Old Dreams 1913

沈鱼藻Jiangsu Phoenix Literature and Art Publishing House · ChinaOct 2023

Rating 3.2
Word count
159K words
Chapters
14
ISBN
9787539997445

Tags

Contemporary Romance Human GeographyPolitical CareerFate and FortuneLove EntanglementsAngst RomanceUrban RomanceRomanticismFemale Perspective

Summary

1904–1905: First meeting in Jaipur — may the bride be anyone but me.

1906–1907: Listening to wind and rain by the bed, mandarin ducks sporting on emerald water.

1908–1909: May your career reach the heights, and your loneliness be boundless.

1910–1911: Once we were tender; now we fight to the death.

1912–1913: Love has become a wound — let me go.

After 1913: Across countless rivers and mountains, I come looking for you.

We lost each other in a time of chaos; one hurried parting, and no date for reunion. Mending your roof with thatch and listening with you to the rain by the bed — all of it was but an old dream that could never come true, and a regret this life cannot lay to rest. Fu Lanjun, daughter of a prefect, marries the officer Gu Lingyu on a spiteful impulse after a romantic hurt. At first the two are at daggers drawn, but amid their quarrels their feelings gradually warm. When Fu Lanjun's first love, Nan Jiamu, returns and becomes entangled in the revolutionaries' "rebellion," Gu Lingyu is ordered to arrest and execute him, and the bond between Gu and Fu falls into crisis. As the political tide grows ever more precarious, Lanjun's father is murdered, and the evidence points to Gu Lingyu. The two drift further apart and finally part ways; Fu Lanjun takes her child and goes far away to England. Years later, Fu Lanjun at last learns the truth of those years and Gu Lingyu's real identity. She returns home to find him, but the Gu household stands empty — Gu Lingyu is nowhere to be found, his life or death unknown...

Editor's review

This is a romance set in the Republican era, with its temporal anchor around 1913. Structurally, it uses chronological subheadings to string together the full emotional arc of the hero and heroine — from first meeting, marriage, and suspicion to separation — in a slow-burn rhythm with high emotional intensity. The core tension is not sweet indulgence but the secret identities and misaligned loyalties of two people in a time of chaos: the marriage between the prefect's daughter and the officer is driven from the start by spite and calculation, while plotlines of revolutionaries, arrest and execution, and the murder of the father push private feeling ever further into public conflict. The author Shen Yuzao excels at restrained regret; the closing device of "across countless rivers and mountains, I come looking for you" brings the unfulfilled old dream to a fairly complete close. Suited to readers who enjoy Republican-era romance and can accept a heartbreak ending and a misunderstanding-driven narrative; a fitting immersive pastime for a weekend or commute. Readers who demand strict historical detail or dislike misunderstanding-driven plots should proceed with caution.

Who it's for

A good fit for

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Reading tips

  1. Follow the rhythm of the book's chronological subheadings and note how characters' states of mind shift at each time jump
  2. When you reach clues about Gu Lingyu's identity, flip back to earlier details; in a misunderstanding-driven narrative, the information is planted subtly
  3. If the ending stirs you, reread the second half after a few days to understand afresh the choices each of them makes
  4. Reading alongside background material on Republican-era history will deepen your understanding of the romantic predicament created by the revolutionary and officer standpoints

About the publisher

Jiangsu Phoenix Literature and Art Publishing House China · Founded in 1958

Jiangsu Phoenix Literature and Art Publishing House focuses on literary publishing while also covering the humanities, social sciences, and books on art and daily life. Its approximately 1,535 titles in the database span social novels, world history, design, science fiction, classic works, and film and television: they include modern Chinese literary classics by Lu Xun such as A Madman's Diary: The Complete Short Stories of Lu Xun, Call to Arms, Four Generations Under One Roof, and Teahouse, as well as foreign literary memoirs like Stefan Zweig's The World of Yesterday. In science fiction it offers Asimov's Galactic Empire series, while in architecture and art it publishes Liu Dunzhen's Classical Gardens of Suzhou and design titles from Phoenix Space. Its authors are concentrated among classic writers such as Lu Xun, Zweig, and Asimov, with translators including Liang Xijiang, Zhong Haonan, and Ye Lihua. Its overall character is built on classic works while embracing genre fiction and visual culture. Public information is limited, and this introduction is based on the titles in the database.

Contents

  1. 版权信息
  2. 楔子
  3. 第一章 异国初逢
  4. 第二章 欢喜冤家
  5. 第三章 情愫渐浓
  6. 第四章 难舍难分
  7. 第五章 互生嫌隙
  8. 第六章 山雨欲来
  9. 第七章 家破人亡
  10. 第八章 心结难解
  11. 第九章 等一场雨
  12. 第十章 真相迟来
  13. 尾声
  14. 番外 旧梦须记

FAQ

Is the ending tragic? From the available material, the story closes with Fu Lanjun returning home after learning the truth to look for Gu Lingyu, only to find the Gu household empty and Gu Lingyu's life or death unknown — an open, unfulfilled ending with a clear tone of regret. It is not a conventional happy reunion, so readers should be prepared.
Are there many misunderstandings between the hero and heroine? Rather many. From the marriage entered out of spite, the two lack honesty; Gu Lingyu's true identity and the truth behind Fu Lanjun's father's murder are long concealed, and misunderstanding is the main engine of the emotional turns. Readers who enjoy nuanced psychological writing will find it plausible; those who dislike the misunderstanding device may find it frustrating.
I haven't read the author's other works — can I start with this one? Yes. This is a standalone story with self-contained characters and plot, not dependent on earlier works. The author's narrative style is slow-burn and heavy on emotional setup, so first-time readers should give themselves extra time to get into it and not give up because of the opening pace.

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About the author

沈鱼藻 Author

Public information about Shen Yuzao is limited; details such as nationality, birth and death years, and an English name are not known. Judging from the four works held in the collection, her writing is mainly set against a Republican-era backdrop. Representative titles include Old Dream 1937, Old Dream 1913, the three-volume "Republican Old Dreams Trilogy," and Old Dream: Looking Home in Spring. These works are often categorized as social fiction, modern romance, and youth literature. They typically use the old days as a stage, blending emotional storytelling with period atmosphere and social change to create a nostalgic romantic style. The years in the titles and the recurring image of "old dreams" echo each other, showing the author's sustained interest in Republican-era themes. Although verifiable biographical information remains very limited, these few works alone demonstrate her concentrated engagement with this subject matter.