On Chinese and Foreign Spiritual Tours in Han and Tang Dynasties

Author: Zhang Jinlong, professor of History College of Capital Normal University

In 1990, Li Hu (left) was at the home of the famous historian Bai Shouyi. Figures provided by the author

Figures provided by the author

Biography of scholars

Li Hu (1936-2022), originally from Xingning, Guangdong, was born in Beijing. In 1959, he graduated from the History Department of Beijing Normal University and stayed in the university to teach. He was also the vice president of the History Society of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties in China. He has published nearly 100 papers, including History of the Diplomatic System of Han and Tang Dynasties, Research on the Diplomatic System of Han Dynasty, History of Pre Qin, Han and Tang Dynasties, History of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, History of Dietetic Culture of Han and Tang Dynasties (chief editor), Li Xifei and Independent Comments (chief editor), which are collected into 12 volumes of Li Hu's Collected Works. Figures provided by the author

[Seeking]

Mr. Li Hu devoted his whole life to the teaching and research of ancient Chinese history. In his more than 60 years of history research career, he has made great achievements. At the age of 84, he also published a long paper on the division of ancient history and the nature of society. It is really "an old hero with lofty aspirations; a martyr with great ambition in his old age".

Not long ago, Li Hu's Collected Works was published, and the twelve volumes of the emperor included most of Mr. Li's works. Unfortunately, Mr. Li failed to see the anthology published, so he died in 2022.

Middle aged "shift"——

Research on the History of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties

Mr. Li Hu's academic path started from the study of pre Qin history.

Since the second half of 1958, Mr. Li, a senior in the History Department of Beijing Normal University, has participated in the national survey of ethnic minority social history, went to Inner Mongolia to conduct a one-year survey of the social history of the Oroqen people, and participated in the compilation of the "Brief History of the Oroqen People", He put forward the view that the Oroqen nationality before the founding of New China was in the village community stage of transition from primitive society to class society. This research and study of Engels' classic works such as The Origin of Family, Private Ownership and the State have become an important basis for Mr. Li's research on social and economic history many years later.

After graduating from university in 1959, Mr. Li stayed in school to teach. In the first 20 years, he mainly taught basic courses such as Selected Chinese History and Ancient Chinese History. In order to study the history of the Pre Qin Dynasty, he studied ancient classics such as the Book of Songs, Zuo Zhuan, Shangshu, learned ancient characters, and went to the archaeological excavation site many times to carry out research. His theses "Discussion on the Social Nature of Oroqen before Liberation", "Probing into the Reasons for the Repeated Relocation of Yin Capital" and "Historical Tales of Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties" are related to the teaching and research work in this period. Mr. Li said, "Mr. Chen Yinque has' Four Don'ts'. He doesn't talk about what has been said before, what has been said recently, what has been said by foreigners, and what he has said in the past. I don't have the consciousness of Mr. Chen Yinque, but my speeches are all written by myself, and I don't want to talk about clich é s. Instead, they incorporate the latest academic achievements, integrating ethnic surveys, ancient characters, ancient documents, archaeological surveys, etc., so everyone feels very fresh. "

After the reform and opening up, Mr. Li, who has reached the middle age, turned his research focus to the history of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties in order to survey the ancient Chinese history from a broader historical perspective. In the next 40 years, although he shifted his research focus several times, he always paid attention to this field.

