List of Sword Stained with Royal Blood characters

Main characters

• Yuan Chengzhi is Yuan Chonghuan's son and the protagonist of the novel. Originally tutored in martial arts by Mu Renqing, he later inherits the skills of Xia Xueyi by chance. One of the most powerful swordsmen of his age, he strives to uphold justice and defend the Han Chinese nation from internal and external threats. At the end of the novel, he leaves China for good and sails to a distant land with his companions.
• Xia Xueyi, nicknamed "Golden Serpent Gentleman", is a powerful swordsman with extraordinary skills. His charming good looks and chivalrous personality make him highly attractive to women. He becomes involved in two separate romantic relationships with He Hongyao and Wen Yi. He is only mentioned by name in the novel because he is already dead before the events of the novel take place.
• Xia Qingqing, also known as Wen Qingqing, is the daughter of Xia Xueyi and Wen Yi. She is first introduced as a member of the Wen family, a clan of brigands. After getting into conflict with the Wen elders, she leaves the Wen family and follows Yuan Chengzhi in pursuit of a new life.
• Ajiu is actually Princess Changping, the second and favourite daughter of the Chongzhen Emperor. She is introduced as a beautiful and elegant young lady who frequently associates herself with martial artists in the jianghu. She meets Yuan Chengzhi and they develop a romantic relationship, much to Xia Qingqing's jealousy and hostility. When Li Zicheng's rebels overrun the Forbidden City, her despaired father attacks her with a sword and cuts off her left arm in a desperate attempt to spare her from any humiliation if she were to be captured by the rebels. Fortunately, Yuan Chengzhi appears in time and saves her and she survives. At the end of the novel, she feels disillusioned with the world and decides to detach herself from worldly attachments, so she becomes a Buddhist nun and renames herself Jiunan.
• He Tieshou is the leader of the Five Poisons Cult. She has a hook for her right hand, as implied by her name Tieshou. She is recruited by Prince Hui to assist him in seizing the throne from the Chongzhen Emperor. During this time, she meets Yuan Chengzhi and his friends, and plays evil pranks on them to hinder their missions. She has a crush on Xia Qingqing, who is disguised as a young male scholar, and decides to betray her cult and break ties with Prince Hui. Yuan Chengzhi succeeds in reforming her, accepts her as an apprentice, and renames her He Tishou.

  Yuan Chengzhi's allies

• Jiao Wan'er is Jiao Gongli's daughter. She seeks vengeance on Min Zihua after mistakenly believing that he murdered her father. With Yuan Chengzhi's help, she discovers that the Taibai Sanying are actually the ones responsible and kills them in revenge. She marries Luo Liru.
• Luo Liru is one of Jiao Gongli's apprentices. Sun Zhongjun sliced off his right arm in a heated misunderstanding. Yuan Chengzhi helps him overcome his disability by teaching him a set of left-handed saber movements.
• Hong Shenghai is a member of the Bohai Sect. He has a serious misunderstanding with Gui Xinshu and his wife, who want to kill him. He meets Yuan Chengzhi and decides to follow him for protection. Yuan helps him resolve his conflict with the Gui couple.
• Cheng Qingzhu is the chief of the Green Bamboo Gang and the martial arts master of Ajiu.
• Sha Tianguang is the leader of a group of bandits who attempted to rob Yuan Chengzhi and his friends of their treasure. They are ambushed by Ming soldiers while scuffling for the treasure. Yuan befriends them and fights alongside them against the soldiers. Sha is so impressed with Yuan's heroism that he pledges allegiance to him.
• Hu Guinan, nicknamed "Divine Thief", is a martial artist highly skilled in the art of thieving.
• Yisheng is a monk nicknamed "Iron Arhat".
• Shui Jian is a military officer in charge of escorting some prisoners. He and his men are attacked and defeated by Yuan Chengzhi and his followers. After he is captured, he pledges allegiance to Yuan, who spares his life. He helps Yuan organise his followers to form a militia and train them in warfare.

