Li Ping (pinyin: Lǐ Píng, jyutping: Lei5 Ping4, simplified: 李萍, traditional: 李萍) was a Song dynasty1 woman known for her role in raising the great xia Guo Jing. Originally a farmer’s daughter from Shandong,2 she married Guo Xiaotian and later gave birth to Guo Jing. She was commonly referred to as Guo daniang3 or Madam Guo.
Her life was marked by tremendous hardship and sacrifice, from enduring capture by her husband’s murderer to raising her son alone in the Mongolian steppes.4
Biography
Early life
Li Ping grew up a sturdy farm girl in a farming family in Shandong. Despite her plain appearance, she possessed a strong spirit that caught the attention of Guo Xiaotian. After their marriage, they lived a modest but happy life in Ox Village with Guo’s sworn brother Yang Tiexin and his wife Bao Xiruo. Both couples were expecting children at the time.
Guo and Yang befriended the Daoist priest Qiu Chuji who shared their fervent patriotism, and invited him to name their unborn children.
This peace was shattered during the Jin5 invasion when Jin Prince Wanyan Honglie led troops to arrest Song patriots in their region.
Persecution
Guo and Yang were loyal Song subjects and resisted the Jin forces, fighting to protect their families and homeland. After Guo Xiaotian was killed protecting the pregnant Li Ping, her husband’s killer and traitorous Song official Duan Tiande captured her.
During their flight, Duan Tiande repeatedly moved her between military camps to evade pursuers, particularly Qiu Chuji who sought vengeance for his murdered friends and to protect their wives and unborn children. Li Ping, though visibly pregnant, never ceased fighting with her captor and trying to signal potential rescuers, even when Duan attempted to silence her forcibly.
Their flight led them to Fahua Temple6 where Duan sought shelter from Abbot Jiaomu. When Qiu Chuji tracked them there, a misunderstanding erupted between him and Jiaomu. The Abbot requested his close friends, the Seven Eccentrics of Jiangnan, to mediate the dispute.
Though both sides displayed their skills at the Drunken Immortal Tavern,7 the situation deteriorated when Jin troops arrived. A fight broke out at the temple, leaving both sides injured and Jiaomu dead. In the chaos, Duan Tiande escaped with Li Ping.
They fled through various waterways to Yangzhou.8 Despite her pregnancy, Li Ping constantly fought with Duan and attempted to signal potential rescuers. During their time at Cloud Rest Temple,9 she managed to wound him with a short sword, though her weakened state prevented a killing blow.
Life in Mongolia
After escaping Duan Tiande, Li Ping gave birth to Guo Jing in the harsh conditions of the Mongolian steppes.
Despite living among the Mongols under Temüjin’s10 protection, she was determined that her son remembered his heritage. She spent years instilling in him not only Han Chinese moral values but also stories of his father’s bravery and the importance of loyalty to the Song dynasty.
The Seven Eccentrics located the mother and son after six years of searching. They had made a wager with Qiu Chuji to resolve their emnity by training the Guo and Yang children in martial arts in preparation for a duel when they turn eighteen. The Seven Eccentrics were tasked with tracking down Guo Jing and thus took Guo Jing as their disciple, training him over the next twelve years.
Through Li Ping’s guidance, Guo Jing developed into a young man who, though slow in learning, possessed unwavering integrity that he would later become known for throughout the jianghu. He become a trusted aide of Temüjin, who bethrothed him to his daughter Princess Huazheng.
When Guo Jing was eighteen, he set off for the Drunken Immortal Tavern in Jiaxing for the duel with Yang Kang.
Death
Guo Jing later returned to the Mongolian steppes to request Temüjin to recind his betrothal to Princess Huazheng. Temüjin, who had become Genghis Khan, refused and threatened Li Ping’s life to force Guo Jing to attack the Song Empire.
Li Ping chose to take her own life rather than let her son compromise his principles and betray his country. Her final words to him emphasised living without regret and staying true to one’s values regardless of circumstances, providing one last lesson in moral courage to her son.
