Chinese know that they are descendants of Huaxia, the first monarch of the Emperor Clan after Pangu opened the world in ancient times, and then through the Three Emperors and Five Emperors, and then to the Period of Xia, Shang and Zhou.
Legend has it that it took about 3600 years from about 5700 BC to about 2100 BC. During this time, the rulers were pure in their minds and did not have so many selfish distractions. The emperor was not left to his descendants, and at that time, the emperor was produced using the "Zen concession system".
Emperor Yao's Chan Emperor was located in Shun, and after Emperor Shun's death, Emperor Zen was located in Yu, and after Yu's death, Yu's son Qi established the Xia Dynasty, and when it came to Qi, he suddenly opened up: Why should I give Jiangshan to outsiders, and how good it is to leave it to my descendants. Therefore, the "Zen concession system" was abolished, and from then on, the "Xia" became the first dynasty in China.
During the Xia Dynasty, there were many princes, and it was said that there were 20,000. More than four hundred years later (about 1600 BC), the last king, Xia Jie, was tyrannical and ruthless, and the Shang Tang Gexia established the Shang Dynasty.
During the Shang Dynasty, bronze craftsmanship was very developed, and the oracle bone script was also very mature. Therefore, the Xia Shang Period (about 2100 BC to about 1100 BC) (also known as the Shang Dynasty or Shang Zhou Era) is also known as the "Bronze Age". Legend has it that the Shang Dynasty had 'Three Thousand Princes''.
In 1046 BC, the King of Shang encountered a severe test, Jiang Ziya assisted King Wu of Zhou in cutting down the Silk, and the Battle of Muye was won, establishing the Western Zhou.
During the Zhou Dynasty, there were eight hundred princes. When the dynasty came to its demise, it always loved to be a loser, and the generation of King Li of Zhou was faint and brutal, but he knew how to control speech and was the grandfather of public opinion control. Whoever dares to point fingers at the government of the DPRK shall be sentenced to capital punishment. The people were silenced, and they did not dare to open their mouths to say hello when they met.
King Li of Zhou was like blocking the exhaust valve of the pressure cooker, and the pressure cooker finally could not withstand it, and the "riot of the people of the country" broke out, causing King Li to escape from the palace, and the two princes of Zhao and the Duke of Zhou jointly cleaned up the mess and took charge of the government, which was called "republican administration" in history.
The Chinese riot was in 841 BC, and it was from that year that the exact date of Chinese history was established. The earliest chronology in Chinese history, the Chronology of the Twelve Princes of The Chronicle of History, began on this year, so it is said that this year has the beginning of an exact chronology in Chinese history.
Why is it this year?
When Sima Qian compiled his own history books, he felt that the previous history was like a mess, and he wanted to sort out a clue, but he felt powerless. Because the times are so messy. The more he turned over the historical data, the more chaotic it became. Because different historical sources record different ages of the same event, the methods of recording the ages are different.
In the end, Sima Qian finally found that although the historical records of the recorded chronology were very chaotic, the records after the first year of the Republic did not contradict each other, and they could be clearly clarified and the time was surprisingly consistent. Therefore, he determined that the year 841 AD was the beginning of a chronicle in our country that has a history and is well documented.
So are there any records of the years before 841 BC?
Surely there is, how can it not be? Moreover, Sima Qian said that there have been chronicles since the time of the Yellow Emperor. However, different sources are not the same, contradictory, and which chronology is accurate, it is impossible to determine. The old man believes that the study of history is not to write a speech, but to be rigorous and not to take it for granted.
In short, the historical events of 841 BC are not accurately recorded in the chronological table. The earliest chronology that has survived is only the chronology of the twelve princes of the historical record, so the historians unanimously agreed to take 841 BC as the beginning of China's history with a precise chronology.