Manuals and booklets
The oldest printed book about the game is a collections of songs describing the game and its characters : 初刻花會新歌 (清道光七年-1827 福建刊本) (the title : New Songs about Hua-Hui seems to imply that it's not the first version)
It contains half a dozen songs composed a dozen verses citing the 36 names, as a way to memorize them, but these is no biographic detail about the characters.
From the second half of the 19th century, some booklets relating to the game were published :
- "game's manuals", describing the characters, their life, associated events etc..
the characters are individually described, giving their relationship with other characters.
These manuals can be found in Guangdong, Fujian, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Shandong then later in the North-East region (Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang)
- booklets containing a tale involving all the characters :
- 新造花會歌, published in the South of Fujian in the second half of the 19th century,
- 花會傳, published in the North of Fujian at the end of the 19th century,
- 陳攀桂, published at the very end of the 19th century.
- there is probably a Yue version of the story....
▶ Manuals
There is a lot of variability in the contents of the manual, some manuals have a dozen pages, some more than one hundred.
The contents of these manuals may include:
- the drawing of a human body covered by the names (銅人部位之圖)
- different names' groupings
- the association of the names to the different cycles of Chinese Astrology
- the dreams' dictionary (a list of dreams with the associated names)
- a song (used to memorize the names)
- the charms in order to win
- the mapping of the names to "elements" of various games (dominoes, playing cards, etc...)
- for each name (on an individual page) :
- the biography
- the events and dreams associated
- the animal of which he is the reincarnation
- the character with whom he exchanged his body on his death
- the list of "associated" character
- a drawing of the character
▶ Bodies
The 36 names are written on the bodies' parts.
This is one of the most specific characteristic of the game, and probably one of the reason of its success.
In China, all versions have this kind of diagram, and most versions outside China have one too.
In China, the Min version and its descendents, the man is always naked, in the Yue version and its descendents, the man is dressed.
▶ Groupings
Depending on the region, different groupings are used.
Gamblers use them to bid on several names at the same time.
In the Yue version, a grouping by social category is used: four scholars, five soldiers, seven merchants, four lucky-ones, four women, five beggars, four buddhist priests, two taoist priests, and a buddhist nun.
In the Min version, a grouping in 6 is used (the first 2 groups correspond to the Chan and Cheng families, the third to the Lin and Li families).
It will become in Zhejiang, a grouping in 9 or 10, the 4 groups of the top (see drawing) represent the 4 families (Chan, Lin, Cheng, Li).
▶ Dictionaries
There are two kinds of dictionaries.
Names classified by caracteristics
This is a list of the form "number characteristic names," for example: "4 thieves 坤山 茂林 三槐 逢春" or "3 emperors 太平 正順 福 孫".
The characteristics can come from the biography of the characters, but also from the chinese characters that make up their name (for example: 3 yuan - 元 元吉 元 桂 青 元)
Dream dictionary
This is a list of dreams or events, each one being associated with some names of the list.
Sometimes, a dictionary is divided in chapters - associated to themes -.
▶ Songs
Songs are used as a means of memorizing the 36 names.
They vary from one dialect to another.
These are very often "12 months' songs", they are composed of 12 verses, each verse being associated with a month of the year.
▶ Chinese Astrology
The names are linked to various elements of the Chinese astrology.
| 4 directions | 四象 | 歸身 白虎 出門 青龍 (variant of the 四灵二十八宿:东方青龙 南方朱雀 西方白虎 北方玄武) |
| 5 elements | 五行 | 金木水火土 |
| Bagwa | 八卦 | 乾坎艮震巽离坤兑 |
| Celestial Stems | 天干 | 甲乙丙丁戊己庚辛壬癸 |
| Earthly Branches | 地支 | 子丑寅卯辰已午未申酉戌亥 |
| Sexagenary Cycle | 天干地支 | 60 |
| Twelve constellations | 十二建星:黑黃道日 | 建满平收除危定執成開閉破 |
| | 天罡掌訣 | 天罡掌訣 孟仲季 |
| | 六種掌訣 | 六種掌訣 大安 留連 速喜 赤口 小吉 空亡 |
4 directions:歸身 白虎 出門 青龍
The names are divided in 4 groups. These groups are a variant of the distribution of the 28 celestial bodies (二十八宿) in 4 groups.
