I hope you can recommend two or three ancient books on debating eloquence.

Mandarin, Warring States Policy, Cai Gentan and Wang Fuzhi read like mirrors.

Brief introduction of warring States policy

The Warring States Policy is a historical work with unknown author. The information contained in it, mainly from the Warring States period, including the works of counselors and Mitchell's records, was compiled into a book, which later unified the State of Qin. The original title of the book is unknown, and it was named Warring States Policy after being collated by Liu Xiang in the Western Han Dynasty. A total of 33 articles are described by country, including one in Eastern Zhou, one in Western Zhou, five in Qin, six in Qi, four in Chu, four in Wei, three in Han, three in Yan, one in Song and Wei and one in Zhongshan. Chronicle from the Spring and Autumn Period to the unification of Qin Dynasty. Focusing on the lobbying activities of counselors, it reflects the political and diplomatic situation of various countries in this period. The whole book has no systematic and complete style, and it is all independent articles.

Although it is customary to classify Warring States Policy as a historical work, its situation is very different from Zuo Zhuan and Guoyu. There are many records that are not credible as historical facts. For example, the famous "Tang robbed the king of Qin" in Wei Ce, it is impossible to write about Tang forcing Wang Zheng (Qin Shihuang). This kind of content is not so much history as stories. The ideological concept of the Warring States policy, as far as its mainstream is concerned, is also very different from Zuo Zhuan and other historical books. Liu Yue said, "During the Warring States Period, the monarch's morality was shallow, and those who worked for it had to draw according to the time and resources. Therefore, asking for help and anxiety is the right of all things. Although it cannot be enlightened, it is also an emergency. " The Warring States period is an era of more intense merger after the Spring and Autumn Period. The theory of benevolence, righteousness, propriety and faith, which used to be a cosmetic reluctantly, has been completely broken at this time. Between countries, what we are talking about now is the struggle for power and profit, and the extortion. It is not surprising that strategists who are active in the political arena only exchange their talents for fame and fortune from the right buyers. For example, Su Qin first advised the king of Qin to annex the world with the strategy of Lian Heng, and then advised the king of Zhao to unite the six countries to resist the Soviet Union with the theory of union. When he came back from a failed trip to Qin, he was despised by the whole family. My parents, wife and sister-in-law all respected me very much after I returned home with a lot of money. So he regrets way:

Husband, you are poor, your parents have no children, and your rich relatives are afraid. In the world of life, the potential is rich, and the cover can be embarrassing!

The author described Su Qin's smug expression in an appreciative style. These may not be appreciated today, but under the historical conditions at that time, the psychology of ordinary people who were originally suppressed by nobles was like this, which was more real than false preaching.

On the other hand, because the counselor played a very important role in politics and diplomacy at that time as a relative freedom, and the Warring States policy was mainly based on the counselor's works, the counselor's personal dignity and personal role were strongly affirmed in the book. In Qice, Yan Yi met Qi Xuanwang, and Wang Hu shouted: "Qian Qian!" I also called: "Wang Qian!" He also plausibly demonstrated that the country would perish without scholars, so "scholars are expensive, but kings are not." In Qin Ce, Su Qin is known as "the man who digs the door in a poor lane", but he has achieved that "the world is big, the people of all countries, the power of governors and the power of counselors are all based on Su Qin's policy". Of course, this is exaggerated, but it shows the confidence of military strategists and outstanding people among civilians.

The Warring States Policy also enthusiastically eulogized the heroic feats of many chivalrous men.

"Xia" is also a figure who is outside the ruling group and is not restricted by power. They decide their actions by their own standards and personal grievances, value righteousness over suicide, and have strong feelings, showing a moral concept with civilian significance. Therefore, "Xia" is always loved by unrestrained people.

In a word, the Warring States policy not only reflects the change of the ideological concept of the times, but also reflects the ideological characteristics of special and relatively free social figures such as wandering and chivalrous people in the Warring States period, who are between the ruling group and the common people. It is not entirely to maintain the ruling order. Because "The Warring States Policy" breaks through the shackles of old ideas and concepts, and does not completely stick to the truth of history (of course, this is a defect from a historical point of view), it is more vivid and full of vitality than previous historical works. From a literary point of view, the characteristics of the Warring States policy are as follows:

The first is rich literary talent. Zuozhuan is also famous for its literary talent, but comparing the two, we can see that the language of Warring States Policy is more lively and fluent, changeable and full of twists and turns. The Warring States Policy, whether narrative or reasoning, often uses parallelism and exaggeration, with colorful rhetoric, showing a hearty momentum. Here, language is not only a tool to act on reason, explain facts and truth, but also a means to directly act on feelings to impress people. Such as "Su Qin Begins in Lian Heng" and "Zhuang Xin talks about King Xiang of Chu" are all noteworthy examples.

