The Authentic Biography of Wu Zetian

Lin Yutang / 张振玉Hunan Literature and Art Publishing House · ChinaApr 2026

Rating 3.8
Word count
114K words
Chapters
47
ISBN
9787540477516

Tags

General Biography Historical ReappraisalPolitical AllegoryLegendary LivesRise and FallPower GameAntiheroComplex HumanityFemale Perspective

Summary

Wu Zetian lived to eighty-two, wielding power over China for half a century. Life was a game to her, and her desires were fiercer than those of ordinary people, so that scandal followed her without end; the game of contending for power and influence she played with relish, and what she produced resembled less the normal history of a woman's rule than a bizarre, fantastical farce out of a dream. She was determined to be the most powerful and greatest woman in all history. In the end she failed, but it was by no means her fault; among her Wu clan there was not one person with half her wisdom, half her character, half her political talent. We have every reason to look into that period of history, to see how she rose from a minor consort to become an empress...

Editor's review

Written in English by Lin Yutang, Lady Wu is a biographical study of a historical figure from a distinctive perspective. A master of modern Chinese literature, Lin Yutang turned his advantage as a bilingual writer to place China's only female emperor in a cross-cultural context, displaying both her cunning and statecraft as an Eastern politician and attempting to reveal to Western readers a complex, multifaceted imperial image. The book is not a work of strict academic scholarship but a historical narrative marked by strong literary coloring and a personal view of history. The Wu Zetian of these pages is a compound of ambition, intelligence, political skill and cruelty; the narrative conveys a certain wonder at this woman who broke through the constraints of her age to reach the pinnacle of power, yet cannot conceal the criticism and moral scrutiny of her methods inherent in the traditional historical view. The value of reading this book lies not only in understanding a murky chapter of court history but in observing how a scholar versed in both East and West uses his literary craft to 're-create' a highly controversial historical figure. The descriptions of court intrigue and the shifts of power carry great dramatic tension, and the social atmosphere of Tang times is sketched in as well. Readers should note that the book was written early, and some of its views and use of historical sources may bear the limitations of their time; as a classic biography of a historical figure, however, its literary value and narrative appeal remain outstanding.

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Reading tips

  1. It may be read in comparison with portrayals of Wu Zetian by contemporary writers such as Meng Man and Su Tong, to appreciate how different eras and genres interpret the same figure in diverse ways.
  2. Readers may note how Lin Yutang uses novelistic techniques to create historical scenes and dialogue, and appreciate the narrative craftsmanship of the literary artist.
  3. Reading alongside background material on Tang history will help toward a fuller understanding of the causes and consequences of the events described and of their historical context.

About the publisher

Hunan Literature and Art Publishing House China · Founded in 1985

Hunan Literature and Art Publishing House is a publisher known for its literary titles, with a catalogue spanning foreign literature, world classics, classical Chinese literature, essays and miscellaneous writings, and mystery and detective fiction. Judging from the more than 1,100 books in the database, the press publishes foreign classics such as Crime and Punishment, Snow Country, The Complete Sherlock Holmes and Letter from an Unknown Woman, as well as Chinese classical and modern literary works including Lu Xun's Wandering and A Madman's Diary and Wu Jingzi's The Scholars. In terms of translators and authors, translations by Cao Guowei and Tan Jinghua appear in its foreign literature titles, and the authors involved include Dostoevsky, Kawabata Yasunari, Conan Doyle and Zweig. Its publishing character lies in introducing Chinese and foreign literary classics side by side, balancing popular and serious works and attending to both readability and literary value. Public information is limited; the above is a brief overview based solely on the books in the database.

