"The Twelfth Floor" by Li Yu, a great literary master of the Qing Dynasty, is a collection of short stories with exquisite conception and witty writing style. The twelve pavilions are used as the narrative stage to interpret scenes of touching human comedies. In the book, there are not only the infatuated children who look at each other across the water and convey their love through the shadows in "The Photo Tower", but also the battle of wits and cleverness between the talented and beautiful people in "The Brocade Tower"; there are also the "Three and the Tower" which depicts the harshness of the world and the struggle of human nature; There is "Xia Yi Lou" that uses a strange Western mirror to reveal the secrets of the boudoir... Li Yu uses a smart and humorous style to cleverly weave the plot, which not only describes the love affairs of men and women, but also hides the wisdom of life, and there is no lack of bitter satire on the hypocrisy of the world.
The twelve stories in the book are independent chapters, but together they create an ukiyo-e of urban life in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. The language is popular yet elegant, and the plot is tortuous and full of wit. It is sometimes hilarious and sometimes sad to read. It can be called the pinnacle of ancient Chinese short stories in vernacular. If you want to take a look at the strange encounters of talented men and beautiful women and the various aspects of life in the city, "The Twelfth Floor" is undoubtedly a literary treasure that cannot be missed!
