The significance and value of the Three Kingdoms

The "Book of Jin Chen Shou Biography" written by Fang Xuanling and others in the Tang Dynasty, while acknowledging that Chen Shou was good at narrative and a good historian, also believed that Chen Shou had something in the book because of personal enmity. Performance. It is said that Ding Yi and Ding Giao were famous in Wei Dynasty. Shou said to his son: "You can find thousands of dendrobium rice to see them. I should write a good biography for you." Ding didn't follow it, so he didn't write a biography. Shou's father joined the army for Ma Su, but he was executed by Zhuge Liang. Shou's father also sat on his quilt, and Zhuge Zhan had a short life. Shouwei Liang wrote a biography, saying that Liang's generals were not long in strategy and had no talent to match the enemy; his words and outlook were only work notes, which was an exaggeration. There are very few people discussing this. ?

Only a few historians such as Liu Qiu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty and Liu Zhiji of the Tang Dynasty believe this historical material about Chen Shou Suomi in "Book of Jin? Chen Shou Biography", while most historians believe It is considered that this historical data is inconsistent with the facts and is false. Pan Mei of the Qing Dynasty pointed out in "Textual Research on the Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms": Ding Yi and Ding Giao were officials who could only assassinate traitors and Huangmen ministers on the right. King Chen Si wanted to shake the tomb and provoke the heirs, but when he failed, executions and killings followed. In fact, the criminals of the Wei Dynasty could not be officially passed down. "Book of Jin" says that Suomi had to write a biography, which is the most ignorant statement. ?Zhao Yi also pointed out in the "Twenty-Two Histories": "The Book of Jin" states that ?Shou's father joined the army for Ma Su, Su was executed by Zhuge Liang, and Shou's father was killed by Kun, so Shou's father was in the "Liang Zhuan", which means that the general was not the right one. long. This is the theory of true ignorance. Where light is out of reach, there is no need to be good at using troops. Guan Shou revised "Zhuge Ji" and stated that science and education should be strict, rewards and punishments must be trusted, no evil should be punished, no good should be shown, and officials should not tolerate rape, and people should encourage themselves. To this day, the people of Liang and Yi, although they sing about Zhao Gong in "Gantang" and Zheng people's songs about Zichan, they can't fault it. A later comment in "Liang Zhuan" said: "Liang's treatment is to be sincere and impartial. Good deeds should not be rewarded if they are small, and evil should not be devalued if they are small." Finally, within the territory of the state, those who are fearful but love them, and although their punishments and administration are harsh but have no resentment, their intentions are calm and their warnings are clear. His praise of Kong Ming can be said to be unique in its greatness. ?It can be seen from this that the theory of disparaging Chen Shou in "Book of Jin" is actually untrue and cannot be fully believed.

"Summary of the General Catalog of Sikuquanshu - Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms" said some fair words: "In terms of reason, (Chen) Shou's fallacy is completely unreasonable; in terms of momentum, the chisel-toothed Emperor Han Shun It's easy, but it's difficult for Emperor Han to go against it. The Jin Dynasty had already crossed south at the time of Ji Chi Te, and its story was similar to that of Shu. Those who favored peace and stability fought for orthodoxy, which is similar to contemporary commentators. Shou was a minister of Jin Wu, and Jin Wu inherited the lineage of Wei. The pseudo-Wei was a pseudo-Jin. That’s it. How can it be practiced in the contemporary era! This is just like when Taizu of the Song Dynasty usurped the throne to be close to Wei, and the Northern Han and Southern Tang Dynasties were also close to Shu. Therefore, all the Confucian scholars in the Northern Song Dynasty avoided Wei. After Emperor Gaozong, they settled on the left side of the Yangtze River and were close to Shu, while the Central Plains The entire Wei region was conquered by the Jin Dynasty, so Confucian scholars in the Southern Song Dynasty rose up one after another to rule Shu. All of these should be considered in this world, and they cannot be tied together. ?It seems that the orthodoxy disputes that have arisen since the Eastern Jin Dynasty have practical purposes and the intention of serving the contemporary political power. Knowing people and the world, and knowing the world and history are crucial. There is no eternal standard of authenticity. .

