The One-Handed Beggar

Name: The One-Handed Beggar
ISBN: 9787503466977

Huanzhulouzhu (Li Shoumin)China Culture and History Press2016

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Word count: 680K words
Chapters: 40
Series: Republican Era Wuxia Fiction Collection · Huanzhulouzhu Volume
ISBN: 9787503466977

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Summary

The One-Handed Beggar is a long martial-arts novel of the combat school by Huanzhulouzhu, running to fifty-eight chapters and some 680,000 characters. The story opens on the northern slope of Mount Song: the youth Shen Hong, whose family has suffered calamity and who bears a family vendetta, goes to Shaolin Temple seeking instruction, only to be assigned the drudgery of chopping wood and hauling water. Unable to bear the frustration, he grows thin over months of hardship and is finally expelled. Destitute on the road, he meets beneath the pine shade a ragged beggar named Xi Si, whose right arm is missing. Though hard-pressed himself, Shen Hong unties his purse and treats the man to wine, and this single impulse of kindness earns him a remarkable turn of fortune: the "one-handed beggar" is in truth a martial master of extraordinary skill, and from him Shen Hong sets out on the true path of martial training.

Editor's review

在还珠楼主的作品谱系里，《独手丐》常被《蜀山剑侠传》的盛名遮住，但它恰恰是理解这位“现代武侠小说之王”另一副笔法的关键。与飞剑法宝满天飞的神怪剑仙一路不同，这部近七十万字的长篇走的是扎实的技击路线：拳脚、铁桨、镖针、水性与身法，一招一式都写得可循可感。书中最动人的一笔，是开篇那个落魄少年把仅有的钱袋递给断臂乞丐——善意换来一段奇缘，也定下全书重情义、重担当的基调。

Who it's for

A good fit for

喜爱民国旧派武侠、想跳出《蜀山》看还珠楼主另一路的读者
对技击派武侠的招式、兵器与江湖规矩感兴趣的武侠迷
喜欢看少年成长、师徒传承与义气描写的人
收藏“民国武侠小说典藏文库”的旧武侠爱好者

Not a good fit for

只爱看飞剑法宝、仙魔神怪一路的剑仙小说读者
习惯现代快节奏叙事、嫌民国章回体铺垫慢的读者
对旧小说文白相间的语言耐性不足的人

Reading tips

先沉住气读完第一回“松荫下那顿酒”，全书的人物基调与笔法都从这里定下。
不必强记频繁出现的人名与江湖门派，跟着沈鸿、姜飞两条少年线走即可。
读到王鹿子论“武功真谛”一段时放慢速度，那是全书作者发议论的核心段落。
建议选中国文史出版社校注本，注释有助于理解民国时期的用语与江湖称谓。

About the publisher

China Culture and History Press China · Founded in 1980

China Culture and History Press has long devoted itself to modern and contemporary literature and culture-and-history reading matter, with publishing directions centered on classic works, social novels, prose and miscellaneous writings, and Eastern philosophy, alongside culture-and-history periodicals such as Zongheng. Among the more than 1,500 titles in the collection, representative books include Zhang Henshui's Ti Xiao Yin Yuan, Lu Xun's Complete Classic Works (10 volumes) and Wild Grass, and Lao She's Four Generations Under One Roof series and the boxed set of Lao She's Classic Works (10 volumes), while its author resources are concentrated on figures such as Zhang Henshui, Lu Xun, Lao She and Sima Qian. Its publishing character lies in solid editorial work on culture-and-history source texts and in issuing famous authors' works in sets, balancing the readability of individual texts with the systematic presentation of complete collections for focused reading and collecting. Beyond these directions, public information on the press's contemporary original publishing is limited, so it is not elaborated here.

