This director is vindictive.

Chapter 524 When it comes to unrestrained spirit, it has to be my Great Tang Dynasty!
Documentary films and television shows in this format usually have very low viewership ratings.

Although it has an audience, it is still limited.

However, this time, the viewership and online streaming rates of the documentaries produced by several TV stations were alarmingly high.

The popularity of "A Thousand Years of Chinese Costume" has soared to unprecedented heights, igniting audience interest in traditional clothing. Meanwhile, "The Spirit of the Wei and Jin Dynasties: A Universe Hidden in the Sleeves" focuses precisely on the clothing culture of the Wei and Jin periods, perfectly aligning with the "Chinese Costume" theme and naturally attracting significant attention.

After watching "A Thousand Years of Chinese Costumes," viewers developed a strong interest in the evolution of clothing throughout history. The wide robes and flowing sleeves of the Wei and Jin dynasties, with their elegant and unrestrained style, were visually striking, and the documentary perfectly met this need.

In particular, this documentary, "The Spirit of the Wei and Jin Dynasties, Hiding the Universe in a Sleeve," is different from traditional documentaries of the past.

Traditional documentaries often use a "expert explanation + historical data" model, which can easily become boring.

"The Spirit of Wei and Jin Dynasties, Hidden Universe in a Sleeve" uses the method of "recreating famous scenes + poetic narration" to bring historical figures to life.

The documentary avoids lengthy background introductions and instead cuts directly to classic historical moments, such as "Visiting Dai on a Snowy Night," "Ruan Ji's Mourning of His Mother," and "The Migration of the Aristocracy to the South," allowing viewers to quickly immerse themselves in the story.

The Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties was an era full of contradictions—it had the unrestrained spirit of the "Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove" and the tragic desolation of the "migrants fleeing south." This complexity and controversy, ironically, resonate strongly with modern audiences.

After the documentary was released, many netizens discussed it extensively.

"I was really moved when I saw the scene where Wang Huizhi visits Dai on a snowy night! The ice crack embroidery on the wisteria cloak is actually the flying white stroke of the 'Timely Clearing After Snowfall' calligraphy. The director is so clever—the snow marks swept by the hem of the garment are the cursive character '兴' (xīng), and the missing stroke is the very essence of the Wei-Jin people's 'going on a whim and returning when the whim is over'?"

"Who understands the shock of Ruan Ji tearing his white robe when he lost his mother? They weren't just tearing clothes, they were tearing the chains of social conventions!"

"I'm begging for a 4K remaster of the Tianshui Bi Ranfang scene! The bluish-white hue peeking through the plain gauze is just like the celadon glaze of Ru kiln. The comments say, 'This is clearly the misty rain of Jiangnan solidified on the fabric'—the Morandi color scheme of our ancestors blows Pantone's color of the year out of the water!" (Comparison image attached: Wei Jin plain gauze vs. a luxury brand's Spring/Summer 2024 new collection)

"What's most striking is the three layers of clothing in the trunks of the Southern gentry: moth-eaten court robes = shattered dreams of the imperial court, blood-stained deep robes = the wounds of war, and mud-covered blouses = an everlasting homesickness. Isn't this a million times more vivid than any textbook?"

"Seeing Tao Yuanming laughing as his clothes broke and throwing himself into the stream, I suddenly understand why the modern Hanfu community is fighting tooth and nail over 'form'—the people of the Wei and Jin dynasties had already shown you through their actions that what matters is 'a tranquil mind and a secluded place,' not how many pleats the clothes have!" (with a meme of himself wearing Hanfu and getting his clothes caught in the subway door)

"Modern working class really empathizes! Seeing celebrities tucking memorials into their sleeves to slack off, treating wine stains as performance art, and wearing patches as medals—isn't this a reflection of our souls beneath our suits and ties?"

One film critic commented, "The key to this documentary's success lies in its avoidance of preaching or pandering. Instead, it uses the most beautiful visuals and concise language to present the spirit and contradictions of the Wei and Jin dynasties, allowing the audience to experience and interpret them for themselves. This 'leaving blanks' and 'empathy' is precisely the most popular narrative style today. I look forward to documentaries on the changes in clothing across different dynasties!"

