A brief biography about the Japanese/Chinese spy in the movie.

Rating: 10/10 (3 February 2005)

About the spy.
She was a truly existed character (somewhat famous)in the Chinese recent history. Even a movie was made about her because of her legendary life.
She was related with the emperor: Her father and the emperor's father was brothers, which mean that she was the the emperor's cousin. She was the 14th daughter of her father (14? amazing? yet that's normal in the royal families)
After the empire collapsed, her father colluded with the Japanese. And she was fostered by a Japanese and sent to Japan where she grown up. Her early education in Japan gradually turned her against China. Later she became a spy for the Japanese. Before the World War II, she acted in collusion with the Japanese in Shanghai, China.
For her effective spy work and her Japanese foster father's military background, she got to drive into the kernels of the Japanese army in China, especially in Manchuria. At her top, she'd even lead a troop, as a commander, of around 5000 soldiers. Yet, her indiscipline and arrogance somehow annoyed the Japanese. As a result, she was sent back to Japan.
As she grown up, her foster father coveted her beauty and tried to get her married to him as a concubine. However, she strongly rejected him. After this incident, she was said to become a little out of mind and turn somewhat freak. And She was fond of being dressed in men's clothes(said to be a lesbian). She also became an addict to opium.
During the World War II, she was found to be useful again by the Japaneses. She served as an interpreter and a bridge between the Japanese and the puppet Manchukuo government because of her special royal background, and her career as a spy continued.
When the Japanese surrendered in 1945, she was taken with the emperor as prisoner as you saw in the movie. However, she was not so lucky as the emperor. The Chiang Kai-shek government court (not the later Communist one) sentenced her to death as war criminal for the offense of high treason.
She was shot to death on Oct.5th 1947.
Here are some old pictures about her. Warning: the last picture maybe a little bothering for someone. SEE IT AT YOUR OWN RISK!
http://img04.21cn.com/2004/08/04/2447286.jpg
http://www.shm.com.cn/images/2004-09/09/xin_300901090910867316054.jpg
http://www.tianjindaily.com.cn/docroot/200409/15/picture/k0915051.JPG
http://www.shm.com.cn/images/2004-09/09/xin_030901090917195304948.jpg
http://www.0898.net/img/2004/06/28/20040628wy020.jpg (with her family,the leftmost)
http://songlinbook.com/bbs/upload/200407032122442.jpg (with the Japanese generals, the leftmost)
http://club.cat898.com/newbbs/uploadImages/200409272233773499.jpg (shot to death, warning: not for children.)