Gu Meng

This film (drama)Also known as故梦，is aMainland ChinaProducerbeauty live，At2009Released in year 。The dialogue language isMandarin Chinese，Current Douban rating8.4(For reference only)。

From the life experiences of Lu Tian'en, we see a picture of the historical changes in China over nearly a century. In 1904, he was born in a prominent royal family in Beijing; his grandmother, Madame Lu, was a princess, his deceased grandfather was a nephew of Empress Dowager Cixi, and his maternal grandfather was a Mongolian prince. This distinguished family background made him bear an unusual destiny from birth; being the only child over several generations and the family's treasure led to excessive care and restrictions, making him a caged bird in luxury, unable and unwilling to spread his wings. At the age of eight, the political situation changed dramatically with the establishment of the Republic of China and the abdication of the Qing Emperor, which deeply affected the Lu family; their prominence vanished, and the identity of royal relatives disappeared, resulting in his father Lu Zhengbo, who had originally served in the court, becoming idle at home, spending time studying calligraphy and antiques, while Madame Lu immersed herself in dreams of past prosperity, continuing to visit the palace regularly to pay respects to the abdicated Emperor Puyi and the imperial concubines, making this her life's focus; his mother, Mrs. Lu, managed household affairs with a strict demeanor, mirroring Madame Lu's personality and style. Young Lu Tian'en unknowingly became a misfit during the transition between the old and new eras—an era of great change, where the entire living environment became disordered; all previous plans became inapplicable, and life lost its direction, leading to his feelings of drift and emptiness, lacking ideals and a will to strive. In 1921, at his grandmother's command, he married his cousin Lingzhi, but there were no feelings between them; he met the Peking opera singer Shui Piaoping outside, composing a love song. However, Shui Piaoping fell ill with tuberculosis and deteriorated, coinciding with Lingzhi’s difficult childbirth, and both died on the same day. Shui Piaoping's death caused Lu Tian'en deep sorrow, while Lingzhi's death cast a significant shadow over the Lu family, further compromising Madame Lu’s health. At that time, Puyi married and wanted to achieve something after marriage, specifically selecting Zheng Xiaoxu, Luo Zhenyu, Wang Guowei, and others for official positions, working alongside the existing "Imperial Teacher" Chen Baochen; Lu Tian'en's maternal grandfather and uncles, who were enthusiastic about the restoration, felt opportunities had arisen and became active; Princess Duankang signaled Puyi to give Lu Tian'en a chance to serve in the palace; of course, this pleased Madame Lu, while Mrs. Lu hoped her son could secure an official position to revitalize the family, but unexpectedly, Lu Zhengbo, having experienced the late Qing officialdom, firmly opposed this; a serious conflict arose between mother and son, husband and wife, and ultimately, they followed Lu Zhengbo's advice to politely decline the princess's goodwill. The Lu family continued to live a life of "eating the mountains bare," while Lu Tian'en remained idle and disheartened, finding no outlet for his sorrows. One day, his childhood wet nurse Qin Zhushe visited with her daughter Qin Yansheng, bringing him a turning point. Coming from humble beginnings yet striving for advancement, Qin Yansheng worked hard to study in a difficult environment, graduated from a normal school, and began teaching at a primary school; full of ideals, she was preparing to come to Beijing to continue her education and then study in Europe. Lu Tian'en recognized for the first time a girl completely different from those around him, and he developed an admiration for her intellectual beauty, passionately pursuing her; although Qin Yansheng was attracted to the historical sense and cultural atmosphere of the Lu family, she was not fond of his lifestyle. The two gradually fell in love. However, the outside world was in dire straits—the political situation of the Republic was chaotic, warlords rampant, and Feng Yuxiang, with a heavy army, suddenly set his sights on Puyi, forcefully pressuring him to leave the Forbidden City; Puyi left in a hasty and embarrassing manner, without a place to reside, temporarily living in his father Zai Feng's residence—upon hearing this news, Madame Lu became anxious, worsening her health. Qin Yansheng, who inadvertently revealed this news, felt guilty and proactively proposed marriage to cheer up Madame Lu. However, their family backgrounds, life views, cultural levels, living habits, and aspirations for the future were completely different, making their interactions very painful; during the first year of marriage, Qin Yansheng endured greatly; she did not conceive, and Madame Lu eventually succumbed to her illness; a hundred days after the funeral, Qin Yansheng firmly demanded a divorce; she left the Lu family to continue her studies. In 1932, Puyi went to Northeast China to establish the "Manchukuo," and many former Qing nobles flocked there to follow him; Lu Tian'en's maternal grandfather and uncles responded from Mongolia; but Lu Zhengbo decided to continue living in seclusion and, deeply touched by the times, developed a wish to devote himself to writing a modern history of China, avoiding the political whirlpool to prevent coercion or assassination, and chose to relocate the entire family south. After settling in Shanghai, Lu Tian'en felt he was no longer young and considered finding a job; however, his personal traits were out of sync with the new era and society, making it difficult to find suitable work; thus, he continued to lead a life of idleness. One day, he was wandering around, watching a performance by a newly arrived Shaoxing opera troupe featuring Xiao Yunxian in "Panfu Suofu." Having learned Shanghainese, he was instantly captivated. Xiao Yunxian was illiterate but gentle and lovely; they fell in love, and he contemplated marrying a third time. However, he soon met Wang Lianjun, which complicated his affections. Wang Lianjun was the sister of renowned doctor Wang Hua, assisting him in treating Mrs. Lu’s mental illness caused by years of accumulated stress; she was attractive and elegant, meticulous, and good at caring for