A generalized Jianghu society is composed of people who are divorced from normal social, political and economic life. They may not have a unified organizational form and fixed legal norms, but they have all kinds of people, all kinds of groups and industries, relatively stable rules and ethics, and mysterious code words. Together, they form rivers and lakes, a mysterious underground society. Generally speaking, Jianghu people take the four seas as their home, wander around the world, have no fixed abode, and mainly engage in city docks and village temple fairs. In a narrow sense, there are four rivers and lakes, namely, wind, horse, swallow and sparrow, and eight gates, namely, golden gate (also known as towel gate, which refers to astrology, divination and geomantic omen). In fact, there are far more businesses in the Jianghu, such as charlatans, charlatans, charlatans, witches, thieves, robbers, chivalrous men, beggars, diners, prostitutes, circus performers, prostitutes, wandering monks, Taoist priests and so on. In modern times, the traditional China society was divided, the commodity economy developed abnormally, and a large number of people were forced to enter the rivers and lakes. New Jianghu businesses began to appear, such as drug trafficking, western-style gambling, foreign movies, foreign magic and so on. Some traditional Jianghu professions are also developing abnormally, such as prostitutes, beggars, bandits and secret gangs. With the bankruptcy of rural areas and the rise of cities, many land and water docks have appeared, and people from rivers and lakes have gathered in them, resulting in the abnormal prosperity of modern cities.
Jianghu is a hidden society suppressed by the mainstream society. As a special group in society, Jianghu people, especially the Jianghu organizations they set up, are easy to form considerable strength, which is closely related to social life and political changes. Tramps struggling to make a living in rivers and lakes can't abide by the norms of the mainstream society, and will inevitably be excluded and hit by the mainstream society. As far as Jianghu people are concerned, they are well-informed, have many skills, like to use guns and sticks, brave and ruthless, loyal to others, and form groups, which often become an important force for social change or turmoil. Although Jianghu people live on land and water docks, they can often be seen in traditional rural society. Many peasant uprisings in history, and many leaders and backbones have Jianghu backgrounds.