Yu Jiao

Yu Jiao (born 1751), courtesy name Qingyuan and styled Mengchang, was a native of Shanyin in Zhejiang (present-day Shaoxing) and a mid-Qing prose writer and painter. His official career was beset with setbacks; for long periods he served as a private secretary and minor clerk, traveling as far north as Zhili and south to Guangdong and Guangxi, which gave him broad experience and acquaintances. His ten-volume Mengchang Zazhu records much that he witnessed personally, covering folk customs, painting history, and local historical events, and possesses both literary and historical value. His writings are diverse in subject: works such as Linqing Kou Lue recount contemporary events, while biographies like The Flower-Selling Girl of Fengtai, Yu'er Zhuan, and Xiake Zhuan, together with note collections such as Chunming Congshuo, are plain in style and documentary in spirit. Thirty-nine of his works are held in the library, commonly classified under classic works, folk literature, Eastern philosophy, and literary appreciation. Public information on the details of his life is limited, and scholarship relies largely on his own writings.