introduction
Meng Xiaodong, when he was 17 years old, first met 31-year-old Mei Lanfang; at the age of 18, he shared the stage with him, and since then he has lived in a "Mei Lang" in his heart.
And 38-year-old Du Yuesheng, visiting the door, the woman he likes is very polite to him, but also a little cold.
He didn't know that not long ago, this girl's heart was already filled with "Mei Lang", and at that time, her heart could no longer hold other men.
Meng Xiaodong may not have imagined that the last destination in her life, after a big circle, still became the fifth wife of the Du family.
The encounter between Meng Xiaodong and Mei Lanfang
Born in Shanghai, Meng Xiaodong is a Peking Opera actor and an excellent actor of the "Yu Pai".
Meng Xiaodong, a girl, actually specialized in working and old students, sang mainly on the stage "Su Sheng Drama", that is, an old man with a long beard.
In 1919, Meng Xiaodong, who was only 11 years old, entered the Qiankun Dajing class of the Shanghai Great World Playground and officially debuted.
Less than a year after his debut, in 1920, Meng Xiaodong, who was only 12 years old, became popular in Shanghai and became famous in this strange ten-mile ocean field.
At this time, 26-year-old Mei Lanfang was starring in the first silent movie in her life, "Chunxiang Noisy Learning";
Also in Shanghai, 32-year-old Du Yuesheng has played his own piece of the sky in the big brother Jin Jinrong.
At that time, Beijing was the gathering place of theater talents, where there were many masters and a thousand flowers, of which Mei Lanfang was naturally the most famous.
Meng Xiaodong, who had already established a firm foothold in Shanghai, in order to make a breakthrough in his career, so in the spring of 1925, he followed the Bai Yukun opera class and first went to Tianjin.
Meng Xiaodong, who went north, met Mei Lanfang, and she also fell in love with this charismatic man.
Mei Lanfang on the stage can interpret women as gentle as water, and in life, he has a strong male blood, looks very standard, and has a good personality.
It can be said that the young girl who has never been out of the cabinet, and then the old man with gray hair, all admire it.
This man is regarded in Japan as a "god" being.
When he went to Japan to perform in 1924, he enjoyed high-level treatment, and at the banquet after the performance, the Japanese prime minister and cabinet ministers arrived.
Later, when little Japan invaded China, no matter how to invite Mei Lanfang, he refused to star, and finally he couldn't hang on to his face, and he actually made a threat.
Mei Lanfang simply grew a beard, obviously not giving you face, facing this god, Little Japan was helpless.
The year after returning from a Japanese performance, in 1925, during a charity performance in Beijing, Meng Xiaodong met Mei Lanfang, the year she was 17 years old and he was 31 years old.
In the same year, Du Yuesheng, Jin Jinrong and Zhang Xiaolin established the "Sanxin Company" in Shanghai, directly monopolizing the tobacco and soil business in the French Concession.
Also in this year, he also served as the boss of the General Federation of Chambers of Commerce of the French Concession in Shanghai.
Also in this year, Du Yuesheng, Jin Jinrong and Zhang Xiaolin were called the "Three Tycoons of Shanghai Beach" by the people of the time.
Meng Xiaodong and Mei Lanfang's love affair
This time, the charity performances were all famous characters from Jingjin, and the order of going on stage was in accordance with the rules of the pear garden at that time: the larger the horns, the lower the appearance.
Mei Lanfang and Yang Xiaolou, the most famous, appeared as the finale, and the two co-starred in the classic drama "Farewell to the Overlord"; Meng Xiaodong and Qiu Guixian were in the third to last, and the repertoire they cooperated with was "On the Rooftop".
Meng Xiaodong, who has not yet turned 18 years old, holds a breath in his heart: why can you Mei Lanfang play as the last in the finale.
Therefore, after she stepped off the stage, she did not rush to leave, but in a corner, silently watching Mei Lanfang's "Overlord Farewell".
