Why were three of the "Seven Great Classics" changed to "Four Great Classics" deleted?

Answer 1

In the past, there were seven famous works in the history of Chinese literature, namely Dream of the Red Chamber, Journey to the West, Water Margins, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Scholars, and Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. However, with the passage of time, this saying was gradually forgotten by people. In the end, only four works, Dream of the Red Chamber, Journey to the West, Water Margins, and Romance of the Three Kingdoms, remained as classics in the history of Chinese literature.

Among them, the Water Margins and Romance of the Three Kingdoms had undergone great changes in the later historical development and became legends in history. The Scholars was criticized for its overly pessimistic and negative remarks. In addition, its plot was more complicated and not suitable for reading as a novel. Thus, The Scholars was gradually deleted. As for 'Dream of the Red Chamber', because the plot of the novel was too complicated, it needed more in-depth research to understand, so it became a classic masterpiece in the history of Chinese literature. It was also adapted into many art forms such as opera, movies, and television dramas.