Chapter 9 Section 9 Compilation Work

In recent years, the compilation of chronicles has developed quite a lot, and the number has also increased day by day. There are even those who compile the chronicles for living people (such as "Cao Yu Chronicles").The styles of various new chronicles are not consistent, and of course there is no need to insist on the same.Therefore, I will only briefly talk about the style of compiling the chronicle based on the "Lin Zexu Chronicle" compiled by me, for the reference of those who are interested in compiling the chronicle. Compilation of the chronicle should first determine the purpose, that is, to determine the main content of the compilation.In the past, some editors of chronicles have stated that their compilation purposes are: compiling the life of the genealogy master, the development process and achievements of academic study and self-cultivation, and also describing the genealogy of the genealogy master and the succession of teachers.This naturally refers to the writing of the chronicle of scholars, that is to say, the chronicle of scholars should be based on the main purpose of learning and behavior, as well as personal cultivation, teacher succession and friendship.Some people have more specifically stipulated that the content and purpose of the chronicle of scholars should include three aspects: first, the order of entry into school and the standard of learning; second, an overview of the loss of posthumous works;However, if a person has a mediocre life and has no academic achievements to record, it is better not to write a chronicle just to compile the chronicle of this person's official history, family background, etc., so some people criticize the chronicle without purpose and say: , The origin is still there. As far as Gongbao Shangqing, there is a chronology of the world, but after careful examination, there is no one who benefits the government and the public. What is the difference? The old tree has withered, so the author remembers that it was unearthed in a certain year and bloomed in a certain year Ye, have you been decadent in a certain year? The reason why Madam can pass on to the Immortals is because of their merits and merits and their fame." (Li Yuhong's "Preface to the Chronicle of the Old Man of Hansong") This kind of comment is a bit harsh, but it is a powerful attack. A batch of chronicles without a subject prompts people to pay attention to the subject when compiling the chronicles.The historian Hang Shijun of the Qing Dynasty had in-depth research on the chronicles, and he once put forward the main purpose of compiling the chronicles positively and briefly, saying:

It must be his virtue and career Chonghong [honghong], his writing is brilliant, and he is enough to be able to do this. There is no one who has died of grass and trees, so he can use it to chronicle the years. (Preface to the Chronicle of Mr. Shi Yushan) When I was compiling the "Lin Zexu Chronicle", I first considered how to determine the gist of Lin Zexu, a famous modern historical figure like Lin Zexu.In the past, the main purpose of "Lin Wenzhong Gong Chronicle" compiled by Wei Yingqi was to expound Lin Zexu in the Opium War.Although this is the main achievement of Lin Zexu, it has not yet summarized Lin Zexu's life.From a macro perspective, Lin Zexu is not only a farsighted patriot, but also an accomplished politician in the feudal society.Therefore, it must be used as the central thread throughout the book.This is the so-called establishment of the main purpose, and then regardless of the collection of materials, research and selection, and discussion into genealogy, there can be some references without causing the chronicle to become an endless journal. Otherwise, it will be difficult to call it a qualified chronicle.

The predecessors once discussed the author of the chronicle and said: The chronicle work began in the Song Dynasty.Its author, such as Yang Jiaoshan's self-made chronology, has not yet been published in Du Wenzhong's chronology.In addition, either the person who left the door is old, or it may be in the hands of descendants and people of different generations. (Preface to Wang Buying's Chronicle of Mr. Zhao Shenzhai) According to different editors, Chen Naiqian's "Gongdulou Collection of Chronicles" is also divided into four categories of chronicles, namely A, self-compiled category, B, category written by family members, C, category written by friends and students, D, category supplemented by later generations .These four types of writers have their own strengths and weaknesses, such as the descendants of the genealogy, "there are many beautiful things in it, and even artificial hands are used by others, especially not the way of documentary." However, some people think that the above two types of people are close to the age of the spectrum master, and it is easy to get the truth. The so-called " Either from the compilations of virtuous descendants, or from Zhen Zong, a disciple of the sect, who passed away recently and saw the truth, so the interpretation is easy" (Wu Huaiqing's "Mr. Erqu's Chronicle Preface").Some people opposed self-made chronology and favored the notation written by later generations, and gave an example:

For example, Li, Du, Han, and Su all had their chronicles at the top of their collections of poems and essays. There are all self-reporters. (Yin Zhuangtu "Chu Zhen's Self-Record Chronicle and Preface") Hang Shijun, a scholar in the Qing Dynasty, believed that different authors could use different compilation methods. He said: Either from the compilation of the virtuous descendants, or from the Zhen Zong of the disciples, or from the textual research of those who are selfish and virtuous. ("Luo Zongrong Chronicle Preface", see "Daogutang Collection" Volume 5)

