元朝对外战争中的吴承恩与西游记的创作之旅
吴承恩，高甸吴氏之称，字汝忠，号射阳山人。出生于明朝时期的汉族家庭，在淮安府山阳县（今淮安市淮安区）长大，其祖籍为安徽。作为一位才子，他对神话故事有着浓厚的兴趣，并且在科举考试中屡遭挫折，但他并未放弃学问，而是选择闭门著述。
他的代表作《西游记》以其独特的笔法和深刻的人物塑造而闻名于世。此外，他还有其他两部重要作品《射阳集》和《春秋列传序》。然而，由于当时社会的原因，《西游记》的作者署名被省略，只有后来的清代学者吴玉搢在《山阳志遗》中首先提出该书是由吴承恩所著。
Wu Cheng'en, also known as the High Hills Wu family, was a scholar and writer who lived during the Ming Dynasty. His birthplace was in Wujin County (now Wujin District), Changzhou City, Jiangsu Province. He came from a Han Chinese family and had his ancestral home in Anhui Province. As a young man, he was fond of reading classical works and mythology stories.
Despite facing many challenges in his life, including failing to pass the imperial examinations multiple times, Wu continued to pursue his passion for writing. In 1566 AD (during the reign of Emperor Jiajing), he became an official in Longxing County, Zhejiang Province.
In his later years, Wu gave up on pursuing an official career and dedicated himself to writing full-time. It is said that he spent most of his time at Mount Jingting Tea House where he wrote some of his most famous works.
Today, there are several places dedicated to honoring Wu's legacy such as the Wujing Tea House Museum located on Mount Jingting where visitors can see a statue of him sitting with books around him symbolizing how much he loved reading and learning throughout his life.
Wu Cheng'en is often mentioned alongside other four great writers from the Ming-Qing period: Xueqing Cao (author of "Dreams" or "The Story of Stone"), Ling Mengchu (author of "Sheng Shi Bao Jian" or "The True Records"), Li Ruzhen (author of "Flowers in the Mirror", another name for this work is "Journey to The West"), Wen Zhengming (a calligrapher)
