(CFP)

Liu Xinwu, a famous Chinese writer, said recently he has written a new ending for Chinese literary masterpiece A Dream of the Red Mansions by Qing Dynasty writer Cao Xueqin (1724-1764), and will publish his work in April this year.

Liu, considered an expert on the classic work, holds Cao completed work on A Dream of the Red Mansions, but only the first 80 chapters have been passed down. There have been various versions of the ending to the classic written over the years.

Liu said his ending took seven years to finish and has been added to his own take on the great novel. But his actions have aroused much discussion on whether modern writers are able to convey well the essence of the ancient classic. Liu, 69, began publishing in 1958. His short novel Class Adviser was a sensation when first published in 1977.