Compilation, screening and textual research refer to different compilation methods, but they also reflect the value of Pin Zhi (zhizhi), from which we can see that Hang Zhengzheng is the best among all kinds of writers.Taking Lin Zexu's chronicle as an example, there was a copy of the "Draft Chronicle of Wen Zhonggong" written by his son Lin Congyi. Suspect.Foolishly thought that this was a pretext.Regardless of whether it is false or not, even its content is quite simple and omissions. During the Opium War, it did not say a word, which is obviously taboo.Later, when Wei Yinglin wrote the Chronicle of Lord Lin Wenzhong in the twenty-fourth year of the Republic of China (AD 1935), although it was also written by later generations for the predecessors, because relevant historical materials at that time, such as "The History of Preparations for Barbarian Affairs in the Daoguang Dynasty" and The diaries and letters of the spectrum master have not yet been discovered and published, so the content is poor due to insufficient citation of historical materials.When I compiled "Lin Zexu's Chronicle", because the manuscripts, diaries, letters, etc. of the owner of the spectrum had been published and circulated, and the conditions for participating in the certification were met, the actions of the owner of the spectrum were complete.Later generations wrote genealogies because of a long time ago, and human relationships are no longer involved. Even if there are survivors, most of them are descendants of the fifth or sixth generation. They talk about the owner of the genealogy just as they talk about ordinary historical figures without shy away from it.Later generations can also obtain a large amount of information for compiling the spectrum, which is convenient for textual research and seeking truth, and is extremely beneficial for restoring the history of the spectrum owner.Like Hu Shizhi's "Chronology of Mr. Zhang Shizhai", he "attached the birth and death of his peers, and tied the words of comments under the year of death. First, he examined his views and pointed out his thoughts at that time. Everything discussed Do things, participate in your own opinions, and directly criticize" (Gu Tinglong's "Chronicle Catalog of Chinese Celebrities in Past Dynasties" preface).This can also prove that it is easy and fair for scholars of later generations to write genealogies, and it can be passed on to later generations if they can be judged or not. Therefore, scholars of later generations win the best chronicles.

Chronological records should be based on rich materials, so Liangpu pays more attention to extensive data collection. When Gu Tinglong wrote the preface to "Chronological Catalog of Chinese Celebrities in Past Dynasties", he said: The Chronicle of Zhuzi written by Wang Maohong (honghong) is based on the linguistic analysis of the anthology and intensive research. He also seeks the introduction of the Confucianism mentioned, the origin of teachers and friends, and the writings of various schools of thought. , a compromise. ""The Chronicle of Awen Chenggong written by Na Yancheng is unique in detailing the official history, and all the memorials and decrees are closely related, which can make up for the unknown history of the country.

It can be seen from this that the compilation of notation should adopt extensive materials to do parallel work, but the collection must be done properly.When I was compiling the Chronicle of Lin Zexu, I collected information on several levels.First of all, start with the composer’s own materials. For example, Lin Zexu’s memorials, diaries, and letters are the most original materials that reflect the characters. When compiling the score, you can compile from these materials that are related to the major activities of the composer’s life and can be used for reference. material.Secondly, it is necessary to collect the biography of the main spectrum written by others, etc., so as to fill in gaps and correct errors, and improve the effect of perfection.Thirdly, collect the writings and biographies of people related to the spectrum master, and sort out the materials related to the spectrum master's actions.Then, collect relevant records from the official books, topography, miscellaneous works, and collections of poetry and prose of the time when the spectrum master lived and where he went.Finally, collect later generations (including Chinese and foreign people) on the discussion and evaluation of the spectrum master.The so-called materials include document records, word-of-mouth records, relics, inscriptions on gold and stones, images and photos, etc. "Lin Zexu's Chronicle" collected more than 200 kinds of materials through these levels. Even if some materials are not very important, but they are rare, they should not be ignored. Although the epitaphs in Jiazhen and the inscribed stones found in Lanzhou have little to do with Lin Zexu’s deeds, they were indeed written by Lin Zexu, and Lin’s calligraphy also has certain attainments, so they should also be collected to broaden readers’ horizons.

