Xu Lai was an early Chinese movie star, born in Shanghai in 1909. Originally named Xiaomei, she was later renamed Xulai, taken from the famous sentence "Qingfeng Xulai". Xu Lai's childhood was poor, and he began working in an egg factory at the age of 13, and only after his family improved was he able to go to school.
At school, Xu Lai developed a strong interest in singing and dancing. At the age of 18, she was admitted to the Chinese Song and Dance School founded by Li Jinhui, and used her surname in her stage name. Subsequently, Xu Lai joined the Chinese Song and Dance Troupe and toured Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and other places, and achieved great success. Xu Lai is not only beautiful in appearance, but also has a kind and gentle personality, so he is very loved.
In 1933, Xu Lai starred in her film debut "Residual Spring", which tells the story of the entanglement between a smart and beautiful college flower and four men. The success of this film made Xu Lai a hit, and the audience was attracted by her beauty. In the following years, she starred in other films, such as "Taishan Hongmao", "Huashan Yan History", "To the Northwest" and "Road Willow Wall Flower". Among them, "Boat Girl" is her last film shot at Star Film Company and one of her masterpieces.
However, the suicide of the famous movie star Ruan Lingyu in 1935 had a huge impact on Xu Lai. Xu Lai felt that many artists did not end up satisfactorily, so he lost interest in movies. Since then, she and her husband Tang Mingsheng have been living in Shanghai. Xu Lai often frequented social venues such as dance halls and had close contacts with high-ranking Kuomintang officials, so he was plagued by some rumors. Her husband Tang Mingsheng is 18 years older than Xu Lai, and the age difference and criticism from the outside world have gradually alienated their husband and wife.
After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, Tang Mingsheng's identity was revealed, and it turned out that he was an undercover agent sent by Chongqing to Shanghai to engage in underground intelligence work. Tang Mingsheng lived a luxurious life, and in order to gain the trust of the Japanese, he befriended pro-Japanese forces in Nanjing and Shanghai, and spent money and behaved ostentatiously, which made patriots very angry with him. As Tang Mingsheng's wife, Xu Lai has always been by his side, also burdened with infamy, and cannot disclose the top-secret content of important tasks, and has endured a lot of grievances.
After retiring from the film industry, Xu Lai lived in Shanghai with Tang Mingsheng, then moved to Hong Kong in the late 40s, and finally settled in Beijing with their children at the end of 1956. However, because Xu Lai collaborated with Jiang Qing (then actress Lan Ping) during her film career, after the outbreak of the Cultural Revolution, she was arrested and imprisoned with her husband. Unfortunately, Xu Lai was tortured to death in prison. The life of this superstar, known as the "standard beauty", was full of tragedy and ended very tragically. She died in 1973 at the age of 64.
Tang Mingsheng was held for eight years until after the Third Plenum. After that, he returned to politics and became a standing member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.
In 1981, the China Film Archive invited Tang Mingsheng and his children to watch Xu Lai's posthumous work "The Boat Family Girl". When the children saw their mother rocking the boat on the screen while singing "Mo turned the boat over, Mo turned the boat over..."