Chaolin bitan 巢林筆談

Chaolin bitan 巢林筆談 "Brush talks from Chaolin" is a "brush-notes"-style miscellany (biji 筆記) composed during the high Qing period 清 (1644-1911) by Gong Wei 龔煒 (b. 1704), courtesy name Chaolin 巢林, style Chaolin Sanren 巢林散人, and in his later years Jixi Laomin 際熙老民. He was a native of Kunshan 崐山, Jiangsu. He had a fondness for the classical canon and history, was accomplished in poetry and prose, skilled in stringed and wind instruments, and also trained in the martial arts. Nevertheless, he repeatedly failed in the civil examinations, and further beset by recurring illness, was compelled to abandon all ambitions for an official career. In his later years his family circumstances declined and his spirits grew despondent.

The book of 6 juan, with a supplementary continuation of 2 fascicles, was completed during the Qianlong reign-period 乾隆 (1736-1796), comprising 696 entries in total. It is arranged in chronological order, beginning in 1722 and extending to 1763. The range of subjects recorded is considerable: social conditions and popular life, local customs and historical anecdotes of the Suzhou 蘇州 region, landscapes and gardens, natural disasters and man-made calamities, the corruption and deceitfulness of officials, as well as reflections on reading and accounts of interactions with relatives and friends. The entry Wu su shemi wei tianxia zui 吳俗奢靡為天下最 "The extravagance of Suzhou surpasses all under Heaven" offers a vivid picture of economic development and social life in the early Qing period. The entry Qinghe yu Taiyuan lianyin 清河與太原聯姻 "Marriage alliance between Qinghe and Taiyuan" records commodity prices of the time. In the first fascicle of the book's continuation, the entry Wo Kun shuji zhi fu 我崐書籍之富 "The abundance of books in my hometown Kunshan" describes the situation of book collectors, preserving important anecdotal material on the history of the book world.

Editions include a copy held at the Liaohuai Pavilion 蓼懷閣 dated 1765, a printed edition of 1745, and a 1981 typeset edition by Zhonghua Shuju 中華書局.