Underworld China: The Origin of Informal Institutions in China

Author: Yu Yang
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-07-01
Features: A Chat on the Jianghu is the posthumous work of the renowned storytelling master Lian Keru. The famous writer Su Shuyang called it an "unprecedented and unparalleled" "rare and extraordinary book." The author possesses extensive experience in the Jianghu. The book provides a detailed introduction to the rules and jargon of the Jianghu; exposes the inner workings of swindling, deception, and fraud in old society; narrates the development, styles, and schools of various folk arts; and depicts the hidden social lives of Jianghu artists. The text is clear and fluent, making it a valuable historical resource and a treasure for collection. The Jianghuization of Chinese society, interpreting China through the lens of the Jianghu, why the Chinese have a unique "kung fu obsession," the Jianghu as the "degenerated Confucianism." Relationships are the "vitamins of survival," relationships: 17 types of connections and 3 essential elements, Fei Xiaotong depicts relationships; "throwing a stone into the Jianghu pond." Human feelings are like virtual currency, supporting transactions, the face show, the three elements of face: honor, rules, and credibility, "fake people," acting and pretending, mixing in the world, the Jianghu also has values. The evolution of Chinese society, the "triangular model": the stage of changing faces, conclusion: there is more. Since the middle Ming Dynasty, in terms of the carrying capacity of agricultural productivity for China's agricultural production, the total population of the country had already approached saturation. In local areas like Jin, Huizhou, and Fujian, the signs of overpopulation began to emerge, and surplus populations started to drift away from their clans and villages, settling in other places. After 300 years of accumulation, by the end of the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty, the total population finally exceeded the carrying capacity of agricultural productivity. Starving refugees, like a flood, spread across the country. These immigrant groups, who had left the classical settled agricultural lifestyle, gradually formed a Jianghu society that was outside the control of the imperial system, including secret religious sects, secret societies, trade guilds, and merchant guilds. From the late Qing Dynasty to the early Republic of China, Jianghu forces like the Heaven and Earth Society, Hongmen, Gelaohui, and the Qing Gang, by participating in the overthrow of the Manchu Empire, fully infiltrated the upper echelons of the military, politics, business, and culture. The black and white worlds gradually merged, and the values, organizational models, and customs of the Jianghu spread from the "road" to the entire society, leading to the "Jianghuization" of modern Chinese social structure and culture. Today, the various Jianghu organizations no longer exist, but the values and customs of the Jianghu have evolved into invisible institutional norms that still influence the thoughts and behaviors of the Chinese. This book interprets China through the lens of the Jianghu, reflects on history, and analyzes the modernization process of China, with a broad perspective, rich historical materials, unique insights, and thought-provoking content.