We humbly submit: In the past, Sima Qian was an extraordinary talent, and Ban Gu was also a prominent literary figure of his era. They both inherited the legacy of their predecessors and compiled historical texts, expressing their aspirations in the biographical style of history writing. We can see their writing philosophies and the legacies they left behind. Shu Jun compiled the historical records following the Eastern Han and continued to write the history of Shu Han. The structure of the Ten Volumes is derived from Sima Qian and Ban Gu, but their historical records also have shortcomings. The historical materials of the Cao Wei dynasty are almost entirely incomplete; the histories from the Wei and Jin dynasties to the Southern and Northern Dynasties are also significantly lacking. Even some scattered records largely consist of folk tales and unofficial histories, which differ greatly from the official historical accounts. Since the Yongjia Rebellion, the Central Plains region has endured ongoing warfare, and those biased and inaccurate unofficial histories offer little reference value. The Wei dynasty unified the nation, inherited the historical texts of the previous dynasty, and completed them well. Your Majesty is wise, benevolent, humble, and respectful, overseeing the emperors of all ages and controlling the vast empire for generations. You deeply cherish the prosperity of the Wei dynasty and care for the welfare of the people of our great land. We obey Your Majesty's orders to compile the history of the Wei dynasty, following the biographical style to fulfill Your will. We believe that the purpose of this historical text is to gather previously overlooked historical materials. The biographical style is sufficient on its own and does not require additional content. Important events must be clear, and significant figures must be portrayed prominently. We have thoroughly gathered historical materials, summarized the rise and fall of the Wei dynasty, and included this content at the end of each chapter to fully present the history of the Wei dynasty. Therefore, we have spent considerable time and faced numerous challenges, referring to old historical materials while supplementing new content, and we have finally completed it. As times have changed, so too has our approach to reasoning; now the focus of historical writing has shifted from that of the past. Previously, attention was given to trivial details; now, it is on grand historical narratives. In the past, one could refer to the historical texts of previous dynasties; now, there is a pressing need for a comprehensive history of the Wei dynasty. We have set aside the former in favor of the latter, all based on actual circumstances. We have finally completed the Ten Volumes, consisting of twenty scrolls; we kindly request that it be placed behind the official history, bringing the total to one hundred thirty-one scrolls. As officials, we have taken up our pens to write this book, and truly have no better approach. We humbly apologize for any presumption in disturbing you, and for this, we accept any punishment! This is our humble submission.
In November, Wei Shou, the commissioner of Liangzhou and commander of military affairs, General of Chariots and Cavalry, Governor of Liangzhou, former Chief Librarian, and founding minister of Fuping County, began compiling the "Book of Wei." The "Book of Wei" consists of 12 volumes, 92 biographies, and 10 treatises, totaling 114 sections, originally divided into 130 scrolls, as recorded in earlier classifications, compiled by Wei Shou, the former Right Deputy of the Imperial Secretariat of Northern Qi.
Initially, Wei's historiographers, Deng Yuan, Cui Hao, and Gao Yun, all wrote chronicles, but many significant events were omitted, with only about three out of every ten events recorded. During the Taihe period, Li Biao and Cui Guang began categorizing historical records into chronicles, biographies, tables, and treatises. During the reign of Emperor Xuanwu, Xing Luan wrote the "Annals of Gaozu," followed by Cui Hong and Wang Zunye, who continued their work until the reign of Emperor Ming. Afterwards, Wen Zisheng wrote three volumes of "Chronicles of Emperor Zhuang," and Ji Yinwang Huiye wrote thirty volumes of "Records of the Imperial Lineage." Towards the end of the Wei Dynasty, Shan Wei, along with Yuan Tianmu, Erzhu Shilong, and Qi Jun, gained control over the court's historical records. Over two decades, the historical records of the Wei Dynasty were nearly obliterated, with recording even one out of a hundred thousand events considered a fortunate occurrence.
In the second year of Emperor Wenxuan's Tianbao era in Northern Qi, he ordered Wei Shou to compile the history of the Wei dynasty. Wei Shou extensively collected various genealogies and materials, searching for missing historical records, and wrote the history of the Wei dynasty from beginning to end, with considerable detail. The historians Wei Shou selected were not as skilled as he was, so figures like Fang Yanyou, Xin Yuanzhi, Sui Zhongrang, Diao Rou, Pei Angzhi, and Gao Xiaogan were not adept at writing history books. Wei Shou himself wrote all thirty-five biographies, twenty-five prefaces, ninety-four essays, two memorials, and one memorial to the throne. Five years later, Wei Shou submitted the book and burned the old history books previously written by Cui, Li, and others. Being from Qi, Wei Shou's writing of Wei's history was quite subjective, and many people at the time felt it was unfair. Emperor Wenxuan ordered Wei Shou to face the families of over a hundred Wei dynasty officials and let them comment on the history he wrote. Initially, Wei Shou could defend himself, but eventually he could not hold up. Lu Fei from Fanyang, Li Shu from Dunqiu, and Wang Songnian from Taiyuan were punished with caning and exiled to Jiafang for criticizing Wei Shou's historical accounts, and some were even beaten to death. Wei Shou's history faced widespread resentment and was derisively dubbed "The Filthy History." At that time, the powerful officials Yang Yin and Gao Dezhen were in charge, and Wei Shou wrote biographies for them. These two also strongly supported Wei Shou, suppressing opposing voices and preventing further discussion; thus, Wei Shou's history was never officially released. During Emperor Xiaozhao's Jianzhong era, he ordered Wei Shou to re-examine the history book. Wei Shou then said he would write two copies, one to submit to the court and one to keep in Ye City, available for anyone who wished to read it. This prompted court officials to accuse Wei Shou of mistakes. Emperor Wucheng again ordered Wei Shou to revise the history book. Wei Shou had offended many people by writing the history of Wei, and the year the Qi dynasty collapsed, his grave was robbed, and his remains were left outside.