  Rebels

• Li Zicheng, nicknamed "Dashing King", is the leader of the rebel forces that overthrew the corrupt Ming government. After his victory, he gradually loses popularity and he not only fails to deliver his promises to restore peace and stability, but also condones his followers' brutality towards the common people. The short-lived Shun dynasty he set up to replace the Ming dynasty is eventually conquered by the Manchus, who establish the Qing Empire.
• Li Yan is a trusted adviser of Li Zicheng and a general of the rebel army. He befriends Yuan Chengzhi. A righteous individual, Li Yan tries to stop the moral corruption of the rebels after their success in overthrowing the Ming Empire but fails. Li Zicheng believes slanderous rumours that Li Yan is plotting against him and forces Li Yan to commit suicide.
• The Red Maiden is Li Yan's wife who is famous for her bravery and selfless acts. She commits suicide with her husband.
• An Daniang is An Jianqing's wife. She takes care of Yuan Chengzhi for a brief period of time when he was still a child. She serves the rebel army as a spy and messenger.
• An Xiaohui is An Jianqing and An Daniang's daughter and a childhood friend of Yuan Chengzhi. Like her mother, she works as a spy for the rebel army. Yuan Chengzhi helps her recover the lost gold from the Wen family. She marries Cui Ximin.
• Shanzong is an organisation formed by Yuan Chonghuan's former subordinates. They take care of Yuan Chengzhi after his father's death and send him to the Mount Hua Sect. They initially insisted on writing a petition to the Chongzhen Emperor to seek redress for Yuan Chonghuan but decide to join Li Zicheng's rebel army after seeing that the Ming government is too corrupt and already on the brink of collapse. Its members include:
• * Ying Song
• * Luo Daqian
• * Zhu Anguo
• * Sun Zhongshou
• * Tian Jianxiu
• * Cui Qiushan

  Mount Hua Sect and associates

• Mu Renqing, nicknamed "Divine Sword, Immortal Ape", is the leader of the Mount Hua Sect and Yuan Chengzhi's master. His prowess in martial arts and swordplay is legendary.
• Huang Zhen, nicknamed "Copper Brush and Iron Abacus", is Mu Renqing's most senior apprentice.
• Huang Zhen's apprentices:
• * Feng Nandi
• * Cui Ximin
• Gui Xinshu, nicknamed "Invincible Divine Fists", is Mu Renqing's second apprentice.
• Gui Erniang is Gui Xinshu's wife. She is extremely protective of their son, a sickly infant. The couple roam the jianghu in search of a cure for their son.
• Gui Xinshu's apprentices:
• * Mei Jianhe
• * Liu Peisheng
• * Sun Zhongjun
• Taoist Musang is the leader of the Iron Sword Sect and a close friend of Mu Renqing. He also instructed Yuan Chengzhi in martial arts before. He is obsessed with weiqi and willing to spend an entire day playing with someone. He accepts Ajiu as his apprentice at the end of the novel.
• Yuzhenzi is Musang's junior. Tempted by wealth and fame, he decides to betray his sect and serve the Manchus. He aids the Manchus in sabotaging the Ming forces. Yuan Chengzhi runs into trouble with him on several different occasions. He is eventually slain by the combined efforts of Yuan, Ajiu, Sun Zhongjun and He Tishou.

  Manchu forces

• Nurhaci was the chief of the Manchu tribes. He led his forces to attack the declining Ming Empire. During the Battle of Ningyuan against a Ming army led by Yuan Chonghuan, he was severely injured and eventually died from his wounds.
• Huangtaiji is Nurhaci's son and successor, and the emperor of the Manchus. A shrewd military leader, he tricks the Chongzhen Emperor into believing that Yuan Chonghuan was a traitor, causing the emperor to order Yuan's execution. Yuan Chengzhi once attempted to assassinate him in Mukden but failed. He was later assassinated by his half-brother, Dorgon.
• Dorgon is a younger half-brother of Huangtaiji and a charismatic general of the Manchu army. He has an affair with Huangtaiji's concubine and commits fratricide/regicide when his brother becomes suspicious of him.

