Chapter 17 Chapter 16 "Newspeak Overseas"——Edo Novels Describing the Opium War

China and Japan are geographically close and have similar customs. The people of the two countries care about each other and have a deep friendship. As a result, events in China are often reflected in Japanese literature and historical works. This is a historic event in the history of Sino-Japanese cultural exchanges. Interesting phenomenon. In the 1840s, the Opium War in China became a popular subject in Japanese folk novels at the end of the Edo period. This is a typical example. In 1840, Britain launched the Opium War of aggression against China. The news spread to Japan through Chinese traders in Nagasaki, Japan.The Tokugawa shogunate stipulated that the owners of Chinese merchant ships entering the port in Nagasaki must report the situation in China to Nagasaki, who is in charge of foreign trade affairs.This kind of report is called Tangrenfeng storytelling, also known as Qingshangkoudan.Because the Japanese called opium opium, this kind of information about China’s Opium War is collectively called “opium storytelling”.There are more than a dozen opium-style storytelling books that can be seen in various historical books, which report in detail the causes, process and results of the Opium War.Since the main base of Chinese trading ships to Japan at that time was Zhapu, Zhejiang, the report on the war along the coast of Zhejiang was particularly detailed.In addition, the Chinese books that recorded the Opium War brought by Chinese merchant ships, such as "Records of Barbarian Invasions", "British Invasion Stories", "Zhapu Jiyong" and other books, were also a source for the Japanese to obtain information about the Opium War.

When the news of China's Opium War reached Japan, Japanese writers and scholars immediately compiled many works describing the Opium War based on these materials, and the response was astonishing.A few representative novels are introduced below. There is a novel called "Overseas News Talk", which consists of five volumes and was published in 1849 (the second year of Kayong in Japan).The author's signature is Fengjiang Diaoren, which is Lingtian Fengjiang's pen name.Lingtian Fengjiang, named Ugoro and styled Zide, was a vassal of the Tango Tanabe domain. He was knowledgeable and had studied Sinology, Chinese poetry and Lanxue.In his early years, he paid attention to the art of war and was interested in coastal defense. At the age of 34, shocked and stimulated by the Opium War in China, he wrote the book Overseas Newstalk.In his preface to the book, he pointed out the purpose of writing this book:

The purpose is for the Japanese government and people to learn from the experience and lessons of China's Opium War, strengthen coastal defense, and defend against foreign aggression.According to the examples in the book, the author mainly refers to books such as Records of Barbarian Invasions, Brief History of British Invasions, Zhapu Jiyong, and St. Wu Ji when writing this book.In order to suit the tastes of general Japanese samurai and common people readers, the style of the popular military talk books in Japan at that time, that is, chapter novels describing wars, was adopted, and the language was also as easy to understand as possible.

"Overseas Newspeak" has "A Brief History of England" at the beginning of the volume, which introduces the history, geography and current situation of Britain.Secondly, there is "Kun Yu Lue Tu", which is a map of the world.There is also a "Schematic Map of the Coastal Areas of the Qing Dynasty", and the Chinese prefectures and counties that the British army invaded are marked in red.In addition, there are maps of British generals in uniform, maps of British warships, and maps of steamships.The book is accompanied by illustrations on topics such as the sale of cigarettes in Humen, the bloody battle in Dinghai, the death of Chen Huacheng in battle, and the negotiation of peace in Nanjing.The first volume of the main text begins with "The Stories of Opium and Poison Attached to Huang Juezi's Letter", and the last volume five ends with "The Affair of the Two Armies and the Entries of the Treaty of Peace".It is worth noting that the book describes in detail Lin Zexu's smoking ban in Guangdong and the scenes of the anti-Japanese war in Guangdong, Dinghai, Zhenhai, Zhapu, Wusong, Zhenjiang and other places.In particular, Chen Huacheng, the admiral and patriotic veteran who defended Wusongkou, was praised as "the grass that knows the strength of frost".The author describes that Chen Huacheng took the lead, fought bloody battles in the hail of bullets, and finally died a heroic sacrifice for the country, with "the complexion as when he was alive".

