The Completion of the War

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaJun 2024

3.8

Word count: 648 words
Chapters: 5

Summary

The "Wucheng" chapter belongs to the "Old Text Shangshu" and was lost amid the turmoil of the Yongjia era of the Western Jin. The commonly circulated 2014 edition is the "Wucheng" in the "Counterfeit Old Text Shangshu" submitted to the court by Mei Ze, Interior Secretary of Yuzhang, in the early Eastern Jin. Some surviving fragments of the genuine Old Text "Wucheng" are preserved in the "Treatise on Pitch Pipes and Calendars" of the Book of Han; the complete version is the "Shifu" chapter of the Yi Zhou Shu.

Editor's review

This book presents to readers the complex textual history of the "Wucheng" chapter of the Book of Documents. Its value lies not in providing a complete "authentic version," but in clearly displaying the textual genealogy from the surviving fragments preserved in the Book of Han: Treatise on the Calendar to the "Shi Fu" chapter of the Lost Book of Zhou, and in clarifying the nature of the "Wucheng" in the "Forged Old Text Book of Documents" submitted by Mei Ze of the Eastern Jin. Reading this book, readers can directly engage with core issues in classical philology such as "authenticity," "reconstruction of lost texts," and "transmission," and understand how a document was lost amid warfare and later reconstructed in different forms. In its organization, it is suitable as auxiliary material for studying the Book of Documents and early Zhou history, especially for use alongside relevant passages of the "Shi Fu" chapter of the Lost Book of Zhou and the Book of Han: Treatise on the Calendar, helping readers build a concrete sense of the complexity of early texts rather than remaining at the level of simple authenticity judgments.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Students of literature and history studying the Book of Documents and early Zhou history
Readers interested in questions of authenticity and reconstruction of lost texts in classical philology
Students who need to conduct textual analysis in comparison with the "Shi Fu" chapter of the Lost Book of Zhou
Enthusiasts concerned with the transmission and textual history of early classics

Not a good fit for

General readers expecting to read a complete narrative original text of "Wucheng"
Beginners lacking a foundation in classical Chinese who need vernacular translation and annotation
Those who only want an outline of the story of King Wu's conquest of Zhou and do not care about textual history

Reading tips

First read the publisher's note or preface to clarify the position of "Wucheng" in Documents scholarship and the outline of the authenticity debate.
Compare the "Shi Fu" chapter of the Lost Book of Zhou with the quotations in the Book of Han: Treatise on the Calendar passage by passage to appreciate the textual differences.
Record the sources of fragments as you read to form your own brief textual genealogy chart.
If studying early Zhou history, read this book in conjunction with other chapters of the Book of Documents and with oracle bone and bronze inscription materials.

About the publisher

Bashu Publishing House China · Founded in 1983

Bashu Publishing House is a publisher centered on collating and publishing classical Chinese cultural texts, with its main publishing areas covering classical literature, Eastern philosophy, ancient poetry, and educational classics. Its library currently holds 1,075 titles, including representative works such as Dream of the Red Chamber, the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, Renjian Cihua, and Out to the Frontier, involving authors such as Cao Xueqin, Wang Xizhi, Wang Guowei, Wang Changling, Liu Xie, and Yan Yu. These reflect the publisher's focus on literary classics, poetry criticism, and philosophical readings. Its publishing character lies in working around ancient texts and canonical works, with attention to textual collation and presentation. Public information on its more detailed publishing background and series plans is limited; this introduction is based only on the library's book information.

版权信息
正文一
正文二
正文三
正文四

FAQ

Is the "Wucheng" included in this book the complete original text?

No. The authentic Old Text "Wucheng" was lost amid the wars of the Yongjia era of the Western Jin. This book is based on the "Wucheng" in the "Forged Old Text Book of Documents" submitted by Mei Ze of the Eastern Jin, and also involves the fragments preserved in the Book of Han: Treatise on the Calendar and the complete version in the "Shi Fu" chapter of the Lost Book of Zhou. Readers should note the different textual layers.

What is the relationship between "Wucheng" and the "Shi Fu" chapter of the Lost Book of Zhou?

According to the source material, some fragments of the authentic Old Text "Wucheng" are preserved in the Book of Han: Treatise on the Calendar, while the complete version is the "Shi Fu" chapter of the Lost Book of Zhou. The two can be read in comparison to understand how the same historical event is recorded in different documents and the differences in textual transmission.

Can someone without a foundation in classical Chinese read this book?

Yes, but with some difficulty. The book involves the Book of Documents, the Lost Book of Zhou, and quotations from the Book of Han; the texts are archaic and involve questions of authenticity and reconstruction. It is advisable to have some ability to read classical Chinese first, or to use it alongside annotations and translations; otherwise it is easy to remain at the surface and find it hard to grasp the philological issues.

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About the author

Anonymous Author

Anonymous is not a real personal name but a general Chinese designation for authors whose names are unknown, lost, or unsigned. Neither nationality nor dates of birth and death can be verified, and available public information is limited, so the works attributed to this name are the only basis for description. The collection holds 2,078 works under Anonymous, spanning medicine, classics, historical readings, ancient poetry, classical literature, and philosophy. Representative works include The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon: Lingshu, Mencius, The Book of Documents, Nineteen Old Poems, Complete Song Ci, and The Peacock Flies Southeast. Most of these works took shape through long transmission and editing, emerging either from collective folk creation or from authors whose names were lost over time. In ancient China, the Book of Songs, the Great Learning, and many popular storybooks and plays were signed Anonymous because their authors could not be traced. Anonymous works cross the classics, histories, philosophical writings, medical texts, and poetry; their subjects are broad, and their styles vary from archaic simplicity to clear naturalness, making them important and influential sources for understanding ancient Chinese thought, medicine, and literature.