類說

Lèi shuō 類說

Topical Discourses

by 曾慥 (Zēng Zào, fl. 1148–1154, zì Duānbó 端伯), Sòng Director of the Imperial Secretariat and grand-nephew of Zēng Xiàokuān 曾孝寬.

About the work

A 60-juàn Sòng compilation by 曾慥 (Zēng Zào), drawing on Hàn-and-later bǎijiā xiǎoshuō (the literature of the hundred schools and unofficial histories) and extracting topical entries with brief headings. The work, completed in Shàoxīng 6 (1136) while Zēng was residing at Yínfēng (Yínzhōu), divides into a qián jí (preliminary collection, juàn 1–25) and a hòu jí (subsequent collection, juàn 26–60); where excerpts run long the juàn are subdivided for ease of consultation. The book has had multiple recensions: an original Máshā shūfāng cutting (now lost); a Bǎoqìng bǐngxū (1226) re-cutting by Yè Shí 葉時 at the Jiànān prefectural office (also lost); and the present Míng re-cuttings. The format excises original prose and extracts the qílì (striking and elegant) lines under headings — similar to the contemporary Gàn zhū jí (KR3j0179) edited by Wáng Zōngzhé. The arrangement is by section, and within each section excerpts follow the order of the original book, without further topical re-classification. As such it is the principal ancestor of Táo Zōngyí’s Míng-era Shuō fú 說郛 (KR3j0185 Shuō fú). At the time many old books still survived, and Zēng was a refined critic, so most of what he gathered are otherwise-lost texts and rare references that supplement broad learning. Compared to the Gàn zhū jí (too brief) and the Shuō fú (too prolix), the Lèi shuō combines bó (breadth) and yuē (concision). And each book, although extracted, when checked against the original is not silently altered — as the Lǐ Bì Jiā zhuàn entry includes a note “[Lǐ] Bì’s son Fán made ‘father’ read as ‘sire’; now changed to ‘Bì’” — even single-character changes are carefully noted. This shows the proximity of Sòng-era customs to the ancients, very different from the Míng men’s willful alteration.

Tiyao

We respectfully submit that Lèi shuō in 60 juàn was compiled by Zēng Zào of the Sòng. Zào’s zì was Duānbó, a Jìnjiāng man; great-grandson of [Zēng] Xiàokuān; cousin of Grand Councillor [Zēng] Huái. Held office to Shàngshū láng, zhí Bǎowéngé, fèngcí, lived at home, made copious compositions. His selected Yuèfǔ yǎ cí is already recorded separately. This [Lèi shuō] was made when he was lodging at Yínfēng (Yínzhōu), completed in Shàoxīng 6 (1136). It takes Hàn-onward bǎijiā xiǎoshuō, gathers facts, and edits them into a book. The first 25 juàn are qián jí; from juàn 26 onwards is hòu jí. Where the gathering is somewhat copious or the juàn too bulky, [it] further subdivides into sub-volumes for ease of consultation.

When the book first appeared, the Máshā shūfāng had a cutting; later the blocks were lost. In Bǎoqìng bǐngxū (1226), Yè Shí, Prefect of Jiànān, re-cut and placed [the book] in the prefectural office; that too can no longer be seen. The world’s transmitted copies are now what Míng men re-cut.

Its format: deletes the original prose and takes the striking and lovely lines, each with a heading at the entry top — like Wáng Zōngzhé’s contemporary Gàn zhū jí. As to dividing into sections and gathering, each follows the original book’s order, without further topical arrangement. Also Táo Zōngyí’s Shuō fú takes its model from this. At that time the old books still survived in abundance, and Zào was refined in critical judgment, so what he gathered is mostly yí wén pì diǎn (lost text and rare reference), useful for supplementing broad learning. If Gàn zhū is too brief and Shuō fú too verbose, neither is like this book in combining bó and yuē — call it complete.

Also, each book is excerpted but the original text is checked, not silently altered. As: under Yèhóu jiāzhuàn there is a note “Bì’s son Fán made [the reference] read ‘former duke’ [for the father]; now changed to ‘Bì’.” Even a single-character shift is so carefully noted — one sees the Sòng-era customs were near the ancients, certainly not to be spoken of in the same breath as the Míng-men’s willful arbitrary alteration.

Respectfully revised and submitted, fourth month of the forty-sixth year of Qiánlóng (1781).

Abstract

The Lèi shuō is the principal Northern-Sòng / Southern-Sòng-transition lèishū (topical compilation) compiled by an individual editor — Zēng Zào’s massive 60-juàn synthesis of 261 bǎijiā xiǎoshuō into topical extracts. Completed at Yínfēng in 1136, it is one of the largest individual lèishū projects of the Southern Sòng.

The book’s principal contributions:

1. 261 source-texts. The book is a foundational source for Sòng-era xiǎoshuō and bǐjì that have since been lost — the largest single Sòng-era topical anthology of such material.
2. Ancestor of the Shuō fú. The format — extract by source, with brief topical headings, in the order of the original text — directly inspires Táo Zōngyí’s YuánMíng Shuō fú, the great Míng cóngshū compilation of xiǎoshuō extracts.
3. Bridge between bó and yuē. The Sìkù editors single out the Lèi shuō as the best balance between the over-brief Gàn zhū jí (KR3j0179) and the over-prolix Shuō fú.
4. Methodological care. The careful preservation of original wording — with explicit notation of single-character changes — is a model of Sòng kǎozhèng method.
5. Recensional history. Three documented recensions (Máshā original, Yè Shí 1226 re-cutting, Míng re-cuttings) make the work a case-study in SòngYuánMíng textual transmission.

Dating. Preface and completion both 1136. NotBefore / notAfter both 1136.

Translations and research

No complete Western-language translation. The work is widely cited in modern Chinese textual scholarship on Sòng xiǎo-shuō and on the lèi-shū tradition. Modern Chinese editions: Wáng Rǔ-tāo 王汝濤 et al., Lèi shuō jiào zhù, Fú-jiàn Rén-mín Chū-bǎn-shè, 1996.

Links

• Sìkù quánshū zǒngmù tíyào, Zǐbù · Zájiā lèi 5, Lèi shuō entry.