Lùpí zǐ jí 鹿皮子集
The Collection of the Deerskin Master by 陳樵 (撰)
About the work
A four-juǎn literary collection (biéjí) by Chén Qiáo 陳樵 (1278–1365), styled Jūcǎi 居采 and self-styled Lùpí zǐ 鹿皮子 from his habit of dressing in deerskin while living in seclusion at Yúngǔ 圁谷 in Dōngyáng. The contents follow a standard biéjí ordering: fù (rhapsodies) opening juǎn 1, yuèfǔ and old-style verse in juǎn 2, regulated verse in juǎn 3, and longer five- and seven-character series in juǎn 4. The fù section (a feature of older literary collections) is particularly substantial — fifteen rhapsodies preserve commissioned celebratory pieces on East-Zhèjiāng buildings and scenic spots (e.g. Huīyìnglóu fù for the Dōngyáng county school). The work was edited (biānjí) by a certain Lú Liánzǐyǒu 盧聯子友, whose identity is otherwise unrecorded.
Tiyao
Lùpí zǐ jí, 4 juǎn. By Chén Qiáo of the Yuán. Qiáo, style-name Jūcǎi, was a man of Dōngyáng. Aloof and self-keeping, he lived in seclusion at Yúngǔ, dressed in deerskin and styled himself Lùpí zǐ (“Deerskin Master”). Though repeatedly recommended, he did not come out, applying himself exclusively to his writing. This collection bears the title “edited by Lú Liánzǐyǒu”, but it is not known who this Lián was. Qiáo was strong in Classical explication, and through literary exchange with Huáng Jìn and Sòng Lián and others sharpened his prose; thus his attainment is considerable. His old fù are bold and original, with an unusual spirit. As for shī, in the old-style his five-character is better than the seven-character; in the regulated style his seven-character is better than his five-character. In general his seven-character old style learns from Wēn Tíngyún and his seven-character regulated learns from Lù Guīméng: he captures the spirit and core of both. Gù Sìlì’s Yuán shī xuǎn picks out lines like “the mountain blocks spring as it returns by the road; geese enter and ducks fly, never filling the sky” and “wild deer dodging men, hung up sleeping in trees; brook fish, riding the water, climbing the hills”; “willow-fluff so light it would push through the clouds; flowers so fine they would surely change one’s bones” — taking them as marching in the footsteps of the Xī Kūn school. Yet his finely carved manner is in fact closer to Sōnglíng (Pí Rìxiū 皮日休) and Lìzé (Lù Guīméng) [together the SōnglíngLìzé pair]. In his old-style he is generally pure, though his use of 侵 and 同 rhymes together transgresses the ancient norms. In his regulated style he often uses the Hóngwǔ zhèngyùn — which is most puzzling, unless these were written after his entry into the Míng and he was constrained to follow the current regulation. Respectfully collated, Qiánlóng forty-fifth (1780), fifth month. Compilers: Jì Yún, Lù Xīxióng, Sūn Shìyì; head proofreader: Lù Fèichí.
Abstract
Lùpí zǐ jí is the entire surviving output of Chén Qiáo, a major Wùzhōu 婺州 literatus of the late Yuán. The tíyào compilers note an interesting historical signal: certain pieces use the early-Míng Hóngwǔ zhèngyùn (promulgated 1375), which means Chén composed these after the dynastic transition rather than in the Yuán proper. The catalog’s dating bracket (1278–1365) is the author’s lifedates; the collection’s composition spans from his early maturity (c. 1310) through to the early Míng (1368+). Chén was part of the Wùzhōu literary circle around Huáng Jìn 黃溍 and Sòng Lián 宋濂. He is also a representative figure in the late-Yuán “reclusive scholar” mode that anchored much non-official literary culture in Eastern Zhèjiāng. The fù and the Běshān biéyè 38-place series are the principal records of his daily landscape and built environment.
Translations and research
- Treated in Yáng Lián’s Yuán-shī shǐ and in regional histories of Wùzhōu/Dōngyáng literary culture.
- No substantial Western-language secondary literature located.
Other points of interest
The catalog meta places Chén’s lifedates as 1278–1365; he thus barely missed the Míng founding but the tíyào notes some collection pieces show post-1368 rhyming, suggesting either later editorial polishing or that some compositions postdate the political transition. The 38-poem series Běishān biéyè 北山别業三十八詠 is a substantial topographic document of his Yúngǔ retreat.
Links
- WYG SKQS V1216.7, p635.