Others see its central message, that Chinese people must learn from the wolves of the Inner Mongolian steppes, as a guide to business tactics. Its fans in the army see military strategy, while others believe it is an ecological blueprint.

With nearly 400 pages of stories about wolves interspersed with arcane history lessons about Mongolian gods and Chinese dynasties, it is not an obvious bestseller. Yet Wolf Totem is the must-read book in China these days. Officially, 700,000 copies have been sold. However, it is estimated that more than four million pirate copies are in circulation.

The secret of the book’s success remains elusive. Wolf Totem centres on Chen Zhen, who is forced into fighting wolves to protect his life. He adopts a wolf cub and learns about the true nature of the animal, achieving spiritual inspiration from Mongolian religious rituals based around the wolf.

The story of Chen is believed to be based on the experiences of Jiang Rong, the reclusive author of Wolf Totem. A professor of economics at a Beijing university, he wrote the book anonymously, drawing from his life in Inner Mongolia during the 1960s and 1970s.

An Boshun, an editor at Yangtze River Culture Publishing House and a friend of the author, said: “Everyone has wolf characteristics, such as courage. But we’ve lost these feelings in our modern society. After reading this book, many people feel they should be more like wolves.On the surface it’s about wolves, but it’s also about Chinese culture. Many people see a profound meaning in the book. The wolf and the dragon, two sides of Chinese culture.” He was referring to a central idea in the book that China’s “dragon”, or imperial and dictatorial culture, has made the Han people cowardly or — literally — sheepish.

Mr An added: “Before I published this book I invited journalists and literary experts to read it and they all said it wouldn’t sell. They were puzzled, but I always knew it would succeed. The reason is that the theme is freedom, which guarantees success.”

Jiang returned to Beijing in 1978, but decided to write the book only much later, on Mr An’s prompting. It took him six years. The author argues that the wolf’s tactics were adopted by the 13th-century Mongol hordes, led by Genghis Khan.

Mr An said: “Genghis Khan learnt how to ambush from wolves, how to move fast on grass, how to use the weather and geographical advantage.”

“The freedom expressed in this book is very different from the kind you read about in a history book or a law textbook. It’s about our instinct, our nature. You see the courage and the deeds of the wolves, it’s innate.”

Zhou Tao, the critic and author, said: “It is a great book that makes us rethink the philosophy of the nomadic people through the description of the life of the wolves.”

Mr An believes that the book appeals to women because they want their men to be more like wolves, and to MBA students who want to learn more wolfishness in business.

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