Miao Huaiming's "The Red Chamber in the Wind Rises" (revised edition) was published by Phoenix Publishing House in January 2021, exactly a hundred years after Hu Shi completed the first draft of "Examination of the Dream of the Red Chamber", exactly one hundred years ago. If the publication of "The Wind Rises in the Red Chamber" (Revised Edition) is regarded as a commemoration of the centenary of the New Red Studies, it should be reasonable, because this book tells the story of the New Red Studies more intensively.
"The Wind Rises in the Red Chamber" Revised Edition, by Miao Huaiming, Phoenix Publishing House, January 2021 edition.
The first edition of "The Red Chamber" has 13 chapters, and the revised version has 15 chapters, of which no less than 6 chapters focus on the story of the new red science. The reason why the author uses the word "story" is because the narrative of the book is relatively strong and the reading effect is better, that is, the author said that "the people and things related to red science in the 20th century are told in a perceptual way."
In fact, whether it is a high-headed chapter writing method or a perceptual way of writing, as long as there is a good narrative, it can produce a good reading effect, and the key to the problem is that the average writer often does not care much about this aspect of composition cultivation.
The first edition of The Red Chamber, published in 2006 by zhonghua bookstore, caused a number of controversies about right and wrong, and the controversies mainly focused on the two chapters of "Friendship between Teachers and Students or Rivals of Arguments" and "Where Did the 'Grace and Grievances' Come From", which were regarded by the general reader as so-called "public cases".
For example, online books such as China Book Network said when talking about the introduction of the content of "The Red Chamber of the Wind Rises": "The Red Chamber of the Wind Rises" will tell the difficult academic public cases and complex human grievances in the development process of modern red studies. Unveil the secrets hidden behind the red science for the reader.
Keywords such as "public case", "grudge", and "secret" have become the selling points of this book, which is obviously a trick of the merchant, not the author's own motive.
"The Red Chamber"
Miao Huaiming said in the first edition of "Words Written in the Back": "When presenting such a pamphlet in front of the reader, everyone's reaction is still a little uneasy in my heart. Although the self-questions are written quite carefully, as widely as possible to collect information, in order to achieve objectivity and fairness, due to the limited personal knowledge and ability, whether it can be done and how effective it is actually, it must be evaluated by the readers. In particular, many of the characters involved in the book have either died recently, or are still alive, and if they are not careful, they may be subjected to personal attacks, bad intentions, hype through celebrities, and severe accusations such as being instructed by others, and even cause some unexpected troubles. To this end, the author is very careful when writing, do not jump to conclusions, let the facts and materials speak, and after some chapters are written, they are also sent to a number of senior experts in the same industry for review and control, in order to be safe. (pp. 276-277)
The chapter "Where Did the 'Grace and Grievances' Come From" reiterates: "The purpose of writing this article is for academic research, not to take advantage of the opportunity to hype, have ulterior motives, and be directed by others, which should be explained first, and the so-called ugly words are said in the front." The reason why I started the article for half a day is to express a wish: I discuss this issue from the perspective of academic history, and I also hope that readers will read and criticize this article from this perspective, and do not speculate outside of academia, so as to make serious academic discussions taste bad. (p. 198)
Miao Huaiming, "An Academic Case of Zhou Ruchang Hu Shi"
From the above confession, it can be seen that the author does not have the same intentions or wits as the merchants, but the effect of the reader's acceptance does not fully take into account the author's intentions.
As a result, "The Red Chamber" was regarded as a controversial book by some readers (including red scholars) for a considerable period of time. The most controversial thing is the book's investigation and analysis of the "friendship between teachers and students" between Hu Shi and Zhou Ruchang, as well as the examination of the "relationship" between Yu Pingbo and Zhou Ruchang, if considered in conjunction with the ecology of red studies at that time, the reason for the formation of the "controversy" is self-evident. Because since the late 1990s, the topic of talking about Zhou Ruchang has increasingly evolved into a question about the "position" of the speaker.
