Author: kevinjamesng

翘楚 #AshesToCrown  is an ancient Chinese Han  Traditional  Clothing drama produced by Youku, co-produced by Damai Entertainment and Yuewen Group, directed by Yang Long , written by Li Min and Xia Mengying , starring Chen Duling and Zhou Yiran (in no particular order, sorted by the first letter of surname) , with Tang Xiaotian as a special guest star, Wang Ruichang as a special guest star, Wang Zhuocheng and Rong Rong as special guests, Zhou Kui and Zhao Qi as special guests, Ma Yue , Yu Yijie and Shen Tai as guest stars, and Wu Shile , Gao Maotong , Zhang Shian , Zhou Ruoling , Han Jing and Wang Yibei as supporting actors …. .

The drama is adapted from Xi Xing ‘s novel ” Chu Hou ” , which tells the story of Chu Chao, the daughter of a general, who is unwilling to become a victim in the power game. She restarts the game, takes the initiative to play the game, and joins hands with Xie Yanlai to break the deadlock in the undercurrents of the court.

Plot Synopsis

Chu Chao ( Chen D uling ), the daughter of a general, discovers that taking the initiative is the only way to change her tragic fate of becoming a sacrifice in Xiao Xun’s power grab. In her tumultuous struggle against fate, she meets Xie Yanlai ( Zhou Yiran ) , the illegitimate son of the Xie family , and her actions illuminate his previously dark and gloomy life, helping him break free from the shackles of destiny. He rises from a lowly soldier in the imperial guards to become a great general, and together they successfully thwart Xiao Xun’s ambitions and plans. On their way to escape the chaos of war, witnessing the suffering of the people, Chu Chao resolutely returns to the city to support the young grandson Xiao Yu in becoming emperor, until he assumes full power. However, Xiao Xun again invites foreign invaders, willing to plunge the people into misery for his lust for power. Chu Chao and Xie Yanlai fight back fiercely, leading their troops in a bloody battle, finally resolving the internal and external threats to the Chu Kingdom. Thus, the Chu Dynasty not only changed its own destiny, but also freed millions of its people from the turbulent fate of war and chaos

After the fate chart is reset, Chu Chao, as the daughter of a general, takes the initiative to change her fate of becoming a sacrifice in the power grab of Xiao Xun, the crown prince of Chu. [5-9]During this process, she met Xie Yanlai ( played by Zhou Yiran ), the illegitimate son of the Xie family. She not only brightened his dark life, but the two also admired each other and gradually developed feelings for each other. Chu Chao helped Xie Yanlai grow from a lowly soldier in the Imperial Guard to a general who protects the country. Together, they successfully stopped Xiao Xun’s ambition and plans. On the way to escape the place of trouble, Chu Chao saw the suffering of the people in the war and resolutely returned to the city to help the young grandson Xiao Yu become emperor. When Xiao Xun invited foreign enemies to invade, Chu Chao and Xie Yanlai led the army to fight to the death and finally relieved the internal and external troubles of the Great Chu Dynasty… . Thus, the Chu Dynasty not only changed its own destiny, but also freed the people of Chu from the turbulent fate of war and chaos…

Chen Duling , who plays Chu Chao, is seen wearing classical costumes and carrying a palace lantern. Under the light and shadow, her image blends classical temperament with the strategic sense required for the role. 

Chu Chao is portrayed as a character of political intrigue, described as “a woman who can manipulate events with her bare hands and devise strategies that defy fate..

Chu Chao, the daughter of a general, took the initiative to change her fate in order to avoid becoming a victim in the power grab by Xiao Xun, the crown prince of Chu. During this process, she met Xie Yanlai , the illegitimate son of the Xie family, who not only brightened his gloomy life but also helped him grow from a lowly soldier in the Imperial Guard to a great general who protects the country. After the two joined hands to stop Xiao Xun’s ambition, Chu Chao, having witnessed the suffering of the people in the war, resolutely returned to the city to help the young grandson Xiao Yu become emperor. When Xiao Xun invited foreign enemies to invade, Chu Chao and Xie Yanlai led their troops to fight to the death, finally relieving the internal and external troubles of the Great Chu. 

