Huang Yaoshi
Encyclopedia
Huang Yaoshi is a fictional character in Jin Yong's Condor Trilogy
. He appears in the first two novels The Legend of the Condor Heroes
and The Return of the Condor Heroes
as a supporting character.
Huang is one of the Five Greats of the Chinese wulin during the Song Dynasty
, alongside Wang Chongyang
, Hong Qigong
, Ouyang Feng
and Duan Zhixing
. Huang is nicknamed "Eastern Heretic" (東邪) for being an unorthodox radical who behaves as he wishes without showing any regard for formalities or moral ethics. He loathes the dogma of traditional cultural rites in Chinese society and admires only genuine honour and pure love. As such, he is often regarded by his contemporaries as a cultural heretic. His nickname may be translated to "Eastern Evil" as the character Xie (邪) in his nickname also refers to "evil" and "unorthodoxy" in jianghu
terminology.
Huang's eccentric personality causes him to be feared and shunned by others. He may profess strongly that he fancies something very much on a day, but the next day he may begin to display an intense hatred or distaste for it without any particular reason. He is thus seen as unpredictable and capricious, or even a potentially dangerous person.
Huang is married to Feng Heng and has six disciples. However, his affection towards his loved ones is not clearly visible due to his reserved nature and mercurial moods. Huang has scores of servants on his island, who are deaf and mute. Rumours in the jianghu
say that Huang had intentionally disabled his servants, but in fact, they were already mute and deaf before becoming his servants. Huang recruited them as his servants to relieve them from the social stigma of their audial and speech impairments, so that they can enjoy a better life on his island. However, he does not wish to promote an image of himself as a kind and compassionate person, so he spread those negative rumours about himself.
. He learns from Zhou that Wang had died and Zhou had inherited the fabled Nine Yin Manual from Wang. Huang wants the manual for himself and tricks Zhou into allowing his wife to read the manual.
Zhou agrees and lets Feng read the second volume of the manual. Feng has an eidetic memory and she memorises all she has read. She lies to Zhou that the manual is a fake one and that it is actually a copy of a book of childish rites she has memorised by heart. She recites the first few verses of the manual verbatim to Zhou and Zhou believes her and destroys the book in anger. After Zhou has left, Feng writes a copy of the manual from memory for her husband.
In the same year, Feng Heng is pregnant with Huang Rong
. When she learns that the copy she wrote has been stolen, she attempts to write another copy from memory for her husband in her pregnancy. However, the stress is too much for her to bear, and she gives birth to Huang Rong and dies shortly afterwards. Huang Yaoshi is deeply tramautised by the loss of his wife and is driven to near-insanity. He vents his anger on his other four disciples - Qu Lingfeng, Lu Chengfeng, Wu Mianfeng and Feng Mofeng. He breaks their legs and banishes them from his island.
Huang regrets bitterly for inflicting such a heavy punishment on his innocent disciples. He sets off to find his daughter, who has left home after a heated argument with her father. He meets Mei at Guiyun Manor on Lake Tai, where Lu has settled after leaving the island. Huang agrees that Mei has been duly punished with the loss of her husband and sense of sight. He forgives Mei and asks her to find the other disciples and bring them back to the manor so he can heal their legs. However, Huang never saw his other disciples again. Chen was killed by Guo Jing; Qu was killed by Shi Yanming; Wu died of illness; Feng has become a blacksmith and is killed by Jinlun Guoshi in the sequel novel. Huang later accepts Lu's son, Lu Guanying, and Qu's daughter, Shagu, as his grand disciples.
Huang and Zhou start fighting with each other but neither of them is able to defeat his opponent. Huang imprisons Zhou on his island but sealing all possible routes of leaving the island. Zhou roams the island and he settles in a cave for the next 15 years. During that period of time, Huang and Zhou taunt each other to fight and Huang occupies himself with his conflict with Zhou. Their feud is only resolved when Guo Jing visits the island and meets Zhou.
visits Peach Blossom Island with his nephew, Ouyang Ke, to ask for Huang Rong's hand-in-marriage. Huang Yaoshi favours Ouyang Ke and wants him to be his son-in-law as Ouyang appears to be a cultured, refined and scholarly-looking young pugilist.
