Some Questions Concerning Meng Chengshun''''s Zhenwen Ji
孟称舜《贞文记》传奇的创作时间及其他

Zhenwen Ji, one of Meng Chengshun's great plays, was acclaimed to be finished in 1643 according to its preface written by the author himself. On the basis of the historical records of the period when Meng serviced as District Instructor in Songyang, Xu Shuofang suggests the play was finished in 1656 or a little later. He also argues that an article known as Preface to the Meng Zisai's Five Dramas (Meng Zisai Wuzhongqu Xu), written by Qi Biaojia, was actually another preface to the play. Qi committed suicide in 1645, so the preface under his name could not be attributed to him. Deng Changfeng doubts Xu's viewpoint by assuming that there was another edition of this play according to Dong kang's records. The edition was so rare and precious that few scholars read it. His point seems to have been universally accepted. This essay examines the edition of the play that Deng has mentioned and finds that it is the same edition with the popular one included in the second series of Guben Xiqu Congkan. The difference is just that the former preserves the front cover and Qi's preface which are missing in the latter. Therefore, Deng has misinterpreted Dong's records and arrived at the wrong conclusion. The essay also discusses the possibility that Meng Chengshun, who took part in the editing work, knew Qi's preface was fake one, or even wrote it himself.