Editing Chinese Brotherhood of Assassins

{{Era|Organizations|Assassins|Featured}}
{{Update|''[[Assassin's Creed: Dynasty]]'', ''[[Assassin's Creed: Blade of Shao Jun]]'', and ''[[Assassin's Creed: The Silk Road]]''}}
{{Quote|The Wall will protect the people. And so shall we.|Shao Jun, 1567|Assassin's Creed Chronicles: China|Vengeance}}
{{Faction infobox
|image = Insignia 2.png
|founder = 
|leader = [[Mentor]]
|headquarters = [[Qinghe Commandery|Qinghe]]<br>
[[Beijing]]
|locations = [[China]]
|predecessor  = [[Cao Mo]]<br>[[Jing Ke]]<br>[[Yu Rang]]<br>[[Zhuan Zhu]]<br>[[Nie Zheng]]<br>[[Wei Yu]]
|related = [[Assassins]]<br>
|religion =
|active = at least 770s BCE<ref name="Dynasty 34">''[[Assassin's Creed: Dynasty]]'' – [[The Hidden Ones (Part 2)]]</ref>–present
}}
The '''Chinese Brotherhood of Assassins''', also known at various points as the '''Beijing Brotherhood''',<ref name="The Essential Guide">''[[Assassin's Creed: Chronicles China]]'' – [[Database: Scroll 8 (China)|Scroll 8]]</ref> is the branch of the [[Assassins|Assassin Brotherhood]] in [[China]], one of the few to have existed for more than a thousand years. Like other divisions throughout the [[Earth|world]], it operated as an [[Assassins Guilds|Assassin Guild]] from the time of [[Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad]]'s reforms until that system was superseded in the 20th century by that of decentralized [[Assassin cell|cells]].

Throughout imperial history, the Chinese Assassins were responsible for countering the atrocities perpetrated by emperors aligned with the [[Templars]]. In light of this, they were behind the assassinations of notable rulers such as [[Qin Shi Huang]], [[An Lushan]], the [[Yongle Emperor]], and the [[Jiajing Emperor]]. Under the [[Song dynasty]], they partook in the defense of the nation from the [[Mongol Empire]], personally slaying the Great Khan [[Möngke Khan]] although they would ultimately fail to save it from conquest under [[Kublai Khan]].

The Brotherhood's long history, paralleling that of the nation it represents, is marked by major fluctuations in its fortunes as it [[Assassin-Templar War|battled]] their Templar counterpart, the [[Chinese Rite of the Templar Order|Chinese Rite]]. During the [[Ming dynasty]], they were the frequent target of purges enacted by the government in concert with the Templars. Most infamously, the [[Great Rites Controversy]] during the reign of the Jiajing Emperor exterminated the guild down to a lone Assassin: [[Shao Jun]]. Despite these calamities, the Chinese Brotherhood has endured, with Jun restoring the branch after eliminating each of the leading Templars responsible for the purge.

==History ==
===Warring states period===
In his work, the historian [[Sima Qian]] mentioned the existence of five individuals active during the {{Wiki|Warring states period}} who would posthumously be known as the "Five Great Assassins": [[Cao Mo]], [[Jing Ke]], [[Nie Zheng]], [[Yu Rang]] and [[Zhuan Zhu]].<ref name="ACD">''[[Assassin's Creed: Dynasty]]''</ref>

===Qin dynasty===
[[File:Wei Yu.png|thumb|200px|Wei Yu]]
In 221 BCE, Ying Zheng, supported by the [[Order of the Ancients]], unified China under his banner and became the first Emperor of China, proclaiming himself [[Qin Shi Huang|Shi Huangdi]] and inaugurating the [[Qin dynasty]].<ref name="Encyclopedia">''[[Assassin's Creed Encyclopedia]]''</ref> After learning of the existence of the Assassins, the terrified Emperor ordered their extermination and sent his armies after them, pushing them into oblivion.<ref name="ACD" />

