"It's a timeless piece that has been performed by different generations of National Ballet dancers," says Xu, who traveled to Yinan along with dancers from the National Ballet of China in 2017 to discover more stories about the "Red Sisters".

One story in Yimeng is about 32 local women who helped soldiers to cross a river. The women stood in the cold waterway and used planks from wooden doors to build a bridge, since the original one had been destroyed by the enemy.

Another story told in Yimeng is about a young local woman who married a Red Army soldier. But her husband left with the troop on their wedding day. She didn't receive word about him until 12 years later, when she learned of his death. The woman didn't remarry and adopted children who were orphaned after their parents died in battle.

Young ballet dancers, including Ning Long, Wu Siming and Shen Mengfan, will perform leading roles in Yimeng during the National Ballet of China's 2020-21 winter season.