Xu Xian, courtesy name Hanwen (漢文), is a main character of the Legend of the White Snake, one of China's four great folk tales. In some versions of the legend he is a scholar, while in others he is a physician. In earlier works such as Feng Menglong's Stories to Caution the World, he is known as Xu Xuan.
A shadow puppet from the Qing dynasty depicting Xu Xian
Legend of the White Snake
The Legend of the White Snake is a Chinese legend centered around a romance between a man named Xu Xian and a female snake spirit named Bai Suzhen. It is counted as one of China's Four Great Folktales, the others being Lady Meng Jiang, Butterfly Lovers, and The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl.
Image from the Summer Palace, Beijing, China, depicting the legend
The three stone pagodas of West Lake.
An illustration from Stories to Caution the World (1624).
An illustration from Leifeng Pagoda (1806).