Editing Jiang Qing (section)

== Entertainment career ==

=== Jinan ===
At 14, Jiang, now an orphan, joined a local underground theatre troupe, seeking independence. Her striking looks drew attention, but she remained sensitive about her poor upbringing. Alarmed by her undisclosed departure, her grandparents paid the troupe's boss to bring her back. She enrolled in the Experimental Arts Academy, which became less picky about the social class of new entrants due to the [[May Fourth Movement]]. Despite her strong Shandong accent initially hindering her performances, she excelled during her year of training, in some traditional opera roles. When the academy closed in 1930, Jiang, though only half-trained, was chosen to join theatrical companies in [[Beijing]].{{Sfn|Terrill|1999|p=23-29|pp=}} She returned to Jinan in May 1931 and married Pei Minglun,{{efn|{{lang-zh|s=裴明伦|t=裴明倫|p=Péi Mínglún|w=p'ei2 ming2 lun2}}; According to the ''Revised Mandarin Chinese Dictionary'' by the [[Taiwan]]ese [[Ministry of Education (Taiwan)|Ministry of Education]], the surname is pronounced Péi.<ref>{{Cite web |last=[[Ministry of Education (Taiwan)|Ministry of Education, R.O.C.]] |date=2021 |title=裴 : ㄆㄟˊ |url=https://dict.revised.moe.edu.tw/dictView.jsp?ID=657&q=1&word=裴 |website=Revised Mandarin Chinese Dictionary}}</ref> However, [[Hong Kong]]'s Multi-function Chinese Character Database notes an additional pronunciation as Féi.<ref>{{Cite web |last=The [[Chinese University of Hong Kong]] |date=2014 |title=裴 |url=https://humanum.arts.cuhk.edu.hk/Lexis/lexi-mf/search.php?word=%E8%A3%B4 |website=Multi-function Chinese Character Database |access-date=28 November 2024 |archive-date=18 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240818131952/https://humanum.arts.cuhk.edu.hk/Lexis/lexi-mf/search.php?word=%E8%A3%B4 |url-status=live }}</ref> {{harvnb|Terrill|1999}} (pp. 29–31) adopts the translation Fei.}} the wealthy son of a businessman, and soon divorced.{{Sfn|Terrill|1999|p=23-29|pp=}}{{Sfn|Terrill|1999|p=|pp=30-31}}[[File:Younggirljiangqing.jpg|thumb|Jiang Qing in Qingdao in 1931]]

=== Qingdao ===
Following her divorce, Jiang reached out to [[Zhao Taimou]], the former director of the Arts Academy and dean of [[Shandong University|Qingdao University]].{{notetag|Some sources claim that Jiang Qing went to [[Shandong University]] while Zhao Taimou was its president, but this is not entirely true. Jiang Qing arrived at the Qingdao University in 1931, when Yang Zhensheng was the president. In early 1932, Yang resigned. The university was renamed Shandong University and Zhao was appointed president.{{Sfn|Sisyphus|2015a|pp=38-39}}}} With the assistance of Zhao's wife, [[Yu Shan (actress)|Yu Shan]], Jiang secured a position as a clerk in the university library.{{Sfn|Terrill|1999|p=32|pp=}} Yu Shan later introduced Jiang to her brother, [[Yu Qiwei]],{{Sfn|Terrill|1999|p=33|pp=}} an upper-class youth who had embraced the Communist cause and was connected to underground Communist organisations as well as literary and performing arts circles.{{Sfn|Terrill|1999|p=34|pp=}}

The [[Mukden incident|Mukden Incident]] in September ignited her [[patriotism]], leading her to develop a dislike for the [[Kuomintang]] and its supporters.{{Sfn|Sisyphus|2015a|p=41}} By the end of 1932, Jiang and Yu Qiwei fell in love and began living together, enabling Jiang to gain entry into the Communist Cultural Front.{{Sfn|Terrill|1999|p=34|pp=}} She became a member of the Seaside Drama Society, performing in plays such as ''[[Lay Down Your Whip]]'', harnessing the influence of theatre to resist Japanese aggression. In February 1933, she officially joined the CCP.{{Sfn|Terrill|1999|p=35|pp=}}

The Communist activities at Qingdao University attracted significant attention from the Kuomintang's secret police, who arrested Yu Qiwei in July, forcing Jiang to leave Qingdao.{{Sfn|Sisyphus|2015a|p=42}}

=== Shanghai ===
[[File:1934 Jiang Qing movie shot.jpg|thumb|Jiang in a 1935 [[film poster]]]]After the arrest of Yu Qiwei, Yu Shan arranged for Jiang to move to Shanghai. With a recommendation from [[Tian Han]]'s younger brother, Tian Luan, she enrolled as a visiting student at the [[Great China University]] in Shanghai. In July, with endorsements from Tian Han and his associates, Jiang became a teacher at the Chengeng Workers' School, an institution organised by [[Tao Xingzhi]]. During this time, Yu Qiwei was released and visited her in Shanghai. In October, Jiang re-joined the Chinese Communist Youth League, became a member of the League of Left-Wing Educators, and resumed her career as a drama actress.<ref name=":11">{{Cite book |last=Wang |first=Suping |title=她还没叫江青的时侯 |date=1993 |publisher=Beijing October Literature and Arts Press |isbn=978-7-5302-0290-6 |edition=1st |location=Beijing |language=zh |chapter=附录 江青前半生大事年表}}</ref>

She performed in the Shanghai Work Study Troupe.{{Sfn|Witke|1977|loc=Chronology}} Jiang was among the cast of a production of ''[[Roar, China!]]'' which British authorities banned from being performed in [[Shanghai International Settlement|Shanghai's International Settlement]].<ref name=":Gao2">{{Cite book |last=Gao |first=Yunxiang |title=Arise, Africa! Roar, China! Black and Chinese Citizens of the World in the Twentieth Century |date=2021 |publisher=[[University of North Carolina Press]] |isbn=9781469664606 |location=Chapel Hill, NC |pages=239}}</ref>

