Shanghai streetscape

Author: Li Dawei
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-08-01
Features: This is the author's second collection of essays, all written in the past. It covers everyday life, fashion, men and women, food, the world, past memories, culture, folk customs, and the joy, wildness, vulgarity, elegance, madness, and tears of ordinary men. All of it is expressed through humorous and scolding words. Under the courtyard eaves in summer, after splashing cool water, there are men drinking low-poly beer, bare-chested, with chilled watermelons hung in the well, a group of boon companions, telling dirty jokes and continuing vulgar couplets. In Shanghai, you must see Pudong, the Bund, and the Shanghai Miss. Of course, if you look at her, she will give you the evil eye; but if you don’t look at her, she will sulk, lose confidence, and feel like a neglected beauty. A man with a nickname that cannot be used in front of him is often a narrow-minded petty person, a man with a name but no nickname is often a friendless recluse, and a man whose nickname replaces his name is often a generous good person. Sitting in a study, if you unexpectedly meet, , at night, you can completely lie bare-chested and gather together, reading by lamplight, discussing swords, drinking wine; reading the "Biographies of the Knights-errant," stroking a stone qin, sighing deeply, and dancing boldly. Under the courtyard eaves in summer, after splashing cool water, there are men drinking low-poly beer, bare-chested, with chilled watermelons hung in the well, a group of boon companions, telling dirty jokes and continuing vulgar couplets. In Shanghai, you must see Pudong, the Bund, and the Shanghai Miss. Of course, if you look at her, she will give you the evil eye; but if you don’t look at her, she will sulk, lose confidence, and feel like a neglected beauty.