FANGONG SEAWALL

A government official fights for impoverished workers in Jiwen’s latest historical novel, inspired by the life of Song dynasty Prime Minister Fan Zhongyan.

Minor bureaucrat Fan Zhongyan arrives at the salt harvest fields of Yancheng to start his new job as manager of the Xixi Salt Warehouse. Suddenly, tragedy strikes. A tsunami rages in from the Yellow Sea and demolishes almost everything in its path, including many lives and months of hard work. Fan Zhongyan survives and quickly learns that tsunamis are only one of the problems that plague the salt workers. The Chinese government’s salt monopoly prohibits the workers from quitting their jobs and forces them to adhere to strict production quotas—even if their lands have been ruined by a tsunami. Fan Zhongyan discovers that the region used to be protected by a sea wall. Building a new sea wall becomes his crusade, but he knows that he will not achieve it without a “detailed and perfect” plan. As he works on his blueprints, he wins over the salt workers by persuading the provincial government to eliminate the salt quota. He then improves the workers’ lives in multiple ways while reducing corruption and pushing the central government to approve the building of the sea wall. In the process, however, Fan Zhongyan neglects his personal life and his health, much to the chagrin of his mother and trusted servants. Although he eventually marries, he nearly sabotages his marriage by meeting with an important official instead of traveling to pick up his fiancee before the wedding. Fan Zhongyan’s hard work is rewarded when he is promoted to be a magistrate and given the authority to construct the sea wall, but he lacks funding for the project. Will Fan Zhongyan find the money to build the sea wall and protect the salt workers? The author’s research is impeccable, and her knowledge of ancient China and salt-making is apparent on every page. That being said, thinly drawn characters and anachronisms like you guys;in a story that takes place a thousand years ago make it difficult to sustain interest in Fan Zhongyan’s struggles.

A historical novel that’s more history than story.