Fei Pin Ying Qiang Character Page

Under construction! May contain spoilers if you haven’t read the novel yet. Updated 11/29/19.

Main Couple:

Qi Yunruo/ 齐云若: The fifteen-years-old third young master of the Count Ziyang estate. His birth mother was supposedly a prostitute from a brothel that was redeemed after he was conceived. She taught him how to read and write, and how to play the guqin. He lived with her outside the estate until she died. His legitimate mother (the countess) and father treat him like air, and his siblings avoid him as well. Because of this, he has a quiet personality and doesn’t ask for much. The story starts with him entering Prince Chun’s estate as part of his sister’s dowry. The first time he saw Li Chen, he couldn’t look away.

Li Chen (Prince Chun)/ 李琛 (淳王): Born from the empress, he is the second son of the emperor. Out of all the other princes, he’s the most likely to become the crown prince. His title is Prince Chun, which he received at age fifteen, along with his own estate. Currently, he is twenty years old. He’s married to Qi Yunruo’s elder legitimate sister and already has two side consorts and a few other concubines. He’s handsome in a heroic and righteous way, has a high nose, and has a serious gaze. He finds Qi Yunruo endearing and likes to give him gifts.

Qi Family/ Count Ziyang Estate

Count Ziyang/ 紫阳伯: Surnamed Qi, he is Qi Yunruo’s father. He ignores and neglects his son and only brought him to the estate because his birth mother died. He dotes on his legitimate daughter, Qi Niqun.

Countess Ziyang, maiden name Zhao/ 紫阳伯夫人赵氏: A woman who only cares about the children she gave birth to. When Qi Yunruo first stepped foot into the count estate, she threw a huge fuss, causing the count to abandon Qi Yunruo in a small corner of the household. She detests his birth mother for her humble birth, and forces Yunruo to marry into the prince estate as a dowry maid, even though it’s shameful and will lower his prospects in the future.

Qi Niqun/ 齐霓裙: The eldest legitimate daughter of the count estate. She is the apple of her parents’ eyes and born from Countess Ziyang. At sixteen years old, she marries into the second prince’s estate as the princess consort with her younger illegitimate brother, Qi Yunruo, accompanying her. She treats Yunruo like furniture.

Qi Yunshan/ 齐云杉: The eldest and also legitimate son of the count estate. He is the heir and born from Countess Ziyang.

Qi Yunying/ 齐云英: The second young master of the count estate. His mother died young and was originally Countess Ziyang’s maidservant.

Qi Danxia/ 齐丹霞: The second young miss of the count estate. She is betrothed to the eldest son of the Minister of Revenue after her elder sister Qi Niqun’s marriage was appointed by the emperor. Her mother is the daughter of an official in the Ministry of Revenue, Concubine Liu. Qi Danxia is a few months younger than Qi Yunruo and detests him.

Qi Ruxue / 齐如雪: The third young miss of the count estate, currently six years old. Her mother is Concubine Bai. When Qi Yunruo still lived in the count estate, she looked at him with cold eyes. She is a person who can wear an innocent face as she bullies others.

Servants:

Lulan/ 绿岚: Intelligent and loyal to Qi Yunruo and is currently a first-rank servant girl attending to him. Li Chen gave her to Qi Yunruo after Qi Yunruo received his own courtyard in the prince estate. She and two other servants with “Lu” in their names followed Li Chen from the imperial palace.

Liusu/ 流苏: Intelligent and loyal to Qi Niqun’s, she used to be a second-rank personal servant girl of Countess Ziyang. But the countess assigned her to monitor Qi Yunruo in the second prince’s estate. Eventually, she realizes her new master is in fact Qi Yunruo.

Yuzhi/于知:  Intelligent and loyal to Qi Yunruo. Li Chen gave this eunuch to Qi Yunruo after Qi Yunruo received his own courtyard in the prince estate.

Xiao Shan and Xiao Jiu: The two young maidservants assigned to Qi Yunruo after he moved into his suite in Winter Plum Courtyard. They’re quick and knowledgeable for their age.

Xiao Siqing: Qi Yunruo’s page assigned by the countess the day he left the count estate. Is about eight to nine years old at the start of the novel, and his main task is to grind ink and prepare brushes.

