Chapter 495: The character of a historian is nothing more than writing truthfully without yielding to the powerful!
Historian.
It is a sacred position that has been passed down since ancient times. According to legend, it was inherited from the historian Cangjie and has a lofty status. In particular, King Su Ji Zhao and the Luo family attached great importance to history, which created the current trend.
Grand Historian.
An official position that has been passed down from generation to generation and is responsible for recording for the Han Dynasty.
In a corner of the palace, Sima Qian knelt quietly.
The Sima family is a family of historians that has been passed down since the pre-Qin period. He is not just a person, but also carries the glory of his ancestors.
As the evening drum sounded, he left the palace. He was not allowed to enter the harem as there would be other people recording it.
Then he met Luo Qing.
Luo Qing was riding in a very plain carriage without any fancy decorations. When he saw Sima Qian, Luo Qing stepped out of the carriage. He was wearing plain clothes, straightened the wrinkles on his clothes, and bowed solemnly, saying, "Qing greets the Grand Historian."
"Qian greets the young master."
Sima Qian returned the greeting and then asked in confusion, "Sir, are you here to look for Qian?"
Luo Qing nodded and said, "That's right."
Upon hearing this, Sima Qian waved his hand and said loudly, "Sir, please come into the mansion and talk."
The two walked into the hall together and sat down. Sima Qian asked Luo Qing about his purpose. Luo Qing did not answer, but said: "Grand Historian, last time you said you wanted to write an unprecedented general history. Due to the urgency of the matter, I did not ask in detail. Are you willing to tell me about it today?
The Luo family has been recording history for thousands of years, and I really want to know what this unprecedented history book looks like."
Luo Qing was really curious. After all, if someone dared to make such a boast in front of Luo, there must be something behind it.
Sima Qian couldn't help showing joy on his face when he heard this. For a historian, writing a history book that can be passed down to future generations is probably the highest pursuit in life.
"Sir, this history book written by Qian is very different from previous history books. Historians before the Zhou Dynasty recorded events in a non-systematic way.
Historians matured during the Zhou Dynasty and developed chronology and country distinctions.
In particular, all the states of the Zhou Dynasty had historians, who recorded their own events and also recorded the posthumous titles and years of their kings. This method made it very easy to sort out the chaotic historical books and could verify the major events of the same period.
However, the records of people are often not perfect. If you want to understand a person, you need to read a lot of history books.
The history books written by Qian are mainly about people, and in one article, they describe everything from birth to death!"
When Luo Qing heard this, he felt as if his scalp was about to explode, as if a layer of fog had been peeled off before his eyes. He was surprised and excited and said, "It is actually possible to do this. The Grand Historian is really talented. This method of recording history will probably be emulated by future historians."
When Sima Qian heard Luo Qing's praise, he stood up and walked to the corner, took out a thick stack of papers from the cabinet and handed it to Luo Qing.
As he handed it over, he said, “Qian plans to record the emperors as the Basic Annals, the princes’ families as the Histories, and the capable ministers as the Biographies, and then comment on their lives, making a history book that covers the past and present.
The history of the world is all in the Luo family. Please allow me to move into the Luo family's historical materials collection room."
Luo Qing took the neatly arranged papers and the first thing he saw were three big characters - "The Book of Zhou".
Sima Qian said: "I plan to start compiling seal script from the legendary Five Emperors. I will compile the annals of the emperors of the three great dynasties of Yuxia, Shang, and Bangzhou respectively, and also the annals of the posthumous emperors and fake emperors, such as the Su Wang Shang Huang and the Empress Gao."
Hearing this, Luo Qing stopped flipping through the catalog and said solemnly, "Grand Historian, our ancestor King Su can appear in both the Zhou Benji and Luo Shijia, but King Luo Wen should not be in the Benji."
Sima Qian was stunned, but since this was the matter of their ancestors and it was not exaggerated, he agreed.
Luo Qing closed the thick stack of papers and said solemnly: "Grand Historian, if you want to complete this history book, it will be difficult for you alone. The amount of Luo's historical materials is so vast that you can't imagine it.
If you are willing, you can go to Zhaocheng to compile history, and the family will send countless people to help you complete this masterpiece. "
"I am willing!"
Sima Qian answered immediately. He was almost stunned by the sudden surprise. It was like he planned to buy a lottery ticket to reward himself, but won five million!
Go to Zhaocheng to study history!
Sima Qian now only wanted to worship the ancestral tablets immediately and tell them that the Sima family had made great progress. The Luo family personally invited the Sima family to go to Zhaocheng to compile history. Apart from the Luo family, the best historian in the world is our Sima family!
Luo Qing smiled with satisfaction. It was impossible for Sima Qian to compile history in Zhaocheng without being influenced by the Luo family. The compiled history book must be huge, and it was reasonable to store it in Zhaocheng.
After learning about the history Sima Qian was going to compile, Luo Qing immediately took out his own record of the events related to Crown Prince Liu He and handed it to Sima Qian. Luo Qing said solemnly, "Grand Historian, this is what I recorded about Crown Prince Liu He."
Sima Qian took it and read it. After a moment's silence, he said directly: "Very fair. The prince committed a crime that should not be called murder. It is okay to show sympathy. With a little refinement, it can be recorded in history."
