In 1970, the World Expo was held in Osaka. Post, the authoritative film magazine at the time, exhibited the 100 most beautiful women in the world photographed by photographers. Among them is a black and white photo, with long wet hair and bright eyes, which is stunning and moving.
This quiet, graceful and resolute woman is called Zheng Peipei.
Picture from "Looking Back Seventy Years with a Smile"
When it comes to Zheng Peipei, many people only know her as the solemn, crazy and superb martial arts lady in "Tang Bohu Spots Autumn Fragrance", or the scheming figure in "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" The gangster "Blue-Eyed Fox"; in fact, as early as the 1960s, she was well-known at home and abroad, and was named the "Martial Arts Queen" by the press.
This week, a generation of chivalrous heroine Zheng Peipei passed away at the age of 78. Her film and television career spanned more than fifty years. Along the way, she won many awards and left us with several heroes.
一
"When I went through these days, I never cared about it. However, when I picked up the pen now to write down these past events, I discovered that 'life is like a play, and play is like life.'" In 2016, 70-year-old Zheng Peipei published her autobiography "Looking Back at Seventy Years with a Smile".
She put all the ups and downs of the past seventy years into a "laughter". However, behind this "laughter", there is no lack of dramatic bitterness.
Zheng Peipei was born in Shanghai in 1946. During his childhood, his father was absent and the family's livelihood depended on his mother alone. My mother is from Zhongshan, Guangdong. She has read books, can speak English, and is an excellent swimmer. She has worked as a physical education teacher and worked in printing companies and other places. After the divorce, she raised her four children alone and had all her children change their surnames to Zheng.
The mother works outside, and the eldest sister Zheng Peipei is forced to become the "little mother" of the family, taking care of their younger siblings' daily life, schooling and even every aspect of daily life. If something went wrong, such as her sister being scalded by boiling water or her brother falling off the swing, she would be beaten and scolded. In the most serious case, a frightened dog chased and bit several children. Her brother was running slowly, so she had to stop and endure the pain on his behalf, requiring dozens of stitches. Zheng Peipei joked in her autobiography that maybe "I already had a chivalrous spirit at that time."
Despite the hard work, the siblings never neglected their studies. She spent some wonderful years in a girls' middle school in Shanghai. Until a phone call called the whole family to Hong Kong - the grandmother in Hong Kong was seriously ill, and the mother rushed there with her children. It turned out to be a "scam". Grandma was fine and she just wanted to trick them into coming here so they could take care of her.
At first, Cheng Peipei hated the "degeneracy" of Hong Kong people who played mahjong all day long and had no ambition, but her love for ballet soon turned her attention to her career. While in Shanghai, she studied under Hu Rongrong, China's first-generation ballet dancer; when she came to Hong Kong, she continued to learn dance from Wang Renman, who had returned from the Royal Ballet Academy, and became a model representative in the class.
Because of dancing, Zheng Peipei ushered in a "major turning point" in her life - joining the Southern Experimental Theater Company run by Shaw Brothers Film Company. This was a good opportunity for her who had loved watching movies since she was a child and had to shoulder the responsibility of the eldest sister.
She practiced ballet in the morning, Chinese dance in the afternoon, and choreographed "The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl" with her companions. Perhaps it is because her eyebrows and dancing posture always exude a strong and handsome spirit, so she plays the role of "Cowherd".
"Cowherd" was soon spotted by Shaw Brothers director Yue Feng, who immediately invited her to collaborate with four-time Asian Best Actress Lin Dai. Zheng Peipei still remembers when she first met Lin Dai, she said: "You are Peipei, you are so handsome!" This "Lotus Lantern" was Zheng Peipei's first film, she was only 17 years old at the time.
At this point, Zheng Peipei's stardom was bright. After starring in several Shaw Brothers heroines, she soon reached the peak of her life - in 1966, Hu Jinquan, who later pioneered a new style of martial arts movies and became the first author-director in Chinese film history, prepared When I made my first new martial arts film, "The Drunken Man", I resolutely handed over the role of the chivalrous heroine "Golden Swallow" to Zheng Peipei.
This film is different from the previous martial arts films with strange powers and chaotic gods. It combines the styles of Peking Opera and Western films, and pays more attention to realism. It was not favored by Shaw Brothers. Unexpectedly, it became an unexpected hit after its release, and also made the chivalrous heroine Zheng Peipei Popular throughout Southeast Asia.
