I found that the popularity of the "History" was far less than that of the "Zizhi Tongjian" for three reasons:
First, the "Records of History" is a chronicle, and the "Zizhi Tongjian" is a chronicle. For the narration of an event, the chronology is more dominant, for example, the "History of Gao Zu Benji" is a year-on-year chronicle, which is boring and tedious. However, the chapter of Tang Taizong in the Zizhi Tongjian Tang Jian is equivalent to looking at Li Shimin's life.
Of course, the narrative of "Zizhi Tongjian" is also incomplete, so there is "Tongjian Chronicle Benmo", but Yuan Shu's "Tongjian Chronicle Benmo" does not seem to be as popular as "Tongjian".
Second, the "Records of History" is very subtle, and the viewpoint of "Zizhi Tongjian" is very clear. It is difficult for Sima Qian to write about a person who directly expresses his attitude, for example, when he said that when Liu Bang was born, Liu Mi dreamed of having sex with God, which does not mean that Liu Bang was an illegitimate son. He wrote that Empress Dou of Emperor Wen of Han saw her long-lost brother and wrote that the palace maid next to her "helped the empress to be sad", which seemed to ridicule the palace maid for patting the horse's ass, but in fact it was a satire on the power of power.
Sima Guang is different, he "Chen Guang Yue", put out his own views, the whole book is a thought, orthodox. Anything that doesn't fit my mind, I'll scold you to death. I have the same idea as I do, and I will praise you. Just like the current comments, first buckle the hat, then take sides, and finally attack, so it is very attractive.
Third, celebrity endorsements. There are many celebrities who like "Zizhi Tongjian", and they are all familiar political and business figures. But, have you ever heard of a businessman or politician who likes The Chronicle of History, no? Su Shi said that he wanted to drink from the Book of Han, I read so many articles, rarely said that Su Shi liked the Book of Han, after all, Su Shi was a cultural celebrity, not a business wizard!
But businessmen or entrepreneurs are different.
Many people like "Zizhi Tongjian", which is a kind of herd effect, always thinking that they can also get something from it. Otherwise, Wang Yangming is so hot, is there really anyone who likes his philosophy? Or is it highly regarded by celebrities? Including the collected works of Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang and others.
Both books have their own strengths, but reading history cannot be too utilitarian! Because history is the history of big people, not the history of ordinary people. The success of big men is largely random, and of course individual efforts are among them, but they are basically impossible to replicate.
Everyone is an ordinary person, the most important thing for ordinary people is to pursue utilitarianism, and the so-called utilitarianism is to really improve their livelihood skills.
Learning should be utilitarian, reading cannot be utilitarian!
I had to take various job title exams to improve my value and competitiveness; I studied Finance, which increased my financial knowledge; I went to learn how to cook and cook delicious food.
Reading with a purpose is very good, such as understanding history, expanding knowledge, broadening thinking, and improving knowledge.
But if you want to say that reading it from the "Zizhi Tongjian" to cure the rise and fall of chaos, I think it is too ridiculous!