I thought my beard belonged to the Mongols and was brought by the Mongols, but our clever celebrities regarded it as the quintessence of our country. Students studying in Japan in the late Qing Dynasty were fascinated by Dayuan because they hated Japan, saying, "If it weren't for luck, this island country would have been destroyed by us!" This is Mr. Lu Xun in the grave? Say something written with a beard. Mr. Lu Xun refers to 1274 and 128 1 year. Kublai Khan sent troops across the ocean twice to conquer Japan, that is, the Yuan Dynasty's war against Japan. This war had a far-reaching impact on the later history of China and Japan-in Japan, the national myth of "Kamikaze Team" was formed; In China, there is a feeling of bad weather. Opinions vary, but all agree that Japan would never have been an opponent of the Yuan Dynasty if it had not been for a typhoon. Is that really the case? Zhou Sicheng, a scholar, found that the facts were far more complicated than the legend: first, the military strength of the Yuan Dynasty was obviously insufficient during the two expeditions, and the Yuan Army achieved little success in the war and was basically at a disadvantage; Secondly, the yuan army did not send a first-class general, and several senior generals contained each other. Third, the Yuan Dynasty was badly unprepared, and it didn't even know who its opponent was and its geographical environment. Fourth, although there are many ships of the Yuan Army, they are shoddy and even modified by river boats in order to catch up with the construction period, so they can't stand the wind and waves. Based on the above factors, we can see that the Yuan Dynasty's war against Japan is bound to fail. Kublai Khan even had the motive of defeat: the main force of the Yuan army participating in the war was the soldiers who surrendered in the Southern Song Dynasty. These soldiers have low social status and all have tattoos. It will be harmful to put it into society, so it is better to consume it on the battlefield. Based on these details, there is "The Wrath of Sweat: A Brief History of the Yuan Dynasty Conquering Japan" (Han and Tang Sunshine? Shanxi People's Publishing House), the greatest feature of this book is that while depicting the great historical process, it presents the little people who were neglected and involved in the war in the past. Jia sidao, regarded as a traitor by later generations. For example, Zuyuan, a monk in the Southern Song Dynasty, was appreciated by Jia Sidao, a powerful minister in the Southern Song Dynasty. He came to Japan because of the war disaster, and was praised by Sejong Kitajima (the eighth generation of Kamakura shogunate), and Sejong Kitajima was the Japanese host of the Yuan Dynasty's war against Japan ... Another example is Takezaki Yoshinaga, who was originally a little soldier and was laughed at by his neighbors. Fortunately, when the Yuan army attacked, Takesaki, who was eager to make contributions and had no discipline, took the lead in rushing to the front and returned injured. The accident became a symbol of courage. But it didn't pay off after the war, and Takesaki had to embark on a long road ... Japan's description of Takesaki's long battle. When the money will be less, I am only twelve or thirteen years old. According to the fighting etiquette of the Japanese at that time, he rode alone to the front and shot a small arrow to indicate the beginning of the battle. I didn't expect the Yuan army to burst into laughter, because before the Yuan army started fighting, "all kinds of musical instruments and songs started." Compared with such excitement, the sound of shooting is too trifling. My face turned red when I was young, and I ran back to this array ... "The Wrath of Sweat: A Brief History of Japanese Conquest in Yuan Dynasty" is a very short book, but it shows the richness and diversity of history. In order to interpret it better, I interviewed Mr. Zhou Sicheng, the author of this book. Japan was questioned for the first time: from the postscript of this book, you finished this little book while writing your doctoral thesis. Why do you care so much about this history? Zhou Sicheng: China and Japan have a friendly history of more than 2,000 years, during which there were three major wars, namely, the Battle of Baijiangkou in the Tang Dynasty, the Renchen Rebellion in the Ming Dynasty (that is, the War to Resist Japan and Aid Korea in the Ming Dynasty) and the War to Conquer Japan in the Yuan Dynasty. There are few historical materials about the battle of Baijiangkou, and people pay more attention to the last two wars. Kublai Khan's Yuan Dynasty war against Japan is of great significance to the formation of Japanese nationalism. Before modern times, Japan was beaten by others for the first time, which made it lose its national consciousness. Before that, I was always beaten by others. From the Meiji Restoration to the Showa period, Japan mentioned this war many times, emphasizing the role of the "Kamikaze Team" and calling itself the "Shenguo". During World War II, the Japanese army set up a suicide attack team named "Kamikaze Special Attack Team". In China, the relationship between the Yuan Dynasty and the traditional Central Plains Dynasty is still controversial, and the powerful Han Dynasty and the prosperous Tang Dynasty have not been taken seriously. But the Yuan Dynasty fought against Japan, so in modern times, once attacked by Japan, people will think of this topic again. Whether in Japan or China, people still have many prejudices about this war, so it is necessary to forget the