<P> In 96 BC , on his release from prison , Sima chose to live on as a palace eunuch to complete his histories , rather than commit suicide as was expected of a gentleman - scholar who had been disgraced with castration . As Sima Qian himself explained in his Letter to Ren An : </P>
<P> In 96 BC , on his release from prison , Sima chose to live on as a palace eunuch to complete his histories , rather than commit suicide as was expected of a gentleman - scholar who had been disgraced with castration . As Sima Qian himself explained in his Letter to Ren An : </P>
when was the letter to ren an written
when was the letter to ren an written
96 BC
96 BC