Mr. Li's research on the history of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties focuses on social and economic history, "including sectoral economy, regional economy, land system, tax and corvee system, population, transportation and social life, etc.", as well as "politics, ideology and culture, and evaluation of historical figures, etc." ("History of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, Postscript"), which can be described as quite extensive, Later, he collected 22 important papers on the history of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties at this stage and published them as On the History of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties. The papers collected in this book are carefully researched, analyzed and examined, and new ideas emerge repeatedly. Here are a few examples. The academic research on the economy of the Three Kingdoms period tends to focus on the system of land reclamation and dependence on the people, but not enough attention is paid to the owner farmers and their small land ownership. The article "Economy of the owner farmers in the Three Kingdoms Period" analyzes the economy of the owner farmers and its role and status in the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms, and believes that it is no less important than land reclamation for the recovery and development of the economy in the Three Kingdoms period. In view of the tendency of academic circles to overestimate the historical role and status of Cao Wei's stationing farmland in some aspects, the article "The Historical Role and Status of Cao Wei's stationing farmland", through further research, believes that although stationing farmland has played an important role in specific historical conditions, it is the owner farmer economy that ultimately plays a decisive role. Academics generally believed that the southward migration of northern population was the main reason for the rapid development of agricultural production in the Eastern Jin and Southern Dynasties. The article "The southward migration of northern dry land crops during the Eastern Jin and Southern Dynasties" believed that although this reason could not be ignored, if the old agricultural production structure did not change, then the new agricultural production face could not appear. This paper points out that the massive southward movement of dry land crops in the north has transformed the agricultural structure in the south of the Yangtze River from a relatively single paddy field agriculture to a combination of paddy and drought agriculture, thus promoting the rapid development of agricultural production in the south of the Yangtze River. It can be said that Mr. Li's theses fully reflect his broad vision and pragmatic nature of scholarship. He combines keen observation with careful thinking, and puts forward many original assertions, which have been widely accepted by the academic community.

In the study of the history of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, Mr. Li also attached importance to archaeological materials, and his study of Wu bamboo slips is a clear example.

Tang Changru, a famous historian, first put forward the theory of "official household" in 1957, which was widely accepted by the academic community. The core view of the traditional "official household" theory can be expressed as follows: the household registration of officials is compiled separately, which is called "official household"; The officials were recruited by force, with humble status and harsh factotum; The status of officials is hereditary and they serve for life. Due to the limited traditional historical data, this understanding mainly belongs to the level of inference. The unearthed Wu bamboo slips in Zoumalou in Changsha in 1996 provided a direct historical basis for the solution of this problem, but many mathematicians still use the established theory. Relying on his deep research foundation in the field of social and economic history of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, Mr. Li carefully studied the published materials of the Wu bamboo slips. After repeated searching, he found no record of "official households", but found that the per capita land ownership of "officials" was far higher than that of ordinary farmers, Therefore, "we have a new understanding of the theory of 'official household' and its various statements and the crux of the so-called evidence, with a sense of laxity and openness" (Introduction to the History of the Pre Qin, Han and Tang Dynasties).

Beginning with "Doubts of" Official Households "-- Talking from the Wu Bamboo Slips of Changsha Zoumalou (Historical Research, 2005, Issue 3), Mr. Li has published 11 papers on" Official Households "in five consecutive years based on the materials of Wu Bamboo Slips and in combination with traditional literature. While denying the traditional" Official Households "theory, he has explained the new" Official People "concept and put forward the" Official People "in medieval China The theory of society pushed the study of "official households" and "official people" to a new stage. He divided the articles into three groups. The first group of three "doubts", focusing on the query, discrimination and negation of the traditional "official household" theory, pointed out that the "official" and "people" in the Wu bamboo slips were actually the same household and people in the country's grass-roots villages, there was no independent "official household", and "official" and "people" had the same rights and obligations in economic, political and other aspects, and even "official" was slightly better than ordinary households, It points out that the traditional theory of "official household" misuses a large number of historical materials of "military officials" in the military system when discussing the "official" of administration. The second group of five papers explains the connotation and nature of "officials and people" from a positive perspective, and discusses the meaning, social attributes, composition and other issues of "officials and people" from multiple perspectives. The third group of three papers discusses the specific issues of "true officials", "giving officials", "military officials" and so on in the Wu bamboo slips, which is to deepen the new theory of "officials and people". In these three groups of papers, the first group of "breaking", the second and third groups of "standing" can be seen as an interconnected organic whole, which runs through Mr. Li's new understanding of China's ancient grass-roots society.

