author
active 17th century Qingxidaoren
Known by the pen name Qingxidaoren, this late Ming-era novelist is remembered for imaginative fiction that blends religion, adventure, and moral debate. His surviving works suggest a writer deeply interested in how Buddhist, Confucian, and Daoist ideas could meet inside popular storytelling.
1 Audiobook
東度記
by active 17th century Qingxidaoren
About the author
Qingxidaoren was the style name of Fang Ruhao, a Chinese novelist active in the late Ming period, probably in the early 17th century. Sources agree on the pen name and connect it to Fang Ruhao, but basic biographical details such as his exact hometown remain uncertain in modern reference works.
He is best known for novels including Chan zhen yi shi (禅真逸史), Chan zhen hou shi (禅真后史), and Dongdu ji (东度记). Catalog and library records consistently link these books to Qingxidaoren/Fang Ruhao, and modern descriptions of the novels highlight their mix of historical narrative, religious themes, fantastic elements, and popular storytelling.
What makes his work memorable is the way it brings big ideas into lively fiction. His novels are often described as combining Buddhist teaching with broader late Ming interests in moral instruction and the meeting of Confucian, Buddhist, and Daoist thought, giving readers stories that are both dramatic and reflective.