At the same time, Guo Jing
also visits the island and his teacher, Hong Qigong
, arrives as well. Hong nominates his disciple to be Huang Yaoshi's son-in-law. Huang met Guo earlier at Guiyun Manor and he wants to kill Guo to avenge Chen Xuanfeng. However, Huang Rong is already in love with Guo since their first encounter.
To make the competition for his daughter's hand-in-marriage a fair one, Huang sets a series of three tests for the two contestants - Guo Jing and Ouyang Ke. The first test is a test of martial arts. Ouyang Feng spars with Guo while Hong Qigong spars with Ouyang Ke. Guo wins the first bout but loses to Ouyang in the subsequent round, which involves appreciation of Huang Yaoshi's famous musical piece. The last assessment is a test of memory, in which Huang produces a half-complete copy of the Nine Yin Manual, without identifying the book, and asks the two contestants to memorise the text and recite to him later. Guo read the manual before so he recites the manual easily and wins Ouyang.
Huang does not initially agree to Guo's marriage with his daughter as he dislikes Guo, who is slow in learning and appears dumb. However, Huang eventually concedes to his daughter's marriage to Guo when he sees that they truly love each other.
as both of them share the same distaste for the ethics and societal laws of their time, and he teaches Yang two of his celebrated skills. Huang also participates in the defence of the city of Xiangyang
from Mongol invaders. At the end of the novel, Huang retains his original title as "Eastern Heretic" of the new "Five Greats" on Mount Hua
, alongside Zhou Botong
, Yang Guo, Guo Jing
and Yideng.
Condor Trilogy
The Condor Trilogy is a trilogy of three wuxia novels by Jin Yong.The novels in the trilogy are:*The Legend of the Condor Heroes *The Return of the Condor Heroes...
. He appears in the first two novels The Legend of the Condor Heroes
The Legend of the Condor Heroes
The Legend of Condor Heroes is a wuxia novel by Jin Yong, and the first part of the Condor Trilogy. It was first serialized between January 1, 1957 and May 19, 1959 in Hong Kong Commercial Daily...
and The Return of the Condor Heroes
The Return of the Condor Heroes
The Return of the Condor Heroes is a wuxia novel by Jin Yong, and the second part of the Condor Trilogy. It was first serialized between May 20, 1959 and July 5, 1961 on Ming Pao. The story revolves around Yang Guo and his lover Xiaolongnü in their adventure in the wulin fraternity, which does not...
as a supporting character.
Huang is one of the Five Greats of the Chinese wulin during the Song Dynasty
Song Dynasty
The Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a...
, alongside Wang Chongyang
Wang Chongyang
Wang Chongyang [Chinese calendar: 宋徽宗政和二年十二月廿二 – 金世宗大定十年正月初四] was a Chinese Taoist and one of the founders of the Quanzhen School in the twelfth century during the Song Dynasty. He was one of the Five Northern Patriarchs of Quanzhen...
, Hong Qigong
Hong Qigong
Hong Qigong is a fictional character in Jin Yong's wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes and its sequel The Return of the Condor Heroes...
, Ouyang Feng
Ouyang Feng
Ouyang Feng is a fictional character in Jin Yong's wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes and its sequel The Return of the Condor Heroes...
and Duan Zhixing
Duan Zhixing
Duan Zhixing was the 18th ruler of the Kingdom of Dali between 1172 and 1200. Duan's reign was marred by the power struggles within the influential Gao family, whose power had long eclipsed the ruling Duan family.-Reign:...
. Huang is nicknamed "Eastern Heretic" (東邪) for being an unorthodox radical who behaves as he wishes without showing any regard for formalities or moral ethics. He loathes the dogma of traditional cultural rites in Chinese society and admires only genuine honour and pure love. As such, he is often regarded by his contemporaries as a cultural heretic. His nickname may be translated to "Eastern Evil" as the character Xie (邪) in his nickname also refers to "evil" and "unorthodoxy" in jianghu
Jianghu
The jianghu is the milieu, environment, or sub-community, often fictional, in which many Chinese wuxia stories are set.In modern Chinese culture, jianghu is commonly accepted as an alternative universe coexisting with the actual historical one in which the context of the wuxia genre was set...
terminology.
