Qin Xianglian

During the Song dynasty, Chen Shimei, a poor scholar, endured ten years of hard study and countless hardships. At last, one essay sent him soaring to success: he placed first in the imperial examinations and became the top scholar. Overnight, he rose to prominence, showered in honors and favor, and was even granted a princess’s hand in marriage. He was the talk of the whole city. Surely, he should have stood by his long-suffering wife, Qin Xianglian, shared his bright future with her, honored his parents, and raised their children. But once fame and fortune were in his grasp, his old vows vanished in an instant. He turned heartless, denied his wife and children in public, and even secretly plotted to kill them to protect his position and good name. Clad in plain clothes and straw sandals, Qin Xianglian carried her grief and anger as she led her son and daughter across mountains and rivers, traveling a thousand miles to find her husband and demand justice. Instead, she was met with cruel words from a faithless man and a plot to silence her. Han Qi, once Chen Shimei’s trusted henchman, was ordered to murder them. His blade flashed, but at the last moment, his conscience and sense of justice stirred. Overcome with remorse, he was willing to pay with his life if only he could spare this mother and her children. Xianglian wept in anguish, but she did not give in. Taking her children by the hand, she went straight to the gates of Bianliang and beat the grievance drum. Its thunderous sound shook the capital. She would expose this faithless, unfeeling man before the emperor himself! Beneath his black official hat, the stern-faced Bao Zheng sat impassively in court, his eyes sharp as lightning. Known as the “Clear-Sky Bao,” he now faced no ordinary commoner, but an imperial relative and an honored prince consort. Threats and bribes came one after another, and the officials fell silent. Yet Bao Zheng’s gaze remained cold as frost, and his voice rang out like thunder: “When a prince breaks the law, he is guilty just like any commoner!” The three hearings laid the evidence bare. Layer after layer of lies was stripped away, until the once-proud top scholar, now honored prince consort, crumbled completely before the witnesses and proof, exposed as a faithless husband reviled by all. In the imperial court, the evidence was conclusive: no mercy, he must die!