Historical Annals (Vol. 1 & 2)

Author: Zhonghua Book Company
Publisher:
Publishing Date: November 1, 1997
Features: Records of Historical Events in the Song Dynasty (109 volumes), compiled by Chen Bangzhan of the Ming Dynasty. It is a book that, following Annals of Historical Events in the Mirror of History, uses the Annals of Historical Events style to record the history of the Song Dynasty (960–1279) for over three hundred years. Chen Bangzhan, styled Deyuan, was from Gao'an (now Gao'an County, Jiangxi). He passed the imperial examination in the 26th year of the Wanli era (1598) and served as the Director of the Bureau of Personnel in Nanjing. Later, he was promoted to the position of Deputy Minister of War in the Ministry of War of the Ming Dynasty. The Ming History (Volume 242) has a biography of him. Before him, Feng Qi, a native of Linqu in Shandong (whose biography is found in The Ming History, Volume 216), had drafted the writing of this book. Additionally, Shen Yue, a Censor-in-Chief in Nanjing, also compiled the history of the Song Dynasty using the same style, naming it Records of Events. Both of these books remained unfinished. Later, Liu Ruiwu, a Censor, and Xu Shen, the Vice Commissioner of the Capital, proposed that Chen Bangzhan revise and combine Feng’s and Shen’s works. They began compiling it in the 22nd year of the Wanli era (1604) and completed it after about a year. The General Catalogue of the Four Treasuries compiled by the Qing Dynasty stated that this book was "mostly based on Qi’s work (about one-third) and largely the result of Bangzhan’s contributions (about two-thirds)," omitting Shen Yue’s Records of Events, which was not entirely accurate. For details on the compilation of this book, refer to the prefaces and postfaces appended after the collation and annotation of this edition. This book records the general outline of the Song Dynasty’s history and some important social events of that period, providing some reference value for understanding the history of that time. The Song Dynasty History compiled by the Yuan Dynasty has nearly 500 volumes, making it quite extensive and its content somewhat disorganized. Other books on the history of the Northern and Southern Song Dynasties, such as Wang Your’s Annals of the Eastern Capital, Li Tao’s Extended Annals of the Mirror of History, Xu Mengxin’s Compendium of Northern and Southern Alliances, and Li Xintian’s Annals of Events Since the Jianyan Era, are also quite voluminous and do not cover the entire history of the Song Dynasty. This Records of Historical Events in the Song Dynasty, with fewer pages, organizes and compiles a large amount of historical materials according to specific events, truly reflecting the characteristic of the Annals of Historical Events style—providing a clear and comprehensive understanding of the beginning and end of each event. The issues covered in the book are also quite extensive, in addition to political events, such as flood control, tea and salt trade, and academic thought, all of which are discussed in form. It also records the early history of the Jin and Mongol dynasties. The chapters on peasant uprisings and the ruling class’s discussions on political affairs still provide some clues for studying and understanding the class contradictions in Song Dynasty society. These aspects are helpful for us today in applying Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought to research and analyze the history of the Song Dynasty. Regarding the printing and circulation of the Records of Historical Events in the Song Dynasty, as far as is known now, it is roughly as follows: After the book was completed, Liu Ruiwu and Xu Shen supervised its publication, dividing it into 28 volumes and printing it in the 33rd year of the Wanli era (1605). This version can be called the original printing. Later, Xu Shen proposed that Chen Bangzhan continue to compile the Yuan Dynasty section, which took about a year to complete the initial draft of Records of Historical Events in the Yuan Dynasty and was supplemented by Zang Maoxun (styled Jinsu). It was divided into six volumes. In the 35th year of the Wanli era, Huang Jishi, as the Governor of Huainan, combined Chen’s Song and Yuan Dynasty books with Yuan Shu’s Annals of Historical Events in the Mirror of History for printing. The Records of Historical Events in the Song Dynasty was slightly merged into 10 volumes, while the Records of Historical Events in the Yuan Dynasty was reduced to four volumes. Additionally, during the Zhengzong era of the Ming Dynasty, Zhang Pu, a native of Taicang, Jiangsu, wrote several historical commentaries based on the Annals of Historical Events in the Mirror of History and added them to each section of Chen’s two books, reorganizing them by chapters. From the late Ming