Romance in the Rain

Romance in the Rain

(L-R): Su, Lin, Zhao and Ku in a promotional image
Created by Li Ping, Chiung Yao
Starring Zhao Wei
Ruby Lin
Leo Ku
Alec Su
Gao Xin
Li Yu
Xu Lu
Kou Zhenhai
Yu Xing
Wang Lin
Yue Tingting
Cao Qiugen
Huang Daliang
Country of origin China
Taiwan
No. of episodes 49
Production
Running time 1 hour per episode
Broadcast
Original channel CCTV (China)
Original run May 03, 2001 – June 2002
Romance in the Rain
Traditional Chinese 情深深雨濛濛
Simplified Chinese 情深深雨蒙蒙
Literal meaning "Love Deep, Rain Misty")

Romance in the Rain was a 2001 Chinese-language costume drama based on producer Chiung Yao's 1964 novel Yan Yu Meng Meng (煙雨濛濛), which follows the Lu family in 1930s Shanghai, China. Starring Zhao Wei, Ruby Lin, Leo Ku, and Alec Su, the series was co-produced by Chiung Yao's company in Taiwan (in conjunction with China Television) and China Central Television in Mainland China.

As it was the first Chiung Yao drama that Zhao, Lin and Su starred in together after the 1998-1999 smash hit My Fair Princess,[1] the TV series was a large commercial success, recording ratings as high as 20% in China. It was also shown on television in the following countries and regions: Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, the United States, Malaysia, South Korea, Vietnam,[2] Australia, Indonesia,[3] Cambodia, Thailand, France, Philippines, and Russia.

Characters

The protagonist of Romance in the Rain, Yiping is one of the many children of Lu Zhenhua, a retired general with nine wives. Her mother, Fu Wenpei, is the general's eighth wife. Both she and her mother are banished from the Lu household through the actions of her father's ninth wife, Wang Xueqin. She has ten half-sisters, including Ruping and Mengping, many half-brothers, including Erhao, and one stepbrother named Erjie. The mercilessness with which her father and stepmother treat her has made her resentful of the Lu family, which she refers to as the "other side." At first, she is at odds with her half-brother Erhao and half-sister Ruping for this reason, but she eventually learns to love and accept them as her siblings. She has one elder full sister called Xinping (陸心萍/陆心萍) who died 7 years before the plot of the story at 15 years of age. After an earlier encounter, she meets a reporter named He Shuhuan at a Shanghai nightclub. Shuhuan is soon captivated by Yiping's singing talent, emotion, and mystery. After discovering her half-sister Ruping's love for Shuhuan, she seeks Shuhuan's love, partly as revenge. However, Yiping soon falls in love with Shuhuan and softens as a result. After the death of her father, Yiping became the sole financial support of the Lu family as Erhao also enlist in the army. Yiping's character is loud and blunt, with a strong sense of righteousness and justice due to the misfortunes that she and her mother have suffered. She often describes herself as a porcupine who has grown spines as a mechanism of self-defense. In order to love Shuhuan, she pulls out her quills one by one, leaving her defenseless and a bloody mess.

Ruping is the daughter of Lu Zhenhua and Wang Xueqin, as well as Yiping's half-sister. She is the full sister of Erhao and Mengping and half-sister of Erjie from her mother's side. Her mother, Xueqin, is her father's ninth and final wife. Pretty and sympathetic, Ruping comes from a wealthy environment but is not prejudiced against Yiping like the rest of her family. She gets angry, jealous, and upset at times, but in times of need, she always prioritizes other people's well-being before her own emotions. Ruping's first love interest is Shuhuan, whom she met after Shuhuan asks her to guard some negatives. At the same time, she also meets Du Fei, Shuhuan's colleague, who develops strong feelings for Ruping. During the series, Ruping is confronted with a series of misfortunes that make her believe that she is unloved. Shuhuan runs away from their engagement ceremony, her mother has been found to commit adultery and steal from their family's treasury, and after helping her mother escape imprisonment by contacting Wei Guangxiong, Ruping is the direct cause of the loss of all of the Lu family's savings, which earns her much anger and harsh words from her father. She runs away from home with her father's gun, intending to commit suicide. However, with the onset of war against the Japanese, she decides to join the Red Cross instead and becomes a nurse in the battlefield. During this time, she thinks about Du Fei every day and comes to realize that he is her one true love and has been for a long time. By coincidence, she and Du Fei meet again, and she is able to reveal her feelings. They end up holding a "battlefield wedding" and working together until the end of the war.

