Regarding the date of the writing of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, there are roughly Song Dynasty theories, mid-to-late Yuan dynasties, late Yuan and early Ming, late Yuan, Ming, and middle Ming, and so on. To this day, all theories coexist, and various works of literary history and novel history, including those used as textbooks, have the difference in treating the Romance of the Three Kingdoms as a work of the Yuan dynasty or the Ming Dynasty, causing inconvenience to teachers, students, and ordinary readers. This further shows that the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" (and related to "Water Margin") is indeed an important and urgent work.
"Romance of the Three Kingdoms" New Year painting
However, this was once a "topic of the century"[1], and it cannot be said that there is a sufficient basis for completely cracking it; it is only in the author's opinion that on the basis of the existing data and research results, and with the author's small discoveries in recent years, this problem can already draw relatively reasonable conclusions.
I think this is based on the overall consideration of the previous research situation. In the past hundred years, especially in the study of the chronology of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" in the past two or three decades, although scholars have different positions and opinions, the basis and thinking of the conclusions are basically the same, that is, one is to investigate the external evidence such as the direct records of various Ming and Qing people's notes and miscellaneous works, and the other is to make inferences from the internal evidence such as the traces of the era of the early texts of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" that exist today, so as to make a final judgment.
The divergent views are due to the difficult or contradictory meaning of these records or traces. Thus, any claim is put forward, and there will inevitably be counter-evidence that will follow, putting it in a position of being questioned.
For example, in the past hundred years, scholars have mostly used the "Continuation of the Book of Recorded Ghosts" "Luo Guanzhong, Taiyuan People" to determine that Luo Guanzhong, the author of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", is a Taiyuan person and a person of the late Yuan and early Ming Dynasties, so that the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is also a work of the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties.
However, few people notice that the information does not indicate that this "Taiyuan" Luo Guanzhong is the author of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, so at least theoretically, it is not excluded that this Luo Guanzhong is another person with the same name as the author of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and in the absence of circumstantial evidence to communicate the two to form a chain of evidence, this information is not directly used as a basis for examining the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
That is to say, until this Luo Guanzhong has been "verified", this information does not have the validity of the evidence examining Luo Guanzhong's origin, life, and the era when the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was written[2], and should be doubted.
In addition, if scholars consider the "present place name" in the small character annotation of Jiajing Ren's "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" as the basis for the yuan dynasty of the book, and there are scholars who dialectically "the holy dynasty is given (Guan Yu) as the king of Wu'an", and the application of several Yuan dynasty "common words" as the signs of the Yuan Dynasty [3], it seems to be almost ironclad evidence, but as Mr. Lu Xun said:
The Complete Works of Lu Xun
When I previously wrote "A Brief History of Chinese Novels", I suspected that this book was Yuan Shu, which even aroused the dissatisfaction of the collector Mr. Defu Sufeng, and Wrote a treatise to dispel errors, and I also slightly defended it, and later collected it in the collection of miscellaneous feelings. ...... I thought that the examination should not be absurd, and it should not be observed, and many things in the world can be achieved by common sense. Bibliophiles want the ancient version of their collection, but historians do not. Therefore, in the old books, the era is not determined by the lack of writing, such as the old man now has the lack of the last author, but now it is indeed the Republic of China; nor is the era determined by the place name, such as I was born in Shaoxing, but not the Southern Song Dynasty, because many place names are not changed with the dynasty; not only according to the literary meaning of the HuaPu Qiao clumsy era, because the author is a literati or a city person, the work is very different. [4]
Here Lu Xun said that the three situations of "not taking", "not exclusively" and "not only basing" that "should not be adhered to" are exactly the problems encountered in the above-mentioned research on the era when the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was written, and should also belong to such problems as "only common sense is necessary to get it", but few scholars have taken it into account.
Here are some examples. For example, in terms of "common sense", not only does it not rule out that "the holy dynasty conferred (Guan Yu) as the righteous and courageous King of Wu'an" does not rule out the possibility of coming from the ming dynasty (especially the early Ming Dynasty), but also the Ming Dynasty (especially the early Ming Dynasty) people are not completely impossible to do so by interpreting the "Zhitou Great Sacrifice Wine" and the phrases "Seven-fold Fencer Hand" and "Lingle people to do miscellaneous dramas" in the writing.
King Wu'an of the Jin Dynasty
However, the "small character annotation" has not been proven to be the author's handwriting, and it is even difficult to say that it is all from the hand of one person, and the "present" of the "present place name" in the note is only the "present" known to the note, not necessarily the "present" of the actual situation at that time, and the information revealed by the "present place name" is not completely consistent.
