Fortress Besieged

Fortress Besieged (Wei Sheng) is a comedy of manners written by Qian Zhongshu, published in 1947.

The title is based on a French proverb:

Marriage is like a fortress besieged: those who are outside want to get in, and those who are inside want to get out.

Set in the 1930s it follows the misadventures of Fang Hung-chien, a bumbling everyman who wastes his time studying abroad, and secures a fake degree when learning he has run out of money and must return home to China. The first part of the novel is set on the boat home, where he courts two young ladies. The novel is known for its acerbic asides, such as describing one young lady in the following way "at first, they called her 'Truth' because the truth is supposed to be naked. But then, they called her 'half-truth'."

The second section follows his securing a teaching post at a new university - where his fake credentials are used to keep him in line, and in the third part, it centers on his disasterous marriage. The novel ends with his wife leaving him, while he listens to a clock chiming.