''The Patriotic Knights'' is a Chinese ''

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 f ...

'' television series adapted from

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 ...

's novel ''

Xiagu Danxin ''Xiagu Danxin'' is a ''wuxia'' novel by Liang Yusheng first published as a serial between 5 October 1967 and 20 June 1969 in the Hong Kong newspaper ''Sin Wan Pao'' (). Considered the tenth part of the ''Tianshan'' series of novels by Liang Yus ...

''. It was directed by Kuk Kwok-leung, and starred Chen Long, Stephanie Hsiao,

Wallace Chung Wallace Chung Hon-leung (; born 30 November 1974) is a Hong Kong actor and singer, best known for his work on several Chinese television dramas. Chung ranked 68th on ''Forbes'' China Celebrity 100 list in 2013, 94th in 2014, 45th in 2015, 31st in ...

and

He Meitian He Meitian (born 2 December 1977) is a Chinese actress and former gymnast. She was previously a contracted artist under the Hong Kong television network TVB. After her contract with TVB ended, she returned to mainland China and continued her ca ...

. It was first shown in China in 2010 on Guizhou TV even though it already completed shooting in around 2006–2007. The Tai Seng DVD set was released in 2007.

Plot

The series is set in the late

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

during the reign of the

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 Chongzhen ...

, when the government is very corrupt on all levels. The eunuch

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 ...

dominates the political scene and plans to bring the ''wulin'' (martial artists' community) under his control and usurp the throne. He instigates Meng Shentong to kidnap Li Shengnan, the leader of the Heavenly Demonic Cult, and force her to hand over a highly coveted martial arts manual, the ''Baidu Zhenjing''. The great hero Jin Shiyi interferes, rescues Li Shengnan, and combines forces with her to defeat Meng Shentong. However, Li Shengnan eventually dies from her injuries. Jin Shiyi feels deeply saddened by her death and decides to leave the mainland and settle on a remote island. 20 years later, Wei Zhongxian feels threatened by Jiang Haitian, Jin Shiyi's apprentice, who has garnered much support from the ''wulin'' and started a rebel movement against the Ming government. Shi Baidu, the chief of the Six Harmonies Gang, has secretly defected to Wei Zhongxian's side and promised to help Wei deal with the rebels. The opportunity arises when Jiang Haitian invites guests from throughout the ''wulin'' to attend his daughter's wedding during the

Qixi Festival The Qixi Festival ( zh, 七夕), also known as the Qiqiao Festival ( zh, 七巧, links=no), is a Chinese festival celebrating the annual meeting of The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, Zhinü and Niulang in Chinese mythology... The festival is cele ...

. Shi Baidu's younger sister, Shi Hongying, is a righteous and kind person, unlike her brother. She tries to advise her brother against helping Wei Zhongxian but he ignores her, so she sneaks out of the house and travels to Jiang Haitian's residence to warn him about the impending danger. Around this time, Jin Shiyi's son, Jin Zhuliu, sets foot on the mainland and goes on a series of adventures. By chance, he encounters Li Nanxing, Li Shengnan's nephew, and becomes

sworn brother Blood brother can refer to two or more men not related by birth who have sworn loyalty to each other. This is in modern times usually done in a ceremony, known as a blood oath, where each person makes a small cut, usually on a finger, hand or ...

s with him.

Cast

* Chen Long as Jin Zhuliu * Stephanie Hsiao as Shi Hongying *

as Li Nanxing *

as Zhong Yanyan * Jing Gangshan as Jin Shiyi * He Jiayi as Gu Zhihua * Niu Mengmeng as Li Shengnan *

Eddy Ko Eddy Ko Hung (; born Ho Yiu-sum ; 1947) is a Hong Kong television and film actor who has worked on the TV stations RTV, ATV (both now defunct), and TVB. Most recently, he has made appearances in several international films including 2015's ''T ...

as Jiang Haitian * Shen Junyi as Shi Baidu * Jewel Lee as He Daniang *

Norman Chui Norman Chui Siu-keung (; born 16 October 1950) is a Hong Kong actor. He was best known for portraying heroic protagonists in many martial arts films from the 1970s to 1980s and later portraying villainous roles in the 1990s. Chui was contracted wi ...

as Meng Shentong * Siqin Gaoli as Feng Miaochang * Akina Hong as Dong Shisanniang *

Ji Chunhua Ji Chunhua (; 20 July 1961 – 11 July 2018), sometimes romanized as Gai Chun Wa, was a Chinese actor and action choreographer. Just like Jet Li and Yu Chenghui, he was a Mainland China-trained wushu athlete who started his acting career in th ...

as Shuai Mengxiong * Wang Deshun as Zhong Changtong * Li Donghan as Qin Yuanhao * Wang Jianxin as Yang Hao * Liu Weihua as Ouyang Jian * Li Guohua as

Chen Zhihui Chen Zhihui is a Chinese actor best known for playing supporting roles in various films and television series since the 1980s. Some of his more notable roles in film include: Master Chin in '' Jet Li's Fearless'' (2006); Zhang Fei in '' Three Kin ...

as Yuanhai * Bai Zhicheng as Taoist Shushi * Tan Jianchang as Li Dun * Wang Li as Jiao Lei * Li Kelong as Qingfu * Wang Shuo as Ye Muhua * Han Zhenhua as Feng Zichao * Ma Ji as Wen Daozhuang * Cheng Wu as Wen Shengzhong * Li Hong as Gu Zhonglian * Xu Yena as Jiang Xiaofu * Yuan Wenqing as Yuwen Xiong * Wang Qun as Yuchi Jiong * He Sirong as Qi Shengyin * Xie Jiaqi as Sha Qianfeng * Tan Xinrou as Mudan * Zhang Ying as Shaoyao * Xu Xiangdong as Chen Tianyu * Feng Jing as Chen Guangzhao

External links

*
''The Patriotic Knights''
on

Sina.com Sina Corporation (, "new wave") is a Chinese technology company. Sina operates four major business lines: Sina Weibo, Sina Mobile, Sina Online, and Sinanet. Sina has over 100 million registered users worldwide. Sina was recognized by '' South ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Patriotic Knights, The Chinese wuxia television series Television shows based on works by Liang Yusheng 2010 Chinese television series debuts Television series set in the Ming dynasty Mandarin-language television shows Television series set in the 17th century