Is Xiao Feng or Guo Jing an Epic Hero?

[kdonggyu94]

Guo Jing is a true hero. Xiao Feng is a hero, but he killed himself out of shame and guilt.

[hoatran]

Ah Zi did not have to die. Xiao Feng was the love of her life and Xiao Feng knew it. The fact that he did not even bother to think about her when he killed himself proves how inconsiderate he is. Seriously I didn't even feel sad when Xiao Feng stabbed himself. I was just confused...... why did he do that??? And what good did his suicidal death do....... nothing, except to cause people to grieve over him..... and caused more to die.

Of course you are confused. You did not have to humiliate your king to give the other country peace. You did not have to listen your countrymen call you a traitor. And if it's wrong for Xiao Feng to kill himself, then why when A Zhi killed herself, it's Xiao Feng's fault? Actually it's A Zhi's fault. She was very inconsiderate for not consider your feeling when she went off the cliff to die with Xiao Feng.

[Jeffrey Ong]

Of all the protagonists in JY's stories I would reckon that XF is the best epitome of a hero.

XF had been the one who had prevented war between Liao and Song. He had refused to participate and had initiated the request to the Liao King. There is no one else in any of the novels that had stopped a war from happening. This, during a period where there was a strong and intense hatred between Liao and Song.
This behaviour was a replica, and perhaps an extension of the fight at Juxian Manor, where he had stopped retaliating even though he was doing reasonably well at that point of time.
Further, while GJ had a reasonably charmed life, XF did not have that luxury. Condemned by the people who he had lived with, wronged of many murders, and having neither mom or dad in his life still enabled him to make the right decisions.
I don't really see why Ah Zi and YTZ's deaths were attributable to XF. Ah Zi would probably have died many times over without XF in the first place, while YTZ naturally had an inferiority complex, a mad obsession with Ah Zi and an adherence to a traditional custom of avenging one's parents.
Finally what was XF exactly ashamed and guilty of to kill himself? Because of the war he had prevented, when he had already shown that his preference was for general human rights? Because of Ah Zi, whom he had treated reasonably well?
I think XF's death is one of closure. His life had come full circle, where he had held overwhelming power and been at the end of overwhelming accusations. And he had ended up on the one spot which had meant something to him, where his life was first saved and where he had an intimate conversation with Ah Zhu. In this sense I would feel that it fits very well with the theme of Tian Long Ba Bu and the inherent meaning that JY wanted for the story.

I don't think it's fair, logical, or convincing for someone to come in with a sweeping one-liner that XF had much to be guilty and shameful for when he died.