Old Rong, Old Chai, Old Zha, Old Yue, and Old He: these five are known as the Five Arts. Gold, skin, color, hanging, appraisal, troupe, tune, and willow are known as the Eight Traditions. Together, the Five Arts and Eight Traditions make up the jianghu. This is a story about a real but little-known jianghu, several real but little-known trades, and a few real but little-known crafts. It tells of several real but little-known artisans and a number of real but little-known events. Luo the Magician of Wuzhou, Zhang the Trickster of Hunan, Liu the Quick-Handed of Jiangdong, the Fu family of the Southwest, the Mu school of the North, the Han family of North China, the Shanyi Hall of the capital... Slowly, the curtain rises on a vivid panorama of the real jianghu’s many colorful traditions.