It can be seen that the book "The Red Chamber rises in the wind" considers the author's academic courage and academic public spirit on the ground. The author believes that in the strict sense, "The Red Chamber" is not a book of "revealed".
Miao Huaiming said in the chapter "The Dispute between Cai and Hu in the History of Red Studies: Combining the Friendship of the Two Men": "Previous academic circles have focused on the differences and confrontations between the academic views of the two people, and the causes, consequences, and specific processes of the dispute between Cai and Hu Hongxue, especially Cai Yuanpei's study of red studies and whether this controversy has affected the friendship between the two people, has always lacked necessary and sufficient discussion, resulting in many false rumors and misjudgments. Here, according to the relevant literature, the ins and outs of this controversy are sorted out and summarized in more detail, with a view to clarifying and restoring a period of historical truth. (The Red Chamber, p. 84)
Jiang Menglin, Cai Yuanpei, Hu Shi and Li Dazhao took a group photo
"Clarifying and restoring a piece of historical truth" is not only the most important point in this chapter, but also the most important point of this book, in order to avoid as much as possible the "false transmission and misjudgment" of people, events, and scholarship in the history of red studies. Of course, the author's motivation to write is one thing, and the actual reading effect is another, and these two aspects are often difficult to balance well.
It is worth mentioning that if you look at it from a comparative point of view, after 5 years, the book "Seven Cases of the Red Chamber" published by Jiangsu People's Publishing House in June 2011 should be able to be called a real "secret" book, which was a big shock to the red academic circles, and at the same time won the praise of ordinary readers who like to "reveal".
Looking at the whole book of "The Wind Rises in the Red Chamber", the author's comments in the process of narrating history have a very distinct personality. Here is a brief excerpt as follows:
1. "The Friendship of Teachers and Students or the Rivals of Debate"
Comparing the correspondence and related materials exchanged between the two and Zhou Ruchang's later memories of this past, there is such a big discrepancy and contrast between the two, if you do not read the original text and materials of these letters, you really can't believe it. How to explain this phenomenon, I am afraid that there are only two possibilities: First, what Zhou Ruchang said in his letter to Hu Shi at that time was completely opposite to the true thoughts in his personal heart, that is, on the surface, he listened to Hu Shi's advice and guidance, and was grateful for Hu Shi's various help, but privately he was very dissatisfied with Hu Shi and full of complaints; first, Zhou Ruchang's later memories were wrong, and the error was too large, almost to the extent of reconstructing history. (The Red Chamber, p. 183)
Photographs of Hu Shi's early years
Nearly 90 years have passed since Hu Shi advocated vernacular literature, and his contributions and achievements have long been evaluated by academic circles, and Zhou Ruchang actually criticized Hu Shi from the standpoint of the opponents of that year, regardless of the historical background and changes of the times, which cannot but be said to be a cultural spectacle. (The Red Chamber, p. 183)
2. "Where Did the "Grace and Grievance" come from"
As I have already said, Zhou Ruchang's letter written by Yu Pingbo to the editor of Tianjin Minguo Daily in 1948 was too deep and misread. Today, there is also such a problem with Yu Pingbo's 1954 article "The Year of Cao Xueqin's Death", and it is even more serious. Originally, there was no grudge, but if you want to ask "where did the 'grace and resentment' come from", there will indeed be a sense of "still do not understand". (The Red Chamber, p. 216)
3. "Summary and Development of New Red Science"
For such a young student with academic ambitions and enthusiasm for learning, Hu Shi is in a busy schedule, giving help and guidance as much as possible. From governance to being a person, from the big to the small sections, Hu Shi's help and guidance to Zhou Ruchang can be said to be all-round. At that time, the social situation was extremely turbulent, and in such a complex and changeable environment, Hu Shiyu was able to give such enthusiastic and patient guidance to a young man's study in a thousand and one ways, which was undoubtedly a model in China's modern academic history. (Page 207 of the revised Edition of the Red Chamber)
Photographs of Zhou Ruchang's early years
4. "Qingshi is determined by who is right or wrong"
