Written by Liu E 劉鶚 (1857-1909), this short novel is partly autobiographical and was published in a periodical. Lao Can is an itinerant medicine who during his journey through Shandong province encounters the evils that suppressive bureaucrats put on guiltless people. Through his good connections to official circles, Lao Can succeeds in pushishing at least one of the bad officials. In a vivid language, Liu E depicts scenes full of life, like the two dancings girl in the second chapter, and in a fantastic winter landscape. The book is a source for the daily life of peasantry in late Qing times 清.