Zhong Ling

Zhong Ling is a fictional character from the Jinyong ''wuxia'' novel Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils . She is the illegitimate sixteen-year old daughter of Duan Zhengchun and Gan Baobao . Her surname is Zhong because at first, it was assumed by everyone that she was the daughter of Zhong Wanchou , Gan Baobao's husband.



Zhong Ling is depicted as a naive, innocent and lovable young woman, and is probably the most innocent of Duan Zhenchun's various illegitimate daughters. However, she demonstrates quite a shrewd understanding of ''jianghu'', and is probably less naive than Duan Yu. She owns an animal called 闪电貂, or ''Lightning Diao'', which can move as fast as lighting and has a poisonous bite. This is attributed to the fact that Zhong Ling feeds her pet a large quantity of poisonous snakes.

Zhong Ling is the first of many female character Duan Yu encounters in his travels. She was promised a place as one of Duan Yu's concubine by Duan Zhengchun when he found Duan Yu carrying a scantily-clad Zhong Ling in his arms . Later, when Zhong Ling found out that Duan Yu was actually her supposed half-brother, she was quite sad but soon got over it as her "love" for Duan Yu was not very deep, unlike that of her half-sister, Mu Wanqing. Throughout the novel, Zhong Ling is quite confused about her own feelings towards Duan Yu.