We respectfully submit: Sima Qian was a remarkable literary genius, and Ban Gu was a highly esteemed historian of his time. They inherited the rich traditions of their predecessors, wrote historical texts, and expressed their ambitions in biographical historical texts. We can also glean insights into their writing philosophies and methods. Shu Jun compiled historical materials after the Eastern Han Dynasty and continued the writing of historical texts in the Western Jin Dynasty; the structure of the "Shi Zhi" follows the models of Sima Qian and Ban Gu, though it has its shortcomings. The historical materials from the Wei Dynasty period are largely incomplete and lacking in detail; the historical records from the Two Jin and Northern and Southern Dynasties periods are also often incomplete. Even if some scattered records have been passed down, most are unofficial histories with peculiar content, which differ significantly from official historical accounts and are thus unreliable. Since the chaos of the Yongjia Rebellion, the Central Plains have been thrown into turmoil, and those scattered and unreliable minor historical texts have almost no reference value. After the Wei Dynasty unified the country, it inherited the historical book tradition of the previous dynasty and was able to start and finish well after the conclusion of the wars. Your Majesty is wise and humble, governing with a far-reaching vision. You have consistently worked to uphold and advance the governance philosophy of the Wei Dynasty, and you never forget the welfare of the people of our great land. Following your decree, we have compiled the historical texts of the Wei Dynasty, written in the format of biographical history, to fulfill your vision. We believe that the purpose of historical texts is to gather and organize fragmented historical materials, but the straightforward biographical format alone cannot encompass all aspects. To present a clearer picture of events, it is more important to emphasize significant events. Therefore, we have conducted extensive research, summarized the rise and fall of the Wei Dynasty, and included this content following the biographical accounts to provide a comprehensive history of the Wei Dynasty. This encapsulates our approach. We have diligently gathered and organized materials over time, facing numerous challenges, referring to existing historical materials, adding new content, and finally completing it. As times change, so too do circumstances, so we must not be bound by the practices of our predecessors. In the process of compilation, our writing approaches and styles have evolved. We appreciate the essence of earlier historical texts while considering the focus of current historical text compilation, referring to the experience of past historical texts, and addressing the pressing need to compile the history of the Wei Dynasty by distilling its essence and discarding the extraneous. We are pleased to announce the completion of the "Shi Zhi" in twenty volumes; we kindly request that it be placed following the biographical accounts and organize the entire work according to the previous table of contents, bringing the total to one hundred and thirty-one volumes.
We officials, while writing history books, often struggle to gather all the information. We risk offending others and are doing our best to get this done, and it's no easy task!
In November, Wei Shou, who served as the envoy and military governor of Liangzhou, General of Cavalry, Governor of Liangzhou, former Gentleman of the Imperial Archives, and a nobleman of Fuping County, submitted a memorial.
"The Book of Wei," consisting of twelve volumes of annals, ninety-two biographies, and ten treatises, totaling one hundred fourteen articles, was originally divided into one hundred thirty volumes, compiled by Wei Shou, the Right Minister of the Northern Qi.
At the beginning, the Wei dynasty's historians, such as Deng Yuan, Cui Hao, and Gao Yun, had all written chronologies, but the records were incomplete; it was fortunate if three out of ten events were recorded. Only during the Taihe period did Li Biao and Cui Guang begin to categorize the historical texts into annals, biographies, tables, and treatises. During the reign of Emperor Xuanwu, Xing Luan wrote the "Memoirs of Emperor Gao," with Cui Hong and Wang Zunye continuing the work, continuing through the reign of Emperor Ming. Later, Wen Zisheng wrote a three-volume "Memoirs of Emperor Zhuang," and Prince Jiyin Huiye wrote a thirty-volume "Records of the Distinction of the Royal Lineage." Towards the end of the Wei dynasty, a fellow named Shan Wei, to win favor with powerful figures like Yuan Tianmu and Er Zhu Shilong, collaborated with Qi Jun to write the national history. After more than twenty years, the accounts in the historical texts were a complete mess; it was fortunate if one out of ten events was documented.
In the second year of the Tianbao era of Emperor Wenxuan of Northern Qi, a decree was issued ordering Wei Shou to compile the history of the Wei dynasty. Wei Shou extensively gathered various materials and consulted various remaining historical documents, which he wrote into a relatively detailed history of the Wei dynasty from start to finish. The historians Wei Shou selected were, in fact, not as skilled as he was, so figures like Fang Yanyou, Xin Yuanzhi, Sui Zhongrang, Diao Rou, Pei Angzhi, and Gao Xiaogan lacked the skills to write historical texts. All thirty-five biographies, twenty-five prefaces, ninety-four commentaries, two memorials, and one petition were written by Wei Shou himself. After five years, Wei Shou submitted the book and subsequently burned the old historical texts written by Cui and Li. Because Wei Shou was from Qi, his assessment of the Wei dynasty was somewhat biased, leading many to feel that his writing was unjust. Emperor Wenxuan had Wei Shou face the descendants of over a hundred Wei dynasty officials to critique his historical writings. At first, Wei Shou was able to defend himself, but eventually, he could not. Lu Fei from Fanyang, Li Shu from Dunqiu, and Wang Songnian from Taiyuan were punished for criticizing Wei Shou's history, receiving lashes and being exiled to Jiafang, with some even dying as a consequence. At that time, public discontent was widespread, and people referred to Wei Shou's history as the "Filthy History."
