Library

The name "Yangzhou" carries thousands of years of historical and cultural resonance. When talking about Yangzhou, images of artists, literati, big businessmen, beautiful waterways, bridges, gardens, and a history full of romance or tragedy all come to mind. This book is a "biography" that records all aspects of Yangzhou, telling readers how the city re-emerged from the flames of war at the turn of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, reaching its peak in the 18th century and becoming an important commercial capital; and how it gradually faded amidst historical accidents and inevitability, leaving only a few cultural fragments connecting the past with today. The author An Dongli has devoted more than ten years to researching this city, consulting a large number of historical books, local chronicles, poems and notes of contemporary people, filling in countless moving and real details for his grand writing structure, and restoring the true urban texture of Yangzhou during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. In this vivid urban picture, China's great changes in the late imperial period are also vividly displayed on the page.