And so on, the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was written in the Yuan Dynasty, and although there are various bases, none of the evidence is beyond doubt, and its conclusions are not solid enough. Even if it is reasonable to say that the words "the holy dynasty was conferred the title of King of Wu'an" have greater evidentiary effect, it really cannot be ruled out that it was the widow of the Yuan Dynasty in the early Ming Dynasty.
Therefore, although the author agrees with the middle and late Yuan Dynasty when the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was written, I think that the relevant materials cited by scholars do have the effect of evidence to varying degrees, but at the same time I believe that these materials are not enough to support its conclusions to the point of irrefutable, so that further confirmation is necessary.
As for the views that yin zhishi of the Ming Dynasty and "the depiction technique is close to maturity" in the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and that they are considered to be made by the people of the middle of the Ming Dynasty, it is not credible to start from the fact that the book is constantly being changed in the process of writing both history and folk literature and circulating, and "only common sense is enough" It is not credible, let alone need to say more.
In short, although the deliberations of scholars in the past have generally made great progress in the direction of solving problems, the existing data and the mindset of using these data have not yet been able to draw a relatively reasonable conclusion that is easy for scholars to accept because it is irrefutable. In order to reach such a conclusion, it is necessary to have the support of new materials and the guidance of new ideas.
This is probably encounterable and unattainable, but in the process of selecting the marked poems a few years ago, I stumbled upon a cloud of "Hanging White Doors" under Qu You's "Guitian Poetry":
QingQianlong's Insufficient Knowledge of the Zhai Carved Edition of "Guitian Poetry"
Chen Gangzhong's "White Gate" poem Yun: "The south of the city is not sad enough, and the old concealment is exhaustive." I don't know if there are other three points, only at that time, the ears are big. "Yong Cao Cao killed Lü Bu. The cloth was tied, and it was said: "The binding is too urgent." Fu Yue: "The tiger has to be in a hurry." "It is intended to be born. Liu Bei sat down and said, "Ming Gong didn't see Lü Bushi Ding Jianyang and Dong Taishihu?" Bu scolded: "This big-eared child Doesn't remember when the Gate shoots?" ”
Zhang Silian composed "Binding the Tiger" Yun: "The soldiers under the White Gate are surrounded, and the Tiger on the White Gate is on the upper floor." The tip of the halberd does not fall off the two tails, and the robe flower has taken off the colorful clothes. Twist the tiger's brain and cut off the tiger's claws. Eyes see tigers, like cats small. Jump not more high, blood kiss empty thousand mile grass. Raising tiger meat is not enough, and tiger hunger can eat people. The tiger rope is not urgent, and the rope is wide and the tiger has no relatives. General Liu, who sits in the middle of the tiger, does not eat han thieves from the tiger, but kills the tiger to give birth to thieves, and eats the original food Zhuo He foot anger! "Remember the events of the time, laugh and recite." Si Lian has a compilation of "Yong Shi Le Fu", all of which use this body. [5]
The Guitian Poetry is not a rare book, but under the long-term scholarly atmosphere of many scholars keeping the "classics", no one has noticed that this text actually has the value of the era when the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was written.
At the end of 1998, the author wrote the article "The Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms" and the "Small Examination of the Revised Chronology of the Present Edition"[6], and based on this article and other relevant materials, and consulting the public, the author concluded that the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was written around "around the third year of Yuan Taiding (1326)".
Collected Treatises on Classical Novels, by Du Guichen, China Social Sciences Press, September 2021.
Although this conclusion is only a statement that should be called "the middle and late Yuan Dynasty", the argument based on these new materials in the sense of the first application to the study of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms has still attracted the attention of some scholars--some scholars[7] and some doubts[8], which has led to further review of the article.
As a result, in addition to feeling that there is no need to fundamentally sacrifice oneself to follow others, it is also found that there are indeed certain errors in the argument, and there are no corrections in the text, and the explanations of certain key points are not detailed enough, so there is a need to make corrections and further examination to confirm the humble views.
Unfortunately, although I have used a special text to argue that "Luo Guanzhong" of the "Continuation of the Book of Recorded Ghosts" as the author of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" may be mistaken because of the same name, there is still a repetition of the same mistake in the "Xiao Kao", that is, Chen Gangzhong, the author of the "White Gate" poem in the Qu text quoted above, mistakenly believes that it is another person with the same name in the Song Dynasty. The Song Dynasty's Chen Gangzhong character Yan Rou, a Minqing man, Gaozong Jianyan's second-year jinshi, the official to the Taifu Cheng. The author of qu's "White Gate" poem, Chen Gangzhong, was a member of the Yuan Dynasty.