At that time, the powerful ministers Yang Yin and Gao Dezhen were in power. Wei Shou wrote biographies for them, and these two also strongly supported Wei Shou, suppressing opposing voices and preventing further discussion on the matter. The historical works written by Wei Shou were not officially released. During the reign of Emperor Xiaozhao, the emperor ordered Wei Shou to review the historical works. Wei Shou proposed to write two versions, one to be submitted to the court and the other to be kept in Ye City for public viewing. However, the officials once again criticized Wei Shou's historical works, saying that they were poorly composed. Emperor Wu Cheng ordered Wei Shou to revise the historical works. Wei Shou made many enemies by documenting the history of Wei, and in the year of the fall of the Qi dynasty, his tomb was looted and his bones were abandoned outside.
Emperor Wen of Sui deemed the content of Wei Shou's "Book of Wei" unreliable and the narrative illogical, so he instructed Wei Dan, Yan Zhitui, and Xin Deyuan to rewrite a new version totaling ninety-two volumes. They considered Western Wei as legitimate and Eastern Wei as a pseudo-dynasty, writing with clarity and conciseness, completely correcting Wei Shou's mistakes. Emperor Wen of Sui was very satisfied with the result. Later, Emperor Yang of Sui felt that the version written by Wei Dan was still lacking, so he instructed Yang Su, Pan Hui, Chu Liang, and Ouyang Xun to revise the "Book of Wei" again. However, Yang Su died before completing the task.
In the fifth year of the Wude era of Emperor Gaozu of Tang, he ordered Chen Shuda and seventeen others to write the history of the Later Wei, Northern Qi, Zhou, Sui, Liang, and Chen dynasties together, but many years later, it remained unfinished. During the reign of Emperor Taizong of Tang, based on the recommendation of the Secretariat, they decided to abandon the effort to revise the "Book of Wei" and only write the history of the Five Dynasties. During the reign of Emperor Gaozong of Tang, Wei Dan's grandson, Wei Keji, the governor of Tongzhou Prefecture, continued to write ten volumes, incorporating Wei Dan's original "Book of Wei." The "Tang Book of Arts and Literature" also recorded Zhang Dasu's "Book of Later Wei" in one hundred volumes and Pei Anshi's "Book of Yuan Wei" in thirty volumes, but these works are no longer available. Therefore, when we talk about the history of the Wei dynasty now, we primarily refer to Wei Shou's "Book of Wei."
Confucius said: "Substance over form leads to rusticity; form over substance leads to pedantry." The literary achievements of the three ancient dynasties were most prosperous during the Zhou Dynasty. By the time of the Eastern Zhou, Qin, and Han Dynasties, although they experienced wars and turmoil, the excellent traditions and legacy of ancient times were not entirely lost. The wise monarchs, loyal ministers, and talented literati of that era were distinguished by their remarkable careers and virtues. Their writings, discussions, admonitions, debates, and various brilliant strategies were refreshing and influential, setting examples for future generations. Outstanding historians such as Zuo Qiuming, Sima Qian, and Ban Gu were knowledgeable and talented, skilled in narration, not glossing over peace nor hiding evil, which is why their works have endured for millennia.
By the time of the Eastern Han, Wei, and Jin Dynasties, the age of sages was fading further away, and the talent of court historians was declining. During the Yongxing period, political corruption was rampant, the northern tribes invaded the Central Plains, and the benefits bestowed by former kings had vanished completely.
Taking advantage of the weakening of Later Yan, the Tuoba clan gradually annexed Bingzhou and Jizhou, after more than thirty years of conflict, they finally unified the Central Plains. Initially, the court ministers and local officials were all former tribal leaders. Although some nobles from the Zhao and Wei states were also promoted, mutual suspicion led to frequent violence. Official positions existed, but salaries were low, leading to corruption among officials; the laws were strict, resulting in widespread harm among the populace; etiquette was not valued, resulting in a lack of integrity among scholars; bribery was rampant, creating a corrupt social climate.
After the capital was moved to Luoyang, the rituals and ceremonial practices of the Xia Dynasty gradually began to be adopted. Emperor Xuanwu had a weak character, and Emperor Xiaoming was still young, resulting in a loosening of political and legal structures, which further eroded social morals. There was widespread deceit among the populace, and national discipline completely collapsed. The Empress Dowager caused chaos in the palace, while outside there were bandits causing disturbances. The turmoil originated in the Six Towns and ultimately led to the division and eventual collapse of the state, largely instigated by Er Zhu Rong. Although the Tuoba Wei dynasty lasted for over a hundred years, its laws, institutional frameworks, and customs bore a strong resemblance to those of earlier dynasties such as Liu Yuan, Shi Le, the Murong clan, Fu Jian, and Yao Chang. The brutality of Emperors Daowu and Taiwu even surpassed that of Cao Cao and Sima Yan; the achievements of Emperor Xiaowen paled in comparison to those of Fu Jian.
Their literature and Confucian scholarship had little of note to record, and the achievements of strategists, debaters, and generals could not compare with those of previous generations. Moreover, the historians' language was crude, their selections were arbitrary, their writings were poor, and the records were inaccurate. The entire volume was vast, filled with names of official positions and provinces, interspersed with numerous trivial and tedious details, rendering it tiresome to read and easily forgettable. Scholars also found it dull and were unwilling to study, leading to the loss and destruction of numerous historical texts over the centuries, totaling around thirty volumes. Now we have compiled the table of contents for each historical text.
However, the history of Tuoba Wei connects the Wei and Jin Dynasties and had a lasting impact on the Zhou, Qi, Sui, and Tang Dynasties, and the overall narrative of rise and fall over the course of one hundred sixty years must not be overlooked. We, Chen Pan, Chen Shu, Chen Tao, and Chen Zuyu, respectfully organized the table of contents and risked our lives to humbly present it to Your Majesty.