A reporter from Nanjing, Shuhuan is the friend and colleague of Lu Erhao and Du Fei as well as the love interest of sisters Lu Yiping and Lu Ruping. However, whereas his feelings towards Yiping are romantic, he only treats Ruping as a special friend. At the beginning of the series, he and Ruping are assumed to be potential partners by all their friends and family members. Xueqin is particularly adamant about this, often insisting that Ruping make a move to secure their relationship. Despite several arguments, and going back and forth between Yiping and Ruping, he remains passionate towards Yiping. After reading Yiping's diary and discovering that Yiping was only dating to get revenge with 'that side' of the family he was led to anger and broke up with her. He later engaged with Ruping but left her during the engagement party for Yiping. Towards the end of the story, Shuhuan goes off to fight in the war between Japan and China, leaving Yiping waiting for him.

Like Shuhuan, Du Fei is a reporter. He is extremely passionate about his love for Ruping, but Ruping attempts to reject his love. A caring man, Du Fei always helps others in need but is also careless and clumsy. During the war between Japan and China, Du Fei, upset by Ruping's disappearance, goes to the battlefield as a reporter, and after several years discovers Ruping's love for him and marries her.

Erhao is the son of Lu Zhenhua and Xue Qin, brother to Ruping and Mengping, and half-brother to Yiping from his father and Erjie from his mother. He is the love interest of Yiping's best friend Fang Yu. However, his relationship with Fang Yu becomes complex after Erhao discovers that his past childhood love, Keyun, once had his child and is now mentally disabled. At the beginning of the series Erhao hated Yiping but for the sake of Fang Yu he tried hard to make peace with Yiping. He was able to put aside his hatred towards Yiping and grew to love and accept her as his sister and part of the family. Erhao later enlists in the army as well leaving Fang Yu waiting for him.

The best friend of Yiping who falls in love with Yiping's half-brother, Erhao. Yiping is at first against Fang Yu's relationship with Erhao, especially after finding out about Keyun, but Fang Yu continued to love Erhao despite complications in their relationship.

The daughter of Li Zhengde and Li Yuzhen, Keyun had a childhood romance with Erhao which resulted in a pregnancy. She did not inform Erhao about this. After their baby's death, Keyun developed a mental illness. Throughout Romance in the Rain, Yiping, Shuhuan, Erhao, Ruping, Du Fei, and Fang Yu attempt to help Keyun recover her memory. In the end, Keyun gets better when she saw a motherless baby during war. She decided to raise him as her own.

The father of Yiping, Lu Zhenhua is a retired, respected general. He was married to nine women, all of which he eventually lost interest in. As a result of his tragic romance with Pingping, Lu Zhenhua is inclined to marry any woman who bore a resemblance to Pingping. It is revealed later after he died that the person who bore the closest resemblance towards his long-lost love Pingping was not his wives but his daughter the deceased Xinping, the sister of Yiping and daughter of Wenpei who became his favorite daughter. Although his relationship with Yiping is tumultuous at the beginning, the two eventually build a strong bond through their similarities. At first he was hated by Yiping especially after he whipped Yiping, but as the series goes on Yiping grew to love him. He died after getting shot while fighting off Japanese soldiers trying to protect Yiping and Shuhuan.

