A few notes and requests:

1) Can someone make this a pinned topic?

2) The pinyin for some of the names might be a little off cuz i don't speak fluent Mandarin. Please feel free to make corrections to the pinyin.

3) The translations of titles are based on my own judgement or other sources, such as Koei's game Bandit King. Feel free to change them if you guys see fit.

4) I might add the Chinese scripts for the names later, but that might take a lot of work. If somebody wanna do it, please go ahead.


The one hundred and eight heroes of Liang Shan Fortress


The thirty-six Heavenly Stars (senior officers):

Leaders --

Commander: Song Jiang, the Welcomed Rain.

Second in Command: Lu Jun Yi, the Jade Unicorn.

Military Advisors --

Wu Yong, the Star of Intelligence.

Gongsun Sheng, the Dragon in the Cloud.

Treasurers --

Chai Jun, the Little Whirlwind.

Li Ying, the Soaring Pang.

Five Tiger Generals of the Cavalry --

Guan Sheng, the Great Sword.

Lin Chong, the Leopard Head.

Qin Ming, the Thunder Fire.

Huyan Zhu, the Double Clubs.

Dong Ping, the Double Spears.

Eight Cavalry Generals --

Hua Rong, the Little Li Guang.

Xu Ning, the Golden Spearman.

Yang Zhi, the Blue Faced Beast.

Xuo Chao, the Expedient Vanguard.

Zhang Qing, the Featherless Arrow.

Zhu Tong, the Beautiful Bearded Man.

Shi Jin, the Nine Tattooed Dragons.

Mu Hong, the Unstoppable One.

Ten Infantry Generals --

Lu Shi Shin, the Tattooed Monk.

Wu Song, the Wandering Friar.

Liu Tang, the Red Haired Ghost.

Lu Wang, the Winged Tiger.

Li Kuai, the Black Whirlwind.

Yang Qing, the Wanderer.

Yang Xiong, the Sick Guan Xuo.

Shi Shuo, the Daring Third Brother.

Jia Jin, the Double Headed Snake.

Jia Bao, the Double Tailed Scorpion.

Six Navy Generals

Li Jin, the Dragon in the River.

Zhang Wang, the Hotheaded Boatman.

Zhang Shun, the White Fish in the Waves.

Yuan Shao Er, the Standing Tai Shui.

Yuan Shao Wu, the Short Lived Second Brother.

Yuan Shao Qi, the Lively Yen Luo.

Intelligence and Scout --

Dai Zong, the Tai Bao of Miraculous Walking.


The seventy-two Earthly Stars (junior officers):

Assistant Military Advisor --

Zhu Wu, the Military Advisor of Mysterious Knowledge.

Sixteen Junior Cavalry Generals --

Huang Xin, the Protector of Three Mountains.

Sun Li, the Sick Hui Qi.

Sun Jan, the Ugly Prince.

Guo Shi Wen, the Jian Wu Gan.

Han Tu, the Invincible General.

Pang Ji, the General With the Heavenly Eye.

Xian Ting Guae, the General of Holy Water.

Wei Ding Guo, the General of Miraculous Fire.

Ou Pang, the Golden Wings in the Cloud.

Deng Fei, the Fiery Eyed Lion.

Yan Shun, the Golden Haired Tiger.

Ma Lun, the Immortal With a Iron Flute.

Chen Da, the River Leaping Tiger.

Yang Chun, the White Spotted Snake.

Yang Lin, the Golden Leopard.

Zhao Tong, the Little Conqueror.

Seventeen Junior Infantry Generals --

Fan Shei, the Demon King of the Chaotic World.

Bao Yue, the Mourning Door God.

Xian Xiong, the Eight Armed La Jia.

Li Sui, the Flying Da Xin.

Shi Yong, the Sick Tiger.

Shi En, the Golden Eyed Tiger.

Mu Chun, the Little Obstacle.

Li Zhong, the Tiger Fighting General.

Jiang Tian Shuo, the White Faced Man.

Song Wan, the Arahat in the Cloud.

Du Chian, the One Who Can Touch the Sky.

Zhao Yuan, the Dragon Exiting the Forest.

Zhao Yen, the Single Horned Dragon.

Kung Wang, the Tattoo Necked Tiger.

Ding De Sun, the Tiger Struck by an Arrow.

Zhao Ting, the Faceless.

Shi Yong, the Stone General.

Two Junior Navy Generals --

Tong Wei, the Jiao Exiting the Cave.

Tong Mang, the Shi that Disturbs the River.

The Keepers of the Four Taverns --

East Mountain Side Tavern

Sun Xin, the Little Hui Qi.

Gu Da Shiao (Sun Xin's wife), the Mother Tigress

West Mountain Side Tavern

Zhang Qing, the Gardener

Sun Er Liang (Zhang Qing's wife), the Mother Er Chia.

South Mountain Side Tavern

Zhu Gui, the Dry Land Crocodile.

Du Xin, the Ghost Face.

North Mountain Side Tavern

Li La, the Judge.

Wang Ding Liu, the Lively Xian Po.

Assistant Intelligences and Scouts --

Le Wo, the Iron Singer.

Shi Chian, the Flee on a Drum.

Duan Jing Zu, the Golden Haired Hound.

Bai Sheng, the Mouse in the Daylight.

Cavalry Guards of the Central Division --

Lu Fang, the Little Duke Wen.

Guo Sheng, the One Comparable to Ren Guae.

Infantry Guards of the Central Division --

Kong Ming, the Hairy Headed Star.

