Building up a legacy

Highs and lows

According to Qing files, yangshi refers to those who were engaged in architectural design, and Lei was the surname of the family.

The documentary shows the story of the Yangshi Lei family, so that people can see how ideas were passed on and inherited in a family of creative skilled workers, and gain a deeper understanding of the wisdom and creativity of ancient Chinese artisans, says Liu Qian, producer of the documentary.

The family extended eight generations, spanning more than 200 years when its members served the Qing court, and the destiny of the family was closely linked to the prosperity and decline of the dynasty, according to Liu.

The family story began when Lei Fada, a craftsman specializing in carpentry, made a key decision at the age of 64 to migrate from what is now Nanjing in Jiangsu province to Beijing, the imperial capital, since the Qing court was recruiting expert craftsmen nationwide to build royal architectural complexes during the reign of Kangxi (1662-1722).

With his proficiency, Lei Fada was successfully recruited, and engaged with the reconstruction of the Forbidden City. Since then, generations of the Lei family joined the business by working at the Yangshi Office, and many of them ascended as head of the office with their outstanding skills.

"We focused on stories of the family members, since the stories of people are always appealing," says Liu. "We tell stories of one or two generations of the family in each episode, viewing the Qing history from the perspective of this family."

For example, the production elaborates on the story of a woman surnamed Zhang, who didn't leave her full name in written records, but played a vital role in inheriting and passing on the construction crafts, and thus extending the family's glory.