Shi Huangdi's tyrannical reign lasted only a decade because in 210 BCE,<ref name="ACI">''[[Assassin's Creed: Initiates]]''</ref> a man named [[Wei Yu]] slew him with a [[spear]]. For this deed, which predated the founding of the Hidden Ones and the Assassin Brotherhood,<ref name="ACO">''[[Assassin's Creed: Origins]]''</ref> Wei Yu was later immortalized by the Assassins.<ref name="AC2">''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''</ref>

===Tang dynasty===
In 751, after he survived the [[Battle of Talas]] in Central Asia, thanks to the arrival of a [[Central Asian Hidden Ones|group]] of Hidden Ones, the Tang soldier [[Li E]] was recruited into the organization. After his formation, Li E went back to China where he fought injustice and the members of the [[Golden Turtles]], the Chinese branch of the Order of the Ancients.<ref name="ACD" />

===Song dynasty===
During the Song dynasty (960–1279), China had to contend with the onslaught of the [[Mongol Empire]]. Fearing the devastation that the Mongols would wrought, Assassins throughout [[Asia]] actively sought to halt their advances. [[Genghis Khan]], the founder of the Mongol Empire, was slain by the [[Mongolian Brotherhood of Assassins|Mongol Assassin]] [[Qulan Gal]] at [[Xingqing]], capital of the nearby {{wiki|Western Xia|Xia Empire}} in 1227, but this only forestalled China's fall to the Mongols.<ref name="TSC">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Secret Crusade]]''</ref>

The conflict dragged on for the next few decades with the Song's grasp on the country continuing to crumble before the might of the Mongol forces. In 1259, a [[Zhang Zhi's father|Chinese Assassin]] perished in the midst of saving {{wiki|Diaoyu Fortress}} from a Mongol assault, leaving his daughter, [[Zhang Zhi]], to discover his corpse in the aftermath. Despite his doubts about her motives, [[Kang]], the late Assassin's Mentor, acquiesced to adopting Zhi into the order and completing her training. His misgivings were proven true when Zhi defied his warnings to prioritize duty over revenge and personally infiltrated the Mongol camp to assassinate the Great Khan [[Möngke Khan]]. Though she was successful, she was crippled during her escape by the future Templar [[Bayan]], and Kang used her disability as an added pretext for expelling her from the order.<ref name="Tomb of the Khan">''[[Assassin's Creed: Last Descendants – Tomb of the Khan]]'' – {{Cite|5 June 2021. Chapter(s) needed}}</ref>

===Ming dynasty===
====Jingnan campaign====
[[File:ChineseAssassinsEscape.png|thumb|left|250px|Li Tong and an apprentice escaping the purge]]
By the early 15th century, the Chinese Assassins were led by the Mentor [[Fang Xiaoru]]. In 1402, the imperial throne was usurped by [[Yongle Emperor|Zhu Di]] with the help of the Templars. Under Zhu Di's reign as the Yongle Emperor, thousands of Assassins were rounded up and executed, including Fang Xiaoru. However, two Assassins, a young female named [[Li Tong]] and another apprentice, were able to escape the [[1402 Chinese Assassin purge|purge]] with [[Apples of Eden|an Apple]] of [[Eden]]. Li devoted herself to protecting the Apple and keeping it out of the Yongle Emperor's hands.<ref name="DYL">''[[Assassin's Creed: Revelations – Discover Your Legacy]]''</ref>

In 1424, while the Yongle Emperor was preoccupied with the suppression of a rebellion near the {{Wiki|Gobi Desert}}, Li Tong slipped into the Emperor's tent and assassinated him.<ref name="DYL" />

====Prince of Anhua rebellion====
[[File:ACCC Wang Yangming.png|thumb|200px|Wang Yangming]]
The Yongle Emperor would not be the last Ming emperor to align with Templar interests. Periodically, the Assassins and Templar continued to vie for influence in the imperial court from behind the scenes. In 1506 during the reign of the [[Zhengde Emperor]], the [[Master Assassin]] [[Wang Yangming]] was banished from the capital of [[Beijing]] by [[Liu Jin]], a powerful eunuch. Though Liu Jin was the leader of the [[Eight Tigers]], a group of corrupt eunuchs composed of Templars, the Templars at this time failed to deduce Yangming's true allegiances, believing him to be merely a Neo-Confucian philosopher.<ref name="ACCC" />

