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The Crane Precious Sword Crouching Iron Pentalogy
The title was formed by combing the first characters of all five parts and was known as Crane - Iron Pentalogy for short. The main plot of the pentalogy is a story of four couple of lovers. Part I, Crane Frightens Kunlun, is about Jiang Xiao He, later known as Jiang Nan He (and "he" means crane), and Bao A Luan. In the movie, Jen said "Be you Li or Southern Crane, lower your head and ask for mercy." while fighting inside the restaurant. Jiang Nan He means Southern Crane in Chinese. The story of Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-Fat) and Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh) starts from Part II, Precious Sword, Gold Hairpin, continues throughout Part III, Sword Force, Pearl Shine and Part IV, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and ends in Part V, Iron Knight, Silver Vase. Story of Lo (Chang Chen) and Jen (Zhang Ziyi) starts from Part IV and ends in Part V. The last couple, Han Tie Fang ("tie" means iron) and Chun Xue Ping ("ping" means vase) can only be found in the last part. Among the four couples, only the last one had a happen ending, the other three ended up in tragedies.
Part I: Crane Startles Kunlun
Originally named The Tale of Dancing Crane and Singing Luan (Luan is a mythical bird like the phoenix) with twenty chapters. Story of the pentalogy started with the death of Jiang Zhi Sheng, who was killed by his master, Bao Kun Lun for breaking the rule of not having any affair with women. Jiang Zhi Sheng's young son, Jiang Xiao He run away from home to learn martial art and returned as a well-know master, called Jiang Nan He. With the help of Li Feng Jie, he continued to seek revenge on Bao Kun Lun but was still in love his childhood lover, granddaughter of Bao Kun Lun, Bao A Luan. Also being in love with Bao A Luan, Ji Guang Jie was used by Bao Kun Lun against Jiang Nan He. Trapped between two sides, Bao A Lun killed herself for protecting his grandfather. Followed his granddaughter's death, Bao Kun Lun took his own life. After sending Bao A Luan's body to her hometown, Jiang Nan He asked Ji Guang Jie to teach Li Mu Bai (the character played by Chow Yun-Fat), son of Li Feng Jie. He moved to Mt. Jiu Hua and became a hermit.
Part II: Precious Sword, Gold Hairpin
Originally named The Tale of Precious Sword and Gold Hairpin with thirty-four chapters. Li Mu Bai was in love with Yu Shu Lien (Yu Xiu Lian / Yui Hsui Lien, played by Michelle Yeoh), but he was unable to move one step further after knowing that his sworn brother, Meng Si Zhao, had an unfulfilled arranged marriage with Yu Shu Lien. After Meng Si Zhao lost his life for protecting Li Mu Bai, he had decided that Yu Shu Lien and him could only be brother and sister. His relationship with another woman, prostitute Xie Cui Xian also finished because him. After killed a local tyrant, Huang Ji Bei, Li Mu Bai was arrested and was sentenced to death. Despite his strong will of facing the justice, Li Mu Bai was still taken away by Jiang Nan He from the jail.
Part III: Sword Energy, Pearl Shine
Originally named The Tale of Sword Energy and Pearl Shine with twenty-two chapters. After starting his life as a fugitive, Li Mu Bai got a precious sword, The Green Destiny. Without telling Jiang Nan He, Li Mu Bai received a martial art book from a Buddhist monk Jing Xuan and started to practice. Lived in Mt. Jiu Hua, Li Mu Bai and Yu Shu Lien were still brother and sister because he had disobeyed Jiang Nan's order of marrying her. This is the weak link of the pentalogy. Li Mu Bai from this part is quite different from the rest of the pentalogy, whose justice and loyalty seem vanished. However, some subplots are related to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, like Lo (Luo Xiao Hu)'s brother Luo Yang Bao stealing imperial pearl from the Forbidden City.
Part IV: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Originally named The Tale of Crouching Tiger and Hidden Dragon with fourteen chapters. It is about the story of Lo (played by Chang Chen) and Jen (Played by Zhang Ziyi). The full name of Lo is Luo Xiao Hu (Luo is his family name and "Xiao Hu" is his first name. "Xiao" means young, little or small and "hu" means tiger) The full name of Jen is Yu Jiao Long ("Yu" is her family name and means jade. "Jiao Long" is her first name. "Jiao" has multiple meanings: 1. tender, lovely, charming; 2. fragile, frail, delicate; 3. squeamish; 4. pamper, spoil. "Long" means dragon).
Ironfisted Governor of Xinjiang (in the northwest part of China) Yu had been called back to Beijing to be in charge of guarding nine city gates of Beijing. His proposal of cleaning up the capital immediately created a storm among the corrupted officials and gangs. Inside Sir Te's home, in front of many masters, Master Di whowed the legendary Green Destiny Sword, which has been given by Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-Fat), to Governor Yu. Later that night, the Green Destiny disappeared and Master Di asked Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh) to investigate. Governor Yu's daughter Jen (Zhang Ziyi) had been ordered to marry an ugly scholar Lu Bi Pei from the influential Lu family to preserve her father and brother's reputation, but Jen, naive and spoiled, was unwilling to get married.
