文艷王奉命歸故里 : 楊柳青版画
Princess Wenyan is under orders to go home

出自小說《鏡花緣》。 牡丹仙子被天帝貶至凡間，轉世為女兒園的公主陰若花。 她天生聰慧，勤奮好學，但厭惡宮廷的鉤心鬥角，後與中土人氏林之洋等人一起離開女兒園。 到了洛陽後，適逢女皇武則天開科錄取女進士，陰若花考中第十二名。 後來女兒國國王經歷次子之亂，思念女兒，派國舅赴洛陽勸若花重歸故。 此時武則天才知道她的身世，封她為 "文艷王"，命其回歸故國。 圖中描繪的就是陰若花等人坐上 "飛車"，返回故鄉的一幕。 --《楊柳青木版年畫》 (p.86)

It is a story from the Chinese mythical novel "Flowers in the Mirrors". The Peony Fairy was sentenced to live on the earth as Yin Ruohua, the princess of the "Kingdoms of Women". She loathed the political struggles and left for Luoyang (in Henan Province nowadays). The empress of the Women's Country missed her daughter so much, she asked Yin Ruohua to come home. Empress Wu Zetian (AD 624-705) of the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907) learned Yin Ruohua's story and then granted her the title of Princess Wenyan. Under Empress Wu Zetian's orders, Yin went back home. The print depicts the scene in which Princess Wenyan is returning to her hometown by a "flying cart". -- Yangliuqing woodblock New Year prints (p. 86)