"Shishuoxinyu" is a representative work of metaphysics "note novels" during the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties in China. It is a short story in the form of notes of conversations and anecdotes. Its content mainly records the words, deeds and anecdotes of some celebrities from the late Eastern Han Dynasty to the Wei and Jin Dynasties. The books contained in the book are all historical figures, but some of their remarks or stories are based on rumors and are not entirely consistent with historical facts. Among the 36 subjects in the three volumes of "Shishuo Xinyu", the first volume has four subjects - virtue, speech, political affairs, and literature, and the second volume has nine subjects - uprightness, elegance, appreciation, praise, taste, admonition, wisdom, long-term benefit, and generousness. These 13 categories are all positive praises. There are also 23 gates in the second volume - tolerance, self-reinvention, envy, sadness for the passing of time, residence and elegance, virtuous women, technical explanations, skillful skills, favors and gifts, Ren Dan, simplicity and arrogance, exclusion, contempt, hypocrisy, dismissal, frugality, elimination of extravagance, anger, slander, regret, mistakes, confusion and hatred.
