By the Manchu bannerman
文康 in the mid-19th century; 40 chapters survive. The swordswoman
何玉凤, known as
十三妹 'Thirteenth Sister', rescues the young scholar
安骥 from bandits in a temple, matches him with another girl she saved, and in the end marries him herself. Its lively Beijing vernacular makes it a record of the speech of its time.
