Chapter 24 "Shadow of Dust" epigraph

For myself, I feel that China is now entering a great era.But the so-called greatness does not necessarily mean that one can live from it, but can also die from it. Many devotees of love have thus died.First of all, playing the intended and unexpected blood game, with pleasure and satisfaction, as well as just being beautiful and lively, is given to those who are in the game and watching; but at the same time, it also puts a heavy pressure on some people. When this pressure is removed, there is either death or life.This is the big time. See love in the opposite sex, see heaven in lilies, see money worship in the soul of an old cinder-scavenger woman (2), the world is now often governed by machine gun-backed benevolence, hear this here and now News, I am really comfortable physically and mentally, like drinking good wine.However, what "Shadow of Dust" (3) brings is heavy pressure.

Today's literature and art often make people uncomfortable, and there is no way to do it.Otherwise, we have no choice but to escape from literature and art, or to deduce life from literature and art. Who is more benevolent and righteous, and who is more vivid for the "ugliness" of the three bloods? (4) I saw a piece of "Shadow of Dust", and its joy and pressure were left on all kinds of people. However, in the "Shadow of Dust" at the end, I was given another sip of good wine. He left Xiaobao behind and didn't tell us whether he had to die or live. (5) The author does not want to put us under too much pressure.But this is good, because I think China is now entering a great era.

On December 7, 1927, Lu Xun recorded it in Shanghai. ---------------------------------- (1) This article was originally printed in the book "Dust Shadow" published by Shanghai Kaiming Bookstore in December 1927, entitled "Preface to "Dust Shadow", and later published in January 1928 One day, the 297th issue of Shanghai "Literature Weekly". (2) Seeing money worship in the soul of the old woman who picked up cinders This is in response to Hu Shi's article "advocating money worship".The article said: "Because Americans worship Dala ("Dala" is a transliteration of the English dollar, meaning "yuan", and later generally refers to money), they have achieved the ideal state of "not closing the door at night, not picking up lost things on the road". ... We are not worthy of cursing people and worshiping Da La; please look back and see what we worship. An old woman, carrying a bamboo basket and holding an iron pole, went to the alley every day to pick up garbage and search for garbage in the garbage dump. One and a half unburnt briquettes, one inch and two inches of rags that are messy and dirty. What do these people worship! Watch along with Record 3")

(3) The novella "Shadow of Dust", written by Li Jinming.It describes the situation in a small county in the south before and after Chiang Kai-shek's Kuomintang betrayed the revolution in 1927.During the Great Revolution, this small county established the "County Executive Committee" and "Peasant Workers' Pickets" to fight against the landlords and landlords; Attacked and massacred many revolutionaries and workers and peasants. (4) There is such a description in "Shadow of Dust": The big local tyrant Liu Baisui was arrested, and the masses demanded that he be executed.His son bribed Han Bingyou, an old bureaucrat who had sneaked into the county party committee as a member, with thousands of yuan for help.After accepting bribes, Han had a banquet to discuss with the party, saying that "others are filial piety, I am benevolence and righteousness", and finally agreed to release Liu Baisui. "Three bloods" is the blood spattered by Xiong Lvtang, the chairman of the county executive committee and the revolutionary Xiong Lvtang, the main character in the book, when he was beheaded after the reversal of the current situation; "ugly" is the comment of bystanders.

(5) The last chapter of "Shadow of Dust" describes that when Xiong Lutang was killed, his son Xiaobao was coming out of kindergarten, singing the song "Sweeping down the great powers and eradicating warlords", but it did not describe what happened afterwards.