江湖

rivers and lakes/all corners of the country/remote areas to which hermits retreat/section of society operating independently of mainstream society, out of reach of the law/the milieu in which wuxia tales play out (cf. 武侠[wǔ xiá])/(in late imperial times) world of traveling merchants, itinerant doctors, fortune tellers etc/demimonde/(in modern times) triads/secret gangster societies/underworld