When it comes to Hanfu, especially women's Hanfu, the most attention-grabbing or the most discussed is undoubtedly the court ladies' attire of the Tang Dynasty.

Hmm, those who know, know. After all, the Tang Dynasty was truly a very magical dynasty.

The mighty Han and the glorious Tang dynasties!

However, these two dynasties were also the strangest and most astonishing dynasties in history.

Of course, although Hanfu is named after the Han Dynasty, in reality, Tang suits are also a synonym for Chinese national costume.

When it comes to women and women's Hanfu (traditional Han clothing), the Tang Dynasty is an era that cannot be ignored.

After all, the Tang Dynasty had a famous princess known for her extramarital affair, Princess Gaoyang.

And there's also Fang Yi'ai, the first cuckold!

Moreover, the Tang Dynasty also saw the rise of Wu Zetian, the only female emperor in Chinese history to ascend the throne.

Later, there was Yang Guifei, one of the Four Beauties.

Of course, the reason why women's clothing in the Tang Dynasty was so controversial is largely due to the Tang Dynasty's famously "unrestrained" culture.

Although Fan Binbin's portrayal of the Empress of China in this life wasn't as exaggerated as her previous one, Zhang Yimou's court attire in "Curse of the Golden Flower" was equally impressive, leaving fans in awe.
Even Chen Mo still remembers the shock he felt when he watched that movie back then. Don't misunderstand, it wasn't the shock of "Curse of the Golden Flower" that shocked him, but the shock of the women's clothing from the Hemisphere brand!

After all, most men are football fans!
Otherwise, why would so many livestreamers on Douyin be covering their chests? Ahem, let's get back to the point.

Following the first episode's theme of "cheongsam," CCTV's documentary channel moved directly to the Tang Dynasty in the second episode.

This issue's title is rather long: "The Evolution of Tang Dynasty Women's Clothing: A Look at the Aesthetic Changes of the Era." The camera slowly pulls back from the morning mist in the silk workshop of Chang'an's West Market. The bluish-gray light of dawn filters through the lattice windows, casting dappled shadows on the looms. The weaver's fingertips, stained with balsam juice, brush across a newly dyed rosy-brown gauze, causing ripples of iridescent light to spread across the surface, startling a few dew-kissed spindles.

Subtitles appeared: 【Early Tang Dynasty - The Grandeur of the Zhenguan Era】

The narration is a deep female voice with the lingering charm of traditional Chinese music: "In the sound of looms at the end of the Wude era, there is a transformation that is hard to describe - when the 'ethereal' wide sleeves of the Six Dynasties met the Hu-style horsewhips of the Guanzhong Group, the women's clothing of the early Tang Dynasty began to find a balance between restraint and unrestraint."

Background sounds gradually rise: in the distance, the camel bells of a Persian caravan intertwine with the sounds of a harp played by a woman from a tavern.

The restored scene unfolds in a long shot: a noblewoman with her hair styled in a half-updo is changing clothes in front of a bronze mirror. A close-up shows her slender, pale fingers tightening the light blue ribbon of her pale yellow upper garment.
The narrator explains: "This cross-collar right-fastening method still retains the style of the Southern Dynasties' 'slender waist bound with white silk,' but the ends of the ties are now adorned with Sogdian-style glass beads."

Moving downwards, a Persian gold ornament now hangs from the jade clasp at her waist, where a belt should have been worn. Sunlight filters through the gold ornament's openwork grape pattern, casting dappled light on her pomegranate-colored skirt, creating a wonderful echo with the twelve stripes of different colors on the skirt.

As she turned around, her originally flowing wide sleeves were suddenly billowed by the draft, revealing the narrow sleeves underneath.

The narrator's voice rang out again: "This Turkic-style tight-fitting, narrow-sleeved garment is quietly replacing the old style of 'wide, flowing sleeves' from the previous dynasty."

A voice-over interjects with the old weaver's narration: "Young ladies are all like this nowadays—"

The camera cuts to an old weaver's calloused hands stroking a new pattern on the loom: "From the outside, it still looks like Han Chinese style, but inside it's been completely dyed with patterns brought by foreign merchants."

