Spring and Autumn History (Corrected Edition)

Author: Tong Shuyi, edited by Tong Jiaoying
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2006-08-01
Features: This History of the Spring and Autumn Period, originally a lecture notes used by Professor Gu Jiegang at Peking University and Beijing University, was written by me, though the purpose was entirely in line with Professor Gu's (hence some discussions in the book may differ from my own views). After the incident, I took these notes to Anqing and then to Shanghai, never leaving them even in the most difficult times. Last summer, I received a letter from Professor Gu in Chengdu asking me to write a History of the Spring and Autumn Period for Tsinghua University. I replied that the style of the lecture notes was good and that I had put considerable effort into writing it. Discarding it would be a pity; instead, I suggested revising and expanding the notes, which would serve both popular and specialized purposes. Professor Gu agreed and replied that since we were in distant places and could not discuss in detail, it would be better to publish it under my name. I followed his instructions and began revising it last winter. Due to various commitments, I only managed to complete it in June this year. The gaps in the original manuscript have been largely filled, errors corrected, and the format slightly adjusted. While I cannot say it is entirely satisfactory, I have certainly put my heart into it (the text was slightly verbose in places, but since it was reviewed by Professor Gu, I kept it mostly unchanged except where necessary). The book is divided into two parts: "Main Text" and "Commentaries." The main text is approximately 160,000 words, while the commentaries are planned to be 200,000 words. The main text uses a narrative style (with references to commentaries where necessary) and is written in simple language, avoiding direct quotes unless absolutely necessary. The commentaries follow the style of Cui Dongyi's Record of Verified Histories and are titled Commentaries on the Spring and Autumn Period (which can be seen as a continuation of Cui's work). They can stand alone or be combined with the main text. The materials for the commentaries have been largely collected, and I was about to start writing them, but circumstances and personal matters prevent me from completing them in the short term. Fortunately, the main text is self-contained and can be published first. Only the thirteenth chapter has footnotes, as chapters two and later have separate commentaries to avoid repetition (since the commentaries are titled Commentaries on the Spring and Autumn Period as a continuation of Cui's Record of Verified Histories, there is no need to trace back to earlier periods, so these commentaries are included as notes in the main text. As they are commentaries rather than notes, they are somewhat lengthy, and the use of classical Chinese is also due to this reason).
I have always believed that in writing a comprehensive history, every major event should be detailed in its context, and the connections between different eras should not be severed. To uphold this principle, this book centers on the history of the Spring and Autumn Period while briefly covering the history from the remote antiquity to the Western Zhou (becoming more concise as it goes further back). The chapter titled "Brief History of the Western Zhou" is included because there is more detailed information about the Western Zhou. I originally wrote a chapter titled "Brief History of the Warring States Period" to append to the main text, but since my friend Yang Kuanzheng (Kuan) was also writing a Brief History of the Warring States Period for Tsinghua University with a similar style, we decided to combine the two. Therefore, I deleted the completed "Brief History of the Warring States Period" and its notes, which were about 20,000 words, to avoid repetition.
Regarding dates, the main text uses traditional Chinese chronology for most events, as the exact dates before the Warring States Period are difficult to determine. Using traditional Chinese chronology is more reliable and easier to reference. Since there are many chronological tables available now, readers who wish to know the corresponding Gregorian dates can easily look them up. For important and reasonably identifiable place names, I have added modern locations below; for less important or uncertain ones, I have omitted them.
There are also differences in the discussions between the main text and the commentaries. The main text focuses on popular understanding, avoiding personal opinions that have not been widely accepted, except when necessary. However, the commentaries include more new theories, as they are intended to express personal insights.