The Deer and the Cauldron, also known as The Duke of Mount Deer, is a historical novel by Jin Yong. It is his last and longest novel, originally serialized in the Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao from 24 October 1969 to 23 September 1972..^[1]

The novel's title is explained in the first chapter when the poet Lü Liuliang discusses two concepts with his son. The cauldron is a reference to a story in the Zuo Zhuan in which King Zhuang of Chu enquired the weight of the Nine Tripod Cauldrons – revealing his secret desire to seize the Mandate of Heaven. The deer is a reference to a remark by Kuai Tong recorded in the Records of the Grand Historian: "the Qin emperor lost his deer, and all under heaven chased after it". The deer symbolises the common people of China, who are at the mercy of ruthless warlords vying to conquer the lands of the fallen Qin dynasty.

As Lü explains to his son, in Chinese history, the cauldron has been used both to cook hunted deer and as an instrument of torture for human beings. In the Chinese language, "asking about the cauldrons" and "chasing the deer" both signify the desire to become Emperor, while "not knowing who will kill the deer" indicates uncertainty about who will become Emperor. "It may be uncertain who will kill the deer, but the deer gets killed all right. There's no uncertainty about that."

In the afterword, Jin Yong wrote that his intention in writing the novel was to reflect societal and cultural realities instead of encouraging readers to imitate an unprincipled protagonist. In a 2006 interview, Jin Yong revealed that he considered changing the novel's ending to give Wei Xiaobao his just deserts, but he abandoned the idea after receiving pushback from readers.^[2]

The story centres on a witty, sly, illiterate and lazy protagonist, Wei Xiaobao, who was born in a brothel in Yangzhou in the mid-17th century during the early Qing dynasty. By chance, the teenage scamp helps an outlaw evade the authorities and follows him to Beijing, where Wei is kidnapped and taken to the imperial palace. To survive there, Wei impersonates an eunuch and strikes up an unlikely friendship with a young Kangxi Emperor.

One day, Wei Xiaobao encounters the Tiandihui ("Heaven and Earth Society"), a secret society aiming to overthrow the Qing dynasty and restore the Ming dynasty. He impresses Chen Jinnan, the Tiandihui's leader, who becomes his shifu. Besides, he also becomes one of the Tiandihui's lodge leaders and agrees to serve as their spy in the palace. Later, he is taken captive by the sinister Mystic Dragon Cult and brought to the island where they are based. Through glib talk and flattery, he wins the favour of Hong Antong, the cult leader, and his young wife, Su Quan, becoming one of the cult's five emissaries.

Wei Xiaobao makes a number of seemingly impossible achievements through sheer luck, cunning, and the use of unglamorous means such as cheating and deception. First, he assists the Kangxi Emperor in ousting the autocratic regent, Oboi, from power. Second, he discovers the whereabouts of the missing Shunzhi Emperor, who has been presumed dead, saves him from danger and reunites him with his son, the Kangxi Emperor. Third, he eliminates the Mystic Dragon Cult by stirring up internal conflict, which leads to the cult's self-destruction. Fourth, he weakens Wu Sangui's rebellion by bribing the rebels' allies to withdraw, allowing Qing imperial forces to crush the rebels easily. Finally, he leads a campaign against the Tsardom of Russia and helps the Qing Empire reach a border treaty with the Russians. Earlier on, he had met the Russian regent, Sophia Alekseyevna, and helped her consolidate control over Russia during an uprising. In the process of accomplishing these tasks, he also recommended talents to serve the Qing government, one of whom is Shi Lang, the admiral who led the successful naval campaign against the Kingdom of Tungning in Taiwan.

Throughout the story, Wei Xiaobao exhibits devout loyalty to both the Kangxi Emperor and the anti-Qing Tiandihui. He saves the lives of the emperor and the empress dowager on several occasions. On the other hand, he helps the anti-Qing elements and undermines the Qing forces' attempts to destroy the Tiandihui. Navigating power plays, Wei Xiaobao accumulates immense wealth and high titles from various parties, including the Manchu court's "Duke of Deer Cauldron" (or "Duke of Mount Deer", which is used as an alternative English title for the novel). On top of his achievements, he also encounters seven attractive women on separate occasions, eventually marrying all of them.

Wei Xiaobao's conflicting loyalties ultimately reach a disastrous conclusion. The Kangxi Emperor discovers his affiliation with the Tiandihui, forcing him to choose to either remain loyal to the Qing Empire or become an enemy of the state. Wei Xiaobao faces a dilemma: If he chooses to follow the emperor's orders, he will have to betray his friends in the Tiandihui and help the emperor destroy them; if he refuses, he faces the possibility of death and the extermination of his family. Although he ultimately chooses to go into exile, the emperor still regards him as a close friend and loyal subject so he pardons him and allows him to return to the palace.

Towards the end of the novel, the Kangxi Emperor tries to force Wei Xiaobao to help him eliminate the Tiandihui again. On the other hand, Wei Xiaobao faces an even bigger problem with the Tiandihui. As Chen Jinnan had died recently, the Tiandihui's members look up to Wei Xiaobao and want him to be their new leader.

Wei Xiaobao ponders the issue, realises that he will never be able to reconcile between the two opposing sides, and feels that his divided friendships and split loyalties are tearing him apart. He decides to leave and lead a reclusive life, and brings along his family and immense wealth with him. He is never seen again. It is said that when the Kangxi Emperor went on six inspection tours to the Jiangnan region throughout his reign, his true purpose was to search for Wei Xiaobao.

The Deer and the Cauldron, even among fans of Jin Yong's novels, has divided critical opinions mainly due to the character of Wei Xiaobao. Ni Kuang argued that The Deer and the Cauldron was "the best novel of all time, Chinese or foreign".^[3][4] Wong Kwok-pun of the Chinese University of Hong Kong felt that it was an inferior work compared to the "masterpieces" of the Condor Trilogy and expressed surprise that John Minford chose to translate an abridged version of it.^[5]

The Deer and the Cauldron has been translated in highly abridged form (28 chapters) into English by John Minford and David Hawkes.^[6] The translation was published by the Oxford University Press in three volumes from 1997 to 2002.

There are books which examine the office politics displayed by the main characters and their applications in real life.

• Qingjing Luding Ji (情境鹿鼎记), ISBN 7-80207-108-9
• Zongcai Wei Xiaobao (总裁韦小宝; Wei Xiaobao the CEO), ISBN 7-80673-728-6
• Poyi Wei Xiaobao (破译韦小宝; Interpreting Wei Xiaobao), ISBN 7-5048-4705-4
• Chuankao Wei Xiaobao (串烤韦小宝), ISBN 7-80661-929-1
• Renjing Wei Xiaobao De Hunshi Fabao (人精韦小宝的混世法宝) ISBN 7-80100-576-7