Dynasty onwards, the Records of Historical Events in the Song Dynasty had three versions: the 28-volume edition, the 10-volume edition, and the 109-volume edition (The General Catalogue of the Four Treasuries mistakenly recorded the 28-volume edition as 26 volumes, and some catalog books later followed this error. In fact, both the Wenyanjie and Wenlushu editions of The Four Treasuries and the General Catalogue are recorded as 28 volumes). After the early Qing Dynasty, the 28-volume and 10-volume editions became rarer. Although Zhang Pu’s historical commentaries were listed as forbidden books in the early Qing Dynasty, they had a significant influence. Moreover, the 109-volume edition organized the chapters into volumes, which was a major advantage, so it circulated more widely. Later, many editions were printed based on the 109-volume edition, such as the reprinted version by Zhang Wensheng in the 18th year of the Kangxi era (1679), the printing by the Jiangxi Book Bureau in the 13th year of the Tongzhi era (1874), and the reprinted version by the Guangya Book Bureau in Guangzhou in the 13th year of the Guangxu era (1887), and so on, totaling about ten versions. The Jiangxi Book Bureau edition was reprinted based on Zhang Wensheng’s version and was collated with books such as The Extended Outline of the Great Ming for corrections, making it a better edition. For this collation and annotation, we used the Jiangxi Book Bureau edition as the base text, cross-referencing it with the original printing of the 33rd year of the Wanli era and The Mirror of History of the Song and Yuan Dynasties (published in the 45th year of the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty), as well as The Extended Outline of the Mirror of History (published in the 12th year of the Chenghua era of the Ming Dynasty). We also referred to the printed versions by Zhang Pu and Zhang Wensheng, as well as books such as The Song Dynasty History, The Jin Dynasty History, The Yuan Dynasty History, Annals of the Eastern Capital, The Full History of the Song Dynasty, Collected Records of the Song Dynasty, and Extended Annals of the Mirror of History. The Jiangxi Book Bureau edition corrected some errors in previous printed versions but did not indicate the sources and sometimes made incorrect changes. For this reason, we referred to relevant books, chose the better corrections, and made adjustments. All additions, deletions, and corrections are annotated with sources and written as annotations in small parentheses after each sentence. Round brackets () indicate text to be deleted, while square brackets [] indicate text to be added. Common book titles that are too long are abbreviated, such as Xue Yingqi’s Mirror of History of the Song and Yuan Dynasties being referred to as Xue Jian. All quoted books are annotated with volume numbers. For chronicles that follow the same dating as this book, the dates are omitted, but different dates are still noted. We have also added the sexagenary cycle and the Gregorian calendar to the starting year of each section for easier reading. The collation and annotation of this book were carried out by the Ancient Chinese History Group of the History Department at Hebei Normal University (formerly Hebei Beijing Normal University). If there are any errors or inappropriate places in the book, we welcome readers to point them out. Editorial Department of Zhonghua Book Company, June 1977
Excerpt: On the 11th day of the sixth month, the emperor personally led the army to attack Yun. The mountain road was steep and rocky, so the emperor first carried several stones on his horse. The soldiers then competed to carry them, and by that day, a smooth road was cleared. He then met with Shou Xing and others and defeated Yun’s army south of Zezhou, killing Lu Zan, and forcing Yun to retreat and take refuge in Zezhou. The emperor personally supervised the battle, setting up encampments to surround Zezhou. General Ma Quanyi led dozens of daring soldiers to climb the walls and enter the city, where Yun burned himself to death. Wei Rong was captured and asked for death, but the emperor, furious, struck his head with an iron pestle, causing blood to flow over his face. Rong shouted, "I have found my place of death!" The emperor said, "He is a loyal minister." He released him and appointed him as the Minister of the Imperial Treasury. The Northern Han ruler, fearing, withdrew his troops. The emperor attacked Luzhou, and the governor surrendered the city. The emperor pardoned him and appointed him as the Military Commissioner of Shanzhou. In the seventh month of autumn, the emperor returned from Luzhou. He designated Daliang as the capital and Luoyang as the western capital. On the 15th day of the first month, Zhou’s Huainan Military Commissioner Li Chongjin rebelled