of Jin.
Chen Shou, a famous historian in the Western Jin Dynasty, is the author of The History of the Three Kingdoms.
Born in Han 'an County (now Shunqing District, Nanchong City) in 233 (the 11th year of Jianxing in Han Shu), he died in 297 (the 7th year of Yuankang in the Western Jin Dynasty) at the age of 65.
When Chen Shou was born, it was the time when Wei, Shu and Wu confronted each other, and wars were frequent. His father had joined the army before he was born. Later, Ma Su, a senior general of the unified army, gradually joined the army. In the Battle of Guo Jieting, his father retired from the army and returned to his hometown in Han An.
Chen Shou received strict family education since childhood, and his parents attached great importance to cultivating him into a person with both ability and political integrity. Therefore, he did not hesitate to spend his family's money to build a "Wanjuan Building" for him at the foot of Zhiguo Mountain, and hired a famous local Confucian as a teacher.
He lived up to the ardent expectations of his parents, respected his teachers, studied diligently, dared to ask questions and made continuous progress in his studies. About 238-257 (the middle and late period of Yan Xi), he bid farewell to his elders with his simple conduct and excellent studies, and came to Chengdu, the capital of Shu and Han at that time, to study in Imperial College, the highest institution in China. At that time, Qiao Zhou, a scholar in Shu, was a native of Guo County in Xichong. He was engaged in the canon study of the Central Committee of Shu and Han in Chengdu and personally preached and taught Thai and Thai students. Qiao Zhou is naturally Chen Shou's teacher. In imperial academy, Chen Shou studied the Confucian classics Shangshu and Three Biographies of the Spring and Autumn Annals diligently, and learned the methods of governing the country and leveling the world from the previous generation. He is particularly keen on modern history, tirelessly reading Sima Qian's Historical Records and Ban Gu's Hanshu, and dabbling in various classics since the pre-Qin period, often sitting alone at school in the dead of night. Qiao Zhou attaches great importance to this disciple and often attends evening self-study with him, teaching students in accordance with their aptitude and answering questions. Chen Shoucong is alert and sensitive. No matter how difficult reading is, he can read and understand the main idea. He is good at writing. His composition is true and rich in words. Therefore, he was highly praised by teachers and students in imperial academy, and was regarded as a 72-year-old Confucius' saint who worked in literature during the summer vacation.
After finishing his studies in imperial academy, Chen Shou began to enter the official career. At the end of Yan Xi's reign, he was ordered to take charge of Jiang Wei's main book (second grade, second only to the Third Division), receive documents and handle daily military affairs. Later, he was transferred to the East Hall of the Central Library as a secretary lang, and served as an attendant of the emperor and an important official who conveyed the imperial edict.
When Chen Shou was an assistant minister in Huangmen, it was the critical autumn when Shu Han's national strength was weak and Cao Wei's Northern Expedition. Then the Lord idles around all day and does not prejudge political affairs. Eunuch Huang Hao took the opportunity to monopolize power, and the politics of Shu and Han fell into unprecedented chaos. Liu Chan's younger brother Liu Yong was very dissatisfied with Xiao Hao's dictatorship. Liu Chan actually listened to the simple slanderers, expelled Liu Yong from the court, moved to a local office, and refused to let him return to Beijing. Jiang Wei, a general, saw Huang Hao's cronies in the tree and was very powerful. He suggested that Liu Chan get rid of Huang Hao to ensure long-term stability, but Liu Chan didn't listen. Huang Hao therefore hates Jiang Wei even more. Chen Shou was frustrated in his career because he didn't want to be attached.
Just when Chen Shou's career was frustrated, his father died. During the funeral, he was bedridden because of extreme sadness and overwork. As a last resort, I had to let the maid-in-waiting make pills for myself. Who knows that the village knows about it, and the world laughs at him for violating the feudal rules and regulations of "men and women don't kiss". In this way, Chen Shou once again stagnated and could not be promoted for many years.
In 263, Si Mazhao divided his forces and attacked Shu on a large scale. At this time, the Shu army had no resistance and finally had to surrender to Cao Wei. In 264, Shu Han perished. Chen Shou, who always cares about the country and people and feels at home, returned to his hometown and lived in a ramshackle house. He buried the election of his dead father, the resentment of abandoning the country and the pain of national subjugation in the sea of books and mountains ... In this way, Chen Shou spent nearly ten years in his hometown of Han 'an.