In 1510, the Assassins staged the [[Prince of Anhua rebellion]] named after {{wiki|Zhu Zhifan}}, the Prince of Anhua, but with Templar assistance, Liu Jin was perfectly poised to defeat it. Jin was soon afterwards implicated in treason by another Tiger [[Zhang Yong]] and summarily executed through ''[[lingchi]]'' by the Zhengde Emperor as part of a plot by Zhang Yong to seize leadership of their group. A decade of respite for the Assassins seemed to follow, as the Tigers decided to play their hands carefully and bide their time after Jin's execution.<ref name="ACCC" />

====Great Rites Contoversy====
In 1521, upon the death of the [[Zhengde Emperor]], the government was weakened by the ensuing succession dispute. The Templars saw this distraction as an opportunity to destroy the Assassins, but a former [[concubine]] of the late emperor, [[Shao Jun]], having discovered the [[Assassin-Templar War|shadow war]] on her own, managed to warn Wang Yangming of the surprise operation. Acting swiftly, Yangming led the Assassins in a preemptive strike on the Templars in the [[Forbidden City]], but in spite of the presence of his best agents, they were routed.<ref name="ACCC" />

[[File:AC Blade Of Shao Jun - Purged Chinese Brotherhood.png|thumb|250px|left|Assassins killed in the purge]]
Capitalizing on this critical victory, the Templars used the momentum to enact a city-wide purge, capturing and executing many Assassins, their associates, and any innocents with tangential ties to them. In the wake of this disaster, Wang Yangming ordered the Chinese Brotherhood, along with all their allies, to withdraw from Beijing entirely, regrouping at [[Maijishan Grottoes]]. Jun was thus spirited away with the Assassins for training. In the meantime, the Templars managed to install their own puppet, [[Jiajing Emperor|Zhu Houcong]], as the new Jiajing Emperor.<ref name="ACCC" />

Three years later, under the machinations of the Templars, the Jiajing Emperor triggered what became known as the [[Great Rites Controversy]], where he had his father declared emperor posthumously, defying expectations to maintain an unbroken line of succession. The Great Rites Controversy became a pretext for the Jiajing Emperor to purge dissidents and the medium through which the Templars could eradicate their mortal enemies. Across the nation, Assassin safehouses were raided by the Templars, with even the headquarters at Maijishan Grottoes falling to a Templar assault. Yangming, well-known to the Templars by then as the Assassin Mentor, retreated into hiding and handed leadership over to [[Zhu Jiuyuan]].<ref name="ACCC" />

With virtually every Assassin worthy of the name dead save Wang Yangming, Zhu Jiuyuan, and Shao Jun, the Brotherhood was all but exterminated and the Templars had total control over the country. Not even knowing if Yangming was still alive, Jiuyuan and Jun decided that their only recourse was to seek help from Assassins abroad, specifically the legendary [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]] of the [[Italian Brotherhood of Assassins|Italian Brotherhood]]. Dogged by Templars every step of their journey, Jiuyuan was finally slain by their agents in [[Venice]], but Shao Jun survived and successfully made contact with Ezio at his villa in [[Tuscany]].<ref name="ACCC" />

[[File:ACE-V 10.png|thumb|250px|Shao Jun and Ezio Auditore, before her departure]]
Though the elderly former Mentor was initially reluctant to teach Jun, as she represented everything he had sworn to set aside when he settled down, he eventually relented and completed her training. Before she left for her journey home, Ezio presented her with a [[Precursor box]] as a parting gift to be opened only in a times of dire need.<ref name="ACCC" /><ref name="Embers">''[[Assassin's Creed: Embers]]''</ref>

