The Starry Sky of Great Wei

After the Jin dynasty unified the Three Kingdoms, Chen Shou was summoned to the palace to begin compiling a history. Sima Yan asked, “What is the Spring and Autumn style of writing?” Chen Shou replied, “Switching names around, substituting one thing for another, and lumping similar things together!” Sima Yan was delighted and ordered Chen Shou to compile the history. Chen Shou cupped his hands and said, “Your servant's writing is limited, and I'm afraid I can't do the job. I recommend someone else: his surname is Yi, and his given name is Chusheng. His Spring and Autumn style is better than mine.” Sima Yan was overjoyed and summoned Yi Chusheng to the palace to write biographies of Emperor Xuan of Jin and Emperor Wen of Jin!