Long Corridor

Like most of the Summer Palace, the Long Corridor was severely damaged by fire which Anglo-French allied forces laid in 1860 during the Second Opium War.

The Long Corridor leads from the Gate for Greeting the Moon (Yao Yue Men) in the east westwards along the northern shore of Kunming Lake.

Along its entire length, it keeps to the transitional zone between the lake shore and the foot of the Longevity Hill, which is on the opposite side of the corridor.

The topics of these paintings are described below (from east to west): The “Tale of the Peach-Blossom Land” (Chinese: 桃花源記; pinyin: Taohuayuan Ji) is set during the reign of Emperor Xiaowu of the Eastern Jin dynasty.

It tells the story of a fisherman who discovers a secluded valley (Shi Wai Tao Yuan) located on the other side of a narrow cave.

In the Battle of Zhuxian County, the Song army came close to losing, but the courage of a total of four generals was able to turn the near loss into a decisive victory.

It shows Yue Fei engaged in a fight with Chai Gui Prince of Liang, scion of a wealthy family, who wanted to bribe himself through a military exam.

In the painting, Yue Fei kills Chai Gui, who is falling from his horse in the scene, by thrusting a spear at his heart.

As a reaction, they refused to seek fame and wealth and took to entertaining themselves in a bamboo wood with composing poetry, food, music, and chess play instead.

On one side of this battle stood Lü Bu, who was at the time loyal to his adoptive father Dong Zhuo, a tyrant who had gained control over the emperor of the Later Han dynasty.