Private Collection of Chinese Classical Rare Novels (Complete Four Boxes, Twenty Volumes) (Authentic Original Edition, Limited to 2000 Sets, Exclusively for Professional Circle Subscription)

Author: None
Publisher: Central University for Nationalities Press
Publishing Time: None
Features: Private Snow-Covered Secret Manuscript Collection
The text inside the book follows the original layout, slightly adjusted according to modern reading habits, retaining ancient charm while adding new touches! The book is bound using ancient methods, with vertical silk stitching and printed on Xuan paper! Each set of books is paired with a carved wooden box cover, with the front design meticulously crafted by professors from the Central Academy of Fine Arts. The molds are hand-carved by master wood carvers from Dongyang, Zhejiang, and precision-engraved using imported American carving machines, exuding ancient elegance and vibrant colors. The box covers are equipped with leather latches and bone book spines, adding a luxurious touch! The high-end gift box is lined with exquisite illustrations from the private secret manuscript, wrapped in Sichuan Chengdu’s specialty Shu brocade, showcasing grandeur, elegance, and nobility.
The Private Snow-Covered Collection of Chinese Classical Rare Novel Series includes thirty rare manuscripts from the Ming and Qing dynasties, featuring the most renowned, least-seen, and finest versions preserved in private collections. These are priceless treasures, hard to come by. The selection process was arduous, involving extensive searches across mountains and valleys, uncovering hidden gems to compile this collection. Its scale is vast, its content alluring, and its versions impeccable—unprecedented in history, awaiting future appreciation.
Chinese classical rare novels originated in the Tang and Song dynasties, flourished in the Ming, and reached their peak in the Qing. From the Ming Dynasty onwards, the novel as a literary form fully demonstrated its social significance and literary value, breaking the cultural monopoly of classical poetry and prose. In literary history, it achieved a status equal to Tang poetry, Song lyrics, and Yuan qu. The early Qing to the reign of Emperor Qianlong marked the golden age of novels, with an unprecedented number and diverse styles. If Chinese classical novels were ranked, the "human relationship novels" and "love novels" (also called "erotic novels") were unfairly labeled as low-class and excluded from the mainstream. Compared to China’s orthodox "classic culture," the subculture of Chinese "love novels" presents fewer pretenses, closer to the nation’s history, social life, and spiritual essence. These novels excel in depicting male-female relationships while covering a wide range of social scenes. Their erotic descriptions, though explicit and detailed, adhere to the principle of "meaning over matter, unafraid of vulgarity."
Ancient Chinese rulers long adhered to cultural monopolization, suppressing those deemed "unrefined" or "immoral" under the of "promoting lust and theft." Yet, as the saying goes, "food and sex are human nature"—as Mencius stated, "Food and sex are natural inclinations." Emotions are hard to restrain, desires impossible to destroy. Every time books were burned and scholars persecuted, some risked their lives to smuggle forbidden texts. These "treasures of the human world" then found refuge underground, copied by hand or privately printed, secretly circulated and passed down. The Ming and Qing dynasties saw this trend flourish. However, with the passage of time, these underground publications scattered or were lost to war or overseas. The survivors have become the rarest, almost-extinct masterpieces.