Mr. Li's research on Wu bamboo slips can not only make full use of the bamboo slips, but also not be limited by the bamboo slips, and fully combine the unearthed literature and social and historical background to carry out a spin off discussion, which is interlinked and progressive, and then reach a deeper historical essence. He believes that traditional historical materials are the "foundation and soul" of historical research. "The level and value of research results depend on your interpretation and understanding of traditional historical materials, because these traditional historical materials are the most comprehensive and systematic materials recording Chinese history, and no new archaeological materials can surpass it or replace it (except for the Shang Dynasty).". (Dong Shaowei, Independent Thinking, Bringing forth the New -- Interview with Mr. Li Hu, a Historian)

Make a fresh start——

Initiate the Study of Chinese Classical Diplomatic System

Mr. Li Hu's academic research not only attaches importance to meticulous and rigorous research (expertise), but also has a broad macro vision (general knowledge), and a strong sense of innovation runs through his academic research. His innovations on a series of academic issues are the product of the organic combination of expertise and general knowledge. Among them, the research on China's classical diplomatic system can quite reflect his research methods based on China and looking at the world.

The diplomatic system is an indispensable part of the national political system. Before Mr. Li, there was almost no interest in what kind of system Chinese dynasties used to manage their foreign relations. In 1988, Mr. Li published an article entitled "A Preliminary Study of the Diplomatic System of the Yin Dynasty" (Historical Studies, 1988, Issue 5), officially starting the study of China's classical diplomatic system. This article believes that the "historian" in the oracle inscriptions of Yin Qi is the earliest diplomatic personnel in China's history. The Shang Dynasty and the vassals communicated with each other through the "historian". The Fang State "not only obeyed the Yin Dynasty politically, but also did all kinds of diplomatic obligations". "Tribute is one of its main contents. This tribute relationship is called 'Di' and 'Gong' in the oracle inscriptions.". Through the discussion of the diplomatic system of the Yin Dynasty, this article shows that "the diplomatic relations of the Yin Dynasty have been developed to a considerable extent, with dozens of local princes in the vast area of Qin and Long in the west, Shaanxi and Jin in the north, the south of the Yangtze River and Huaihe River in the south, and the sea in the east having established diplomatic relations of varying degrees with the Shang Dynasty", and further points out that the diplomatic system at that time was primitive The characteristics of instability and non equivalence are also the basic characteristics of the classical diplomatic system.

It was widely believed in the academic circles that before the establishment of the Prime Minister's National Affairs Office in 1861, there was no diplomatic affairs in ancient China, and in particular, the exchanges between the Central Plains Dynasty and the neighboring non Han (Huaxia) regimes in history were not recognized as diplomatic activities. Under the circumstance that the Chinese academic circles "always avoid mentioning ancient diplomacy", Mr. Li broke through the traditional point of view and proved that China had diplomatic system and diplomatic relations as early as the Yin and Shang dynasties by empirical methods.

After ten years of data collection and hard exploration, Li Xiansheng published the History of the Diplomatic System of the Han and Tang Dynasties in Lanzhou University Press in 1998 (the updated version was published by China Social Sciences Press in 2018), which deeply discussed the diplomatic decisions, diplomatic institutions and their operating mechanisms involving many dynasties and countries for more than a thousand years in the Han and Tang dynasties, This paper makes a detailed textual research and analysis of the development context and characteristics of the diplomatic system of the Han and Tang Dynasties, not only clearly puts forward the concept of "Chinese classical diplomatic system", but also establishes the basic paradigm for research. The publication of this book can be seen as a sign of the establishment of the history of China's classical diplomatic system as a disciplinary field of ancient Chinese history, As Mr. Ji Xianlin commented, "In the past, there were quite a few scholars who studied the history of Chinese and foreign transportation or the history of Chinese and foreign cultural exchanges, and their achievements were impressive. But Professor Li Hu may be the first to study the diplomatic system within the Chinese government, so we might call this research a new discipline."

