The whole book of Destiny's Choice can be found on dogs. The following is an excellent book review from the starting point: Destiny's Choice belongs to the most popular, cliché and therefore the most mixed online novel. The so-called "time travel" has actually existed for a long time, and that is the very common "time travel" in science fiction. However, the "time travel" in hard science fiction can never change the established historical events, while the popular "time travel" in online novels is precisely to change the history as the main goal, so there is a writing style called "overhead history". The particularity of the interweaving of the long glorious history of the Chinese nation and the century-old humiliation history makes the theme of changing China's humiliation history and shaping the history of a powerful country become the most common type of "overhead history". This kind of novel, which takes rewriting history as its responsibility, is too erotic and often tends to be superficial. However, from another perspective, this kind of novel can often clearly reflect the author's views and attitudes towards a certain period of history. What time has passed and what he intends to change is the author's attitude towards history and politics. The first element of a novel with a certain depth is that the author must have his own historical concept, the so-called "consciousness of crossing people".
The protagonist either "crosses" unconsciously, but the author looks at history consciously. In the first chapter, Fate's Choice is expounded for the first time: "According to history, next year, Li Zicheng will capture Luoyang, while Zhang Xianzhong will lead his army out of Sichuan and into Chu to capture Xiangyang ... After that, Dourgen, the prince of Rui in the Qing Dynasty, will lead the troops to attack Jinzhou. In the seventeenth year of Chongzhen, Li Zicheng occupied Beijing, and Zhu Youjian hanged himself in jingshan park. The Ming Dynasty perished. Then Wu Sangui led the Qing soldiers into the customs, and Li Zicheng failed. Zhu Youyong, a Fu Wang in Ming Dynasty, established the Hong Guang regime in Nanking, instead of fighting against the invaders, he actively fought for power and profit. Then came the 1th day in Yangzhou and the 3rd massacre in Jiading. When the Qing Dynasty issued a haircut order, China dragged the ugly pig's tail on his head. After that, the closed-door policy of Qing Dynasty isolated China from the world, missed the opportunity of industrial revolution and gradually declined. Until the Opium War broke out in 1844, the gate of China was opened by the big powers with guns, and the land was ceded for reparations. From then on, China entered that humiliating one hundred years ... Japanese aggression, Nanjing Massacre. In a sense, Japan was learning the practice of Manchu dynasty at that time. The situation now is so similar to that after 3 years. It can be said that the disaster and humiliation of the Chinese nation began from now on. " This very straightforward exposition shows at least two historical viewpoints of the author of the novel: a fierce attack on the policy of closing the country to the outside world, and a strong aversion to the alien rule of Manchu (even comparing Manchu with Japan). At the end of the first chapter, the author wrote, "Li Hai may not know how important this coming 164 is, and it was in this year that Britain completed the bourgeois revolution. The year 164 is a watershed between ancient history and modern history. After today, the world will enter modern history. That is, from then on, European countries began to leave China far behind ",which more bluntly revealed the main pursuit of the novel.
Because it is a rare female author and heroine, rather than a romantic crossing, Destiny's Choice is a novel that I pay close attention to and like very much. Although I don't consider myself a nationalist, let alone a Han nationalist, I especially like the grand perspective and broad narrative style that ordinary female writers rarely have. In addition, from the readability and vividness of the novel, I think this article is also excellent in similar subjects.
Of course, no matter how ambitious the goal is, the current primitive accumulation of capital is the first challenge that travelers can't avoid, and it is usually the most difficult part to write well. After all, everything is difficult at the beginning, and it is not difficult for Qian Shengqian. How to dig your first bucket of gold is the real test. Destiny's Choice is no exception. Generally speaking, the more mature this article is, the more sloppy the first chapter is. The original accumulation of the protagonist at the beginning-in the author's own words-is a bit like an RPG game. Success comes too easily and is bound to be blunt and superficial. However, in view of the time and tide wait for no man, the protagonist must complete the "leveling" as soon as possible in order to get tickets to enter the "historical stage", and such a hasty writing is also necessary. In fact, the way of digging the first bucket of gold is very important, because from this key choice, we can basically spy out almost all the political ideas of the protagonist (actually the author). It is quite different from the way that the protagonist of New Song takes the cultural fame. Sun Lu, the protagonist of Destiny's Choice, takes the typical hard-power route, which also lays the overall concept of the book: mercantilism, military power, overseas colonial plunder and parliamentary democracy constitute the four pillars of a primary capitalist country in the author's mind.
-the choice of mercantilism.
