''Affair of Half a Lifetime'' () is a 2003 drama-romance TV series based on the 1948 novel of the same name by

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

author

Eileen Chang Eileen Chang ( zh, t=張愛玲, s=张爱玲, first=t, w=Chang1 Ai4-ling2, p=Zhāng Àilíng；September 30, 1920 – September 8, 1995), also known as Chang Ai-ling or Zhang Ailing, or by her pen name Liang Jing (梁京), was a Chinese-born Am ...

. The series stars

Ruby Lin use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , death_cause = , resting_place = , resting_place_coordinates = , burial_place ...

, Patrick Tam,

Jiang Qinqin Jiang Qinqin (, born 3 September 1976) is a Chinese actress. She is sometimes credited as Shui Ling (), a stage name given to her by Taiwanese writer Chiung Yao while she was involved in the production of the television series ''Tears in Heaven'' ...

and Li Liqun. It had the most simultaneous broadcasts on China cable/satellite TVs during 2004. The series was filmed in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

and

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

Plot

''Affair of Half a Lifetime'' is set in

, China, during the 1930s and 1940s. It centers around two sisters from a struggling family, Gu Manzhen (

) and her older sister, Gu Manlu (

). A college graduate, Manzhen finds true love with one of her colleagues, Shen Shijun ( Patrick Tam). Meanwhile, Manlu, the oldest of four children, supports the entire family. At the age of seventeen, Manlu sacrificed her pride and reputation to become a nightclub hostess. The job helps support Manlu's family, but others find her work disgraceful and look down on Manlu. Even her own grandmother does not her job. Originally, before she takes up her work as a nightclub hostess, Manlu was to marry a respected doctor named Zhang Yujing. However, they are forced to part and Manlu eventually marries a

comprador A comprador or compradore () is a "person who acts as an agent for foreign organizations engaged in investment, trade, or economic or political exploitation". A comprador is a Indigenous peoples, native manager for a European business house in East ...

(Zhu Hongcai) instead. Manlu realizes that she is barren, and fearful for her marriage arranges her sister to be raped by her husband after finding out that Zhu is attracted to her sister. Manlu also lies to Shijun, saying Manzhen has rejected his love because of the disparity between their statuses, thus forcing them to be apart. Manzhen eventually escapes from her abusive family after she gives birth to her son with Zhu, but afraid to contact Shijun in fear of the consequences if he finds out, marries his maternal cousin Shi Cuizhi. Having failed to maintain her

chastity Chastity, also known as purity, is a virtue related to temperance. Someone who is ''chaste'' refrains either from sexual activity considered immoral or any sexual activity, according to their state of life. In some contexts, for example when mak ...

for Shijun, Manzhen hopes for the best of his marriage with Shi, and settles somewhere as a recluse and becomes a schoolteacher. Eventually, both Manlu and Zhu feel remorse of their misdeeds toward Manzhen, and Manlu begs her sister to come back to raise her nephew/stepson with her husband after they locate her, asking for forgiveness before she dies. Despite still hating them for the rape, Manzhen stays with Zhu for the sake of their son. By chance, Manzhen and Shijun reunite in

, and both talk of each other's lives years after their separation. Knowing that they still love each other, but due to the restrictions of their respective obligations, both Manzhen and Shijun realize that they cannot be together.

Cast

as Gu Manzhen (顧曼楨) * Patrick Tam as Shen Shijun (沈世鈞) *

as Gu Manlu (顧曼璐) *Li Li-chun as Zhu Hongcai (祝鴻才) *

Hu Ke Hu Ke is the name of: * Hu Ke (actress) (born 1975), Chinese actress * Hu Ke (cyclist) (born 1988), Chinese male track cyclist {{hndis ...

as Shi Cuizhi (石翠芝) *Chang Chang as Xu Shuhui (許叔惠) *Xing Minshan as Zhang Yujin (張豫瑾)

Soundtrack

* Album Title : 半生缘新歌+精选 (''Ban Sheng Yuan'' New + Best Selection) The original soundtrack was released on April 2004 in China. This soundtrack contains 18 tracks, produced by BMG Ltd (

). All songs are sung by lead actress

Ruby lin use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , death_cause = , resting_place = , resting_place_coordinates = , burial_place ...

. Tracks 1-5 are composed for this series, other songs are from Ruby Lin's album ''Best Selection''.''林心如:《半生缘新歌+精选》 ''�
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Awards

International broadcast

* It aired in Vietnam from October 28, 2005 on

HTV7 HTV7 is a entertainment sociocultural TV channel in Vietnam, broadcast by Ho Chi Minh City Television since 1987. History of formation and development * Before January 27, 1973, this was the channel serving the US Army stationed in Southern V ...

under the title ''Bán sinh duyên''.

Plot

Cast

Soundtrack

Awards

International broadcast

See also

References

External links