in Yangzhou. Chongjin was the nephew of Zhou Taizu and served alongside the emperor in the Zhou court, sharing military authority but often distrusting the emperor. After the emperor ascended the throne, he promoted Chongjin to the position of Grand Secretary and moved him to Qingzhou. Chongjin grew increasingly uneasy and harbored secret ambitions. When Li Yun rebelled, Chongjin sent his trusted official Zhai Shouxi to Luzhou in secret to ally with Yun. Shouxi had previously known the emperor and secretly went to the capital to seek an audience. The emperor asked, "I want to grant Chongjin an iron edict, but will he trust me?" Shouxi replied, "Chongjin has no intention of submitting." The emperor generously rewarded Shouxi and instructed him to persuade Chongjin to delay his plans, warning him not to let the two rebel at the same time, which would divide the emperor’s forces. Shouxi returned and advised Chongjin not to act rashly, to which Chongjin listened. Later, the emperor sent Chen Sishui, a member of the Six Household Commission, to grant Chongjin an iron edict. Chongjin wanted to prepare to follow Sishui to the capital, but his subordinates obstructed him, and he hesitated. He also feared that as a close relative of the Zhou court, he might not escape unharmed, so he detained Sishui to repair the city and fortify the defenses while sending envoys to seek aid from the Tang Dynasty. The Tang ruler reported this to the emperor. The emperor sent Shi Shouxin, Wang Shouqi, Li Chuyun, and Song E to attack him from different directions, while Zhao Pu persuaded the emperor to personally lead the army. In the tenth month of winter, the emperor set off from Bian. In the 15th day of the 11th month, he arrived in Guangling and captured it that same day. As the city was about to fall, some of the emperor’s men wanted to kill Sishui, but Chongjin said, "If I burn my entire family to death, what is the point of killing this man!" He then set the entire city on fire, and Sishui was also killed. The emperor entered the city, executed hundreds of co-conspirators, and pacified Yangzhou. The historian said: Han Tong died during the Zhou Dynasty before the emperor’s enthronement, clearly demonstrating his loyalty and righteousness. Li Yun and Li Chongjin were recorded in history as rebels, but whether they truly rebelled is difficult to say. The stubborn people of Luoyang—were they not the loyal ministers of Yin? Some said that these three had served the Tang, Jin, and Han dynasties. Were they not like Yu Zhi’s Yu Rang?
In the third year (, 962), in the tenth month of winter, the Prince of Zheng, Zongxun, was moved to Fangzhou. The empress dowager passed away in the sixth month of Kaibao, and was posthumously titled Gentle Empress.
Song Dynasty History, Volume 1: Taizu of Song Replaces the Zhou In the first year of Jianlong (, 960), it was also the first year of Zongxun of Zhou. Earlier, in the sixth month of Xiande of Zhou, the two prefectures of Zhen and Ding reported that the Northern Han army, allied with the Khitan, was invading. On the first day of the first month of that year, the emperor sent Zhao Kuangyin, the Commander of the Palace Guard, and the Military Commissioner of the Hedong Circuit, to lead troops to resist them. Mu Rangzhao, the Deputy Commander of the Palace Guard, led the advance forces. At that time, the young ruler was weak and the country was in doubt, and there were secret plots to support Kuangyin in the court. The people in the capital murmured, "They will proclaim the Commander of the Palace Guard as the emperor on the day of the military campaign." The common people were terrified and sought to flee, but the inner court remained calm and unaware. On the second day, the army marched out. The military officer Mao Xun, known for his knowledge of astronomy, observed that there was another sun beneath the sun, with a black light swirling for a long time. He pointed it out to Chu Zhaofu, Kuangyin’s personal officer, saying, "This is the mandate of heaven." That night, they arrived at Chenqiao Post. The soldiers gathered and plotted, saying, "The ruler is young and weak, and if we fight the enemy with our lives, who will recognize our efforts? It would be better to first proclaim the Commander of the Palace Guard as the emperor and then march north. It’s not too late." Li Chuyun reported the matter to Kuangyin’s brother, Gongyi, the Director of the Palace, and Zhao Pu, the Secretary of the Hedong Circuit. Gongyi and Pu organized the generals, arranged themselves in a circle to wait for dawn, and sent Guo Yanzun, the cavalry commander of the Palace Guard, to ride into the capital to report to Shi Shouxin, the Commander of the Palace Guard, and Wang Shouqi, the Deputy Commander of the Palace Guard. Both were known to be loyal to Kuangyin. At