After a large amount of data is basically concentrated, it is important to examine the authenticity and value of the materials, discard the dross and select the essence, discard the false and keep the truth, even trivial details should be clearly identified.For example, in April and May of Daoguang's 20th year, Lin Zexu sent a letter to Tang Jian to congratulate him on his appointment as Minister of Taichang Temple.In the letter, there is "Qi Shixiong's joy in Nangong, those who heard it are very happy..., and the two nephews signed their names together, which is a grand event,..." After selecting and textual research, we know that the so-called "Qi Shixiong" in the letter is named Qi Zhen, "the two "Ling nephew" refers to Tang Jian's nephew Huang Zhaolin and Huang Zhuo (zhuo table) brothers.The writing time of this letter is the first month of the 21st year of Daoguang (1841 AD), and April and May of the 20th year of Daoguang (1840 AD), and the latter is the latter after repeated examinations.Another example is the death year of Lin's wife Zheng Shuqing, which has always been set as October 19th in the 28th year of Daoguang (AD 1848) according to Wei Yingqi's "Lin Wenzhong Gong Chronicle". It was determined as October 15th in the twenty-seventh year of Daoguang (AD 1847), and the statement was changed.Although these are minor details, they cannot be ignored when compiling a chronicle, not to mention that the materials related to major events must be strictly examined and selected to establish and enhance the credibility of the chronicle.If you only seek its quantity and fail to examine it, then you will lose its credibility.When the number of chronicles increases greatly, the disadvantages of excessive harvesting are common, just as Ping Buqing said in the sixth volume of "Xiawaijian (jun Jun) Scraps" in the late Qing Dynasty: "The chronicle work is the most sloppy in modern times. Redundancy, good deeds and good words, empty fiction, readers have not finished the book, but they know that what they say is not true history!" Such a disease, people today must not be careless in writing genealogy.

Teacher Yu Jiaxi believed that the chronicle is "the most beneficial for the study of Zhang Zhang" ("Catalogue of Learning" 4).In "Mr. Chen Shiyuan's Chronicle", Hu Mingsheng further analyzed in detail the academic issues that the chronicle is beneficial to: Part B is of various kinds, describing personal learning and practice, outlining the key points, and clear organization, and the chronicle is the best.Scholars discuss the academics of the sages and recite their chronicles. Even if they can't gain insight into the depth, they can still have a little understanding of the system.The flow of writers, in view of this, all the sages whose oblivion has not been revealed, or whose writings are profound and difficult to study, are also happy to summarize and compile chronicles for the future generations of the world. ("Peking Library Monthly" Volume 3 No. 5)

Chronological records are beneficial to academics, but I think the more important role of chronological records is to understand people and discuss the world.This has been discussed before.Sun Deqian set this as an example in "A Brief Example of Reading Methods in Ancient Books", saying: After the Song Dynasty, chronicles became popular, such as Lu Xun [Yin Yin] and Hong Xing's ancestors, Han Yu and Liu Zongyuan in writing, Tao Qian and Du Fu in poetry, and since then all have chronicles handed down to the world. . Sun Yirang, a modern Confucian scholar, also said in the preface to "The Chronicle of Mr. Maochaomin":

