This study presents the literary tales from the Southern Dynasties' Chih-kuai to demonstrate the doublet of the homo- and heterogeneity of collective memory and the compilers' sensibilities. Han Chinese' narrating of the ethnic adversaries, particularly of the Mu-jung Hsien-pei, differs among the authors from the Southern dynasties and those from the Northern. A comparison of what is spoken and what is not indicates not only the contention among the Hu tribes, but also between the Han Chinese and the Hu peoples. Narration of the tribal, ethnic rivalries and political crises betrays the structure of feelings of the Southern dynasties' people, and exposes their intended positioning of themselves in the wider, contemporary world. Studies of ethnic interaction show that during initial encounters, attention is generally directed at the physical characteristics and the material culture of the other party. From the conflict between different political forces to the eventual division of the North and the South, the Han Chinese_despite the course from repeated military defeat, to resurgence, to confrontational resistance_always maintained cultural supremacy and a defensive stance. Examination of the Hsien-pei narratives and the Chih-kuai tales, which were compiled during the period of disintegration, reveals an emotional shift from hostility, anxiety, and reticence, to tolerance in various degrees, admitting the break-up of sovereignty. Nonetheless, the competition of the rightful claim to the crown persists among the powers: evidence of which can be found in a careful analysis of the weighting of elements in narratives pertaining to Han and non-Han leaders and political fortunes. On the other hand, notwithstanding Mu-jung Hsien-pei's success in establishing the first Hsien-pei sovereignty, that particular tribe has little presence in the Chih-kuai literature. Analysis of such silencing unveils a truer and more faceted imagination of the exotic and the structure of feelings in the Southern dynasties.