The eighth wife of Lu Zhenhua, Fu Wenpei is gentle and moral compared to Zhenhua's ninth wife, Xueqin. After Zhenhua married Xueqin, he lost interest in Wenpei and eventually was expelled from the Lu household. She and Zhenhua had two daughters: the deceased Xinping and Yiping. The death of Xinping brought great disturbance and grieve to her. She cannot forget about Xinping and always thinks of her much to Yiping's dismay who thought that she could never replaced Xinping in Wenpei's heart. Wenpei was of noble character especially when she talked for Wang Xueqin to Zhenhua even after she was always treated unfairly and badly by Wang Xueqin. She later became the mother figure to the children of Lu Zhenhua with Wang Xueqin especially towards Mengping. At the beginning, Wenpei lives a modest life with Yiping.

The ninth wife of Lu Zhenhua, Xueqin is devious and power hungry. She also had an affair outside her marriage for more than ten years with a man named Wei Guangxiong which started in the Haerbin and followed her to Shanghai when she moved to Shanghai unbeknownst to Zhenhua. Although Zhenhua has a strong interest in her at the beginning, eventually her negative actions cause him to change his feelings. After Zhenhua found out of her affairs she was locked up together with her youngest son Erjie. He also tried to shoot her, but was stopped by, surprisingly, Yiping and Shuhuan, who hated her the most. Xueqin told Ruping to call Wei Guangxiong and rescue her. She was rescued, but was neglected later as Wei Guangxiong lost interest in her. She and Zhenhua had three children: Lu Erhao, Lu Ruping, and Lu Mengping. Her youngest son, Erjie, was the result of her affair with Wei Guangxiong.

The youngest daughter of Zhenhua and Xueqin. Mengping is the sister of Erhao and Ruping and half-sister of Yiping from her father and Erjie from her mother. Mengping is at first prejudiced towards Yiping like her mother, but later learned to love Yiping. She enjoys partying and having fun, but she is raped after a night of partying, and this causes her personality to change drastically. She turns more forgiving and eventually learns to accept Yiping as part of her family later after the death of her father she lived with Yiping, Wenpei, Li Fuguan, Li sao, Keyun in the Lu mansion. She helped took care of the orphaned children whose parents were killed or separated during the war. Mengping later take Wenpei as the mother figure as the replacement of the mother who left.

One of Zhenhua's officers and most trusted person, Li Zhengde is also a retired soldier and living a quiet life in Shanghai. Originally he was an assiantant to the Lu family, Li Zhengde and his family left after discovering Keyun's pregnancy. For several years, Li Zhengde and his family were financially assisted by Yiping's mother, Wenpei despite her own financial difficulty. Later Yiping take a job as a songstress in "Grand Shanghai" nightclub not only for the sake of herself and her mother but also for the sake of supporting the family of Li Zhengde.

A wealthy businessman in Shanghai, Qin Wuye is the owner of a nightclub called "Grand Shanghai." When Yiping comes in search for work, Qin Wuye offers her a job to sing at his nightclub after being stunned by Yiping's attitude. Eventually, Yiping's relationship with Qin Wuye grows stronger and Yiping relies on him several times for assistance. Qin Wuye gave the job as a songstress in the "Big Shanghai" during the war and during the financial crisis of the Lu family.

Pingping was the daughter of a statesman whom the young Lu Zhenhua fell in love with. She also returned his love and they promise to marry each other someday. However, furious about this, her father tried to kill Zhenhua but stopped by his daughter. Lu Zhenhua later pursued his hopes to become a victorious general in order to marry Pingping. And she promised him she will wait for him until he kept promise. However, before he achieved this, Pingping committed suicide in order to avoid an arranged marriage, which had a powerful effect on Zhenhua. Witnessing the corruption of Qing Dynasty and the death of Pingping, Zhenhua decided to call up a uprising against the Qing Dynasty, which eventually made him become the general of North-eastern China. Because of his love for Pingping, Lu Zhenhua gives all of his twelve daughters a name that includes the character Ping (萍): Xinping (心萍), Yiping (依萍), Ruping (如萍), and Mengping (夢萍/梦萍).

