Blade-dance of the Two Lovers
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| Blade-dance of the Two Lovers | |
|---|---|
| Author(s) | Jin Yong |
| Country | Hong Kong |
| Language | Chinese |
| Genre(s) | Wuxia |
| Publisher | Ming Pao |
| Media type | |
| Blade-dance of the Two Lovers | |||||||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 鴛鴦刀 | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 鸳鸯刀 | ||||||||||
| Literal meaning | Mandarin Ducks Sabers | ||||||||||
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Blade-dance of the Two Lovers is a wuxia novella by Jin Yong. It was first serialised in 1961 in Hong Kong in the newspaper Ming Pao.[1]
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The story is set in the Qing Dynasty. A pair of precious blades known as the Mandarin Ducks Blades (鸳鸯刀) are being transported to the Forbidden City by an escort agency commissioned by provincial officials. The blades are said to hold the secret to invincibility, and thus become a highly sought-after artifact by jianghu pugilists. To ensure that the escort agency chief does not keep the blades for himself, the officials detain his family under the pretext of offering protection.
Amidst attempts by various parties to seize the weapons, the blades fall eventually, through serendipity, into the hands of two couples: Yuan Guannan and Xiao Zhonghui; and Lin Yulong and Ren Feiyan, a pugilist couple with an infant who are forever bickering. They are defeated by a highly skilled imperial guard called Zhuo Tianxiong, who disguises himself as a blind man and hides in the convoy to protect the blades. Hunted by Zhuo Tianxiong, the couples are forced to seek refuge in a dilapidated temple. Out of desperation Lin Yulong and Ren Feiyan teach the younger couple Yuan Guannan and Xiao Zhonghui a type of swordplay known as the "Couple's Saber" (夫妻刀法). The saber movement covers the two partners' weaknesses while multiplying their combat lethality, making them virtually invincible. The couple defeat Zhuo Tianxiong with this new technique.
Later, Yuan Guannan visits Xiao Zhonghui's manor during her father's 50th birthday party and receives a warm welcome. He meets Xiao Zhonghui's father Xiao Banhe, a respected martial artist, and Xiao's wives Madam Yang and Madam Yuan. At the dinner, Zhuo Tianxiong and his men show up to seize the blades. Concurrently another group of soldiers appear, but they were there for a different purpose. They denounce Xiao Banhe as a traitor to the emperor and proclaim that he is one of the government's most wanted renegades.
Fighting their way out, the young couple's combined prowess is seriously compromised when it is revealed that Yuan Guannan is actually Madam Yuan's long-lost son, so that makes him a half brother of Xiao Zhonghui. The group takes refuge at a nearby cave while Xiao Banhe tells his story.
Xiao Banhe reveals his true identity as a former anti-government resistance fighter who infiltrated the palace and became a eunuch. He met Yuan and Yang, two other resistance fighters who were imprisoned in the palace prison along with their families. Xiao Banhe rescued the widows and their children after their husbands were executed. While fleeing, Yuan's son was separated from Madam Yuan. Xiao Banhe took care of the widows and Yang's daughter and treated them as though they were his own family, pretending to be the widows' husband. Yuan Guannan and Xiao Zhonghui are therefore not related at all.
Zhuo Tianxiong is coincidentally captured by the "Four Heroes of Taiyue" (four lucky and not-so-highly-skilled comical figures) and the soldiers retreat. Xiao Banhe reveals the blades' secret, which is an inscription - "the merciful are invincible" (仁者無敵).
[edit] Main characters
- Yuan Guannan (袁冠南)
- Xiao Zhonghui (蕭中慧)
- Lin Yulong (林玉龍)
- Ren Feiyan (任飛燕)
- Xiao Banhe (蕭半和)
- Zhuo Tianxiong (卓天雄)
- "Four Heroes of Taiyue" (太岳四俠)
[edit] Adaptations
In 1961 Hong Kong's Emei Film Company produced a two part Cantonese-language film based on the story. The film was directed by Lee Fa and starred Lam Fung and Chow Chung as Xiao Zhonghui and Yuan Guannan respectively.[2][3]
[edit] References
- ^ The date conforms to the data published in 陳鎮輝,《武俠小說逍遙談》, 2000, 匯智出版有限公司, pg. 58.
- ^ Twins Swords Part 1 at the Hong Kong Movie DataBase
- ^ Twin Swords Part 2 at the Hong Kong Movie DataBase
[edit] External links
- (Chinese) Blade-dance of the Two Lovers on Baidu Baike
- English translation of the novel at Wuxiapedia
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