After Mei Lanfang's performance, Meng Xiaodong was completely conquered by this man.
Not long after, Meng Xiaodong and Mei Lanfang ushered in the first time that the two shared the stage in a church meeting.
The two co-starred in "Silang Visiting Mother", Meng Xiaodong starred as Yang Silang, and Mei Lanfang starred as the Princess of the Iron Mirror.
Meng Xiaodong, who was born beautifully, has no shortage of suitors around her, from literati inkers, rich princes, and then to the children of warlords, who are extremely eager for her.
And the man who was partial to Mei Lanfang hit her heart.
Although Mei Lanfang already had two wives at that time, although Meng Xiaodong also had some scruples in his heart, he could not stand the hot feelings, and the two were married in 1927.
This year, she was 19; this year, he was 33.
This year's Shanghai, in the midst of bloody storms, 39-year-old Du Yuesheng booby-trapped Wang Shouhua.
Two years later, Du Yuesheng married Meng Xiaodong's girlfriend Yao Yulan, as his fourth wife, and later under the strong mediation of this girlfriend, Meng Xiaodong entered the Du family.
The end of Meng Xiaodong and Mei Lanfang
Although before getting married, Mei Lanfang took Meng Xiaodong to Tianjin and visited Mrs. Zhengfang, Meng Xiaodong also received the affirmation of Mrs. Zhengfang.
However, this marriage did not let the old lady of the Mei family know that Meng Xiaodong also lived in Feng Gengguang's mansion after marriage.
This Feng Gengguang is not only a fan of Mei Lanfang, but also a witness to the marriage of the two, meng Xiaodong, who lives in the Feng Mansion, is like a "golden house hidden jiao" existence.
Although there is a marriage, this marriage is strictly confidential to the outside world, but there is no name for marriage.
Perhaps, the word "secretly marrying" is more appropriate to describe this marriage.
After six years in this way, Meng Xiaodong finally broke out, and in September 1933, Tianjin's "Ta Kung Pao" published "Meng Xiaodong's Urgent Notice", and it was published for three consecutive days (No. 5, No. 6, No. 7).
The full text is as follows:
Dong Zi sighed that his life was distressed, and he was hit again, so he resolutely broke away from Lan Fang's family relationship. Am I the negative? Look up to someone to bear me? There is a public opinion in the world, and it is not waiting for the repetition of winter.
This announcement is equivalent to a public parting speech, and this publication immediately stirred up thousands of waves.
It turned out that these two famous families were actually married, and they were actually divorced, and they knew that they were married.
Some people say that Meng Xiaodong's woman has done something desperate, while some people say that if she is not in a desperate situation, this woman will not be so, and some people say that only people in the play can taste it.
And I, after 89 years in 2022, read this breakup letter again, as if I heard a helpless sigh from a woman.
In 1933, when Meng Xiaodong wrote the parting letter, Du Yuesheng, who was far away in Shanghai, had just set up his own gang, called "Hengshe".
When Du Yuesheng learned that his favorite Meng Xiaodong was divorced, he was happy in his heart.
As early as October 1925, Du Yuesheng met 17-year-old Meng Xiaodong, a 37-year-old man who has always been unforgettable for this woman.
However, in the face of this person who "stomps his feet, Shanghai can shake three times"; in the face of this person who carries a famous post and goes to visit The Meng family, Meng Xiaodong seems to be very polite, this lonely and arrogant woman, politely revealed a hint of indifference.
Du Yuesheng did not know that not long ago, after Meng Xiaodong and Mei Lanfang, who went north, co-starred in "Silang Visiting Mother", the young girl's heart was full of that "Mei Lang".
Du Yuesheng, who was born in the gang, also has the style of a gentleman, and does not come hard, but chooses to temporarily collect gold and collect troops.
However, he has been looking forward to approaching Meng Xiaodong, perhaps, in 1929, he married Meng Xiaodong's girlfriend Yao Yulan, but also thinking of roundabout tactics.
