This is the second time I’ve written an afterword for Wishful Egg. The first was a few years ago, when the book was published in Taiwan. At the time, I never imagined it might come out as a standalone volume in simplified Chinese.
When my editor, Nuannuan, told me Wishful Egg could be published, I was completely stunned. I kept asking her, “It really can be published? Is that true?” … When I finally got a definite yes, I was beside myself with excitement.
So far, there are only two of my books for which I’ve written two afterwords: Another Spring (《又一春》) and Wishful Egg.
Wishful Egg is one lucky egg. It was adapted into a comic, and now it has been published in both traditional- and simplified-Chinese standalone editions. I’m deeply grateful to the wonderful people who made all that good fortune possible.
I was much younger when I wrote Wishful Egg, and my view of the world was quite different then. I’d just finished Peach Blossom Debt (《桃花债》), which was a rather complicated story, and I wanted to follow it with something happier and a main character with a little more swagger. That’s how Immortal Emperor Danzhu came about: a man who “loves hunting for beauties” and is, ahem, just a little “too old to behave like that.”
In fact, among all the characters I’ve written, Immortal Emperor Danzhu is one I personally like very much. Aside from being rather lustful, he’s actually remarkably open-minded and generous. He doesn’t hold anything against anyone.
So this story is really about how Bihua Lingjun, by using his devious wits, managed to scheme against the Immortal Emperor and come away with a tremendous bargain.
Wow. Put like that, it suddenly sounds so inspirational!
For this simplified-Chinese edition, I wanted to add a new extra. Originally, I planned to write one about Geyue (the silver wolf Geyue, not the little gray wolf Geyue). But Geyue’s story would inevitably have been complicated: the feelings of someone once treated as a stand-in, his wounded pride, and the awkward loyalty he clings to in spite of everything… That would have become a story of about ten thousand Chinese characters.
And, well… I’ve had four unfinished projects weighing on me lately. Zhang Ping (the protagonist of 《张公案》), Du Xiaoman (the protagonist of 《再也不要做怨妇》), and Hua Qiqi (the protagonist of 《我玉成仙》) were all fighting inside my head. Then there were the resentful echoes of Little Ji and Little Wang from 《绿水青山》, which I’ve left unfinished for such a long time…
And the manuscript deadline was rather tight, too…
So in the end, I cobbled together a short extra about Tangdi. Once I’d finished it, I realized: why have I become so fond of being sentimental lately? This was supposed to be a pretty cheerful story, yet it seems rather short on jokes. Sigh, sigh. Have I really gone backward as I’ve grown older? Am I less capable of writing madcap fun than I used to be…?
I hope you won’t dislike this little extra. Tangdi and the little plaster fox will live happily together! Ahem…
My editor, Nuannuan, put tremendous effort into designing the cover for this simplified-Chinese edition. My writing isn’t especially delicate or conventionally romantic, and it certainly doesn’t have much of an artsy air. That gave the editor and designer quite a headache: what direction should the cover take? Something very romantic and girlish wouldn’t fit the text. Something refined and elegant wouldn’t fit its tendency to go a little off the rails, either…
In the end, my editor cried helplessly, “Those three characters, 如意蛋, are so hard to design!” Over on the comic adaptation, the editor joined in: “Exactly! They’re so hard to design! Especially the character for ‘egg’!”
The two of them clung to each other and discussed their woes. Covers face. Yes, I’m just that rough-and-ready a person… I do love giving my books titles like this…
So when you hold this book in your hands, especially when you touch the cover, take a moment to appreciate it. I think you’ll be able to feel the sweat and tears of the editor and designer…
And now, as usual, I’ll finish this afterword with a few words of thanks.
Thank you to Jiyifang Culture and Princess Magazine for all the care you’ve shown this story. Thank you to my editors Nuannuan, Yazhu, Babao Cai, and Xiaochun.
Of course, my greatest thanks go to you, for loving this book. I wish all of you that everything will go just as you wish. I hope this book brings you happiness!
Da Feng Gua Guo
Beijing, May 2012