Chapter One: A One-Armed Beggar Lies Beneath the Pine Shade
Chapter Two: A Black Shadow Flits Past in the Lightning
Chapter Three: A Poor Child in the Wind and Snow
Chapter Four: The Strange Beggar of Dragon Pavilion
Chapter Five: An Enemy Encountered in the Deep Woods
Chapter Six: The Five Yin Hand
Chapter Seven: The Strange Guest at the Fan Pagoda
Chapter Eight: A Chance Acquisition of a Thousand-Li Horse
Chapter Nine: Young Hero Jiang Outwits a Band of Thieves
Chapter Ten: A Young Hero in the Iron Prison
Chapter Eleven: The Iron Centipede and the Twin Rings
Chapter Twelve: A Figure in Yellow Drops from the Sky
Chapter Thirteen: The Heroine Long Lingyu and the Iron Centipede
Chapter Fourteen: The Twin Heroes of Weinan First Try the Red-Feathered Eagle
Chapter Fifteen: The Assassin
Chapter Sixteen: The Young Heroine First Learns the Hook-and-Link Spear
Chapter Seventeen: A Shadow in the Pine Forest
Chapter Eighteen: Good Friends Reunited
Chapter Nineteen: A Strange Figure in the Hidden Valley
Chapter Twenty: The Cloud-Grasping Hand Drops from the Sky
Chapter Twenty-One: The Strange Heroes Little Mangy and Little Mute
Chapter Twenty-Two: The Iron Centipede Unleashes the Seven-Bird Palm in Fury
Chapter Twenty-Three: The Heroes Wreck the Lang Gong Temple
Chapter Twenty-Four: The Heroes Return to Qingyun
Chapter Twenty-Five: The Heart-Locking Wheel Cleverly Breaks the Five-Poison Dart
Chapter Twenty-Six: Three Heroes Meet; A Moonlit Walk Through the Wild Hills; The Stone Bowl Opened; A Great Bandit Slain in the Temple Grove
Chapter Twenty-Seven: A Willow Branch Splits Stone; The Chivalrous Beggar Wounds the Vicious Monk
Chapter Twenty-Eight: Flute Song Falls from the Sky; A Man Travels Through the Water
Chapter Twenty-Nine: Heavy Snow Fills the Empty Hills; Earth Frozen and Sky Icy; Where Are Good Friends?
Chapter Thirty: Surprise and Joy Intermingled
Chapter Thirty-One: In Wind and Snow on the Empty Hills, a Good Friend Suddenly Comes
Chapter Thirty-Two: Wine Warmed Around the Stove, a Loving Pair United
Chapter Thirty-Three: A Birthday Celebration, a Feast at White Lotus Steps; A Father's Vengeance, a First Trial of the Blue Thunder Needle
Chapter Thirty-Four: The Twin Young Heroes Meet Wang Luzi Again
Chapter Thirty-Five: The Sword Formula Transmitted; Wang Luzi Seen Once More
Chapter Thirty-Six: The True Essence of Martial Arts
Chapter Thirty-Seven: Leaping Through the Ancient Cave, Slaying a Great Bandit in Midair
Chapter Thirty-Eight: Night Talk Beneath a Lone Sail, a Light Boat Cutting the Waves
Chapter Thirty-Nine: Facing a Great Enemy, Wielding Twin Iron Oars Alone
Chapter Forty: The Great Battle in the River's Heart

FAQ

《独手丐》是《蜀山剑侠传》的续集吗？

不是。此书人物与年代放在明末，与《蜀山剑侠传》没有情节上的承接关系，通常被列为还珠楼主的“蜀山别传”系列之一，可独立阅读。

主角到底是独手丐还是沈鸿？

主线在少年沈鸿与姜飞身上，独手丐席泗是开篇松荫下端坐的断臂乞丐，也是引沈鸿入道的奇侠，书名取其一枝，并非全书唯一主角。

全书有没有写完？

据著录，全书共十四集、五十八回，末回标题即“总结全书”，作者本人是写完了的；个别流传电子本末页有脱落，属流传版本问题。

这本书适合武侠入门读者吗？

可以，但需一点耐心。它语言文白相间、枝蔓较多，情节不像现代类型小说那样紧凑；若想先熟悉还珠楼主，可从《蜀山剑侠传》某几卷或本书第一回试读。

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About the author

Huanzhulouzhu (Li Shoumin) Author · Chinese · 1902–1961

Huanzhulouzhu, originally named Li Shanji and later renamed Li Shoumin, was a native of Changshou, Sichuan (now part of Chongqing). Living from 1902 to 1961, he was a master of Republican-era wuxia fiction. He rose to fame in 1932 with The Legend of the Shu Mountain Swordsmen, a series he continued for years; the library holds more than four hundred related works. His novels blend sword immortals, strange tales, and Confucian, Buddhist, and Daoist thought into a singular vision, marked by bold imagination and vast scope. As one of the Five Masters of the Northern School, he wrote over forty million characters in his lifetime and left a profound mark on the history of wuxia fiction. Public information about his life is limited, and many biographical details remain uncertain; readers may best approach him through his works and their distinctive narrative style and fantastical worlds.