This mistake of seeming to be true, in addition to making the author ashamed and ignorant, also further strengthened the confidence of the previous questioning of the "Continuation of the Record of Ghosts" "Luo Guanzhong, Taiyuan people" as the author of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", and realized that if the ancients are still discussed, they must not only "name", but also "verify the right body". Although this is only the minimum common sense, it has made Zhang Guan Li Dai a lot more serious because of this section of negligence, so it is worth mentioning again, and not going into depth.
Here it is also said that Chen Gangzhong, the author of the poem "White Gate" quoted by Qu, was named Fu, with character lines, and was a native of Tiantai Linhai (now part of Zhejiang). There is a legend in the "History of the Yuan". He was born in the twelfth year of Emperor Taizong of Yuan (1240). The official Feng Zhi Dafu (奉直大夫) and the governor of Taizhou Road (Taizhou Road) died in the seventh year of Emperor Yuanchengzong's reign (1303), and there is a collection of poems by Chen Gangzhong.
Notes on the Complete Works of Qu You
The poem "White Gate" is in the first volume of the poetry collection, and the original inscription is "The South Gate of the City of Pi." Lü Bu was anxious for the old man to go to this door and ask for surrender. "Take the White Gate as the southern gate of xia pi city." This coincides with the "Xiao Kao" quoting the "Later Han Dynasty Book" biography "Bu and The Subordinate Dengbaimen Tower" to quote Song Wu's "Northern Expedition" as "Wei Wu captured the cloth at the White Gate", and Li Daoyuan's "Notes on the Water Classics" said that "the south gate is called the White Gate, and the Wei Wu Capture Chen Palace is here".
In other words, in the poem "White Gate" written later before the death of Chen Gangzhong in the seventh year of Emperor Yuanchengzong(1303), Lü Bu's story, including the location of the White Gate where he was captured, is still based on the records of the old historical records.
However, Qu You said that the quotation of the poem "White Gate" has the element of overflowing the old records of history that should be regarded as fiction, which is worth noting for the study of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
According to the Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms and the Book of Wei, Lü Buben Chuanyun:
Bu and his men ascended the White Gate Tower. The siege of the army is urgent, but it is falling. Sui Sheng tied the cloth, and the cloth said: "The binding is too urgent, and it is slow." Taizu said, "The tiger had to be anxious." "The Ming Gong is not suffering from the cloth, but now that he has been served, the world is not worried." Ming Gong will step, Ling Bu will ride, then the world is not enough to determine also. "Taizu is suspicious. Liu Beijin said: "Ming Gong did not see the cloth ding Jianyang and Dong Taishihu! "Taizu Jaw." Buyin pointed to beiyi: "He is the most faithful." ”
Ming Ji Guge engraved "Romance of the Three Kingdoms"
The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, vol. 76, "Lü Bu's Biography", is slightly the same. It is worth noting here that in contrast to the above quotation Qu You said that Chen Gangzhong's "White Gate" poem, Qu said that from "Cloth Bound" to Liu Bei yue "Ming Gong" Yunyun, all of which are in line with the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", although it is also consistent with the narrative of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", but generally speaking, it can only be considered that the records of the historical books such as the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and other historical books have nothing to do with the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", and it is not a matter of discussion; however, Qu said that the phrase "This big eared child Nai Nai does not remember the time when the Yuanmen shoot the sword", which is not found in the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", "Book of later Han", etc., and is certainly not from the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", and it is certainly not from the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms". The Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms says that the phrase "is the most unbeliever" is directly derived, so there should be no source. This is a noteworthy issue for the study of the era in which the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was written.
For this reason, the article "Xiao Kao" once discussed that the Yuan Dynasty's "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect" and "White Gate Chopping Lü Bu" miscellaneous dramas could not be the source of the phrase "Cloth Scolding", and there was no end to it. So much so that some experts have questioned the "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect", thinking that it may be detached from the relevant description of the "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect". This prompted me to read further and to try to think more deeply, and as a result, as described above, there was no need to sacrifice myself for obedience.
The analysis is as follows.
