Xue Que (simplified: 薛鹊, traditional: 薛鵲, pinyin: Xuē Què, jyutping: sit3 zoek3) is the third of the four disciples of Great Master Wuchen, the King of Venoms, in Jin Yong’s Side Story of the Flying Fox. A hunchbacked woman with a lame right foot, she is the wife of her shixiong Jiang Tieshan and later of her eldest shixiong Murong Jingyue. She deserts her shifu’s line for his expelled fellow disciple Shi Wanchen and dies by the poisoned candle that her shimei Cheng Lingsu left behind her (SIDE ch. 9–10, 20).
Biography
The feud among the disciples
By Cheng Lingsu’s account, Murong Jingyue was already married when Xue Que fell for him, and she poisoned his wife. In revenge Murong secretly dosed her with a poison that left her hunchbacked and lame; their shifu was away gathering herbs in Tibet and came back too late to cure her. Jiang Tieshan, who had long loved her, married her despite it, and they had a son, Jiang Xiaotie. After the marriage Murong began pursuing her again, and the three feuded for years. Jiang and Xue Que built the Medicine King Manor (药王庄) by Dongting Lake out of cast iron and ringed it with poison trees, first against Murong and later as a refuge from the many enemies they had made (SIDE ch. 10).
Black Tiger Wood
A note in what looks like Murong’s hand, delivered on one of his own bone-piercing nails, summons Xue Que and Jiang Tieshan to Black Tiger Wood at night; their son lies poisoned, and they believe Murong did it. In fact Cheng Lingsu wrote the note. The three disciples fight with poison smoke until a letter from Wuchen, written in glowing characters, appears on a tree, and Cheng Lingsu steps out to tell them their shifu is dead. Xue Que and Murong ask at once for the Medicine King Divine Record (药王神篇) and then rush at her. Hu Fei throws Xue Que and Jiang aside, and the couple limp away (SIDE ch. 9).
The smoke from Cheng Lingsu’s candle, made with Seven-Heart Begonia, later fells both of them inside their iron house. Cheng Lingsu cures their son, who had been poisoned by her own nail, and has the blacksmith they had wronged beat Jiang. Xue Que promises to return the blacksmith’s land and never again to set foot in Hunan (SIDE ch. 10).
Desertion to Shi Wanchen
At Fuk’anggan’s Grand Assembly of Zhangmen under Heaven she arrives with Shi Wanchen and Murong Jingyue, who introduces her as his wife and Shi as their shifu (SIDE ch. 18). At the Medicine King Temple outside Beijing it emerges that Shi has killed Jiang Tieshan and their son at Murong’s prompting. Cheng Lingsu concludes that Xue Que, though she struck no blow herself, was party to the deaths of her husband and son (SIDE ch. 20).
When Shi tests Cheng Lingsu’s recipe on Murong’s palm and poisons him beyond cure, Xue Que turns on Shi and cuts off Murong’s arm to save his life. Moments later she pretends to fall poisoned, seizes Cheng Lingsu by the wrist when she bends over her, and holds a knife to her heart until Hu Fei kicks her in the hump and breaks her grip. She flees with Shi and Murong (SIDE ch. 20).
Death
That night she returns with Shi and Murong to take the Divine Record from the dead Cheng Lingsu. Shi lights the half-burnt candle Cheng Lingsu had left on the altar, laced with Seven-Heart Begonia, and Xue Que and Murong die of it. Hu Fei buries the two of them in a pit (SIDE ch. 20).
Relationships
- Great Master Wuchen (Shifu): On learning of his death she asked only after his book.
- Shi Wanchen (Shifu): Wuchen’s expelled fellow disciple, to whom she went over.
- Jiang Tieshan (Husband): Married her after she was crippled; killed by Shi Wanchen.
- Murong Jingyue (Shixiong, later husband): Crippled her, and was later called her husband.
- Jiang Xiaotie (Son).
- Cheng Lingsu (Shimei): Twice outwitted her; her candle killed her.