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Preface

杭州，一个优雅又有着浪漫情怀的城市，从古至今传唱着多少才子佳人的爱情故事。人蛇共枕的白素贞与许仙、双宿双飞的梁山伯与祝英台，这些凄美的民间爱情传说，都将故事场景设定在了美丽的西子湖畔。出身于钱塘（今杭州）大族的清初戏曲家洪昇，在1688年完成了轰动一时的《长生殿》，着墨于唐玄宗、杨贵妃二人缠绵悱恻的爱情故事。作者浓墨熏染了西湖水之柔情，不顾当时的政治环境，谱写了一曲唯美的帝妃爱情传奇。水因情而变得愈发婀娜，情因水而变得愈发柔美，杭州也因此成为人人艳羡的“人间天堂”。

Hangzhou, elegant and romantic, has fostered numerous love stories since ancient times. The legends of Madame White Snake and Butterfly Lovers all took place at the picturesque West Lake. The Palace of Eternal Love, created in 1688 by Hong Sheng (an early Qing Dynasty playwright who was born of a famous clan in Hangzhou), depicts the beautiful yet tragic love story of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty and his favorite consort Lady Yang. Some would say the author had very possibly been inspired by the grace of West Lake to create this beautiful literary piece that was a sharp contrast to the harsh political environment then. These stories and literary figures add a romantic appeal to both West Lake and Hangzhou, a city known as the “paradise of the human realm”.