Chapter 2 reissue preface

It was written by Mr. Dong Yuqing, signed "Zhuo Yingzi". It was published in the supplement "Yizhi Zong" of Tianjin "Yishi Bao" as early as 1920 and ended in 1932. It used political anecdotes from the late Qing Dynasty to the warlord period of the Republic of China as materials , written more vividly and voluminously, "Yi Shi Bao" has published separate volumes one after another, and it should be regarded as a rare work of writing novels based on modern historical stories. In 1923, when I was studying at school, I saw Tianjin "Yishibao" and liked to read its supplement "Yizhi Zong".What I remember most clearly is that when I was writing about Cixi's serious illness, I asked Li Lianying about Guangxu's condition. Li said that the emperor heard that Lafayette was seriously ill, and his face was happy.Cixi was furious at the time and said, I can't let him die behind me.Later, as expected, the two palaces died at the same time.This passage is very vividly written, so I am very interested in having a period.I was poor at the time and couldn't afford to subscribe to newspapers. I just took time to read them in the school library. After I left school, I didn't read any more.In 1928, I was introduced by my classmates to work as a reporter for Tianjin Yishibao.In the editorial department of the newspaper, I saw an old man, thin and hunchbacked, sitting at a desk, immersed in writing.Someone introduced that this is Mr. Dong, and Mr. Dong Yuqing is the Mr. Zhuo Yingzi who wrote it.I was only 22 years old at the time, and I felt honored to meet such a famous journalist in the moment, and I said some words of admiration.I didn't know how old Dong Yuqing was at that time, but he was hunched over, with two beards and gray hair, he was really an old man.At that time, he was in charge of editing the supplement "Yizhi Zong", and he had to write a short article every day. The column was "Overtones", which was written according to the political situation or social dynamics at that time.Its form is more than a hundred characters per article, with an ellipsis at the end, which means that the meaning is still unfinished.It is not easy to write an article every day, and some articles are also very meaningful.In addition to writing these small essays, he still has to write.In addition, a series of tasks such as publishing the manuscript, organizing the layout, and viewing the sample must also be done.He has been writing articles on red grid paper with a brush the size of a thumb's belly. He writes straight, without modification, and the font is clear and neat.His family was in the British Concession, and he went to work at 2:00 pm every day. He took a tram to the East Station, and then walked to the newspaper office.At that time, the newspaper office was concerned about Xiaoma Road in the concession, which was about half a mile.Dong Yuqing went to work rain or shine, sat down after work and finished the work before getting up and leaving the company.For a while, I edited news from all over the world, and the hours were the same as his working hours, so I had the opportunity to chat with him.

I know from the conversation that he had a lot of contacts in Beijing when he was young, and he knew many things.It turned out that he was a Manchu, a native of Tongxian County, Beijing. He might have passed the exam when he was young. He was familiar with the social situation when Yuan Shikai was president in the early Republic of China, and he was also very familiar with the activities of members of Congress. But I didn't ask him what kind of work he had done. Pass.At that time, Beikun was performing in Tianjin, and he talked endlessly about the Rongqing Club. He was especially familiar with actors of the Rong generation, such as Chen Ronghui and Zhang Rongxiu, who he admired.He also praised Han Shichang and Bai Yunsheng, and especially made more detailed comments on Bai Yutian and Wang Yiyou.As for Beijing opera, he must be talking about Tan Jiaotian, Yang Houzi, Lu Sanbao, etc. It seems that he was a frequent operagoer when he was young.It's a pity that I was not very interested in opera at the time, and I didn't write down his comments. It's a pity now that I think about it.Dong Yuqing is a Catholic and has a lot of knowledge about religion.In short, this person seems to be self-taught by Bowen.

After the "September 18th" incident, the supplement of Tianjin "Yishibao" was changed to "Yulin", which was edited by Comrade Ma Yanxiang, and I was the editor after Ma left the company.Dong Yuqing published another edition, on the back of the "Yu Lin" edition, called "Shuo Yuan", which only published novels, and it was also moved to this edition, and Dong Yuqing wrote it correctly every day.Later, when it was over, Dong rewrote the novel "Daming Lake", using Jinan as the background of the novel.He also collected some historical stories with the significance of the Anti-Japanese War and published them in "Shuo Yuan". After 1935, he was responsible for checking the sample of the whole newspaper until July 28, 1937, when the Japanese invaded and occupied Tianjin.Since then, I have never seen him again. (When he was looking at the sample, he had to work at night. I worked on the supplement in the afternoon, and we seldom saw each other.) After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, I didn’t know his whereabouts. Later, I heard from friends that he had passed away. When did he die, I don't know.It is estimated that his age may be over seventy.

Tianjin Yishibao is a newspaper funded by Catholics.Not long after it was published, it coincided with the "May 4th" movement.During this movement, the newspaper once sympathized with the students and was well received by the society.Comrade Zhou Enlai wrote a long overseas newsletter for it in France.The newspaper sold well, becoming the first newspaper in Tianjin.Dong Yuqing was a literati with a relatively high level of education among Catholics. He was omnipotent in the newspaper office from writing editorials to supplements and writing novels. characters, and what he wrote is the work of his life.From today's point of view, although what is described in the book is not all historical facts, and the views are not correct, but according to him, many things are what he has heard and seen.When I was in contact with him, when he talked about the past, he never tires of detailing it, but he didn’t just talk about it endlessly. Judging from the historical novels he wrote, I’m afraid they were all rumors at the time. Of course, it’s allowed to use rumors when writing novels. .Moreover, there will inevitably be some truth in the rumors.Dong Yuqing's writing style is simple, not gorgeous, and he has written more than a thousand words a day for nearly 20 years, with consistent style, which is impossible.I haven't read this great work carefully from beginning to end. Based on my personal impression, the section on the Qing palace is quite vivid. Perhaps because he is a Manchu, he may have heard more about the situation in the Qing court.

Dong's younger brother, Yinhu, is also a novelist.He once published the satirical novel "Shape-changing Strange Talk" in "Puzzle Zong", which exposed and satirized the political inside story at that time, which was quite acrimonious.A booklet has not been published.Dong Yuqing has worked in the Tianjin press for decades, and has written voluminous novels and numerous short articles.He has been the editor of the supplement of Tianjin Yishibao for a long time, and he can be regarded as the elder of the news circle in Tianjin and should also be regarded as a novelist.But I never heard him flaunt himself.So far, some people know that there is "Zhuo Yingzi", but not Dong Yuqing.However, after all, it is a real shot of a major work, which contains some historical value of the material.Mr. Dong Yuqing left valuable things during his lifetime. Even though he did not become a "famous reporter" or "big writer" during his lifetime, someone will eventually discover his works and publish them, which also proves that history is fair!