Second, the description of characters' personalities and activities in the Warring States Policy is more detailed and vivid. The description of characters in Zuo Zhuan is generally a sketch of stick figures.

For example, the example of taking a crime with your arms in front of you can be very vivid, but it is too simple after all. In "The Warring States Policy" such as "Qi Ce", Feng Xuan first described his strange behavior of singing three songs and deliberately demanding higher material treatment, and initially portrayed his extraordinary and mysterious character. Then, a series of ups and downs such as "Official History of Feng Xuan", "Rectifying Life and Burning Volume", "Reviving the City's Righteousness", "Re-seeking the Phase" and "Please Set up a Ancestral Temple" are unfolded, which shows that this "strange man" is courageous, resourceful and eloquent. The famous article "Jing Ke Stabbed the King of Qin" is even more gripping. Xiao described the farewell festival like this:

Both the prince and the guests who knew about it received white gifts. On the top of Xiao, the ancestors took the road, struck the floor with lofty ideas, and Jing Ke chimed. All scholars shed tears at the sound of changing the emblem. He sang in front of him: "The wind is rustling and the water is cold, and the strong man is gone forever." After that, the feathers were generous, and the people were dumbfounded and crowned. So Jing Ke got out of the car and finally ignored it.

This description is very powerful. Sima Qian, the master of the article, wrote Historical Records and Biography of Assassins, and copied the original text of Warring States Policy in a lot of parts about Jing Ke. The reputation of "Zhao Yan is a generous and sad person" has also spread all over the world.

Thirdly, vivid fables are often quoted by military strategists recorded in the Warring States Policy, which is also helped by literary means. These fables are vivid, profound, easy to understand and unique, and they are also bright pearls in the treasure house of Chinese literature. For example, it has always been well known that "the snipe and the clam compete, and the fisherman gains", "painting the snake to add feet", "trying to create an illusion", "mending after the sheep is dead" and "doing the opposite". Because the Warring States policy deviated from China's ancient orthodoxy to a certain extent, it was often severely criticized. But from a historical point of view, it just reflects the active ideological atmosphere in the Warring States period. Its emphasis on language art and its achievements in this field occupy a more important position in the history of literature. The political essays in the Qin and Han Dynasties and the Ci and Fu in the Han Dynasty were all influenced by the gorgeous and exaggerated style of Ci in Warring States Policy. Sima Qian's Historical Records depicts characters, which is also based on the Warring States policy.

Miscellaneous Notes of Eastern and Western Zhou Dynasties and the Affairs of Qin, Qi, Chu, Zhao, Wei, Han, Yan, Song, Wei and Zhongshan. Its era is connected with the Spring and Autumn Period, down to Qin and Six Kingdoms, about 240 years (460- 220 BC). The title of the book is either a national policy, a state affair, a long story, or a long book. Its author can't be verified, and some people suspect that it is from Kuaitong. Probably compiled by people from different countries during the Qin and Han Dynasties. Later, Liu Xiang rearranged it and named it "Warring States Policy", which has been in use ever since (1973, a large number of silk books were unearthed from the No.3 Han Tomb in Mawangdui, Changsha, and some of them were sorted out and studied by cultural relics and archaeologists, with a total of 27 chapters, 3.25 million lines, 1 1000 words, and it was named "Letters of the Warring States Period". Among them, The Warring States Policy and Historical Records consist of eleven chapters, and the texts are basically the same. Other chapters 16 are all lost books. This book was compiled in the Qin and Han Dynasties, which is similar to a buried version of many military speeches that were later edited by Liu Xiang as the basis of the Warring States Policy. Among them, Sima Qian and Liu Xiang did not see any lost books, which provided important materials for studying the history of the Warring States. )

