Tales of Song Dynasty Scholars · Scholarly Genealogy of the Song Dynasty

Author: Zhou Lasheng
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 1990-01-01
Features: This manuscript has been accepted for publication by the Palace Museum Press after being written and revised. It took over two years, and I couldn’t help but be impatient! This isn’t because I’m eager to rush it for things like professional evaluations, but rather because I’m worried that if it takes too long, the topic might lose its significance. Seven years ago, before finalizing the topic of "A Study of the Imperial Scholars of China’s Dynasties" and formulating the writing plan, I meticulously reviewed the "Bibliography of Historiography in the Past Eighty Years" and the monthly "National New Book Catalogs" from 1980 onwards, as well as the "Index of National Periodicals and Newspapers" that could be found. I discovered that research on imperial scholars was a blank area, so I embarked on it without hesitation, regardless of the difficulties I might face. Recently, however, the situation has changed fundamentally. Imperial scholar studies seem to have suddenly become popular: books like "Fascinating Stories of Imperial Examinations," "Imperial Scholars of Guangdong’s Dynasties," "Imperial Scholars of Suzhou," "The Legendary Ten Imperial Scholars of China," "Anecdotes of Imperial Scholars," "Biographies of Imperial Scholars," and "The Complete Collection of Imperial Scholars of China" have been published one after another. There are also various editions of "A Catalog of Imperial Scholars of China’s Dynasties," and even "The Imperial Examination Scripts of Imperial Scholars of China’s Dynasties" come with a list of imperial scholars. China is so vast—how many more people will publish books on this topic? Although I have already released "Fascinating Stories of Ming Dynasty Imperial Scholars · Ming Dynasty Imperial Scholar Catalog" and "Fascinating Stories of Qing Dynasty Imperial Scholars · Qing Dynasty Imperial Scholar Catalog," this book, as well as one on the Liao, Jin, and Yuan dynasties, one on the Tang dynasty, and one on the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms—all remain unpublished. If someone else publishes a book on what I intend to write before I do, my plan will have to be abandoned halfway through. That’s why the longer the manuscript stays in my hands, the heavier my heart feels.