====Overthrowing the Eight Tigers====
{{Quote|A new tomorrow for China and its people. I will undo all that you have done. I will rebuild the Brotherhood and recruit those who wish to make our land a place of freedom, those ready to die to fight men like you. Your Templar world will not happen. The Assassins will rise again.|Shao Jun to a dying Zhang Yong, 1532|Assassin's Creed Chronicles: China}}
[[File:The Escape China (1).jpg|thumb|left|250px|Shao Jun captured by Gao Feng]]
Upon her return to China in 1526, Jun tracked down Wang Yangming through a network of old, abandoned Assassin safehouses. After sharing with him the events that transpired in her mission to [[Italy]], the two agreed that their predicament merited opening the box, only to find it empty. Determining that perhaps the Templars would understand its function, Yangming decided that their first plan would be to use it as a bait to lure the Templars out of hiding.<ref name="ACCC" />

Thus, Shao Jun's quest for vengeance began by having herself captured by the Tiger [[Gao Feng]] at Maijishan Grottoes—by then converted into a Templar dungeon—in the hopes that his interrogation would reveal what the Templars knew of the box. When this plan proved fruitless, Jun wasted no time in escaping from her cell and assassinating Feng, but by then, he had already secreted the box away to his allies. Erstwhile, Yangming had managed to eliminate another Tiger, [[Ma Yongcheng]].<ref name="ACCC" />

[[File:Hunted China (3).jpg|thumb|250px|Yangming's death at Zhang Yong's hands]]
Before the year was out, Yangming had located the Templar in possession of the box: [[Yu Dayong]], a Tiger that operated a [[slavery|slave trade]] in [[Macau]]. Accordingly, Jun infiltrated Dayong's fortress, slew him, and retrieved the box, but in retaliation his compatriot Qiu Ju set all of Macau ablaze. The Assassin escaped the inferno, and three years later in 1529, she and Yangming traveled to [[Nan'an]] in search of the Tigers' leader [[Zhang Yong]]. There, they hoped that in the process of assassinating Yong's lieutenant, [[Wei Bin]], they might also happen to wring Yong's location out of him. Unbeknownst to them, Yangming himself was being hunted by Yong at that very moment. Jun learned of this belatedly upon killing Bin at his stronghold, and she returned to her mentor too late to stop his death at Yong's hands. Though she survived the ensuing ambush, she was unable to stop Yong from snatching the box back from Yangming's corpse.<ref name="ACCC" />

The following year, Jun was lured to the [[Forbidden City]] by [[Empress Zhang]], her childhood friend who under Templar coercion had lied that she had information on Zhang Yong's whereabouts. Meeting with the Empress, Jun walked into a trap set by Yong and Ju. The former departed to allow his subordinate to deal with Jun personally, but a fire broke out when the lantern of a [[Soldier|guard]] was shot by a [[hand cannon]] in the fight that followed. In short order, the Forbidden City was engulfed in flames. Jun slew Ju in personal combat before fleeing the burning palace.<ref name="ACCC" />

[[File:Vengeance China (1).jpg|thumb|250px|left|thumb|Shao Jun's final confrontation with Zhang Yong]]
In 1532, Jun arrived at the [[Great Wall of China]] upon discovering Yong's conspiracy to allow the Mongols of [[Altan Khan]] into [[China]]. Well aware that Yong had fed the Mongolian scouts details of China's defenses, Jun assassinated all four of the scouts who had access to this intel before confronting Yong himself. Their engagement was interrupted by a sudden all-out assault by the Mongolians on the Great Wall, for upon discovering the deaths of the deaths of their scouts, they believed that Yong had betrayed their deal. In the midst of this onslaught, Yong fled from Jun, but he failed to lose the Assassin and was finally killed. Even so, because he had already sent the box away to Templars outside China, Jun could not immediately recover it.<ref name="ACCC" />

With the last of the Eight Tigers dead, Jun capitalized on her victory and revived the Chinese Brotherhood. By 1567, she still served as the guild's Mentor, and that year, she ordered the assassination of the Jiajing Emperor by poisoning him with a false elixir of life. The mission succeeded, with the agent who conducted it returning to Jun at the Great Wall to personally report the Emperor's death.<ref name="ACCC" />