According to the "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect" about the description of the original text cloud:
Then Ling pushed Lü Bu to the face. Cao Cao said: "Those who look at the tiger do not speak of danger." Lü Bu sat with Liu Bei on the tent. Lü Bu said: "If Lü Bu is spared his life, he can be repaid for killing himself." Now I can make the infantry army, so-and-so can make the horse army, if the horse infantry chases each other, today it is as easy as turning over. Cao Cao was silent and looked at Xuan De. The First Lord said, "Don't you hear about Ding Jianyang and Dong Zhuohu?" Cao Cao said, "Chop, chop! Lü Bu scolded: "Big ear thief, force me to hurry up!" Cao Cao beheaded Lü Bu. Poor city under the meal knife day, not like when the gate is shot. [9]
Jian'an Yu's edition of "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect"
And the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" Volume IV "White Gate Cao Cao Chop Lü Bu" writes about this matter:
Fu sat on the gatehouse and asked Xuan De to go upstairs with Guan and Zhang. Fu ordered Xuande to sit on the side. The order mentioned a cadre of people coming. Although Lü Bu was a foot long, he was tied together by several ropes. Bu shouted, "Tie it up too quickly, beg to slow down!" Cao Cao drank: "The tiger had to be anxious." Bu Yue: "Rong Shen died without a word." Fu Yue: "And slightly unwind." ”......
When He sent (Chen Gong) downstairs, Bu and Xuan De met, saying: "Gong is a guest, and Bu is a subordinate, why don't you say a word and be lenient?" Xuande nodded. Knowing his intentions, people bet on Lü Bu. Bu Yue: "The Ming Gong is not suffering from the cloth, but the cloth is now serving, and the world is not enough to worry." Ming Gong is a step general, Ling Bu is a riding general, then the world is not enough to worry about. Fu looked back at Xuan Deyue: "What does Lü Bu want?" Xuan De replied, "Ming Gong didn't see Ding Jianyang and Dong Zhuohu?" it. Bu looked at Xuan De, "He is the most unbeliever!" "Fu Sui ordered the lead to go downstairs and hang it." Boo recalled: "'Big ears'! Don't remember when you shoot at the gate! ”[10]
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
The two contrasts show that the above quotation Qu You said that the poem "White Gate" quoted "Cloth scolding: 'This big ear, Nai Nai does not remember when the Gate is shot'", even if it can be regarded as a fragmentation of the narrative and poetry of the "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect", but it can only be a novelist such as Luo Guanzhong, the author of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", who has turned decay into a magical creation, and as a quotation for poetry, it should generally be quoted as a saying, and it cannot be a perfunctory patchwork from the language of the "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect".
In other words, it is correct to say that the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" "Cloth Review Yue" Yunyun was directly born from the description of the "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect" quoted above, and it is not possible to use Qu to quote "Cloth Scolding Yue" Yunyun directly from the "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect". The relationship between the three should be that the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is taken from the "Three Kingdoms Zhi Ping dialect", and Qu quotes the words "Bu Scolding Yue" from the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" - "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" has been produced as early as the era of Qu You's life.
What must be explained here is that although there is a slight difference between the words "Bu Shu Yue" quoted in qu You's poem "White Gate" and the words "Bu Hui Yue" in the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms", the sentence form and semantics of the two are completely consistent; and although there is no "also" word at the end of this sentence in the "Popular Interpretation of the Three Kingdoms", the "Tale of the Three Kingdoms" such as the Twin Peaks Hall Ben and the Qiao Shan Tang Ben have the word "Ya" at the end of this sentence, "also" and "Ya", and all that remains is that the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" lacks the word "叵奈".
In the Yuan Dynasty, "叵奈" or "叵尼", which was seen in the Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Volume II, "Sun Jian Crossed the River to Strike Liu Biao", indicating that Luo Guanzhong was familiar with this word, and this sentence was not used or was published by later generations, Qu You quoted the word off, or according to the earlier version that was no longer visible to modern people, or even Luo Guanzhong's original work.
In short, the slight difference between the two does not constitute the suspicion that Qu Yin's phrase "Bu Scolding Yue" does not come from the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms"; and the basic consistency of the two is strong evidence that Luo Guanzhong's "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was written before Qu You's "Guitian Poetry".
Qu You was born in the seventh year of the reign of Emperor Yuan Shun (1347) and died in the eighth year of Emperor Xuanzong's reign (1433). The Poems of Guitian (回田話) is prefaced to the Mid-Autumn Festival day of Hong Xi Yi Mi (1425), which is a work of "remembering the young day and doing the song" after he was pardoned for eighteen years and returned to his hometown.
Qu You's Poems from the Book of Poetry
The fact that Qu cites the Romance of the Three Kingdoms not only shows that the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was produced as early as the time in which Qu You lived, but also makes us tend to think that it arose long before Qu You was born. There are three reasons for this.
