Chapter 2 Foreword The Chinese must read the Spring and Autumn Annals

The Spring and Autumn Period was named after Confucius revised the Spring and Autumn Period.This book records the history from the first year of Lu Yin (722 BC) to the fourteenth year of Lu Aigong (481 BC).For the sake of convenience, modern scholars generally call it the "Spring and Autumn Period" from the first year of King Zhou Ping (770 BC) in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty to the forty-third year of King Zhou Jing (477 BC). If you ask a question, which era in Chinese history is the most indispensable?If we could only keep one, which one should we keep? Qing Dynasty?Zero points; Ming Dynasty?Zero points; Song Dynasty? 1 point; Tang Dynasty? 2 points; Han Dynasty? 3 points, close to the answer.

The correct answer is: Spring and Autumn and Warring States, that is, the Eastern Zhou Dynasty. why would you say so?If you know Chunqiu, you will know. At that time, there was no emperor, no three kneeling and nine kowtows and long live shouts, no slaves and masters, and everyone was equal; at that time, there was no literary inquisition, there was contention among a hundred schools of thought, and the right to think. At that time, there was a foreign invasion.However, whoever invades is wiped out and eventually becomes a part of us. At that time, there were disasters, wars, morality and injustice, human nature and inhumanity, intrigues, and then, the outbreak of thought and the emergence of overlords.The culture of the Chinese nation developed explosively at that time, unprecedented.

The Spring and Autumn Period was an era of political reform, and reform was the main theme of that era.From the Spring and Autumn Period to the Warring States Period, the sound of reforms was heard endlessly. Advancing with the times is not a slogan but an action. Aren't we keen on Chinese studies? What is Guoxue?Two words: Spring and Autumn. Confucianism and Taoism are two parallel main lines in Chinese history. The former is about humanities and politics, while the latter is about philosophy and religion. Confucius, the founder of Confucianism, and Laozi, the founder of Taoism, both came from the Spring and Autumn Period. Great ideas were produced in that era .And like two suns hanging in the sky, we can only look up but cannot reach.

Guan Zhong, the greatest statesman in Chinese history and even world history, came from Spring and Autumn, and Sun Tzu, the greatest military strategist in Chinese history and even world history, came from Spring and Autumn. In the thousands of years after the Spring and Autumn Period, we have never seen such a heavyweight great person. We are always lingering within the achievements of our ancestors in the Spring and Autumn Period, and we can no longer go out. I don’t know whether the ancestors were too great or their descendants. People are too disappointing. But one thing is indisputable, without Spring and Autumn, we can't talk about Chinese studies at all.

You must know what your surname is, but you may not know the origin of your surname.Look up hundreds of surnames, and you will be surprised to find that most of our surnames come from the Spring and Autumn Period.Looking at the history of the Spring and Autumn Period, that is, looking at the history of one's own family, seeing the glory or suffering of one's surname. Counting classics and forgetting ancestors, this is an idiom from the Spring and Autumn Period, but it is more appropriate for modern people. When it comes to idioms, Chunqiu provides us with a large number of idioms and allusions, such as intrigue, self-deception, lip-death and teeth-coldness, etc. We often use them, shouldn't we know their origins?

It is not an exaggeration to say that if Confucius did not cultivate the Spring and Autumn Annals, I really do not know how we would write today's article. In fact, the legacy left to us by the Spring and Autumn Period and the subsequent Warring States Period is not only ideological and cultural, but rich enough to make the whole world envy us. "Sun Tzu's Art of War" is still a must-read textbook for military schools all over the world, and it is also a worship book for Western philosophers. Our Guan Zhong brought Qi to the hegemony with a set of systemic and astonishing plans for governing the country. The early cabinet system, welfare society, agricultural tax reduction, inflation control, business encouragement, salt and iron monopoly, these are all brought by Guan Zhong. The enlightenment of the whole world, even the originator of public brothels all over the world is Guan Zhong.It is worth mentioning that this great and all-round politician is a deserter, a veritable "runner".However, this does not detract from his greatness.

Confucius said: Without Guan Zhong, we should have loosened our hair, bare our arms, and become slaves to barbarians. Some people commented: The reason why China declined was because it respected Confucius instead of Guanzi. Don't think that the stories from thousands of years ago are useless today. On the contrary, the wisdom of the Chinese people is reflected in the Spring and Autumn Period rather than the following thousands of years. The Spring and Autumn Period is a compulsory course for ancient Chinese politicians and military strategists, but please note that in the Spring and Autumn Period, there are righteousness, wisdom, and treachery, depending on what you look at.Looking at the Spring and Autumn Period, the good people are often better, the bad people are worse, and the smart people are smarter.During the Three Kingdoms period, Guan Yu, Zhuge Liang and Cao Cao were all fans of the Spring and Autumn Period. As a result, what Guan Yu saw was the righteousness of the Spring and Autumn Period, so he had Guan Erye who was righteous and thin; what Zhuge Liang saw was the wisdom of Guan Zhong and Xian Zhen, so he had Zhuge Kongming, who is clever and calculating; what Cao Cao saw was treachery and power, so he had Cao Mengde, a traitor in the world.

The Spring and Autumn period was very similar to today's world. There were small countries, big countries, and superpowers. How to survive in international affairs and how to survive with dignity was a science at that time. If you lag behind, you will be beaten, Chairman Mao said.Chairman Mao is a Spring and Autumn fan. As a small country, how to survive in the cracks?As a big country, how can it survive with dignity?As a superpower, what do you rely on to dominate the world?With Zichan, Zheng State won the respect of the two superpowers; without Zichan, Zheng State would soon perish.Thousands of years ago, the state of Jin brought down the state of Chu; thousands of years later, the United States brought down the Soviet Union.

Then, in today's world map, how should China position itself and how should it respond to the world situation? This requires the wisdom of the Spring and Autumn Period. From Zheng Zhuanggong's forbearance to Yue King Goujian's forbearance, you can find how precious the endurance of the Chinese nation is; from Guan Zhong assisting Qi Huan to dominate the hegemony to Fan Li helping the Yue State to destroy Wu, you can see the skills of the ancestors in governing the country; from Sun Tzu From the Art of War to the Shang Yang Reform, you can see the different paths of the country's prosperity.

During the Spring and Autumn Period, the intriguing national relations were so close to the current international situation. The annexation of the strong and the weak was full of shamelessness and violence. A war, and various names such as "holding the emperor to order the princes", "one country, two systems", "Southern Federation" and so on all appeared at that time. Of course, there are also villains such as the four brothers of Zheng Guo who can kill each other, Wei Yigong who raises cranes, Qi Xianggong who is incestuous, Song Xianggong who is a stupid benevolent and moral man, and father Qing who is ambitious, etc. All kinds of people and things are full of people and things. With that infinitely wonderful historical stage.

Of the five overlords in the Spring and Autumn Period, who is the real overlord?Duke Huan of Qi?Duke Wen of Jin?King Chuzhuang?Benevolence, integrity, force, what is the first element to dominate the world?Chunqiu will tell you. Spring and Autumn, the most exciting drama in world history.