【The Story of theMusical】
At the beginning of the twentiethcentury, many foreign missionaries, businessmen and diplomats chose a beautifulvillage near Fuzhou as a summer resort, built villas and churches, opened postoffices, built tennis courts and swimming pools. Here, people lead a peacefuland happy life, as if "paradise". This is a place called "Kuliang",and it has a nice name - the village in the clouds.
The hero, Milton Gardner, spent hischildhood here.His father was a missionary from the United States, Gardnerfollowed his father came to Kuliang, stay for ten years. They often play underthe cedar tree in the village. Here, he has a lot oflocal good friends, among them xiangzi, fozi and he became the closest friends.The original threethought that their whole life will be studying here, working, getting married,having children and becoming old friends, and will never be separated fromtheir friends. However, in 1911, the Revolution of 1911 began. In order toescape the war, many foreigners living in KuLiang had to leave here temporarilyand return to their homeland. Gardiner also followed his father back toCalifornia. Partingary, Gardner and his friends reluctantly, the three meetunder the tree: so the war is over, we must rejoin here! But none of them everthought of this difference, it was life.
Gardner has been trying to get back tothe "hometown" Kuliang during the parting days, and his friends havebeen looking forward to his return. However, the merciless war quickly spreadto the entire world, triggering a human tragedy. During this period, fu zai waspulled into the zhuang, leaving only Xiangzi waiting quietly for the "return" ofthe friends. After World War II, Gardner renewed his confidence to go back toKuLiang. However, the "Cold War" began. The two countries, China andthe United States, became hostile two camps. Gardiner was only disappointed. ButXiangzi in Kuliang has never given up waiting and hope. In January 1979, Chinaand the United States formally established diplomatic relations, which meantthat the frozen lake would be melted. While Gardner was happy to be"home", he had an unexpected stroke. After the news of Gardner'scancer, his wife, Elizabeth, forced him to give up "going home" fortreatment.
In the spring of 1986, Gardner died, andon his deathbed in the direction of "Kuliang", he kept saying,"CHINA, KULIANG;FOOCHOW, KULIANG ". In order to fulfill her husband'sdesire to "return to KULIANG", Mrs. Gardiner flew to China fourtimes, looking for her husband's "KULIANG", but she never foundit.She began to doubt that it was a dream that her husband had made, somewherein the dream, that it didn't exist on the map. By chance, a Chinese studentnamed Lin Kai lived in Madame Gardiner's home and occasionally discoveredstamps of correspondence between his friends and Mr. Gardner. The postmark onthe stamp showed "KULIANG" as "Kuling." The mystery thathaunted Mrs Gardner for years was finally solved.
In 1992, at the invitation of the FuzhouGovernment, Lin Kai accompanied Gardiner to return to Kuliang with thegratitude of Gardner. The friends of the "under the tree" were gone, buttheir friendship is like the immortal cedar king forever. If there is nobarrier, if there is no opposition, if there is no war, let the time back tothe night before the separate, three small kids sitting in the tree, swingingtheir feet, watching the sky stars, sang "Friendship Forever”
