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Stories inside the gate
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THE Gate of the Reign, a series currently being aired on CCTV-1, has scored record high ratings among the viewing audience.
The serial, based upon the vicissitudes of a famous maker of Chinese medicine, Tongren Tang, takes a fresh look at so-called "gate culture", sparking many discussions on the development of some large families which affected the development of certain businesses in China's history.
Guo Baochang, director and writer of the serial, said it took him forty years to finish the work: "I consider it as important as my life."
"From 16 to 56, I did not stop writing Gate of the Reign even when the manuscript was destroyed three times and I was forced to labour during the 'Cultural Revolution', because I cannot forget my experience inside the gate," Guo stressed.
According to Guo, he was adopted by the family of Tongren Tang at the age of two. The boss of the family, Le Jingyu, then became his foster father.
Guo said most of the stories he wrote were told by his foster father -- a tyrant and a rebellious son of the family but an amiable father of the author.
Guo believes gate culture is worthy of careful study. Showing the family's history lets everyone learn something from it, Guo said.
The show is so popular that some visitors came from far away to Beijing, just to have a look at Tongren Tang, a medicine store with a history of 329 years.
However, the store is keeping a low profile. "We do not need any publicity," said a manager. Some family members even said the story is not based on real life. Guo himself also admits that the show is a work of art, with thirty per cent of the story having been made up.
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