The first is that the "Guitian Poetry" is for Qu You's twilight year to "remember the young day... Hearing and seeing, and the compendium of the chronicles, the teachers and friends talk about"[12], the relevant content is formed in Qu You's youth and before his birth, and the quotation of "Bu Scolding Yue" Yunyun is the latter;
Second, according to the principle of general exhortation, Qu You's quotation of "Bu Scolding Yue" Yunyun's interpretation of the "White Gate" poem should be considered to be the original poem. That is to say, in Qu You's view, the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" from which Yunyun was born was even earlier than Chen Gangzhong's "White Gate" poem. Even if the "rough history of the wild" contained in the Guitian Poetry [13] says that the quotations of the "White Gate" poems may not be as accurate as the Han Notes, that is, in Qu's view, at least it is not far from the White Gate poems.
Third, considering that the content flow of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms is the palm of the literati's poetry, it should be caused by the fact that the book has been disseminated for a long time, and it can be inferred that the lower limit of the time when the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was written should be before 1347, the year of Qu You's birth.
This is the basis for further discussion.
Qing carved version of the "Jade Collection"
Further, Qu You's Hanging White Gate also quotes Chen Gangzhong's later Yuanren Zhang Silian's "Binding the Tiger Line". The humble text "Xiao Kao" also pointed out that in the poem, "'The tip of the sword does not drop the second tail of Zhang', which is called Lü Bu's halberd 'Zhang'er', Yu Shi Wuzheng", and according to the "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect" volume, Lü Bu 'makes The Zhang'erFang Tianji'", thus indicating that Zhang Silian does not shy away from or even use the words of novelists in poetry.
Combined with the above discussion of Qu You's "Cloth Scolding Yue" phrase from the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", it can also be added here that Zhang Silian's "Binding the Tiger Line" sentence "Sitting in the Middle of the Tiger Line" also seems to be related to the wording of "Cloth Scolding Yue" cited by Qu You.
This, in addition to making us inclined to think that the word "叵奈" in Qu Yin's "Bu Wei Yue" language is the original text of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", it also strengthens our understanding of Zhang Silian's poetry and the novelist's words, and then "Xiao Kao" reveals that Zhang Silian's "Nanfeiwu" poem in the "Jade Collection" uses Lü Bushi in the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" as accidental, but it is also his habitual skill.
"Nan Fei Wu" original poem Yun:
Nan Fei Wu, tail Bi Kui, white head dumb will be all the chicks. On the west bank of the Wei River, wild horses (broken yellow turbans are also broken), and the white gate east building chases red rabbits (capture Lü Buye). Ji Porpoise (Yuan Xi) Jing Dog (Liu Chun) was not full of meat, and flew south to the river table with its wings outstretched. Jiangdong forest trees are many handsome birds, and the south branch is not allowed to be circumferential. Old Umo cheats Lang small, hair Lang makes old Ulao? The east wind is a torch of black tail scorch, not to make the old black mouth claw. Lao Wu claims to be treacherous and cunning, and he believes that there are many birds in the rivers and lakes! Aconitum, pecking at the black brain, not allowing the old ubiquitous branches, willing to make the dragon play pond swamp (Battle of Chibi)! Shi Laowu, unwilling to fight, purple hair and big ears grabbed each other first. The old feathers of Hedong fall out of the clouds (the clouds die long), and the old crow nest becomes a feeding copper finch. [14]
The quotation is the original note of the author in parentheses, and the original note "Cao Cao" is also inscribed. The poem is inspired by cao Cao's "short song line" "Wu Que Nan Fei" sentence, writing about Cao Cao's experience before and after the Battle of Chibi, which is basically in line with the records of historical books such as "Romance of the Three Kingdoms".
However, the "East Wind" sentence can be ignored in various legends; and the sentence "White Gate East Building Walking Red Rabbit" is also inconsistent with Shi Zai.
Mo Youzhi Shu Cao Cao's "Short Song Line"
In this regard, the humble article "Small Test" Cloud:
"Jade Collection" Yong Three Kingdoms affairs and a "Nan Fei Wu" song... There is a sentence "Baimen East Building Chases Red Rabbit", betting "Capture Lü Buye", saying that Lü Bu was captured in the "White Gate East Building"; but the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is said to be "White Gate Tower" but does not say the location of the building, and the Later Han Book's biography "Bu and His Subordinates Climb the White Gate Tower" is quoted as Song Wu's "Northern Expedition" as "Wei Wu captured cloth at the White Gate", and also quoted Li Daoyuan's "Water Classic Notes" as saying: "The South Gate is called the White Gate, and Wei Wu Captures Chen Palace here." "It is clearly said that the White Gate Tower is the south gate of the Lower Pi, then the "White Gate East Building" is also in Shi Wuzheng. ......
