小说描绘了一个田园诗式的乡村乌托邦。美丽聪慧、宽厚仁爱的慧娘娘，和坚韧刚毅、豪放仗义的余公公是邻居，两人一辈子彼此看重，相知相惜却毫无半点觊觎逾矩之心。小说以醇厚优美的乡土语言和鲜活动人的日常细节，描述了余公公和慧娘娘之间不是爱情却高于爱情的深沉情感以及以他们为代表的一系列乡村人物的人生际遇。充满灵性的山水风物，含蓄敦厚的情感方式，质朴纯真的人情人性，重义轻利的乡村伦理，呈现出一种独特的审美意境，也表现出作者对乡村历史变迁的深刻洞察与审视。|The book is a collection of six novellas by Wang Yuewen which revolves around the theme of rural life. Water Village creates a utopia—the kind of classic village scene that was often evoked in Classical Chinese pastoral poetry. In this utopia live two lifelong friends—the wise and beautiful Grandma Hui, as generous as she is kind; and her close friend, the fair and tough Grandpa Yu, upstanding pillar of local society. The friendship and intimacy they share run deep, but their hearts are pure—they would never cross the forbidden line between men and women.

This is a book composed from the author's profound insight into the history of rural life and the epochal changes it has undergone.