Its 100 chapters grow out of the
武松 episode of
水浒传: here Ximen Qing escapes Wu Song's revenge, and the story follows his household until his death. The author signed as
兰陵笑笑生 and remains unknown; the earliest edition,
金瓶梅词话, dates from around 1617. It was the first major Chinese novel about everyday family life, and was long banned for its sex scenes.
