My Forbidden City

Author: Yang Zi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-08-01
Features:
The newly released picture book narrative poem My Forbidden City breaks away from the typical fashion reading model, focusing on the vast history and cultural heritage of China, and observes an ancient love story through modern perspectives. The poetic and artistic elements blend perfectly, offering you a striking contrast.
A little ant comes to the Forbidden City to find itself but encounters the tragic love story of its past life.
This book tells the dreamlike journey of a girl belonging to the "floating" generation in the city—during her days of drifting in overseas metropolises, she is always haunted by the same mysterious wedding dream. Upon waking, she seeks the meaning of the dream from Buddha and transforms into an ant, returning to the Forbidden City. After enduring countless hardships, she encounters her fiancé from a past life—the young Emperor Guangxu. The tragic and poignant love story that once unfolded in this old house is played out once again.
She witnesses firsthand the scene of her own murder: after the Eight-Nation Alliance conquered Beijing, the Empress Dowager Cixi hastily fled and drowned her in a well. The girl confirms this is the story of Zhen Fei, but she does not accept such a cycle of reincarnation. With the reflections of her journey through the Forbidden City, she embarks on another quest to find herself.