Zhao the Orphan (Chinese/English Edition) (Chinese Edition)

The drama Zhao the Orphan by Ji Junxiang (also known as Ji Tianxiang) is a tragedy steeped in Chinese folklore. The plot is a somewhat simplified version of a tale that dates as far back as in the Zuo Zhuan, and was written over 2, 000 years ago. Other classic works, such as Sima. Qian's Records of the Historian, and the New Annals and Garden of Tales of Liu Xiang, also contain versions of the same story. The details contained in these works laid the foundation for the plot of the drama. The script of the drama has considerably altered the historical content of the story: for instance, the period has been shifted from the reign of Duke Jing of the State of Jin to that of Duke Ling; instead of Zhao the Orphan concealing himself in the palace, Cheng Ying smuggles him out in a medicine box; the boy does not grow up deep in the mountains, but in the home of his adoptive father Tu' an Gu; Han Jue does not ask for an estate for Zhao the Orphan, but dies a righteous death to get Cheng Ying expelled from the palace; and as for the retainers of the Zhao family, Cheng Ying and Gongsun Chujiu, the former is transformed into a humble physician who is an intimate of the Zhao family and the latter into a fellow court official of Zhao Dun who retires to live as a hermit. These changes serve to render the clashes and antagonisms of the play sharper and more vivid, and strengthen the dramatic impact.