The basic content of the Warring States Policy is the struggle of strategists and strategists in the Warring States period and their related discourses or remarks. It preserves the works and speeches of many strategists. Since the Spring and Autumn Period, after a long period of division and war, the people are eager to disarm and rest their soldiers and restore a peaceful and unified life. The powerful princes all want to "unify the whole country and take advantage of it." So at the end of the Warring States period, Qin and Qi both proclaimed themselves emperors. Due to the influence of social changes, the Qin State, with convenient terrain, later reformed and became prosperous, breaking the balance of power among the six countries. Since then, the Qin Dynasty has expanded outward with new forces in an attempt to encroach on the vassals and unify the sea, triggering complex contradictions and struggles among countries. In this case, although the victory or defeat between governors depends largely on force, it also depends on the winning rate of counselors and strategists and the rise and fall of vertical and horizontal forces. The so-called "success is the emperor of Qin, success is the king of Chu", that is to say, the key to the final victory or defeat is not entirely determined by the military, but more importantly, the clever use of politics. At this time, the etiquette of the Spring and Autumn Period was honest, so it had to be changed to blackmail. A pedestrian who speaks calmly should be an eloquent speaker. Therefore, all the offensive and defensive strategies and intrigues contained in the Warring States Policy reflect the political struggle of this era. At that time, the lobbying and discussion of many counselors and military strategists was also the further development of pedestrian rhetoric in the Spring and Autumn Period.

The characters written in the Warring States Policy are extremely complicated, and many of them are egoists who pursue personal fame and fortune. Su Qin, for example, originally said that the king of Qin was "Lian Heng" and "the book was not good", but he turned to "He" for Zhao Yan. Chen Ke was an official in the State of Qin, and then in the State of Chu. He is an official in Chu and Qin, and his position is uncertain. However, there are also "people in the world" who overcome difficulties without taking anything, such as Lu Zhonglian's Yidi Qin. Feng Xuan (Qi Ce IV), who was also keen on buying people's hearts and burning coupons to show righteousness, did a good thing for the people, although he served the ruling class. There are also chivalrous nobles who dare to resist violence and despise princes. For example, Tang Qi's Wrath of Cloth (Wei Zesi) and Yan Gang's Wang Qian (Qi Zesi). The latter embodies the improvement of scholars' status and the rise of democratic thought. In addition, the book also reveals the struggle for favor among ruling class women and Gong Ying's ugly acts, such as the assassination of Wei (Chu Ce IV) and Qin's later attempt to be buried with Qin Ce II, which shows that it is insidious and shameless. Although these are only objective descriptions, they also reflect the mental outlook of various historical figures in the Warring States period.

The chapter "Warring States Policy" is characterized by the longest story. No matter the personal statement or the debate between the two sides, they all like to exaggerate, play incisively and vividly, speak freely and be persuasive. For example, Su Qin said the prince of Zhao (II), Yi Cheung said the king of Qin, Sima Cuo talked about cutting Shu (and Qin Ce I), and Yu Qing reprimanded Qi (III). It has reached an unprecedented height in understanding and fluency of historical prose. Moreover, strategists' estimation of the situation and analysis of interests are often meticulous and accurate. For example, Su Qin advised Gong Xue to leave the king of Chu and analyzed it with ten possible results (Qi Ce III); Suo Qi's land is in Chu, and Shenzi told Wang Xiang to use three strategies (Chu Ce II). Although the consequences of the events described in the Warring States Policy are not reliable, the argument itself as a strategist is reasonable.

Secondly, the images depicting the characters are extremely vivid. For example, Su Qin said that Qin couldn't go home with Zhao, and he was depressed and proud before and after, as well as the cruel way of the world (Qin Ce I), Lv Zhonglian's arrogance and generosity, and the spirit of "not being trapped by princes" were vivid and vivid. Especially the assassin Jing Ke in Yance is a chivalrous story. For example, Num's farewell speech:

Then. The prince and the guests who knew about it were sent to Yishui for nothing. Since the ancestors took the road, the high-minded ceremony struck the floor, and Jing Ke chimed, and all the scholars wept for it and rebelled against it. He walked in front and sang: "The wind is rustling and the water is cold, and the strong man is gone forever!" Return to generous feathers. The scholars looked at each other, and their hair was crowned with their fingers. So Jing Ke got out of the car and finally ignored it.

In the tragic atmosphere, the heroic image of an angry and resolute man is vividly displayed.

As for the things told in the book, clever and vivid metaphors are often used to enhance the persuasiveness of the arguer through many interesting fables, and sometimes even save words. For example, Jiang Yi took a blacksmith to (Chu Ce 1), Su Dai said that King Hui of Zhao (Chu Ce 2) was deadlocked, Su Qin remonstrated with (Qi Ce 3) with peach stalks and clay figurines, Zhuang Xin said King Xiang of Chu, and Han Ming said Chun (and Chu Ce 4) was reasonable. In particular, Zou Ji's satire is even more ingenious. He inspired the King of Qi with his own personal life trivia. Seeing the big from the small and advancing step by step, the king of Qi felt the danger of being surrounded by embattled ministers and had to order him to speak out. Zou Ji's life experience may be fact rather than fiction, but borrowing as a means to enhance persuasiveness still has allegorical meaning, which can be described as unique.