| Chapter : | Introduction |
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to Song biases embedded in the standard histories, works based on the original Shu records must be highlighted in this study. Among them the most important are the History of the Nine States (Jiuguo zhi 
), History of Shu (Shu taowu 
), Records of Admonition (Jianjie lu 
) and Records of the Shu Elite (Jinli qijiu zhuan 
).54 Another set of valuable sources for this study are records of historical anecdotes (usually known as biji 
or xiaoshuo 
) from the tenth and eleventh centuries, such as the famous Trivial Records of the Northern Dreamer (Beimeng suoyan 
).55 I also cite some works compiled by later historians, such as the aforementioned Shiguo chunqiu, whose overall quality has been widely recognized today.56 To supplement the historical records, I have tried to incorporate a large group of other kinds of materials, ranging from literary texts like collections of essays and poems of contemporaries to Song encyclopedias, from geographic works and local gazettes to tomb inscriptions and archaeological finds.57 Some modern studies on the Shu, of course, have also greatly contributed to my holistic understanding of the subject.58
Based on the belief that “upon recounting, explanation arises,”59 I adopt a narrative method in this book, hoping to draw a more colorful historical picture of the Former Shu and its rulers as well as the national politics of early tenth-century China. It was a time preceding the “great man” alluded to by Ouyang Xiu, “who did his deeds as harmony overtook the world.” Paradoxically, it is precisely the absence of “great men” that enabled regional rulers like Wang Jian to emerge and “share” the Mandate of Heaven with his rivals and lay the foundation for a new order.