Recently, readers in mainland China have discovered that in the book “A General History of China” published by the Qunyan Publishing House, the portrait of Emperor Qianlong was mistakenly paired with that of Emperor Yongzheng. The publishing house has acknowledged the mistake, but stated that they are unable to make revisions due to expired copyright.
This error was brought to light by Chinese netizens who claimed to have spotted a glaring mistake while reading “A General History of China” published by Qunyan Publishing House. On page 447 of the book, there is a mix-up where a portrait of Emperor Yongzheng was incorrectly attributed to Emperor Qianlong, prompting calls for a swift correction from the publishing house.
According to reports from “Da Wan News,” public information indicates that the figure in the portrait is indeed Emperor Yongzheng, a fact also supported by the content displayed on the official website of the Palace Museum. This mistake appeared in the 2016 edition of Lv Simian’s “A General History of China” published by Qunyan Publishing House.
The news quickly sparked discussions and debates on social media platforms.
Netizens commented, “Those compiling the general history can’t even tell Yongzheng and Qianlong apart?” “Fortunately, it’s not widely circulated, but such a simple mistake could potentially affect the younger generation’s understanding of history.” “When reading books, especially history books, one must be discerning about the publisher and author.” “Although I don’t have strong feelings about the Qing Dynasty, I feel that our history and culture are gradually being invaded and subverted; it may start as a joke, but eventually, it could deeply influence the younger generation’s perception. How can we then provide them with the correct information?”
In response to the issue, on April 17, Qunyan Publishing House informed “Da Wan News” that after verification, it was confirmed that the image was wrongly attributed, and that the copyright has already expired.
Public records show that Qunyan Publishing House was established in 1989 and is supervised and organized by the Central Committee of the China Democratic National Construction Association. The company primarily publishes books on science, education, academic research, historical documents, biographies, memoirs, as well as textbooks and academic works for various levels of the Democratic National Construction Association and scholars worldwide.