Emperor Wen of Sui felt that the content of the "Book of Wei" written by Wei Shou was not credible and poorly structured, so he commissioned Wei Dan, Yan Zhitui, and Xin Deyuan to rewrite it, resulting in a total of ninety-two volumes, regarding Western Wei as the legitimate dynasty and Eastern Wei as a usurper. This newly written version was succinct and straightforward, thoroughly correcting Wei Shou's errors, which pleased Emperor Wen. Later, Emperor Yang of Sui deemed Wei Dan's version still inadequate, so he had Yang Su, Pan Hui, Zhu Liang, and Ouyang Xun revise the "Book of Wei" again. Unfortunately, Yang Su passed away before he could finish it. In the fifth year of the Wude era under Emperor Gaozu of Tang, he ordered Shizhong Chen Shuda and seventeen others to write the history of the Later Wei, Northern Qi, Zhou, Sui, Liang, and Chen dynasties, but this endeavor dragged on for many years without completion. Upon Emperor Taizong of Tang's ascension, he adopted the suggestion of the Secretariat to abandon the revision of the "Book of Wei" and instead focused solely on writing the history of the Five Dynasties. During Emperor Gaozong of Tang's reign, Wei Dan's grandson, Wei Keji, who was the governor of Zhongzhou, continued to add ten more volumes, incorporating the content originally written by Wei Dan. The "Book of Tang: Arts and Literature" also mentions Zhang Dasu's "Book of Later Wei," which comprises one hundred volumes and Pei Anshi's "Book of Yuan Wei" in thirty volumes, but these texts have since been lost. Thus, the history of the Wei dynasty that we reference today is largely founded on Wei Shou's "Book of Wei."
Confucius said: "When substance outweighs style, it becomes crude; when style outweighs substance, it becomes mere history." During the Three Dynasties period, the Zhou Dynasty was the peak of literary creation. By the time of the Eastern Zhou, Qin, and Han Dynasties, despite experiencing wars and turmoil, the fine traditions and exceptional talents from ancient times did not fade away entirely. The achievements and virtues of wise monarchs and loyal ministers were remarkable. The talented literati, with their articles, discussions, admonitions, debates, and good strategies, were enough to astonish, shape societal norms, and serve as examples for future generations. Outstanding historians such as Zuo Qiuming, Sima Qian, and Ban Gu were knowledgeable and skilled storytellers, who neither exaggerated nor concealed the truth, so their works have been passed down to this day, remaining unforgotten even after more than a thousand years.
In the Eastern Han, Wei, and Jin periods, the gap from the era of sages widened, and the talent of historiographers declined. In the Yongxing period, political corruption ran rampant, and the Rongdi invasion devastated the favorable conditions established by earlier kings.
The Tuoba clan seized the opportunity presented by Later Yan's weakness to gradually annex Bingzhou and Jizhou. After over thirty years of warfare, they finally achieved a rough unification of the Central Plains. Initially, both court and local officials were former tribal leaders, though they also included some old aristocrats from the Zhao and Wei states, and they often killed each other out of suspicion. Official positions existed, but salaries were low, so most officials resorted to corruption and bribery; the laws were harsh, leading the common people to turn against one another; with little regard for propriety, righteousness, integrity, and honor, scholars lost their moral compass; resulting in a corrupt social atmosphere where plundering became commonplace.
After the capital was moved to Luoyang, the rituals and institutions of the Xia Dynasty were gradually adopted. Emperor Xuanwu had a weak character, and Emperor Xiaoming was young, leading to a laxity in state affairs and laws, as the social climate worsened. There was widespread deceit between the elite and common people, and national discipline completely collapsed. The Empress Dowager stirred up trouble in the palace, while many bandits created chaos outside, with the unrest beginning in the Six Towns, ultimately resulting in national division and destruction at the hands of Er Zhu Rong. Despite ruling for over a century, their laws and customs were akin to those of earlier leaders like Liu Yuan, Shi Le, the Murong clan, Fu Jian, and Yao Chang. Emperor Daowu and Emperor Taiwu of the Tuoba clan were even more brutal than Cao Cao and Sima Yan; the strength of Emperor Xiaowen barely compared to Fu Jian. Their contributions to literature and Confucianism barely merit mention, and the achievements of strategists, orators, and generals paled in comparison to those of earlier dynasties. Furthermore, historians used crude language, made poor choices, wrote badly, and presented inaccurate facts. The books they wrote were lengthy, filled with names of official positions and localities, along with many trivial and tedious matters, making them dull to read and easily forgotten. Scholars found them tedious and were reluctant to engage with them, leading to the loss or damage of many historical texts over the centuries, likely around thirty volumes. We have now compiled the table of contents for each work. However, the history of the Northern Wei, bridging the Wei and Jin dynasties and leading to the Zhou, Qi, Sui, and Tang dynasties, spans one hundred sixty years of rise and fall and cannot be omitted. We, ministers Pan, Shu, Tao, and Zu Yu, humbly submit this table of contents, risking our lives in the process.