The stormy critique that began in October 1954 was an inescapable nightmare for Yu Pingbo, who was dutiful, kind, and paying attention to the mood of life, which sounded quite fatalistic, but after nearly half a century of putting together various materials and thinking about it carefully, everything was reasonable, it could be said that it was fate, but it was only a matter of time sooner or later. A long history look back can reveal something regular behind all kinds of noisy appearances, but these laws are written with noble life and helpless blood and tears. The surprise of not finding the law, but let people give birth to a lot of indescribable heaviness and desolation. History can never be assumed and rewritten, and its cold side and cruelty often make people sigh and weep, and give birth to a sense of illusion of the impermanence of life. (The Red Chamber, p. 216)
Hu Sheng made these remarks on behalf of the authorities, although such a speech was too late for Yu Pingbo, but fortunately he finally realized his mistake and said that he would "accept this historical lesson." In his article "Mao Zedong and You", Li Xifan changed the poem "Qingshi zhizhi according to who determines right and wrong" to "Qingshi can finally determine right and wrong", because he was "not as pessimistic as Lin Zexu" and "believed that this is the truth", and he himself was also consciously or unconsciously carrying out the work of "determining right and wrong". It will take time for right and wrong to be determined, but one thing is certain, that is, this right and wrong may be much worse than Li Xifan's own expectations. (The Red Chamber, p. 271)
Yu Pingbo in his youth
In the above only six paragraphs of text, it is obvious that the author's strong personal emotional color is often overflowing with praise and disparagement, as if it is not unpleasant. These emotional words are obviously quite "emotional" and easy to resonate with readers.
What needs to be explained here is that the controversy caused by the book "The Red Chamber" cannot be completely attributed to the perceptual way of writing strategy, but also lies in the author's position or emotion on the interpretation of the literature, if the reader can not see the same amount of literature and even more literature, ambiguity or misunderstanding is inevitable.
Moreover, general readers (not to mention general readers) tend to be more interested in keywords such as "public case", "grudge", and "secret"! Jun did not see Zhao Yi's "On the Five Poems of the Third" has long been revealed:
Only the eyes must be opened independently,
Art garden is full of female and yellow.
The dwarf watched the play He had seen,
It's all about short and long.
Reading through the book "The Wind Rises in the Red Chamber", the combing of the history of red studies is the main line of this popular book, but judging from some of the topics selected in its specific chapters and the discussions arising from such topics, we can vaguely glimpse some aspects of cultural history or intellectual history.
What is the significance of the publication of a revised edition of this red history that the author calls "essay style"? The author believes that at least the following aspects can be slightly recognized:
First of all, re-understanding Cai Yuanpei's position in the history of red studies and re-evaluating the value of "Stone Records and Suoyin" should be a topic that cannot be ignored in the new century of red studies.
"Stone Notes"
The book "The Red Chamber rises in the wind" has 3 chapters to focus on Cai Yuanpei's Suoyin and the controversy between Cai Yuanpei and Hu Shi, such as the second chapter "A Respectable Person and a Book Worthy of Respect: Cai Yuanpei and His Stone Record Suoyin", the third chapter "From Suoyin to Examination: An Investigation of Hu Shi's Academic Journey", and chapter seven, "The Dispute between Cai and Hu in the History of Red Studies: Combining the Friendship between the Two".
Miao Huaiming believes: "For a long time, Cai Yuanpei has been regarded as a representative of the Suo Yin school in the history of red studies, appearing as an almost 'villain', but this simplistic and facial approach is not advisable, because it cannot solve many practical problems, after all, there are many complex times and personal factors in the choice of academic path. (The Red Chamber, p. 84)
If we re-understand Cai Yuanpei or re-evaluate the "Stone Record Suoyin", we must objectively and prudently evaluate the "era and personal factors" in it, as well as objectively and prudently evaluate the real status and influence of Cai Yuanpei or "Stone Record Suoyin" in the history of red studies. In recent years, the reflections on "Suoyin", "Dream of the Red Chamber", and "Modern Suoyin School Of Red Studies" have become increasingly objective and prudent, and the reflections in this regard need to be further deepened.
