This article introduces the historical background and academic influence of the French version of Feng Bingzheng's "A General History of China", and points out the important position of its ancient history in the cultural exchange between the East and the West and the establishment of the dimension of French Sinology in the late 19th century. At the same time, it is pointed out that existing research on the connection, differences, and characteristics between French translations and Chinese original texts has not been accurately and clearly verified. The author will analyze the sources of historical materials, analyze translation strategies, and explore the value and influence of their translation on future generations.

1、 Research on the Source of Historical Materials

Feng Bingzheng was appreciated by Emperor Kangxi for his mapping of the "Imperial Map" and became a European proficient in both Manchu and Chinese languages. Emperor Kangxi ordered him to translate the Manchu version of the "Tongjian Gangmu" into French, which took a long time to complete in the early years of the Qianlong reign. The Outline of the Zizhi Tongjian was written by Zhu Xi in the form of a chronicle of the outline, emphasizing Confucian ethical norms, correcting errors in the Zizhi Tongjian, and filling in gaps. The works of Jin Luxiang and Chen Jue are supplements and extensions to Zhu Xi's works, which were praised and reviewed by Emperor Kangxi, forming the "Outline of the Imperial Aid in Government Comprehensive Mirror". Feng Bingzheng did not explicitly state in the French version of "General History of China" that the "Continuation of the Comprehensive Mirror" was a source of historical materials, but provided a detailed introduction to Jin Luxiang's "Pre Compilation of the Comprehensive Mirror". Manchu language tends to simplify, mutate, or blur when expressing Confucian characteristic characters. The debate on ancient Chinese history in Europe was based on early works such as Wei Kuangguo's "Ancient Chinese History" and Bai Yingli's "Chronology of Chinese Emperors", while Du Hede's "Complete Annals of the Chinese Empire" synthesized the views of previous scholars. The General History of China follows the chronology of ancient Chinese history, but is more detailed, sparking discussions on the credibility of 19th century Chinese history.

2、 Traceability and Analysis of Translation Situation

Deeply explored the translation and writing of ancient history by French sinologist Feng Bingzheng in his "General History of China". The focus was on analyzing Feng Bingzheng's translation strategy for the "Outline of the Imperial Aid in Government Comprehensive Mirror", including the translation of the beginning of ancient history narration, the translation of the Yao and Shun parts in Jin Luxiang's "Pre Compilation of the Comprehensive Mirror", and the degree to which the translated text followed the paradigm and style of historical sources. Feng Bing is using a simplified and generalized approach in translation, omitting some character names to cater to the understanding of French and European readers. His translation is not a faithful translation word for word, but rather presents Chinese history in a way that Europeans can understand while maintaining the original meaning and imagery. Feng Bingzheng's translation uses vocabulary that emphasizes and guides understanding, such as "guide", "teach", "tame", etc., to showcase China's image as a country of etiquette. In addition, Feng Bing is adding capital letters "Tian" in the translation, which summarizes the core concept of Emperor Kangxi's criticism and continues Matteo Ricci's strategy. Feng Bingzheng indicated in his annotations the references used in the translation, demonstrating his emphasis and rigorous attitude towards ancient history. There are differences between Jin Luxiang's "Preface to the Comprehensive Mirror" and Feng Bingzheng's translation, mainly due to the framework of the "Preface to the Comprehensive Mirror", Jin Luxiang's annotation of historical sources, and differences in style. When Feng Bing was translating parts about Yao and Shun, he merged and omitted historical materials to adapt to the expression in French. He wrote "Yu Gong" in great detail, demonstrating his emphasis on this ancient Chinese geographical record of mountains and rivers. When Feng Bing was translating the Book of Documents, he faced difficulties in understanding the language. He referred to various interpretations and Manchu translations, striving to make the translation accurate and faithful to the original text. Feng Bingzheng's translation work not only reflects his profound understanding of Chinese culture and history, but also reflects his rigorous and responsible stance in the "debate on ancient history".

3、 Translation Strategy Analysis

Analyzed the translation strategy of French sinologist Feng Bingzheng in his "General History of China" regarding the section on ancient history. Feng Bingzheng's translation has the characteristic of simplification, reflected in the simplification of text volume, vocabulary, and literary expression, especially when dealing with Jin Luxiang's "Preface to the Comprehensive Mirror", merging similar content, omitting large paragraphs of discussion, and blending a small number of viewpoints from famous thinkers or historians into the narrative. The French translation does not fully reflect the stylistic characteristics of Chinese historical books, but it has three significant advantages: the use of Western calendar chronology, precise and comprehensive translation, and detailed and valuable footnotes. Feng Bingzheng weakened the discourse system of Confucianism and ancient Chinese literature, and constructed a clear and concise discourse system of order construction, highlighting concepts with theological or religious colors, attempting to find a balance between Confucianism and Christianity, and conveying a national image with a long religious tradition and reverence.

4、 Conclusion

This paper analyzes the translation research of the ancient history section in Feng Bingzheng's "General History of China" and points out that his works surpass predecessors in terms of detail and volume. The translation objects come from the official history of the Qing Dynasty, and the content is rich and reliable. At the same time, Feng Bingzheng's translation strategy and principles of viewpoint were both implicit and open, which had an impact on later discussions on the credibility of ancient Chinese history. Feng Bingzheng's works appear mature and unified in form, content, and textual expression, with a flavor of orthodox narrative of Neo Confucianism. However, the lack of clarity in pointing out the original text has led to some parts of history being unbelievable. In addition, Feng Bing's adherence to the credibility of Chinese history and his introduction to the system of historians in the preface influenced the stance of some people in the 19th century. The content and narrative style of "A General History of China" add color to the credibility of Chinese history and also add positive factors to the credibility of the ancient history section. In the 19th and 20th centuries, Sinologists and historians sparked various discussions due to issues with the writing of ancient Chinese history. Some Sinologists drew inspiration from "The General History of China" to write more mature and in-depth works. The concluding section briefly analyzes the influence of Feng Bingzheng's translation objects and strategies on the stance choices of later scholars, reflecting the complexity of cross-cultural writing and translation of historical works, as well as the interlocking of the chain of historical works and ideological debates.