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Huang Xiaoyang’s series “Second in Command” the hottest of China’s red-hot “officialdom novels” so named because they bring readers into the rarified the world of Chinese bureaucratic politics.

Officialdom novels reappeared in the late 1970s after Mao’s death. The newer officialdom novels offers not so much criticism as tips on how to get into the game- a testament to China’s growing cultures of careerism. Picture the film Wall Street featuring a happy ending. The China’s middle class has expanded over the past decades; novelists have shifted their focus from critiquing the government to explaining which is actually happening inside. Today’s best selling officialdom novel are not necessarily   aimed of exposing social problems or government corruption. Instead they instruct readers on how best to climb the government ladder.

Indeed “Second in Command” is a kind of handbook for getting ahead- a novelized the Art of War for aspiring bureaucrats. For example it offers tips on how to talk to one’s boss in different situations. Even for government officials these novels offer some of the clearest explanation of China’s notoriously closed off political system. For readers without government connect the books satisfy a craving for a people behind the bamboo certain of high politics.

    黄晓阳的小说《二号首长》是备受推崇的一部中国官场小说，因为它生动地向读者展现了中国官场政治。

    官场小说在1970年代后期毛泽东逝世后重新出现在中国文坛，新一代官场小说批判性少了，多了对职场游戏规则的介绍，这也反应了中国职场文化的兴起。尤其是过去的几十年，中国中产阶级的壮大，使得小说作家从原来的对中国官场的批判转向了解释中国官场内部发生的事情。当今中国畅销官场小说并不着重于揭示社会问题或是官场腐败，相反，这些小说在向读者介绍如何能在官场上“向上爬”。

   《二号首长》确实也是这类官场升职的“指导手册”——以官场斗争艺术化的小说来鼓舞政客。例如，它指导读者在不同的情境下如何和领导交谈。即使对政府公务员来说这些小说也具有指导意义——解释中国官场等级制度。对于那些对官场不太了解的读者来说，它满足了他们探寻中国官场政治秘密的需求。