Because Destiny's Choice takes the capitalist road, and mercantilism is the most important part, commerce and capital become more and more important with the gradual development of the novel: at first, it is the means for the protagonist to make a fortune in troubled times, and it attracts a group of displaced lower-class refugees and some Guangdong businessmen with foresight and adventurous spirit to become their initial followers; Instead, we should use sufficient reserve funds to establish our own militia army, help it gain a foothold in troubled times, and gain a voice in the Nanming government, which is extremely poor in finance, with money as the backing; Then the growth of capital power finally went to the political level, using the principle that finance is the "mother of ordinary politics" to eat away the kingship and control it, in order to achieve the ideal of the protagonist's transformation of kingship. According to Marx's principle, it is the economic base that determines the superstructure; Finally, capital itself has become the ultimate goal of politics, and war is only a means of trade. The war between Ming Empire and Japan is impressive in the novel. The Sino-Japanese war in Sun Lu's imagination has no exciting reasons and scenarios, no hatred and no pleasure of revenge. It is only to satisfy the chaebol's desire to open the door of "that ignorant country" with big shelling and plunder a broad market. Wealth is the ultimate goal, and the essence of mercantilism is to make money. "Supporting the army with business, seizing power with the army, and helping business with power" is the most important clue in the novel.
While choosing the rapid development path of mercantilism, the novel also focuses on depicting its disadvantages and dark side. While mercantilism brings huge economic benefits to the country, it is also accompanied by moral decay. Capitalism is a monster, and it is difficult to control it once the shackles around its neck are untied. Therefore, in the second volume of the novel, the control and anti-control between Sun Lu, who has reached the political peak, and the giant Xiangjiang Chamber of Commerce, which she founded, has become a chapter with rich colors.
The novel designs the protagonist's business starting place in Guangdong, which must also be influenced by the frontier position of reform and opening up in reality. In addition, the geographical factors adjacent to Nanyang, the relative alienation from the war-torn places in the Central Plains and the more open folk customs compared with the Confucian scholars in the south of the Yangtze River also make Guangdong the first choice for the mercantilist route. -The choice of "political power comes out of the barrel of a gun".
Different from Wang Anshi's realistic road in New Song, where the protagonist gained the appreciation of the emperor by his literary title, Fate's Choice is obviously more vigorous and unconstrained. The war background of the collapse of the Ming Dynasty and the warlord's "listening to the seal but not listening to the tune" decided that the protagonist could be on the "historical stage" with military strength, and the custom of Guangxing militia in Lingnan area provided practical operability for the protagonist to establish his own military strength.
War occupies a very important position in this novel. On the one hand, it is because of the author's distinct nationalist mentality. The author says that after studying the history of the Qing army's entry into the customs, she was surprised that such a crude strategy and tactics with so few troops could easily seize the * * of the Han nationality, and therefore deeply lamented the weak folk customs of "misty rain in Wumen can be taken away", which set up a situation similar to that in the Southern Song Dynasty for this novel. In an attempt to forge a "nation-state" with its bloodiness, sense of crisis and sense of identity with its own nation, this part of the war (including the naval battle to recover Taiwan Province and Macau) has a distinct anti-aggression nature, so it is more romantic.
On the other hand, the novel also describes a large number of active foreign wars, such as the war against Japan, the war against Korea, the battle for resources with Russian and Mongolian ministries in Siberia, the battle for maritime hegemony with western European countries in the Indian Ocean and the war against the Ottoman Empire. The preface of the novel is to imitate the famous saying of the Queen of England, pointing out that "China's commerce needs the protection of China warships". Behind the heroism, the wars here, especially the great naval battle and the Siberian Expeditionary Force, are the struggle for resources, markets and wealth, and even the profitable foreign wars to raise funds. As mentioned above, the war is only a means of trade, and the war has lost its romantic cloak and fully embodied naked materialism.
However, no matter what kind of war is written by the author, it can even be said that it is the most beautiful part of the novel. It has a great strategic vision and an open and close tolerance different from that of ordinary female authors, and different types of war are by no means the same. It also draws lessons from many classic war examples and tactics at home and abroad, such as the war with Manchu imitated the three major battles of the Liberation War as a whole, while the Luji defense line adopted the Dutch tactics of artillery and fortress. The bonfire in Shanxi is actually guerrilla warfare. The invasion of Wangjing draws lessons from the European landing mode, and the recovery of the Xiamen naval battle in Taiwan Province borrows the "Nelson's naval battle method". These war stories are reasonable and interesting to read, and they are the most authentic and mature online novels I have ever read about war.
-the choice between overseas colonization and hegemonism.
Out of the deep understanding of "Crossing Man" on the sea power and the era of great navigation, the blue ocean strategy plays an important role in the construction of a powerful country in the novel, and even in the process of fleeing, the protagonist establishes his first mini-fleet through the alliance with pirates. The maritime overlord in the mid-17th century was the Netherlands, which had just lost in the Jose (Spain) War. The novel also drew lessons from this historical fact, which made the strange situation that the Ming Empire, whose territory had fallen, gained maritime superiority in the Indian Ocean at the same time seem less abrupt.