In her previous life, she grew up in Yunzhong County in the desert. Dissatisfied with her father’s focus on military affairs, she ran away to the market alone and rescued a young man (actually Xie Yanlai) who was being beaten by a vagrant. As a result, she met and fell in love with Xiao Xun. Despite her father’s objections, she married Xiao Xun and helped him ascend the throne. Two years later, at her birthday banquet, she witnessed her father being falsely accused of treason by Xiao Xun and beheaded on the spot. She was then strangled to death by Xiao Xun. Her resentment did not dissipate after death, and she was reborn three years earlier (in the nineteenth year of Tian Shu) when the emperor bestowed the marriage upon her. After being reborn, she immediately saw through Xiao Xun’s true colors and vowed revenge. Through dialogue with her resentment from her previous life in the mirror, she strengthened her determination to take revenge and began to secretly plot

陈都灵 Chen Duling

Chen Duling, born on October 18, 1993 in Xiamen, Fujian Province, graduated from Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and is a Chinese film and television actress.

In 2013, Chen Duling gained attention for winning the Facejoking “Goddess Ranking” championship. In 2015, her debut film, The Left Ear, was released, marking her official entry into the entertainment industry. She was nominated for the Best New Actress Award at the 24th Shanghai Film Critics’ Awards for the film.  In 2017, her  first TV drama, “Operation Proposal “, was broadcast .  In 2018, she tried ancient costume for the first time in the martial arts drama ” The Legend of Ming Hong “, which received positive reviews and sparked heated discussions. Since 2019, she has been selected for the Film Channel’s “Starry Sea Young Actor Selection Program” for three consecutive years.  In 2021, the tribute film Red Boat was released, in which she played the role of Yang Kaihui.  In 2023, the mythological The Moon Over the Moon ” premiered, and her acting skills were recognized .  In the same year, he won the 2023 Weibo Movie Night Annual Potential Actor Award .  In 2024, the fairy tale film ” The Journey of Flower ” starring him was released in theatres . On November 1, the book-traveling system adventure drama ” Eternal Night Galaxy ” starring him was broadcast.  On March 18, 2025, the TV series ” The Glory ” in which she starred was broadcast;  On March 22, the movie ” The Angry River ” in which he made a special appearance was released. 

Images and visuals are from Weibo also from their respectives.

On July 19^th 2023 , the multilingual website of the Forbidden City Palace Museum- Beijing, China, People’s Republic of Chinawas officially released at the Digital Cultural Tourism Development Forum of the 2023 China Internet Civilization Conference! The website covers five languages: English, French, Russian, Japanese, and Spanish, and will meet the needs of audiences with different languages

The exhibition “Divine Steeds: The World of Horses in the Paintings and Calligraphy of the Palace Museum” will officially open to the public on April 22nd at the Wenhua Hall Painting and Calligraphy Gallery! In Chinese history, horses have been not only an important means of transportation, but also a standard of etiquette and ritual, and the foundation of national defense; the majestic and spirited nature of the horse is a unique symbol of Chinese spirit and culture. From the Tang Dynasty onwards, horse painting became an independent genre, and renowned horse painters throughout history have used their exquisite brushes to praise the horse’s divine and majestic posture, depicting …

What kind of magnificent painting depicting a thousand galloping horses could inspire both Zhu Yuanzhang and Hongli to inscribe it? The scroll “Copy of Wei Yan’s Herding Horses” in

the Palace Museum Shen Horse Exhibition is a rare surviving authentic work by the famous Northern Song Dynasty painter Li Gonglin. Rolling sand dunes and hidden rivers depict 142 herding officials driving 1247 official horses. The horses are well-proportioned and lifelike, perfectly capturing the grand scene of official herding during the prosperous Tang Dynasty.

The Tang Dynasty’s horse administration was the most robust of all dynasties, with the number of official horses exceeding 700,000 at its peak

Today is the last day of the Palace Museum’s special exhibition “Divine Steeds: The World of Horses in the Palace Museum’s Painting and Calligraphy Art” (closing on June 21). The exhibition showcases a thousand-year-old horse culture with 55 precious paintings and calligraphy works from the museum’s collection. Among them, important exhibits such as Li Gonglin’s “Copy of Wei Yan’s Herding Horses” and Zhao Mengfu’s “Horse and Rider” have attracted much attention.