To divert herself, Jen let street performer Cai and his daughter, who had been shouting Jade Fox's name outside of Governor Yu's house for days, into her home to do some performance. Yu Shu Lien discovered that for many years Cai had chasing Jade Fox who killed his wife. One day, when Cai was about to finished off Jade Fox, a masked woman showed up and killed Cai. Even Yu Shu Lien was not able to defeat the mask woman because of her strange moves. The mask woman run away only after Li Mu Bai showed up. Li Mu Bai came for the lost sword and shocked discovered that the mask woman's moves shared the same origin with his, Wu Dang. However, Yu Shu Lien asked Li Mu Bai to leave.
Yu Shu Lien visited Jen, who she had met at Sir Tei's home, and advised her not to do anything stupid even though she was not happy about her marriage. What Yu Shu Lien did not know was that there was another person inside the room - Lo (Chang Chen). Four years ago in Xinjiang, bandit "Black Cloud" Lo attacked Governess Yu's convoy. Jen chased Lo for three days and ended up with falling in love with him. To change Lo's social status, Jen asked Lo to take the imperial exam (an open system of selecting government officials) in Beijing but Lo failed because of he was illiterate. Now Lo had asked Jen to run away with him. At that night, the Green Destiny mysteriously reappeared at Sir Te's house.
Next day, Jen's wedding ceremony was ruined by Lo and both Jen and the Green Destiny disappeared at that night. Right after, a lone warrior appeared in Giang Hu (the brotherhood of martial artists). The warrior was Jen who dressed in man's clothing. She often made killing without mercy, had become a public enemy and was chased by everybody. Years ago, Jiang Nan He drew The Illustrated Collection of Jiu Hua Fist and Sword (a martial art guidebook) for his fellow pupil Ya Xia (dumb warrior) based on the secret martial art of Taoist monk Jiu Hua. Ya Xia wanted to marry Jade Fox (Geng Liu Niang, played by Cheng Pei-Pei) and taught her some skills from the book. After Geng Liu Niang murdered Ya Xia, the book fell into the hand of Gao Lang Qiu. Later Gao Lang Qui pass the skills to Jen. Jen had to obey Jade Fox for her action of stealing the book.
When Jen's identity was revealed, Governor Yu was blamed for her crime. After forcing Governor Yu to sign a document of condemning his daughter, the corrupters and gangs had got control of Beijing City. Worrying about her family, Jen secretly returned to Beijing but was arrested. Yu Shu Lien broke into the jail and took Jen away. While staying with Yu Shu Lien, Jen started to understand the true meaning of warriorship and the relationship between freedom and responsibility. However, Yu Shu Lien refused to share her secret with Jen. Jen thought she was not a real friend and run away again. Jen tried to stop a group of robbers but was besieged by them. Li Mu Bai saved her and send her to her husband's and made her very angry.
After knowing what her father had suffered, Jen hated Li Mu Bai even further. Lo rescued Jen from Lu's house, but Governor still did not want to forgive her. Outside Beijing City, Jen and Lo encountered Li Mu Bai. Unwilling to fight, Li Mu Bai was wounded. Yu Shu Lien had no choice but to fight Jen. After the death of her mother and the end of her father's career, Jen faked her death by jumping of a cliff in order to have a new life. Even was in love with Lo, Jen still thought a bandit could not fit in her social status. For carrying out the promise she made to her mother, she run away again after only one night with Lo and vanished into the desert with a horse and a sword, the Green Destiny.
Part V: Iron Knight, Silver Vase
Originally named The Tale of Iron Knight and Silver Vase with nineteen chapters. Jen gave birth of Luo Xiao Hu's son. Right after, Fang secretly replaced her son with a baby girl, Chun Xue Ping ("ping" means vase). Later Fang was robbed and was rescued by armed escort Han Wen Pei and Fang's maid started to live with Han Wen Pei. Yu Jiao Long's son was took to Han Wen Pei's home by the maid and was named Han Tie Fang ("tie" means iron). After growing up, Han Tie Fang traveled thousands miles to look for his parents. When he finally met Jen and Lo in a desert, he didn't recognize them until they were both killed in front of him. The pentalogy ended when Iron (Han Tie Fang) and silver (Chun Xue Ping) jointed together. In the end, Yu Shu Lian died from disease and Li Mu Bai forever lost his chance to joint her. But the biggest tragedy is the tiger (Lo) perished in the icy mountain and the dragon (Jen) lost in the desert.
The books themselves are not yet available in English, but with the success of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and the pre-production of the prequel, Precious Sword, Golden Hairpin, it's just a matter of time. In fact, in the Fall of 2001,
Simon & Schuster purchased the English language publication rights to Crane-Iron, including Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
The books are readily available though in Chinese from various on-line sources and in local Chinatown bookstores and libraries. In the meantime, there are many other great wuxia novels, by arguably better novelists than Wang Dulu, worth reading. You can find many of them, in English and in Chinese, in
Wuxia Fiction.
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