Preface (Second Edition)
Translation by Jenxi Seow
This Preface accompanies the Second Edition of Jin Yong’s novels. As the books are published by Joint Publishing, the Second Edition is also known as the Joint Publishing Edition. The Third Edition came with a new Preface.
I developed a passion for reading beyond my school textbooks during my primary school years. In the junior years, I immersed myself in Children’s Pictorial,1 Little Friends,2 and Young Learner.3 Later, I discovered the content-rich Library for Children,4 before venturing—with nascent understanding—into various serialised novels. By Years 5 and 6, I had begun exploring modern literary works.
Even now, I find myself drawn more to classical literature than to modern or contemporary works. This preference stems from my disposition. Many of my friends, conversely, favour modern literature and show little interest in classical works.
Of course, modern knowledge must be gleaned from contemporary publications. During my primary school years, I benefited most profoundly from–and retain the strongest memories of—Mr Zou Taofen’s5 works that my father and brother purchased. These included his travel journals from across the world, such as Messages of the Wanderer[^pingzongjiyu] and Memories of the Wanderer,6 as well as Life Weekly7 (both new and old editions) of which he was editor-in-chief.
Even in my childhood, I was already deeply indebted to Mr Zou and Life Publishing. Life Publishing was a principal constituent of Joint Publishing.8 Over a decade ago, I signed a contract with Hong Kong’s Joint Publishing to prepare for the publication of my novels in mainland China, though circumstances prevented its fruition.
This time, we planned anew for Joint Publishing to be the exclusive publisher of the Simplified Chinese editions for mainland China. Beyond mere satisfaction, my heart brims with warmth when reflecting on those earlier days.
I wrote this thirty-six volume Collection of Works between 1955 and 1972, spanning thirteen to fourteen years. The collection comprises twelve novels, two novellas, one short story, a critical biography of a historical figure, and several pieces of historical textual criticism. The publication process was rather peculiar.
Whether in Hong Kong, Taiwan, overseas regions, or mainland China, various unauthorised copies and editions were published before the release of authentic versions that I had verified and authorised. Prior to this Joint Publishing edition, only Baihua Literature and Art Publishing House was authorised by me to publish The Book and the Sword in mainland China.
They were meticulous in their printing and honoured the contractual royalties. I paid income tax in accordance with the law and donated the remainder to several literary institutions and weiqi9 activities. This was a gratifying experience. All other editions were unauthorised.
The matter of unpaid royalties was secondary. Many editions were carelessly produced, rife with errors. Some even borrowed the name “Jin Yong” to write and publish wuxia novels. For those well-written, I dare not claim undue credit; as for those filled with tedious fight scenes and salacious descriptions, they inevitably caused distress.
Some publishers even reproduced works by other Hong Kong and Taiwanese authors under my pen name. I received countless letters from readers exposing these practices, expressing their indignation. I trust that once the Joint Publishing edition achieves widespread distribution, it will curtail such unethical practices. Surely wuxia novels, whose central theme is righteousness and moral conduct, should not go to such extremes.
Some pirated editions even claimed that Gu Long, Ni Kuang and I jointly issued a couplet-matching challenge with the line “Ice is colder than iced water”—quite preposterous. Chinese couplets follow established rules: the final character of the first line typically carries an oblique tone,10 allowing the second line to end with a level tone.11 However, the word ‘bing’ has a rising tone, which is a level tone. We would never propose such a first line in a couplet match.
Many mainland readers sent me their attempts at matching lines—a regrettable waste of their time and effort.
To assist readers in authentication, I arranged the first characters of my fourteen novels and novellas into a couplet: “Shooting a white deer in the endless drifting snow; Smiling while writing of the divine hero beside his beautiful love”.
When writing my first novel, I had no notion of whether I would write a second. Whilst writing the second, I had not contemplated the theme for a third, let alone its title. Hence, this couplet can hardly be considered elegant—“drifting snow” cannot properly match “smiling while writing”, and both “white” and “beautiful” carry oblique tones.
Had I actually issued a couplet-matching challenge, I would have had complete freedom in character selection and would certainly have chosen more meaningful characters that adhered to the proper rules.
Many readers posed the same question in their letters: “Among your novels, which do you consider the finest? Which is your favourite?”
This question defies answer. When crafting these novels, I held one aspiration: “Never repeat characters, plots, emotions, or even details that I have written before.” Though my abilities might have limited the full realisation of this aim, I consistently strove in that direction.
Broadly speaking, these fifteen novels are distinctly different, each imbued with my emotions and thoughts—principally the emotions I held while writing them. I cherish the virtuous characters in every novel, finding joy or sorrow in their experiences, at times profound sorrow.
As for literary technique, I showed some improvement in later works. Yet technique is not paramount; what matters most is personality and emotion.
These novels have all been adapted into films and television series in Hong Kong and Taiwan, with some having three or four different versions. Beyond these, there have been stage plays, Beijing operas,12 Cantonese operas13 and other theatrical adaptations. This leads to the second common question: “Which film or television adaptation do you consider most successful? Which actors most accurately portrayed the original characters?”
The presentational forms of film and television differ fundamentally from novels, making comparison rather difficult. Television series, with their longer format, allow for greater narrative development, whilst films face more substantial constraints.
