Intent

Author: Xiao Renfu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: A quiet kindergarten is suddenly thrust into the forefront of reforms. Kind and capable director Zhuo Xiaomei cannot bear to see her employees' jobs threatened and employs all her wits to save the sinking ship. Yet, in the process of the game, she inexplicably rises through the ranks and achieves great success. What force drives all this? When she escapes one trap, she finds herself falling into a bigger one. In this heartless "" (struggle for power), who will be the ultimate winner? Family members refuse to recognize each other, classmates become rivals, women become pawns, and money pave the path to advancement. Around the kindergarten reforms, the author paints a vivid picture of a bureaucratic (world of intrigue).
Born in the Yuan River, Shen Congwen and I shared the same stream; walking along the Zi River, Wei Moshen is my hometown. I once wanted to rally behind Shen Congwen's banner but felt ashamed of my poor literary skills. I also tried to don Wei Yuan's tiger skin but was too ashamed of my shallow knowledge. I once acted beyond my means, climbing up and down, maneuvering east and west. I love power more than life, lamenting my lack of official fortune; I crave money more than face, mourning my lack of financial luck. I am fond of beauty but not learning, hating my lack of romantic fortune. Naturally dull, I am not good at the ways of the world, knowing only to take the direct path, not skillful at navigating the twists and turns. Reading for seclusion, writing for officialdom—by the age of forty-six, I have written three million characters. Entering the "big compound" with the sound of the "flute," I have seen enough "faces" to become a "red person"; seeking "official fortune," I find a "position," becoming a "confidant" and increasing "treatment." In short, half a lifetime of achievements amount to mere section-level, division-level, or deputy-department-level ranks, and a lifetime of writings consist only of short, medium, and long stories. —Author's self-deprecation
A quiet kindergarten is suddenly thrust into the forefront of reforms. Kind and capable director Zhuo Xiaomei cannot bear to see her employees' jobs threatened and employs all her wits to save the sinking ship. Yet, in the process of the game, she inexplicably rises through the ranks and achieves great success. What force drives all this? When she escapes one trap, she finds herself falling into a bigger one. In this heartless "" (struggle for power), who will be the ultimate winner? Family members refuse to recognize each other, classmates become rivals, women become pawns, and money pave the path to advancement. Around the kindergarten reforms, the author paints a vivid picture of a bureaucratic (world of intrigue).