“FOR LIFE OR FOR DEATH”
The Story
This is a story that takes place in 1520s of the Ming Dynasty when it has become an era of darkness.
There live in the Hsien of Heng-san a lovely couple, Chang King-seng and Wang Yu-huan who are engaged to be married. One day the pair is forced to hide in a nearby pavillion from a Summer thenderstorm, when Yu-huan kneels down to pray for the early victory of his father who is out of the country fighting the invaders, in order that her wedding to Chang can be realized earlier.
Yu-huan’s beauty attracts the attention of Hoe San-lang, son of an. army commander Hoe, who happens to ride by with his group of henchmen. The young Hoe tries to tease Yu-huan and Chang is hopelessly outnumbered unable to offer any resistance. In an enauing chase, the young Hoe falls from a cliff to his death.
Commander Hoe is greatly infuriated and orders the local Magistrate Hwang Pah-hsian, to have Yu-huan arrested and hanged in order to make up for the death of his son's bitter end. Hwang however knows that it was definitely not Yu-huan's fault, and his conscience just will not allow him to break up the love and romance between Yu-huan and Chang. Especially when Hwang later learns that Yu-huan actually is the daughter of his vowed brother Wang Chi-chian. And so he orders for the instant release of Yu-huan, while sending his aged mother and lovely daughter back to the countryside, remaining only to face the music from the army commander. For the sake of her righteous father and also for the people, Hwang's daughter Shiu-lan offers to hang for Yu-Luan. Hwang’s adopted daughter Chiu Ping also makes a similar offer on the ground that she is an orphan anyway. By now Yu-huan herself has returned and wanting to be hanged in order to spare the other two girls’ lives. The three lovely girls now fight to die for a good cause. The only solution is to draw lots: one out of the three will hang. Shiu-lan gets it, and she is escorted to the open square for the execution.
By this time Wang Chi-chian has arrived and at first he misunderstands that his bosom friend Hwang is going to hang his daughter. Actually Yu- huan's conscience just will not allow her to be substituted by Shiu-lan who is, after all, entirely innocent. When the “fake” is uncovered, Commander Hoe is hopping mad and orders for the mass arrests of all concerned, including the magistrate Hwang.
Another day has been set for the mass execution. Luckily the Emperor's Inspector General is on a tour of duty in the neighbouring provinces, and he arrives in time to stop the unjustified sentences imposed on the innocent people by Commander Hoe. In ordering the release of all the wrongly imprisoned people, the Inspector General also orders for a just and appropriate penalty meted against Commander Hoe.
Chang and Yu-huan are finally reunited and happily married.
——THE END——