[[File:Vengeance China (11).jpg|thumb|250px|A Chinese Assassin reporting to the Mentor Shao Jun]]
Even at this point late in her life, however, Jun still had not learned the function of Ezio's Precursor box, but her Brotherhood did succeed in recovering it. After her death, the box remained in their possession for about a century before eventually smuggling it to the [[West Indies Brotherhood of Assassins|West Indies Brotherhood]] via {{wiki|Manila galleon}}s.<ref name="War Letters">''[[Assassin's Creed: Rogue]]'' – [[War letters|War Letters]]</ref>

===Qing dynasty===
By the early 18th century, the Chinese Brotherhood was still strong, as [[Ah Tabai]], Mentor of the [[West Indies Brotherhood of Assassins|West Indies Brotherhood]], possessed contacts as far as China. <ref>''[[Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag]]''</ref>

===Republic era===
In 1925, the Assassins were behind the death of [[Sun Yat-sen]], then the Templar Grand Master of the Shanghai Rite.<ref name="Black Cross #002">''[[Assassin's Creed: Templars]]'' – ''[[Assassin's Creed Templars Volume 1: Black Cross|Black Cross]]'' #002</ref> China by then had fractured into {{wiki|Warlord Era|warlordism}}, and in the wake of the {{wiki|Chinese Civil War}}, the Chinese Brotherhood lost the nation to the Templars under the leadership of [[Mao Zedong]].<ref name="Rift 10">''[[Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood]]'' – [[Rifts#Cluster 10|Rifts: Cluster 10]]</ref>

By 2015, at least one [[Assassin cell]] operated in China. That year, they were aided by the [[Japanese Brotherhood of Assassins|Japanese Assassins]], including [[Kiyoshi Takakura]], who were sent by Japanese Mentor [[Saeko Mochizuki]], in their search for [[Álvaro Gramática]]'s secret laboratory in which he planned to [[Phoenix Project|replicate]] an Isu's body with the help of the [[Shroud of Eden 2|Shroud]].<ref name="ACS Assassin intel 4">''[[Assassin's Creed: Syndicate]]'' – [[Database: Assassin Intel 4]]</ref>

In 2016, the Chinese Assassin [[Yanmei]] was ordered by [[Assassin leader]] [[Gavin Banks]] to assist another Assassin, [[Griffin]], and the teenagers [[Natalya Aliyev]], [[David Collins]] and [[Javier Mondragón]] in finding the Tomb of Möngke Khan and retrieving a prong of the [[Trident of Eden]]. However, Yanmei was ultimately killed by the Templar [[Isaiah]] after he recovered the fear prong and used its power against everyone, killing her when she tried to attack him.<ref name="Tomb of the Khan" />

In February 2017, an Assassin cell led by [[Barindra Mitra]] assisted [[Charlotte de la Cruz]] in her efforts to gather information about the [[Templars]]' [[Phoenix Project]]. Infiltrating an office of [[Abstergo]] in a skyscraper in [[Hong Kong]], which had in fact been abandoned by the Templars, the Assassins were ambushed by an unidentified group. Barindra and her cell were all killed with only Charlotte and the tech expert, [[Guernica Moneo]], escaping.<ref>''[[Assassin's Creed: Uprising]]'' – ''[[Assassin's Creed: Uprising Volume 1|Volume 1]]''</ref>

==Techniques and equipment ==
True to their heritage, the Chinese Assassins blended Assassin techniques with traditional {{wiki|Chinese martial arts}}. As a result, their combat maneuvers were more acrobatic and employed more footwork.<ref name="ACCC" /><ref name="Embers" /> Though the [[Hidden Blade]], the iconic weapon of the Assassins, was standard for the Chinese Brotherhood, Shao Jun was displeased with it and created her own variant more suited to her style: the Hidden Footblade which extended from her foot rather than her wrist.<ref name="ACCC" /> This complemented her agile fighting style which had a special emphasis on kicks.<ref name="ACCC" /><ref name="Embers" />
[[File:ACE-V 9.png|thumb|250px|Shao Jun using her concealed blade]]
Aside from this, in 1526, Jun also invented the [[rope dart]]s which she utilized as a grappling hook and to extend the reach of her assassinations.<ref name="ACCC" /> Use of this weapon would later spread to other guilds such as the [[American Brotherhood of Assassins|Colonial Brotherhood]] in the 18th century.<ref name="AC3">''[[Assassin's Creed III]]''</ref> Other gadgets in their arsenal included [[firecracker]]s which similar to [[Bomb|smoke bombs]] served to momentarily stun enemies, [[noise dart]]s which emitted sounds that were useful for distracting enemies, [[throwing knives]],<ref name="ACCC" /> and bracers that launched needles.<ref name="Embers" />

