Written in 1598, the same year as Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, Tang Xianzu's "The Peony Pavilion" tells the tale of Du Liniang, a young woman from a wealthy family who falls asleep beside a peony ...

While serious historians suggest the concubine likely received lychees from a closer province, Sichuan, rather than distant Guangdong, either route posed immense difficulties during the time. The ...