Background
Huang is a loner who harbours unorthodox and heretical views on traditional Chinese cultural rites and social norms. He rules over his Peach Blossom Island as its master. Besides being a powerful pugilist, Huang is also an expert in other fields as well, such as military strategy, music and divination.Huang's eccentric personality causes him to be feared and shunned by others. He may profess strongly that he fancies something very much on a day, but the next day he may begin to display an intense hatred or distaste for it without any particular reason. He is thus seen as unpredictable and capricious, or even a potentially dangerous person.
Huang is married to Feng Heng and has six disciples. However, his affection towards his loved ones is not clearly visible due to his reserved nature and mercurial moods. Huang has scores of servants on his island, who are deaf and mute. Rumours in the jianghu
Jianghu
The jianghu is the milieu, environment, or sub-community, often fictional, in which many Chinese wuxia stories are set.In modern Chinese culture, jianghu is commonly accepted as an alternative universe coexisting with the actual historical one in which the context of the wuxia genre was set...
say that Huang had intentionally disabled his servants, but in fact, they were already mute and deaf before becoming his servants. Huang recruited them as his servants to relieve them from the social stigma of their audial and speech impairments, so that they can enjoy a better life on his island. However, he does not wish to promote an image of himself as a kind and compassionate person, so he spread those negative rumours about himself.
Acquiring the Nine Yin Manual
Shortly after his marriage to Feng Heng, Huang meets Wang Chongyang's junior, Zhou BotongZhou Botong
Zhou Botong is a fictional character in the wuxia novels The Legend of the Condor Heroes and The Return of the Condor Heroes by Jin Yong....
. He learns from Zhou that Wang had died and Zhou had inherited the fabled Nine Yin Manual from Wang. Huang wants the manual for himself and tricks Zhou into allowing his wife to read the manual.
Zhou agrees and lets Feng read the second volume of the manual. Feng has an eidetic memory and she memorises all she has read. She lies to Zhou that the manual is a fake one and that it is actually a copy of a book of childish rites she has memorised by heart. She recites the first few verses of the manual verbatim to Zhou and Zhou believes her and destroys the book in anger. After Zhou has left, Feng writes a copy of the manual from memory for her husband.
Loss of loved ones
Two of Huang's disciples, Chen Xuanfeng and Mei Chaofeng, fall in love and are afraid of informing their teacher of their wedding plans as they are unsure whether their teacher may give them his blessings or violently object. Hence, Chen and Mei decide to elope and flee from Peach Blossom Island, taking along their teacher's prized Nine Yin Manual with them.In the same year, Feng Heng is pregnant with Huang Rong
Huang Rong
Huang Rong is a fictional character in the wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes by Jin Yong. She plays a supporting role in the sequel The Return of the Condor Heroes.-Character description:...
. When she learns that the copy she wrote has been stolen, she attempts to write another copy from memory for her husband in her pregnancy. However, the stress is too much for her to bear, and she gives birth to Huang Rong and dies shortly afterwards. Huang Yaoshi is deeply tramautised by the loss of his wife and is driven to near-insanity. He vents his anger on his other four disciples - Qu Lingfeng, Lu Chengfeng, Wu Mianfeng and Feng Mofeng. He breaks their legs and banishes them from his island.
Huang regrets bitterly for inflicting such a heavy punishment on his innocent disciples. He sets off to find his daughter, who has left home after a heated argument with her father. He meets Mei at Guiyun Manor on Lake Tai, where Lu has settled after leaving the island. Huang agrees that Mei has been duly punished with the loss of her husband and sense of sight. He forgives Mei and asks her to find the other disciples and bring them back to the manor so he can heal their legs. However, Huang never saw his other disciples again. Chen was killed by Guo Jing; Qu was killed by Shi Yanming; Wu died of illness; Feng has become a blacksmith and is killed by Jinlun Guoshi in the sequel novel. Huang later accepts Lu's son, Lu Guanying, and Qu's daughter, Shagu, as his grand disciples.
Conflict with Zhou Botong
Meanwhile, Zhou Botong realises that he has been tricked by Huang and he returns to Peach Blossom Island to demand an explanation from Huang. Huang is still embattled by the loss of his wife and Zhou's arrival merely fuels the anger and frustration in him. He blames Zhou for the death of his wife. Zhou retorts angrily as he had also suffered from a similar experience with his love interest, Liu Ying.Huang and Zhou start fighting with each other but neither of them is able to defeat his opponent. Huang imprisons Zhou on his island but sealing all possible routes of leaving the island. Zhou roams the island and he settles in a cave for the next 15 years. During that period of time, Huang and Zhou taunt each other to fight and Huang occupies himself with his conflict with Zhou. Their feud is only resolved when Guo Jing visits the island and meets Zhou.
