Footnotes
Chapter 1: The Coolness of Fresh Rain
[1] From “On the Upper Reaches of Yingtian Temple, for Presentation to Master Qian” by Tang dynasty poet Fang Gan.
Chapter 2: Exploring the Library
[2] Reference to Mencius chapter “Gongsun Chou I.”
[3] Sima Qian was the Han dynasty author of Records of the Grand Historian. This quote first appeared in Zheng Mengliang’s 1957 novel Struggles of Sons and Daughters.
[4] An approach to organizing texts that dates to the Xin dynasty.
Chapter 3: A Face Like Jade
[5] An exam-taker who passed the imperial exams’ third, final level with honors.
[6] Government body that drafted official documents.
Chapter 4: A River Serene
[7] “Tao” means “wave.”
Chapter 5: The Words of the Sages
[8] Reference to a Book of Rites passage.
[9] Reference to “Unfettered Wandering” from the Zhuangzi, which describes how the mythical peng can fly thousands of miles in a day.
Chapter 7: Snow in Jinling
[10] Imperial China’s three highest-ranked officials.
Chapter 9: Gratitude for One’s Teacher
[11] Dou means “bean,” but a “zudou” is a dish for sacrificial offerings.
Chapter 13: Seven Fifteen
[12] Both found in the romantic poem “The Peacock Flies Southeast,” by a Jian’an period poet.
[13] From “On the Chariot Flying” by Song dynasty poet Fan Chengda.
Chapter 19: Holding Life and Death
[14] “Jue” pendants are shaped like slightly open rings.
Chapter 22: The Shadows of Flowers and Leaves
[15] From “A Toast” by Tang dynasty poet Li He.
Chapter 23: Moonlit Frost
[16] “Mingyue” (明月) means “bright moon.”
Chapter 24: The Mountain Demon
[17] Slang terms for same-sex couples.
Chapter 28: A Gathering Storm
[18] Famed military strategist from Western Han who forged a giant hammer for use in an assassination.
[19] A husband and wife described in the Spring and Autumn Annals of Wu and Yue as forging a pair of legendary swords.
Chapter 29: Layers of Sorrow
[20] Reference to Analects chapter “Yan Yuan.”
Chapter 31: Parting Ways
[21] Reference to “Odes of Wei (I): Mu Gua” from the Book of Songs poetry collection.