"Overseas News Talk", a work describing China's Opium War, was accused by the shogunate of "heretical nonsense" because it had not been submitted to the official review and approval before publication, and the book was ordered to be destroyed and listed as a banned book.The author Minato Fue was also persecuted and sentenced to imprisonment for two years. After his release from prison, he was also banned from living in Edo, Kyoto, and Osaka for three years.Even the artist who illustrated the book was implicated and died in prison after being arrested.However, because the book "Overseas News" was very popular with readers, it was secretly reprinted and sold by Ubingwei, Xiong Wulang and others in the second year.

Another novel describing the Opium War is called "Overseas Newspeak Supplements", which, as the name suggests, complements "Overseas Newspeak".It was also published in 1849, and the author signed it as Cai Weng, but his real name is unknown.This book is also in five volumes. Compared with "Overseas News", it has added more than 90 villages in Guangdong who rose up in anger (that is, the struggle against the British in Sanyuanli), Dahong'a Taiwan's anti-British and other contents, and also included Sanyuanli. The people's anti-British post.What's interesting is that the book also greatly exaggerates the capture of the daughter of the British king that was misrepresented in the opium-style storytelling. In December 1840, Shen Yungu, the owner of the Chinese merchant ship, and others reported the battle situation along the coast of Zhejiang. The rumor that Yuyao soldiers and civilians captured the British king and three princesses was purely misinformation. Noble, wife of the captain of the ship Kite.Rumors have exaggerated her as the daughter or sister of the King of England.However, Japanese writers are very interested in this misrepresentation and make a big fuss in various novels. The author of "Overseas Newspeak Supplements" wrote: There is a female general in the British army who is extremely brave, "God is ever-changing, as light as a butterfly chasing a flower, and the wind blows a red leaf."Later, when she was captured in Yuyao County, it was discovered that she was actually the third princess of the old British king and the younger sister of the present Queen of England.

This story also appears in other Japanese novels based on the Opium Wars."Overseas Yuhua" written by a drunken dream idiot, also in five volumes, was published in 1851. In 1855, it was reprinted with illustrations, renamed "Overseas Records", and published by Xingyutang.The book further exaggerates the British female general as the commander-in-chief of the British army.She claimed, "I am A Dai, the second daughter of the English Emperor of the Atlantic Ocean, and this time I was ordered to attack the crimes committed by the Cantonese." The plot became more and more bizarre. Amnesty to return home.At the end, the British "thanks to Emperor Daoguang, wishing to be a vassal state of the Qing Dynasty forever, paying tribute every year, promoting the prestige of the Han and soil, and wishing the Qing Emperor a long live forever!" The author actually ignored the historical facts and fabricated an ending in which Britain finally succumbed to China .This is probably due to the desire of Japanese literati to "repel the barbarians", and cater to the shogunate's policy of locking up the country and the psychology of readers.That's why Dongye Chushi said in the preface of "Overseas Records": "Today's reading is a book, the most satisfying."

Another novel called "Qing (Kouying) Modern Times", published in 1850, written by Hayano Megumi, is also five volumes.This book begins with Huang Juezi's proposal to ban smoking before the war, and ends with Huang Juezi's discussion of national interests after the war.This book says that the so-called Ying Wangmei was captured by Chen Huacheng, a veteran guarding Wusongkou, and sent troops to escort her to Shanghai and imprison her. These Japanese novels at the end of the Edo period made Japanese samurai and people widely understand the Opium War that took place in China, and were inspired and learned lessons from it, which promoted the founding and restoration of Japan.Most of these works were written and published within a few years after the war, which also reflected the Japanese’s concern and quick response to China’s Opium War at that time, and at the same time explained how great the impact and influence the Opium War had on Japan.