Teacher, guerrilla, feminist activist, nationalist and pan-Asian at the same time and later Chinese communist. Born in 1897, her real name is Tian Hua. Before taking part to all the main Chinese historical events from the First World War on, she also studies at the Russian school in Urga (today’s Ulan Bator).
Member of the Red Lanterns, a Chinese feminist underground group, as well as republican and nationalist agent of Kuo-min-tang (Guomindang), she finally joins the Communists. After the fights in 1927-1928 between Chang Kai-Shek (Jiang Jieshi) and the Communists, she goes south where Mao Tse-tung (Mao Zedong) and his followers have settled. Shangai Lil takes part to the “Long March” during the retreat to Northern Shanxi and contributes to the final victory of the Communists in 1949. She is married with the Chinese engineer and agronomist Ling Kiun-li, born in 1887, who is a member of the Communist party, too. She dies in 1968 due to the mistreatment by the young Communist guards during the Cultural Revolution.
Even though she has a soft spot for Corto Maltese, to Shangai Lil her political ideals are more important than anything else.