This is a story; the annotations discuss history. The author takes responsibility for the authenticity of the historical materials, artifacts, and research mentioned in the annotations.
However, the annotations at the end of each chapter will only say things like, "The part mentioned in the novel actually exists in history—isn’t the author amazing? Hahahaha..." As for the unavoidable instances of "deliberately altering history," well, to avoid spoilers, they’ll be explained in detail (probably) after the entire story is completed (if it ever is).
The main plot of the novel takes place around the ninth year of the Zhenguan era in the early Tang Dynasty, with historical events potentially dating back to the Sui Dynasty. No guarantees are made against distorting the image of historical figures (as perceived by everyone). If readers see their idols appearing in this story, the safest approach is to click the X and exit...
Wei Zheng’s wife’s surname was Pei, as recorded in the official biography of Chancellor Wei. His daughter’s name, "Shufen," is the author’s mischievous invention. Historically, Wei Zheng had four sons: Shuyu, Shuyu, Shuwan, and Shulin. Also, a quiet note—the character "玢" shouldn’t be pronounced "Fen"; it’s actually pronounced [bīn] ^_^
The incident where Fang Xuanling, Wei Zheng, and Li Shiji offered exorbitant dowries to propose marriage to the "Shandong noble clans" like the Cui, Lu, Zheng, and Wang families is briefly mentioned in historical records when discussing the Clan Register . The details, of course, are my own embellishments.
Some prominent families in the Central Plains and Hebei regions during the Tang Dynasty, influenced by Northern and Southern Dynasties traditions, considered themselves "of noble lineage" and disdained marrying commoners—even looking down on the imperial family. Many officials and scholars also acknowledged their prestige and went to great lengths, even offering large sums of money, to marry into these families. Li Shimin found this practice intolerable and ordered his wife’s uncle, Chancellor Gao Shilian, to compile the Clan Register to suppress the arrogance of these Shandong noble clans. However, the uncle ignored the emperor’s intentions, and the first draft of the Clan Register still ranked the Boling Cui family (the very Cui Mangan that Wei Zheng was currying favor with in this chapter) as the highest nobility, placing them above the imperial family.
Emperor Li the Second (Li Shimin) threw a fit and later issued an edict enforcing policies to... well, not exactly encouraging second children, but forbidding the "Five Surnames and Seven Clans" (Longxi Li, Zhao Commandery Li, Taiyuan Wang, Xingyang Zheng, Fanyang Lu, Qinghe Cui, Boling Cui)—the representatives of the Shandong noble clans—from intermarrying or accepting exorbitant dowries or bride prices. Of course, this publicly issued edict was somewhat laughable, as even he didn’t follow it. He claimed his family descended from the Longxi Li (or Zhao Commandery Li), yet he arranged for his son Li Zhi to marry a woman from the Taiyuan Wang family.
This isn’t exactly obscure history, so I won’t elaborate further. Comprehensive Mirror for Aid in Governance , Volume 200, summarizes it quite succinctly:Initially, Emperor Taizong was displeased that scholars from Shandong flaunted their family status and often demanded excessive dowries in marriages. He ordered the compilation of the Clan Records , demoting their status by one rank. Imperial consorts and princesses' husbands were to be selected from families of meritorious officials, disregarding the prominent Shandong clans. However, Wei Zheng, Fang Xuanling, and Li Ji's families frequently intermarried with these clans, often supporting them, so the old prestige of these clans remained undiminished. Some clans even further divided into branches, creating vast disparities in status. When Li Yifu failed to secure a marriage alliance for his son, he resented this and thus advised the emperor to rectify these abuses, citing the late emperor's decree. On the day Renxu, an edict was issued prohibiting descendants of certain prominent families—such as Li Bao of Longxi, Wang Qiong of Taiyuan, Zheng Wen of Xingyang, Lu Ziqian, Lu Hun, and Lu Fu of Fanyang, Cui Zongbo and Cui Yuansun of Qinghe, and Cui Yi of Boling from the Former Yan and Li Kai of Zhaojun from the Jin—from intermarrying. It also set limits on dowry amounts, banning additional "gateway wealth." However, as clan prestige remained highly valued by society, the ban was ultimately unenforceable. Some families secretly sent their daughters to their husbands' homes, while others refused to marry their daughters outside their clan, leaving some unwed for life. Meanwhile, declining clans not even recorded in genealogies often falsely claimed to be among the banned marriage families to inflate their status.
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