Based on the novel of the same name by Eileen Chang, the movie tells the story of Tong Zhenbao, a hypocrite who returns from his studies in Europe and is torn between two women with different personalities, but ultimately unable to achieve true happiness.
At first he commits adultery with Wang Jiao Rui, the wife of an old classmate, but after Wang divorces her husband for love, Tong Zhenbao backs out and marries a weak and submissive woman, Meng Yan Oriole.
Years later he reunites with his old friend and can’t help but cry bitterly.
In my opinion, Tong Zhenbao is not looking for a lover, but a slave who can fulfill his desires. He doesn’t know how to love at all, love is about giving and sacrificing, and he only loves himself from the beginning to the end.
1994 / Hong Kong, China / Taiwan / Drama Romance / Kwan Kam-peng / Chen Chong Ye Yuqing
The movie is adapted from Eileen Chang’s short story of the same name.
Tong Zhenbao (Winston Chiu) is a man with a good reputation as a “Liu Xiahui” (Liu Xiahui), but his heart is still in turmoil when he meets his old classmate’s charming wife, Wang Jiaorui (Chen Chong). However, when Wang Jiaorui gives him her heart, he runs away because he doesn’t have the courage to bear too much blame.
Following his mother’s wishes, Zhenbao marries Meng Yan鹂 (Yip Yuk Hing), a paper-thin woman he doesn’t like, but because his desires can’t be fulfilled, he starts to visit prostitutes, and his married life doesn’t bring him any reward.
When Zhenbao and Yao Yao’s life is in an untenable situation, he accidentally meets Jiao Rui.
The change in Jiao Rui causes Zhenbao to contemplate that “the goodness of the old days had returned to him a little”.
(Eileen Chang)
