Cui Yingying

Cui Yingying is a fictional character from "Yingying's Biography", a Chinese story by Yuan Zhen (779–831), and Romance of the Western Chamber, a Chinese play by Wang Shifu (1250–1337?). In these two versions, Cui Yingying has different characteristics and personal fate evolvements. In "Yingying's Biography", her insecure characteristic leads to her lack of confidence in love. But in "Romance of the Western Chamber", her highly influential and powerful family makes her confident and active in pursuing her love and happiness.

Yingying's Biography:

The story began in Pujiu Temple, where Zhang Sheng lived with Yingying's aunt's family. The family hold a feast for appreciation after Zhang Sheng rescued Yingying's aunt, Madam Zheng. In the feast, Zhang Sheng first met his cousin Cui Yingying. He fell in love with Yingying because of her beauty and talents. Zhang Sheng started writing poems to pursue Yingying. Yingying rejected him at first, and even played some tricks to blame Zhang Sheng's behavior for disobeying the moral rules. But finally, Yingying wrote poems to Zhang Sheng and actively facilitated the development of their relationship. After that, Zhang Sheng went to the capital for a civil service examination, but he failed and was stuck in the city. Even though he kept writing letters to Yingying during that time, he cheated Yingying with some excuses of humiliating women. One year later, both Yingying and Zhang Sheng married another person. Once Zhang Sheng passed Yingying's home, he asked to meet Yingying as her brother, Yingying rejected him.

Romance of the West Chamber:

Romance of the West Chamber was adapted from Yingying's Biography in Zaju, a version of Chinese Opera. This adaptation is most popular and even performed on today’s stage.

Prime Minister Cui, who is Cui Yingying's father, died because of illness. Cui Yingying and her mother were on their way to their hometown to bury him. But they were stuck in the Pujiu Temple. Zhang Sheng, a scholar who was going to participate in a civil service examination, also lived in this temple. He fell in love with Yingying when he met her at the temple. Therefore, he intentionally approached Yingying's maid Hong Niang to get information about Cui Yingying. Even though thinking his behavior disobeyed the moral rules, Hong Niang still chose to tell Yingying in details. Hong Niang realized that Yingying also crushed on Zhang Sheng.

After a while, Zhang Sheng rescued Cui Yingying's family from a bandit called Sun Feihu. And Madam Cui, who is Yingying's mother, promised that she would marry Yingying to Zhang Sheng. But when Madam Cui held a feast to appreciate Zhang Sheng, she broke off the engagement, and made Yingying and Zhang Sheng to be sister and brother. Hong Niang decided to help Zhang Sheng and Yingying. She told Zhang Sheng that Yingying would pay homage to the moon at night, and asked him to play the zither secretly. At the moon night, when Yingying heard the sound of zither, it triggered her deep affection.

Zhang Sheng got ill after that moon night, so Yingying asked Hong Niang to visit him. Hong Niang acted as mailman between Zhang Sheng and Yingying during that time. Even though Yingying wrote down the time and location of the next date, she still blamed Zhang Sheng's behavior when they met in person. After that, Zhang Sheng's illness became worse and worse. Even Madam Cui noticed his illness and sent Hong Niang to visit him again. That night, Hong Niang brought Yingying to Zhang Sheng's room. Zhang Sheng recovered immediately when he met with Yingying.