Paper Gold and Drunken Splendor（THE SECOND PART）/纸醉金迷（第二部）

<p>Mandarin Ducks and Butterflies School & Representative Bestsellers of Republican China</p><p>鸳鸯蝴蝶派代表作品</p><p></p><p>Paper Gold and Drunken Splendor (《纸醉金迷》) is a novel by Zhang Henshui set in Chongqing during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945). It portrays the social chaos and moral decay in China's wartime capital through the lives of ordinary people struggling amid greed and survival.</p><p></p><p>The story follows Tian Peizhi a woman whose life spirals into ruin due to gambling speculative trading and emotional entanglements. Surrounding her are vivid characters-corrupt officials profiteers and disillusioned intellectuals-painting a bleak picture of a society obsessed with money and pleasure while the nation fights for survival.</p><p>《纸醉金迷》是张恨水创作的长篇小说，以抗战时期的重庆为背景，描绘了战时陪都的社会百态。故事围绕一群在乱世中沉浮的小人物展开，展现了战争阴影下人性的贪婪、欲望与挣扎。</p><p></p><p>小说通过女主角田佩芝的命运变迁，揭露了当时社会的腐败与道德沦丧。田佩芝原本是一个普通女性，但在战乱和金钱的诱惑下，逐渐迷失自我，陷入赌博、投机和情感纠葛，最终走向悲剧。书中还刻画了投机商人、官僚、知识分子等各色人物，生动再现了抗战后期重庆前方吃紧，后方紧吃的畸形繁荣景象。</p><p></p><p>Zhang Henshui combines realism with melodrama to critique the hedonism and hypocrisy of wartime Chongqing. His sharp social commentary and accessible prose made the novel a classic depiction of human frailty in turbulent times earning it the nickname a wartime Vanity Fair.</p><p>张恨水以细腻的笔触和现实主义手法，批判了战时社会的纸醉金迷与人性堕落。小说语言通俗却深刻，既有社会写实的尖锐，又保留了他擅长的言情元素，被誉为抗战时期的浮世绘。</p>