Serialized in
明报 from 1969 to 1972. Its hero
韦小宝, a boy from a Yangzhou brothel, bluffs his way into the palace, becomes the friend of the young
康熙 Emperor and ends up with seven wives. The title joins
逐鹿 'to chase the deer' and
问鼎 'to ask about the cauldrons', two old images for contending for the empire.