Alliance Mountain

Name: Alliance Mountain
ISBN: 9787555916529

赵清川Henan Literature and Art Publishing House · ChinaMay 2024

2.7

Word count: 134K words
Chapters: 70
ISBN: 9787555916529

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Summary

Drawing on folk tales passed down across the Muye plain, the author reexamines this period of history from a fresh perspective and, consulting historical records, reimagines its history and figures. The result is a cast of vividly drawn characters and a story that rises and falls with compelling momentum.

Editor's review

Tongmeng Mountain is a novel by Zhao Qingchuan set against the historical backdrop of King Wu's campaign against the Shang. Its core is not a simple retelling of that well-known history but a spotlight on a unique space obscured by grand narrative—Tongmeng Mountain—and the eight hundred feudal lords who gathered there. Grounded in solid historical sources and complemented by reasonable literary imagination, the author seeks to reconstruct the fateful oath-taking on the eve of the Battle of Muye. The book's value lies in its shift of perspective: from praise of emperors and generals to a deep exploration of collective will and contingency in the historical process. Zhao Qingchuan's writing is delicate and charged with tension; he depicts not only the grimness of arms and armor but also the complex mindsets and fateful choices of figures from different camps and classes caught in the tide of history, giving that distant past vivid texture and human warmth. For lovers of historical fiction, this is a worthwhile attempt to break out of conventional narrative frameworks; for general readers, it is an immersive journey into a pivotal moment of history.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in Shang and Zhou history who wish to understand the causes and consequences of the Battle of Muye
Literature lovers who enjoy exploring character fates and human depth against a grand historical backdrop
Readers who appreciate works with solid writing and steady narration that combine historical sensibility with literary quality
Readers curious about ancient political and cultural forms such as alliances and oath-taking

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking fast-paced, plot-driven web-fiction-style escapist reads
Readers hoping for rigorous academic verification or purely historical research

Reading tips

While reading, consult a map to understand the geographical locations of Tongmeng Mountain (present-day Huojia, Henan) and Muye, enhancing spatial immersion
Do not rush through the plot; savor the author's elaboration of characters' psychology and the atmosphere of the era
After finishing the novel, if interested, compare related historical sources such as the Records of the Grand Historian to appreciate the tension and interest between literary creation and historical record

About the publisher

Henan Literature and Art Publishing House China · Founded in 1996

Founded in 1996, Henan Literature and Art Publishing House mainly publishes books on literature and art, social sciences and broadly cultural subjects, and also edits and publishes the journal Celebrity Biography, gradually forming a publishing style characterized by full-length historical novels and biographical literature. Judging from the 269 titles in the database, its publishing scope also covers mystery and detective fiction, foreign literature, classic works and world classics. Representative books include Ellery Queen's four tragedies, Slaughterhouse-Five, Blindness, The Siege of Lisbon, The History of the Siege of Lisbon, the ten-volume Collected Works of Wang Zengqi, Old Tales Retold and the two-volume Classic Short Stories of Stanisław Lem, the God of Science Fiction. In terms of authors, it includes foreign masters such as Kurt Vonnegut, José Saramago and Ellery Queen, as well as translators such as Yang Xi, Yu Jianhua and Fan Weixin.

版权信息
作者简介
序
说明
楔子
1.蚂蚁打仗
2.画地为牢
3.姜子牙给妲己起名字
4.姜子牙直钩钓鱼
5.姜子牙在妲己心里种了一只兔子
6.大树上的“同盟山”
7.帝辛要打有苏国
8.姬昌联络诸侯
9.帝辛来到同盟山
10.帝辛灭有苏国
11.妲己抹脖子
12.狐狸皮
13.妲己苏醒
14.螳螂，还是螳螂
15.帝辛与妲己
16.比干初说狐狸精
17.姬昌出访诸侯国
18.比干再说狐狸精
19.比干被抄家
20.借狐狸精一事铲除异己
21.超越时空的心灵感应
22.尤浑造空桶
23.姬昌被抓
24.姬昌的舌头留在比干的嘴巴里
25.姬昌感叹比干是忠臣
26.硬骨头
27.姜子牙预测姬昌遇难
28.掩盖真相的葬礼
29.狐狸精再害人
30.姬昌梦授比干
31.瘟疫
32.恶来追杀东夷兵
33.帝辛被抓
34.杀妲己
35.恶来救驾
36.帝辛听取比干造反的汇报
37.竖立在天空下的炮烙
38.比干剖心
39.帝辛梦到妲己变狐狸
40.姜子牙编童谣
41.帝辛拟打东夷国
42.孟津观兵
43.帝辛梦到比干
44.夷纣王
45.人造同盟山
46.盟誓
47.修兵勒武
48.季节谏姬发
49.牧野之战
50.姜子牙逮老鼠
51.连环计落空
52.火猪烧战象
53.比箭
54.胶鬲当兵
55.听懂了神仙的声音
56.鹿台自焚
57.雷震子戏帝辛
58.杀妲己
59.姬发PK帝辛
60.两个“孤”
61.文王冢
62.修冢封神
63.妲己看着自己被杀
64.一声叹息
跋

FAQ

Is this book strictly historical nonfiction?

This is a historical novel set against the background of the Mengjin Assembly (focused on Tongmeng Mountain in the novel) before King Wu's campaign against the Shang. While respecting basic historical facts and the era's context, the author engages in extensive character development, detail filling, and literary imagination, aiming to artistically recreate the historical atmosphere and human conflict rather than to offer academic verification or historical nonfiction.

Can I understand it without having read works like Investiture of the Gods?

Absolutely. Although the book draws on the same historical period, its narrative angle and style are entirely different from mythological novels such as Investiture of the Gods. It leans toward realistic historical narrative based on human nature and political logic, and requires no mythological background knowledge for smooth reading; the author explains necessary historical context within the text.

Has author Zhao Qingchuan written other works?

Zhao Qingchuan is a relatively low-profile writer, and publicly available information shows few works. Tongmeng Mountain is his major full-length historical novel. His writing style emphasizes a combination of historical gravitas and literary quality, which is concentratedly reflected in this work.

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About the author

赵清川 Author

Zhao Qingchuan is represented in the Chinese book records by a single work, the social novel Tongmeng Mountain. Beyond this, public information about the author is limited: his nationality, dates of birth and death, education, and writing career cannot be verified at present. Judging only from the available bibliographic data, Tongmeng Mountain is classified as a social novel, which suggests that it draws on social reality and focuses on relationships between individuals and between people and their communities, as well as on the conflicts and choices that arise in real-life situations. Works of this kind tend to rely less on sensational plotting than on close observation of everyday details and an understanding of the predicaments of their characters. With only one work currently recorded, it is difficult to summarize the author's overall creative development or stylistic evolution; his thematic preferences, narrative methods, and literary influence will require further material before they can be assessed.