** The Liuhua Brook

The play focuses on the tragic fates of four women in four generations of a large feudal family at the end of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

The plot revolves around Qiuhua who suffers from the harsh and cruel treatment of her mother-in-law Donghua.

When Qiuhua gives birth to a daughter, Donghua feels so unhappy that she abandons the little girl in the mountains and tells Qiuhua her daughter is dead. Meanwhile, the cold mother-in-law gets a boy to take the place of the poor girl and orders Qiuhua to bring him up as the male heir of the family.

Bitter days come to an end at long last when Qiuhua herself becomes a mother-in-law. Her "son," a young revolutionary, brings his wife Chunhua into the closely guarded feudal family, along with new ideas from the modern world.

The young Chunhua, who could not bear the torture of life in the feudal family, refuses to show obedience to Santaipo, Donghua's mother-in-law and the head of the family.

Recalling her bitter experience, Qiuhua protects her from Santaipo's harshness.

Chunhua later dies during childbirth in the arms of Qiuhua. Just before her death, Qiuhua finds that her daughter-in-law is actually her long-lost daughter.

Bao Chaozan, a veteran playwright from Zhejiang Province, shows great concern about the fate of Chinese women, and has written several stories on this theme.