[4] The story is set in southern China during the Spring and Autumn period against the backdrop of the conflict between the states of Wu and Yue.

Fan Li, an adviser to King Goujian of Yue, discovers Aqing, a highly skilled swordswoman, and gets her to defeat the Wu swordsmen.

Fan Li engages Aqing to train the Yue soldiers in swordsmanship and gradually falls in love with her.

This is the origin of the Chinese phrase "Xi Shi clutching her bosom" (西子捧心; xīzǐ pěng xīn), which refers to a woman's beauty being enhanced when she is in a state of distress or agony.

In 1986, Hong Kong's ATV produced a 20-episode television series "The Supersword Lady" based on the novel, starring Moon Lee as Aqing.