Two little birdies flying high a little vessel passing by a weeping willow hanging o'er a bridge with three men, if not four. a Chinese castle there it stands as if the Lord of many lands, a tree with many apples on, and a fence at the bottom to end my song.

Once upon a time, there was a rich Mandarin who had a beautiful daughter called Knoon-she. They lived in a big house where there worked a secretary called Chang. Knoon-she and Chang fell in love but kept their relationship secret as her father would never allow it.

Then one day her father introduced her to the man whom he had arranged for her to marry. She obviously objected and told her father about her love for Chang. “You will not marry a secretary!” He shouted. “I will!” She yelled back. She stormed out and met Chang. They planned to run away so they could be together for real.

Her father, being a horribly cruel man, locked her away in a tower and threw away the key. She stayed in the tower for days waiting for someone to rescue her. Then, when she wasn’t expecting it Chang climbed through the window and they escaped.

They ran away but they didn’t get the quiet escape they had hoped for. As they were running her father followed them with a whip while she carried a pearl encrusted jewellery box. They ran until they eventually lost their father. They caught a boat and sailed over to a small, unknown island where they found a house and they settled down.

What they didn’t know was that the father had ordered his guard to follow them. The guard did just that and while they were sleeping he set fire to the house. Knoon-shee and Change perished in the ashes. As the house burnt down, two doves rose from the ashes of the lovers.