這是一個台灣藝妲 – 阿香 – 的辛酸故事，
發生在日治時代後期、至國民政府來台初期的大稻埕。
故事可追溯至1927年，
台灣商人清田結識了從小隨父來台的日人松子，兩人陷入熱戀而私自交往。
兩人的戀情因松子懷孕而意外曝光，雙方父母極力反對。
1928年，松子產下女嬰 – 阿香 – 後，便被家人強制送回日本，
從此不曾踏回台灣這片傷心地；女嬰阿香則留給父親清田撫養。
清田因松子的離去而深受打擊，之後經商也屢遭挫敗。
1933年，清田自縊身亡，留下年幼的阿香。
家道中落的清田遺族，視阿香為引發這一切不幸的掃把星，
而在同年將阿香賣給別人當養女。
淪為養女的阿香，被帶到大稻埕的藝妲間，苦學各種技藝。
1940年，阿香正式成為有鑑札的藝妲。
但現實中的藝妲生活充滿了辛酸悲傷，
使阿香不時感嘆自己的身世，遙想已不在身旁的父母；
而面對送往迎來、萬般不由己的人生，
加上不時聽聞其他藝妲無法善終的消息，
更讓阿香感到前途茫茫未定，不知何去何從。
就在此時，一絲轉折浮現。1942年，阿香邂逅一位年輕小商 – 明風。
在戰火紛亂的年代，情投意合的兩人，將彼此視為心頭上最終的依託。
1943年，明風因需赴日經商，離別前夕，與阿香淚語，約定一年後互訂終身。
然而離別後不久，太平洋戰局惡化，
美軍潛艦大量出現在豐後水道與台灣海域，攻擊來往船隻。
迫於無奈，明風選擇繼續留日。
因明風歸來無期，加上時局丕變，
無依的阿香只好在1946年初，接受鴇母的安排，嫁給富家豪門當小妾。
誰知命運竟如此弄人，在阿香將嫁之時，明風卻再度出現於她面前。
原來，被困在日本的他，遲至戰爭結束才能設法返回台灣。
然而，對阿香來說，這相聚卻已太遲了！阿香握著明風的手，
說道「還君明珠雙垂淚」，只祈兩人來生能再續前緣……
This is the heartbreaking story of a Taiwanese geisha, A-hiong that happened in Twatiutia in the late period of Japanese rule to the initial years after the Chinese Nationalist Party regime arrived.
The story began in 1927, when the Taiwanese businessman Tshing-tiân met the Japanese girl Matsuko who moved to Taiwan with her father as a child. The two quickly fell in love. However, their clandestine love was exposed due to Matsuko’s unexpected pregnancy, and faced strong opposition from parents of the both. In 1928, Matsuko gave birth to a girl, A-hiong, and was forcibly sent back to Japan by her family, and never again set foot on the soil of Taiwan, an island that’s filled with her most sorrowful memories.
The baby girl was given to Tshing-tiân, however, Tshing-tiân deeply hurt inside after Matsuko’s departure, and began to suffer from a series of failures in business. In 1933, Tshing-tiân hanged himself, leaving behind his baby girl. Blaming the misfortune on the girl Tshing-tiân’s family decided to sell A-hiong.
A-hiong was then taken to a geisha house in Twatiutia to learn the talents required of a geisha, finally becoming a licensed geisha in 1940. But living as a geisha wasn’t easy, from time to time, A-hiong thought about her life, about her parents who had long been gone. Tired of the everyday routine of serving her clients with little say over her own life, while hearing stories of other geishas who ended up miserably, A-hiong felt more and more confused about her future.
A slight hope for a change in her life suddenly surfaced. A-hiong encountered a young entrepreneur, Bîng-hong. During the troubled times, the two, who had feelings for each other, considered each other as the soul mate. Leaving for Japan for business in 1943, Bîng-hong bade a tearful farewell to A-hiong, promising he would return in a year to marry her. However, as the war situation deteriorated for Japan, and with dominant presence of US submarines in waters between Taiwan and Japan, attacking vessels, Bîng-hong had no choice but to stay in Japan a little longer. Without knowing when would her loved one return, amid rapid changes in the political situation, A-hiong accepted the arrangements by the madam to marry to a rich man as his concubine in 1946.
On the eve of the wedding, Bîng-hong suddenly appeared, explaining to her that, he was trapped in Japan, and was only able to return to Taiwan after the war. However, the reunion was too late for A-hiong, holding Bîng-hong’s hands, A-hiong lamented that she had nothing left for him but tears, and prayers that they may find each other again in the next life…
* Translated by lok-sin LOA.
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