One of the four intriguing cases of the Qing Dynasty,

The Scholar and the Serving Maid" is known to almost

every household in China. It has been presented for over a

hundred years in many forms on stage, and recently, on TV.

The scholar Yang Naiwu and the serving maid known as

Little Cabbage had been tried by over a hundred officials

from the county level up to the imperial court until the

Empress Dowager Cixi redressed their grievances. But

feudal ethics still kept the two lovers apart for life.

While writing the book, the author read through all the

files on the case from the Qing-dynasty Board of Punish-

ments. He also read the reports in the Shanghai Daily and

an article written by Yang Naiwu's daughter. He also enlist-

ed the help of the great great grandson of Yang Naiwu.

Based on all this material he reproduced the images of the

lovers against a background of the dark Qing-dynasty

official scene.