Last Royal Family

Author: Fu Liangju
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-09-01
Features: The author's writing style is diverse, effortlessly shifting between the void and reality. With ethereal and beautiful words, he paints a magnificent and grand picture of a dynasty for us. Through his work, we feel the deep, hidden emotions surging within us like undercurrents. – Sohu Have you ever felt it resembles the opening of Fantasy City? But this is fashion, I think, and we should follow it. Moreover, whether in terms of writing or storytelling, this novel cannot be inferior to Fantasy City. Perhaps this is the reason you should read it. – Polished Paper (Editor of NetEase Culture Channel) The words are exquisite and bright, the emotions sincere and sorrowful, immersing you to the point of tears. Piercing through the shadows of the mortal world, I imagine myself stepping into that distant land: the Spirit Abyss Kingdom, the snow-covered world, the white-robed, long-gowned figures though not present, their hearts yearn for them. – Wang Yu (Editor of Sina Originals) Burning ice, illusory temples, the dance of souls When we shed tears for the separation of life and death, and are shaken by the tragic beauty of love, we finally realize: the death of hatred is the rebirth of love. The Last Royal Family gives us the initial. In this moment, it becomes eternal. – Heaven Is Guilty (Editor of Tianya Community's Dance of Ink and Black) Seeing the beginning of the novel, I distinctly feel a familiar tenderness and poetic weariness. At the same time, the author also displays his unique magnificence and charm, a sense of extreme confidence in his words. Undoubtedly, this is a novel that gives the author great confidence. – Stone (Book Editor) The roots of all illusions come from the rumors of the wind. They say, a peace that lasts almost forever relies on thirty years of bloodshed. The Last Royal Family bears the curse of fate, bound by cold love and conspiracy, continuing the legend between the mountains and rivers. – Peng Liurong (Freelance Writer) The young, talented author Fu Liangju meticulously crafts a new classic in classical fantasy. The youth fantasy is stirring again, the flames of the royal family sweeping across the heavens. A heart-stirring encounter, an unwavering pursuit, the young prince embarks on a long path of redemption, strongly recommended by major websites, with prefaces by the renowned writers Ye Yonglie and Song Bieli. This shore and that shore, destruction and creation, submersion and transcendence, The Last Royal Family portrays an epic tragedy. In June 2005, I flew from Shanghai to Gansu at the invitation of the U.S. Pepsico Company and Shanghai Juvenile and Children's Publishing House to donate books to children in the western region. I also revisited the Silk Road, from the roaring Yellow River passing through Lanzhou to the majestic Great Wall at Jiayuguan, until the artistic treasure trove of the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang on the vast Gobi Desert. When I returned to Shanghai, I received an email from Mr. Wang Zhao of Hubei Juvenile and Children's Publishing House, sending me the electronic manuscript of The Last Royal Family and asking me to write a preface. Upon seeing it, I realized this manuscript came from Lanzhou, Gansu. The author, "sitting on the balcony of his room in the South Gate Ten Zifang in Lanzhou," had conceived this idea of a "new king of the Spirit Abyss Kingdom." "I looked up and around, only to find myself in a huge stone cave, the top of which had a narrow crack, casting faint light inside. The cave was a maze of light and shadow, carved with lifelike portraits on the towering vertical walls." After reading Mr. Fu Liangju's The Last Royal Family, I felt as if I had returned to the stone caves of the Mogao Grottoes, wandering before the colorful ancient murals. I suspect the author's inspiration might have come from those ancient murals in the Mogao Caves. Reading The Last Royal Family sparked three thoughts in me. The first thought that came to mind is the positioning of The Last Royal Family. This novel is undoubtedly a fantasy, but fantasy novels are divided into three categories: science fiction, magical fantasy, and fantasy. Which category does The Last Royal Family belong to? Science fiction is well-known, with its fantasy rooted in science. Jules Verne of France, H.G. Wells of the United Kingdom, and Isaac Asimov of the United States are masters of world science fiction. Magical fantasy is based on magic, utilizing wands, magic rings, spells, and sorcery, with boundless charm