Hero of the Times

Hero of the Times

Poster
Also known as 'New Fong Sai-yuk'
Genre Wuxia drama
Written by Jun Yinglü
Directed by Hu Mingkai
Starring Vincent Zhao
Leanne Liu
Vincent Ng
Yvonne Lim
Ix Shen
May Phua
Theme music composer Chen Lei
Wen Jinhua
Opening theme Wuming Xiaozu (无名小卒) performed by Dick and Cowboy
Ending theme Haohao Aiguo (好好爱过) performed by Yvonne Lim
Country of origin Singapore
Taiwan
Original language(s) Mandarin
No. of episodes 30
Production
Producer(s) Yuan Zaixian
Location(s) Singapore
Taiwan
Cinematography Pan Wenhui
Chen Daoquan
Zhao Weixian
Tang Rongliang
Editor(s) Zhang Bifang
Running time 45 minutes per episode
Production company(s)
Release
Original network
Original release 1999 – 2000
External links
Website

Hero of the Times (Chinese: 新方世玉; pinyin: Xīn Fāng Shìyù) is a Singaporean-Taiwanese wuxia television series based on legends about Fong Sai-yuk (Mandarin: Fang Shiyu), a Chinese folk hero and martial artist who lived in the Qing dynasty. It was co-produced by the Television Corporation of Singapore (now MediaCorp) and Taiwan's China Television, directed by Hu Mingkai, and starred mainland Chinese actor Vincent Zhao as Fang Shiyu. It was first aired in Singapore on TCS Eighth Frequency (now MediaCorp Channel 8) from late 1999 to early 2000.

Plot

The series is set in China during the reign of the Yongzheng Emperor in the Manchu-led Qing dynasty. The emperor orders Nalan Degang, a Manchu bannerman, to organise a secret death squad to eliminate the Great Ming Society, an underground movement based in Yangzhou which seeks to overthrow the Qing dynasty and restore the fallen Ming dynasty. The death squad is named "Flying Guillotines" after the highly dreaded weapon used by its members.

Fang Shiyu is the son of Fang De, the governor of Yangzhou. He spends his time enjoying life with his best friend, Nalan Dekai, who is Nalan Degang's younger brother. Zhu Lingce, the Black Guardian of the Great Ming Society, is a descendant of the imperial family of the Ming dynasty. In the past, he had a romantic affair with Miao Cuihua, Fang Shiyu's mother, but chose to give up on Miao to pursue his quest to overthrow the Qing dynasty. Miao Cuihua later married Fang De and gave birth to Fang Shiyu, but she still has romantic feelings for Zhu Lingce. Fang De appears to be an official of the Qing government, but is actually the White Guardian of the Great Ming Society. He secretly helps the society in their anti-Qing activities.

Fang Shiyu and Nalan Dekai travel to Shaolin Monastery to learn martial arts and end up mastering the Yijin Jing. Their companion, Song Tiezhu, succumbs to the temptation of glory and chooses to join Nalan Degang and serve the Qing government. When Zhu Lingce is captured by Nalan Degang, Fang Shiyu and his friends rescue him and provide him with shelter, but Song Tiezhu betrays them and Zhu loses his life. Fang De is arrested and taken back to the capital after his true identity as the White Guardian of the Great Ming Society is exposed. Fang Shiyu manages to escape and brings Nalan Dekai, who was injured while helping him, to Shaolin Monastery for treatment. However, they are betrayed by Song Tiezhu again and Shaolin is burnt down by Qing forces. Fang Shiyu defeats Song Tiezhu in a fight and permanently disables him to prevent him from harming others again.

The Yongzheng Emperor employs a scheme to create a misunderstanding between Fang De and the Great Ming Society and trick the society into believing that Fang has betrayed them. Fang De has no choice but to commit suicide to prove his innocence. In the meantime, Fang Shiyu trains hard in martial arts with the aim of seeking justice and avenging his father. He breaks into the palace and tries to assassinate the Yongzheng Emperor, but ultimately gives up on his quest for vengeance when he realises the best option is to spare the emperor's life because there will be further chaos and bloodshed if the emperor is killed.

Cast

See also

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