Mr. Li had a very comprehensive idea of the system of China's classical diplomatic system and extracted tens of thousands of cards for it. However, due to the physical conditions at that time, he only studied diplomatic decision-making and diplomatic institutions (management) in the History of Han and Tang Diplomatic Systems. It was not until 2014 that he carried out a comprehensive and systematic study on the content of other systems besides decision-making and institutions, such as diplomatic media, methods, tools, facilities, etiquette, law and discipline, in the Study on the Diplomatic System of the Han Dynasty published by the Commercial Press. Mr. Li originally intended to make a systematic and comprehensive study of China's classical diplomatic system before the Tang Dynasty. The data preparation had already been completed. However, he was eight years old and had to publish the completed parts of the Pre Qin and Han Dynasties in advance because of the time limit for the conclusion of the achievements. After the book was published, Mr. Li told me many times that he wanted to finish the unfinished part of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sui and Tang Dynasties in his lifetime. Considering your age, I suggest you write about the Tang Dynasty first. After all, the Tang Dynasty is a unified imperial dynasty, and the classical diplomatic system is more typical. Unfortunately, this wish did not come true in the end.

The two masterpieces, History of the Diplomatic System of Han and Tang Dynasties and Research on the Diplomatic System of Han Dynasty, cost Mr. Li the most effort. He was the first to put forward the concept of China's classical diplomatic system and establish a complete research paradigm, which shows Mr. Li's extraordinary courage in theoretical innovation and is also the result of his comprehensive understanding and in-depth thinking of ancient history, especially Chinese foreign relations.

In general, the system and paradigm of the history of China's classical diplomatic system constructed by Mr. Li consists of the following aspects: 1. diplomatic decision-making and diplomatic management system. "As the political composition and important government affairs of a country, diplomacy needs to first make decisions to determine and formulate foreign policies"; Secondly, relevant government agencies and their officials need to implement foreign policies, so diplomatic management agencies and officials are an indispensable part. 2. Diplomatic media - envoys. "After the establishment and formulation of foreign policies, specific diplomatic tasks need envoys to carry out and complete." As a medium, envoys are active and active factors in diplomacy, playing an irreplaceable role in diplomacy. 3. Diplomatic means. In order to achieve the diplomatic purpose of the country, many different ways and means need to be used in coordination. As far as the Han Dynasty is concerned, there are mainly courtship, tribute, gift, feud, amity, quality service, mutual market, etc. They are an organic whole, each with its own specific functions, cooperate with each other, and jointly promote the development of foreign relations and the realization of diplomatic purposes from different angles. 4. Diplomatic means and tools. The operation of various diplomatic means also needs certain tools and means, and language and writing are the most basic tools and means of communication. In addition to oral communication, diplomatic parties also need to communicate by means of documents. 5. Diplomatic facilities. "As one of the national government affairs, diplomacy also has certain hardware facilities to meet the needs of its operation". The museum and post office are the necessary facilities for diplomatic reception to be carried out and realized. 6. Diplomatic etiquette and law and discipline. Diplomacy is the communication between countries. In fact, it is a process of etiquette interaction. Diplomats carry out diplomatic activities on behalf of their respective countries according to certain etiquette. Meeting etiquette norms is the inherent requirement of diplomacy. Diplomatic work and foreign affairs officials need to be bound by relevant laws and regulations to distinguish between right and wrong, reward merit and punish crime, and "ensure the smooth development of foreign affairs and maximize the protection of national interests". The above six aspects are closely linked and linked, forming the complete structure of China's classical diplomatic system, reflecting the systematic and holistic characteristics of diplomacy as one of the important national government affairs. Mr. Liang Mancang of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences published a book review in the Study of Chinese History, and believed that the Study of the Diplomatic System of the Han Dynasty "revealed the basic model of the entire ancient Chinese diplomatic system, thus establishing a new academic system for the study of Chinese classical diplomacy".

In the academic history, pioneering works are often more general, and there are few specific researchers who can carry out meticulous research. Mr. Li's research on the history of the classical diplomatic system, whether in terms of originality, structural paradigm or specific issues, is to strive for perfection, which can be said to be deliberate and keep improving.

