May the fragrance of locust flowers fill the air

Author: Zou Jingzhi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-05-01
Features: Dramatic ups and downs unfold the legends of heroes and villains, great joys and sorrows depict the sweet and sour, bitter and spicy flavors of life! In the film and television industry, known as "China's screenwriter, poet Zou Jingzhi's long Beijing-flavored novel May Peach Blossom Fragrance—set against the backdrop of the Republic of China, it tells the life story of three men and two women entangled in love and hatred on the ancient antiques street of Liulichang in Beijing. It showcases the colorful people and stories in the old Beijing antiques trade, while also interweaving interesting knowledge about cultural relics. Through the various entanglements between people and objects, the novel presents the taste and demeanor of "people," emphasizing characters and their destinies. Author Zou Jingzhi states that the book fully embodies a humanistic state of "character is destiny," whether tragic or urban, the mindset between people is the most direct thing attached to the antiques. In the mid-1940s, on the Liulichang antiques street in Beiping. The shopkeeper Tong Fengquan was framed by his competitor Shen Songshan for a Northern Song Dynasty official kiln porcelain, and Tong Fengquan took revenge in kind, ultimately leading Shen Songshan to bankruptcy and suicide. Unintentionally seeking revenge, Tong Fengquan was instead subjected to a chain of retributions, his wealth swindled by his associate Er Kui, leaving him destitute and reduced to selling goods on the street. The fallen Tong Fengquan coincidentally met the destitute Manchu relic Fan Wuye and his sister, falling in love with his sister Mo He. To improve his dire situation, Fan Wuye repeatedly used Mo He as leverage, forcing Tong Fengquan to restore a broken old painting for profit. Tong Fengquan firmly refused. While selling goods on the street, he met Ru Er Nainai, who had stolen two boxes of cultural relics from the family of the Prince of Rui and escaped. When Tong Fengquan sold the cultural relics for Ru Er Nainai, he offended her relatives, the Suo family, and was imprisoned. Later, he was redeemed by Ru Er Nainai. From this point on, Tong Fengquan became entangled in an unending emotional web with Ru Qiu Lan and Mo He! To prevent Mo He from marrying someone else, Tong Fengquan reluctantly created a fake painting for Fan Wuye and orchestrated a sale to the antique dealer Lan Yi Gui on Liulichang. When the matter was exposed, Lan Yi Gui abandoned his shop and fled, forging a grudge with Tong Fengquan and Fan Wuye. To save Ru Qiu Lan from being beaten by the family of the Prince of Rui, Tong Fengquan was forced to accept the name of an unfaithful husband. Mo He saw this and left, her whereabouts unknown. Lan Yi Gui sought revenge, and Fan Wuye finally went bankrupt and died heroically! Out of pity, Tong Fengquan married Ru Er Nainai, only to be scorned by the petty bourgeoisie! Their married life was full of ups and downs, eventually evolving from indifference to affection. Just as their fortunes began to improve, Tong Fengquan was once again plagued by the international cultural relic dealer Lord Lu, leading to his home being burned down. Ru Er Nainai vanished without a trace. Mo He, who had joined the revolution after the peaceful liberation of Beiping, returned to Liulichang as the head of a working group. For the case of the Bodhisattva Worshiping Buddha Painting from the Longmen Grottoes, Tong Fengquan, Lan Yi Gui, and Mo He once again staged a drama of love, hatred, and emotions—in the end, the pure will be purified, and the muddy will remain muddy; through the vicissitudes of life, in the game of the mortal world, where the heart is full of affection, the path of the heart remains.