dawn, the soldiers surrounded Kuangyin’s quarters and forced their way in. Gongyi and Pu entered the tent to inform him. Kuangyin, drunk, slowly got up and stretched. The officers had already drawn their swords and lined up in the courtyard, saying, "The country has no ruler, and we wish to proclaim the Military Commissioner as the emperor." Before Kuangyin could respond, a yellow robe was already placed on him. The crowd then knelt and shouted, "Long live the emperor!" They helped him onto his horse and returned to the capital. Kuangyin took the reins and said, "You all sought wealth and status to raise me, but if you follow my orders, you may do so. Otherwise, I cannot be your ruler." They all dismounted and said, "We will obey!" Kuangyin said, "The empress dowager and the ruler are those I serve in the north; do not disturb them. The ministers are my equals; do not infringe upon them. The capital, the government stores, and the treasury must not be looted. Those who obey will be richly rewarded, and those who disobey will not be forgiven." They all replied, "Yes!" The emperor then marched in an orderly formation. On the third day, they entered the capital. First, they sent Chu Zhaofu to comfort the families of the soldiers, and then sent Pan Mei, the Commissioner of the Guest Ministry, to convey the emperor’s intentions to the government officials. At that time, the morning assembly had not yet ended, and when the news broke, Fan Zhi held Wang Pu’s hand and said, "To hastily send out a general is our fault." His nails bit into Pu’s hand, almost drawing blood, but Pu remained silent and unable to respond. Han Tong, the Deputy Commander of the Palace Guard, hurriedly returned from the palace and plotted to lead the army to resist. Wang Yanyeng drove him away. Tong rushed back to his home but did not even close the door before Yanyeng killed him, along with his family. Kuangyin advanced to Mingde Gate and ordered the armored soldiers to return to their camps, while he himself withdrew to the government office. The soldiers then brought Fan Zhi and others to him, and Kuangyin wept and said, "I received great kindness from Emperor Shizong, but I was forced by the army and now stand in shame before heaven and earth. What can I do?" Fan Zhi and others did not have time to respond when Luo Yanquan drew his sword and shouted loudly, "The country has no ruler, and today we must find an emperor!" They looked at each other, unsure of what to do. Pu stepped down first and bowed, and Fan Zhi had no choice but to follow suit. They then requested Kuangyin to go to the Chongyuan Hall to perform the ceremony of abdication. They summoned all the officials, and by the afternoon, the ceremony was set, but there was still no abdication decree. Tao Hu, the Chief Secretary of the Hanlin Academy, took it out of his sleeve and it was used. Kuangyin stood before the court and bowed to accept the abdication; then, he was helped to the throne and ascended as emperor. He made Zongxun the Prince of Zheng and the empress dowager the Empress Dowager of Zhou, and moved her to the western palace. (On the third day) he granted amnesty and changed the era. He designated the Hedong Circuit, which was stationed in Songzhou, as the capital and adopted the name "Song." He sent messengers to proclaim the news to all provinces and military governors, with varying promotions and honors. He established the dynasty under the fire element, with the color red and the year of the dog as the era. The emperor was from Zhuozhou. His great-grandfather was Pei, the commandant of Youdu in the Tang Dynasty. Pei’s son was Ting, the Vice Director of the Censorate in the Tang Dynasty. Ting’s son was Jing, the prefect of Zhuozhou in the Tang Dynasty. Jing’s son was Hongyin, the Military Commissioner of Yuezhou in the Zhou Dynasty. Hongyin married a woman named Du and had the emperor in the Jiamaying Camp in Luoyang. A red light circled the house, and a strange fragrance lingered for a whole night. When he grew older, he had a majestic appearance and an open demeanor, and those who knew him recognized him as extraordinary. He served the Zhou Dynasty as a member of the eastern and western battalions and was promoted to the Commander of the Palace Guard, overseeing military affairs for six years. He frequently accompanied Emperor Shizong in campaigns and achieved great success, earning widespread admiration. Emperor Shizong once found a piece of wood in a document bag, over three feet long, inscribed with "The Commander of the Palace Guard will become the emperor." At that time, Zhang Yongde was the Commander of the Palace Guard, but the emperor replaced him, and eventually, the emperor did become the emperor. The hermit Chen Tuan heard that the emperor had replaced the Zhou ruler and said, "The world