Da Xiang, a girl whose father died early, was deceived and sold to a brothel, and her desperate mother chose to commit suicide. Now a prostitute, she faces a tortuous life.
Fifty years of modern Chinese history (1900-1950), including wars, revolutions and corrupt politics, as seen through the life and times of a simple Beijing policeman and his family.
Diaochan (aka Diau Charn and Sable Cicada), one of the Four Beauties of China, is supposed to be so stunningly lovely that the moon was shamed to hide behind clouds. Despite being the only Beauty among the four who is not a real historical figure but one conjured by storytelling imagination and embellished by public fascination, her story was nonetheless incorporated by author Luo Guangzhong into his popular and influential novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Her tale is one of Machiavellian intrigue, in which she schemes with her godfather Wang Yun to restore moral order to the land, sowing discord between the corrupt Minister Dong Zhuo and his adopted son Lu Bu, a man of martial and military prowess.