  Ming forces

• Yuan Chonghuan is Yuan Chengzhi's father. He was a military commander commissioned by the Ming government to defend the northern border from the Manchu invaders. He is wrongly accused of treason and put to death by the Chongzhen Emperor. He is only mentioned by name in the novel.
• The Chongzhen Emperor is the last ruler of the Ming dynasty. He mistakenly believed that Yuan Chonghuan was plotting to overthrow him, and ordered his execution. When the Forbidden City is overrun by Li Zicheng's rebels, he refuses to surrender or flee, and attempts to kill his family to prevent them from being taken captive. While trying to kill Ajiu, he slices off her left arm with a sword. With assistance from a loyal eunuch, he eventually commits suicide by hanging himself from a tree.
• An Jianqing is An Daniang's husband and An Xiaohui's father. Tempted by wealth and greed, he decides to serve the Ming government and becomes a Jinyiwei commander. His wife leaves him in anger and joins the rebel army. They have remained on opposing sides before eventually reconciling.
• Prince Hui is a noble who attempts to usurp the throne as Li Zicheng's rebel army closes in on the capital. He hires various martial artists in the jianghu to help him overthrow the Chongzhen Emperor.
• Wu Sangui is a Ming general in charge of guarding the crucial Shanhai Pass on the northeastern border. His concubine, Chen Yuanyuan, is seized by Li Zicheng when the rebels occupied the capital. In anger, Wu defects to the Manchu side and opens Shanhai Pass for the Manchus to enter former Ming territory and help him defeat Li Zicheng.
• Chen Yuanyuan is Wu Sangui's concubine and is regarded as the most beautiful woman in the Ming Empire at the time. Li Zicheng seizes her as a trophy after occupying Beijing, causing Wu Sangui to defect to the Manchus.
• The "Taibai Sanying" are three treacherous swordsmen who serve as spies for the Manchus. They murder Jiao Gongli and attempt to push the blame to Min Zihua. They are eventually slain by Jiao Wan'er after she discovers the truth with Yuan Chengzhi's help. The three are:
• * Shi Bingguang
• * Shi Bingwen
• * Li Gang

  Five Poisons Cult

• He Hongyao is He Tieshou's aunt and one of the cult's elders. She has a past romantic affair with Xia Xueyi and seeks vengeance on him after he betrays her love. She vents her anger on Xia Qingqing when she learns that the latter is Xia Xueyi's daughter. She is killed in a toxic explosion in the cave where Xia Xueyi was buried.
• Qi Yun'ao is an elder of the cult who specialises in using snake venom. He often disguises himself as a beggar. He is killed by He Hongyao during the cult's internal conflict.

  Wen family and associates

• The Five Wen Elders are the five patriarchs of the Wen family. They are martial arts experts and command a group of brigands. Previously notorious local bandits with a hideous history, they have a blood feud with Xia Xueyi because they murdered his family. Their battle formation, known as the Five Elements Formation, proves a challenge to Yuan Chengzhi. The five are:
• * Wen Fangda
• * Wen Fangyi
• * Wen Fangshan
• * Wen Fangshi
• * Wen Fangwu
• Wen Yi is Wen Fangshan's daughter and Xia Qingqing's mother. She falls in love with Xia Xueyi even though he has a history of bad blood with her family. Her father and uncles used her as bait to lure Xia Xueyi into a trap and cripple him, but she aided him in escaping. Her family treats her and her daughter coldly after Xia Xueyi's disappearance.

  Miscellaneous characters

• Min Zihua is a member of the Xiandu Sect. He was misled into believing that Jiao Gongli killed his brother so he rallies a group of martial artists to join him in confronting Jiao. Yuan Chengzhi helps to defuse the conflict and clear Jiao's name. As part of an earlier agreement, Min hands over his villa to Yuan and promises never to bother Jiao again.
• Jiao Gongli is the chief of the Golden Dragon Gang. He is murdered by the Taibai Sanying, who attempt to push the blame to his former rival, Min Zihua.
• Meng Bofei is a reputable elderly martial artist who was nominated to lead a group of martial artists gathered on Mount Tai. He loses the position to Yuan Chengzhi.
• Zhang Chaotang, Yang Pengju and Zhang Kang are three officials from the Bruneian Empire who visit China.
• Raymond, Peter and Rooklyn are three Westerners overseeing the sale of a battery of cannons to the Ming imperial army. They present Yuan Chengzhi with a map of the Far East after losing to him in a duel.
• Zhang Chunjiu was a martial artist who sought the whereabouts of Xia Xueyi. He was killed by Xia after finding the Golden Serpent Manual on Mount Hua.