Datang Youxia Zhuan
| Author | Liang Yusheng |
|---|---|
| Original title | 大唐游俠傳 |
| Language | Chinese |
| Genre | Wuxia |
| Publisher | Ta Kung Pao |
Publication date | 1 January 1963 - 14 June 1964 |
| Publication place | Hong Kong |
| Media type | |
| ISBN | 9787805216294 |
| Followed by | Longfeng Baochai Yuan |
| Datang Youxia Zhuan | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 大唐游俠傳 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 大唐游侠传 | ||||||||||
| Literal meaning | Story of the Wandering Hero of the Great Tang | ||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Datang Youxia Zhuan, literally Story of the Wandering Hero of the Great Tang, is a wuxia novel by Liang Yusheng, first published as a serial in the Hong Kong newspaper Ta Kung Pao from 1 January 1963 to 14 June 1964. Set in China against the backdrop of the An Lushan rebellion in the mid-eighth century, it blends historical narrative with wuxia fiction to explore themes of loyalty, corruption, and the decline of the Tang dynasty. The novel follows the swordsman Tie Mole as he becomes entangled in political intrigue and the moral conflicts of the wulin (martial artists' community).
Datang Youxia Zhuan is the first part of a trilogy, followed by Longfeng Baochai Yuan and Huijian Xinmo. It is regarded as one of Liang Yusheng's most historically resonant works and an early example of the "historical wuxia epic" form that later influenced wuxia writers such as Gu Long and Huang Yi.
Plot
[edit]The story takes place in China in the mid-eighth century during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang dynasty. Corruption and nepotism are rampant in the Tang government under the influence of the grand chancellor Yang Guozhong, whose cousin Yang Yuhuan is the emperor's favourite concubine. In the north, An Lushan secretly raises an army in preparation for a rebellion while posing as a general loyal to the Tang Empire.
In the wulin (martial artists' community), rivalry brews between Dou Lingkan and Wang Botong for the position of chief. Dou Lingkan and his brothers are supported by the swordsman Duan Guizhang, while Wang Botong secretly allies with An Lushan. When An Lushan's men capture Duan Guizhang's friend Shi Yiru to force Duan to withdraw his support for the Dou brothers, Duan and Dou Lingkan's godson Tie Mole attempt a rescue. Shi Yiru dies and Duan Guizhang is gravely injured, but they are saved by Nan Jiyun and Huangfu Song.
Wang Botong's followers kidnap Duan Guizhang's son to force his submission, and the Dou clan is later wiped out by the Wangs. Tie Mole escapes with Nan Jiyun's help and vows to avenge his godfather. He trains under the reclusive master Bu Anqi for seven years before returning to find the Tang Empire engulfed by An Lushan's rebellion.
Tie Mole aids Tang loyalist forces, captures Wang Botong's stronghold, and clears Huangfu Song's name. He becomes torn between his love for Wang Botong's daughter Wang Yanyu, who had killed his godfather, and the maiden Han Zhifen, whom he meets on his adventures. Later, he saves Emperor Xuanzong during the fall of Chang'an and witnesses the Mawei courier station incident, where the emperor's troops kill Yang Guozhong and force the execution of Yang Yuhuan. The emperor, grieving over Yang Yuhuan's death, blames Tie Mole for inciting the mutiny and tries to poison him, but Tie Mole escapes.
The novel ends amidst the Siege of Suiyang between Tang forces and the rebels, where many heroes, including Nan Jiyun, sacrifice themselves in battle. Tie Mole and the surviving loyalists continue to rally the wulin in defence of the Tang Empire.
Key characters
[edit]- Tie Mole (鐵摩勒) – the protagonist and a righteous swordsman who fights against An Lushan's rebels.
- Dou Lingkan (竇令侃) – chief of the wulin and Tie Mole's godfather.
- Wang Botong (王伯通) – a martial arts master and Dou Lingkan's rival who secretly allies with An Lushan.
- Wang Yanyu (王燕羽) – Wang Botong's daughter who falls in love with Tie Mole despite their families' enmity.
- Han Zhifen (韓芷芬) – Han Zhan's daughter who becomes Tie Mole's companion.
- Nan Jiyun (南霽雲) – a loyalist swordsman who befriends Tie Mole.
- Duan Guizhang (段珪璋) – an upright swordsman and ally of Dou Lingkan.
- Emperor Xuanzong (唐玄宗) – the ruler of the Tang Empire.
- Yang Yuhuan (楊玉環) – Emperor Xuanzong's beloved consort.
- Yang Guozhong (楊國忠) – the corrupt grand chancellor of the Tang Empire.
- An Lushan (安祿山) – an ambitious general who leads a massive rebellion against the Tang Empire.
Reception and legacy
[edit]Datang Youxia Zhuan is widely regarded as one of Liang Yusheng's most historically grounded and politically resonant works. Set during the An Lushan Rebellion, the novel combines the conventions of wuxia with historical fiction, portraying the decline of the Tang dynasty as a metaphor for moral decay and corruption within the wulin.[1]
Critics have described the novel as a turning point in Liang Yusheng's writing style, marking a transition from romantic adventure toward a more tragic and reflective tone.
Scholars have noted that Tie Mole, the protagonist, embodies the Confucian ideal of loyalty and righteousness while grappling with the Buddhist notion of detachment, symbolising the tension between public duty and personal emotion in times of national crisis.[2] Literary commentators also regard the novel as an early example of the "historical wuxia epic" form that later influenced writers such as Gu Long and Huang Yi.
Modern reassessments on Douban and Zhihu view Datang Youxia Zhuan as a foundational work in the Datang trilogy (along with Longfeng Baochai Yuan and Huijian Xinmo), praising its large-scale storytelling and emotional depth, though some readers have critiqued its pacing and the density of its political subplots.[3]
Overall, Datang Youxia Zhuan is considered a landmark in Liang Yusheng's literary development, bridging his early romantic chivalric tales and his later, more philosophical works such as Wudang Yijian.
Adaptations
[edit]In 2008 the novel was adapted into a Chinese television series Paladins in Troubled Times produced by Zhang Jizhong, starring Victor Huang, Shen Xiaohai, He Zhuoyan, Liu Tianyue, Sattawat Sethakorn and Lu Chen.
References
[edit]- ^ "梁羽生筆下的《大唐游俠傳》：歷史與武俠的交融" (in Chinese). HK01. 2023-01-04. Retrieved 11 October 2025.
- ^ "梁羽生筆下的英雄與家國情懷——從《大唐游俠傳》談起" (in Chinese). Sohu. 2018-02-12. Retrieved 11 October 2025.
- ^ "大唐游侠传（豆瓣读书）" (in Chinese). Douban. Retrieved 11 October 2025.
- Liang Yusheng (1963–1964). Datang Youxia Zhuan (in Chinese). Hong Kong: Ta Kung Pao. ISBN 9787805216294.
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