Water Margin

Author: Yu Wanchun
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-06-01
Features: In the 27th year of the Daoguang reign (1847), Yu Wanchun of Shaoxing, Zhejiang, completed The Water Margin Continuation. It demonstrates a high level of artistic achievement, with many chapters rivaling the original Water Margin in quality. However, it also sees the beloved heroes of Liangshan, who are deeply revered by people, meet tragic ends, none escaping death. The cruelty of its intentions is striking. Yu Wanchun's continuation of Water Margin follows the 70-chapter version commented on by Jin Shengtan, and his ideology is a direct continuation of Jin Shengtan's from two centuries earlier. He created powerful figures like the sorcerers Chen Xizhen and Chen Liqing, as well as the brave and virtuous Yun Longbiao and Liu Huiniang, who were tasked with assisting Zhang Suzhou in besieging Liangshan and capturing and executing all 108 heroes, ensuring they would never rise again in this life, embodying the principle of "Respecting the King and Eradicating Bandits." Jin Shengtan beheaded Water Margin, but Yu Wanchun swept it clean. Mr. Lu Xun, in Outlines of the History of Chinese Fiction, said: "In the creation of plots and writing style, the book sometimes nearly rivals the original, and the scenes it records also contain elements unseen in Shi Nai'an and Luo Guanzhong's work. Among the entangled traditional novels, it stands out as one of the best. This novel is a historical specimen; it allows us to gain a profound understanding of the ideology and culture of China's feudal era."