Stills of "The Drunken Man"
Unfortunately, Hu Jinquan had different ideas with Shaw Brothers, so he later went to Taiwan to prepare for the filming of "Dragon Gate Inn", which would become famous in the future. Among them, the role of Shangguan Lingfeng was originally reserved for Zheng Peipei; however, Shaw Brothers refused to let him go. If "I succeed, my acting career will be completely different."
However, Cheng Peipei, who remains in Shaw Brothers, will continue her screen legend. Chang Cheh, another great director as famous as Hu Jinquan, tailor-made "Golden Swallow" specifically for her. In those years, her martial arts films were a guarantee of box office success, and a series of films elevated her to the throne of "Martial Arts Queen".
Stills of "Golden Swallow"
二
Zheng Peipei, who was at the peak of her career, adhered to the concept of "a man should marry when he is young and a woman should marry when she is young". At the age of 23, she married to the United States.
’s husband is the son of Shaw Brothers’ publisher in Taiwan, China. He is academically successful, has a well-off family, and is very motivated. After her marriage, she moved to Los Angeles with her husband's family, putting aside her celebrity aura and focusing on being a full-time wife.
This marriage, which lasted for 19 years, may be just a trial of fate in her eyes; but in the eyes of others, this is the fate of "burying herself and finally awakening" that she is willing to sink.
Picture from "Looking Back Seventy Years with a Smile"
Her husband was a single son of three generations, so Zheng Peipei felt a sense of mission to carry on the family line for him - she was pregnant eight times, had four miscarriages, and gave birth to daughters three times. It was not until she finally gave birth to a son that she finally She was considered to have "completed the mission" because she was 39 years old at the time.
When she was pregnant for the first time, her husband still had romantic passion and wanted to take her to the beach to watch the sunrise. She was very cold and pregnant, so she was not in the mood to enjoy the sun. She told the truth, which made the other party unhappy. She said in her autobiography: "I didn't expect that the distance between us would become wider and wider because of this."
Stills of "Spring River Flowers on a Moonlit Night"
When filming in the past, Zheng Peipei loved Korean barbecue, hairy crabs, braised noodles and iced Coke; During my pregnancy, my husband said that Coca-Cola was harmful and I was not allowed to drink it. "You can only drink milk or boiled water." In fact, there are many similar family prohibitions and rules, which almost run through the entire married life. "As soon as they open their mouth, I have to follow their rules."
First of all, she takes care of all the housework. She prides herself on being as strong as an ox, and her hard work is nothing. Once, while cleaning the dust on the stairs, she accidentally fell and caused a miscarriage of her second child. Soon, the third pregnancy came. At this time, my parents-in-law wanted to learn to drive, not to take their daughter-in-law to a prenatal check-up, but because she would not have time to be a driver for the elderly after giving birth, allowing them to travel freely. The position of driving instructor naturally fell to Zheng Peipei, who was pregnant.
A still from "Ms. Zhongkui", Zheng Peipei's last work before her marriage.
In addition to caring for her husband and raising children, she also ran dance classes, helped her husband's company inspect goods, and once opened a retail store. When selling home appliances, Zheng Peipei has to inspect the goods alone, move the 34-inch large TV into the station wagon, and deliver the goods to customers. She said that small families in the United States are like this, with a share from the father and a share from the mother-in-law. "My mother-in-law doesn't make much, but she is never idle." The husband is afraid that the children will cling to their mother and lack independence. Therefore, let her work more so that "she can afford to pay the nanny."
Inside, she has to take care of her parents-in-law, husband, children and all housework; outside, she has to work harder than men to manage various livelihoods; during this period, she is accompanied by the body cycle of continuous pregnancy, premature birth, and re-pregnancy. After seven years of marriage, she could return to her parents' home for a visit.
After completing her mission of giving birth, Zheng Peipei wanted to "do something that contributes to society." She decided to start a Chinese TV station. However, with no backing and no financial group, the "little girl's" ideal is nothing short of a fantasy. But she persevered and held many positions: host, producer, driver, etc., and programs such as "Carry on the Past" and "Pepe Time" were broadcast successively.