Guo Jing and Huang Rong's marriage
Huang is very protective of his daughter and loves her with his life as she reminds him of his deceased wife. He imparts all his skills to her since she was a child and hopes to groom her to become his successor. When his daughter reaches adolescence, he decides to find a suitable husband for her. Ouyang FengOuyang Feng
Ouyang Feng is a fictional character in Jin Yong's wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes and its sequel The Return of the Condor Heroes...
visits Peach Blossom Island with his nephew, Ouyang Ke, to ask for Huang Rong's hand-in-marriage. Huang Yaoshi favours Ouyang Ke and wants him to be his son-in-law as Ouyang appears to be a cultured, refined and scholarly-looking young pugilist.
At the same time, Guo Jing
Guo Jing
Guo Jing is the fictional protagonist of The Legend of the Condor Heroes, a wuxia novel by Jin Yong. He plays a supporting role in the sequel novel The Return of the Condor Heroes as well...
also visits the island and his teacher, Hong Qigong
Hong Qigong
Hong Qigong is a fictional character in Jin Yong's wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes and its sequel The Return of the Condor Heroes...
, arrives as well. Hong nominates his disciple to be Huang Yaoshi's son-in-law. Huang met Guo earlier at Guiyun Manor and he wants to kill Guo to avenge Chen Xuanfeng. However, Huang Rong is already in love with Guo since their first encounter.
To make the competition for his daughter's hand-in-marriage a fair one, Huang sets a series of three tests for the two contestants - Guo Jing and Ouyang Ke. The first test is a test of martial arts. Ouyang Feng spars with Guo while Hong Qigong spars with Ouyang Ke. Guo wins the first bout but loses to Ouyang in the subsequent round, which involves appreciation of Huang Yaoshi's famous musical piece. The last assessment is a test of memory, in which Huang produces a half-complete copy of the Nine Yin Manual, without identifying the book, and asks the two contestants to memorise the text and recite to him later. Guo read the manual before so he recites the manual easily and wins Ouyang.
Huang does not initially agree to Guo's marriage with his daughter as he dislikes Guo, who is slow in learning and appears dumb. However, Huang eventually concedes to his daughter's marriage to Guo when he sees that they truly love each other.
The Return of the Condor Heroes
Huang makes several brief appearances in the sequel novel. He rescues Cheng Ying from Li Mochou and accepts the child as his disciple. He develops a special bond with Yang GuoYang Guo
Yang Guo, style name Gaizhi , is the fictional protagonist of the wuxia novel The Return of the Condor Heroes by Jin Yong....
as both of them share the same distaste for the ethics and societal laws of their time, and he teaches Yang two of his celebrated skills. Huang also participates in the defence of the city of Xiangyang
Xiangyang
Xiangzhou District is a district of Xiangyang, Hubei, China. The district itself was formerly known as Xiangyang. It was a city famous for the Siege of Xiangyang by invading forces of the Mongol-founded Yuan Dynasty...
from Mongol invaders. At the end of the novel, Huang retains his original title as "Eastern Heretic" of the new "Five Greats" on Mount Hua
Mount Hua
Mount Hua or Hua Shan in Chinese is located in Shaanxi Province, about 120 kilometres east of the city of Xi'an, near the city Huayin in China. Also known as Xiyuè, Western Great Mountain, it is one of China's Five Sacred Taoist Mountains, and has a long history of religious significance...
, alongside Zhou Botong
Zhou Botong
Zhou Botong is a fictional character in the wuxia novels The Legend of the Condor Heroes and The Return of the Condor Heroes by Jin Yong....
, Yang Guo, Guo Jing
Guo Jing
Guo Jing is the fictional protagonist of The Legend of the Condor Heroes, a wuxia novel by Jin Yong. He plays a supporting role in the sequel novel The Return of the Condor Heroes as well...
and Yideng.
