''Romance of the White Haired Maiden'' is a 1999 Taiwanese television series adapted from the ''

wuxia ( ), which literally means "martial heroes", is a genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fiction, its popularity has caused it to be adapted ...

'' novel ''

Baifa Monü Zhuan ''Baifa Monü Zhuan'' is a wuxia novel by Liang Yusheng. It was serialised between 5 August 1957 and 10 December 1958 in the Hong Kong newspaper ''Sin Wun Pao''. It is closely related to ''Qijian Xia Tianshan'' and '' Saiwai Qixia Zhuan''. The no ...

'' by

Liang Yusheng Chen Wentong (5 April 1924 – 22 January 2009), better known by his pen name Liang Yusheng, was a Chinese writer. Credited as the pioneer of the "New School" (新派) of the ''wuxia'' genre in the 20th century, Chen was one of the best known ...

. Alternative Chinese titles for the series include ''Yidai Xianü'' (一代俠女) and ''Baifa Xianü'' (白髮俠女).

Plot

The story begins in the 43rd year of the reign of the

Wanli Emperor The Wanli Emperor (; 4 September 1563 – 18 August 1620), personal name Zhu Yijun (), was the 14th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1572 to 1620. "Wanli", the era name of his reign, literally means "ten thousand calendars". He was th ...

during the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peo ...

. Zhuo Yihang of the

Wudang Sect The Wudang Sect, sometimes also referred to as the Wu-tang Sect or Wu-Tang Clan, is a fictional martial arts sect mentioned in several works of ''wuxia'' fiction. It is commonly featured as one of the leading orthodox sects in the '' wulin'' (mar ...

falls in love with the legendary heroine Lian Nichang, disregarding his lover's past feud with his sect. The treacherous

eunuch A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millenni ...

Wei Zhongxian Wei Zhongxian (1568 – December 12, 1627), born Wei Si (魏四), was a Chinese court eunuch who lived in the late Ming dynasty. As a eunuch he used the name Li Jinzhong (李进忠). He is considered by most historians as the most notorious eunuc ...

secretly murders the

Taichang Emperor The Taichang Emperor (; 28 August 1582 – 26 September 1620), personal name Zhu Changluo (), was the 15th Emperor of the Ming dynasty. He was the eldest son of the Wanli Emperor and succeeded his father as emperor in 1620. However, his reign c ...

and replaces him with the young

Tianqi Emperor The Tianqi Emperor (23 December 1605 – 30 September 1627), personal name Zhu Youjiao (), was the 16th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1620 to 1627. He was the eldest son of the Taichang Emperor and a elder brother of the Chongzhe ...

, who is effectively a puppet ruler under Wei's control. Wei schemes with the Manchu leader Nurhachi to seize control of Ming China. Lian Nichang's senior, Murong Chong, is actually a spy working for the Manchus. In order to achieve his ambition of dominating the ''wulin'' (martial artists' community), he uses a trick to turn Lian and Zhuo Yihang against each other. Lian falsely believes that Zhuo has betrayed her love and her hair turns white overnight. She leaves Zhuo in anger and travels to the remote regions of northern China. Zhuo is unwilling to give up on Lian and he finally resolves his misunderstanding with her after experiencing hardships. Zhuo and Lian rally a group of martial artists to help them deal with the Manchu invaders. The heroes defeat the Manchu army at Shanhai Pass and temporarily halt the invasion. By then, the Tianqi Emperor had died and is succeeded by the

Chongzhen Emperor The Chongzhen Emperor (; 6 February 1611 – 25 April 1644), personal name Zhu Youjian (), courtesy name Deyue (),Wang Yuan (王源)，''Ju ye tang wen ji'' (《居業堂文集》), vol. 19. "聞之張景蔚親見烈皇帝神主題御諱字德� ...

. Chongzhen believes slanderous rumours and puts the patriotic general

Yuan Chonghuan Yuan Chonghuan (; 6 June 1584 – 22 September 1630), courtesy name Yuansu or Ziru, was a Chinese politician, military general and writer who served under the Ming dynasty. Widely regarded as a patriot in Chinese culture, he is best known for d ...

to death. Without Yuan to defend Shanhai Pass, Zhuo and Lian foresee that Ming China will eventually fall to the Manchus. They decide to permanently retire from the ''

jianghu ''Jianghu'' () is a term that generally refers to the milieu, environment, or sub-community in which many Chinese wuxia stories are set. The term is used flexibly, and can be used to describe a fictionalized version of Historical China (usually ...

'' and lead reclusive lives.

Cast

Jiang Qinqin Jiang Qinqin (, born 3 September 1976) is a Chinese actress. She is sometimes credited as Shui Ling (), a stage name given to her by Taiwanese writer Chiung Yao while she was involved in the production of the television series ''Tears in Heaven' ...

as Lian Nichang *

Julian Cheung Julian Cheung Chi-lam (born 27 August 1971), better known by his stage name Chilam, is a Hong Kong singer and actor. Cheung is popularly known for his role as Guo Jing in the 1994 TV series adaptation of the ''Wuxia'' novel, '' The Legend o ...

as Zhuo Yihang * Lin Fangbing as Red Flower Devil Mother * Chen Chun-sheng as Murong Chong * Zhang Heng as Meng Qiuxia *

Ku Pao-ming Ku Pao-ming (; 8 April 1950 – 19 March 2022) was a Taiwanese actor and comedian. He appeared with the in ''Art'' (2003), alongside Chin Shih-chieh and Lee Li-chun, as well as ''The Apartment'' (2006). Ku also performed in ''Legitimate Crimes'' ...

as Xiao Xiao * Chang Chin as Miao Huichun * Chang Luo-chun as Wang Zhaoxi * Li Hui-ying as Tie Shanhu * Feng Kuang-jung as Tudou * Geng Yong as Duniangzi * Chou Shao-tung as

* Wang Bozhao as Zhu Changluo * Yu Chia-hui as He E'hua * Liu Kemian as Geng Shaonan * Liu Naiyi as Taoist Qingsong

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Romance of the White Haired Maiden Taiwanese wuxia television series Works based on Baifa Monü Zhuan 1999 Taiwanese television series debuts Television series set in the Ming dynasty Television shows based on works by Liang Yusheng Television series set in the 17th century