"The Book of Swords and Enmities" is the first novel I wrote. It has been fifty-seven years since 1955.

I am from Haining, Zhejiang. I have heard the legend of Emperor Qianlong in my hometown since I was a child. When I was a child, I was a boy scout. I once camped by the stone pond built by Emperor Qianlong in Haining and watched the angry waves coming in the middle of the night. So it was only natural that the first novel would be the story that impressed me the most. But the character of Chen Jialuo is my invention. Princess Xiangxiang is not the legendary or historical Xiangfei. Princess Xiangxiang is much more beautiful than Concubine Xiang.

Haining belonged to Hangzhou Prefecture during the Qing Dynasty. It was a small seaside county famous only for its tide. There was a female poet named Zhu Shuzhen in the Song Dynasty. Famous figures in modern times include Wang Guowei, Jiang Baili, Xu Zhimo, etc. Their characters all have some melancholy and tragic undertones, as well as some untimely stubbornness. Chen Jialuo may have a little bit of these people in him. However, Haining does not have many military personnel. Even the military scientist Jiang Baili can only talk about martial arts and is not good at using force. The famous martial artist in Shanghai in history was Xu Yuan who guarded Juyang with Zhang Xun in the Tang Dynasty.

Historian Meng Sen has done research and believes that the legend that Qianlong is a descendant of the Chen family in Haining is unreliable, and the legend that Concubine Xiang was killed for the Empress Dowager is also false. Historians certainly don’t like legends, but people who write novels do. His main reason was that it was "inconsistent with official history." Furthermore, any legend that is unfavorable to the royal family will never be written into the "official history".

Qianlong worked hard to build the Haining seawall until it was completed, which greatly benefited the people. I wrote about him so badly in the book that I felt a little apologetic at times. His poems were not good, and they were not of much relevance in the first place. But when I was a child in Haining and Hangzhou, I saw stone carvings of his imperial poems everywhere, which really disgusted me. When I looked at famous paintings in museums, I still saw his inscriptions everywhere. If you don't ridicule him, you can't help but feel depressed.

Except for writing red grids in primary school, I have never practiced calligraphy. The title and signature written on the cover are not worthy of a calligrapher. I also knew nothing about poetry. It was not until I revised this book that I read Mr. Wang Li's "Chinese Poetry and Rhythm" and started to learn mediocre. It's enough to imitate Qianlong's poems, but it's very childish to imitate Chen Jialuo and Yu Yutong's poems. Chen Jialuo originally wrote Jieyuan in his first work, but he thought that Jieyuan's poems could not be so poor, so he cut his teeth and removed his title of Jieyuan during the revision. Although Yu Yutong was only a scholar, his poetry should not be at such a beginner level. However, his nickname was "Golden Flute Scholar", and his reputation was slightly accommodating and not abolished. The review of this book is also not done well. Huiyue and Pingchi in the first edition of this book are completely missing.

This book was originally serialized in a newspaper, and later published as a single volume. It was revised and reprinted, and almost every sentence was changed. The third edition has been revised again. Readers from Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and overseas wrote to the author in large numbers, or wrote articles and reviews, correcting typos or making comments. Their enthusiasm was palpable.

"Book, Sword, Enmity and Enmity" is the first novel I have written in my life. I lack experience and cultivation, and the writing and plot imitate many previous works. The passages have been deleted or rewritten, but traces of the original work and naivety are still unavoidable. At least, it was an independent creation.

When I was revising the third edition of this book, I found the full text of the Islamic Quran and tried to read it religiously. I hope that what is written in this book does not violate Islamic teachings and that the author has a deep love for universal religion. Respect the meaning of piety. However, the teachings of each religion are profound and difficult for beginners to get started.

Each volume of "Collected Works of Jin Yong" is accompanied by color illustrations (not included in the mainland version), hoping to allow readers (especially readers in foreign countries) to have more exposure to Chinese cultural relics and works of art. . If you think the novel itself is too boring, just look at the pictures. The seal "Collection of Jin Yong's Works" at the back of the book was made by Hong Kong epigrapher Mr. Yi Yueshi. For the publication of this book, my friends Brother Shen Baoxin and Brother Wang Rongwen, colleagues Mr. Chen Huasheng, Mr. Xu Xiaodong, Ms. Wu Yufen, Mr. Xu Dai, Miss Li Jiaying, Miss Zheng Xianglin, Mr. Jiang Fangnian, etc. have given me a lot of help. I would like to express my gratitude. Three gentlemen, Yan Jiayan, Feng Qiyong, and Chen Mo, gave me many suggestions, most of which have been accepted and included in the revised edition. I am very grateful.

First edition, May 1975

July 3rd edition, 2002