The Imperfect Sculpture
The Imperfect Sculpture (天缺一角; literally "A Corner Is Missing in the Sky") is a 2003 Chinese television drama made in China, directed by Yang Xinlei (杨新磊), based on the 1997 Lu Xun Literary Prize-winning novel of the same name by Li Guantong (李贯通). The series was first shown in September 2003 on Guangxi Television.
Plot Summary In a small museum in the Suiren (Suiren is the name of a primitive God of China in pre-history) country of western China, there is a sculpture standing near a pristine well, which was carved during the Xihan Dynasty, over 2199 years ago, which is an invaluable asset. Historically, governments have promulgated a series of laws to protect the sculpture, especially in times of wars. An elderly archaeologist and scholar of archaic epigraphy by the name of Yumingcheng, has worked in the small museum since China's “Culture Revolution”, 35 years ago. Yumingcheng values the sculpture and has urged the government to protect it by constructing a special structure, dubbed a gloriette, to protect it. His efforts to safeguard the sculpture have earned him the respect of his colleagues, Li, Sheng, and Zhao.
In the spring of 2002, George Aizhonghua (“aizhoghu” = “love China”), an American of Chinese descent, comes to the town to buy some rubbings of the sculpture. He intends to bid ¥50000 for a piece of rubbings, which would surprise everyone including the officials of the country. Gao, a senior museum official, leads George to see the sculpture, and due to its beauty, George decides to buy one rubbings immediately. Yu refuses to provide George with a rubbing, citing China's laws prohibiting copies to be made of the sculpture. Upon further inspection, George finds there is a gap in head of the imperishable sculpture, and the design is very near to the head of Nvwa, a famous goddess of prehistoric China. He subsequently lowers his bid to ¥30000. But why is there a gap in the sculpture?
Prior to George's arrival in China, a six year old child, the son of Tong, a very beautiful and divorced woman, damages the sculpture when playing with other children. This distresses Teacher Yu, and he falls ill and is subsequently hospitalized. Upon his release from the hospital, he and his colleagues are unable to find any trace of the damage. Teacher Yu confronts and frightens the child, which in turn, angers the child's mother. They argue, and Teacher Yu faints. Yu requests that Tong pay a fee for damaging the sculpture, but as she is the mistress of Gao, his request is not enforced.
Teacher Yu is forced to create a rubbing for George, using an ancient and precious method that he was taught in his youth by the curator of the museum, Xu. Xu subsequently committed [...] by jumping into a well. Soon, Gao and other officials start asking the museum to make more rubbings in order to sell them, or to bribe officials such as Guo, who is the vice-chairman of the city and Gao's superior. Moreover, other people, even including the local peasants, also extort rubbings. Yu is unable to protect the sculpture and is deeply distressed. On a rainy evening, he makes his son hide the sculpture in the well.
The second morning, when Qiang and Zhao see that the sculpture is not there, they call the police and Teacher Yu is arrested. Zhao, his girlfiend Xie, and Gao petition to have Yu released from jail. Gao is deeply affected by the spirit of Teacher Yu and decides to appropriate some funds to build a gloriette above the sculpture. Gao suggests to construct a monument 3 meters before the sculpture, as a sign of commemorating the tribulation of the sculpture, and advises Teacher Yu to draft out the epigraph and asks Guo to write it as Guo’s calligraphy is the best. Thus, two projects begin at the same time.
Setting up the two fabrics needs about one month. In the meantime, the annual campestral action of the country is opening and needs all members of the museum to join, so as to collect folk or ballad songs and show it to the villagers. When Li, Sheng, Zhao, Qiang, Xie, and Tong come back from the village, they find out that it is on the monument, not on the sculpture that the gloriette stands! Teacher Yu is confused and disoriented, an inch away from desperation and grief. Two days later, on a dusk, the son of Tong apologizes to Teacher Yu. The old man tells the boy that protection of the sculpture will fall to him when he is grown.
Ignoring everything, Teacher Yu doesn't give up. One day, he comes across two teens making love in a small secluded room near the museum. The old man feels much happier because he is going to lease out the covert room to amorous couples. Li and Sheng agree with him, and they start to collect rent day after day to fund the gloriette. Thanks to his efforts, Teacher Yu becomes a celebrity. Much more various people enter the love-cabin, of course the majority of whom aren't married, the youngest pair is only 16-years-old, still underaged. The income is near to enough to construct a new gloriette soon. A blue couple kills themselves in the love-cabin! It makes Teacher Yu have a breakdown, but just near the dead body, he actually finds the gap of the sculpture. At that moment the old man doesn't know whether to laugh or cry. Soon, the police comes, and they confiscate all his income based on the way, although the pitiful man explains at his best that the only aim he dose in this wise is to rebuild an gloriette, not to cheat money.
One month later, on an evening, moon being bright, Teacher Yu dies. He still doesn’t realize his virtuous wish. Behind his body, there is the false sculpture with droll and sarcastic meaning. But, Gao gets a preferment for Guo’s help. Afterward, Li, Sheng, Qiang, Zhao, Xie and Tong still stay in the small museum and so it becomes quiet again, the country becomes quiet, and life becomes quiet too.