Chapter 4 Song Shenzong Zhao Xuxu

I know that high-level intellectuals are almost familiar with what happened in the previous generation, and use it to improve their moral character.That's why they're mentally healthy, radiant, and moving forward every day. "Book of Books" says: "The king should keep learning and concentrate all the time.", "Book of Books", "Spring and Autumn", each book explains the trajectory of gains and losses, protects the regular rules of impartiality and selflessness, so that future generations will never forget Lessons and vigilance are obtained from the records.Sima Qian of the Western Han Dynasty sorted out the books in the stone room of the royal ancestral temple and the documents in the gold cabinet of the royal treasury, and based on "Zuoshi", "Mandarin", "Shiben", "Warring States Policy", "Chu-Han Chunqiu", widely Collection, precise selection, collecting historical stories and anecdotes, and then correcting them, the brushwork has been running for thousands of years.It started as early as Ji Xuanyuan, the first king of the Yellow Emperor Dynasty (2698 years ago), and at the latest, Liu Che (the seventh emperor of the Western Han Dynasty) discovered Kirin (122 years ago. A total of 2576 years).The content is divided into five units: "Ji", "Biao", "Aristocratic Family", "Book", and "Biography", which has become a stereotype, and later historians cannot escape the model he created.The main advantage of Sima Qian is that his judgment of right and wrong does not violate the standards of a sage, and his praise and condemnation are also very pertinent.There is no doubt that he is a good historian.

My father (Zhao Zongshi, the fifth emperor of the Song Dynasty) always paid attention to ancient books and paid attention to albums. Although he dealt with tens of millions of state affairs every day, he still indulged in reading whenever he had free time.Sima Guang, the permanent royal literary attendant of Longtu Pavilion (a direct scholar of Longtu Pavilion), was once entrusted to study the deeds of the kings and officials of the past dynasties, and to collect materials from the nearby Mi Pavilion Queen's Library, and the government provided all the funds.It started in 403 BC and ended in 959 AD.What Sima Guang meant was that the Zhou Dynasty was increasingly replaced, the royal family was weak, and laws, regulations, and military operations were all in the hands of the ruler of the state.The thirteenth king (Ping Wang) Ji Yijiu moved the capital from Haojing (west of Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province) to Luoyang eastward, and Qi, Chu, Qin, and Jin, and the feudal states began to grow stronger.Jiang Xiaobai and Ji Chong'er became overlords successively, but they still respected the kings of the Zhou Dynasty and used them to command the world.However, when the thirty-eighth king (King Wei Lie) Ji Wu ordered the promotion of the senior officials (attendants) Han, Zhao, and Wei to be the kings (vassals) of the country, the Zhou Dynasty did not perish, but the discipline had passed. Totally destroyed.Sima Guang decided to start from the year when this incident happened, which is also the original intention of the ancients to write books and start from a certain event.As for the incisive remarks of the sages and sages quoted in the book to discuss national affairs and the way of governance, the system of good and evil in morality or punishment, the relationship between gods and the human world, the source of auspiciousness and disaster, the basis of the rise and fall of prestige , the impact of the advantages and disadvantages of administrative measures, the strategies of the generals, and the governance plans of the officials, are they evil after a strict analysis?Or just?Is it a long-term solution?Or just focus on the present?Not only that, but also collected beautiful articles and profound arguments one by one.After sixteen dynasties, there are two hundred and ninety-four volumes.Spread it on the clear window and clean table, and you can immediately understand the evolution process from ancient to modern times.Broad and concise, concise without omission.It is also a collection of laws and regulations and a selection of articles and diction.Xun Kuang once said: "If you want to see the behavior of a sage, you should look for it in the wise kings of future generations." Like Liu Heng (five emperors) and Liu Xun (ten emperors) in the Western Han Dynasty, Li Shimin in the Tang Dynasty (The second emperor) are all impeccable characters as Confucius said.Other wise kings, either have sincere love, or have the inspiration of loyalty and filial piety, or know people well, or are diligent and cautious, and they all have some of the advantages of the sages.Meng Ke said: "I only praise Ji Fa (the first king of the Zhou Dynasty) and Ji Song (the second king of the Zhou Dynasty) for two or three things." As for some absurdities, we can learn from him. .Some are vicious and treacherous, from which reflection and inspiration can be obtained.Said: "The descendants of the Shang Dynasty should use the fall of the Xia Dynasty as a reference, and there is no need to look far away." Therefore, I specially named this book to show my hope.

At the beginning of October in the fourth year of Zhiping (1067), the emperor called his ministers to give lectures, and I received the imperial decree and read it out.On the ninth day of that month, minister Sima Guang read it for the first time, and the emperor gave the preface to the imperial system face to face, and ordered "add it when the whole book is finished."

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