Sunset over the Forbidden City

Author: Leung Fung-wai
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 1998-01-01
Features: This epic work combines documentary and fictional styles to reflect the tumultuous changes in Hong Kong over more than 150 years from the Opium War to the "97" handover. It records major historical events, depicts the rivalries among Hong Kong's four major families, and focuses on the winding destinies of the fourth and fifth generations. It also reflects the rapid changes in mainland China, demonstrating that China's growing strength has erased a century of humiliation and brought about Hong Kong's return. Sunset Over the Forbidden City is part of the "Return Journey" series. This volume, with Lin Zexu's anti-opium campaign as the main storyline and palace secrets and folk tragedies as supporting threads, presents the unfortunate experiences of the protagonists Qian Li and Na Jia to the readers: Qian Li's family was destroyed by opium traders, while the queen's trusted maidservant Na Jia, after the queen was forced to take poison, carried a pearl flower named "Pearl of the East" and fled to Hong Kong. I never hoped that Return Journey would hold a place in literature or history, but I dare to use Return Journey as a gift to my teachers, because it carries my heart and sincerity. Late Qing novels are not suitable for a doctoral dissertation in a literature department because, from a literary perspective, they are not yet of high caliber. However, from a historical perspective, they are extremely valuable and meaningful and should be the subject of research. The "Return Journey" series is the author's latest creation, a multi-volume novel exceeding one million words, with six volumes already published: Sunset Over the Forbidden City, The West Wind Chases the Evening Glow, Years Under the Fence, A Thousand Waves and Miles of Wind, Deep Affection Remains as Before, and Rising to the Nine Heavens.