Impoverished people become stronger——

Preaching and cultivating

Mr. Li has taught professional basic courses for undergraduates for a long time in Beijing Normal University. According to many students who have taken courses, Mr. Li's courses show a very high level and are very popular with students. Niu Runzhen, a professor at Renmin University of China, recalled: "Whenever our old classmates of Grade 77 and 78 get together and talk about the past and Beijing Normal University, we can't help but think of Teacher Li's first class... Teacher Li's first class was unprecedented, and many students came to the class early in order to have a good seat. I came late and was small. I sat in the back but could hear clearly. The teacher's handwriting is very big, and we can see it clearly. The teacher's lecture is very organized. Sorting out the teacher's lecture notes is an academic paper. Academic, scientific, artistic and interesting features are all demonstrated in the teacher's classroom. "

Mr. Li has also made great achievements in the cultivation of postgraduates. He has guided more than 30 postdoctoral students, doctoral students and postdoctoral students throughout his life. Most of them have become academic backbones in their respective professional fields. In 1995, I was admitted to Mr. Li's family to study for a doctor's degree, and I have followed him for nearly 30 years. In fact, in the early 1980s, when I was studying at Peking University, I already knew the name of Mr. At that time, I was willing to study the history of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties. Although there were several great historians of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties in our school, there was no relevant undergraduate course (Mr. Tian Yuqing offered a postgraduate course of "Eastern Jin Political History", but I remember only attending twice because of the time conflict with the required course), so I went to the office of the History Department of Beijing Normal University to learn about it, I saw Mr. Li's "History of Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties" class in the timetable posted in the window, but I stopped because of the conflict with my required course time.

The first time I met Mr. Li Hu was at the annual meeting of the History Society of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties held at Shaanxi Normal University in 1992. The conference invited a group of Japanese scholars, such as Tanigawa Daoxiong, to participate in the conference, which opened the exchanges between Chinese and Japanese historians in the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties. At that time, Mr. Li was 56 years old and in his prime. As the Secretary General of the Institute at that time, he made great efforts to organize the conference, especially to invite Japanese scholars to China. It was at this meeting that my speech attracted the attention of Chinese and Japanese scholars. Mr. Li proposed that I serve as the director of the History Society of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties of China, which was supported by the Council and the General Assembly. Although I had published more than ten papers in academic journals such as Research on Chinese History and Journal of Lanzhou University at that time, after all, I was only a teaching assistant of Lanzhou University, which shows that Mr. Li spared no effort in helping the backward. After a year or two, I expressed my willingness to take the exam to Mr. Li and got his support. Later, I was lucky to become Mr. Li's disciple.

During my blog reading, Mr. Li was writing his monograph on the history of ancient diplomatic system that he had been brewing for many years. When I read and browse books and periodicals, I found the content related to Mr. Li's research topic and copied it to him for reference. In addition, Mr. Li will let me read every chapter he has written and ask for his views and suggestions. He is always good at what he thinks is valuable. If he can't accept it at the moment, he will let me come to his home to exchange and discuss it face to face. At that time, Mr. Li was deaf. Even if he wore a hearing aid and cooperated with handwriting, it was difficult to communicate smoothly. Our discussions sometimes lasted for half a day. My opinions and suggestions, on the one hand, have enhanced Mr. Li's confidence in writing, and on the other hand, have played a minor role in revising and following up his writing.

Mr. Li originally planned to write a systematic and grand work on the diplomatic system of the Han and Tang Dynasties. But by reading Mr. Li's manuscript and combining with his physical condition at that time, I felt that I should publish some of the completed content first. At that time, it was very difficult to publish academic works. I volunteered to help Mr. Li contact with publishing matters. Thanks to the support of Lanzhou University Press, the History of the Diplomatic System of Han and Tang Dynasties was published at an extremely fast speed. Zhang Kefei, then the chief editor of Lanzhou University Press, was a colleague and friend of mine when I was teaching in the history department of Lanzhou University. He asked me to be the special editor of this book, and I certainly have a duty to do so. In the process of editing, I put forward some specific suggestions on the structure of the book, and proposed to use "classical diplomatic system" instead of "ancient diplomatic system" to summarize China's pre modern diplomatic system, so as to avoid confusion with modern diplomatic system, which Mr. Li adopted. In addition, I also suggested that Ji Xianlin of Peking University be asked to write the title and recommendation of the book, and Mr. Zhu Zongbin and Mr. Wu Zongguo be asked to write a preface, which he happily accepted. In short, I witnessed and participated in the whole process of Mr. Li's writing and publishing the History of Diplomatic System of Han and Tang Dynasties under extremely difficult conditions.