will now be settled." Soon after, Zhenzhou reported that the Northern Han army had withdrawn. On the 18th day, an edict was issued posthumously bestowing the title of Grand Secretary on Zhou’s vice commander of the palace guard, Han Tong, to be buried with honor in accordance with his loyalty. The emperor wanted to charge Wang Yanyeng with the crime of killing him, but the ministers, as the dynasty was just beginning, pleaded for his forgiveness. The emperor remained angry and Wang Yanyeng was thus denied the title and authority for the rest of his life. On the 21st day, the emperor rewarded those who had supported him, promoting Shi Shouxin to the Deputy Commander of the Palace Guard, Ma Huade to the Deputy Commander of the Palace Guard, Zhang Lingduo to the Deputy Commander of the Palace Guard, Wang Shouqi to the Commander of the Palace Guard, Zhang Guanghan to the Commander of the Palace Guard, and Zhao Yanhui to the Commander of the Palace Guard, all while holding military commands. Those who led armies were also promoted. At that time, Mu Rangzhao held a powerful army and was stationed in Zhending, while Han Lingkun led troops to patrol the northern border. The emperor sent messengers to convey his intentions, allowing them to act at their discretion. Both accepted the orders. The emperor then promoted Rangzhao to the Commander of the Palace Guard and Han Lingkun to the Deputy Commander of the Palace Guard. On the 25th day, the emperor appointed his brother Kuangyi as the Deputy Commander of the Palace Guard, renaming him Guangyi, and Zhao Pu as the Academician of the Bureau of Military Affairs. He established four ancestral temples. He honored his great-grandfather Pei as the Xizu Wenwen Emperor, his grandfather Ting as the Shunzu Huiyuan Emperor, his father Jing as the Yizu Jigong Emperor, and their mothers as empresses. He was posthumously honored as the Xuanzu Zhaowu Emperor. The custom was to offer sacrifices five times a year in the first, second, third, and fourth months of spring and autumn, as well as in the last month of winter. On the 11th day of the fourth month, Zhou’s Zhaoyi Military Commissioner Li Yun rebelled. At first, the emperor had sent messengers to appoint Yun as the Grand Secretary. When the messenger arrived in Luzhou, Yun wanted to refuse, but his attendants earnestly advised him to receive the messenger, host a banquet, and then hang the portrait of Zhou Taizu on the wall, weeping uncontrollably. The attendants were frightened and told the messenger, "Lord Yun has lost his senses due to drink. Please don’t be alarmed." The Northern Han ruler Jun heard of this and sent a wax tablet to Yun to join him in rebellion. Yun’s eldest son, Shouji, tearfully advised him, but Yun did not listen. The emperor sent a handwritten edict to comfort him and summoned Shouji as the Commissioner of the Imperial City. He sent Shouji back to tell Yun, "When I was not yet the emperor, you could do as you wished. But now that I am the emperor, can’t you even yield a little?" Shouji returned and reported to Yun, who then rebelled. He had his staff draft a declaration, listing the emperor’s faults, arrested the military supervisor Zhou Guangxun and others, and sent them to the Northern Han to seek help. He also sent people to kill Zhang Fu, the prefect of Zezhou, and seize the city. His assistant, Yan Qiuqiang, advised Yun, "You are leading an army in rebellion alone, and your position is very precarious. Even if you rely on the support of Hedong, you may not receive much help. The armored forces of Daliang are sharp and elite, and it is difficult to compete with them. It would be better to head west along the Taihang Mountains, directly reach Huai and Meng, block Hulao, seize Luoyang, and then turn east to compete for the world. This is the best strategy." Yun did not follow his advice. The Northern Han ruler personally led his army to Yun, and Yun met him in Taiping Post, saying he dared not fear death out of gratitude to Zhou Taizu. The Northern Han ruler and Zhou Shizong were enemies, and he was displeased with his words. He then sent Lu Zan, the Director of the Court of Special Envoys, to monitor Yun’s army. Yun saw the Northern Han army was weak and Lu Zan was monitoring him, and he deeply regretted his decision and had conflicting plans. He stayed behind to defend Luzhou while leading his troops south. The Northern Han ruler heard that Lu Zan and Yun had disagreements and sent his Prime Minister, Wei Rong, to mediate. The emperor sent Shi Shouxin, Gao Huade, Mu Rangzhao, and Wang Quanbin to attack him from different directions, ordering Shi Shouxin and others, "Do not let Yun cross the Taihang Mountains and quickly lead your troops to block the passes. You will surely defeat him!" Shi Shouxin and others defeated Yun’s army at Changping.