I heard that the most powerful tycoon in A city, the gentry, was the one in charge of the Kang family — Kang Mo Bei. It was said that he would never smile, that his eyes were as cold as ice, and that his killing intent could penetrate through the air. However, Bai Xinxi had been pestered by such a man, and was still pestering him to the point of death! "You can't let go?" "Not at all." "If you have the ability, then hit me." "Kick!" Bai Xinxi was flustered and exasperated as he kicked out. Since you've already done what you said, it means that you are truly capable. " Kang Mo Bei grabbed Bai Nian Xi's feet and pulled her back down again. With a smile, he said, "I like sleeping with women like you who are capable and arrogant."

Xu Xu (1908-1980) was one of the most widely read Chinese authors of the 1930s to 1960s. His popular urban gothic tales, his exotic spy fiction, and his quasi-existentialist love stories full of nostalgia and melancholy offer today's readers an unusual glimpse into China's turbulent twentieth century. These translations—spanning a period of some thirty years, from 1937 until 1965—bring to life some of Xu Xu's most representative short fictions from prewar Shanghai and postwar Hong Kong and Taiwan. The Afterword illustrates that Xu Xu's idealistic tendencies in defiance of the politicization of art exemplify his affinity with European romanticism and link his work to a global literary modernity.