In 2014, the last two doctoral students I supervised in Shandong University are about to graduate. Mr. Li is invited to attend the thesis defense at Shandong University. On the high-speed railway from Beijing to Jinan, Mr. Li talked to me about his years of thinking about the nature of ancient Chinese society and the division of historical periods, and I suggested that he write it in time. The discussion on the nature of ancient Chinese society and the division of historical periods began in the 1920s and 1930s, and reached a climax in the 1950s and 1960s. It was one of the "five golden flowers" most discussed by the historians that year. Mr. Li's thinking on this issue began with his early research on the social and economic issues in the Three Kingdoms period. He had a new thinking when he studied Wu Jian in the early 21st century. After years of research, he finally formed a systematic understanding with clear structure.

Because he had other work at that time, Mr. Li had time to write the manuscript several years later. After the first draft was rough, he immediately sent it to me for comments, which was the Outline of the Staging of Chinese Ancient History and the Nature of Society - Also on the Main Contradictions of Chinese Traditional Society (Literature, History and Philosophy, 2020, Issue 1). Mr. Li believes that the control of power and population is the two key points to grasp the development and evolution of ancient Chinese history. Taking this as the starting point, he divided ancient Chinese history into three periods: the society of "no monarch gathering together" (from ancient times to pre Xia), the society of "royal power and common people" (from Xia, Shang, Western Zhou to the Warring States Period), and the society of "imperial power and official people" (from Qin to Qing), It is mainly based on the main contradictory relations that can reflect the society at all stages to name and classify the above social nature. Mr. Li's new understanding of the issue of the division of Chinese ancient history and the nature of society contains sixty years of experience in history management. The two principles of seeking truth from facts and taking China's localization as the foundation run through his whole thinking process, which makes the theoretical system of the division of Chinese ancient history and the nature of society built by him have distinctive Chinese characteristics, Chinese style, and Chinese style, It is also more in line with the reality of the development of ancient Chinese history. Before his death, Mr. Li wanted to further discuss this issue, but unfortunately it was only slightly presented in two posthumous works.

Since the 1990s, Mr. Li has been trapped by Meniere's syndrome. His hearing is extremely poor and even deaf, and he often feels dizzy. Oral communication is not easy. However, he did not slack off because of this. Instead, he devoted himself to the historical research he loved with tenacious perseverance and sense of mission, and continued to explore new areas of academic research. From the study of the history of the diplomatic system of the Han and Tang Dynasties, to the study of the Zoumalou Bamboo Slips in Changsha, to the special study of the diplomatic system of the Pre Qin and Han Dynasties, his main works were completed in these three decades, which has a lot to do with his tenacity. In order to improve his physical condition, Mr. Li strengthened his exercise, first taking a walk in the campus, and then climbing in Xiangshan Mountain three times a week for more than ten years. Mr. Li told me that he did not stop riding a bicycle until he was 80 years old because his children discouraged him. According to Mr. Li's own statement, he can concentrate on his research and writing because he is deaf to things outside the window.

It is also worth mentioning that Li Xianxian was born in August 1936 in Beijing. He was less than one year old when the Lugouqiao Incident broke out. His parents brought him back to Meizhou to live and study in his hometown. He was admitted to Beijing Normal University 18 years later and never left Beijing for more than 60 years. Although he has lived in his hometown for less than 20 years, he is always obsessed with people and things in his hometown. His two papers on Hakka studies and several chapters in Li Xifei and the Independent Review express this deep feeling.