Written by Zhang Henshui 
Chun Ming Wai Shi 

Chun Ming Wai Shi is Zhang Henshui”s famous work. It began to be serialized in the Evening World on April 16, 1924, and was not completely serialized until January 24, 1929, lasting five years. When the novel was serialized, there were thirty-nine chapters, and when it was published, it was divided into eighty-six chapters with nearly a million words. The protagonist, Yang Xingyuan, lives in Peiping and sells literature for a living, and fell in love with Li Yun, a brothel woman. Unfortunately, Liyun passed away shortly after getting to know each other. Later, Yang Xingyuan met Li Dongqing, a talented and down-to-earth girl, and gave her a poem, and their love became deeper and deeper. But Li Dongqing couldn”t get married because of a hidden illness, so she wanted to match the girl Shi Kelian and Yang Xingyuan. Shi Kelian knew that Yang Xingyuan could not give up his affection with Li Dongqing, so she took the initiative to withdraw. After all the twists and turns, Yang Xingyuan became discouraged about marriage and turned to study Buddhism. The so-called "Chunming" was originally a city gate of Chang”an in the Tang Dynasty, and later generations referred to it as the capital. Therefore, "Chun Ming Wai Shi" means "Beijing Strange Status". The author takes society as the longitude and romance as the latitude, "using the method of writing Dream of Red Mansions to compose The Scholars. The background is magnificent and the brushstrokes touch all classes, showing the various sentiments of Beijing”s three religions and nine generations. It is a genre painting and shady picture of Beijing in the 1920s.