Moreover, reading a novel involves a process of character visualisation shared between author and reader. Many people reading the same novel might envision quite different protagonists, for beyond the words on the page, readers incorporate their personal experiences, personalities, emotions and preferences.
In your mind, you merge the protagonist with your own beloved, and naturally, others’ beloveds differ from yours. Film and television, however, fix character appearances, leaving audiences no room for imagination.
Wuxia novels inherit the lengthy tradition of Chinese classical novels. China’s earliest wuxia novels were likely the brilliant literary works among Tang dynasty legends, such as The Legend of Qiu Ranke,14 Tale of Hongxian,15 Nie Yinniang,16 and The Slave of Kunlun.17 These were followed by Water Margin,18 The Three Heroes and Five Gallants,19 Legend of the Heroic Sons and Daughters,20 and others.
The more serious modern wuxia novels place greater emphasis on themes of justice, integrity, self-sacrifice, protection of the weak from the powerful, national spirit, and traditional Chinese ethical concepts.
Readers need not overly scrutinise the exaggerated descriptions of martial arts in these novels. Some elements are impossible in reality, merely conventions of Chinese wuxia literature. Nie Yinniang’s ability to shrink herself and enter another’s body, then leap from their mouth—no one would believe this possible, yet her story has delighted readers for roughly a millennium.
My early novels held a pronounced sense of Han dynasty legitimacy. In later years, the equality of all ethnicities within the Chinese nation became the predominant theme—a reflection of my advancing historical perspective. This is particularly evident in Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, White Horse Neighing in the West Wind, and The Deer and the Cauldron. Wei Xiaobao’s father could have been a Han,21 Manchu,22 Mongol,23 Hui,24 or Tibetan.25 Even in my first novel The Book and the Sword, the protagonist Chen Jialuo ultimately converted to Islam.
Good and bad people exist within every ethnicity, religion, and profession. There were both corrupt and virtuous emperors, both dreadful officials and those who genuinely cared for the people. Among the Han, Manchu, Khitan, and Tibetan peoples in the novels… one finds both the virtuous and the villainous. Similarly, among monks, priests, lamas, scholars, and warriors, one encounters all manner of personalities and moral dispositions.
Some readers are inclined to divide people into strictly good and bad categories, extrapolating from individuals to entire groups. This was decidedly not the author’s intention.
Historical events and figures must be viewed within their contemporary context. There were fierce conflicts along the borders between Song and Liao, Yuan and Ming, Ming and Qing, Han and other peoples such as the Khitan, Mongol, and Manchu.
The Mongols and Manchus employed religion as a political instrument. The novels depicted the perspectives and mentalities of people of those times; they cannot be judged through the lens of subsequent generations or modern sensibilities.
My purpose in writing novels is to portray characters and explore human emotions. The novels do not serve as allegories. If they contain any criticism, it is directed at the base and dark aspects of human nature. Whilst political viewpoints and social ideologies constantly shift, human nature remains remarkably constant.
Though these novels have undergone numerous revisions and alterations since their completion, errors and inadequacies inevitably persist. I regard every reader as a friend. Naturally, I always welcome the insights of friends.
Jin Yong January 1994
Footnotes
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《儿童画报》– Értónghuàbiǎo. A children’s periodical published since 1959. It is the recommended children’s reading material in China. See Baidu Baike (Chinese). ↩
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《小朋友》– Xiǎopéngyǒu. A children’s weekly magazine published since 6 April 1922. It has been an influential reading material for children, and it is the longest running children’s publication with over two thousand issues. See Baidu Baike (Chinese). ↩
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《小学生》– Xiǎoxuéshēng. The children’s magazine has been published since 1970 and is very popular among school children. See Baidu Baike (Chinese). ↩
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《小朋友文库》– Xiǎopéngyǒuwénkù. It was a series of children’s short stories. See publisher information (Chinese) Archived. ↩
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邹韬奋 – Zōu Tāofèn. A journalist, editor, and publisher. He was the chief editor of Life Weekly (1926-1944). See Wikipedia (Chinese). ↩
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《萍踪忆语》– Píngzōngyìyǔ. A travel journal by Zou Taofen. See Douban (Chinese) or read the book. ↩
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《生活周报》– Shēnghuózhōubào. A weekly magazine published by Life Publishing. See WIkipedia (Chinese). ↩
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Joint Publishing (三联书店) was formed by the merger of Life Publishing (生活书店), Reading Press (读书出版社), and New Lore Publishing (新知书店). See Wikipedia. ↩
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三侠五义 – Sānxiángwǔyì. This was initially published as the The Tale of Loyal Heroes and Righteous Gallants, before it was renamed The Three Heroes and Five Gallants. The novel was later revised and published under the title The Seven Heroes and Five Gallant. See Wikipedia. ↩
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汉族 – Hànzú. The largest ethnic group in China and the world. See Wikipedia. ↩
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满族 – Mǎnzú. A Tungusic ethnic group native to Manchuria. See Wikipedia. ↩
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蒙古族 – Měnggǔzú. An ethnic group native to Mongolia, and the Buryatia and Kalmykia republics of Russia. See Wikipedia. ↩
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回族 – Huízú. An ethnoreligious group consisting of Muslims in China. See Wikipedia. ↩
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藏族 – Zàngzú. An ethnic group native to Tibet. See Wikipedia. ↩