Fortress Besieged

by Qian Zhongshu

  CHAPTER THREE

  1. Sentimental tz’u poetry. The most familiar themes in tz’u poetry (popular during the T’ang dynasty, Five Dynasties, and the Sung dynasty) were romantic love, love mingled with nostalgia and regret, or groundless melancholy and ennui. For a more detailed discussion, see James J. Y. Liu, “Literary Qualities of the Lyric (Tz’u),” in Studies in Chinese Literary Genres, ed. by Cyril Birch (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1974), pp. 133–153.

  2. Huang Shan-ku: alternative name for Huang T’ing-chien (1050–1110), distinguished poet and calligrapher of the Sung dynasty. Shen Tzu-p’ei: alternative name for Shen Tseng-chih (1850–1922), scholar and poet of Ch’ing dynasty.

  3. Zen: a form of Buddhism developed in China as Ch’an, which was transplanted to Japan. It became a fad among the American Beatniks in the 1960s. It upholds the direct, mystical experiences of reality through maturing of an inner experience.

  4. To be listed among successful candidates in government examinations.

  5. Ch’un ch’iu: chronicles of significant events taking place during the reign of the twelve rulers of Lu, the native state of Confucius, the compiler, between the years 722 and 481 B.C. The events are recounted in extremely brief, almost cryptic style, but with subtle moral judgments passed, such as by means of selection or omission.

  6. When Nanking, the Chinese capital, was lost to the Japanese in December 1937, the Nationalist Government moved its capital to Chungking, Szechwan province.

  7. An allusion from Mencius. See note 17, Chapter One.

  8. According to the ancient art of physiognomy in China, a person’s fortune can be told by assessing his facial features, body build, resonance of voice, coloring, etc. The five planets designate different parts of the face. For example, the fire planet (Mars) refers to the forehead area. Body builds are divided into five primary elements: wood, water, metal, earth, and fire, i.e., “wood-shaped” is tall and thin; “earth-shaped” is thick and heavy, etc. Similarly, the eyes, ears, nose, mouth, eyebrows, etc., are classified according to shape with each shape denoted by a descriptive term. These features are all considered signs of certain designated fortunes or traits of character, such as longevity, prosperity, intelligence, suspiciousness, etc. Hsin-mei’s features all point to wealth and high government position.

  The Taoist in the Hemp Robe was a monk of Sung times noted for his ability as a physiognomist.

  9. A yamen is a magistrate’s office or a civil or military court, and a mandarin in premodern times wielded enormous power and came and went as he pleased.

  10. Reference to the withdrawal of the Nationalist Government from Nanking in December 1937, during the second Sino-Japanese War.

  11. It is customary for the Chinese to address elderly men as uncles. In the present case, Mr. Shen is a friend of Miss Su, and hence it is proper for him to refer to her father as uncle.

  12. A slogan popular among the politicians and students in early twentieth-century China.

  13. Founder of the Ch’ing dynasty (Manchu), which ruled China for 268 years from 1644 to 1912.

  14. It is customary to call a friend, a colleague, or even a stranger of your own age “brother.”

  15. “Rice gruel” means sweet and flattering words. When “rice gruel is poured down the wrong ear,” it means the flattery has not achieved its desired effect and has possibly backfired, or it has been said to the wrong person.

  16. A legendary emperor of China (2838–2698 B.C.), supposed to have introduced agricultural and herbal medicine to China.

  17. Term of address of a servant for the young mistress of the house. The daughter of the family is usually identified as “Hsiao-chieh” (young lady) to and by the servants.

  18. Chia Tao (779–849): a famous poet of the T’ang dynasty. He began his life as a monk, and after a short, undistinguished political career, he spent the last years of his life as a minor government official. His body was reputed to be large and his early poetry “affected the bizarre exaggerations of the age, even more so than most, so that his poetic daring became something of a joke.” See Liu Wu-chi and Irving Lo, eds., Sunflower Splendor (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1975), p. 570, for further details.

  19. Excellent papers for painting or calligraphy were produced in Hsüan-ch’eng, Anhui province. The Jung-pao Printing House may still be in existence in Peking.