Contents

  1. 版权信息
  2. 第一章 唐邠王——一个见证人的自述
  3. 第二章 君子之泽，五世而斩
  4. 第三章 永远困扰当权者的接班人问题
  5. 第四章 乱伦，接近权力中心的第一步
  6. 第五章 为了对付那个貌美多姿的妃子
  7. 第六章 掐死亲生女儿的收获
  8. 第七章 向皇后进攻
  9. 第八章 元老重臣的抗议
  10. 第九章 开刀
  11. 第十章 终于登上皇后宝座
  12. 第十一章 皇帝探监事件
  13. 第十二章 《内轨要略》及宫中闹鬼
  14. 第十三章 大清洗
  15. 第十四章 还剩一个对手
  16. 第十五章 过一夫一妻生活的皇帝
  17. 第十六章 封禅大典
  18. 第十七章 弱不敌强，古今一理
  19. 第十八章 大典之后的阴影
  20. 第十九章 又是一桩疑案
  21. 第二十章 帝王之才
  22. 第二十一章 皇帝的孩子并非个个有福
  23. 第二十二章 还是接班人问题
  24. 第二十三章 高宗驾崩
  25. 第二十四章 中国的第一个女皇帝就这样登基
  26. 第二十五章 男妃冯小宝
  27. 第二十六章 徐敬业起兵与《讨武曌檄》
  28. 第二十七章 讨武兵败
  29. 第二十八章 检举箱的发明
  30. 第二十九章 冤案少不了酷吏和酷刑
  31. 第三十章 也有疾风劲草
  32. 第三十一章 公众舆论
  33. 第三十二章 人心惶惶
  34. 第三十三章 大屠杀
  35. 第三十四章 授图大典与禁止屠猪
  36. 第三十五章 请求改朝换代
  37. 第三十六章 请君入瓮种种
  38. 第三十七章 狄仁杰与魏元忠
  39. 第三十八章 仍然是接班人的麻烦
  40. 第三十九章 无可奈何的情人
  41. 第四十章 万人空巷的判决
  42. 第四十一章 用贤之患
  43. 第四十二章 两个男情妇
  44. 第四十三章 其实莫须有
  45. 第四十四章 不肯牺牲情郎
  46. 第四十五章 精彩的半小时政变
  47. 附录

FAQ

Is this book a strict work of historical scholarship? It is not a work of strict academic scholarship. It leans more toward a biographical study of a historical figure imbued with the author's strong personal views and literary coloring, incorporating Lin Yutang's understanding of history and his literary imagination.
As a male author, does Lin Yutang display gender bias in his portrayal of Wu Zetian? The portrayal inevitably reflects certain historical assumptions of its time (the mid-twentieth century) and the author's personal judgments. Readers will sense a complex mixture of attitudes: recognition of her political ability alongside the critical perspective of some traditional histories on her 'usurpation' and 'ruthlessness.' This is a view that needs to be understood in its historical context.
What are the features of this edition (Hunan Literature and Art Publishing House)? This is the Chinese translation (the original was written in English), published by Hunan Literature and Art Publishing House. As one of the common editions available in China, its translation strives to match Lin Yutang's elegant, flowing style and to be accessible to Chinese readers. Different readers may have different impressions of the specific translation quality and editorial details.

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About the author

Lin Yutang Author · Chinese · 1895–1976

Lin Yutang (1895–1976), a native of Longxi, Fujian, was a modern Chinese writer, scholar, and linguist. He graduated from St. John's University in Shanghai, later earned a master's degree from Harvard University and a doctorate from the University of Leipzig. He taught at Peking University and Xiamen University, and founded magazines such as Lunyu, Renjianshi, and Yuzhoufeng, promoting humorous and leisurely essays. After 1935 he lived in the United States, writing in English such works as My Country and My People, The Importance of Living, and Moment in Peking, introducing Chinese culture to Western readers and leaving a lasting influence on cross-cultural communication. His works span social and cultural commentary, biography, fiction, and essays, written with ease and verve, combining a scholar's insight with a literary sensibility. He settled in Taiwan in 1966 and died in Hong Kong in 1976.

张振玉 Author

Zhang Zhenyu is an author about whom relatively little biographical information is publicly available; there are no clear records of his birthplace, dates of birth and death, or educational background. Judging from the six works held in the collection, his writing focuses mainly on biography and cultural subjects. Representative titles include Biographies of Su Dongpo, The Zhenzhuan of Wu Zetian, The Moving Beiping, and Chinese Legends. Biographies of Su Dongpo appears more than once in the collection, suggesting that it has attracted considerable attention, while The Moving Beiping · New Knowledge Library indicates that some of his works were published in series form. Overall, Zhang Zhenyu's writing tends toward biography and historical-cultural narrative, and he often draws on figures and city life to present cultural landscapes. Because verifiable public information is limited, his specific experiences and creative career remain difficult to reconstruct fully, and readers can only come to know his writing and thematic interests through the works mentioned above.