Illustrious Words to Instruct the World

First published in 1620, Yushi Mingyan (喻世明言) stands as the opening volume of Feng Menglong’s celebrated Sanyan trilogy - the most influential collection of vernacular fiction in Chinese literary history.

Drawing on centuries of storytelling - from Song dynasty anecdotes to Yuan drama and Ming popular tales - Feng gathered and reshaped forty narratives into vivid colloquial prose that helped define an entire literary tradition. The success of this volume led to two companion collections, together forming one of the great monuments of world fiction.

These forty tales range from comedy to tragedy, from domestic intrigue to supernatural encounter. Faithful wives and scheming concubines, merchants undone by greed, magistrates tested by impossible cases, lovers reunited across lifetimes, and friendships forged in the teeth of war - all unfold with the rhythm and vitality of spoken storytelling. Each narrative carries a moral edge, yet remains alive with humor, irony, and the texture of late-imperial Chinese life.

Once banned and nearly lost to history, the Sanyan collections survived through rare preserved editions abroad.

This volume presents all forty tales in a complete modern English translation, rendered in clear, flowing prose for contemporary readers while preserving the narrative force of the original.

Rediscover the great epics, mysteries and chronicles of dynastic China: gods and generals, swindlers and scholars, courtesans, ghosts and emperors, in complete English translations.