Ten Complete Blessings

Name: Ten Complete Blessings
ISBN: 9787301286838

AnonymousAug 2025

3.5

Word count: 12K words
Chapters: 44
ISBN: 9787301286838

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Summary

In 2005 Peking University Library acquired a large batch of opera scripts, originally the family collection of the renowned opera master Cheng Yanqiu, each bearing the seal "Yushuang Yi Cang Qu" ("Yushuang" being Cheng Yanqiu's courtesy name). These scripts span a long period, from the Shunzhi era of the Qing dynasty to the early Republic, and are all actual performance scripts of their time, including not only lyrics and spoken parts but in some cases gongche notation as well. Shiquan Fu is one of this series. What distinguishes Shiquan Fu from other opera scripts that follow tradition is that it contains a relatively large number of colloquial Beijing vocabulary items and grammatical phenomena, which is of positive value for the study of both the history of Chinese and early Beijing dialect. This book is a facsimile reprint of the "Yushuang Yi Cang Qu" copy held by Peking University Library, a manuscript copied by the Qing-dynasty figure Chen Jinque; the content is complete and the writing clear. A reading guide precedes the facsimile to help readers understand the book's background, documentary sources, and overall appearance.

Editor's review

Shiquan Fu is a rare facsimile edition of a Qing dynasty opera manuscript from the 'Yushuangyi' collection once owned by the Cheng Yanqiu family and later acquired and published by the Peking University Library. Its greatest value lies in the fact that it is not closet literature but an actual performance script from the Qing, preserving lyrics, spoken dialogue and even gongche notation, allowing readers to glimpse the true face of the contemporary stage. Notably, the play contains many colloquial Beijing words and grammatical features, giving it important corpus value for the history of Chinese and the study of early Beijing dialect. A guide precedes the facsimile to help readers understand the source and background of the document. Overall, this is a scholarly facsimile of significance in opera bibliography, linguistics and textual scholarship, suited to readers interested in Qing opera, early modern Chinese or rare book editions. Some grounding in opera or Chinese language history is needed to fully appreciate its scholarly value.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Scholars and graduate students in Chinese language history or early modern Chinese
Specialists studying Qing opera performance forms and script editions
Collectors and researchers interested in the Cheng Yanqiu collection and rare book facsimiles
Enthusiasts with some opera knowledge wishing to understand colloquial Beijing speech in the Qing

Not a good fit for

General literary readers seeking popular stories or modern opera adaptations
Primary and secondary students lacking classical Chinese or opera background who would find the facsimile manuscript hard to understand
Language learners looking for Chinese writing practice or practical textbooks

Reading tips

Read the introductory guide before the facsimile to learn about the Cheng Yanqiu family collection, the manuscript's provenance, and its documentary value, then proceed to the main text.
While reading, compare the lyrics and spoken parts with the gongche notation, noting colloquial Beijing vocabulary and grammatical phenomena.
If engaged in linguistic research, excerpt examples of colloquial words and compare them with contemporary Beijing-dialect sources, building topical notes.
Readers without knowledge of opera should first consult basic information on Qing opera conventions and gongche notation, then study the book page by page.

版权信息
總序
「早期北京話珍稀文獻集成」序
導讀
海屋添籌
巵言
叱僧
擊牌
遣拐
留愛
惻救
破圍
囑騙
旁惜
困城
邪約
情關
廟閧
頒詔
預醋逐奴
攬聘
穽嬰
虛媒
惡遇
大戰
互疑
救玉犬保
奇越巧誤
送辱
毒拐看會
收怪
連詫
暗
渡河
覿罵
覿罵後齣
幻救
假歸
淫迯
僞停
察情閧觀
釋嬰
恤冤剖賺
福圓

FAQ

Is this book a regular typeset edition or a facsimile?

This book is a facsimile of the "Yushuang Yi Cang Qu" copy held by Peking University Library; the base text is a manuscript copied by the Qing-dynasty figure Chen Jinque, complete in content and clear in writing, with an introductory guide added before the facsimile to help readers understand its background and documentary sources.

Can someone without knowledge of opera read this book?

It can be browsed, but fully understanding its value requires some knowledge of opera. The book contains lyrics, spoken parts, and some gongche notation, and is a facsimile manuscript; readers are advised to first acquire basic knowledge of Qing opera conventions and gongche notation, then read alongside the guide.

What special value does this book have for linguistic research?

Shiquan Fu contains a relatively large number of colloquial Beijing vocabulary items and grammatical phenomena; unlike other opera scripts that follow tradition, it has positive corpus value for the study of the history of Chinese and early Beijing dialect, and can be used by researchers of modern Chinese for collection and analysis.

Comments

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About the author

Anonymous Author

Anonymous is not a real personal name but a general Chinese designation for authors whose names are unknown, lost, or unsigned. Neither nationality nor dates of birth and death can be verified, and available public information is limited, so the works attributed to this name are the only basis for description. The collection holds 2,078 works under Anonymous, spanning medicine, classics, historical readings, ancient poetry, classical literature, and philosophy. Representative works include The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon: Lingshu, Mencius, The Book of Documents, Nineteen Old Poems, Complete Song Ci, and The Peacock Flies Southeast. Most of these works took shape through long transmission and editing, emerging either from collective folk creation or from authors whose names were lost over time. In ancient China, the Book of Songs, the Great Learning, and many popular storybooks and plays were signed Anonymous because their authors could not be traced. Anonymous works cross the classics, histories, philosophical writings, medical texts, and poetry; their subjects are broad, and their styles vary from archaic simplicity to clear naturalness, making them important and influential sources for understanding ancient Chinese thought, medicine, and literature.