The gambler, instead of betting on names, could bet on these groups.
This groups exist only in the Min version and their descendants, probably because in South China another game allows gamblers to bet on 4 numbers : the Fantan.
Five Elements : 五行
The Five elements : metal (金), wood (木), water (水), fire (火) and earth (土), are associated with the names.
In the Min et Wu versions, each name is associated with one element.
The the north version, some names are associated with one or more elements, and others to none.
Bagua 八卦
Bagua i.e. the 8 trigrams are 乾, 坎,艮, 震, 巽, 离, 坤, et 兑.
This kind of diagram is found in Zhejiang and in Jiangxi.
Sometimes declined in 8 versions : one for each trigram.
Celestial Stems : 天干
The 10 celestial stems are : 甲, 乙, 丙, 丁, 戊, 己, 庚 ,辛, 壬, and 癸.
This kind of diagram is specific to the Shandong and North versions.
Earthly Branches : 地支
The 12 earthly branches are : 子, 丑, 寅, 卯, 辰, 已, 午, 未, 申, 酉, 戌, and 亥.
The association of these branches to the names can be found in every version of the game.
Sometimes a diagram in the form of a hand is used (十二地支相刑掌诀图), sometimes a circle is used (十二地支羅盤).
Sexagenary cycle : 干支 / 天干地支
The hexadecimal cycle is the combination of the celestial branches and the terrestrial branches.
It is associated with the Chinese calendar.
十二建星: 黑黃道日: 建满平收除危定執成開閉破
▶ Charms
Charms are present in the Wu versions, including Shanghai.
▶ Games' elements
In the Hakka version, the 36 names are associated with the 36 cards of the six tigers' game (六虎牌).
In the Wu version, they are associated with Chinese dominoes (骨牌).
▶ Individual pages
For each character, a page gives these elements :
a short biography, the associated dreams,
-
In the Yue version :
a drawing,
a biography which ends with the name of the character with whom his body was exchanged.
associated dreams.
associated characters (with the character himself in first position).
-
In the Min version :
a drawing of the character and his associated animal, the associated dominoe, the associated characters (解,同,牽), a number.
-
In the North-East version :
a drawing of the character , with, in a circle, a drawing of the associated character.
in the header : the name, number, historical character, the associated character, the associated element (animal or vegetal)
Here are representations of 太平.
▶ The tales
Of the Yue version, we only know bits and pieces, deduced from the biographies presented in the manuals.
The three others versions have a lot in common, they relate the conflicts between the Cheng family on one side, and the Chan et Li families on the other side :
- the heads of the Cheng and Chan families are king's counsellors, the head of the Li family is the high official or a marshal
- following the death of the son of the Cheng family, his father tries, by cunning and treachery, to eliminate the Chan and Li families, on this purpose, he assigns one of the son of the Chan family to fight a rebel neighbouring country
- after many twists and tunes, the rebels and the survivors of the Chan and Li families convince the king of the shenanigans of the Cheng family and get justice
The major difference between the first version and the other two is the cause of the death of the son of the Cheng family :
- in the first version, the son Cheng falls madly in love with a girl of the Li family, but all the attempts to arrange a marriage fail, and finally he dies of despair.
- in the second version, two of the Cheng sons abuse a girl, the magistrate, belonging to the Chan family, has the two sons killed (one is burned alive during a fire during the arrest, the other dies as a result of the punishment inflicted on him).
- in the third version, one of the sons Cheng abuses a girl, the magistrate, belonging to the Chan family, condemns him to a beating that kills him.
As one can see, the Cheng family is cunning and treacherous after the death of their son in the first version, while even the son is evil in the 2 others.
This is the reason why the names of the two most "evil" Cheng characters were dropped from the game in Zhejiang.