After his small army is crushed by the Xiongnu, the Han general Li Ling is taken alive, and the furious Emperor Wu massacres his family. Cut off in the steppe, Li Ling weighs exile against his old comrade Su Wu's loyalty, while the court historian Sima Qian, castrated for defending him, pours himself into his great history.
Books mentioned in Li Ling (5)
Records of the Grand Historian by Sima Qian: “Later generations know Sima Qian as the author of the Shiji, a great name, but at the time the Grand Historian Sima Qian was a mere minor clerk of letters. His father's deathbed scene was described in detail by his son's own brush in the last chapter of the Records of the Grand Historian. [auto-translated]”
Zuo Zhuan by Zuo Qiuming: “When it came to the Zuo Zhuan and the Guoyu, there were certainly facts, and the skill of narration in the Zuo Zhuan could only be admired; but there was no inquiry into the individual people who made those events. [auto-translated]”
Guoyu: “He wanted more facts, facts over lessons. With the Zuo Zhuan and the Guoyu there are facts indeed, but there is no inquiry into the individual people behind them, and their portrayal within events, though vivid, lacks any investigation of their backgrounds. [auto-translated]”
Book of Han by Ban Gu: “The Book of Han records that, to treat Su Wu's wound, the Xiongnu dug a pit, lit a fire in it, laid the wounded man over it and trod on his back to draw out the blood. [auto-translated]”
Spring and Autumn Annals: “His plan for a history was unlike any earlier history. As a standard of moral judgment he held up the Spring and Autumn Annals, but as a history that conveyed facts he found it thoroughly unsatisfying. He wanted more facts, facts over lessons. [auto-translated]”