As long as she has her girlfriend around, she can always keep in touch with the lovely person in her heart.
As for why Meng Xiaodong wrote such a breakup letter, I will write a special article in the future to tell you about the end of "Mei Menglian".
Fate came and went, fate came to the Du family
The frequent contact between Du Yuesheng and Meng Xiaodong occurred in 1936.
This year, she was no longer the 17-year-old girl, but a 28-year-old woman; and the 48-year-old was like a "Shanghai Emperor" who was famous.
This year, Jin Rong's "Golden Theater" was officially unveiled, and Du Yuesheng took this opportunity to invite Meng Xiaodong to cut the ribbon for the theater and perform in the theater.
Meng Xiaodong gladly responded to the appointment, and after cutting the ribbon, she performed in the theater for more than half a month.
Because she and Du Yuesheng's fourth wife, Yao Yulan, were girlfriends, she lived with Yao Yulan, which was then called an 18-story apartment, and is now renamed Jin Jiang Hotel.
At this point, seven years have passed, Du Yuesheng's roundabout tactics have been effective, he and the woman of his choice have frequent contact, in this half a month of performance, Meng Xiaodong saw a different Du Yuesheng.
In the years that followed, Meng Xiaodong was in Beiping, Du Yuesheng was in Shanghai, one in the north and one in the south.
Du Yuesheng, this person, is really a good hand in the aspect of pampering his sister, because of the divorce, Meng Xiaodong wanted to fight with Mei Lanfang.
After Du Yuesheng learned of this news from the fourth wife, he called Meng Xiaodong and suggested that she was still private, and he took the initiative to ask miao to talk to Mei Lanfang on her behalf.
After getting permission, Du Yuesheng called Mei Lanfang and negotiated a phone call.
Afterwards, Du Yuesheng first paid for Mei Lanfang's divorce compensation fee of 40,000 oceans, which was not a storm in the city.
The reason why Meng Xiaodong demanded compensation for the 40,000 oceans was because after she and Mei Lanfang got married, she did not perform on stage again, and Meng Xiaodong and several members of the Meng family were paid for by Mei Lanfang.
In this divorce, Meng Xiaodong, who has no savings, even if he is arrogant, in order to survive, he has to pull down his son and ask for compensation.
The distance of time and space cannot block Lao Du's love offensive.
After Meng Xiaodong's divorce, Du Yuesheng would collect those antique calligraphy and paintings according to her preferences, and let people travel thousands of miles from Shanghai to Beijing.
Over time, Meng Xiaodong also developed some good feelings for the men in this gang, and he was not as cold and polite as he was at the beginning.
Time came to 1946, Meng Xiaodong a woman in Beiping single shadow, coupled with the chaos of the situation, Du Yuesheng let his general accounting office Huang Guodong write a letter, once again urging Meng Xiaodong to come to Shanghai.
Maybe it was the loneliness of feeling single, or maybe it was the trouble of the chaos of the times, or maybe she missed her girlfriend Yao Yulan, this time, Meng Xiaodong did not refuse.
After coming to Shanghai, the booing and warm greetings from girlfriends, Du Yuesheng was also quietly sympathetic and cared for her, which made Meng Xiaodong, who had not felt the warmth from the family for many years, have a kind of home warmth.
On August 30, 1947, this day was Du Yuesheng's sixtieth birthday.
At that time, it was also the time of flooding in Sichuan, Liangguang and northern Jiangsu, so Du Yuesheng took advantage of the sixtieth birthday to hold a charity performance in his ancestral hall for ten days.
The ticket revenue from this charity performance, as well as congratulatory gifts, was used for disaster relief.
Many famous actors also came to Shanghai to participate in this disaster relief charity performance, and Mei Lanfang and Meng Xiaodong were naturally among them.