From the fact that there are more than ten poems about the history of the Three Kingdoms in the "Jade Collection", it can be seen that Zhang Silian is familiar with the history of the Three Kingdoms; Qu You is also familiar with the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", which is evidenced by his "Qinyuan Chun Guan "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" in his "Legacy of Lefu". Therefore, these written statements about the Three Kingdoms that appear in their writings about the Three Kingdoms are unlikely to be misremembers of historical facts, but must have other grounds. [15]
After examining the records of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and other canonical histories and various operas and novels that exist today, Humble Wen concluded that the use of the "White Gate East Building" in the poem was also based on Luo Guanzhong's "Romance of the Three Kingdoms". However, due to the understanding at the time, some issues could not be studied in depth, and I would like to add the following.
Comic strip "White Gate Tower"
First of all, the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" of Roche, which is now based on the "White Gate East Building Chasing the Red Rabbit", is not only because it does not appear in other surviving documents, but also because it is most likely to be the basis of the "Three Kingdoms Zhi Ping dialect", although it does not explicitly use the White Gate as the south gate, it does not take it as the East Gate between the lines. The relevant original text is as follows:
[Hou Cheng stole horses] saw that the horse feeders were drunk. Hou Cheng stole the horse as far as the West Gate of Pi was concerned. ...... The door was snatched and the water floated by. ...... Cao Cao marched and fought. Lü Bu rode another horse, went out to meet the enemy, and fought with Xiahou Huan and was defeated. Lü Bu ran away, Cao Cao led everyone to cover up and kill, ambushed the soldiers at the same time, Lü Bu hurried west, and was greeting Guan Gong. Lü Bu deliberately walked east to pi and was bumping into Zhang Fei. (Zhang Fei captured Lü Bu) the generals took it and imprisoned Lü Bu. [16]
As for the direction of the White Gate written in the investigation text, it is worth noting in this narrative that, first, Hou Cheng stole his horse out of the West Gate of Xia Pi; second, Lü Bu "went out to meet the enemy", although it is not clearly stated which gate it is, but from the following "west walk" and "east down Pi", Lü Bu is at this time in the west of Pi, then his "out" should be out of the West Gate, or after "facing the enemy" from the South Gate or the North Gate, he was defeated and went to the direction of the West Gate, and it will definitely not be the East Gate; third, Lü Bu was caught by Zhang Fei.
This has changed in the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", and the humble text "Xiao Kao" points out:
Although the "White Gate Cao Cao Chop Lü Bu" does not explicitly state that the White Gate Tower is the Lower Pi East Gate Tower, and its narrative is "the East Gate has no water", Hou Cheng "stole the red rabbit horse to go to the East Gate, Wei Continued to release", Lü Bu "looked at each door, to scold Wei Xu, walked through Hou Cheng", "Bu Shao rested in the building, sitting on a chair and falling asleep", so he was captured... and was on the east gate of the city. With the following "Gao Shun and Zhang Liao are in Ximen... Captured. Chen Gong was at the south gate and was caught by Xu Huang, "it also coincides." Therefore, Zhang Shi's statement of "White Gate East Building" is likely to be an impression obtained from the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms". [17]
In contrast, it can be seen that the story of "White Gate Chopping Lü Bu" is very different in the details of the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and the "Plain Tale of the Three Kingdoms". The key is to change the "Pingyu" to write that Hou Cheng stole the "West Gate" and went out to "walk the East Gate", so that there was "Wei Continuum released", of course, it was also at the East Gate; and then Lü Bu "came to scold Wei Continued", naturally there was still no way to come to the East Gate - he was here "in the Shaoyu Building... Falling asleep", captured by Wei Xu and Song Xian instead of Zhang Fei.
The difference between the two shows that, including the "Three Kingdoms Zhi Ping dialect", before the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", there was never a "white gate" as the "east building". Therefore, zhang Silian's use of the sentence "Chasing the Red Rabbit in the East Building of the White Gate" of "Capture Lü Buye" must not come from the "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect" and so on, but in the literature that can be seen today, it can only be from Luo Guanzhong's "Romance of the Three Kingdoms".
《Dictionary of Chinese Literature》
Zhang Silian is known as Xian, and his name is Yu Zhensheng. A native of Shanyin (present-day Shaoxing, Zhejiang). The young man was unruly, and later for Zhang Shicheng to recruit a staff officer of the Taiwei Mansion, and slightly moved the Privy Council capital. After the death of Yuan, he changed his name and sent food to the monk temple. There are ten volumes of the "Jade Collection", volume one and volume two, which Qu You called "Yong Shi Le Fu", and there are more than ten historical poems of the Three Kingdoms of Yong. According to the Shanghai Dictionary of Chinese Literature edition edited by Qian Zhonglian and others, Zhang Silian was born about the seventh year of Yuan Renzong (1320) and died about the sixth year of Ming Hongwu (1373).
