Lǐ Yú 李漁 (1611–1680), hào Lìwēng 笠翁, was a native of Lán Xī 蘭溪 in Zhèjiāng, later resident in Nanjing and Hangzhou, and one of the most prolific and versatile literary figures of the late-Míng/early-Qīng transition. His CBDB id is 65737; CBDB records his dates as 1611–1680, consistent with Wilkinson (§31.2 gives “1610–80” and §36.21 gives “1611–80”; the 1611 figure is followed here as the CBDB-confirmed date).
Lǐ Yú failed in the imperial examinations and chose a career as a professional man of letters. He operated his own printing house, the Jiè Zǐ Yuán 芥子園 in Nanjing, through which he published both his own works and commercial compilations. He traveled widely with a troupe of household actors (his concubines) performing his own chuánqí 傳奇 dramas at the residences of wealthy patrons. He is perhaps best known for the Xián Qíng Ǒujì 閒情偶寄, an eclectic compendium covering drama theory, garden design, calligraphy, and culinary arts. His fiction includes the short story collection Wúshēng Xì 無聲戲 KR4k0070 and the erotic novel Ròu Pútúan 肉蒲團 (1657). Among his dramas, Lián Xiāngbàn 憐香伴 (1651), a drama on love between women, is particularly noted. Wilkinson cites him as a major cultural authority on late imperial taste, food culture, and leisure culture (§31.2, §36.21).