China as a nation has the longest and most complete recorded history in the world. The Chinese people can use history to judge contemporary affairs. Liu Zhiji (661 – 721 AD), an official historian from the Tang Dynasty, said, "The purpose of history is to record achievements, point out mistakes, promote the kind and suppress the wicked. So the achievements and mistakes of one dynasty can become the glory and shame that will be passed down for thousands of years." (Shi Tong, A Survey on History) Along these lines, it is then imperative that historians truthfully record history.
 
There were official historians dating back to even during the Yellow Emperor's (Huangdi) time around 2600 BC. Ju Song and Cang Jie were two of the Yellow Emperor's official historians. They were responsible for creating the Chinese characters. It was said that through observing the shapes of natural objects and imitating their sounds and forms, Cang Jie created the pictograms and pictophonetic characters. By understanding what meanings certain natural objects can convey, he created the ideograms.
 
"History means recording things in an impartial and truthful way." (Shuo Wen Jie Zi, Explaining Simple and Analyzing Compound Characters). These words clearly describe the requirements for historians dating back to ancient China. Furthermore, there was a rule regarding the recording of history, that an emperor was not allowed to read the official historical records of the current dynasty.
 
After Wei Zheng (580 – 643 AD), an official in the Tang Dynasty who was famous for his criticisms of the emperor, passed away, Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin (598 – 649 AD), said, "People used bronze to make mirrors that can help people tidy their clothes. With history as a mirror, one can see the rise and decline and the prosperity and demise of dynasties. With individuals as mirrors, one can assess what one has done correctly and incorrectly. As Wei Zheng has gone, I have lost a perfect mirror." From these words, we know that Emperor Taizong used history and other people's words to assess what mistakes he had made. In the second year of the Zhen Guan Period, 628 AD, which represents the period when Emperor Taizong governed China during the Tang Dynasty, he appointed two imperial chroniclers (Qi Ju Lang) to record the emperor's words and deeds. In the tenth year of the Zhen Guan Period in 637 AD, Chu Suiliang (597 – 658 AD) was appointed chronicler, responsible for recording the words and behavior of the emperor.
 
The book of Shi Guan Za Lu (a history book) recorded a story about Li Shimin and Chu Suiliang (whose father was Chu Liang, one of the eighteen scholars in Emperor Li Shimin's Literature Center). One day, the emperor wanted to read the Diaries of Activity and Repose (Qi Ju Zhu) about himself, so as to learn what mistakes he had made in order to correct them. He said, "Can the emperor read the things that you have recorded?"
 
Chu Suiliang replied, "The position of Qi Ju Lang is the same as the official historian of the emperor in the past. They record everything, good or bad. I have not heard of an emperor who wanted to read these things."
 
The emperor then asked, "If I have done something wrong, will you definitely noted it down?" Chu responded, "That is my due responsibility. I will note down every word and act of yours."
 
Liu Ji, who was a Men Shi Lang (an official who was responsible for taking care of the emperor and conveying the emperor's orders and instructions), said, "Even if you had ordered Chu Suiliang not to record it, the people in the nation will record it."
 
The emperor asked Fang Xueling (another famous official and scholar), "Why can't an emperor read the history of his dynasty?"
 
Fang replied, "Historical records include both good and bad. If historians are worried that what they have recorded may offend the emperor, they may thus want to modify the historical record. So there is such a rule of not allowing the emperor to read the historical record of the current dynasty."
 
Emperor Taizong answered, "But my wanting to read the record is different from the other emperors in the past. If the record is about my achievements, I do not want to mention it. My mistakes should, of course, be recorded, but I just hope that you can tell me the mistakes so that I can pay attention to my words and acts and not repeat those mistakes."
 
Chinese history is so complete, in part because of the many historians who dared to impartially record history, even when they were penalized or even lost their lives for doing so. Because of this rule, that the emperors could not read the history of their respective dynasties, historians could truthfully record history. It is because of this rule that we can today see the real records of history, know the virtues of the ancients, the treachery of the wicked, and see the rise and fall of the various dynasties.
 
说“史”
 
中国是世界上信史最长、最完整的国家。中国人可根据历史来判断现实。唐代史官刘知几说：“盖史之为用也，记功司过，彰善瘅恶，得失一朝，荣辱千载”（《史通》），也就是说，历史是用来记录功绩、纠正过失，分清善恶、辨别好坏。那么这就要求做史官的人，必须做到如实记录。
 
在黄帝时期，就有史官了。沮诵、仓颉就是史官，他们那时负责造字。据说仓颉通过眼睛观察到万物的形状，模拟出他们的声音、形状，创造出了象形字和形声字，通过一些事物表达意思，创造了会意字。
 
“史，记事也。从又持中。中，正也。”（《说文解字》）就是：史，是记事，坚持公正直笔。所以对于史官的要求也就一目了然了，就是要如实地记录，不得偏私。而且古时还有一个规定君王不许观看当朝史书。
 
唐太宗李世民在魏征死后曾说过：“人们用铜做成镜子，可以用来整齐衣帽，将历史作为镜子，可以观察到历朝的兴衰隆替，将人比做一面镜子，可以确知自己行为的得失。魏征死去了，朕失去了一面绝好的镜子。”从这句话我们知道，李世民是通过历史、人言，来知道自己行为上的过失。所以贞观二年，他在门下省设立了两名起居郎。贞观十年，褚遂良做上了起居郎一职，专门记录皇帝的一言一行。
 
在《史馆杂录上》李世民和褚遂良（他的父亲褚亮是秦王李世民文学馆的十八学士之一）有这么一个故事：一日，李世民很想看《起居注》，想知道自己的言行上有什么过失，从而可以改正。就问：“你记的那些东西，君王本人可以看吗？”
 
褚遂良回答说：“今天所以设立起居之职，就是古时的左右史官，善恶必记，以使皇帝不犯过错。我是没有听过做皇帝的自己要看这些东西。”
 
李世民又问：“我如果有不好的地方，你一定要记下来吗？”
 
褚遂良回答说：“我的职务就是这样的，所以您的一举一动，都是要写下来的。”
 
门侍郎刘洎说：“即使您下令让褚遂良不记录，天下的人也会记录的。”
 
李世民问房玄龄：“为什么君王不能看看国史？”
 
房玄龄说：“国史是善恶必记的，担心自己所记录的事会触犯了圣意，从而篡改历史，所以才规定君王不许看当朝史书。”
 
李世民说：“但是我和历代君王想要看史的想法是不一样的，史书记录的是我的功绩，那就不要提了，我的过失当然可以记录在史书上，只是我希望你一定能告诉我，这样我才能到注意自己的言行，不犯同样的过错。”
 
中国的历史之所以能保存的如此完整，是因为在古代不乏有史官因公正撰写历史而遭受刑罚、甚至是丢掉了性命的例子。正因为古时规定，君王不能观看当朝历史，史官要公正如实地记录，才能使我们今天能看到古代的真实历史，才能知道圣贤的德行，小人的奸诈，才能知道如何面对个人的荣辱与得失，才能看到几千年的朝代更替和起落兴衰。