Liang Shu (Full 3 Volumes) -- Traditional Vertical Layout

Author: (Tang) Yao Silian
Publisher:
Publishing Date: Not available
Features: The Book of Liang records the history of the 56 years from the establishment of the Liang Dynasty by Emperor Xian of Liang (Xiao Yan) to the fall of the Liang Dynasty by Emperor Jing of Liang (Xiao Fangzhi). It was meticulously compiled by Yao Cha and his son, Yao Silian, over two generations. Yao Cha, styled Bo Shen, was a native of Wu Xing Wu Kang and a historian of the Southern Dynasties. He served in the courts of the Liang, Chen, and Sui dynasties, holding positions such as Secretary of the Imperial Library, Chief of the Bureau of Historiography, and Minister of Personnel during the Chen Dynasty, and serving as Secretary of the Imperial Library in the Sui Dynasty. After entering the Sui Dynasty, he was commissioned by Emperor Wen of Sui to compile the histories of the Liang and Chen dynasties in the ninth year of the Kaigang era. He passed away before completing the work. On his deathbed, he instructed his son, Yao Silian, to continue the historical compilation. Yao Silian, styled Jianzhi, made full use of his father’s unfinished draft in his historical work. From the third to the tenth year of the Zhenguan era, he spent seven years completing the Book of Liang and the Book of Chen. Although both Yao Cha and Yao Silian were historians, they possessed a strong literary foundation. In their writing of historical texts, they maintained simplicity and austerity, avoiding the pursuit of ornate or superficial language, and inherited the style and method of Sima Qian and Ban Gu. Their literary approach is rare among the histories of the Southern Dynasties.