Gold Branches and Jade Leaves

Name: Gold Branches and Jade Leaves
ISBN: 9787530679388

余耕Baihua Literature and Art Publishing House · ChinaDec 2021

3.8

Word count: 199K words
Chapters: 60
ISBN: 9787530679388

Report an error Find this book

Summary

Jinzhi's mother was among the first batch of educated urban youth sent to the countryside. Because of a single remark from Jinzhi, her mother died in childbirth, leaving behind a half-sister, Yuye. From then on, the younger sister became Jinzhi's responsibility.

Jinzhi toiled to support her sister's schooling and gave up her own chance to attend university. Yuye lived up to expectations and was admitted to Beijing Normal University. The two sisters decide to leave their hometown and come to Beijing to begin a new life...

Editor's review

Jinzhi Yuye portrays the upbringing of two half-sisters with restraint and weight. Because of a childhood remark, Jinzhi indirectly causes her mother's death in childbirth, and from then on she treats her younger sister Yuye's upbringing as her own responsibility, giving up college to support Yuye's admission to Beijing Normal University as the two sisters leave their hometown for the capital. Yu Geng does not turn sacrifice into melodrama; instead, he lets duty, guilt, and personal choice slowly ferment through everyday details: whether Jinzhi's giving is truly willing, whether Yuye's success carries pressure, and whether their new life in Beijing can truly unfold are all questions the novel leaves to readers. The language is plain and the emotional threads are clear, making it suitable for continuous reading in a quiet setting. It is not a plot-driven work; its strength lies in the authenticity of the relationships and its observation of family ethics against a particular era, making it suitable for readers who enjoy family narratives and stories of women's growth.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy family ethics and sisterly bond narratives
Those interested in women's growth and education changing destinies
Readers interested in the background of educated youth's descendants and rural-to-urban migration
Readers who prefer plain language and delicate emotions

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking strong suspense and fast-paced plots
Those easily depressed by narratives of family sacrifice
Readers expecting a grand historical panorama

Reading tips

Pay attention to Jinzhi's inner thoughts each time she gives up an opportunity; don't read it merely as a sacrifice trope.
Slow down after the sisters arrive in Beijing and feel how the new environment affects their relationship.
After finishing, ask yourself: how are responsibility and personal choice balanced in these two sisters?

About the publisher

Baihua Literature and Art Publishing House China · Founded in 1958

Founded in August 1958 and restructured into Baihua Literature and Art Publishing House (Tianjin) Co., Ltd. in 2009, Baihua Literature and Art Publishing House is known for publishing essays and fiction, and it hosts the journals Fiction Monthly and Essays. Its 757 titles in the library span classic works, culture, folk literature, essays and miscellaneous writings, foreign literature, and general biography. They include Lao She's Camel Xiangzi, Zhu Ziqing's selected essays and Classic Essays, Fu Lei's Twenty Lectures on Masterpieces of World Art, and a Chinese translation of Ryūnosuke Akutagawa's Rashōmon, as well as cultural and performing-arts titles such as the illustrated Biography of Liang Qichao and A Dictionary of Crosstalk. Its authors include Lao She, Zhu Ziqing, Wu Qichang, Fu Lei, Xue Baokun, Gao Yucong, Wei Zhiqiang, and Ryūnosuke Akutagawa.

版权信息
一我是金枝
二玉叶
三庄疯子
四柳铁英
五十里桃花
六谁是反革命
七谭记铁匠铺
八桃花坞的英雄
九潘保东
十彭大运
十一彭大河
十二彭雪梅
十三石灰窑上的女人
十四我爹又进监狱了
十五欧阳清如
十六我的初吻
十七马主任
十八小陶和小乔
十九玉叶考上北师大
二十初到北京
二十一顾城死了
二十二文革来了
二十三一个男人
二十四过年
二十五创业
二十六牛肉烧饼搬家
二十七一场变故
二十八再见马主任
二十九杨胖秃子
三十邓丽君走了
三十一冰火两重天
三十二潘保东变成潘志坚
三十三玉叶有了新男友
三十四冯南燕
三十五人财两空
三十六秘密会议
三十七玉叶大学毕业
三十八一个商业陷阱
三十九我爹出狱了
四十彭伯庸
四十一三间青砖大瓦房
四十二父亲的情怀
四十三我的第一次
四十四求婚
四十五壮行酒
四十六香港弥敦道大火
四十七奇迹
四十八欧阳清如结婚了
四十九紫薇勋章
五十杨茂功
五十一神山在召唤
五十二房子
五十三致人死亡
五十四两个男人的秘密
五十五尘埃落定
五十六两个老男人
五十七风水宝地
五十八衣锦还乡者
五十九桃花坞

FAQ

Are Jinzhi and Yuye full sisters?

No. The materials indicate that they are half-sisters with the same mother; after their mother dies in childbirth, Jinzhi takes on the responsibility of caring for her younger sister Yuye. For details of the family relationships, refer to the narrative in the book.

Is this book mainly about love or family?

The core is family and responsibility. The novel revolves around Jinzhi supporting Yuye's education and the sisters leaving home for Beijing, focusing on the sisterly relationship and personal choices; love is not the main thread.

Is the style similar to the author's other book, The Schemer?

The difference is clear. The Schemer is genre fiction about fraud, fast-paced with heavy moral grayness; Jinzhi Yuye leans toward family ethics and a coming-of-age narrative, with plain language and delicate emotions, suiting different reading needs.

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

余耕 Author

Yu Geng is a Chinese author about whom limited public information is available; his confirmed body of work consists of the eight titles held in the library. His writing spans social fiction, mystery and detective fiction, and classic works. His representative titles include If There Is No Tomorrow: I Am Yu Huanshui, Golden Branches and Jade Leaves, Asking the Cauldron 1939, The Last Horizon, The Search for Kin, Laughing at Cangshan, The Setter, and I Am Xia Shizhi. Judging from the titles and categories, he favors realistic subjects and plot-driven storytelling, often using the circumstances of ordinary people as an entry point and exploring social relationships and turns of fate within a framework of mystery and detection. Among these works, If There Is No Tomorrow: I Am Yu Huanshui has gained wider reader recognition through its screen adaptation. Overall, Yu Geng's works combine popular readability with a degree of social observation, and are suited to readers interested in social fiction and mystery narratives.