The following is a list of characters from the novel The Deer and the Cauldron by Jin Yong. Some of these characters previously appeared in another novel Sword Stained with Royal Blood, which is also written by Jin Yong. Some of these characters are based on historical figures, such as the Kangxi Emperor, Oboi, Wu Sangui, Chen Yuanyuan, Princess Changping, Zheng Keshuang, Feng Xifan, Shi Lang, Galdan Boshugtu Khan, Sophia Alekseyevna, Desi Sangye Gyatso, and Wu Liuqi, as well as Zha Jizuo, a purported ancestor of Jin Yong (Zha Liangyong).

Wei Xiaobao and his family

The seven wives

In order of appearance in the novel:

The three children

Qing Empire

Tiandihui

The Tiandihui is a secret society aiming to overthrow the Manchu-led Qing Empire and restore Han Chinese in China. It has many branches (lodges) spread throughout China. Wei Xiaobao becomes the master of Greenwood Lodge by chance.

Kingdom of Tungning

The Kingdom of Tungning was founded by Zheng Chenggong, a loyalist of the fallen Ming Empire who wrestled control of Taiwan from the Dutch East India Company and planned to use Taiwan as a base of operations to restore the Ming Empire in mainland China.

Characters associated with the fallen Ming Empire

House of Prince Mu

The House of Prince Mu is a noble family based in Yunnan. Their ancestor is Mu Ying, who was made a prince by the Hongwu Emperor of the Ming Empire. After the Qing Empire replaced the Ming Empire, the House of Prince Mu and their servants continue to operate as an underground resistance movement against Wu Sangui and Qing forces stationed in Yunnan.

Mystic Dragon Cult

The Mystic Dragon Cult is a cult and martial arts school based on Mystic Dragon Island, a fictional island located off the coast of Northeast China. They are known for using poison-based martial arts. Wei Xiaobao becomes one of the cult's five emissaries by flattering Hong Antong. Later, he stirs up internal conflict within the cult and destroys it with the help of imperial forces.

Wu Sangui and associates

Tsardom of Russia

Shaolin School

Mount Wutai

Wangwu School

The Wangwu School is a martial arts school founded by Situ Bolei, a former subordinate of Wu Sangui when the latter was still guarding Shanhai Pass as a general of the Ming Empire. After Wu Sangui defected to the Qing Empire, Situ Bolei and the men who were still loyal to the Ming Empire decided to leave. They settled down on Mount Wangwu, where Situ Bolei started the Wangwu School to resist the Qing Empire. After Situ Bolei's death, the remaining Wangwu School members joined the Tiandihui.

Mongols

Tibetans

Mount Hua School

Scholars

Zhuang family

Zhuang Tinglong was a merchant from Huzhou who sponsored the publication of an unauthorised history of the Ming Empire. The book contained a number of inappropriate references to the Ming Empire, along with text considered taboo and defamatory to the Qing Empire. The Qing government, then led by the regent Oboi, heard about the book and ordered an investigation, leading to the arrests of many people associated with the book, including Zhuang Tinglong's family, the book's publishers, those who possessed copies of the book, and officials who failed to report the book. In the end, the thousands of people who were involved or implicated in the case were rounded up and punished accordingly – 72 of them were executed.

Others