Characters in Chinese folktales The common characters in folktales are that of a magistrate, king, patriot, wise man, foolish man, young scholar (Xu Xuan, Liang Shan Bo), soldier, maiden (Madam white snake, Zhu Ying Tai), good son (Mengjiao) and hardworking servant (Xiaoqing). Some of these stories involve Gods and deities (Nuwa, Pangu, Guanyin, Lao Shouxing and Monkey King) while others only involve mortals and commoners. In Chinese Opera, the different characters in Chinese folktales are brought alive by actors and actress performing various roles of sheng, dan, jing and chou.