Prince Chun’s Estate:

Ji Huan / 季桓: He is the eldest illegitimate brother of Secondary Consort Ji, and has aspirations of passing the imperial examinations to become an official. Currently twenty-two years old, the last time he took the exam, his mother passed away. After that, he refrained from taking the exam again for one year. During that year, his legitimate mother and sister convinced him to study in Prince Chun (Li Chen)’s estate. Now he lives in one of the guest houses in the estate, “Beautiful Forest,” where he spends his time practicing calligraphy,  perusing many books, and studying a plethora of articles on current political issues and suggestions to the court. He is an elegant and refined sort of beauty, with a narrow yet gentle gaze. He takes a liking to Yunruo and thinks he’s sweet and childish.

Secondary Consort Ji/ Ji Ru/ 季茹: Surnamed Ji, she is one of the two secondary consorts (cefei) of Li Chen. She’s currently eighteen years old and has been married/controlled the prince estate for three years. She’s described as curvaceous with beautiful eyes, and gave birth to Li Chen’s first son. Currently, she’s trying to make things hard for Qi Niquin, unwilling to hand over the power of managing the estate. Her father is the Minister of War’s Right Assistant.

Secondary Consort Wei/ Wei Qiang / 韦蔷: Surnamed Wei, she is one of the two secondary consorts (cefei) of Li Chen. She married into the prince estate one year ago, and her father is the Imperial Academy’s Sacrificial Wine Specialist. She looks thin and frail, a delicate sort of beauty.

Tertiary Consort Li: Surnamed Li, she is one of the four tertiary consorts (shufei) of Li Chen. She does not seem as aggressive as the two secondary consorts, fooling even Qi Niqun’s nursemaid Song, but it’s foreshadowed that her heart is also full of tricks. She offered to let Qi Niqun raise her daughter.

Concubine Ying: A low-ranked concubine in the prince estate who tries to align herself with Qi Niqun.

Li Chen’s retainers/ estate guards:

Li Yue: Li Chen’s cousin and reading partner in his youth. His family has a lucrative business in Jiangnan, but he refuses to take on the family business. He has no filter.

Li Xiuqi: He used to be an official. He has no blood relation with Li Chen, despite the similar-sounding surname.

Cao Manjin: A Juren, someone who attained the second-highest degree in the imperial examinations. However, because he charged a fee for his calligraphy in storefront signs and the like, he garnered a bad name. He could not get the Chief Examiner to like him, and could not pass the next rank’s exam even after trying many times as a result.

Gentleman Ouyang: An eccentric individual.

Fang Ge/ Guard Fang: A guard of Prince Chun’s estate that followed him to the border region. He also lent money to Qi Yunruo to purchase Granny Kong and her daughter-in-law.

Imperial Family:

The Current Emperor: He treats all his sons the same, though he does seem like his second son (Li Chen) the most.

Empress Zhou: Favors her youngest son, the Fourth Imperial Prince, over Li Chen. And she wants her fourth son to be the crown prince.

Prince Jing: He is the first imperial prince and is twenty-four years old. His mother was born a servant so her status is low. She was only promoted to the rank of Imperial Concubine after he was bestowed the title of Prince Jing. His princess consort is surnamed She, and is from a renowned family in Jiangnan.

Prince Qing: He is the third imperial prince and marries a daughter of the Marquis of Beichang’s family, Miss Zhang, as his princess consort. His mother is a noble consort and is currently favored by the emperor. He makes his ambitions known, and has recently been allowed to attend morning court.

Fourth imperial prince: Name hasn’t been revealed yet. He is Li Chen’s full-blooded brother and the second son born from the empress. He will be fifteen this year and soon have his own palace.

Subjects:

Situ Xu: A great and experienced general. The emperor sent him to the northwest border to assist General Si De in driving away the Qiang people, but he is killed in battle.

Si De: A general that has been stationed at the northwest border for many years. He and Situ Xu clashed ever since the latter arrived, and they could never get along.

Zhao Weidou: The new leading general that the emperor has sent to the border. Li Chen will be traveling in his army. He used to be one of the candidates for the Minister of War, but lost the seat to Ji Hansong, Ji Huan and Consort Ji’s father. He’s also known as General Huwei.

Ji Hansong: The current Minister of War and father of Ji Huan and Consort Ji.