Secondly, re-examining and evaluating Wang Yuanfang and his Yadong version of "Dream of the Red Chamber" is also a topic that cannot be ignored in the new century of red studies.
Wang Yuanfang
The title of chapter 10 of "The Red Chamber rises" is very striking - "He changed people's reading habits: Wang Yuanfang and his Yadong version of "Dream of the Red Chamber"", and the title of section 1 under this chapter is "The Arrival of a New Era of Reading". View the "first person to punctuate ancient books" (or "the first person to punctuate classical novels" or "the first person to punctuate new punctuation") from such an eye-catching perspective.
Wang Yuan's unique achievement in publishing the Yadong edition of "Dream of the Red Chamber" can be described as quite a keen eye for academic history. Miao Huaiming believes: "When compiling the history of red studies in the 20th century, we must write a stroke for this character no matter what. In terms of the promotion and influence of red studies, he is not inferior to ordinary red scholars, or even surpass them, because he changed people's habits of reading "Dream of the Red Chamber" and wrote a new chapter in the dissemination and acceptance of "Dream of the Red Chamber". (The Red Chamber, p. 132)
In the past ten years, the research topic of the dissemination and reception of "Dream of the Red Chamber" has become a hot topic, but unfortunately, the research results on the topic of Wang Yuanfang and the dissemination and acceptance of "Dream of the Red Chamber" are very limited.
In addition, paying attention to the scholars who have made contributions in the history of red studies, and re-understanding and evaluating the value and influence of these scholars in the history of red studies, can be said to be one of the main topics in the new century of red studies.
"The Red Chamber" tells the stories of the most influential scholars in red studies, the story of Wang Guowei, the story of Cai Yuanpei, the story of Hu Shi, the story of Yu Pingbo, the story of Lu Xun, the story of Chen Duxiu, the story of Wang Yuanfang, the story of Zhou Ruchang, etc., of which the stories of Cai Yuanpei, Hu Shi, Yu Pingbo and Zhou Ruchang are told most carefully, most emotionally and most devotedly. From the process of telling these stories, we can clearly see Miao Huaiming's awareness of academic history, which is indispensable in the process of constructing the history of red science in the new century of red studies.
Hu Shi sent a letter to Wang Yuan
The author believes that the construction of the history of red studies, the construction of the philology of the Red Chamber, and the construction of the discipline of red studies are the basic projects of red studies in the new century, and the intention or main purpose of the construction of red science history is to find a real and vivid tradition of learning for modern scholarship. It is safe to say that the true and vivid tradition of learning should first be found in the stories of influential scholars in red science.
A few more digressions: Remember that Miao Huaiming once promised to "talk about the Red Chamber with a big mouth", and this promise will inevitably cause some people to have misreading such as "bombastic talk" and "opening the river". In fact, the "big" of this "big mouth" is just the image of "pleasure", such as the pleasure of the good people of Shuipo Liangshan who "eat wine in a big bowl".
"The Red Chamber" is exactly the "Big Mouth Says the Red Chamber", that is, the popular reading of the Happy Red Chamber, and the opening chapter is the story of "Lafayette's Red Chamber Character Experience". Of course, if there is an opportunity to republish the revised version, the direct deletion of the chapter "Lafayette" will not affect the mass dissemination of "The Red Chamber". If you take "The First Man of Modern Red Studies: Wang Guowei and His" as the opening chapter, the intention of "the wind rises the Red Chamber" is not affected at all.
Cixi calligraphy
In November 2018, the author once said that "Say Big Mouth Says Dream of the Red Chamber", which is reproduced as follows:
Big mouth said red spirited,
Bertone is the most greedy.
Archery Holy Hand who is worthy of the task,
Idle leaning on the railing to look at the moon.
December 4, 2021
Pengcheng Locust Garden Book House