Textual Criticism on TANG Menglai’s Son-in-law in Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio Base on County Annals of Qingcheng

Since the Kangxi Regime of the Qing Dynasty, there have been records in literature about TANG Menglai selecting a prodigy from Qingzhou as his son-in-law. It was also rumored that this incident was recorded in Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. However, none of the existing versions of Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio currently include TANG’s story. After close examination, it has been verified that TANG did take a prodigy as his son-in-law, and it is unlikely that this event was ever recorded in Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. The belief that the book included the story of TANG selecting a son-in-law most likely stems from the misconception of people mistaking Autumn Lantern Cluster for Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio.