Soul-Draining Gun - A Novel by Lao She

Author: Lao She
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: The novel depicts a marksman named Sha Zilong, who, in the era of revolvers and trains, when the existence of the escort agency had lost its meaning, still indulges in his past glory and refuses to accept reality. The novel is artistically sophisticated and particularly masterful in its ending, which is truly a stroke of genius. The "Five Tiger Soul Gun" remains shrouded in mystery, like a dragon whose head is seen but not the tail. After being mocked by his disciple, Sha Zilong selects a "quiet night with few people around" to "," gazing at the starry sky and reminiscing about his past prowess in martial arts and the wild forests, unable to extricate himself. Reflecting on the current world, he can only sigh at the helplessness of fate. He "slowly strokes the cold gun body with his fingers," and with a smile, utters the resolute four words, "I won't teach, I won't teach." The story then abruptly ends. The novel leaves readers with vast aesthetic imagination, as that seemingly sky-shattering "I won't teach" is imbued with profound and solemn historical vicissitudes. A broken dream of "soul-breaking" thus buries the "culture" of the "past" in solitude and desolation, in a tragic and desolate manner. Everything also seems so poignant and helpless.