Mènghuā Xiǎng 夢花想
Dreaming of Flowers
by 樵雲山人 (撰)
About the work
Mènghuā Xiǎng 夢花想 is a Qīng vernacular romance novel (cáizǐ jiārén xiǎoshuō 才子佳人小說) in 18 huí 回 (chapters), attributed to the pen name Qiáoyún Shānrén 樵雲山人. The novel follows the familiar talent-and-beauty convention, with characters named after plum (méi 梅), snow (xuě 雪), bamboo (zhú 竹), and willow (liǔ 柳) as the main romantic protagonists. The preface, dated jǐyǒu 己酉 chrysanthemum month (júyuè 菊月) and signed by Qiáoyún Shānrén at “Peony Brook” (Sháoyào Xī 芍藥溪), explicitly mentions the companion work Fēihuā Yàn Xiǎng 飛花艷想 (KR4k0109), positioning Mènghuā Xiǎng as a related or companion novel in the same tradition.
Tiyao
No tiyao found in source.
Abstract
The preface to Mènghuā Xiǎng was written by Qiáoyún Shānrén 樵雲山人 at “Peony Brook” in the jǐyǒu 己酉 year. It opens with a defense of vernacular fiction (bàiguān yěshǐ 稗官野史), comparing it to “mountain delicacies” (shānhǎi zhēnxiū 山海珍饈) versus the “daily staples” (jiācháng cháfàn 家常茶飯) of the Four Books and Five Classics. The preface then remarks on the companion novel Fēihuā Yàn Xiǎng 飛花艷想 (KR4k0109), declaring that novel to have been composed for the purpose of celebrating flying flowers and enticing thoughts, while maintaining moral rectitude. This suggests Mènghuā Xiǎng may have been written as a sequel or companion to Fēihuā Yàn Xiǎng, or that both share the same dedicatory preface.
The existing person note for 樵雲山人 identifies this author as Liú Zhāng 劉璋, whose preface to Fēihuā Yàn Xiǎng is dated to the jǐyǒu year (1669, Kāngxī 8). The jǐyǒu date in the present preface is consistent with this attribution. A composition date in the mid-to-late seventeenth century (Kāngxī period) is the most defensible bracket; however, if the novel is indeed a sequel composed somewhat later, a date range extending to the early eighteenth century is possible.
The 18-chapter narrative follows the romantic entanglements and eventual happy reunion of multiple talent-and-beauty pairs: the scholars Méi (梅) and Liǔ (柳) and the beautiful women Xuělián Xīng 雪蓮馨 and Zhú Yáng 竹楊. Plot elements include: a poetry gathering beneath flowers (zhòng yīngcái huā xià tán xīn 衆英才花下談心, ch. 1), a boat-ride composition (Liǔ Xiùshì zhōu zhōng tí jù 柳秀士舟中題句, ch. 2), border-area military entanglements (ch. 14), and a final triumphant return in glory (ch. 18: Liǔ yǒu Méi yījǐn huán xiāng 柳友梅衣錦還鄉). The novel follows the standard cáizǐ jiārén formula without significant structural innovations.
Translations and research
No substantial secondary literature located.
Links
- Related work: KR4k0109 Fēihuā Yàn Xiǎng 飛花艷想 (by the same author)