Black Forest
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Summary
Fu Nanzhou, a loyalist remnant of the late Ming, lives here in seclusion with his daughters, practicing his ancestral medicine to treat and save people, and is deeply respected by Han and Miao alike—yet this also draws the envy of the medical tyrant Hong and his son, who repeatedly plot against him; only after a warning from the extraordinary Mr. Lü Er does he temporarily avoid disaster. Pan Geng, a local bully of Muli Ga, colludes with Miao bandits and native officials, smuggling and abducting with impunity; to expand his power he abducts Fu Nanzhou and holds him under house arrest, trying to force him to submit, but Fu Nanzhou never yields. Following their father's instructions, the two Fu daughters venture deep into the Black Forest—dark as night year-round and teeming with poisonous insects—to seek out the extraordinary man and discuss countermeasures. Along the way they face many perils, including a witch's sorcery and a forced-marriage duel, and encounter wonders such as Stone Monkey slaying a thousand rhinos bare-handed. Hearing the news, heroes of the orthodox schools resolve to eliminate Pan Geng, a great scourge of the frontier, and join forces with the Fu father and daughters and the local natives. After many twists—clearing poisonous insects in Centipede Valley and facing peril at Gem Cliff—they finally storm Pingtian Stronghold, slay the fierce chieftain Pan Geng, and successfully rescue Fu Nanzhou.
Editor's review
The Black Forest places jianghu chivalry within the complex circumstances of the late-Ming frontier: Fu Nanzhou, a loyalist remnant, treats and saves people with his ancestral medicine, yet falls into crisis because of a medical tyrant's envy and the bully Pan Geng's collusion with Miao bandits and native officials. The book's highlight is the interweaving of three relationships—healer, hero, and frontier people. The two Fu daughters venture deep into the Black Forest to seek the extraordinary man, stringing together such perilous episodes as poisonous insects, a witch, and a forced-marriage duel into a tense rescue thread, while wonders like Stone Monkey slaying a thousand rhinos bare-handed retain Huanzhulouzhu-style lavish imagination. The orthodox heroes join forces to storm Pingtian Stronghold and slay Pan Geng, giving the story, beyond good-versus-evil conflict, a sense of pacifying the frontier and interethnic cooperation. Readers get the thrill of continuous adventure while also seeing how traditional wuxia gives concrete form to "righteousness": not merely winning duels but protecting a region. Suited to readers who enjoy perilous plots and jianghu ensemble casts; those who prefer concise realism or modern suspense pacing may find it digressive.
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Readers who enjoy traditional wuxia's perilous plots and heroes joining forces
- Readers interested in frontier jianghu and healer-chivalry themes
- Readers who prefer fantastical elements such as witches, poisonous insects, and strange beasts
- Readers comfortable with multi-threaded characters and a structure of continuous adventure
Not a good fit for
- Readers who prefer concise realism and fast-paced modern narrative
- Readers who are rather averse to fortuitous encounters, duels, and strange-beast setups
- Readers hoping for strict historical documentary or detailed medical case records
Reading tips
- First clarify the relationship among the three threads: Fu Nanzhou's abduction, the two daughters' search for the extraordinary man, and the heroes' storming of the stronghold.
- Read the Black Forest adventure as a series of successive stages, noting how clues advance after each escape.
- Pay attention to how the healer identity combines with chivalrous action, to understand the Fu father and daughters' stance.
- With many characters, jot down the alignment between the orthodox heroes and Pan Geng's side.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 第一回 炎荒中的名医
- 第二回 绝代佳人姊妹花
- 第三回 错骨分筋 恶武师林中出丑
- 第四回 木里戛中大盗
- 第五回 单恋
- 第六回 双侠女山寨斗凶顽
- 第七回 双侠女月夜服强敌
- 第八回 危峰舞剑 绝壑飞身
- 第九回 骷髅锁钥
- 第十回 形迹诡秘的病人群
- 第十一回 杏林双燕马如飞
- 第十二回 小英侠一指服众人 老医生深宵中伏莽
- 第十三回 避强仇 二女遁蛮荒
- 第十四回 寻异人 深宵观兽阵
- 第十五回 惊心动魄的一幕
- 第十六回 绝处逢生 石猴儿赤手屠千犀
- 第十七回 闻警访双姝夜月蛮荒谈异事 深山寻隐士森林黑暗起长征
- 第十八回 大地忽陆沉 石破天惊 死别生离争一瞬
- 第十九回 浩劫庆余生 绝悬身 惊逢兽阵
- 第二十回 森林迷弱女 荒崖闻啸 又蹈危机
- 第二十一回 误遇食人蛮 力尽精疲 又临绝地
- 第二十二回 飞行高树顶 林深水秀 再现生机
- 第二十三回 蛮荒奇遇
- 第二十四回 双收义女 喜得明珠
- 第二十五回 古洞艳尸
- 第二十六回 绝处喜重逢 甫脱凶樊 又入死域
- 第二十七回 神勇 刚烈 紧张 奇险
- 第二十八回 危机起伏中的奇男奇女
- 第二十九回 绝处逢生最怜弱女
- 第三十回 老蛮婆悲愤吐凶谋
- 第三十一回 好事近喜音来
- 第三十二回 珠联璧合 苦尽甘来
- 第三十三回 微语警芳心 地绝蛮荒 何来高士
- 第三十四回 繁花明远树 天开奇境 喜谒幽人
- 第三十五回 款佳宾 登盘荐春笋 联同气 连夜走森林
- 第三十六回 香光如海 壮士宵征
- 第三十七回 蜈蚣谷勇士长征 宝石崖老人虑患
- 第三十八回 烈火攻毒虫大泽深山偏多怪异 迷云横绝顶奇危极险又失同侪
- 第三十九回 笑语响空山崖石嶕峣人不见 异声嘈野地孤峰兀立象成围
- 第四十回 患难失同怀幸脱波臣联美眷 恩情深异类送来灵药饷奇婴
- 第四十一回 义收巨象 喜产奇婴
- 第四十二回 喜相逢巨人出山 通奇险群象开路
- 第四十三回 斩妖巫大郎立功 施巧计逆酋授首
- 第四十四回 大破平天寨 同返黑森林
FAQ
Is the Black Forest just a place name in the book, or does it play an important role?
The Black Forest is the key place where the two Fu daughters seek the extraordinary man; it is dark as night year-round and teeming with poisonous insects, and along the way they encounter perils such as a witch's sorcery and a forced-marriage duel. It is both a spatial backdrop and a stage that drives the plot: the two daughters must cross the perilous terrain to find the extraordinary man and discuss countermeasures, laying groundwork for the later joint assault on the stronghold by the heroes.
Why is Fu Nanzhou abducted by Pan Geng?
Pan Geng is the local bully of Muli Ga, colluding with Miao bandits and native officials in smuggling and abduction; to expand his power he forces Fu Nanzhou to submit. Fu Nanzhou, deeply respected by Han and Miao alike for his ancestral medicine, never yields, and is thus abducted and held under house arrest. His predicament becomes the direct motive for the two Fu daughters to venture deep into the Black Forest to seek the extraordinary man and for the heroes to join forces to storm the stronghold.
If I haven't read other Huanzhulouzhu works, will this book be hard to follow?
Generally not. The characters and events are relatively self-contained; the main thread is Fu Nanzhou's abduction, the two daughters' search for the extraordinary man, and the heroes storming Pingtian Stronghold to rescue the father. What takes adjusting to is Huanzhulouzhu-style continuous adventures and a large cast; when reading, pay attention to alignments and character relationships—there is no need to read other works first.
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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.
