A Twenty-part TV Serial 
At Life’s Full Flowering 
General Introduction 

This play is set in the five and a half years of life when Mao Zedong studied in No. 1 Normal University in Hunan. It presented us, in the early 20th century, a number of excellent young men’s study life and their innocent love stories, with Mao Zedong, Cai Hesen, Xiang Jingyu, Yang Kaihui, Tao Siyong as their representatives.
Meanwhile, it portrayed a number of exemplary teachers, such as Yang Changji, and Kong Zhaoshou. It deeply exposed a realistic theme: “How a student should study? How a teacher should teach?”, which is closely connected with current society.

Outline of the plot 
In 1913, Kong Zhaoshou, an educator imbued with modern democratic idea, took up the post to be the president of No. 1 Normal University in Hunan. Under his charge, this university devoted its major efforts to develop a new type of reform in education and invited a couple of excellent teachers, domestic and foreign, represented by Yang Changji. The university took on a new look.
The completely new No.1 Normal University attracted many talented youths, such as Cai Hesen and Xiao Zisheng, to enroll it. In the admission examination, nineteen-year-old Mao Zedong dwarfed others by winning the first place to be qualified to study in this thousand-year-old university. “West of Mount Heng; East of Yuelu¼Men are stifling to be heroes.” accompanied by the majestic school song of No. 1 Normal University, these youths in snowy white gathered in the under the school flag and their five-year life here opened its prelude.
Mao Zedong’s diligence and brilliant talent deeply impressed his tutor, Yang Changji, who was profoundly learned about China and foreign countries. Under his care and instruction, Mao Zedong was eagerly absorbed in what interested him in sociology and acquired a faith in saving our country through education and reformism without violence. However, his too special personality and seriously unbalance on his subjects also led him to several violation against school rules. In the debates among teachers about how to deal with Mao Zedong’s unbalance on subjects, president Kong, who valued talents so much, finally decided to respect his character and offered him chances to develop himself freely. Mao Zedong became a “special student” specially permitted by the president.
In common study life, Mao Zedong, Cai Hesen, Xiao Zisheng and other excellent youths built profound friendship between each other. Tao Siyong, Xiang jingyu, Yang Kaihui and some other girl students in Zhou Nan Girl Middle School also joined them for common interests. A study union formed by excellent young students became the link where they could study, exchange ideas and developed affections to each other. 
However, their innocent and quiet campus life was constantly interfered by the turbulent social situation. During the movement against Yuan Shikai’s intention to sign the Twenty-one Treaty and restore to be a feudal king, Tang Xiangming, a warlord of Hunan, drove Kong, president of the university off by force and Mao Zedong narrowly escaped being arrested. The cruel reality shook Mao Zedong’s idea of saving China through education and reformism. The rigid educational theory of the new president, Zhang Gan, and his forbidding the students to take part in social activities violently stimulated the conflicts between Mao Zedong and him. Zhang Gan ordered to expel Mao Zedong from school in the “Movement to drive Zhang off” led by Mao Zedong. Thanks to Yang Changji and other teachers’ strong argument on just grounds, Zhang Gan was forced to take back his order.
With the collapse of Yuan Shikai, president Kong returned to No.1 Normal University. Under his leadership, a full-scale students self-governed movement was started in the university. Mao Zedong was selected to be the charger of the Schoolmates Union. No. 1 Normal University again stepped into a time full of vigor and vitality. A series of social practice, such as traveling through Hunan on foot, organizing student army, starting night school for workers and so one, greatly enriched Mao Zedong ‘s knowledge outside books, exercised his ability for social activities and made him realize that China couldn’t be saved just through education and reformism.
Meanwhile, affections generated among these young men and women. Tao Siyong had a secret love to Mao Zedong. Xiang Jingyu and Cai Hesen had mutual affections. Mao Zedong found that he really had a special kind of care different from that between brothers and sisters to his Yang Kaihui, whom he always regarded as a little sister. Love brought these youths who were at life’s full flowering much untalkable happiness and sadness as well.
It was at that time that Changsha met with an unexpected calamity. At the end of 1917, three thousand Northern Warsoldiers defeated in the war defending the Constitution came to Changsha and intended to loot the whole city, but there was no even one soldier who could defended the city. At that critical moment, with extraordinary courage, Mao Zedong led two hundred unarmed army students to perform a wonderful “Empty City” and successfully beat those three thousand defeated soldiers and took their weapons. Changsha was saved., and in that trial between life and death, these young men also found their other half.
In 1918, Mao Zedong, Cai Hesan and some others graduated from No. ! Normal University. Yang Changji was invited to teach in Beijing University and He told Kong Zhao shou that he had fulfilled his commission in No. 1 Normal University of cultivating Mao Zedong and Cai Hesen, two national talents for future China.
when the train which would take Yang Changji to Beijing was slowly starting, the majestic school song was again heard while the teacher and his students were reluctant to say goodbye, “West of Mount Heng; east of Yuelu¼Men are stifling to be heroes.” It seemed to predict that these excellent youths would meet a splendid and broader world for them to give full play to their talents, and a more exciting life for them to enjoy.