==Attire==
Unlike the standard white and red color scheme of Assassin robes, the outfit of Shao Jun was black and red.<ref name="ACCC" /><ref name="Embers" /> Nevertheless, at least one of her agents donned white robes with red trims consistent with the traditional Assassin colors.<ref name="ACCC" /> On many occasions, Chinese Assassins wore ordinary Chinese clothing, making their affiliation hardly recognizable.<ref name="AC2" /><ref name="DYL" />

==Members==
'''Warring States period'''
*[[Cao Mo]] {{c|posthumously}}
*[[Jing Ke]] {{c|posthumously}}
*[[Yu Rang]] {{c|posthumously}}
*[[Zhuan Zhu]] {{c|posthumously}}
*[[Nie Zheng]] {{c|posthumously}}
'''Qin dynasty'''
*[[Wei Yu]] {{c|posthumously}}
'''Tang dynasty'''
*[[He Shi]]
*[[Li E]]
*[[Zhangsun Qi]]
'''Song dynasty'''
*[[Kang]] {{c|Mentor}}
*[[Zhang Zhi's father]]
*[[Zhang Zhi]]
'''Ming dynasty'''
*[[Fang Xiaoru]]
*[[Li Tong]]
*[[Liu Yan (Chinese Brotherhood)|Liu Yan]]
*[[Shao Jun]] {{c|Mentor}}
*[[Wang Yangming]] {{c|Mentor}}
*[[Zhu Jiuyuan]] {{c|Mentor}}
*[[Xiao Hu's father]]
*[[Xiao Hu]]
'''Republic era'''
*[[Barindra Mitra]] {{c|possibly}}
*[[Yanmei]]
{{-}}
===Allies and puppets===
'''Tang dynasty'''
*[[Yan Zhenqing]]

'''Ming dynasty'''
*[[Hong Liwei]]
*[[Empress Zhang]]
*[[Zhu Zhifan]]

'''Qing dynasty'''
*[[Ah Tabai]] {{C|[[West Indies Brotherhood of Assassins|West Indies Brotherhood]]}}

'''Republic era'''
*[[Charlotte de la Cruz]] {{c|[[American Brotherhood of Assassins|American Brotherhood]]}}
*[[Kiyoshi Takakura]] {{C|[[Japanese Brotherhood of Assassins|Japanese Brotherhood]]}}

==Appearances==
*''[[Assassin's Creed II]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Revelations – Discover Your Legacy]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Embers]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed III]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Assassin's Creed Chronicles: China]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Syndicate]]'' {{Mo}}
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Last Descendants – Tomb of the Khan]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: The Official Movie Novelization]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Rebellion]]'' {{Mdat}} {{Imo}}
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Blade of Shao Jun]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Dynasty]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: The Silk Road]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: The Imperial Jade Seal]]''

===Non-canonical appearances===
*''[[Assassin's Creed: The Ming Storm]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: The Desert Threat]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Turbulence in the Ming Dynasty]]''

==Behind the scenes==
In the non-canonical novel ''[[Assassin's Creed: The Ming Storm]]'', the Chinese Brotherhood is also referred to as the '''Central Plains Brotherhood'''.<ref name="ACMS">''[[Assassin's Creed: The Ming Storm]]''</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Assassins nav}}
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[[ru:Китайские Ассассины]]
[[zh:中国刺客兄弟会]]
[[Category:Assassin guilds]]