Eight-legged essay, also known as Zhiyi, Zhiyi, Shiwen and Babiwen, is a style of writing used in imperial examinations since the Ming and Qing Dynasties.
Eight-part essay is the eight-legged form of the Four Writings. The Four Books began to be included in the scope of the imperial examination of classics and meanings in the Yuan Dynasty. The imperial examination was held during the Hongwu period of the early Ming Dynasty, and the "Four Books" ("Jing Yi") of the Yuan Dynasty were followed. It further developed from the "Four Books" into the Four Books. After more than a hundred years of development from Yongle to Chenghua and Hongzhi, it was formatted in the style of the Classics. In the process of writing, the main text of the classics (the topic part) was further metrical. Two, four, six, and even ten-part styles were all one of the many styles of the classics. The "eight-part" finally stood out and became the mainstream.
The author imitated the excellent essays from the Ming and Qing imperial examinations and wrote some eight-legged essays titled "Four Books and Five Classics".
Purpose: Let readers understand the composition styles of the Ming and Qing dynasties