Luo Qing stared at Sima Qian and said, "Grand Historian, he is the future emperor, and he is not a kind person."
He is the future emperor, the most powerful man in the world. He is also cruel and ruthless, a murderer. Aren't you afraid of death?
If he falls into Liu He's hands, he might face a rather miserable future. Can we ignore this?
But Sima Qian really has the style of an ancient historian. Even swords and spears cannot change his will. He has strong likes and dislikes and is not afraid of the powerful. He is a rare natural historian.
He raised his head and said, "Let alone his future emperor, even if he is the current emperor, so what?
Both mistakes and achievements will be recorded in history.
Emperor Liu Dan was a dictator of the time. I witnessed with my own eyes the process of his bringing chaos to the world. I will definitely write about him in great detail so that future kings for thousands of years to come will take him as a warning.
But I will not diminish his achievements in the slightest. Even if it is just one sentence, I will write it out clearly.
Is it possible that what has already happened will change?
The words written down are like a river flowing eastward, which can never be changed.
Mencius said that he would rather die than accept a position in his hometown. I say I would rather die than change a single stroke. History records all the merits and demerits of the past centuries. This is the burden bestowed upon historians by God. How can it change because of the individual?
My people may die, but the history books are there!"
Luo Qing clapped his hands and laughed when he heard this, saying: "When a historian writes history, the most fearful thing is the word timidity. He dares not put pen to paper, and dares not write everything. Instead of this, it is better not to be a historian, and go to the palace to be a useless eunuch.
With such courage, you will surely write an unparalleled history book.
There is no time to lose.
The Grand Historian said, "You should follow Qing to Zhaocheng. Life is short."
Sima Qian was indeed not young, and the compilation of this history book took several years. After all, every word had to be written down one by one, and that was because of paper. If it were bamboo slips, it would take even longer to complete such a huge workload.
Upon hearing this, Sima Qian immediately said, "I will resign from the emperor tomorrow, and the position of Grand Historian will be handed over to my son."
Since ancient times, the position of historian has been passed down from father to son. The same is true for the compilation of history books. If one person cannot complete it, it will be completed by his sons, brothers or even sisters. This is the historian family.
The next day.
In the Changle Palace, Liu Xun looked at the resignation letter in front of him in shock. He even found it hard to believe that this was the resignation letter from the Grand Historian.
Why are there still historians resigning?
Liu Xun asked in confusion: "Lingshi, what does this mean?"
Sima Qian raised his head and said: "Your Majesty, I will go to Zhaocheng to write history, writing about the ancient times, the rule of the Three Dynasties, the tyranny of the Qin Dynasty, and the prosperity and decline of our Han Dynasty.
I will continue to write about your reign. Compared with such achievements, the position of Grand Historian, which only requires writing truthfully, is not very important."
Sima Qian thought it was a simple matter of just writing truthfully, but many historians dared not do it!
Sima Qian's voice echoed in the hall, and Liu Xun's ears were buzzing. Writing about past history was a small matter, but if he had heard correctly, Sima Qian also wanted to write contemporary history?
Write about yourself, the emperor sitting on the throne?
"Grand Historian, do you want to write about me?"
"Exactly!"
"How would you write it?"
"I have said that I am only writing truthfully. All my merits and faults are here."
Liu Xun smiled and pretended to be angry and said, "The emperor is supreme, and people in the world even avoid mentioning the emperor's name. How dare you point out the faults of your father and monarch?"
Sima Qian bowed deeply, then said in a high and clear voice: "I will not criticize your Majesty's mistakes, but the history written by my pen is what the Su Wang Shang Huang passed down.
As long as you have a public heart, there is no person or thing in this world that cannot be written about.
Your Majesty is a wise ruler and I dare to say this even if the evil emperor Liu Dan is sitting in front of me. "
What courage this is!
A pure scholar is more heroic than countless generals fighting on the battlefield!
Liu Xun put away his angry expression, then laughed loudly and said, "I am not afraid. In the history, I must be the first-rate king after the Holy King.
I agree.
The Grand Historian ordered that you go to Zhaocheng and make sure that the glory and prosperity of the Han Dynasty will be recorded in the annals of history."
Sima Qian slowly bowed and left the palace. As he walked out of the hall, the sunlight shone on his body, making him feel warm. It was not until this moment that Sima Qian suddenly felt a sense of pressure.
The ancient times have all passed, and even the information left by the Luo family probably wouldn't be much.
However, the 1,800 years since the Shang and Zhou dynasties must be carefully compiled.
At the bottom of the stairs, Luo Qing was looking at the towering palace with his hands behind his back. He was also about to leave here and return to Zhaocheng.
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In the previous chapters, the author has repeatedly emphasized that the Xia civilization was a civilization with strong ancestor worship. This worship made the Xia civilization extremely cautious in recording history. After the hereditary system was largely eliminated, the historians continued to be passed down in the form of hereditary succession. They were professional and had a lofty spirit. They sought truth and were not afraid of death. The largest family of historians is the royal family of China today. Until now, they still maintain the habit of recording history, using traditional paper and pen. The Xia people called it inheritance. ——"Global History: Ancient Chinese Civilization"
(End of this chapter)
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