Xie Feng (simplified: 解风, traditional: 解風, pinyin: Xiè Fēng, jyutping: gaai2 fung1) was the leader of the Beggars’ Guild and a super-first-class martial artist. He was known for his exceptional internal energy and his ability to carve characters with his finger strength, similar to Fangzheng, the abbot of Shaolin Temple. Despite his martial arts prowess, he was also known for having two illegitimate sons who served as messengers in the guild.
Biography
Leadership of the Beggars’ Guild
Xie Feng led the Beggars’ Guild, one of the major factions in the jianghu. He was described as an old man with white hair, dressed in beggar’s clothing, demonstrating his position as the leader of the guild.
Display of martial arts
Xie Feng demonstrated his exceptional martial arts ability when he and Fangzheng carved characters into a wooden board using only their finger strength. The two were able to carve characters that were more than half an inch deep into the wood, demonstrating their highly refined internal energy.
Xie Feng’s carving speed matched Fangzheng’s, showing that his internal energy control was excellent. His technique was similar to Shaolin’s Great Strength Vajra Finger (大力金刚指), even though he was not a Shaolin disciple, demonstrating his ability to learn from various sources.
Illegitimate sons
Xie Feng had two illegitimate sons who served as messengers in the Beggars’ Guild: the Qinglian Messenger (青莲使者) and the Bailian Messenger (白莲使者). Their names contained the characters “qing” (清, pure) and “bai” (白, white), which ironically contrasted with Xie Feng’s moral failings.
Xie Feng had promoted his sons to important positions in the guild, which reflected the corruption of the guild’s talent selection system. This was revealed by Ren Woxing during a confrontation, becoming an important factor in suppressing the orthodox faction’s morale.
Personality & traits
Xie Feng was portrayed as a powerful martial artist with exceptional internal energy, but he was also shown to have moral failings, particularly in his personal life. His promotion of his illegitimate sons to important positions demonstrated his willingness to use his power for personal gain.
Despite his moral failings, he was still respected for his martial arts ability and his position as the leader of the Beggars’ Guild.
Martial arts abilities
Finger strength carving
Xie Feng’s signature technique was his ability to carve characters into wood using only his finger strength. He was able to carve characters more than half an inch deep into wooden boards, demonstrating his highly refined internal energy.
His technique was similar to Shaolin’s Great Strength Vajra Finger, even though he was not a Shaolin disciple, demonstrating his ability to learn from various sources and adapt techniques to his own style.
Internal energy
Xie Feng possessed exceptional internal energy that placed him among the super-first-class martial artists of his generation. His ability to match Fangzheng’s carving speed demonstrated his excellent internal energy control and his mastery of martial arts.
Relationships
Xie Feng’s relationship with his two illegitimate sons was complex. He had promoted them to important positions in the Beggars’ Guild, demonstrating his favouritism and the corruption of the guild’s system.
His relationship with Fangzheng was one of mutual respect based on their martial arts abilities. The two were able to demonstrate their skills together, showing their understanding of each other’s abilities.
Behind the scenes
Xie Feng represents the theme of power and corruption in the jianghu. His character demonstrates that even powerful martial artists can have moral failings, and that power can be used for personal gain rather than the greater good.
Literary significance
Xie Feng’s character serves to contrast the ideal of martial arts leadership with the reality of corruption and personal failings. His promotion of his illegitimate sons and Ren Woxing’s revelation of this fact demonstrate the ways in which power can corrupt and the importance of moral integrity in leadership.
His character also serves to show that even in the orthodox faction, there are those who do not live up to the ideals they claim to represent.
Portrayals
Xie Feng has been portrayed in various adaptations of Laughing in the Wind, though he does not appear directly in the novel and is only mentioned by other characters.
See also
- Laughing in the Wind characters
- Beggars’ Guild – Xie Feng’s faction
- Fangzheng – Xie Feng’s counterpart in Shaolin
- Ren Woxing – The person who revealed Xie Feng’s secret
External links
- Xie Feng (Chinese) on Chinese Wikipedia