There was no paper in the Warring States period, how did it come from "talking on paper"?
In fact, although the allusion of "talking about soldiers on paper" comes from the Warring States period, the idiom of "talking about soldiers on paper" is not from the Warring States period.
Next, let's take a look at the specific situation of "talking on paper".
An allusion to "talking on paper".
During the Warring States period in ancient China, zhao hao, a general of the state of Zhao, once defeated the Qin army in the battle of Fuhe, and the Qin army suffered heavy losses, which was a serious setback suffered by the Qin army since the qin state changed the law, so that for a long time afterwards, it did not dare to easily provoke the Zhao state. Zhao Hao also became famous because of this war, and King Huiwen of Zhao made him MaFujun.
Zhao Kuo, the son of Zhao Hao, may have been influenced by his father, loved to read the art of war since he was a child, read a lot of works on the art of war, and when people talk about military leaders, they are like a veteran who has been in the battlefield for a long time, basically not many people can say anything about him, many people praise him, and he is even more arrogant.
"History": "Including when he was a teenager, he learned the art of war, talked about military affairs, and could not be done in the world." ”
If he were to change to someone else, he would definitely be so happy for his son, but Zhao Hao was very worried, thinking that Zhao Kuo was talking lightly about military affairs, did not know his fierceness, and could not take on a big responsibility.
"Soldiers, dead ground also, and brackets are easy to say." If Zhao does not include it, if it is bound, those who break the Zhao army will also include it. ”
At that time, the famous minister Lin Xiangru also thought that Zhao Kuo could read his father's military books, but did not know how to adapt to changes.
Lin Xiangru: "The disciple can read his father's biography, but he does not know how to change." ”
Later, during the Battle of Changping, king Zhao was bent on ending the war as soon as possible, and despite the advice of his mother and some ministers, he appointed Zhao Kuo as a general to replace the veteran general Lian Po, and as a result, Zhao Kuo rushed to attack, and the Zhao army was surrounded by the Qin army, and the breakthrough could not lead to the total annihilation of the army.
Zhao Kuo talked about the military emptyly, did not know how to adapt to changes, and became a laughing stock, which is the allusion of "talking about soldiers on paper."
The Idiom of "talking on paper" cannot appear in the Warring States, because the Warring States have no paper.
During the Warring States period, most of the writing carriers for people to record things were bamboo jane, and a few used brocade, clothing or animal fur, etc., but at this time there was no paper, and it was impossible to appear the idiom of "talking about soldiers on paper", and in the historical records at that time, there was no "talking about soldiers on paper".
According to archaeological findings and related historical records, the emergence of paper around the Western Han Dynasty, the Eastern Han Dynasty, Cai Lun improved the papermaking technique, the quality of paper was improved, the cost was also reduced, and gradually became the mainstream writing carrier.
The origin of the idiom "talk on paper".
When did "talk on paper" appear? In the existing historical materials, the earliest occurrence of the idiom of "talking on paper" is the qing dynasty literature, and it is not Zhao Kuo who said it at that time.
Later, the famous Mr. Lao She had a sentence in "Four Generations Together": "Scholars only like to talk about soldiers on paper, and only talk about them without practicing", which is considered to be the source of "talking about soldiers on paper".
After that, "talking about soldiers on paper" was gradually associated with Zhao Kuo in the Warring States period, and now when people say "talking about soldiers on paper", the first thing most people think of is Zhao Kuo.
It can be seen that the allusion of "talking about soldiers on paper" is Zhao Kuo in the Warring States period, but the idiom of "talking about soldiers on paper" was invented by later generations, which is used to describe behaviors or programs that can only be discussed by scholars but lack practical feasibility.