Abstract
Cheng Xiaoqing (1893-1976)was known as the most representative local writer of detective fiction in Early Republican China, and his works are well recognized by Chinese critics. The commendation for Cheng's works was based on a nationalist perspective, an approach that has been further developed into a major viewpoint for related research. However, this paper takes a different approach to Cheng's works and aims to explore how they transformed the traditional Chinese narrative style according to the traits of genre. Moreover, from the perspective of Shanghai urban space, it contrasts Cheng's works on the urban experience with those by Chinese Neo-Sensationalist writers to find out the different presentations of life in the Concession Zone. ＂Ballroom＂ is a significant material space that demonstrates the modernity of Shanghai in the 1930s and was the core scene of most novels by Mu Shiying (1912-1940),a Neo-Sensationalist writer. In the writings of most Shanghai style novelists, enchanting dancers at ballrooms may be considered synonymous with Shanghai. This paper discusses Cheng's masterpieces ＂Evil shadows at the ballroom＂ and ＂Permanent home of the dancing queen＂ of the Huo Sang detective series to explore how Cheng portrayed ballrooms and dancers; how readers would interpret the living and dead bodies of the dancers; and what scenes of Shanghai city and its crime issues were reflected. It also discusses the substantial social and cultural meanings in his works. Through these means, Cheng founded a literary style that differed from Western detective fiction.