patients. Having lost her mother in childhood, she developed a maternal affection for Mrs. Lu, treating her as her own mother and thus dedicated herself to her care, resulting in significant improvement in Mrs. Lu's condition. The entire Lu family favored Wang Lianjun, considering her the best choice for a young mistress; Lu Tian'en also fell in love with her but was still attached to Xiao Yunxian. Eventually, he opted for a compromise, marrying Wang Lianjun and taking Xiao Yunxian as a concubine. Wang Lianjun was initially unaware, learning about Xiao Yunxian only after marriage; her first thought was to divorce, but practically achieving this was challenging, so she had to endure; soon, she discovered that the famous writer Qin Yan, with whom she had formed a friendship before marriage, was actually Lu Tian'en's ex-wife Qin Yansheng. After completing her studies abroad, Qin Yansheng returned to China, taught in Shanghai, and engaged in writing, publishing many well-received works, achieving career success while remaining single; she coincidentally met Wang Lianjun and reunited with Lu Tian'en, feeling as if fate was toying with them. Lu Tian'en still harbored feelings for Qin Yansheng, making the already complicated three-way marriage a "four-corner problem," increasingly complex and harder to untangle. In 1937, Japan invaded China; that same year, Shanghai fell; Qin Yansheng was assassinated for calling for national resistance, severely wounded, and Wang Lianjun worked tirelessly to save her. After recovering, Qin Yansheng escaped Shanghai, losing contact with Lu Tian'en and Wang Lianjun. Misfortune followed in quick succession; the Japanese forces learned of Lu Zhengbo's relationship with the Qing court, demanding he serve as a puppet official. Refusing to comply, and facing pressure, he committed suicide by jumping from a building; Xiao Yunxian witnessed the tragic scene and immediately had a miscarriage, while Mrs. Lu suffered a mental breakdown, leaving Lu Tian'en frightened and helpless, with the whole family relying on Wang Lianjun for support. Soon, Mrs. Lu passed away, and the Lu household became even more desolate. After the victory in the war of resistance, Japan surrendered, and "Manchukuo" collapsed amid another great upheaval of the times; the Lu family again faced the challenges of historical change. In 1949, fearing another war, Lu Tian'en decided to migrate to Taiwan, thinking it would only be a temporary escape from the conflict, but unexpectedly, he stayed for several decades. Upon arriving in Taiwan, he ran out of funds carried with him and had to find a job to support his family, working on a ship, which greatly changed his life; he developed a sense of fulfillment and responsibility through work, also beginning to gain confidence in himself, with his personality gradually becoming stronger. However, new changes occurred in his family: Xiao Yunxian encountered a former opera singer from Shanghai, rekindling emotions from their shared past, and resumed performing, going out every day to sing; this lifestyle significantly disrupted their family life, and friends of Xiao Yunxian often visited, creating a discordant atmosphere; eventually, Xiao Yunxian had to move out and rent a separate place. When Lu Tian'en returned home, he mistakenly believed that Wang Lianjun had driven away Xiao Yunxian, and in a fit of anger, he spoke harshly. Wang Lianjun, furious, brought up divorce again; when Lu Tian'en realized he had wronged Wang Lianjun and was pushed into emotional turmoil by her perfectionism and desire to leave, he exhibited a rebellious side he had never shown before, forcibly bringing Wang Lianjun's maid, Xiao Xi, to his bed, resulting in her pregnancy. Xiao Xi, unwilling to accept this unfortunate fate, was filled with resentment but calmed down after hearing a monk’s teachings at a temple, ultimately choosing to shave her head and become a nun after giving birth to a daughter, escaping the mundane affairs of love and hatred. Wang Lianjun, however, could not escape the mundane; she had to care for this innocent child, and through personally raising her, developed feelings for the baby. Lu Tian'en, feeling guilty, found his emotions towards the child complex; but when naming her, he thought of his father and the child's bloodline, thus naming her "Haitang" to commemorate Lu Zhengbo—Lu Zhengbo once said he dreamed of the bright snow in front of the Forbidden City, where the begonia flowers were in full bloom, and the image of "Haitang" represented the ideal and persistence deep within Lu Zhengbo's heart. Lu Haitang grew day by day under Wang Lianjun's careful nurturing, and Lu Tian'en's character also grew over time; as he found fulfillment in work, he gained a sense of accomplishment and direction for life; with a daughter, he found hope and a sense of purpose, everything became meaningful, and he was no longer a coward who shrank from everything. Chen Shaobai, Wang Lianjun’s brother-in-law, missed his family and secretly returned to Shanghai from Japan, bravely shouldering responsibilities and explaining things to Chen Shaobai; Xiao Yunxian and her adopted son both passed away, and he bore this pain; Wang Lianjun developed diabetes in middle age, with her health deteriorating, and he took care of her until her death; he regretted not being a good son or husband, only striving to be a good father to make amends, thus he took great pains researching and learning about Haitang's education, hoping to provide her with an ideal growing environment and perfect educational methods. Years later, a long-hidden dream came true: relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait improved, and the Taiwanese authorities changed their policies, opening the way for Taiwanese residents to visit the mainland; unfortunately, he was aging, ill, and unable to move, including his wish to return home, which had to be entrusted to Lu Haitang. As an adult, Lu Haitang became a historical novelist, and her innate sense of mission drove her to write, aspiring to complete the unfinished works of her grandfather while gradually fulfilling her parents' wish to return to their homeland. In 1996, Lu Haitang flew across the Strait, returning to Beijing, overcoming numerous difficulties to find her parents' former residence and the living Qin Yansheng. In 2004, she began writing this work, which accumulated the wishes of three generations...