and magic. Harry Potter is a representative work. If we "fit the label," The Last Royal Family is neither science fiction nor magical fantasy, but rather belongs to the third category of fantasy. This third category of fantasy has many names and is quite vague, yet it is the most popular and fiery in China today. The most common names for this category are three: grand fantasy,, and fantasy, collectively known as "fantasy." The term "grand fantasy" comes from Japan, represented by the works of female writer Anjiro. In Anjiro's works, "It was a fantastical land, a world where fairies roamed, with windows made of foxes and white parrots perched on every branch, where the souls of girls could be heard crying softly." Some call Anjiro's "fantasy" novels the "Contemporary Liaozhai." The representative work of is The Legend of the Little Soldier, which became one of the most clicked novels online in 2004. In the Xinhua News Agency's Shanghai Branch dispatch "Ye Yonglie Comments on the Heat of Xuanhuan Novels" in February 2005, I wrote: "Xuanhuan novels are a recent phenomenon, rooted in, emphasizing the '' character, and their content goes further than magical fantasy. On the creative level, xuanhuan novelists have more freedom than science fiction novelists, unbound by scientific evidence, and have more room for creativity. The 'xuanhuan' fever is something to be grateful for." As far as I know, the term "xuanhuan" comes from Hong Kong. The earliest xuanhuan novel I encountered was Huang Yi's The Moon Demon from 1988, when a Hong Kong publisher sent me a copy. Huang Yi claimed that xuanhuan novels combine "xuanxue, science, and literature." In fact, Huang Yi's xuanhuan novels have nothing to do with science, and his so-called "xuanxue" is actually "xuanxiang." In October 2004, I attended the "Xuanhuan Literature in China's Market" seminar in Beijing, and the Dongfang Publishing Center of the China Publishing Group immediately launched twenty xuanhuan novels signed by "Huotianche," showing the fever of xuanhuan novels. The representative work of fantasy is Guo Jingming's Fantasy City. At the age of seventeen, Guo Jingming, amidst the intense study of his senior year of high school, wrote a fantasy novel full of magic, Fantasy City, becoming a bestseller in China in 2003. In Fantasy City, the Fire Clan and the Ice Clan are irreconcilable, with the Fire City and the Fantasy Snow Empire engaging in a holy war. In the Fantasy Snow Empire, "people have white, crystal-clear pupils, white long hair, a thousand-year lifespan, and a dreamlike, magnificent illusion." In the "distant fantasies of the holy war, fragmented love is intertwined. The fantasies from the sky are light, romantic, unrestrained, leading you to open the mysterious door of fantasy in your mind, letting your imagination soar freely, the spirit of thought wandering in the boundless world, where every step reveals boundless scenery." After reading Mr. Fu Liangju's The Last Royal Family, I unhesitatingly classify this work as a fantasy novel. From The Last Royal Family, it is clear to see the influence of Fantasy City. Fantasy City tells the story of the struggle between the Fire Clan and the Ice Clan, while The Last Royal Family depicts the endless wars between the four great clans—Wind, Thunder, Ice, and Fire—in the Spirit Abyss Kingdom. The king relied on the will and powerful magic of the divine race to unify the kingdom and end the long-standing wars. Linglie, the only prince of the divine race in the Spirit Abyss Kingdom, also had "snow-white long hair." He firmly remembered his father's words: "A wise king should strive to avoid wars and keep the country peaceful and harmonious." However, as the old saying goes, "The tree wants to be still, but the wind will not stop." The Spirit Abyss Kingdom remained unstable. The fierce struggle over the "Four-Color Divine Pearls" was so intense. The "Four-Color Divine Pearls" are four divine pearls with different powers, each collected by the kings of the Wind, Thunder, Ice, and Fire clans. The divine pearls were treasures bestowed by the divine race's Ran Wang upon the four great clans: the Jade Chi Pearl of the Wind Clan, the Ming Lei Pearl of the Thunder Clan, the Huo Ran Pearl of the Fire Clan, and the Xun Ning Pearl of the Ice Clan." Linglie could not escape the heavens' wrath and tragically ended everything in the divine race's sacrifice, becoming the "Last Royal Family." The Last Royal Family is a magnificent tragedy in the fantasy world. After determining the positioning of The Last Royal Family, the second thought that came to me is the current "fantasy