Jintuo zuibian 金佗稡編

Jintuo zuibian 金佗稡編 "Collection from Jintuo", also called Eguo jintuo zuibian 鄂國金佗粹編, is a kind of biographic collection of the patriotic hero Yue Fei 岳飛 (1103-1142) of the early Southern Song period 南宋 (1127-1279), written by his grandson Yue Ke 岳珂 (1183-1243), courtesy name Suzhi 肅之, style Yizhai 亦齋, Dongji 東几 or Xianweng 倦翁.

Jintuo 金佗 was the name of the urban quarter in Jiaxing 嘉興, where Yue Ke lived. Yue Fei had been posthumously given the title of King of E 鄂 by Emperor Ningzong 宋寧宗 (r. 1194-1224). The main collection (Zhengbian 正編) is 28-juan long, the supplement (Xubian 續編) 30 juan.

The book was written as a kind of defence of Yue Fei who had been charged with treason and was executed on behalf of the powerful Counsellor-in-chief Qin Hui 秦檜 (1091-1155). After Yue Fei's death Qin Hui had erased all positive paragraphs about Yue Fei in the official history, in order to influence the memory of him. The collection consists of private writings and poems of Yue Fei, his memorials to the throne, reports from his military campaigns against the Jurchens, and Emperor Gaozong's 宋高宗 (r. 1127-1162) responses to these, and many other official documents that prove the righteous and sincere character of Yue Fei.

Yue Ke's book is therefore a valuable collection of documents of the hero Yue Fei that was also used by contemporarians in the quarrels about the question whether to conclude peace with the Jurchens or to continue the war against them. The problem of the collection is that the authenticity of the documents included can not be proved elsewhere.

The earliest prints from 1218 (Zhengbian) and 1228 (Xubian) went lost, and a reprint from Zhejiang appeared during the Yuan period 元 (1279-1368).

Yuan Ke's descendant Yue Jinjing 岳士景, living during the Qing period 清 (1644-1911), arranged the text into 18 juan (Zhengbian) and 8 juan (Xubian). This version includes an appendix with the texts Xu baishi zhaozhong lu 續百氏昭忠錄 (8 juan) and Xingming kao 姓名考 (2 juan). Both versions are transmitted. The imperial series Siku quanshu 四庫全書 includes the 58-juan version. In 1987 the Shanghai Guji Press 上海古籍出版社 published a modern edition, and in 1989 the Zhonghua Book Company 中華書局 brought out an annotated edition.