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CIVILIZATION DOSSIER

Chai Gui柴桂

Song CourtFiction

Descendant of Chai Shizong, titled the Little King of Liang, sought to seize the title of Zhuangyuan.

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DIRECT FIGURES
4
RELATION RECORDS
5
SOURCE WORKS
1

RELATIONSHIP COMPASS

Chai Gui, and the people around them.

Open one chapter at a time. Each chapter gives the relationship first, then the source text behind it.

01
KINSHIP

Kinship

Blood, marriage and sworn bonds

1 figure · 1 record
02
ALLEGIANCE

Allegiance

Rulers, appointments and allegiance

2 figures · 3 records
03
CONFLICT

Conflict

Battles, captures and defeat

1 figure · 1 record
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FeatureThe History of Song dedicates an entire volume to Yue Fei, yet the most famous events are not included.History of Song made an exception by devoting an entire volume to Yue Fei's biography, detailing his military achievements, wrongful imprisonment, memorials to the throne, and literary works. However, the most familiar stories to later generations—Yue's mother tattooing characters on his back, his spearing the Young Prince of Liang, and the Eight Hammers causing a stir at Zhuxian Town—are not mentioned at all in this biography. Conversely, the most striking episodes like the twelve gold medals and the charge of 'perhaps there is' were first recorded in the official history and later copied by novels. This piece compares the two side by side, noting the source volume for each item.

History vs. fiction

Fictional descendants of the Later Zhou royal family, mainly used to set off Yue Fei's martial prowess

  • novel inventionDescendant of Chai Shizong's direct line, the Little Prince of Liang

    The novel "The Complete Story of Yue Fei" fictionalizes the character Chai Gui, an arrogant "Little Prince of Liang" who relies on his ancestors' merits. The original text states: "His surname is Chai, given name Gui, a direct descendant of Chai Shizong, enfeoffed as the Little Prince of Liang in Nanning Prefecture, Yunnan." (Chapter 9 of "The Complete Story of Yue Fei"). His arrogance in the martial arts examination and his eventual death at the hands of Yue Fei's spear, while highly satisfying in folk tales, have no corresponding figures or events in official history. Although the Song dynasty imperial family did have descendants of the Chai clan who were enfeoffed, there was absolutely no such person as Chai Gui.

Relationship network

5 figures · 12 links
Chai GuiChai GuiYue FeiYue FeiZhang JunZhang JunZhang BangchangZhang BangchangChai WangChai Wang
historyliteraturedual
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Sources: The Story of Yue Fei, 第九回; The Story of Yue Fei, 第六十六回; The Story of Yue Fei, 第十一回; The Story of Yue Fei, 第十二回

This page was extracted from classical texts with AI assistance and revised; errors remain possible. Spotted a mistake? Tell us →

Compiled with AI assistance from public-domain texts; for cultural reference. Mythological accounts vary — corrections welcome.