One Dream Thousands of Years

The Chinese people call their best friend "Zhi Yin (知音)“. ”Zhi (知)", when used as a verb, means know/understand. "Yin (音)" is a noun meaning music/sound/voice. The literal interpretation of your "Zhi Yin" or best friend is hence somebody who gets your music. It probably seems a little odd but it will become intuitive after we tell you the story. Bo Ya and Zi Qi The story happened in around 300 B.C. Bo Ya (伯牙), a very famous composer and musician at the time, enjoyed playing his "qin (琴)*" in the nature. One cool summer day, Bo Ya performed at his favorite spot in the valley with a stream of the creek winding around. After a cup of wine, he started with the first movement, so deep and profound. "Ode to the mountains!", Zi Qi (子期), a nearby woodcutter heard the music and uttered, ”for its majestic rise!" Delighted, Bo Ya moved on to the second movement which began very softly with a barcarolle-like melody, so peaceful and e...

1700 years ago in China, education was a privilege to men. Zhu Yingtai, a young girl from a wealthy family in Zhejiang Province, longed for knowledge and convinced her family to allow her to pursue education disguised as a man. She went to a private school in Hangzhou where she met Liang Shanbo, a young man who later became her roommate and the very best friend. For three years, they studied together and Zhu gradually fell in love with Liang. However, as nerdy as he is, Liang never suspected for once that Zhu was indeed a woman.  When Zhu turned 18, her family abruptly called her back and arranged her marriage to Ma Wencai, a man from another wealthy family in the nearby village. Despite their unwillingness to separate, Liang saw Zhu off at the Duan Bridge ("Duan" means broken in Chinese) on the West Lake in Hangzhou. Zhu hinted Liang that she was actually a woman but how could Liang get it given that no woman at that time were allowed to attend school. ...