SuaveG – The Gentle Path

Chinese mythology, folktales, and literature

Ji Xiaolan

  • The Banquet of Ten Thousand Elders: A Dynasty at its Zenith and Twilight

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    Juan

    Brief: This article reviews Qianlong’s late reign. He boasted of “Ten Great Campaigns,” rejected Britain’s Macartney mission, and abdicated to Jiaqing but kept real power. He held the grand Banquet of Ten Thousand Elders to show prosperity. The feast marked the Qing’s peak, yet hidden decline and official corruption loomed beneath.

  • The Emperor’s Ink: Compiling and Burning

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    Juan

    Brief: This article describes the Qianlong Emperor’s cultural legacy. He compiled the massive Siku Quanshu led by scholar Ji Xiaolan, but also launched severe literary inquisition and censorship. Many anti‑Qing books were destroyed, and scholars were punished for trivial wording. It shows both his effort to preserve culture and his strict ideological control.