●Chapter I
●Historical Background of the Opera _1
●1. The Rise of the Tang Dynasty _ 3
●2. Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty _ 21
●3. Wei Zheng, the Great Imperial Admonisher _44
●4. The Peculiar Relationship Between Li Shimin and Wei Zheng_54
●Chapter II
●Creation of the Opera_ 60
●1. The Playwrights and the Libretto _ 60
●2. The Major Performers _ 65
●3. Chronicle of Events in Creating and Developing the Opera _ 76
●Chapter III
●Aspects of the Opera _89
●1. Synopsis of the Five Scenes _89
●2. Main Characters in the Opera _95
●3. Critiques of the Opera_111
●The Script of Beijing Opera Grand Occasion in the Golde Years of Zhenguan _127
●The Beijing Opera ABC _197
●Endnotes _249
●Bibiliography _264
●部分目錄