Chen Zhongjie
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Chen Zhongjie, Male, Han, from Jiangmenshixinhui, Guangdong, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Cailifu Boxing (Ⅵ-36). The tradition is documented in Jiangmenshixinhui, Guangdong. Within the regional tradition and school record of Cailifu Boxing in Jiangmenshixinhui, Guangdong: The birthplace of Choy Li Fut is Jingmei Village, Yaxi, Xinhui, in Guangdong. In the sixteenth year of the Daoguang reign of the Qing dynasty (1836), Chen He opened a school in the village to teach disciples, and the art spread from there along the Xijiang and Pearl rivers to Foshan, Guangzhou, Zhaoqing, Jiangmen, Zhongshan, and other places; it was also carried by Cantonese emigrants to Southeast Asia, the Americas, and beyond. His disciple Zhang Yan (Zhang Hongsheng) founded the Hongsheng Hall in Foshan, and several other branches opened schools in Hong Kong, Macau, and overseas, forming the pattern of "Tai Chi in the north, Choy Li Fut in the south." In Xinhui itself, the Xinhui Choy Li Fut Founding Ancestors' Association serves as the local transmission organization, also keeping up the tradition of lion troupes and orthopedic (dieda) medicine. Choy Li Fut is one of the Lingnan (southern Chinese) martial arts schools, founded in the sixteenth year of the Daoguang reign of the Qing dynasty (1836) by Chen He of Jingmei Village, Yaxi, Xinhui, Guangdong. Chen He, the founder of Choy Li Fut, did not seek to make his own name famous; instead, he named the art after the surnames of his beloved teachers and artfully arranged its movements and techniques to commemorate them.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Chen Zhongjie is anchored in the documented technical standards of Cailifu Boxing in Jiangmenshixinhui, Guangdong. Within the documented technical tradition of Cailifu Boxing in Jiangmenshixinhui, Guangdong: The Choy Li Fut system is vast: it comprises 39 fist routines, 54 paired drill (duichai) sets, 64 weapon sets (including 14 staff sets), 18 stance practice methods (commonly known as the "eighteen wooden dummies"), 9 lion dance routines, and internal power practice routines — 193 sets in all. It includes 30 combat hand techniques, 28 palm methods, 29 bridging (qiao) methods, 35 hammer (fist) methods, 14 body methods, 16 leg methods, and 18 footwork methods. It takes the five sounds wik (domain), dik (of), yik (benefit), haak (frighten), and hok (crane) as its markers; there is a saying that if one hears the three sounds yik, dik, and wik, one may recognize the practitioner as belonging to the Choy Li Fut school. Overall, Choy Li Fut has a great variety of routines and rich content. Its hand techniques stress the coordination of attack and defense, its footwork is agile yet steady, and its power is issued hard yet softened. It pays attention to coordinating vocalizations with movement, requiring the voice to bolster might and support momentum. The movements are open and generous, and the routines are full of imposing momentum. "Remembering the source when drinking water is the foundation of Choy Li Fut; perseverance is the spirit of Choy Li Fut." Chen He strove to break down the barriers of surname-based schools, promoting martial style and virtue, and upheld the principle of "all rivers gathering into one sea, meeting friends through martial arts," so that Choy Li Fut would "come from the people and go to the people." As a result, in the more than 170 years since its founding, Choy Li Fut has spread its inheritors across dozens of countries and regions, and in the international dissemination of martial arts there is the saying "Tai Chi in the north, Choy Li Fut in the south." This art is one of the most widely spread Southern Fist styles in the history of Guangdong martial arts; through more than a century of trials it remains deeply rooted and ever-vigorous. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Chen Xiang and the name": Chen Xiang named the art after his three teachers rather than himself, arranging techniques as a memorial to them. "The scale of the system": A vast system of 193 sets, from thirty-nine boxing routines to eighteen dummy-post drills and nine lion-dance sets. "Dummy posts and lion routines": Eighteen post drills and nine lion sets complement the boxing and weapons work. "The five sound markers": Five vocal markers accompany the techniques, so that hearing the calls identifies the school.
Chen Xiang and the name
Chen Xiang named the art after his three teachers rather than himself, arranging techniques as a memorial to them.
The scale of the system
A vast system of 193 sets, from thirty-nine boxing routines to eighteen dummy-post drills and nine lion-dance sets.
Dummy posts and lion routines
Eighteen post drills and nine lion sets complement the boxing and weapons work.
The five sound markers
Five vocal markers accompany the techniques, so that hearing the calls identifies the school.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Chen Zhongjie was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Cailifu Boxing, with Jiangmenshixinhui, Guangdong as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Cailifu Boxing in Jiangmenshixinhui, Guangdong: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2008 (batch 2), with Jiangmenshixinhui, Guangdong as its declared area, and Xinhui Cailifoshizuquan Association as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.
04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier
Historical origin
Choy Li Fut is one of the Lingnan (southern Chinese) martial arts schools, founded in the sixteenth year of the Daoguang reign of the Qing dynasty (1836) by Chen He of Jingmei Village, Yaxi, Xinhui, Guangdong. Chen He, the founder of Choy Li Fut, did not seek to make his own name famous; instead, he named the art after the surnames of his beloved teachers and artfully arranged its movements and techniques to commemorate them.
05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage
National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.
| Bearer | Declared area | Roster code | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chen Zhongjie | Jiangmenshixinhui, Guangdong | — | This page |
| Fang Shengtang | Guangdong | — | Other regional school |
06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records and the associated project dossier, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。