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Jia Pingwa's fiction has both national and cosmopolitan significance, the best expressions of which are found in particular in Fei Du (Ruined City) and Qin Qiang (Shaanxi Opera). The companion works not only vividly represent dramatic transformations of life in China in distinct localities but also allegorically explore intercommunity as an issue for humans who either stick to or flee tradition when faced with modernization. The predicament of men of letters in their choice of tradition or modernity in Ruined City, the crisis pertaining to local culture in Shaanxi Opera both reflect the anxiety of the Chinese in a turbulent period of economic reform. Gloomy and pessimistic in tone and in narrative structures, the novels of Jia Pingwa nevertheless present some hope for a better life. Keywords: Jia Pingwa / Fei Du (Ruined City) / Qin Qiang (Shaanxi Opera) / tradition / modernity / cosmopolitanism, In China, Jia Pingwa (1952-) is considered a 'bloody-genius' writer displaying an utmost rebelliousness and an innovative spirit. He has exerted an extensive influence, and can boast of being one [...]