  20. The Italian here may be a typographical error. The translators were not able to decipher what the author had in mind.

  21. Li I-shan: also known as Li Shang-yin (813–858), born in Honan province. Most of his extant poems, numbering about six hundred, are ambiguous, often untitled, and deal with clandestine love.

  22. Ch’ang O: the name of a legendary lady who stole the drug of immortality from her husband and fled with it to the moon, where she became the Goddess of the Moon.

  23. A round diagram representing the yin (female) and yang (male) elements.

  24. Literally, “unwilling even to pluck a single hair—for others.”

  25. Literally, “to paint the clouds and shade the moon.” A technique in art to present the outstanding feature by making it contrast with everything else.

  26. In correcting essays or compositions, Chinese language teachers frequently used a writing brush and starred the parts they considered excellent in red ink.

  27. See note 11, Chapter One.

  28. Huang Chung-tse: alternative name for Huang Chin-jen (1749–1783), one of the most famous poets of the Ch’ing dynasty. Impoverished during his lifetime, he was widely recognized for his poetic talents after his death. By 1793 there were two editions of his works in print. Kung Ting-an: alternative name for Kung Tzu-chen (1792–1841). A child prodigy, he wrote some of his poems at the age of fifteen. He was a prolific writer, but only a small amount of his prose and poetry are extant.

  29. Ch’ien-lung (1736–1795) and Chia-ch’ing (1796–1820): the reign titles of the fourth and fifth emperors of the Ch’ing dynasty.

  30. T’ung-chih (1862–1874) and Kuang-hsü (1875–1907): the reign titles of the eighth and ninth emperors of the Ch’ing dynasty.

  31. A familiar term of address among friends. Often used with a surname in reference to a man, indicating friendship or mild affection.

  32. Lu-shan: located to the south of Kiukiang county in Kianghsi province. Facing water on three sides and land on one side, it was the location of Chiang Kai-shek’s summer residence during the second Sino-Japanese War.

  33. Ch’en San-yüan: alternative name for Ch’en San-li (1852–1937), a well-known poet and essayist of the late Ch’ing dynasty.

  34. Yang Chi (1334–1383): a Ming poet and minor painter.

  35. Ch’i-chüeh: verse form of four lines with seven characters to a line which follows a very strict rhyme scheme and tonal pattern.

  36. Chen-yüan (785–805): the reign title for Emperor Te-tsung of the T’ang dynasty.

  37. Wine was kept in urns and sold by weight in Chinese restaurants. One catty would be equivalent to 1⅓ pounds.

  38. An allusion to a T’ang poem. The poem encourages the reader to be hedonistic.

  39. A brand of green tea from Hangchow.

  40. From the story of Chu Mai-ch’en of the Han dynasty, whose wife left him because she could not stand his poverty. Later he rose to a high position through diligent study, and his wife, who was by then destitute, begged to rejoin him, but he replied, “If you can pick up spilt water, you may return.” She then went away and hanged herself.

  41. An expression meaning to retie a loose marriage knot, used to refer to a divorcée who marries the same person again.

  42. A reference to a story in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms in which Chu-kuo Liang, left to defend a town with no soldiers, feigned nonchalance by playing music in the tower on the town walls to give the enemy commander the impression that the town was confident and well prepared for an attack.

  43. Wang Yang-ming (1472–1529): a scholar, official, and influential philosopher o
f the Ming dynasty. A Neo-Confucianist, Wang and others severely attacked Buddhism for mistaking concrete reality for emptiness and Buddhists as unjust and cowardly, because they worked for their own interests and avoided social responsibility.

  44. Su Man-shu (1884–1918): a Chinese poet, novelist, and translator, born in Japan of a Japanese mother and a Chinese father.

  45. Huang Tsun-hsien (1848–1905): a Chinese poet, essayist, and diplomat. He served for a long time in London and America and brought into his poetry contemporary political and social developments.

  46. Literally, “two-haired,” a name given to those Chinese who associated with foreigners, who were known as the “hairy ones.”

