Lust, Caution by Eileen Chang, translated by Julia Lovell (Anchor Books)

Eileen Chang, also known as Zhang Ailing, was born in Shanghai, China in 1920. She was studying literature at Hong Kong University, but returned to her hometown in 1941 during the Japanese Occupation. Her stories are about life in 1940’s Shanghai and were highly acclaimed by the book buying public, although she was panned by critics for not focusing more on the political climate of the times, especially after the communist takeover. She first moved to Hong Kong then found her way to the United States. 

Lust, Caution was first published in 1979 and unlike most of her stories, focuses on characters involved in the radical and patriotic movement of the times. It is set in Shanghai and Hong during the second Sino-Chinese War. Radical Cantonese students plot to assassinate Mr. Yee, the head of intelligence in Wang Ching-wei’s government, a real historical figure who formed a collaborationist government with the Japanese occupying forces in Nanking between the years of 1940 and 1944. 

At first the students planned to assassinate Mr. Yee in Hong Kong but their plans were thwarted as Mr. Yee and his family unexpectedly returned to the mainland. The students were going to abandon their plans due to a lack of funds and no chance of getting close to Mr. Yee again. This is also when the female conspirators denounce Chia-chih as being a whore for having sexual relations with Liang Jun-shung, also a student conspirator who trained Chia-chih in the art of seduction. However, Mr. Wu, a member of the underground resistance against Wang Chie-wei’s government, offers to sponsor the student’s plans in Shanghai. 

Wang Chia-chih is a student actress who is assigned the role of Mai Tai-tai, he wife of a fictional Hong Kong businessman named Mr. Mai who was made bankrupt after the attack on Pearl Harbor and the fall of Hong Kong. It is Chia-chih's task to seduce Mr Yee and lead him to his final demise. After the loss of Mr. Mai’s business, Mai Tai-tai decides to do a bit of smuggling herself and takes some luxury items to sell in Shanghai where she is soon introduced to Mr. Yee’s wife. 

Chia-chih’s becomes a member of Yee Taitai’s mahjong circle and has a secret affair with Mr. Yee. On the day of Mr Yee’s assassination attempt, Chia-chih has a change of heart and tells Mr. Yee to run.

The story was also made into a feature length film in 2007 and was directed by Ang Lee, who also writes an Afterword in the book. The character of Chia-chih is believed to be based on the real-life spy named Zheng Pingru, who gathered intelligence on the Japanese Occupying forces and attempted to assassinate Ding Mocun, the security chief of the Wang Ching-wei government. 

As Lust, Caution is a novella, the story is fast-paced and some of the supporting characters are not fully developed. As soon as they are introduced, they are never heard from again. Also lacking is the backstory to Chia-chih’s affair with Liang Jun-shung.The act of betrayal to the student conspirators leaves the reader baffled. Has she fallen in love with Mr. Yee? Does she believe that his feelings for her are genuine as well?

In the end, it is still up to the reader to decide why Chia-chih did what she did as Mr Yee escapes and the students, including Chia-chih, are captured and are all put to death. After the execution, Mr Yee realizes that he did love Chia-chih but did what he thought he must do to prevent any rumors spreading, and thus it can be said of their romance, “In war, there are no winners, but all are losers”. ~Ernie Hoyt