fever" and "xuanhuan fever" in China. Historically, science fiction has been more popular in China than magical fantasy, and magical fantasy has been more popular than fantasy. However, represented by Fantasy City, fantasy and represented by The Legend of the Little Soldier, their influence now far surpasses the "established" science fiction. Analyzing the emerging fantasy and xuanhuan, I notice the youthfulness of both the authors and the readers. Fantasy City was written by the seventeen-year-old Guo Jingming. The author of The Legend of the Little Soldier is young. The "Huotianche" of xuanhuan is a writing team with an average age of only twenty. Mr. Fu Liangju, the author of The Last Royal Family, is also just a young man who graduated two years ago. In fact, I was also a "young writer" back then. I published my works at the age of eleven, became a main author of Why Do Things Happen at the age of twenty, and wrote The Little Spirit's Journey into the Future at the age of twenty-one. However, when I wrote science fiction back then, I had to strictly adhere to the scientific basis of my fantasies. Even so, some of my slightly "off-track" works were criticized as "pseudo-science." Fantasy and xuanhuan only require imagination and have nothing to do with science. Therefore, in today's deepening reform and opening-up, China has entered a period of relaxation, and the imagination of young people has been fully unleashed. Fantasy and xuanhuan are precisely the vast lands where imagination can roam freely. Thus, many young authors have joined the writing of fantasy and xuanhuan novels, following the trend of the times. At the same time, fantasy and xuanhuan novels are widely spread online, and the main readers of online novels are teenagers. Therefore, with the infinite magic of the internet, fantasy and xuanhuan have drawn countless teenagers into their readership group. Additionally, the novelistic and marvelous fantasy realms presented in fantasy and xuanhuan novels are also loved by the youthful and vibrant teenage readers. For this reason, The Legend of the Little Soldier has such a high click rate, and Fantasy City shocked the Beijing Book Order Fair with a print run of 100,000 copies. The appearance of The Last Royal Family has further heated up the "fantasy fever" and "xuanhuan fever" in contemporary China. The Last Royal Family is a work by a young author, published by Hubei Juvenile and Children's Publishing House, a publisher that provides spiritual nourishment for children and young people. This truly reflects the characteristics of the current "fantasy fever" and "xuanhuan fever" in China. My third thought is about the hopes for fantasy and xuanhuan. Fantasy and xuanhuan works have sprung up like bamboo after rain in China. I think such a "fantasy fever" and "xuanhuan fever" is a welcome phenomenon. In the Xinhua News Agency's Shanghai Branch dispatch "Ye Yonglie Comments on the Heat of Xuanhuan Novels," there is a passage that reads: "Facing the fiery scene of xuanhuan novels, Ye Yonglie frankly stated: 'Xuanhuan novels can inspire readers' imagination, and this is exactly what Chinese students lack. Therefore, the popularity of xuanhuan novels is, overall, something to be grateful for.'" The report also wrote: "Ye Yonglie pointed out that the current problem with xuanhuan novels is 'hurrying to be fast and successful.' 'I don't believe in slow work producing fine results, but I also don't appreciate the rapid writing for mere commercial gimmicks. Novels must prioritize quality. 'Xuanhuan' also expects fine works. Although xuanhuan novels are sweeping the country with great momentum, as an important branch of fantasy novels, they also face creative dilemmas." After reading The Last Royal Family, I believe the author has good literary cultivation and considerable writing talent. However, as mentioned earlier, The Last Royal Family seems heavily influenced by Guo Jingming's Fantasy City, with clear traces of Fantasy City in the work, even in the writing style. Creativity is highly valued in literature. In addition, the electronic manuscript of The Last Royal Family has only three chapter titles and no subheadings. This is typically the style of pure literary novels. Fantasy and xuanhuan works belong to the category of popular literature and should have subheadings for each section, not only making the work clearer but also enhancing its reading appeal. I also pointed out this flaw when reading the xuanhuan novels of "Huotianche," and they later improved it. After reading The Last Royal Family, I wrote the above three thoughts, which serve as the preface.