  47. Most of these are well-known poets of the T’ang and Sung dynasties, the greatest eras of Chinese poetry. Their alternative names are given with their dates: Tu Shao-ling (Tu Fu, 712–770); Wang Kuang-ling (Wang Ling, 1032–1059); Mei Yüan-ling (Mei Yao-ch’en, 1002–1060); Li Ch’ang-ku (Li Ho, 791–817).

  48. Huang Shan-ku: alternative name for Huang T’ing-chien (1045–1105). A native of Kianghsi province, he was a poet and calligrapher and the founder of the Kianghsi school of poetry. A victim of political dissensions, he was exiled several times and died in exile. He wrote more than two thousand poems.

  49. Li I-shan (Li Shang-yin, 813–858); Wang Pan-shan (Wang An-shih, 1021–1086); Ch’en Hou-shan (Ch’en Shih-tao, 1053–1102); Yüan I-shan (Yüan Hao-wen, 1190–1257).

  50. Name of a collection of the poetry of Ch’en San-yüan, published in 1909.

  51. Mei Sheng-yü: alternative name for Mei Yao-ch’en (1002–1060). He was a scholar-bureaucrat and a major poet in the development of Sung poetry. Liu K’e-chuang (1187–1269) called Mei “the founding father of the poetry of this dynasty.”

  52. Yang Ta-yen: a general of the Later Wei dynasty who became so awesome for his sweeping victories that children would immediately stop crying at the very mention of his name.

  53. Two missing words in the original have been supplied by the translators.

  54. A popular brand of ointment that was thought to cure headaches, dizziness, and other ailments.

  55. In English in the original.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  1. One of the Confucian canonical texts, the Book of History (Shu ching) is the earliest historical writing; it is a collection of statements, proclamations, and dialogues of eminent rulers and officials. It represents in general a rationalization of historical events into pseudohistory.

  2. Maidservants are usually addressed as “Mama” this or that.

  3. In fortunetelling a man’s horoscope may be “colliding” with his fiancée’s or spouse’s. In such a case his fiancée or spouse may die prematurely because of the “clash” of the horoscopes.

  4. The five organs are the heart, the lungs, the liver, the kidneys, and the stomach. The seven orifices in the human head are eyes, ears, nostrils, and mouth.

  5. The Book of Change: a work of great antiquity which was used as a book of divination. It has two parts, one of which is an omen text giving rhymed interpretations of ordinary country omens and bearing some resemblance to peasant lore of other countries. The other part of the text is a divination manual containing formulae such as those that have been deciphered on the oracle bones and tortoise shells.

  6. Hsün Tzu (298 B.C.): an early philosopher who held that the nature of man is not good but evil, that there exists the need for a firm authority.

  7. “Fei-hsiang”: the title of a chapter in Hsün Tzu (the principal work of Hsün Tzu), in which he argued against judging a man by his physical appearance, naming Confucius and other great sages as examples of men who, though ugly in appearance, achieved great success.

  8. Among the writers cited by the author, the best-known are Ssu-ma Hsiang-ju and Fan Yeh. Ssu-ma Hsiang-ju (179–117 B.C.) was a noted fu writer. The fu is an essay in varied verse with prose introduction and interludes. The generic name of fu is “rhyme-prose.” Fan Yeh (398–445) was distinguished for learning and literary ability from early youth and is best known for his compilation of the History of the Eastern Han Dynasty while he was serving as a mandarin in Anhui province.

  9. Feng-shen yen-i: a Ming novel about the legendary story of the first king of the Chou dynasty and his generals. Contains many colorful exploits of demigods, Buddhas, immortals, and fabulous creatures who took one side or the other. Fang Pi and Fang Hsiang were two generals.

  10. “Fei-kung” (nonaggression): the title of a chapter in Mo Tzu, the principal work of the philosopher Mo Tzu (470?–391? B.C.), who expounded the doctrine of universal love and whose ideas generally challenged Confucian doctrine.

  11. Chiang T’ai-kung: chief counselor to King Wen of the 11th to 12th centuries B.C. The term “Fei-hsiung” (No Bear) comes from the following story. One day when King Wen was about to go out hunting, he was told by the divining stalks that his quarry would not be a dragon, leopard, tiger, or bear but a king’s counselor. He later came across an old man fishing with a straight piece of iron instead of a hook upon which the fish readily allowed themselves to be hooked. He entered into conversation with him, and finding his responses wise, he brought him home and made him chief counselor.

