Lost City
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Summary
Standing Committee member Lu Leshan dies suddenly in a fall from a building. Suspicions arise on all sides, yet the death is ultimately ruled a suicide caused by severe depression. Du Huazhang, a close personal friend of Lu, takes over his post and, deliberately or not, gradually approaches the truth—only to realize that he too is in danger. Du Huazhang, deputy director of the municipal policy research office, is assigned to Lost City, where he oversees propaganda and tourism. Pursuing a strategy of strengthening the county through tourism, this man from a scholarly family and deeply influenced by Daoist thought seeks to preserve the old town's cultural ecology from the perspective of sustainable development. Though he wins the support of far-sighted figures in both official and popular circles, he repeatedly encounters opposition from interest groups on both sides. In the process, he and Lu Leshan—the power-holder in charge of finance, urban construction, and other areas, and a man deeply influenced by Confucian thought—go through a series of adjustments before finally cooperating in earnest for the sound development of the old town, until Lu Leshan's mysterious death, after which Du passively succeeds to Lu's post amid the maneuvering of various political factions.
Editor's review
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Readers interested in grassroots political culture and county-level governance, who can observe from both official and popular angles
- Readers concerned with ancient-town preservation and sustainable development, who will find the tension between cultural ecology and interest bargaining
- Readers of realist fiction who like a case as an entry point but really want characters and institutional relations
- Readers curious about how Confucian and Daoist thought manifests in contemporary political figures
Not a good fit for
- Readers expecting pure suspense or detective fiction with a rapid case resolution—the book's focus is political culture and interpersonal adjustment
- Readers uninterested in officialdom themes and preferring intimate emotional narratives may find it hard to enter
- Readers hoping for clear good-versus-evil divisions and a brisk ending—the character relations here are more complex and ambiguous
Reading tips
- First sort out the main thread of Lu Leshan's fall and Du Huazhang's succession, then review the positions of all parties in the ancient-town tourism strategy.
- While reading, note Du Huazhang's Daoist leanings and Lu Leshan's Confucian leanings; their adjustment process is key to understanding the whole book.
- Readers unfamiliar with grassroots politics may slow down in the first few chapters and first build a basic map of the factions in the enchanted city.
- After finishing, compare the official-angle and popular-angle narratives to appreciate the author's two-thread structure.
About the publisher
Founded in 1983, Beijing October Arts & Literature Publishing House is a professional literary publisher under the Beijing Publishing Group. Public information is limited; judged from the 21 titles in the catalog, its publishing focuses on social fiction, documentary literature, quality fiction, classical poetry, folk literature and prose miscellany, covering both contemporary full-length works and popular classical readers. Representative books include Ye Guangqin's Last Year's Weather, the Old Pavilion and The Top Scholar's Matchmaker, Zhou Zuoren's Reminiscences of Zhitang, Zhou Meisen's In the Name of the People, Chen Yan's The Broad Mansion of the Human World, and Shi Jiepeng's My Heart Lingers: Twenty Lectures on King Hui of Liang's Classical Poems. Its authors include Ye Guangqin, Zhou Zuoren, Chen Yan, Zhou Meisen, Shi Yifeng, Ma Xiaosheng and Sunan, giving it a solid publishing character in contemporary fiction, prose and poetry.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 第1章 自序
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FAQ
Is the cause of Lu Leshan's death clarified in the book?
What is the relationship between Du Huazhang and Lu Leshan?
What does the title “The Enchanted City” refer to?
Can I understand this book without experience in officialdom?
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About the author
Ma Xiaoquan is a Chinese writer known for his social novels. Publicly available information about him is limited, and details such as his nationality, dates of birth and death, and educational background are not clearly documented. Judging from the five works included in the library, his writing tends to focus on the situations of individuals and the fates of groups in contemporary society, covering subjects that range from workplace life in banking and youth coming-of-age to local legends and urban experience. Bank Archives and Angry Youth, as their titles suggest, show his concern with institutional environments and youthful emotions, while Legends of the Witch Land carries a flavor of regional culture and folk narrative. Lost City and The Free-Range Years further extend his writing on urban space and the experience of growing up. Overall, Ma Xiaoquan's works are commonly classified as social novels, and he emphasizes rendering the atmosphere of the times through concrete scenes and characters' fates, with a largely realist style that gives him a recognizable presence in contemporary Chinese fiction.