facts. The main historical materials have been exhausted. Q: There are too few historical materials about the Yuan Dynasty's war against Japan. Did you find anything new? Zhou Sicheng: That's true. Due to its long history, there are not many records left, and there are many related studies in Japan. The materials and presentation methods used are similar, and the main historical materials have been basically exhausted. In contrast, at that time, the actual ruler of Japan, Sejong Kitajima, and the materials for resisting Japan and aiding Korea in the Ming Dynasty were much richer. We can restore the original appearance of history from the records of China, Japan and South Korea, but the records of the Yuan Dynasty's war against Japan are too simple. The breakthrough of related research is in two aspects: First, the archaeological records of related sea areas have been fruitful in recent years. Secondly, look for some relevant materials from the collected works and biographies of literati in Yuan Dynasty. After all, the Yuan Dynasty had a great influence on the Japanese war society. In the latter aspect, I did some work, combined the detailed materials I found and put them into this book. The war was played up to create "national unity". Q: Why does Japan attach so much importance to this war? Zhou Sicheng: After the Black Ship set sail (1853), Japan was forced to open its doors. In order to unify its national identity, a specimen of "national unity" must be erected. The Yuan Dynasty's war against Japan was shaped into a national myth-the emperor prayed in person, forced the vassals to fight with all their strength, the warriors were brave, and the people supported them ... This myth was repeatedly publicized. In fact, the actual ruler of Japan at that time was the Kamakura shogunate, an army. Once the RMB is compromised, the legitimacy of its rule will disappear and it can only fight to the death. It can be seen that the Kamakura shogunate entered the war for its own benefit, not "national unity." At that time, Japanese samurai entered the war only for personal honor and interests, not the so-called "integration with the outside world" emphasized in Japanese national history. Why did Kublai Khan attack Japan? Q: Some popular historical works say that Kublai Khan attacked Japan because he wanted to produce gold in Japan. Is that so? Zhou Sicheng: Before the Crusade, Kublai Khan did not make a perfect plan. What is the specific purpose? Judging from the historical data, there is no evidence at present, so the writer can only use his imagination. I think Kublai Khan is facing the pressure of legitimacy crisis. He is superior by power and can't be recognized by other family members. He can only continue to expand his territory and prove himself to be a qualified Khan. However, if the internal problems are solved and it is a healthy empire, expansion may be beneficial. If internal problems are not solved, it will not be a healthy empire. Expansion may not cure diseases, but it may be poison. Q: Why did the Yuan Dynasty defeat Japan twice? Zhou Sicheng: One of the important reasons why the Mongolian Empire is invincible is that it has done a good job in intelligence and fully understood its opponents. But in the war against Japan, it did nothing and didn't even know who the enemy would be. Of course, the Kamakura shogunate didn't know much about the Yuan Dynasty, but called it "a foreigner" in general. In terms of strategy and tactics, Kublai Khan may be too contemptuous of his opponent. After Japan's two expeditions failed, the Yuan Dynasty learned a lesson and made some changes, such as hiring two pirate leaders to lead the water army and switching to ships with stronger wind resistance. Kublai Khan wanted to attack Japan for the third time, but he died and failed to achieve it. Kublai Khan did not try his best to deal with Japan, including defeating Annan, and made the same mistake. Without the typhoon, the Japanese invasion might not have succeeded. Q: In the war, Japan did not send the main force, but it almost overwhelmed the Yuan Army. Why? Zhou Sicheng: At the beginning of the war, it was the heyday of the Kamakura era. It was a military regime that was very martial and attached great importance to military training. Warriors have strong fighting ability. After the Yuan Dynasty fought against Japan, a large number of active warriors demanded cash rewards, but Kamakura * * * could not come up with so many assets, which turned from prosperity to decline. Japanese senior samurai who participated in the battle of Wenyong, Japanese literature thinks that they used poisonous arrows, which caused great losses to the Yuan army, but this book thinks that this statement is groundless. Kublai Khan didn't know the relevant information and sent too few troops. I think that with the scale of the Yuan Army at that time, Kyushu could barely capture it, and it was difficult to conquer the whole of Japan. Q: In that case, why does Japan regard the Yuan Army as its arch-enemy? Zhou Sicheng: There is something wrong with the Japanese way of fighting and weapons. At that time, the Japanese army was still fighting alone, and the warriors rode horses to hedge each other. After a certain distance, they shoot arrows at each other to decide the outcome, which is a bit like the tactics of modern European knights. This mode of operation determines that the Japanese army is heavy in armor and arrows, and its shooting distance and frequency are not as good as that of the Yuan Army. Yuan troops fought in groups and wore fast bows. In the