Her final words to Guo Jing were profound: “Life passes in the blink of an eye, and death is not so terrible. As long as you can live without regret, your time in this world won’t have been wasted. If others wrong us, there’s no need to dwell on their evil deeds. Remember my words.”
She then took Guo Jing’s dagger and ended her own life.
After her death, Guo Jing buried her on a stone ridge along with the dagger she had used. Her sacrifice had far-reaching consequences—it led Guo Jing to completely sever ties with the Mongols and end his betrothal to Princess Huazheng. For a time, her death also left him deeply confused about the nature of right and wrong, though he eventually emerged with even stronger convictions about loyalty and righteousness.
Personality and traits
Li Ping’s character was defined by a remarkable combination of physical and moral strength. Though described as plain-looking with rough features, she possessed an indomitable will that sustained her through numerous hardships. Her determination manifested not only in her constant attempts to escape Duan Tiande but also in her tireless efforts to raise her son with strong moral principles despite their difficult circumstances.
As a mother, Li Ping was both nurturing and strict, ensuring that Guo Jing grew up understanding both his cultural heritage and the importance of moral integrity. Her teaching methods focused on practical demonstrations of virtue rather than mere words, culminating in her final sacrifice which served as the ultimate lesson in choosing principle over expedience.
Relationships
Guo Xiaotian
Her relationship with her husband, though relatively brief, was marked by mutual affection and respect. The text describes their shared joy over simple matters, such as Guo Xiaotian bringing home a short sword.
His death defending her and their unborn child left an indelible mark on Li Ping, influencing how she raised their son.
Guo Jing
As a mother, Li Ping devoted herself entirely to raising Guo Jing with strong moral principles. Despite living in Mongolia, she ensured he understood his Han Chinese heritage and the importance of loyalty to the Song dynasty.
Her final sacrifice became the defining moment in Guo Jing’s moral development.
Yang Tiexin and Bao Xiruo
As the wives of sworn brothers, Li Ping and Bao Xiruo shared a close relationship before circumstances tore their families apart.
Yang Tiexin demonstrated great loyalty to his sworn brother’s wife, even attempting to force Li Ping onto his horse to ensure her escape during the initial conflict with Jin forces.
Behind the scenes
The character of Li Ping exemplifies the theme of maternal sacrifice in Jin Yong’s works. Her story arc, from enduring capture while pregnant to choosing death to preserve her son’s integrity, emphasises the price of maintaining moral principles in a corrupt world.
She spent twenty years raising Guo Jing in the steppes, emerging as one of Jin Yong’s most exemplary mother figures. Through her constant guidance and example, she instilled in him traditional values of hospitality and righteousness that would shape his development into a great xia—one who embodied the highest ideals of the martial world.
Portrayals
- 1958 movie – Lee Heung-kam
- 1976 series – Ting Yan
- 1977 movie – Zhu Jing
- 1983 series – Soh Hang-suen
- 1988 series – Liu Hsiao-Ping
- 1994 series – Lily Ng
- 2003 series – Lü Liping
- 2008 series – Wu Yujuan
- 2017 series – Zeng Li
- 2024 series – Song Xinjie
 Liu Hsiao-Ping (1983) |  Lily Ng (1994) |
 Wu Yujuan (2008) |  Lü Liping (2003) |
 Zeng Li (2017) |  Song Xinjie (2024) |
External links
Footnotes
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宋 – Sòng. The Song dynasty, lasting from 960 to 1279 AD. See Wikipedia. ↩
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山东 – Shāndōng. A coastal province in Eastern China. See Wikipedia. ↩
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大娘 – Dàniáng. A term of endearment for an older woman. ↩
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草原 – Cǎoyuán. The temperate grassland in East Asia. See Wikipedia. ↩
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金 – Jīn. A dynasty ruled by the Jurchen people under the Wanyan clan from 1115 to 1234. See Wikipedia. ↩
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法华寺 – Fǎhuá Sì. A Buddhist temple in Jiaxing. ↩
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醉仙楼 – Zuìxiānlóu. A tavern in Jiaxing. ↩
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扬州 – Yángzhōu. A city in Jiangsu. ↩
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云栖寺 – Yúnqī Sì. A Buddhist temple in Hangzhou. ↩