Hsi Hsia's 1 Bun Tong: the Four Great Evils and...nobody else?!

[Ken Cheng]

In a discussion last year, I read that Hsi Hsia Kingdom's 1 Bun Tong task force was basically just the Four Great Evils (Deun Yin Hing, Yip 2 Leung, South Seas Divine Crocodile, and Wan Chung Hok)...and not much of anybody else.

Is that true? My impression has always been that there was a 1 Bun Tong before the Four Great Evils joined up, and that there was a 1 Bun Tong long after the Four Great Evils had left/gotten killed/disbanded/retired. Was 1 Bun Tong nothing more than the Four Great Evils working under a code name for Hsi Hsia? I thought there were all kinds of reasonably good martial artists on the 1 Bun Tong, mostly native Tanguts, trained by Lee Chou Sui.

[flamer]

I think 1Pin Tang had a force of its own, like an army. Lee Chiu Shui was the leader and 4 Evils might just be a pro part of it. Im also under the impression that native Xixians are trained etc.

[PJ]

Western Xia Yiping Tang (Hall of First Class Fighters) comprised of many, many martial artists from around the Middle Kingdom; this was stated several times. Taoist Priest 9 Wings from Zu Mountain was a member of this organization.

[Ken Cheng]

Western Xia Yiping Tang (Hall of First Class Fighters) comprised of many, many martial artists from around the Middle Kingdom; this was stated several times. Taoist Priest 9 Wings from Zu Mountain was a member of this organization.

Was said Taoist a Han Chinese? If so, wouldn't he be a traitor to the Northern Sung Dynasty by joining a Hsi Hsia military organization whose goal is to conquer rival nations for Hsi Hsia?

[PJ]

Was said Taoist a Han Chinese? If so, wouldn't he be a traitor to the Northern Sung Dynasty by joining a Hsi Hsia military organization whose goal is to conquer rival nations for Hsi Hsia?

I think technically, yes.
I don't think it was explained what kind of incentives were provided to the martial artists though.

[Ken Cheng]

I think technically, yes.
I don't think it was explained what kind of incentives were provided to the martial artists though.

Probably the usual: money, power, babes....

[CC]

Was said Taoist a Han Chinese? If so, wouldn't he be a traitor to the Northern Sung Dynasty by joining a Hsi Hsia military organization whose goal is to conquer rival nations for Hsi Hsia?

He had other reasons to join. His apprentice sister Gongsun Yi joined up thanks to Li Yan so he kinda followed.

[Ken Cheng]

Based on adaptations of DGSD and other wuxia-themed works, I was long under the impression that Hsi Hsia Kingdom's 1 Bun Tong Task Force, founded and led by Lee Chou Sui, included a number of martial arts experts who were also officers in the Hsi Hsia Kingdom's military forces. I imagined that the 1 Bun Tong had at least a few dozen members, and was akin to a modern organization such as the CIA or Navy SEALS, with specialists in various fields including weapons, disguises, espionage, poisons, etc.

Yet, I've been reading comments that the 1 Bun Tong was basically...Lee Chou Sui and the Four Great Evils. Seriously? Was that it? A Fab Gang of Five, four of whom were foreign transplants from Dali Kingdom?

[a_tumiwa]

it was said that the members are consist of Han and Hu (non-han in the northern and western region). half of the 15 soldiers that tried to kill Duan Yu and capture Wang Yuyan are members of Xixia's elite first class, at least one was Han (the last man standing before killed by DY was Han).
its just that the name of members were never mentioned

[Ian Liew]

it was said that the members are consist of Han and Hu (non-han in the northern and western region). half of the 15 soldiers that tried to kill Duan Yu and capture Wang Yuyan are members of Xixia's elite first class, at least one was Han (the last man standing before killed by DY was Han).
its just that the name of members were never mentioned

Didn't Murong Fu enlist undercover as General Li Yuanzhong or something? Or was he not part of the group?