''The Five Younger Gallants'' (小五義) is an 1890 Chinese novel and the best known sequel to the hugely popular 1879 novel ''The Tale of Loyal Heroes and Righteous Gallants'' (republished as ''

The Seven Heroes and Five Gallants ''The Tale of Loyal Heroes and Righteous Gallants'' (忠烈俠義傳), also known by its 1883 reprint title ''The Three Heroes and Five Gallants'' (三俠五義), is an 1879 Chinese novel based on storyteller Shi Yukun's oral performances. The n ...

'' in 1889). It is followed a year later by ''Sequel to the Five Younger Gallants'' (續小五義). Both sequels were published by Shi Duo (石鐸) who owned the

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

publisher Wenguang lou (文光樓). The editor was a "Captivated-Wind Daoist" (風迷道人). It's unknown whether he was the same person as "Captivated Daoist" (入迷道人), an editor of the 1879 novel. All three novels claim authorship by the famed storyteller

Shi Yukun Shi Yukun ( 19th century), courtesy name Zhenzhi, was a highly popular Qing dynasty storyteller who performed in Beijing during the first half of the 19th century. Little is known about his life, but anecdotes recorded in the 1940s claimed he work ...

. During the last decade of the 19th century, the first sequel was reprinted 9 times, 7 in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

and 1 each in Beijing and

Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Romanization, alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a Direct-administered municipalities of China, municipality in Southwes ...

Authorship controversy

While scholars generally agree that Shi Yukun was the genius behind the original novel (even though he most likely died before 1879), how much he contributed to ''The Five Younger Gallants'' and its sequel, if at all, is unknown. The 1879 novel (which was published by another Beijing publisher, the Juzhen tang) does not complete its tale by the final chapter, and readers are told to wait for ''The Five Younger Gallants''. However, none of the "previewed" plotlines at the end of the original was actually found in the sequel. The editors did not deny that the two novels had different origins: According to Shi Duo's preface, his unnamed friend who was an acquaintance with an unnamed disciple of

brought him the original draft by Shi Yukun, with "over three hundred chapters, was bound in seventy or eighty volumes, contained over three thousand episodes in three major parts", which he acquired "without begrudging the great cost". "Capitvated-Wind Daoist" in his preface hinted that the 1879 novel was not authentic as it was noticeably different from the "original draft" he received. In '' A Brief History of Chinese Fiction'',

Lu Xun Zhou Shuren (25 September 1881 – 19 October 1936), better known by his pen name Lu Xun (or Lu Sun; ; Wade–Giles: Lu Hsün), was a Chinese writer, essayist, poet, and literary critic. He was a leading figure of modern Chinese literature. W ...

wrote (as translated by

Yang Hsien-yi Yang Xianyi (; January 10, 1915 – November 23, 2009) was a Chinese literary translator, known for rendering many ancient and a few modern Chinese classics into English, including '' Dream of the Red Mansions''. Life and career Born into a wea ...

and

Gladys Yang Gladys Yang (; 19 January 1919 – 18 November 1999) was a British translator of Chinese literature and the wife of another noted literary translator, Yang Xianyi. Biography She was born Gladys Margaret Tayler at the Peking Union Medical Col ...

): One of the prefaces, dated "the first month of winter of 1890", suggestively includes the name Boyin (伯寅),

Pan Zuyin Pan Zuyin (1830–1890) was a high-ranking Qing dynasty mandarin and a major art collector. He was president of the Board of Works ( ), president of Board of War ( ), and grand councilor ( ). In 1860, Zuo Zongtang (1812–1885), the Viceroy of S ...

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theobald ...

, but as Pan died on December 11, 1890, it was unlikely his work.

The Five Younger Gallants

*Ai Hu (艾虎), nicknamed "Little Hero". He is actually a main character in the later chapters of the original. *Lu Zhen (盧珍), Lu Fang's son, nicknamed "Powder-Faced Zidu" (粉面子都). He appears briefly in the original. *Han Tianjin (韓天錦),

Han Zhang Han Zhang is a fictional Song dynasty knight-errant from the 19th-century Chinese novels ''The Seven Heroes and Five Gallants'' and ''The Five Younger Gallants''. Nicknamed "Earth Rat" or "Earth-Piercing Rat" () for his expertise in land mines ...

's adopted son, nicknamed "Thunderbolt Devil" (霹靂鬼). *Xu Liang (徐良),

Xu Qing Xu Qing (; born 22 January 1969), known also as Summer Qing, is a Chinese actress. She was accepted into the acting class of Beijing Film Academy in 1988 and graduated in 1992. Career Xu made her debut in the 1990 film '' Life on a String'', ...

's son, nicknamed "Goose from

Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...

" (山西雁) and "White Eyebrows" (白眉毛). *Bai Yunsheng (白芸生),

Bai Yutang Bai Yutang, nicknamed "Sleek Rat" or "Brocade-Coated Rat" (錦毛鼠), is a fictional Song dynasty knight-errant from the 19th-century Chinese novel ''The Seven Heroes and Five Gallants''. Handsome, brave, clever and charismatic, Bai Yutang is ...

's nephew, nicknamed "Jade-Faced

Zhuan Zhu Zhuan Zhu (專諸; died 515 BC) was an assassin in the Spring and Autumn period. As Prince Guang (later King Helü of Wu) wanted to kill King Liao of Wu and take the throne himself, Zhuan Zhu was recommended to Prince Guang by Wu Zixu :''Note: n ...

" (玉面專諸).

Film and TV adaptations

Film

*''Breaking Through the Bronze Net'' (大破銅網陣), a 1939 Hong Kong film. *''Triple Flirtation of the White Chrysanthemum'' (三戲白菊花), a 1939 Hong Kong film. *''The Five Swordsmen's Nocturnal Tryst'' (小五義夜探沖霄樓), a 1940 Hong Kong film. *''The Junior Hero Ngai Fu'' (小俠艾虎), a 1949 Hong Kong film. *''Solving the Copper-Netted Trap'' (大破銅網陣), a 1950 Hong Kong film. *''The Three Battles Between White Eye-Brows and White Chrysanthemum'' (白眉毛三戰白菊花), a 1950 Hong Kong film. *''Five Little Heroes'' (小五義), a 1951 Hong Kong film. *''Shattering the Copper Net Array'' (大破銅網陣), a 1959 Hong Kong film. *''The Magnificent Five'' (小五義大破銅網陣), a 1968 Hong Kong film. *''Flying Thief, White Flower'' (飛賊白菊花), a 1969 Hong Kong film. In addition, Bai Yunsheng appears in the 1970 Hong Kong film ''

The Winged Tiger ''The Winged Tiger'' is a 1970 Hong Kong ''wuxia'' film produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio, starring actor Chan Hung-lit, who was well known for playing villain roles, in his first lead role as a protagonist. The film also co-stars Angela Yu Ch ...

''.

TV

*''The Five Younger Gallants'' (小五義), a 1977 Hong Kong TV series. *''The Five Tiger Generals'' (五虎將), a 1980 Taiwanese TV series. *''The Magnificent Five'' (新小五義), a 1987 Hong Kong TV series. *''The White-Eyebrowed Hero'' (白眉大俠), a 1994 Chinese TV series. *''Chinese Folk Tales'' (中國民間故事), a 1996 Taiwanese TV series, Episode "Ai Hu Solicits a Bride" (艾虎招親).

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Five Younger Gallants, The * 1890 novels 1891 novels Wuxia novels Novels set in the 11th century Qing dynasty novels Novels set in the Northern Song 19th-century Chinese novels Chinese novels adapted into films Chinese novels adapted into television series Sequel novels Chinese comedy novels