  12. “Fei-yen”: the title of a main character in a T’ang ch’uan-ch’i tale of the same name. A T’ang ch’uan-ch’i is a tale written in the literary language about marvelous and fantastic experiences. The genre flourished between the mid-eighth and mid-ninth centuries.

  13. A play on words; because of his lack of skill, he has “killed off” the people of one of the four corners.

  14. Traditionally, officialdom and medicine were held up as goals for the service-minded scholars. If a scholar couldn’t pass his civil examinations, the next thing he might want to do would be to become a good physician, so that he could render service to the people.

  15. In the nineteen thirties in China, the subject of traditional Chinese versus Western medicine was a popular theme in fiction.

  16. Ching-hua yüan: a satiric novel by Li Ju-chen (1763–1830), a scholar-novelist. In a number of respects its form resembles Gulliver’s Travels in which the author, like Swift, used the travels of his protagonist to strange lands beyond the seas for criticizing and satirizing Chinese customs and institutions.

  17. In English in the original.

  18. Dragon Boat Festival: On the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.

  19. Two oft-quoted lines from a four-line poem by Yüan Chen (779–831) of the T’ang dynasty. The clouds of Wu Mountain in Szechwan province are considered the most beautiful in the world.

  20. A Western-style apartment usually has a separate living room, dining room, and bathroom, whereas individual rooms are not partitioned off in Chinese-style apartments.

  21. The style of calligraphy named after its originator, Ou-yang Hsün (557–645) one of China’s greatest calligraphers. “Nine-palace” is the name of a stone tablet on which is carved the most famous sample of his calligraphy.

  22. Li Tung-ch’üan: alternative name for Li Shu-ku, a Ch’ing dynasty poet and painter.

  23. An allusion to a poem by T’ao Yuan-ming (365–427), a celebrated poet of the Six Dynasties period. The first four lines of the poem read as follows: “I built my hut among the worlds of man,/Yet near me no noise of horse or coach was heard,/You ask how that is possible?/When the heart is detached, one’s place becomes distant. .g .”

  24. Since Chao is Miss Sun’s father’s friend, it is therefore customary for Miss Sun to address Chao as uncle, even though Chao may not be much older than Miss Sun herself.

  25. A Chinese unit of area equal to 806.65 square yards.

  26. Be neglected or ignored.

  27. Old Lady Hsü: an attractive middle-aged woman, from the story of Lady Hsü, a concubine of Emperor Yuan of the Liang dynasty, who carried on amorous affairs even when she was quite old.

  28. Po Yi and Shu Ch’i: a celebrated pair of brothers who lived in the twelfth century B.C. at the end of the Yin
dynasty. When the Yin was overthrown and the new Chou dynasty established, they refused to change their allegiance and wandered away into the mountains, declaring they would not support themselves with the grain of Chou, eating wild seeds instead and eventually dying of cold and hunger. They were later extolled by Confucius for their steadfast purity of mind.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  1. Tseng Kuo-fang (1811–1872): a great statesman, general, and scholar of the Ch’ing dynasty.

  2. Also known as Yüeh-chü (Chekiang opera) or alternately as Sheng-hsien hsi (The Theater of Sheng County), the Shaohsing opera originated in the late years of the Ch’ing dynasty. It arose in Shaohsing, in Sheng county, in Chekiang province; the plays were based entirely on folk tunes, accompanied by only a clapper (pan). The opera became extremely popular in Shanghai. Next to the Peking opera, it is the most popular of all types of Chinese drama.

  3. A composition with eight “legs” or sections. The first section has two sentences and sums up the composition’s most important points. The second is an expansion of the first. The third is the introduction of the main section. The fourth and fifth provide the topic’s contrasting aspects, leading to the sixth section, the body of the composition. While the seventh is a continuation of the sixth, the eighth is the conclusion. The length of the essay is usually two to three hundred words. During the Ch’ing dynasty, the ability to write an excellent “eight-legged” essay was a fundamental requirement in passing civil service examinations.