I. Basic Information of the Exhibition

• Exhibition Title: Divine Steeds – The World of Horses in the Paintings and Calligraphy of the Palace Museum
• Venue: Wenhua Hall Painting and Calligraphy Gallery, Palace Museum
• Exhibition period: April 22 to June 21, 2026
• How to visit the exhibition: After booking your Palace Museum ticket through the Palace Museum mini-program, you can visit for free; no separate reservation is required.
• Exhibition Scale: The exhibition features 55 precious calligraphy and painting artifacts related to horses from the museum’s collection, including 20 national first-class cultural relics and 28 artifacts being exhibited for the first time

II. Exhibition Unit Setup

The exhibition is divided into four sections, interpreting horse culture from different perspectives:

III. Highlights of Key Exhibits

• Li Gonglin’s “Copy of Wei Yan’s Herding Horses” scroll : A genuine surviving work by the Northern Song Dynasty painter Li Gonglin, over 4 meters long, depicting 142 herding officials driving 1247 government horses. It is a cultural relic prohibited from being exhibited abroad. The scroll contains inscriptions by Zhu Yuanzhang and Qianlong.
• The Northern Song Dynasty scroll painting “One Hundred Horses” is being exhibited publicly for the first time. It depicts the entire process of raising and tending official horses in the Song Dynasty, including details of “raising monkeys to ward off plague.” It is early pictorial evidence of the “弼马温” (Bima Wen, a low-ranking official in charge of horses) story.
• Zhao Mengfu’s “Horse and Rider” scroll : A representative work of Zhao Mengfu, a master of calligraphy and painting in the Yuan Dynasty. It bears his own inscription in the upper right corner and the seals “Zhao Shi Zi’ang” and others. It also contains colophons from five generations of the Zhao family, making it extremely rare.
• Zhao Mengfu’s “Letter to Ji Zongyuan in Running Script” : This letter from Zhao Mengfu to his in-laws expresses his frustration with the demanding work of managing horse affairs while serving as a Vice Minister of War. The calligraphy retains the archaic and unadorned style characteristic of his early studies of Zhong Yao.
• Lang Shining’s “Kan Hu Liu Tu” scroll : It depicts one of Emperor Qianlong’s most beloved horses, painted in a delicate and realistic style.
• Lang Shining’s “Emperor Qianlong Hunting” scroll : This painting depicts Emperor Qianlong hunting in the Nanyuan Hunting Grounds in the late spring of 1755. It also includes three poems personally inscribed by Emperor Qianlong.
• The scroll “Six Steeds of Zhaoling” by Zhao Lin of the Jin Dynasty is based on the relief sculpture of the Six Steeds of Zhaoling. Each horse is accompanied by an inscription by Zhao Bingwen, which records its name, skin color, battle experience, and number of arrow wounds.
• The Yuan Dynasty painting “Leaving the Stable” by Ren Renfa , created when he was 26, depicts three grooms leading four fine horses out of the stable. Ren Renfa was also a renowned water conservancy expert.
• The scroll painting “Foreign Horsemen” attributed to Hu Gui of the Five Dynasties period depicts Mongolian travelers heading against the wind in autumn and winter. The woman in red is wearing a Mongol “auntie crown,” proving that this painting is not a work from the Five Dynasties period.
• Wen Zhengming’s “Running Script Poem on Wanghu Pavilion” (Fan Page) : Records the reclusive thoughts expressed during a spring outing to the Western Hills outside Beijing.

IV. Practical Tips for Visitors

• The exhibition hall lighting is dim: To protect the silk paintings from light damage, it is recommended to bring a magnifying glass (close-up magnifying glass) for close examination.
• The exhibition hall is quite cold; since constant temperature and humidity are required to protect the artifacts, it is recommended to bring an extra jacket.
• No reservation is required for the exhibition: simply purchase a Palace Museum ticket and proceed to the Hall of Literary Glory after admission. As the exhibition is nearing its closing date, visitor numbers are relatively low

Images and visuals are from – Forbidden City –Palace Museum Beijing- China –People’s Republic of China…..

On July 19^th 2023 , the multilingual website of the Forbidden City Palace Museum- Beijing, China, People’s Republic of Chinawas officially released at the Digital Cultural Tourism Development Forum of the 2023 China Internet Civilization Conference! The website covers five languages: English, French, Russian, Japanese, and Spanish, and will meet the needs of audiences with different languages.

See the “world” inside and outside the Forbidden City in Hong Kong!

[New Exhibition at the Hong Kong Palace Museum Opens] The exhibition “The Forbidden City Through the World: Cultural Exchange and Mutual Learning Between China and Foreign Countries,” jointly organized by the Hong Kong Palace Museum and the Palace Museum, will officially open to the public on June 3, 2026! The exhibition places the Forbidden City within a global context, using the history of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties over more than 600 years as its framework, showcasing cultural exchanges between China and other parts of Asia and Europe in areas such as diplomacy, trade, science and technology, thought, and crafts …

The exhibition “The Forbidden City: Cultural Exchange and Mutual Learning Between China and Foreign Countries,” jointly organized by the Hong Kong Palace Museum and the Palace Museum , will officially open to the public on June 3, 2026 !

