Plot
The story begins several years after the death of Hu Yidao. His son Hu Fei, raised by Ping A'si, inherits the Hu family's skills and becomes a powerful martial artist. While travelling around the land in search of adventure, Hu Fei encounters Feng Tiannan, a ruthless villain, and he wants to kill Feng to deliver justice for Feng's victims. He also meets a young maiden named Yuan Ziyi, who shows signs of affection towards him. She stops Hu Fei from killing Feng Tiannan each time when he is close to killing the villain.
Based on Ping A'si's words, Hu Fei believes that the famous martial artist Miao Renfeng is responsible for his father's death. He refrains from killing Miao Renfeng after finding the latter, because Miao has been tricked by an enemy and is temporarily blinded by a deadly poison. He is so impressed with Miao's sense of chivalry that he starts wondering if Ping A'si was mistaken about Miao. He decides to help Miao Renfeng and journeys to find a cure for his eyes. He meets Cheng Lingsu, a young disciple of the deceased "King of Venoms". Hu Fei witnesses Cheng Lingsu defeating her three wicked seniors with her calm and wits. She agrees to help him cure Miao Renfeng's eyes.
When Miao Renfeng regains his sight he confesses that he had indeed killed Hu Yidao unintentionally several years ago. Hu Fei is filled with sorrow upon hearing the truth and leaves with Cheng Lingsu. Cheng Lingsu and Hu Fei become sworn siblings. Travelling together, the two then stumble upon an election for a new leader of the wulin (martial artists' community), hosted by the general Fuk'anggan. The election is part of Fuk'anggan's plot to instigate turmoil in the wulin, which is part of the government's plan to control the martial artists' community. Hu Fei and Cheng Lingsu disguise themselves and participate in the election. With help from Yuan Ziyi, the trio combined to expose Fuk'anggan's scheme and disrupt the meeting.
They are attacked by enemies and Hu Fei is poisoned while trying to shield Cheng Lingsu with his body. Cheng loses her life trying to save Hu, and reveals before her death that she is in love with him. Hu Fei is filled with anguish by the tragic loss of Cheng Lingsu. After Cheng's funeral, he meets Yuan Ziyi again, who tells him that she had already taken an oath to be a Buddhist nun in her childhood, and cannot be together with him even though she loves him. She places her palms together and recites a silent prayer for Hu Fei before leaving.
Read more about this topic: Other Tales Of The Flying Fox
Famous quotes containing the word plot:
“The plot! The plot! What kind of plot could a poet possibly provide that is not surpassed by the thinking, feeling reader? Form alone is divine.”
—Franz Grillparzer (1791–1872)
“We have defined a story as a narrative of events arranged in their time-sequence. A plot is also a narrative of events, the emphasis falling on causality. “The king died and then the queen died” is a story. “The king died, and then the queen died of grief” is a plot. The time sequence is preserved, but the sense of causality overshadows it.”
—E.M. (Edward Morgan)
“There saw I how the secret felon wrought,
And treason labouring in the traitor’s thought,
And midwife Time the ripened plot to murder brought.”
—Geoffrey Chaucer (1340?–1400)