If the struggle within the territory is full of the emotional atmosphere of "saving the nation from extinction" and "China's rejuvenation", then in the magnificent sea battle outside the sea, besides the moral justification of the war to recover Taiwan Province and Macau, the other major principles are cold mercantilism, the law of the jungle at sea and social Darwinism. At first, it was a defensive maritime force, mainly manifested in the customs established in Singapore and the naval smuggling in the Indian Ocean, which raised a lot of money for the reconstruction of Nanming through customs duties and smuggling funds, and provided financial backing for the rest of domestic farmers by plundering overseas wealth; When the Ming navy gained a foothold in the sea, it became the proper meaning in the title that the attacking maritime forces participated in the European powers to carve up colonies and divide spheres of influence. The Hong Kong Agreement signed by Nan Ming and Britain in the novel was full of colonial colors. In the name of maintaining maritime security and freedom, the two sides carved up and sacrificed the interests of small colonized countries. In addition, China also took on its own characteristics when running its own colonies, that is, colonial farms. Among them, the huge labor shortage even made Southeast Asia a new slave demand place. "A group of despicable landlords, a cowardly reason and a skillful fleet opened the colonial road of the Ming Empire", and this road was actually a replica of the robbery of western powers in the East more than 2 years later.
All this makes the author and protagonist inevitably fall into a contradiction between interests and morality. On the one hand, Sun publicly calls for "you adults to put aside your unnecessary reserve" for the sake of interests, and on the other hand, Chen Zizhuang and Yang Shaoqing exhort the protagonist to face up to the major drawbacks of military conquest and the arrogant mentality that may be brought about by contempt for weak civilizations. At the end of the novel, the Chinese dynasty really became a powerful but extremely arrogant empire, and the protagonist had to be full of anxiety and confusion about the future of such a big MAC.
-the choice between parliamentary democracy and enlightened absolutism.
Almost all people who travel back to the past will be more or less branded with democratic thoughts. In Destiny's Choice, it is the author's belief to weaken imperial power and realize democracy. As for what will happen in the end, it depends on whether the protagonist changes the world or the world changes the protagonist.
Sun Lu's democratic experiment is divided into three stages: the first stage is in Guangdong and Lingnan area, which is far away from the power centers of Confucian scholars in the south of the Yangtze River and Nanjing, and the second stage is that the geographical proximity is ahead of the western atmosphere, and the business atmosphere is vigorous. The citizens' parliament based on the rules of the Chamber of Commerce and civil and commercial law integrates the western "grey-footed court" and the Chinese "Shen Ming Pavilion" model and can be implemented smoothly; At this time, the Baath Party has a certain gang color and cannot be regarded as a real political party.
The second stage was the Nanming Longwu period when Sun Lucheng was prime minister, and it was experimentally extended to the whole area south of the Yangtze River. It can be said that the novel set up the layout of the Manchu-Han ruling the river, not only for the actual consideration of the war, but also for the need of political reform, because according to the author's idea, Nanming's population size, land resources and economic base are the most suitable for completing the capitalist system reform. However, the war situation in which foreign enemies are eyeing up is beneficial to the protagonist's political reform. On the one hand, she won public support with military achievements, on the other hand, she defended the political reform with the theory of "according to troubled times" in Confucian III, and finally got the acquiescence of Jiangnan scholars. The most important thing is that the war made the Ming Dynasty weak and unable to compete with the growing emerging bourgeoisie. At the same time, on a large number of land recovered after the fall, the parliament was established before the government, which gave the parliament the inherent advantage of properly supervising the government. The political change in this period was deduced from the bottom up by the chaebol forces headed by Sun Lu, and it was the performance that the economic base decided the superstructure. However, the war also made the Longwu cabinet have a certain military government color.
The third stage is the whole second volume. The establishment of the Chinese dynasty finally chose the enlightened absolutism under the constitutional monarchy model, and the novel also evaluated this ruling model as "pseudo-constitutional absolutism" under the pretext of later scholars, because both the Parliament and the Letters Patent are full of feudal remnants. It seems that Sun Lu's ideal has been changed by the old world, but this change, like the backward-loaded flintlock in the novel, has some realistic basis. The backward musket is due to the limitation of technological level, while the compromise of political system is due to the limitation of cultural thought. There is no perfect system in the world, only the system that is most suitable for the actual situation. The military management model and the Soviet-style collective farm model have all occupied a place in a specific period and region of the novel. In addition, the novel depicts the parliamentary model of western European countries at that time through Gu Yanwu's visit to Europe, and also points out the primary level of the democratic process in the world. The British Magna Carta, the blueprint of the Chinese Constitution, is far from being perfect as imagined by later generations, but it is also the product of the understanding and compromise of the times. At this stage, the two-party system under parliamentary democracy gradually matured and began to dominate the political situation. As the protagonist of the Queen, it was deliberately shaped as a perfect political idol. On the one hand, it did not rule out the author's tendency to saint his protagonist, but from another perspective, it reflected the author's own understanding of the constitutional monarchy. The perfect king acted as an idol symbol and gave it to.