The exhibition places the Forbidden City in a global context, using the history of the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties over more than 600 years as its framework to showcase the cultural exchanges and mutual learning between China and other parts of Asia and Europe in areas such as diplomacy, trade, science and technology, thought, and crafts. 

This exhibition showcases over 130 treasures from the Palace Museum, the Hong Kong Palace Museum , and the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha , covering various categories including calligraphy and painting, jewelry, and clocks. The exhibits rotate every three months, with a new batch of Palace Museum artifacts on display each time, totaling over 80 items per exhibition.

The exhibition explores the stories of cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries during the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties through four sections.

Unit 1: Sino-Foreign Exchanges – Marco Polo and Zheng He

Using familiar historical figures and stories as a starting point, the book tells the story of the vigorous development of China’s foreign relations during the Yuan and Ming dynasties.

Unit Two: Imported Treasures – Ming Dynasty Court Art and New World Knowledge

It recounts the history of the import of rare products from South Asia and Southeast Asia into China during the late Ming Dynasty.

Unit Three: East Meets West – The Fusion of Chinese and Foreign Crafts and Technologies in the Qing Dynasty

It showcases the craft innovations and technological integration during the reigns of the Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong emperors of the Qing Dynasty.

Unit Four: The Southern Treasury of the Emperor – Guangdong Customs and the World

It showcases the influence of the Guangdong Customs on court culture during the mid-to-late Qing Dynasty.

The exhibits include a double-eared vase with a flared mouth, painted with verses from the Quran, dating from the late Yuan to early Ming dynasty.

This exhibition also features several multimedia installations .

Inspired by the panoramic painting in the Juanqinzhai of the Ningshou Palace in the Qianlong Garden, the installation showcases rare and exotic animals from different regions through projection. The interactive installation “What Did Emperor Kangxi Learn?” offers a wonderful experience of learning with a “digital Emperor Kangxi”.

We look forward to your visit to the exhibition hall in Hong Kong, to look back on the trajectory of dialogue between civilizations, and to look forward to a new chapter of exchange and mutual learning!

​For more than five millennia, Chinese civilisation has developed continuously, shaped by a long tradition of cultural openness and dynamism. These enduring qualities have sustained the vitality of Chinese society and culture across time. The Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) dynasties inherited the established systems of governance and moral lineage of earlier periods. Through diplomacy and trade, they engaged with a wide range of regions and communities, encouraging dialogue, exchange, and mutual understanding across cultures. As the imperial palace of the Ming and Qing dynasties, the Forbidden City not only served as the centre of political power but also provided a platform for interactions between China and the wider world. Its architecture, artefacts, and stories carry the imprint of history, and its history attests to more than five centuries of cross-cultural encounters, involving the flow of goods, technologies, arts, ideas, and cultures. Together, these exchanges inspired creativity and transformation in world civilisations.

The exhibition is jointly organised by the Hong Kong Palace Museum and The Palace Museum, and is solely sponsored by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust.

Exhibition dates, location, ticketing policy, exhibition changeover announcements, etc.

Please see the official information from the Hong Kong Palace Museum.

On July 19^th 2023 , the multilingual website of the Forbidden City Palace Museum- Beijing, China, People’s Republic of Chinawas officially released at the Digital Cultural Tourism Development Forum of the 2023 China Internet Civilization Conference! The website covers five languages: English, French, Russian, Japanese, and Spanish, and will meet the needs of audiences with different languages.

The exhibition “Divine Steeds: The World of Horses in the Paintings and Calligraphy of the Palace Museum” will officially open to the public on April 22nd at the Wenhua Hall Painting and Calligraphy Gallery! In Chinese history, horses have been not only an important means of transportation, but also a standard of etiquette and ritual, and the foundation of national defense; the majestic and spirited nature of the horse is a unique symbol of Chinese spirit and culture. From the Tang Dynasty onwards, horse painting became an independent genre, and renowned horse painters throughout history have used their exquisite brushes to praise the horse’s divine and majestic posture, depicting …

Images and visuals are from – Forbidden City –Palace Museum Beijing- China –People’s Republic of China…..