Guo Xiang (fictional)

Guo Xiang (Traditional Chinese: 郭襄; Simplified Chinese: 郭襄; pinyin: guō xiāng) is a fictional character in "The Return of the Condor Heroes", a wuxia novel written by Jin Yong, and later mentioned in "The Heavenly Sword and the Dragon Saber".

Biography

* Family name: Guo
* Given name: Xiang
* Gender: Female
* Birth: November 25, 1244 "(early versions)"/October 27, 1244 "(3rd revision)"
* Death: "(unknown)"
* Father: Guo Jing
* Mother: Huang Rong
* Husband: "(none)"
* Siblings: Guo Fu and Guo Polu

Life

Guo Xiang was the daughter of Guo Jing and Huang Rong, younger sister of Guo Fu and the twin sister of Guo Polu. As an infant, she was later kidnapped by Li Mochou, who thought she was a daughter of Yang Guo and Xiaolongnü. Yang Guo, who begins to develop a fatherly love for the child, selflessly rescuing and protecting her from family's enemies despite the knowledge that her parents were possibly responsible of his father's death. After, she would become one of most important women in his life. She would meet Yang Guo again sixteen years later when she becomes deeply attracted to him in an innocent way. Yang Guo became very fond of her, in a brotherly manner, and gave her three Golden Needles guaranteeing the completion of three requests. Guo Xiang used the first to see Yang Guo's face (hiding behind a mask), and the second to ask him to attend her 16th birthday. Eventually, she used the third to prohibit Yang Guo from committing suicide at Broken Heart Cliff when he thought his beloved wife was dead.

Like her sister, Guo Xiang also developed an affectionate feelings for Yang Guo. However, she knew that he loved only Xiaolongnü and his feeling for her were only brotherly. She sincerely wished Yang Guo happiness with Xiaolongnu. After Yang Guo succeeded halting the Mongolian Invasion on Xiangyang led by Möngke Khan, he gave her his treasured weapon Heavy Iron Sword (玄鐵重劍) as a gift and Xiaolongnü gave her the twin swords Jun Zhi Jian (君子劍）and Shu Nu Jian （淑女劍）. After Yang Guo and his wife left the city, she was unable to forget her feelings towards Yang Guo and tried to find the couple.

A few years after Yang Guo and Xiaolungnu departed from the Central Plains, she took to wandering to relieve her heartache. There, she reunited with a young Zhang Junbao (Zhang Sanfeng) and inadvertently started him on the path to becoming one of the finest martial arts masters. Zhang Junbao and Guo Xiang were able to incorporate various principles of the martial art manual "Jiu Yang Zhen Jing" into their personal kungfu and the kungfu of the sects they eventually founded, Wudang Sect and Emei Sect. With "Jiu Yang Zhen Jing", she became a well-known heroine and a fine martial art master in her own right, able to rival her own father, grandfather, and Yang Guo.

Thirteen years later, after Mongolian troops finally conquered the Southern Song Empire under the leadership of Kublai Khan, her parents and brother have died defending the city of Xiangyang. However before that, her parents melted Yang Guo's sword and made it into the Dragon Sabre, they also melted Xiaolongnu's twin swords to make the Heaven Sword. Hidden within the Dragon Sabre and Heaven Sword was a map to the military textbook ("Wu Mu Yi Shu") written by the late great Sung Dynasty general Yue Fei and a scroll detailing the powerful martial art "Jiu Yin Zhen Jing" and (legends told that Guo Jing wrote the Dragon Subduing Palms manual alone). The former was given to Guo Polu while the latter was bestowed upon her. She became the founder of the Emei Sect, continuing her family's missions to defend her people from Mongolians' oppressions, and searching for her family's lost Dragon Sabre until the day she died. Her family's missions continue through her disciples and successors of the E'mei Sect in "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre".

Name

Guo Xiang was named after the city of Xiangyang, by her mother Huang Rong, while her twin brother Guo Polu was named by his father Guo Jing.

Introduction

Guo Xiang is the second daughter of Guo Jing and Huang Rong. She was the founder of the martial arts sect Emei.

Adaptations

Many actress have played Guo Xiang, including:
* Theresa Lee (李綺紅)
* Lin Xiang-Ping (林湘萍), also known as Yvonne Lim who is a TV actress in Singapore
* Yang Mi (杨幂)

ee also

* Condor Trilogy
* List of characters in Condor Trilogy