Another shortcoming that Chen Shou has been criticized by later generations is that there are frequent twists and turns in the book, which are often defended. Liu Zhiji said in "Shi Tong Zhi Shu Pian" that at the beginning of the foundation of Yi and Jing, when Cao and Ma were in dispute, they might form a camp in Weiqu to see Qu Wuhou, or they might attack Yuntai to injure them. Cheng Ji, Chen Shou and Wang Yin were speechless and speechless. ?Criticize Chen Shou and Wang Yin for protecting the powerful figures Cao Cao and Sima Yi when compiling history. It is true that the content discussed by Liu Zhiji was not seen in the "Book of the Three Kingdoms". In this regard, Zhao Yi of the Qing Dynasty wrote in the sixth volume of "Notes on the Twenty-Two Histories": "The Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms": "Spring and Autumn" The king of heaven was hunting in Heyang. He did not say that he was summoned by the marquis of Jin, but thought that the emperor was patrolling the hunt and had provided cover. However, this matter is taboo for the venerable. As for the matter of the child's father, a big book was written to correct it. Ru Xu Zhi, Zhao Dun and others refused to borrow a word, so they were sincere and righteous. Since Chen Shou wrote "Wei Benji", many people have responded to it. During the revolution between the two dynasties, he was granted a title, swords and shoes, nine tins, and a Zen position. There were edicts and strategies, and it became a certain calligraphy. Later, all the books of Song, Qi, Liang, and Chen were regarded as the official form, and it was believed that this should be the way to write history. However, if longevity is too protective, there will always be those who are not safe.

The most serious incident is the murder of Gao Gui Xiang Gong. According to "Han Jin Spring and Autumn", "Wei Shi Chun Qiu", "Shi Yu" and "Wei Mo Biography", Gao Gui Xiang Gong was killed. When Cao Mao clashed with Sima Zhao, Zhao Yi sighed: "This record is like this, and there are no scattered biographies about it. This is especially true for the writing. However, this is like being an official in the Jin Dynasty, and I dare not not be tabooed by the Jin Dynasty." When it came to Cao and Wei, there was no need to keep taboos on matters that separated the dynasties.

?Zhao Yi's accusations are sharp and profound, and there are many examples. For example, Cao Cao killed innocent people indiscriminately when he conquered Tao Qian. It is appropriate to remember Cao Wei's war against Shu by concealing his defeat and boasting about his victory. Finally, Zhao Yi believed that Chen Shou was not only involved. The chronicles of the rulers in power are often protected, and the biographies are also taboo. Such a back-up call made Zhao Yi puzzled: Why should Shou's method of writing history be like this, back-up? The original histories of the various countries that Shou relied on have been concealed and not written down, so he still wrote them. It's old and not revised anymore?

Zhao Yi also made a historical examination of Chen Shou's calligraphy, pointing out: Gai Shou compiled the book in the Jin Dynasty, so it was at the place where the changes were made in the Wei and Jin Dynasties. Had to take more care. And Wei's inheritance of Han is the same as that of Jin's inheritance of Wei. Since he wanted to protect Jin, he had to protect Wei first? Of course, it is also possible that the Wei and Jin materials that Chen Shou referred to were originally recorded in this way, and Chen Shou did not make corrections and did not dare to tamper with them. Because of the specific historical environment in which Chen lived, it is understandable that historians would worry about more practical backgrounds during the period of changing dynasties.

There is no doubt that the importance of truth, not false beauty, and not concealing evil should be the criteria that historians must abide by when compiling history. Cursive writing is not enough as a lesson. It should be noted that Chen Shou's narrative is still informative and credible, except for the sensitive issues and powerful figures involved in the Wei, Jin and Yi dynasties. There is no need to deny Chen Shou's writing style, nor should we doubt the historical value of "Three Kingdoms". Qian Daxin said: "However, the reason why I attach great importance to Zuo is because I care about the credibility of the narrative." Gai Shichen wrote, and after a long time, he discussed Yi Gong, and his knowledge must be accurate in recent times. The Three Kingdoms between the Han and Jin Dynasties were intertwined from beginning to end and lasted for hundreds of years. Those who were inconsistent with the two histories often relied on this book to correct them? Ouyang (repair). ? ("Preface to the Preface to the Debate of the Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms")

Chen Shou's "The Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms" begins with the wars in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. The focus is also on the history of the late Eastern Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms era, not the end of the Three Kingdoms with the Jin Dynasty. It focuses on unification and briefly records the historical events in the middle and late period of the Three Kingdoms. This is not Chen Shou's deliberate defense of the Wei and Jin Dynasties, regardless of historical facts, because Wang Yin's "Book of Wei" at that time mainly recorded the history of the Wei State. When Chen Shou wrote "Three Kingdoms", he did not completely limit himself to the history of the Wei State, and was unwilling to compete with the history of the Wei State. Wang Yin's works are repetitive. He did not record too much about Sima's actions because the Jin Dynasty was preparing to write the "Book of Jin" at that time and was arguing about the start of the year. However, Zhang Hua and Du Yu had already started preparations. They also recommended Chen Shou to participate in the creation of "Book of Jin". When Chen Shou was writing the history of the Three Kingdoms, he did not write too much about the Sima family because he did not want to conflict with the preparations for the creation of the "Book of Jin" at that time. Although Chen Shou's book did not record the secrets of the Sima family, it also did not record many of the historical achievements of the Sima family. words and deeds. Chen Shou's "Three Kingdoms" mainly covers the period from the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty to the middle period of the Three Kingdoms, and is generally true and trustworthy.