Hongniang, or Scarlet, is a fictional character from Yingying's Biography, a Chinese story by Yuan Zhen (779–831), and Romance of the Western Chamber, a Chinese play by Wang Shifu (1250–1337?).

She is the maidservant of Cui Yingying.

[1]: 156  The character of Hongniang became increasingly important from Yuan Zhen's story to Wang Shifu's play and later versions, eventually becoming the protagonist in the one-act play Hongniang.

[2]: 79 In Wang Shifu's play, Hongniang plays a key role as a witty, cunning, and righteous character who facilitates the love affair between Cui Yingying and Scholar Zhang (Zhang Gong).

[2]: 48  Hongniang has entered modern Chinese vocabulary as a synonym for a (female) matchmaker.