It can be inferred from this that when Zhang Silian was alive, the capture of Lü Bu in the "White Gate East Building" written in the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" has become the material for composing poetry, and its writing is not only before Zhang's lifetime, but also may be earlier than his youth or even before his birth. This is close to the conclusion of the "Xiao Kao" that the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was written around the "Third Year of Yuan Taiding (1326)" (detailed below).
Secondly, Qu You not only used the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" to say Chen Gangzhong's "White Gate" poem, but also knew well that Zhang Silian's "Nanfeiwu" poem used the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms". On the one hand, this is manifested in Qu You's claim that Zhang Silian Yong Shi Lefu is the same as his "Binding Tiger Line", and the body is "laughable and recitable", which is different from the pure body of the Epic Poem, which is probably characterized by its use of novelists; on the other hand, Qu You himself is a novelist and is also familiar with the history of the Three Kingdoms, so he pays special attention to this feature of Zhang Silian's epic poem, and does not forget it, and enthusiastically commends it in the "Poetry of Guitian".
Regarding Qu You's familiarity with the history of the Three Kingdoms, there is evidenced by his book "Qinyuan Chun Guan "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" in his book "The Remains of Lefu". According to Xu Shuofang's Qu You Annals, this poem was written in the 10th year of Hongwu (1377) when he was 31 years old, in which "Xin'an Zhibi refers to Zhu Xi's (1130-1200) Zizhi Tongjian Gangmu with the main purpose of honoring Liu Andu Cao".
It can be seen that Qu You had already studied the Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms and its related historical books in his early years; in his later years, his "Guitian Poetry", with Zhang Silian's "Binding the Tiger Line" and other Yong Shi Lefu as "laughing and recitable", should be based on the existing understanding of the use of falsehood and reality in the poem, and it is precisely his use of novelist words to fictionalize the ingredients that arouse the interest of the poet and novelist Qu You in commending the poem.
Third, from Chen Gangzhong's "White Gate" poems calling Baimen the South Gate of Xia PiCheng in accordance with the history, to Zhang Silian's "Nanfei wu" poem calling Baimen the East Gate of Xia Pi City, this same theme poem acts on the same story, and this content has a fundamental change, indicating that Luo Guanzhong's "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is likely to have arisen from Chen Gangzhong's later years to Zhang Silian's adolescence.
Collected Poems of Chen Gangzhong
This period can be specified as 1300 years in the twilight of Chen Gangzhong, and between 10 years after Zhang Silian's birth, that is, 1330 years. Considering that the "Three Kingdoms Zhi Ping dialect" in the third year of the Yuan Zhizhi (1323) is still being engraved, and it may not be the case that the latecomers have come to the fore, in this period, the understanding that the "Xiao Kao" took the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and wrote it "around the third year of Yuan Taiding (1326)" should be basically reasonable.
In short, the discussion caused by the "Hanging White Gate" in Qu You's "Guitian Poetry" leads us to conclude that the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was written in the "Three Years of Yuan Taiding (1326)". This conclusion should also stand the test of "common sense". In terms of common sense, the logical reason why this conclusion is so reliable is that:
First, Qu You could not have created "Cloth Scolding Yue" Yunyun as the basis for saying poetry, and Zhang Silian's poems could not have said that Lü Bu "walked in the red rabbit on the east floor of the White Gate" for no reason, but there must be a basis for literature.
Second, according to the present literature, if Qu You's quotation of the phrase "Cloth Curse" and Zhang Silian's use of the "White Gate East Building" are only found in the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms", then both are likely to be the symbols of the era when the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was written.
Third, considering the large number of ancient documents, in theory, it is not excluded that the above-mentioned quotations by Qu You and Zhang Silian are not related to each other and the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms", but may be first or later out of other kinds of existing documents. However, the Xiao Kao has deduced that Qu You's quotations and Zhang Silian's uses are "not found in other 'three-point' scripts" and "will not come from the three kingdoms zhi ping dialect about the same time or before the opera",[19] so that it can only come from Luo Guanzhong's "Romance of the Three Kingdoms Popular Interpretation", which is an accurate sign of the era when the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was written.
"Du Guichen's Collected Writings", by Du Guichen, Mulan Cultural Undertaking Co., Ltd., March 2019.