In 265, Sima Yan abolished Cao Huan, Emperor of Wei Yuan, established the Western Jin Dynasty, and changed the title of Taishi. In order to achieve the grand goal of eliminating Sun Wu and reunifying the whole country, Sima Yan, Emperor Wu of Jin Dynasty, recruited talented people and adopted the measures of leaving Wei and Shu as ministers and children of ancestors. In the spring of 268 (the fourth year of Taishigong), Emperor Wu of Jin hosted a banquet in Hualin Garden to entertain his ministers. During the dinner, Emperor Wu of Jin asked everyone to recommend talents. Among the ministers, there was a Xiangyang man named Luo Xian, who led the prefect of Wuling. In his early years, he and Chen Shoutong were friends of Shu Han imperial academy. He was also rich and talented. Luo Xian said that it is appropriate for Chen Shou and others to study and learn, and it is appropriate to be promoted and added. Emperor Wu of the Jin Dynasty immediately issued a letter and ordered Chen Shou to enter Luo Jing at the same speed.
After Chen Shou went to Beijing, he was awarded the post of Lang and was also the official in charge of selecting and distributing talents in Brazil County. The secretariat ordered Hou Guannei and Jiao to ask Emperor Wu of Jin, and asked Chen Shou to be responsible for compiling the story of Zhuge Liang, the prime minister. Soon, Chen Shou was ordered to be the Hou Xiang of Pingyang (now Linfen West, Shanxi Province) (equivalent to the county magistrate). During the period of Pingyang, when the Central Committee of the Western Jin Dynasty strongly urged to emphasize agriculture and promote profits, Chen Shou was diligent in government affairs while squeezing out his spare time to continue compiling Zhuge Ji. After a few years, 24 pieces of Zhuge Liang's Collection were compiled. This book comprehensively combs and preserves Zhuge Liang's successful experience in helping the people and strengthening the country and managing the army. On February 1st, 273, Chen Shou returned to Beijing from Pingyang to present this book. After reading it, Emperor Wu of Jin praised it and gave him a letter to write a book (called a masterpiece of Jin Dynasty). Later, Chen Shou was transferred from Pingyang to Luoyang, Kyoto, and continued to serve as a county magistrate in Brazil.
Chen Shou, a Shu native, has always attached importance to carrying forward the outstanding cultural heritage in rural areas, and the compilation of "One Step Teaching Nine Biographies" is a concrete manifestation. The book records hundreds of celebrities from the early Han Dynasty to the late Jin Dynasty. This book was not only praised by Emperor Sima Yan of the Tang Dynasty, but also had a great influence on later generations. Wang Xianzhi, a famous calligrapher in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, took pains to write 10 volume of calligraphy "One Step and Nineteen Biographies" as a gift to his friends. This shows that the world attaches great importance to this book. Chang Qu, a famous expert on local chronicles in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, not only enjoyed a high reputation, but also drew lessons from this book when writing Huayang Guozhi. Later Chang Kuan's Biography of Continuing Benefit Department also followed its system. Later, Pei Songzhi annotated the History of the Three Kingdoms, Li Daoyuan annotated the Notes on Water Classics, Xu Jian compiled Notes for Beginners, and Song compiled Magnolia for Peace. , a large number of references to this book to supplement the old history or enrich the old anecdotes. Unfortunately, this book died after the Song Dynasty.
In 280 AD, the Western Jin Dynasty wiped out Wu and China was reunited after more than 100 years of division since the end of the Han Dynasty. Due to political needs, Chen Shou now shoulders the heavy responsibility of studying and writing the history of the Three Kingdoms. He collected and sorted out a large number of archives and documents in the Three Kingdoms period day and night, published four anecdotes and folk hearsay songs about visiting historical figures, visited the remains of celebrities in the Three Kingdoms, evaluated the surnames of figures and the actions of officials in the old history, and began to write the historical masterpiece The History of the Three Kingdoms. After ten years of hard work, it was basically completed in Taikang about ten years ago. This book consists of sixty-five volumes * * *, one of which (lost), with a total of nearly 370,000 words, concisely describes the historical panorama of China from division to unification at the end of Han Dynasty and the beginning of Jin Dynasty. Later, Chen Shou constantly revised and corrected until he died of Luoyang inflammation. Therefore, it can be said that the successful writing of the Three Kingdoms lasted for nearly twenty years. During his 65-year-old life, Chen Shoushou devoted one-third of his energy to this unfortunate work.