In sea metropolises, especially in large cities like Shanghai where Chinese and foreigners live together, the fashion of clothing started to undergo potential historical changes due to the early exposure to Western trends. By the end of the modern era, the "changshan" (long gown) evolved from the influence of Qing Dynasty robes, also known as a long coat, taking on new meanings with features such as no collar, wide sleeves, and slits on all sides. The changshan originated from the Manchu banner uniform, which later became common wear for Han people after the Qing Dynasty. It resembles a riding jacket but is cut and sewn at an angle to symbolize blessings and patchwork. The main difference between a black changshan and a black haiqing (a traditional Buddhist robe) lies in the cuffs; the haiqing has wide cuffs resembling the wings of a seabird, worn by both monastic and lay practitioners during Buddhist rituals; while the changshan has narrow cuffs only worn by monastic monks.
After the Xinhai Revolution in 1911, China's more than 2000-year-old feudal dynasty rule came to an end, along with it the hierarchical dress code system of feudal society. Clothing began to move towards a freer transformation characterized by democratization and internationalization. After the Xinhai Revolution, the Nationalist government under Sun Yat-sen ushered in a new era of the Republic of China. The changshan was particularly popular from the early 20th century through the 1930s and 40s, especially among the new intellectual class after the New Culture Movement, who wore changshans and glasses as fashionable attire.
In the modern era, Cao Yu, a renowned Chinese dramatist, produced famous plays like the "Four Great Plays," including "Thunderstorm," "Sunrise," "Wilderness," and "Peking Man." These works depict different characters mainly reflecting life, thoughts, and personalities within heavily feudal bourgeois families of the 1920s and 30s. Additionally, after the founding of New China, in his work "Wang Zhaojun," he specifically mentioned clothing. Born into a declining feudal bureaucratic family, although the play refers to Wang Zhaojun's time period, Cao Yu lived through important phases of modern Chinese history. His works indirectly reflect the style and characteristics of traditional Chinese clothing, showing the pursuit of fashionable living at the time. Fashion does not belong to any one dynasty or country; rather, it reflects people's pursuits in different periods and is an inevitable human activity that appears at various stages of social development.