When there were words in the Shang Dynasty, there were essays to record history. In the Zhou Dynasty, the historiographers of various vassal States further recorded the historical facts between countries in simple language and concise words, such as Spring and Autumn Annals. Later, with the needs of the times, historical literature describing reality appeared, and historical works such as Zuo Zhuan, Mandarin and Warring States Policy appeared.
Zuo Zhuan is the abbreviation of Zuo Zhuan in the Spring and Autumn Period, also known as Zuo Chunqiu. According to legend, it was written by Zuo Qiuming, a Lu historian at the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, with the word 180000, which recorded the political, military and diplomatic activities and speeches of various countries in the Spring and Autumn Period for 240 years, as well as events such as heaven, ghosts, disasters and blights. This book is full of drama and compact plot, especially excellent war description, concise language and rich images.
Guoyu is a kind of national history, which records the events of Zhou Dynasty and vassal states (BC 1000-00) respectively. It recorded more words than notes, and most of them were the words of enlightened nobles with foresight at that time.
The author of the Warring States Policy cannot be tested, and the current version is compiled by Liu Xiang in the Western Han Dynasty. Like Guoyu, it is also a chronicle of different countries, which records the major events of the Western Zhou Dynasty, the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, Qin, Qi, Chu, Zhao and other countries, and records the activities and speeches of counselors and military strategists. The article "Warring States Policy" is characterized by being good at saying things, making good use of metaphors and creating vivid characters.
Pre-Qin historical prose laid the foundation of China's historical literature and had a far-reaching influence on later historians and ancient writers.