Yang Kang

Yang Kang is the fictional antagonist in the wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes by Jin Yong (Louis Cha). He also serves as a foil to Guo Jing, the protagonist.

Birth and heritage

Yang Kang's hometown is in Niu Family Village. His father, Yang Tiexin, was originally from Shandong but moved to Lin'an (present-day Hangzhou) after the Jurchen-led Jin Empire conquered the northern part of the Han Chinese-predominant Song Empire. Yang Tiexin met Bao Xiruo in the neighbouring town, Hongmei Village, and married her. Two years after their marriage, Yang Tiexin was apparently killed when soldiers raided the village. Bao Xiruo was heavily pregnant with Yang Kang then, and was rescued by Wanyan Honglie, the sixth prince of the Jin Empire. She gave birth to Yang Kang, who was raised as a Jurchen noble and adopted his foster father's family name, "Wanyan". He was initially known as "Wanyan Kang" before his real identity is revealed.

Yang's given name, "Kang", is the complementary of his sworn brother's "Jing". Together, their given names form "Jingkang" (靖康). Their fathers and Qiu Chuji named them as such to remind them of the Jingkang Incident and to be loyal to their native land, the Song Empire. Yang Kang is also a descendant of Yang Zaixing, a Song general who participated in the Jin–Song Wars.