Dong Xiaowan (1624-1651), whose given name was Bai, and whose courtesy name was Qinglian, was also nicknamed Qinglian Nvshi. Both her name and given name were derived from her admiration for Li Bai.

There are two theories about her origins.

One theory is that she came from a wealthy family. In her early years, her father opened the "Dong Family Embroidery Shop", which was a well-known Suzhou embroidery shop. Later, her father died of illness and the family fell into decline. The mother and daughter were cheated by their associates, so Xiaowan had to

Falling into prostitution; another theory is that Xiaowan was born in a brothel in Nanqu. Her mother was a singing prostitute in Nanqu and her father was a Qing guest. She was smart since she was a child. When she was eight years old, she studied poetry with a group of Qing guest literati.

, studied painting, acted, and played the piano. When she was thirteen or fourteen years old, she knew all the calligraphy and painting styles of the piano, and was proficient in all poems and poems. In addition, she was naturally graceful, intelligent, and beautiful.

His name is Qinhuai.

No matter what happens, in short, Xiaowan is already a top figure among the Qinhuai brothel girls at a young age. Her beauty has caused a group of famous officials, gentry and merchants to fight openly and secretly, but this woman who lives in the world is self-admiring and self-pitying.

, all of them would respond with cold eyes and ridicule to those rich and powerful people who were holding dishes with jade chopsticks and fragrant from the golden stove, fighting cocks and lackeys, and looking for flowers and willows; and for the celebrities who gathered in Nanjing at that time to preside over the Qing Dynasty and comment on the government and the country, they were cynical and worried about the country.

However, the scribes respected and loved her very much, especially when she saw the talented and charming one of the four talented men in the late Ming Dynasty in 1639, they fell in love at first sight.

Mao Bijiang has a handsome appearance and a chic demeanor. He is known as the "beautiful boy" and is a talented man in Fushe.

This man has good literary talent and good fortune. First he fell in love with Chen Yuanyuan, but later Yuanyuan was taken over by Tian Wan. When he was frustrated, he met Dong Xiaowan again.

When the two first met, Mao Bijiang was preparing to go to Nanjing to take the exam, so they had to say goodbye hastily. Unexpectedly, the separation lasted for three years, during which Xiaowan experienced all the joys and sorrows of the world.

Mao Bijiang was passionate about fame and wealth. He took the provincial examination five times. Even after meeting Xiaowan who lived a miserable life, he still left Xiaowan alone for the sake of the examination.

Considering that Xiaowan was so devoted and caring to him later, he felt ashamed of Xiaowan.

After going through many twists and turns, Mao Pijiang finally married Xiaowan back to his home in Rugao.

After Xiaowan entered the Mao family, he got along very harmoniously with the Mao family.

Ma Gongren (Pijiang's mother) and Su Yuanfang (Pijiang's wife) particularly like Xiaowan, and Xiaowan is also very respectful and obedient, serving them more carefully than a maid.

In their spare time, Xiaowan and Pijiang often sat in the study room of the painting garden, splashing ink, admiring flowers and drinking tea, commenting on landscapes, and identifying gold and stone.

When Xiaowan first entered the Mao family, he imitated Zhong Yao's calligraphy and Cao'e's stele. He wrote thousands of words every day, and he neither missed nor missed any words.

Xiaowan also wrote small regular script fans for relatives and friends on Pijiang's behalf.

When she was in Suzhou, Xiaowan had studied painting for a period of time and was able to paint small clumps of cold trees with lovely and moving brushwork.

The "Colorful Butterfly Picture" she painted when she was 15 years old is now collected in the Wuxi Museum. It has Xiaowan's inscription and the stamps of two parties. The picture is one of the few authentic works of Xiaowan left.

Just after a year of peaceful and harmonious family life, Li Zicheng captured Beijing, Qing troops entered the Pass and marched south, and a raging war broke out in the Jiangnan area.

The Qing army was ruthless and unscrupulous, and the family was almost poisoned. Fortunately, they escaped quickly and were able to save the lives of the whole family. However, all the family property was lost in the war.

After the war, Mao's family was short of rice and firewood, and life became very difficult. Thanks to Dong Xiaowan's careful planning, he could barely maintain the family's life.

In the fourth year of Shunzhi, Mao Pijiang fell ill because he was involved in the "Lake City Case".

Diarrhea and maladies tortured him to the point where he was inhuman shape.

It was midsummer when the fire was shining brightly. Xiaowan didn't wipe his sweat or repel mosquitoes. He sat by the medicine stove day and night, always paying attention to Pijiang's physical condition.

Malaria attack, combined with cold and heat, coupled with diarrhea and abdominal pain, made Maobijiang almost unable to rest for a moment.

In order to take care of him, Dong Xiaowan spread a broken straw mat beside the bed as her own bed. As soon as her husband made any noise, she would immediately get up and take a look. When she felt chilly and shivering, she held her husband tightly in her arms;

She also undressed and bathed him; she massaged him when he had abdominal pain; and she helped him undress when he had diarrhea. She never looked tired.

After more than five months of hard work, Pijiang was finally able to turn the corner.

Dong Xiaowan was already as skinny as a stick, as if he had been seriously ill.

In a difficult life, it was difficult to eat enough, and Dong Xiaowan's body was very weak. In addition, taking care of Mao Bijiang to recover from a serious illness, Dong Xiaowan's body collapsed in an instant, and he could not drink a sip of water for more than 20 days in a row.

Because his body was extremely weak, he invited famous doctors for diagnosis and treatment, but in the end it was difficult to get any results.

In 1651, amidst Mao Bijiang's heart-wrenching cries, Dong Xiaowan, who had been a good concubine and a good wife to the Mao family for nine years, died of illness at the age of only 27.

Postscript: Dong Xiaowan is extremely beautiful. She first met Mao Pijiang when she was sixteen years old. "She had a faint spring face, glazed eyes, fragrant and jade-colored, and natural charm." It is really a vivid picture of a drunken beauty.

When Gui Married Mao Bijiang, "One end of the Xia Western cloth was as thin as cicada gauze, whiter than snow, with the faded red as the lining, and made a light blouse for the concubine, which did not diminish the beauty of Zhang Lihua's Gui Palace. We climbed Jinshan Mountain together at the age of four or five.

The dragon boat surged up the waves, and there were thousands of tourists on the mountain. There were two people at the end, who were regarded as gods. "What a beautiful scene it was!"

It can be imagined that Dong Xiaowan's graceful and immortal appearance is simply different from ordinary people.

However, the most impressive thing about Xiaowan is that she leads a romantic, beautiful and affectionate life in her trivial daily life.

Xiaowan is indifferent by nature and does not like rich and sweet food. Her meal is to cook rice with a small pot of tea and serve it with one or two dishes of water vegetables and fermented black beans.

Pijiang likes to eat sweets, seafood and cured and smoked foods.