Although the work of chronicle originated in the Song Dynasty, it fully fills up the gaps in the history of ancient families. Zong Jichen of the Qing Dynasty explained the social function of the Chronicle of Mr. Huang Lizhou in response to the request of the author Huang Binghou [Hou Hou]: (Chronology) Take the great details of his words and deeds, the bond between teachers and friends, the 轗〔kan cut〕Ke he met, the experience of his whereabouts, and those who have enough knowledge of his temperament and knowledge, weave it into it, so that future generations can talk about people and know the world! Although the chronology is not as good as the biography, which can be used to criticize and criticize people directly, but its method of knowing people and discussing the world is worth noting.It puts people in a certain "world" (society and historical conditions), and makes people judge people in the narrative combined with "world".A person who knows people and discusses the world through chronicles often obtains unexpected historical status and effects. For example, after Qing Dynasty scholar Zhang Mu wrote "Gu Tinglin Chronicle" which became quite famous, he did not continue to compile Huang Zongxi's On the contrary, the chronicle was compiled by Yan Ruoqi, who was good at textual research but not as upright as Gu Huang. Later generations expressed surprise at Zhang Mu's move in the sense of knowing people and discussing the world, and wrote in the text: I am quite surprised that Shizhou (Zhang Mu) is Gu Pu and not Huang Pu, but compiled and compiled by Yan Qianqiu.Although Qianqiu's textual research is sound, its great achievements are enough to see Ting Linye?Wu is also a native of Taiyuan, so there is a feeling of incense in Shizhou?As soon as they sang a hundred harmonies, the ear eaters recreated the Yan Temple next to the Gu Temple in Baoguo Temple to match it.Alas!Is it equivalent to knowing people and discussing the world? (Volume 3 of Xie Zhangting's "After School Occasions", see "Gambling and Chess Villa Collection") The writing of a spectrum can set up a shrine, and the history can be judged, which can be seen here.Perhaps Zhang Mu did not expect that the influence of knowing people and discussing the world would be so great.Zhang Mu lost his caution, so he made people laugh. The writing of Lin Zexu's Chronicle not only focuses on the era background of the owner of the spectrum, but also quotes comments from the world to judge Lin Zexu's personality.For example, on the eighth day of June in the twelfth year of Daoguang (AD 1832), Lin Zexu took over as governor of Jiangsu. Xin Xin happily said to each other, "Mr. Lin is here!" (Feng Guifen's "Inscription on the Portrait of Lin Shaomu's Supervisor", see "Xianzhitang Manuscript" Volume 1 and 2) This material records the people of Suzhou welcoming Lin Zexu The scene is used to "discuss the world", and it also makes people see Lin Zexu's reputation as "knowing people".Another example is that on November 11th in the 19th year of Daoguang (AD 1839), Lin Zexu received 15 crew members of the shipwrecked British ship Sanda at Tianhou Palace in Guangzhou to learn about them in various aspects.This section of information shows that Lin Zexu had the courage to violate the feudal ritual system, and it also reflects Lin Zexu's strategic thinking that distinguishes ordinary citizens from opium dealers.These examples show that chronicles can tell people and discuss the world. Chronology information or content is repetitive, or the words are too cumbersome, or only for reference, or anecdotes and trivial matters, it is not without regret that it is difficult to select all of them into the annals and discard them.Therefore, it is advisable to add an appendix at the end of the spectrum to preserve the data.This method has been used before. For example, after Su Dunyuan compiled the "Chronology of Mr. Zhang Yangyuan (Lvxiang)", there are appendices "Chronicles of Poems", "Bibliography of Unlisted Chronicles", "Excerpted from Zhujia Comments", written by Shao Yichen The biography of the master of the spectrum and the "Tomb Notes" written by Su Dunyuan, etc., enable the storage of materials that have not been included in the spectrum.Another example is that Hao Yixing and his wife, Qianjia scholars in the Qing Dynasty, were both scholars. Xu Weiyu, a close relative, compiled the "Chronology of Hao Langao and his wife". The Eighth Patriarch's "Biography of Mr. Hao Kangzhong" and Father Lan Gao's "Mr. Hao Meifeng (an'an)'s Bibliography" provide reference materials for the academic achievements of the Hao family.When I compiled "Lin Zexu Chronicle", I did not regard the appendix as a vassal, but as an important part of the compilation of the planning book. The Chronicle of Lin Zexu has four appendices: The first is "Puyu", which is collected for the compilation of "Lin Zexu's Chronicle" and has not been included in the literature, but it has certain reference value or can be used for discussion. It is divided into five categories: the first category is not included in "Lin Zexu" The lost texts, couplets and other anecdotes of Yunzuo Shanfang Wenchao; the second category is anecdotes; the third category is inscriptions and postscripts, elegy, elegy, elegiac couplets and ancestral records written by others for Lin Zexu; the fourth category is about Lin Zexu's comments; the fifth category is documents related to the Opium War.Most of these materials are collected from notes and miscellaneous works since the Qing Dynasty, and most of them are rarely involved in general discussions. The second is "Brief Profiles of Relevant People at the Time of Lin Zexu's Birth". For those who were born before Lin Zexu and are difficult to be included in this genealogy, but who have various relations with Lin Zexu's deeds in the future, they are selected and entered, and the brief profiles of these people are briefly described to illustrate Lin Zexu's life. interpersonal relationship. The third is to index the chronology of major events, select the main events of the genealogy according to the year, and indicate the pages of the book, so that readers can easily retrieve the genealogy. The fourth is the cited bibliography, including: (1) Lin Zexu’s writings and handwriting, (2) Lin Zexu’s biography written by others, (3) the biography and writings of people related to Lin Zexu, (4) official books, memorials, local chronicles, poetry collections, (5) information collections , ⑹ miscellaneous notes, ⑺ monographs and papers of recent people, ⑻ writings by outsiders, etc., totaling 229 kinds.This bibliography not only increases the credibility of the chronology, but also serves as a reference for readers. Taking "Lin Zexu's Chronicle" as an example, I put forward several important issues worth noting in the compilation of the chronicle. As for the arrangement of the chronology, the use of style and the coordination of length, etc. The situation of the spectrum owner and the author's habits vary, and the content I have mentioned is only for the reference of those who are interested in compiling scores.