Martial arts and skills
Apart from physical skills and martial arts, Huang is also talented in literature, mathematics, divination, medicine, and other arts. He imparts his knowledge to his daughter and disciples.Unarmed combat styles
- "Jade Waves Palm" (碧波掌法) - one of the fundamentals of Huang's martial arts
- "Complex Five Turns" (奇門五轉) - a type of palm technique based on the Qi Men Dun JiaQi Men Dun JiaQi Men Dun Jia is an ancient form of divination from China, which is still in use in China, Taiwan, Singapore and the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia...
- "Holy Turtle Steps" (靈鰲步)
- "Fallen Hero Divine Sword Palm" (落英神劍掌) - known as "Peach Fallen Hero Palm" (桃華落英掌) in earlier editions. The two skills below are commonly used together with this palm technique.
- "Whirlwind Leaves-sweeping Leg" (旋風掃葉腿) - a kicking movement
- "Orchid Acupuncture Point-brushing Hand" (蘭花拂穴手) - an acupuncture pointAcupuncture pointAcupuncture points are locations on the body that are the focus of acupuncture, acupressure, sonopuncture and laser acupuncture treatment. Several hundred acupuncture points are considered to be located along meridians...
sealing technique
- "Finger-flicking Skill" (彈指神通) - a technique involving the channeling of a great amount of inner energyNeigongNeigong, also spelled nei kung, neigung, or nae gong, refers to any of a set of Chinese breathing, meditation and spiritual practice disciplines associated with Daoism and especially the Chinese martial arts...
into a single finger and releasing it with a precise amount of control. It can be used to propel objects with both force and accuracy.
Armed combat styles
- "Jade Flute Swordplay" (玉簫劍法) - a swordplay technique primarily focused on attacking an opponent's acupuncture points
- "Jade-leaking Silver-pushing Sword" (玉漏催銀劍) - a swordplay technique
- "Three Fork and Three Palm Styles" (三招火叉、三招掌法) - a six styles skill involving the use of the Cha (a larger version of the saiSai (weapon)The sai is a traditional Okinawan martial arts weapon. The basic form of the weapon is that of a pointed, dagger-shaped metal truncheon, with two curved prongs called yoku projecting from the handle...
resembling a fork). The moves are simple in nature and require great strength. Huang creates this skill and teaches Shagu for self-protection.
Others
- "Song of the Sea and Waves" (碧海潮生曲) - a fluteXiao (flute)The xiao is a Chinese vertical end-blown flute. It is generally made of dark brown bamboo . It is also sometimes called dòngxiāo , dòng meaning "hole." An ancient name for the xiāo is shùdí The xiao is a Chinese vertical end-blown flute. It is generally made of dark brown bamboo (called...
piece whose tune has hypnotic effects on people. The melody can put a person into a trance and the person feels like he is floating in the boundless ocean. Huang channels some of his inner energy into the tune when playing the piece and this increases its power. Huang plays this piece several times to hypnotise Zhou Botong and make him reproduce a copy of the Nine Yin Manual. He also plays it during the second test for Guo Jing and Ouyang Ke.
- Qi Men Dun JiaQi Men Dun JiaQi Men Dun Jia is an ancient form of divination from China, which is still in use in China, Taiwan, Singapore and the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia...
(奇門遁甲) - a complex Chinese metaphysical art
Inventory
- Bone-penetrating Needle (附骨针) - a needle with slow-acting poison applied at the tip. Upon contact with human skin, it will penetrate the muscles and lodge itself into the victim's bone. The victim will suffer in agony for a year before eventually dying.
- Soft Porcupine Armour (软猬甲) - a special type of lightweight armour with spikes on it that will protect the wearer from all kinds of metal weapons. This armour was originally intended as a gift for Zhou BotongZhou BotongZhou Botong is a fictional character in the wuxia novels The Legend of the Condor Heroes and The Return of the Condor Heroes by Jin Yong....
but Huang decides to pass it to his daughter instead. The armour later saves Huang Rong's life when Yang KangYang KangYang Kang is the fictional antagonist and the foil to the protagonist, Guo Jing, in Jin Yong's wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes.-Birth and heritage:...
attempts to kill her.
External links
Huang Yaoshi on Baidu BaikeBaidu Baike
Baidu Encyclopedia is a Chinese language collaborative Web-based encyclopedia provided by the Chinese search engine Baidu. Like Baidu itself, the encyclopedia is heavily self-censored in line with government regulations....