Qianlong Monument Memories

With mountains and rivers beneath his feet and the ninefold heavens above his head, he took in the four seas and roamed the three great rivers. Green leaves sprouted from the branches, and spring breezes blew through the red walls. He smelled the sweet fragrance of flowers and heard handsome birds singing. With spring in full bloom, Emperor Qianlong, disguised in commoner's clothes, boarded a boat and traveled south along the Grand Canal from Beijing to Hangzhou, admiring the scenery and composing poems along the way, thoroughly enjoying himself.

One day, he saw a young woman carrying water by the river. Slender as a willow, graceful as bamboo, and strikingly beautiful, she sprang into action to rescue a child who had fallen into the water. His admiration blossomed, and he went ashore to find her. His efforts paid off when he spotted her in a small shop. The girl was only seventeen. Her name was Ma Qin, and she ran the shop with her widowed sister-in-law. While they drank tea, Ma Qin noticed the man's strange gaze and suspected he was up to no good, so she tried to drive him away. But she was no match for him in either words or martial arts, and could only put up with him. Over time, however, she learned he meant no harm and was passionate by nature. She also learned that he was from the capital and was known as Fourth Master. She asked him to help clear her name, and her grievances were indeed avenged. To repay his kindness, and knowing he loved her, she gave herself to him body and soul.

Little did she know disaster was about to strike. Fourth Master was kidnapped and held for ransom, his life hanging by a thread. To find and save him, Ma Qin ventured into the bandits' lair at night, where she was brutally assaulted. After paying a hefty ransom to free him, Qianlong was so furious that he wiped out the kidnappers. When he learned that Ma Qin had been attacked, he was grief-stricken and did not eat for a whole day. Unexpectedly, more than twenty years later, they met again in the capital, but times had changed, and neither recognized the other. Before Emperor Qianlong died, unable to suppress the lingering longing in his heart, he summoned Ma Qin, and they finally bared their souls to one another.