The Story of the Stone - True Words (Volumes 1-10)

Author: Cao Xueqin (Qing) with editing by Zhou Kuchang, Zhou Ruchang, and Zhou Lunling
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2004-05-01
Features: The True Stone Story compiles over 10 existing ancient manuscripts and conducts a comprehensive collation, displaying all variants to create a reliable Stone Story close to Cao Xueqin’s original handwriting. Zhou Ruchang explains the title The True Stone Story as follows: “‘Hui’ means to gather and comprehend; ‘Zhen’ refers to the true style, essence, meaning, and spirit of Cao Xueqin’s original writing.” The purpose of this collation and publication is to preserve Cao Xueqin’s authenticity, namely the original form of the novel manuscript or fine copies from over 200 years ago. The book differs from current editing practices in terms of editorial conventions, expression, and formatting, instead pioneering a collation method that records comparisons and marks differences immediately. This makes it a new version of the Stone Story that compiles collations from various ancient manuscripts.