But her husband can't stand her ideals and scolds her, so she should be down-to-earth and film a low-cost cooking show. She was not convinced and insisted on doing it. The two broke up unhappy. Her husband withdrew his capital and filed for divorce, but she said she only needed $100,000 to keep the company and not take anything else; in addition, she was allowed to live in her husband's house until her son came of age.
During this period, she never "thought of a new life," while the children's father "came back every day with a new girlfriend." It wasn't until Zheng Peipei declared bankruptcy that she moved out of her "home".
三
From "Martial Arts Queen" to "Housewife", Zheng Peipei has had ups and downs throughout her life. In order to take care of her four children, she decided to return to the screen.
's first drama was "Tang Bohu Spots Autumn Fragrance" with Stephen Chow and Gong Li.
At that time, her sister Zheng Baopei was working as a manager at TVB, and she made connections and successfully joined the group.
In order to understand what nonsensical comedy is, she found all Stephen Chow's discs and watched them. After joining the group, because she could speak Mandarin, she acted as the "translator" between Stephen Chow and Gong Li. During filming, the scenes often took place at night, and she was particularly high. It was like being drunk; Stephen Chow had a sudden idea of filming the nonsensical clip of "Smiling Half-Step", and carefully asked her, "Sister Peipei, can you try it?" She didn't know how to act, but she was very happy to do it. She asked Stephen Chow to teach her, and that's how the classic scene was born. After
was released, the film became extremely popular. At first, her name was not on the poster, but the next day, it was written in big letters: "Zheng Peipei makes a comeback and returns to the world." She said: "I often feel that there is no need to fight for many things. Whatever is yours belongs to you." The road to comeback for
is bright with stars. By 1997, a director who had known her for a long time asked her: "How is Sister Peipei? Can she still fight?" "Fight! Fight!" Zheng Peipei responded sonorously. The director’s name is Ang Lee.
"But during the five-month filming period, you can't take other jobs, and the salary they pay is so small. You have to move! Are you going to skip meals for your ideal?" After my sister finished speaking, she knew that her sister Zheng Peipei was going to do it again. Her ideals went crazy.
"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" stills
Hu Jinquan started the first wave of martial arts film innovation with "The Drunken Man"; Ang Lee started the second wave with "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" at the end of the century. From "Golden Swallow" to "Blue Eyed Fox", Zheng Peipei personally participated in and witnessed both waves. She is very proud.
After "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", Zheng Peipei started her TV career again, and she also achieved another classic image after the chivalrous girl: mother.
In "Young Bao Qingtian", she played Bao Qingtian's mother; in "Ma Yongzhen", she also played Ma Yongzhen's mother, Aunt Ma; in addition, she also played the role of Master Wu Mei in "Young Fang Shiyu" and Huo Huo in "Tomb Robbers Notes". The old lady, the grandma in "Legend of Sword and Fairy"...
"I feel like I am constantly reincarnating. In fact, I quite like the feeling of acting in a TV series and joining a group." Zheng Peipei described it as a feeling of home.
"Legend of Sword and Fairy" stills
Some viewers got to know her in the first season of the variety show "Flowers and Boys". She said that Hua Chenyu called her "Mrs. Hua" when they met, "which shows that he is still in the era of "Tang Bohu Spots Autumn Fragrance""; among all the guests, Liu Tao was the most popular with her, and the two became close friends.
She once wrote two sentences to Liu Tao: "I can't be as perfect as everyone wants, but I hope it will live up to my heart." Liu Tao sighed with emotion, and took the "Pei Ma" in her mouth as his eternal role model; and this sentence is also Zheng Peipei's A portrait of a lifetime.
Liu Tao and Zheng Peipei
Zheng Peipei truly deserves the name of "chivalrous woman" throughout her life. She has no complaints about her ex-husband; she is a "Supermom" to her children; she does her best to take care of her mentors, directors such as Hu Jinquan and Yue Feng, before and after their lives; and she is even more impeccable in her works. According to reports, she died of corticobasal degeneration (CBD), and human medicine was helpless; but she was willing to donate her brain to support human medical research.
Sadly, goodbye, our "chivalrous girl" Zheng Peipei.
Stills of "The Drunken Man"
Text/Li Ruifeng Editor Li Jie
