Hua Hegen

Hua Hegen is a senior official of Dali who accompanies Duan Zhengchun on his investigation into Venerable Xuan Bei’s murder. At Little Mirror Lake, he joins the effort to protect Duan Zhengchun when Duan Yanqing arrives, taking part in a collective defense shaped by the enemy’s exceptional strength.

Identity and Background

Hua Hegen serves as Minister of Education and is one of the three Dukes accompanying Duan Zhengchun in the Central Plains, alongside Fan Hua and Ba Tianshi. The group is there under orders from Duan Zhengming to investigate Venerable Xuan Bei’s murder. Duan Zhengchun suspects that the evidence may not implicate the Murong family, and the lack of a senior Shaolin response prompts the party to seek the truth themselves.

The three Dukes and four Grand Bodyguards also protect Duan Zhengchun during the journey. While Duan Zhengchun visits Ruan Xingzhu at Little Mirror Lake, they disperse to keep watch around him. Their duty to the prince puts them in the path of Duan Yanqing, who has found the same place.

Defense at Little Mirror Lake

Duan Yanqing’s formidable martial arts have already left Gu Ducheng and Fu Sigui injured. After the party regroups around Duan Zhengchun, Fan Hua urges a rapid response: Hua Hegen and Zhu Danchen are to attack South Sea Divine Alligator together, while the others take on the remaining opponents. Fan Hua’s plan reflects the immediate priority of containing the threat and clearing Duan Zhengchun’s protectors’ way to face its most dangerous figure.

Hua Hegen and Zhu Danchen initially feel that two men attacking one opponent would compromise their dignity. They also judge that Hua Hegen’s martial skill is not inferior to South Sea Divine Alligator’s, making assistance seem unnecessary. But the scale of Duan Yanqing’s threat changes their calculation: no one can meet him one-on-one, and the group must rely on coordinated action to defend itself.

Hua Hegen takes up a steel shovel and attacks from one side while Zhu Danchen, wielding iron brushes, closes from the other. The paired assault is part of a wider division of labor: Ba Tianshi confronts Yun Zhonghe, while Fan Hua and Chu Wanli engage Ye Erniang. Hua Hegen’s role is therefore not a solitary challenge but one part of an organized effort to hold the attackers off and protect Duan Zhengchun.

Character and Narrative Role

Hua Hegen is presented through official loyalty and practical judgment rather than personal ambition or a detailed private history. His party’s first concern is Duan Zhengchun’s safety, and the guards’ deference to their lord underscores the political responsibility attached to the mission. At the same time, the group’s willingness to set aside the formal preference for single combat shows how the danger at Little Mirror Lake overrides martial convention.

The available account establishes Hua Hegen as a capable fighter and a dependable member of Duan Zhengchun’s protective party, but does not specify the outcome of his encounter with South Sea Divine Alligator. His significance in this episode lies in the collective defense: he acts within a coordinated line of resistance against Duan Yanqing’s party when individual strength is not enough.