war, arrows rained all over the sky, and the Japanese army suffered heavy losses and heavy casualties, so it regarded the Yuan Army as its enemy. People in the Yuan Dynasty thought they had won. Q: The generals in the Southern Song Dynasty strongly supported the wrong decision to attack Japan. Why did they fool Kublai Khan? Zhou Sicheng: When the Southern Song Dynasty surrendered, there were some talented people, but at this time they were all older, and the rest of them didn't play any role in the destruction of the Southern Song Dynasty by the Yuan Dynasty. Kublai Khan looked down on these people. In order to set an example for the generals who did not surrender in the Southern Song Dynasty, he would reuse some fallen generals and seal an official who sounded beautiful but actually had no authority. After the demise of the Southern Song Dynasty, the general couldn't even get such a false name. They encouraged Japan to prove their existence value. When the Yuan Dynasty fought against Japan, Kublai Khan did not put the generals in an important position, but regarded them as cannon fodder. It can be seen that they are just using each other. Q: Liu Fuheng, one of the main generals in the Yuan Dynasty, was rewarded for the failure of his first expedition to Japan. His later epitaph actually said that he "led 40,000 troops and 900 warships to Japan, and met with 100,000 Japanese soldiers and lost". Isn't this a lie? Zhou Sicheng: Not surprisingly, people didn't care about or understand this war at that time. "Yuan history?" "Biography of Japan" said: "I only returned from four countries." "Yuan history? "The Chronicle of Ancestors" also said: "Reward the Japanese military exploits in the Marshal's Office of the Eastern Expedition, including brocade, silks, bows and arrows, and saddles." When the Yuan Dynasty unilaterally declared victory, everyone thought it was a victory, so when they saw Liu Fuheng's epitaph, they didn't know he was lying. Personal destiny is the charm of history. Q: There are many little people involved in this book, which is often ignored in previous writing. Why pay special attention to their fate? Zhou Sicheng: Personal interests. I like history because I care about my personal fate. They are either in war or in peacetime, from which I can learn what people in different environments will look like, so I especially like reading biographies, which is the charm of historical research. In historical research, the main analysis is ideological trend, system and so on. But I am very concerned about individuals in history. After all, history is presented by all kinds of little people. In the Yuan Dynasty's war against Japan, I was moved not only by Kublai Khan, but also by the beheaded envoys of the Yuan Dynasty and even by the bystanders who participated in the war. I read a case in historical materials: a little person, living in the north, lost all his possessions because he was bullied by a big family, and had to go to the south to participate in the Yuan Dynasty's war against Japan. For him, this war is just to satisfy his ambition. He wants to make contributions in a distant country and get rid of his personal predicament. This war was launched by the rulers to prove their prestige, and personal participation was to meet personal needs, not nationalism. This case was not written in the book, but it touched me deeply. There should be a sense of distance to that period of history. Q: What is the significance of understanding this history for today's readers? Zhou Sicheng: This may help us better understand history. The significance of history lies not only in victory or defeat, but also in the things behind it. The Yuan Dynasty's war against Japan became the resource of modern Japanese national mythology, which distorted social psychology and affected national development. Everyone should learn from this historical lesson. The Yuan Dynasty's war against Japan was called "10 million people (the population of Japan at that time) defeated 200 million people (the population of the Yuan Dynasty at that time)" by Japan. In fact, the Yuan Dynasty did not send a main force. In addition, there is a difference between real history and shaped history. For example, during the period of War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and aiding Korea in the Ming Dynasty, in order to establish the image of Emperor Wanli, the Ming Dynasty listed it as "Three Signs of Wanli" and became the glory of the empire. Later generations also quoted it to prove that "it can be won in history." But the task of historians is to seek the truth without being confused by the stereotypes shaped by imperial ideology. History has different faces and different people, so it can't be labeled. If this book can help readers realize this, I will be satisfied. Q: What advice do you have for reading this book? Zhou Sicheng: Reading is a personal matter, and everyone's feelings are very different, so I can't give any advice. Personally, I hope everyone can have a sense of distance from that period of history and be objective and calm. If you have a strong sense of bringing in, you may be preconceived. Text/Tangshan Zhou Sicheng: Ph.D. student, Department of History, Peking University, currently working in the Central Institute of Party History Literature. The main research fields are Mongolian Yuan history, national history and military history. He is familiar with English, French and German, and can read ancient literary works in Japanese, Russian, Italian, Spanish, Latin, Persian, * * language, Tibetan, * * Turkish and Mongolian.