The adulterer of Wang Xueqin, a small leader in a gang. He alongside with Xueqin was arrested due to arms dealing in the end of this show.

Awards and nominations

Year Event Category Recipient(s) Result
2001 The 1st Top 10 China Television Artists Awards Top Actor Zhao Wei Won
2002 The 2nd Top Chinese Music Chart Awards Best Theme Song for a Movie or Television Zhao Wei Won

Reception

This was CCTV's first co-produced television series with Taiwan, also is the first time broadcasting in primetime.

Broadcasts

Indonesia

Title as: Kabut Cinta Start aired: Tuesday, 19 March 2002

Final aired: Wednesday, 16 December 2010

Network: 3 (Tuesday, 19 March 2002-Wednesday, 16 December 2010)

Distributor: 3 (Tuesday, 19 March 2002-Wednesday, 16 December 2010)

Channel: 3 (Tuesday, 19 March 2002-Wednesday, 16 December 2010)

Dubbed (Audio): Chinese Subtitle (Captions): Indonesian Preceded by: Doa Membawa Berkah Season 1 (2000 - Rerun) Followed by: none

First Run

Start aired: Tuesday, 19 March 2002

Final aired: Friday, 2 May 2003

Network: 2 (Tuesday, 19 March 2002-Friday, 2 May 2003)

Distributor: 3 (Tuesday, 19 March 2002-Friday, 2 May 2003)

Channel: 2 (Tuesday, 19 March 2002-Friday, 2 May 2003)

Timeslot:

Theme Song:

Preceded by:

Followed by:

Rerun

Start aired: Monday, 18 October 2010 Final aired: Wednesday, 16 December 2010 Network: Visi Media Asia Distributor: Barkie & Brothers Channel: ANTV Timeslot: Weekday at 10:00-11:00 WIB/11:00-12:00 WITA/12:00-13:00 WIT Theme Song: 光, sung by Djenar Maesa Ayu (Episode 1-Episode Finale (The End)) Preceded by: none Followed by: none

Soundtrack

Most of the lyrics for songs were written by the writer, Chiung Yao, sung by Zhao Wei.

No. TitleLyricsMusicArtist Length
1. "情深深雨濛濛" (Romance in the Rain)Chiung YaoXu Jialiang (徐嘉良)Zhao Wei  
2. "好想好想" (Miss You)Chiung YaoYou Jingang (尤景仰)Zhao Wei  
3. "烟雨濛濛" (Misty Rain)Chiung YaoYou Jingang (尤景仰)Zhao Wei  
4. "小冤家" (Jambalaya)Chiung YaounknownZhao Wei  
5. "偶然" (Occasionally)Xu Zhimo (徐志摩)Chen Qiuxia (陈秋霞)Zhao Wei  
6. "往事难忘" (Long Long Ago)Chiung YaounknownZhao Wei  
7. "新兰花草" (Orchid)Hu Shi (胡适)C.Tso (左宏元)Zhao Wei  
8. "雨天的故事" (The Story of Raining Day)Chiung YaoC.Tso (左宏元)Zhao Wei  
9. "离别的车站" (The Separation Station)Chiung YaoXu Jialiang (徐嘉良)Zhao Wei  
10. "满场飞圆舞曲" (Waltz Waltz)Bao Yi (包乙)unknownZhao Wei  
11. "不由自主" (Can't Help Myself)Chiung YaoTu Huiyuan (涂惠元)Zhao Wei  
12. "自从离别后" (Since I Leave You)Chiung YaoGuo Liang (郭亮)Zhao Wei  

Other film and television based on the plot

References

  1. ↑ The drama also featured appearances by Wang Yan, a main actress from My Fair Princess Season 2.
  2. ↑ In Vietnam it is known as Tân Dòng Sông Ly Biệt or The Parting River.
  3. ↑ In Indonesia it is known as Kabut Cinta.
  4. ↑ 《康熙王朝》收视率年度第二，吸引高学历人群 ， CCTV 14 January 2002。

External links