The 'last dynasty'

The TV dramas focused on the final phase of the War for Liberation in 1948-49 in Beijing, as an anti-corruption movement against civil officials and financial officers sweeps the city. Lacking any armed conflict, it was both a battle for control of the national economy and hearts of the people. In the end, the KMT brought the gold and money they collected during the currency reform in 1948 with them as they retreated to Taiwan.

This focus on anti-corruption is not only seen in All Quiet in Peking, Liu's previous script work for the series, The Ming Dynasty - 1566, also has quite a few plots focusing on anti-corruption.

"I can only say that I tend to stand on the same side that a majority of people do. I hate groups who use their power to profit themselves. It's part of my view on life, so you see it in almost all my scripts," said Liu.

Liu explained that the title All Quiet in Peking refers to the lack of open conflict in Beijing at the time. However, he mentioned that he originally wanted to call the show "The Last Dynasty," so it could become the third part of a trilogy along with 2007's The Ming Dynasty - 1566 and 1997's The Yongzheng Dynasty. In the end, for a number of reasons, including taking the reaction of the censors into account, he decided to go with its current title.

Censorship was once believed to be one of the main reasons why the show took so long to make it to TV screens, but according to Liu, although the production company was given a 15-page document containing suggested changes, none of them were about main story lines.