In order to avoid the embarrassment of meeting between the two, the two performed in staggered ways.
After the charity performance, the 39-year-old Meng Xiaodong officially announced that he would no longer perform in the future.
At this time, Meng Xiaodong, at Du Yuesheng's side, although he did not have a name, he seemed to have become a Member of the Du family.
In April 1949, Old Jiang summoned Du Yuesheng, who understood the meaning very clearly, and asked him to follow him to the island.
Du Yuesheng naturally did not want to go, but he also did not want to stay in Shanghai, so he chose a compromise place: Hong Kong.
Before the liberation of Shanghai, Meng Xiaodong followed the Du family to Hong Kong.
Not long after arriving in Hong Kong, the old Jiang side has been verbally attacking and insulting Du Yuesheng, which makes Du Yuesheng feel insecure.
So, in 1950, he wanted to go to France even farther away.
Du Yuesheng gathered the whole family and calculated how many passports he needed to go to France, when he decided that he needed 27 passports.
Meng Xiaodong, who was silent on the side, suddenly opened his mouth and said softly:
I followed, what if I made a summoner? Or a girlfriend?
When Meng Xiaodong said this, she was already 42 years old, and Du Yuesheng, 62, was already gray-haired and drooping old.
Hearing this, Du Yuesheng, who was lying on the sickbed, was first stunned, and then said:
"The matter of going to France has been postponed for the time being, and now the most important thing is my marriage with Adong."
In the autumn of this year, in the season full of yellow leaves, Meng Xiaodong married Du Yuesheng and became the fifth wife of the Du family.
Du Yuesheng gathered all the children of the Du family together and told them that in the future, they should not call Meng Xiaodong "aunt", but should change their name to "Mommy".
In order to let Meng Xiaodong have someone to retire to the end of the year, Du Yuesheng passed on to her his youngest child, Du Weishan.
In 1951, Du Yuesheng distributed the inheritance before his death.
At that time, the Du family still had about 200,000 US dollars to distribute, and Meng Xiaodong received 20,000 US dollars.
At 4:50 p.m. on August 16, 1951, Du Yuesheng died of illness at the age of 63, and at this time, it was less than 24 hours before his 64th birthday.
This year, Meng Xiaodong was 43 years old.
On May 25, 1977, Meng Xiaodong was at home in Taipei, after a severe asthma attack, suddenly fell into a coma; then, she was sent to the hospital for rescue, still in a coma.
It lasted until May 27, when Meng Xiaodong died of illness in Taipei at the age of 70.
postscript
Some people say that Meng Xiaodong has always been unforgettable for her first love Mei Lanfang.
It is said that in the early 1950s, at a party, when drinking to Xingtou, Zhang Daqian and Meng Xiaodong made a bet that if Zhang Daqian lost, he would make a painting on the spot and give it to Meng Xiaodong.
If Meng Xiaodong loses, she will sing an opera for Zhang Daqian.
In the end, Meng Xiaodong lost, she got up and sang a Mei Pai's "Overlord Farewell", and her body was taught by Mei Lanfang in that year.
Some people said that for Du Yuesheng, Meng Xiaodong was more grateful, or moved.
However, in my opinion, this woman who has been singing for many years is a person who dares to love and dare to hate, and never drags mud, twists and turns, and is entangled in doing things.
If you want to use today's opera masters as a reference, I personally feel that Wang Peiyu has the style of Meng Xiaodong in that year.
Wang Peiyu is also a female bearded student, and has the reputation of a small "Winter Emperor".
In that year, in the charity performance of Du Yuesheng's sixtieth birthday party, Meng Xiaodong sang a song "Search for Orphans and Save Orphans", which conquered many ticket holders, and as a result, it was called "Winter Emperor" by the ticket friends.
Throughout the ages, whether it is a man or a woman, a princely general, or a literati and a writer, they cannot escape the entanglement of a "love" word.
What is the meaning of love words?
Only after death!