Fourth, as evidence of the era when the Romance of the Three Kingdoms was written, Qu You and Zhang Silian independently supported the Yuan Dynasty theory, so that this article is not based on isolated evidence, but basically has sufficient evidence.
Fifth, on the basis that the above two pieces of evidence can be established, Zhang Silian's "Nanfeiwu" poem uses the "White Gate East Building" incident, which actually advances the lower limit of the time for the completion of the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" indicated by Qu You's quotation of "Bu Scolding Yue", that is to say, Zhang Silian's "Nanfeiwu" poem uses the "White Gate East Building" incident as the final sign of the lower limit of the time for the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" to be written.
6. Supplemented by the comprehensive validity of Shi Xian's examination theories on the "present place names" in the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms", Guan Yu Fengyi Yong Wu'an Wang, and the "Common Sayings" of the Yuan Dynasty, this sign can fully support the conclusion that the "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was written around the third year of Yuan Taiding (1326)".
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exegesis:
[1] Shen Bojun, "The Topic of the Century: The Age of Writing the Romance of the Three Kingdoms", in New Exploration, Sichuan People's Publishing House, 2002, pp. 3-14.
[2] See Du Guichen, "A Prominent Example of Academic Failure in the Study of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms in the Past Hundred Years: On the Suspension or Doubt of the "Luo Guanzhong" Materials in the "Continuation of the Ghost Book"", Journal of Peking University, No. 2, 2002.
[3] See Shen Bojun, "The Issue of the Century: The Age of Writing the Romance of the Three Kingdoms", in New Exploration, Sichuan People's Publishing House, 2002, pp. 3-14.
[4] Lu Xun, "On the Edition of "Tang Sanzang's Poetry from the Scriptures":Sent to the Enlightened Bookstore "Middle School Students" Magazine," The Complete Works of Lu Xun (Vol. IV), People's Literature Publishing House, 1981 edition, pp. 275-276.
[5] (Ming) Qu You: "Guitian Poetry", in Ding Fubao's "Continuation of Poetry of Past Dynasties" (Part 2), Zhonghua Bookstore, 1983 edition, p. 1285
[6] Du Guichen, "The Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and the Examination of the Revised Era of the Present Edition," Chinese Culture Forum, No. 2, 1999.
[7] Shen Bojun, "The Topic of the Century: The Age of Writing the Romance of the Three Kingdoms", in New Exploration, Sichuan People's Publishing House, 2002, pp. 3-14.
[8] Wang Ping, "The Age of Writing the Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms from the Perspective of Communication", eds. Yu Rujie and Song Kefu, eds., On the Three Kingdoms before the Yellow Crane Tower, Changjiang Literature and Art Publishing House, 2003, p. 499.
[9] "Three Kingdoms Zhiping Dialect", Ding Xigen Dian: "Song Yuanping Dialect Collection", Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House, 1990 edition, pp. 786-787
[10] (Yuan) Luo Guanzhong: "Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms", Wang Yuanfang Punctuation, Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House, 1980 edition, pp. 194-195.
[11] (Ming) Qu You: "Self-Introduction to Guitian Poetry", in Ding Fubao's "Continuation of Poetry in Past Dynasties" (Part 2), Zhonghua Bookstore, 1983 edition, p. 1234.
[12] (Ming) Qu You: "Self-Introduction to Guitian Poetry", in Ding Fubao's "Continuation of Poetry in Past Dynasties" (Part 2), Zhonghua Bookstore, 1983 edition, p. 1234.
[13] (Ming) Hu Dao: "Preface to the Poetry of Guitian", in Ding Fubao's "Continuation of Poetry in Past Dynasties" (Part II), Zhonghua Bookstore, 1983 edition, p. 1234.
[14] (Ming) Zhang Xian: The Jade Collection (vol. 1), Wen Yuange's "Qingding Siku Quanshu" Collection Part V, Beiji Class IV, p. 16.
[15] Du Guichen, "The Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and the Examination of the Revised Chronology of the Present Edition," Chinese Culture Forum, No. 2, 1999.
[16] Ding Xigen: Collected Sayings of Song Yuanping, Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House, 1990, pp. 785-786.
[17] Du Guichen, "The Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" was written and the current edition was revised to a small examination", Chinese Culture Forum, No. 2, 1999.
[18] Xu Shuofang, "Novel Examination Letter Compilation", Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House, 1997 edition, p. 471.
[19] Du Guichen, "The Popular Interpretation of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and the Examination of the Revised Chronology of the Present Edition, Chinese Culture Forum, No. 2, 1999.