Living in Peace

Name: Living in Peace
ISBN: 9787541168383

凸凹Sichuan Literature and Art Publishing House · ChinaSep 2026

3.8

Word count: 196K words
Chapters: 7
ISBN: 9787541168383

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Summary

This is a realist novel whose chapters were first published in various literary journals. Set against China's rapid urbanization and profound social transformation, it takes the construction and daily life of the Tianzhu Qingcheng villa community as its case study. Through the eyes of homeowner Xiao Buxi, it employs a branching structure to portray the tangled interests, conflicts, and shared fates of homeowners, property management, and the community.

The protagonist, Xiao Buxi, is a newspaper supplement editor and deputy director of the culture desk, a middle-class family man. To realize his literati's "villa dream" and driven by a rat infestation, Xiao Buxi and his wife Qiaolan empty their savings to buy a villa in the Tianzhu Qingcheng community at the foot of Qingcheng Mountain.

He thinks his dream has finally come true, only to face a string of troubles that plunge him into repeated depression: illegal renovations by villa owners, feng shui alterations he cannot back out of, chaotic neighbor relations, and the panic stirred by a "glass killer."

The novel gradually unfolds these villa-centered stories. Facing a thicket of disorder, it explores the cultural trial and error and human博弈 across law and emotion, public and private, good and evil, beauty and ugliness, telling a Chinese story about "living" and "housing" in a light, witty language.

Editor's review

Set against China's rapid urbanization and profound social transformation, An Sheng takes the construction and daily life of the Tianzhu Qingcheng villa compound as its case study. Told from the perspective of homeowner Xiao Buxi, it uses a branch-like structure to map the tangled interests, conflicts, and shared fates of homeowners, property management, and the community. Xiao Buxi is the deputy editor of a newspaper's literary supplement and deputy director of its culture desk, a middle-class family man who, to fulfill a literati's "villa dream" and pressed by a rat infestation, empties his savings with his wife Qiaolan to buy a house. He thinks the dream has come true, only to run into one trouble after another: illegal additions, feng shui renovations, neighbor disputes, a glass killer, and more. The book's strength lies in refusing to reduce these conflicts to a simple good-versus-evil opposition. Through cultural trial and error and human nature's contest across law and feeling, public and private, good and evil, beauty and ugliness, it tells the Chinese story of "living" and "housing" with easy humor and no loss of edge. The branch-like structure reweaves chapters that were once published independently into a net, so readers can start from Xiao Buxi's situation and gradually see the full ecology of the community. It suits readers concerned with urban life, community governance, and middle-class anxiety for leisurely reading, and also writers observing how a realist novel handles realistic material with humorous strokes.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers of realist fiction interested in urbanization and community life
Readers curious about real-world issues such as property management, homeowners, and neighbor relations
Chinese-fiction fans who enjoy humorous language and depictions of middle-class life
Writers studying the structure and subject matter of contemporary realist novels

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting tense suspense or strongly dramatic conflict
Readers with no interest in housing or community governance
Readers who prefer purely experimental literary forms and reject realist material

Reading tips

Start with Xiao Buxi's homeowner perspective, then follow the branch-like structure to sort out each conflict line.
Watch the contest between law and feeling, public and private, and note how the author refuses to take simple sides.
Read each chapter as a relatively independent story, then look back at how they weave into the full community picture.
Compare it with your own living experience to better grasp the tension between property management and homeowners.

About the publisher

Sichuan Literature and Art Publishing House China · Founded in 1984

Sichuan Literature and Art Publishing House is a professional literary and art publishing institution. It mainly publishes books on contemporary and modern literature, foreign literature, poetry and prose, music and art, and literary theory. Judging from the books in the database, the house places considerable emphasis on classic works and foreign literature. Representative titles include Lu Xun's Call to Arms and Dawn Blossoms Plucked at Dusk, Lao She's Camel Xiangzi, Xiao Hong's The Story of Hulan River, J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, William Shakespeare's Hamlet, and Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha. Its translator resources include Deng Jiawan, Shi Zhongge, Du Yunci, and Zhu Shenghao. Common categories include social fiction, classic works, foreign literature, world classics, literary appreciation, and classical poetry, reflecting a publishing profile that balances Chinese and foreign literary classics with literary appreciation.

版权信息
一、萧不系的别墅梦
二、多米诺骨牌
三、静水深处的疾风
四、暗地里的阳光
五、花园分岔的小径
主要人物表

FAQ

Is this novel mainly a story about buying a house?

Buying the house is the starting point, not the whole. After Xiao Buxi empties his savings to fulfill his villa dream, the novel shifts its focus to a series of community troubles—illegal additions, feng shui renovations, neighbor disputes, a glass killer—presenting the tangled interests and shared fates of homeowners, property management, and the community. It is a Chinese story about "living" and "housing."

Isn't the branch-like structure confusing to read?

The chapters were originally published independently in literary journals and each has a relatively complete sense of section. The branch-like structure means multiple conflict lines extend from Xiao Buxi's main trunk perspective; readers can follow the trunk first and then gradually sort out the branches, without needing to remember every thread at once.

Is the language heavy or light?

The book uses light, humorous language to tell serious realist material. When it touches on the contest between law and feeling, public and private, good and evil, it does not preach; instead it presents cultural trial and error and human nature's contest with humorous strokes, giving the reading a realist edge along with plenty of everyday humor.

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About the author

凸凹 Author

Tuo Ao is an author about whom limited public information is available, with two works currently held in the collection. Judging from the representative titles Ansheng and Tangtang Shui Ming: Li Bing, the Governor of Qin's Shu Commandery, his writing spans social fiction and a continental-themed narrative with otherworldly elements, showing an exploration that moves between realistic concern and imaginative storytelling. He attends to the ups and downs of characters' fates in specific circumstances, and through the figure of the water-management official drawn from history and legend, he writes about the tensions between humanity and nature, and between individuals and institutions. Since information such as birth and death dates, nationality, and educational background remains unconfirmed, no inferences are made here about his personal life; based on the available titles alone, Tuo Ao's work displays a broad range of subjects and a tendency to combine social writing with imaginative narrative. Though few in number, his works offer readers different entry points for observing reality and history.