Sometimes when I see the pipa, I think of a Chinese beauty. Pipa is a traditional Chinese musical instrument, usually played by a female. In ancient China, there once lived a beauty Wang Qiang 王牆, more commonly known as Wang Zhaojun 王昭君 who was sent by Emperor Yuan of Han to marry Chanyu Huhanye of the Xiongnu Empire. Originally, Wang Zhaojun entered the palace as a candidate for the wife of the emperor. Beautiful and intelligent as she was, she failed to be chosen as she didn't bribe the artist Mao Yanshou who thus drew an unflattering portrait of her to be presented to the emperor. Later, when Chanyu Huhanye requested for a bride; the Han emperor, thinking Wang Zhaojun was just a plain-looking girl, offered her. When his majesty realized his mistake, it was already too late to retract his decision. In paintings, Wang Zhaojun is always depicted with a pipa
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