Inside the Forbidden City

Inside the Forbidden City 1965

宋宫秘史 sòng gōng mì shǐ

It seems that Li Zhenfei was once an imperial concubine, who often found herself competing with her rival Madame Liu for the emperor's sole, undivided attention. When Li gives birth to the Emperor's child, the jealous Liu switches the boy with a cat and commands a servant named Kou Zhu to kill the baby. However, Kou Zhu ignores the order and gives the prince-to-be to the emperor's brother, a decision which eventually leads to the boy being adopted by the emperor himself! But as fate would have it, to go along with his new son, the emperor has a new wife as well - Madame Liu! As this strange new family unit is being constructed, poor Li Zhenfei has been confined to the forbidden palace, condemned to never see or speak to her son, the prince. But destiny reunites her with her son, but will this family reunion be a happy one? And will Madame Liu finally be punished for her treachery?

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6.59 Advanced

Vocabulary

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含冤 含冤 hán yuān wronged; to suffer false accusations ∼HSK 6
贵贱 貴賤 guì jiàn noble and lowly; high versus low social hierarchy of ruler to people, father to son, husband to wife in Confucianism ∼HSK 6
冤屈 冤屈 yuān qū to treat unjustly; an injustice ∼HSK 6
纱帽 紗帽 shā mào gauze hat; (fig.) job as an official ∼HSK 6
钧谕 鈞諭 jūn yù (deferential) your instructions ∼HSK 6
名讳 名諱 míng huì taboo name (e.g. of emperor) ∼HSK 6
破瓦寒窑 破瓦寒窯 pò wǎ hán yáo lit. broken tiles, cold hearth; fig. a broken-down house; poor and shabby dwelling ∼HSK 6
权贵 權貴 quán guì influential officials; bigwigs ∼HSK 6
轻饶 輕饒 qīng ráo to forgive easily; to let off lightly (often with negative: you won't get away with it) ∼HSK 6
忤逆 忤逆 wǔ nì disobedient to parents ∼HSK 6
番邦 番邦 fān bāng (old) foreign land; alien nation ∼HSK 6
五谷 五穀 wǔ gǔ five crops, e.g. millet, soybean, sesame, barley, rice or other variants; all crops; all grains; oats, peas, beans and barley ∼HSK 6
笑盈盈 笑盈盈 xiào yíng yíng smilingly; to be all smiles ∼HSK 6
时辰 時辰 shíchen two-hour period ∼HSK 6
凄惨 悽慘 qī cǎn plaintive; mournful; miserable ∼HSK 6
娘胎 孃胎 niáng tāi womb ∼HSK 6
不可告人 不可告人 bù kě gào rén to be kept secret; not to be divulged ∼HSK 6
切莫 切莫 qiè mò you must not; Please don't...; be sure not to; on no account (do it) ∼HSK 6
宗庙 宗廟 zōng miào temple; ancestral shrine ∼HSK 6
存亡 存亡 cún wáng to live or die; to exist or perish ∼HSK 6
宠信 寵信 chǒng xìn to dote on and trust ∼HSK 6
寿辰 壽辰 shòu chén birthday (of an old person) ∼HSK 6
皇恩 皇恩 huáng ēn imperial kindness; benevolence from the emperor ∼HSK 6
奉旨 奉旨 fèng zhǐ by imperial decree ∼HSK 6
有劳 有勞 yǒu láo thank you for the trouble ∼HSK 6
交托 交託 jiāo tuō to entrust ∼HSK 6
贤王 賢王 xián wáng sage kings ∼HSK 6
负重 負重 fù zhòng (lit. and fig.) to carry a heavy load; to carry a heavy burden ∼HSK 6
天潢贵胄 天潢貴胄 tiān huáng guì zhòu scion of the imperial family (idiom); descendant of royalty or noble blood ∼HSK 6
依傍 依傍 yī bàng to rely on; to depend on; to imitate (a model); to base a work (on some model) ∼HSK 6
螟蛉 螟蛉 míng líng green rice caterpillar or similar insect larva; adopted son (Etymology: Wasps of a particular species take caterpillars to their nest as food for their offspring, but it was mistakenly believed that the wasps were raising the caterpillars a ∼HSK 6
空余 空餘 kòng yú free; vacant; unoccupied ∼HSK 6
父王 父王 fù wáng Father (royal address) ∼HSK 6
强辩 強辯 qiǎng biàn to try to make one's case using false arguments ∼HSK 6
不药而愈 不藥而癒 bù yào ér yù to recover without medicine (idiom); to get well on one's own ∼HSK 6
意旨 意旨 yì zhǐ intent; intention; will ∼HSK 6
牵累 牽累 qiān lěi to weigh down; to trouble; to implicate (sb); tied down (by affairs) ∼HSK 6
冤仇 冤仇 yuān chóu rancor; enmity; hatred resulting from grievances ∼HSK 6
昏过去 昏過去 hūn guo qu to faint ∼HSK 6
碎尸万段 碎屍萬段 suì shī - wàn duàn (idiom) to cut up sb's body into thousands of pieces (a hyperbolic threat) ∼HSK 6
气绝 氣絕 qì jué to take one's last breath; dying ∼HSK 6
恩典 恩典 ēn diǎn favor; grace ∼HSK 6
自尽 自盡 zì jìn to kill oneself; suicide ∼HSK 6
奸徒 奸徒 jiān tú a crafty villain ∼HSK 6
如愿 如願 rú yuàn to have one's wishes fulfilled ∼HSK 6
今朝 今朝 jīn zhāo today (literary) ∼HSK 6
煎熬 煎熬 jiān áo to suffer; to torture; to torment; ordeal; suffering; torture; torment ∼HSK 6
冤气 冤氣 yuān qì resentment over unfair treatment ∼HSK 6
见驾 見駕 jiàn jià to have an audience (with the emperor) ∼HSK 6
钦赐 欽賜 qīn cì (of an emperor) to bestow ∼HSK 6