[2] Chang Ch'ung-ho (Zhang Chonghe) was born in Shanghai in 1914, with her ancestral home in Hefei, Anhui.

[3] Her great-grandfather, Zhang Shusheng (張樹聲), was a high-ranking military officer in the Huai Army.

[3] Her third sister, Chang Chao-ho (張兆和; 1910–2003), was a teacher and writer, and the wife of the celebrated novelist Shen Congwen.

After graduating from PKU, Chang Ch'ung-ho became an editor for the newspaper Central Daily News.

In 1947, Chang met Hans Fränkel at Peking University, they married in November 1948, and settled down in the United States in January 1949.