Gwok Jing - not "dumb" in terms of fighting instincts?

[Ken Cheng]

Gwok Jing is notoriously depicted as a "dumb" person, and in terms of being quick-witted, articulate, or able to think complex thoughts, that is not an inaccurate assessment of his character. Gwok Jing, however, was first and foremost a martial artist and a fighter, and in this aspect of his life, he was...surprisingly, not particularly "dumb" at all. Looking at the long span of his career in wulin, I can't think of a single occasion wherein Gwok Jing ever lost a fight because he made a stupid decision in combat. Whenever he lost fights in LOCH or ROCH, it was only because he was overpowered/overwhelmed by more powerful or more numerous (or both) enemies, not because he had stupidly made a mistake in his fighting judgment.

Compare that to supposedly "smarter" fighters such as the Golden Wheel Monk or Cheung Mo Gei...

[pannonian]

He was damn impressive in his first proper fight, against the demons of the Yellow River. He had only learned theory before this, and in this first practical test, he fought against different weapons, using different weapons, against single or multiple opponents, unwounded and wounded, yet he held out long enough until the Freaks arrived. The Freaks gave him a good practical grounding, and deserve more credit for Guo Jing's ability as a fighter than they're usually given.

[Candide]

He was also raised by & among the finest Mongolian warriors. He was dumb in other things but he had very fine fighting instinct.

[SkyWalker]

GJ is like Goku, slow and dumb in everyday life, but when it comes to fighting, he's a genius.

[Ken Cheng]

Gwok Jing seemed to make fewer mistakes in combat than even the other Greats did, possibly because unlike the other Greats, Gwok Jing never underestimated anyone. In a fight, he would take a scrub just as seriously as he would another Great.

[minutemanwayne]

Which is why he would get demolished by ZWJ within the first 200 stances. Guo Jing was a genuis at fighing. Even though he had the personality of rock

[kyss of the sword]

guo jing is like a rock. he's slow to learn things, but once he's learnt something, it's like it's carved in stone, he never forgets it. also because he's an instinctual being, he doesn't think deeply when fighting. he has the comprehensive knowledge in his head and he just uses it. it's like the zen mind/no mind ideal.

[Ren Wo Xing]

Which is why he would get demolished by ZWJ within the first 200 stances. Guo Jing was a genuis at fighing. Even though he had the personality of rock

I assume you mean he would demolish ZWJ, rather than 'get' demolished by ZWJ?

And yes, GJ has superb fighter's instincts.

[minutemanwayne]

I assume you mean he would demolish ZWJ, rather than 'get' demolished by ZWJ?

And yes, GJ has superb fighter's instincts.

Sorry I meant to say Xiao Feng would whoop ZWJ had too much to drink that night

[islandmaster108]

Hello, I am new here. I have been reading the post in this forum for a while and I want to give my comments for this topic. I hope I do it correctly.

About GJ fighting instinct:
1. His dumb nature is actually his strong point. because he is dumb, he follows all the advice he is given. since he got 9 yin theories in his hands he follow it to letter.

2. this guy is dicipline which means he master everything he learn properly given enough time.

3. arrogance does not cloud his judgement.

[Snafu3721]

Hello, I am new here. I have been reading the post in this forum for a while and I want to give my comments for this topic. I hope I do it correctly.

About GJ fighting instinct:
1. His dumb nature is actually his strong point. because he is dumb, he follows all the advice he is given. since he got 9 yin theories in his hands he follow it to letter.

2. this guy is dicipline which means he master everything he learn properly given enough time.

3. arrogance does not cloud his judgement.

Hahha I agree with the points above. But I wouldn't quite call GJ "dumb" in this case. It's more of naivette or simple-mindedness. It's actually very accurate to say it's a strong point in learning Martial Arts. It allows him to just focus on Kung Fu and nothing else. As they say "only if your cup is empty, can it be filled". GJ's cup is as empty as it gets!

[Ken Cheng]

Hahha I agree with the points above. But I wouldn't quite call GJ "dumb" in this case. It's more of naivette or simple-mindedness. It's actually very accurate to say it's a strong point in learning Martial Arts. It allows him to just focus on Kung Fu and nothing else. As they say "only if your cup is empty, can it be filled". GJ's cup is as empty as it gets!

Guys like the Golden Wheel Monk and Cheung Mo Gei often beat themselves because they constantly second-guessed themselves. This was not a problem for Gwok Jing.

It was also not a problem for Kiu Fung, but for different reasons.

[smurf120]

I disagree in saying that GJ is dumb in general, he is what I would say is wuxia hero "dumb". While it is true that he is a bit boring and slow to conversation, but he seemed to react very quickly and decisively in fights and defending what he thinks is right. He is only dumb when compared to the typical wuxia hero, I am sure he is still smarter than most of the general population.

Examples (been a while since I read the translation and don't think they showed these parts in the adaptations) - young GJ threw back the coins at Jin envoy when they scattered coins at the Mongolian children. It takes very strong innat character to come up with that without being told.

Rescued baby (Toulou's sister) from giant leopards - well he jumped out at any rate