Tang Dynasty Chronicle (Illustrated Edition)

Author: Cai Dongfan
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2007-01-01
Features: In the past, Liu Xun of the Later Jin dynasty and the historian Zhang Zhaoyuan compiled a 200-volume history of the Tang dynasty, chronicling 290 years of Tang history. Later generations criticized it, saying that its organization was disorganized and the facts were scattered. Thus, during the Qianli period of Emperor Renzong of the Song dynasty, a new compilation was created, totaling 225 volumes, completed over 17 years, with and as the main compilers.
Ouyang Xiu and Song Qi were renowned scholars of the Northern Song dynasty, with greater literary fame than Liu Xun and Zhang Zhaoyuan. After more than a decade of collecting and verifying historical materials, all works from the Five Dynasties period that had not been published before were now preserved. Based on these, they compiled a more precise and detailed history. Moreover, it is easier to polish than to create from scratch. Replacing the old with the new was inevitable. However, critics still faulted it for using obscure language, lacking refinement, and being too brief in editing imperial decrees. How difficult it is to write history!
Yet, writing history is difficult, and reading history is equally so. The Old Book of the Tang has 200 volumes, and the New Book of the Tang has as many as 225 volumes. Who could read them all without missing a word? Beyond these, there are works like Sun Fu’s Historical Records of the Tang, Zhao Zhan’s Spring and Autumn Annals of the Tang, Chen Pengnian’s Records of the Tang, Yuan Shu’s Chronicles of Major Events in the Tang History, which range from 100 to dozens of volumes. Even if one were to read them day and night without stopping, it would still be impossible to memorize them all.
Young people, with limited knowledge, cannot possibly read all of Tang history. Not only do they lack the time, but they also lack the ability. Instead, they turn to old novels from the market, such as Romance of the Sui and Tang, Complete Stories of the Tang, The Family of Xue, Eastward Expedition, Westward Expedition, Luo Tong’s Northern Conquest, as well as Journey to the West, The Palace of Eternal Life, Flowers and Mirrors, and Green Plum. They read these day and night, treating them as facts. Yet, how can they know that these stories are baseless and full of fabrications? They do little to enlighten the mind but more to mislead people.
I, though unworthy, have compiled popular tales of the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties and published them in installments. The refined scholars of the land did not mock my lack of learning but praised them for aiding popular education. Thus, I decided to go even further and write about the Tang dynasty, completing 100 chapters. Using official history as the backbone, I strive for accuracy, while using anecdotes as supplementary threads, avoiding falsehoods.
Xu Mao Gong was not a strategist before, and Li Yao had no magical powers. Luo Yi died in rebellion, yet how could he have descendants? Yu Shobo became famous, but his children were not mentioned. Tang Xuanzang’s journey to India did not involve demons, and Xue Ren Gui’s achievements were not aided by his wife. Empress Wu’s debauchery did not result in secret sons, and Yang Guifei’s execution did not allow her to achieve enlightenment. These absurd and vulgar tales, refuted here, serve to break secular superstitions and support the wings of historians. The fictional characters of fiction will surely not sneer from the sidelines.
However, the book was completed in haste and has not been thoroughly revised. Errors like those in the characters hai and shi, or lu and yu, are inevitable. I hope the scholars of history in the land will correct my shortcomings.
Written in the eleventh year of the Republic of China, the summer solstice on the ninth day, by Cai Dongfan of Guyue at the Linjiang Study.