In September 1934, Jiang was arrested and jailed for her political activities in Shanghai.<ref name=":11" /> During her arrest in Shanghai, Jiang Qing was interrogated by a [[Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics|Zhongtong]] agent, Zhao Yaoshan. Jiang had once revealed to Zhao that Tan Xiaoqing was a CCP member, leading to Tan's arrest.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Wang |first=Fang |author-link=Wang Fang (politician) |date=2023-06-09 |title=原公安部長王芳回憶：揭發江青的「匿名信事件」——「18號案」 |url=https://www.waou.com.mo/2023/06/09/%E5%8E%9F%E5%85%AC%E5%AE%89%E9%83%A8%E9%95%B7%E7%8E%8B%E8%8A%B3%E5%9B%9E%E6%86%B6%EF%BC%9A%E6%8F%AD%E7%99%BC%E6%B1%9F%E9%9D%92%E7%9A%84%E3%80%8C%E5%8C%BF%E5%90%8D%E4%BF%A1%E4%BA%8B%E4%BB%B6%E3%80%8D/ |access-date=2024-11-30 |website=Jornal San Wa Ou}}</ref> She was released three months later, in December.<ref name=":11" /> She then traveled to Beijing where she reunited with Yu Qiwei who had just been released following his prison sentence, and the two began living together again.<ref name=":11" /> [[File:3 Pairs at the foot of Liuhe Pagoda.jpg|thumb|Collective wedding in [[Hangzhou]] (Jiang is the third female from the left)|left]]
She returned to Shanghai in March 1935, and entered [[Diantong|Diantong Film Company]]. She became famous when featuring in [[Henrik Ibsen|Ibsen]]'s play ''[[A Doll's House]]'' as Nora.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Witke |first=Roxane |date=1977-03-21 |title=Special Section: Comrade Chiang Ch'ing Tells Her Story |url=https://content.time.com/time/magazine/0,9263,7601770321,00.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240523050822/https://content.time.com/time/magazine/0,9263,7601770321,00.html |archive-date=23 May 2024 |access-date=17 November 2024 |magazine=Time | ref = none}}</ref> She later became an actress in ''[[Goddess of Freedom]]'' and ''[[Scenes of City Life]]'', during which she fell in love with [[Tang Na]], her colleague at Diantong. The two began living together in September 1935. However, Jiang lied to Tang, claiming her mother was ill, and returned to Tianjin to see Yu Qiwei. When Tang discovered the truth, he attempted suicide in Jinan but later reconciled with Jiang and returned with her to Shanghai in July 1935. Later they were married in a collective wedding ceremony at [[Liuhe Pagoda]] in [[Hangzhou]] in April 1936.<ref name=":11" />[[File:Jiang Qing 6.jpg|thumb|Jiang Qing on the cover of a film magazine]]In Shanghai, Jiang joined [[Lianhua Film Company]], where she acted in ''[[Blood on Wolf Mountain]]'' and ''[[Lianhua Symphony]]''. During this period, she began an affair with film director Zhang Min, appeared in his production ''The Storm''. She also became an actress in ''[[Wang Laowu]]''. However, during the second performance of ''[[The Storm (Ostrovsky)|The Storm]]'' in May 1937, Tang attempted suicide again. Following this incident, Jiang divorced Tang and started living with Zhang Min, but the relationship cost her career as she was dismissed by Lianhua Film Company.<ref name=":11" />

Jiang's widely publicised affair with Tang Na tarnished her reputation, making it difficult for her to continue her acting career in Shanghai.<ref name=":6">{{Cite journal |last=Liang |first=Jiagui |date=2003-09-30 |title=Jiang Qing: late 1937-1949 |url=https://www.cuhk.edu.hk/ics/21c/media/online/0305040.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Twenty-first Century |language=zh |edition=Online |issue=18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230401105216/https://www.cuhk.edu.hk/ics/21c/media/online/0305040.pdf |archive-date=1 April 2023 |access-date=28 November 2024}}</ref> Like many youths of her time, she was drawn to the [[Progressivism|progressive ideals]] associated with [[Yan'an Soviet|Yan'an]]. The [[Marco Polo Bridge incident|Marco Polo Bridge Incident]] in July 1937, which marked the start of Japan's full-scale invasion of China, further galvanised young activists to advocate for a [[united front]]. Yan'an, promoted through [[Communist propaganda]], emerged as a symbol of democracy, freedom, and hope.<ref name=":6" /> She left Shanghai in July, after which the Japanese invasion in Shanghai started on 13 August.{{Sfn|Witke|1977|loc=Chronology}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+Selected films featuring Jiang Qing in the 1930s
!Year
!English title
!Original title
!Role
!Notes
|-
| rowspan="2" |1935
|''Goddess of Freedom''
|{{lang|zh-Hant|自由神}}
|Yu Yueying
|
|-
|''[[Scenes of City Life]]''
|{{lang|zh-Hant|都市风光}}
|Wang Junsheng's girlfriend
|
|-
|1936
|''[[Blood on Wolf Mountain]]''
|{{lang|zh-Hant|狼山喋血记}}
|Liu Sansao
|
|-
|1937
|''[[Lianhua Symphony]]''
|{{lang|zh-Hant|联华交响曲}}
|Rickshaw puller's wife
|Segment 1: "Twenty Cents"
|-
|1938
|''Wang Laowu''
|{{lang|zh-Hant|王老五}}
|Young Girl Li
|Filmed in 1937. Leading actress
|}