The camera zooms out, revealing a woman stepping out of the threshold in cloud-patterned brocade shoes. Backlit, her Persian-patterned riding boots are faintly visible beneath her skirt—the latest trendy style for noblewomen from the Guanzhong Plain. In the distance, on the wall of the ward, a corner of the newly posted edict of the Zhenguan era is lifted by the wind, revealing the four vermilion characters for "wedding attire."

If we're talking about the Tang Dynasty at its peak, everyone can probably name the Reign of Zhenguan and the Kaiyuan Era!
These two periods can be considered iconic eras of the Tang Dynasty.

Soon the second act credits appeared: [The Splendor of the Tang Dynasty - Kaiyuan Era]

The camera zooms in on the floral pattern on the skirt of the maid in the "Maid Holding a Box" mural in the tomb of Princess Yongtai, with gold threads shimmering in the sunlight.

The narrator's voice rang out: "The gold thread with the peony pattern brought by Sogdian merchants and the dyeing and weaving from Kucha, which was presented as tribute by the Anxi Protectorate, finally blossomed on the ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) of women in Chang'an—the popularity of the qixiong ruqun was no accident; it was the most vivid trade list on the Silk Road."

(Animation demonstration: How a brocade skirt with gold and silver embroidery can be made to flow freely while riding a horse by piecing together three pieces of fabric)
Act Three: Mid-Tang Dynasty - Splendid Attire Amidst Chaos

The camera zooms in on fragments of Tang Dynasty gold-embroidered brocade unearthed from the underground palace of Famen Temple.

Gold threads were coiled into a lotus pattern on dark red gauze. Even after a thousand years, the gold foil, which is only a quarter the thickness of a human hair, still shimmered faintly.

The narrator begins: "The flames of the An Lushan Rebellion changed the direction of aesthetics. When Yang Guifei's Rainbow Feather Garment became the legend of Mawei Slope, women in the common people began to respond to the times with 'frugal makeup'—plain silk shirts with hidden gold patterns, and shawls shortened by three inches. This was the wisdom of survival in the afterglow of a prosperous era."

The camera then cuts to a close-up of a plain silk robe from the Tang Dynasty discovered in an archaeological excavation: "Take a closer look at these plain silk robes worn by ordinary women—they appear simple on the surface, but when held up to the sunlight, you can see that the hidden patterns are woven with gold threads as fine as hair. The shawls that used to reach the feet have now been quietly shortened by three inches."

The animation demonstrates the changes in the length of the shawl. In the 3D reconstruction, the shawl during the Tianbao era flows like a rainbow, while the shawl after the war just reaches the waist, with the ends still having hastily cut frayed edges.

"This is not simply about thrift, but a survival strategy in chaotic times. Just like this seemingly plain shirt—" The microscope lens zoomed in on the fabric's pores.

"Double layers of dark gauze were secretly added to the cuffs and hem where wear and tear is likely to occur. The flamboyant lotus flower pattern that was prominent in the prosperous times is now only embroidered on the inner lining of the garment."

Finally, the image focuses on a Tang Dynasty bronze mirror in the Xi'an Museum. Hidden within the scrolling floral pattern on the back of the mirror is a line of small characters: "In the second year of Guangde, the Wang family hid their clothes in a well."

Finally, there's the section on "Late Tang Dynasty: The Radiant End of an Era."

The image shows a comparison between the "Donor Portrait" and the "Ladies Wearing Flowers in Their Hair" from Cave 17 of the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang.

The narration resumed, tinged with a touch of sorrow: Under the shadow of the Huichang persecution of Buddhism, women's clothing ironically experienced its most rebellious bloom. The wide, flowing robes evolved into sheer, light silks, and pomegranate-red skirts featured up to twelve pleats. Contemporaries called it 'unorthodox,' but it was in reality the final revelry before the Tang Dynasty's fate was sealed.

The camera focuses on a fragment of a green silk skirt unearthed from the Astana tombs in XJ, then overlays it onto a modern scholar's reconstruction using traditional plant dyes.

"When we observe these remaining warp and weft threads under a microscope, we see not only the weaving techniques of the Tianbao era, but also how a nation, at its most prosperous period, wove together a confidence that embraces the world with every stitch."

(End of this chapter)