Kong Liang, the Single Fire Star.

Punishers and Executioners --

Chai Fu, the Iron Armed.

Chai Xin, the Single Flower.

Commanders of the Scouts Regarding Intelligence Within the Three Divisions (Internal Millitary Affairs) --

Wang Ying, the Short Legged Tiger.

Hu San Liang (Wang Ying's wife), the One Yard Green Snake.

Officers of Various Departments --

Documents: Xiao Yang, the Scholar With Holy Hands.

Judge: Fei Xuan, the Iron Faced Judge.

Accountant: Jiang Jing, the Miraculous Accountant.

Shipmaking: Meng Kang, the Jade Sailpost.

Seal-making: Jin Da Jiang, the Jade Armed Craftsman.

Flags and Capes Production: Hou Jian, the Lively Armed Monkey.

Vetenarian: Huangpo Duan, the Purple Beared Elder.

Physician: An Dao Chuan, the Miraculous Physician.

Weaponry and Armory: Tang Long, the Golden Spotted Leopard.

Canon-making: Ling Jun, the Roaring Thunder.

House-building: Li Yun, the Blue Eyed Tiger.

Butchery: Cao Jing, the Sword Carrying Ghost.

Host for Feast: Song Qing, the Iron Fan.

Keeper of Wine and Sauce: Zhu Fu, the Smiling Tiger.

Fortress-building: Tu Zhong Wang, the Nine-Tailed Turtle.

Holder of the Commander Flag: Yu Bao Shi, the God in the Dangerous Path.

Edit: Not surprisingly, someone else has done a similar list. I like this site because it has a very brief description for each hero and chapters where each appears. In addition, it also has lists of tons of other characters besides the 108 heroes.

I will help as I have some handy references.

But some posts should be compiled and edited together after all these ...
It's gonna be a long process ...
I will provide the hanyüpinyin notations as we go along.

The one hundred and eight heroes of Liang Shan Fortress
The thirty-six Heavenly Stars (senior officers): 三十六天罡星

Leaders --

Commander:
Sòng Jiāng, the Welcomed Rain / Righteous Protector.
天魁星 呼保义 宋江
Note : 及时雨 is another nickname for him.
Fate : Poisoned to death.

Second in Command: Lú Jùn Yì, the Jade Unicorn/Kirin.
天罡星 玉麒麟 卢俊义/盧俊義
Fate : Crippled by Gao Qiu's poisoning, fell overboard from a boat and drowned.

Military Advisors --

Wú Yòng, the Star of Intelligence.
天机星 智多星 吴用/吳用

Gōngsūn Shèng, the Dragon in the Cloud.
天闲星 入云龍 公孙胜/公孫勝

Treasurers --

Chái Jìn, the Little Whirlwind.
天贵星 小旋风 柴进/柴進

Lĭ Yīng, the Sky Eagle.
天富星 扑天雕 李应/李應

Five Tiger Generals of the Cavalry --

Guān Shèng, the Great Sword.
天勇星 大刀 关胜/關勝

Lín Chōng, the Leopard Head.
天雄星 豹子头 林冲

Qín Míng, the Thunder Fire.
天猛星 霹雳火 秦明

Hūyán Zhuó, the Double Clubs.
天威星 双鞭 呼延灼

Dŏng Píng, the Double Spears.
天立星 双枪将 董平


Eight Cavalry Generals --

Huā Róng, the Little Lĭ Guăng.
天英星 小李广 花荣/花榮
Note : Lĭ Guăng was a famous general from Western Han Dynasty.

Xú Níng, the Golden Spearman.
天佑星 金枪手 徐宁

Yáng Zhì, the Blue Faced Beast.
天暗星 青面兽 杨志/楊志

Suŏ Chāo, the Expedient Vanguard.
天空星 急先锋 索超

Zhāng Qīng, the Featherless Arrow.
天捷星 没羽箭 张清

Zhū Tóng, the Beautiful Bearded Man.
天满星 美髯公 朱仝

Shĭ Jìn, the Nine Tattooed Dragons.
天微星 九纹龙 史进/史進

Mù Hóng, the Unstoppable One.
天究星 没遮拦 穆弘

Ten Infantry Generals --

Lŭ Zhì Shēn (Lŭ Dá), the Tattooed Monk.
天孤星 花和尚 鲁智深 (鲁达/鲁達)

Wŭ Sōng, the Wandering Friar.
天伤星 行者 武松

Liú Táng, the Red Haired Ghost.
天异星 赤发鬼 刘唐/劉唐

Léi Héng, the Winged Tiger.
天退星 插翅虎 雷横

Lĭ Kuí, the Black Whirlwind.
天杀星 黑旋风 李逵

Yān Qīng, the Wanderer.
天巧星 浪子 燕青

Yáng Xióng, the Sick Guān Suŏ.
天牢星 病关索 杨雄/楊雄
Note : Guān Suŏ was, in the novel RoTK, the 3rd son of Guān Yü who survived his father (chapter 87)

Shí Xiù, the Daring Third Brother.
天慧星 拚命三郎 石秀

Xiè Zhēn, the Double Headed Snake.
天暴星 两头蛇 解珍

Xiè Băo, the Double Tailed Scorpion.
天哭星 双尾蝎 解宝

Six Navy Generals

Lĭ Jùn, the Dragon in the River.
天寿星 混江龙 李俊

Zhāng Héng, the Hotheaded Boatman.
天竟星 船火儿 张横

Zhāng Shùn, the White Fish in the Waves.
天损星 浪里白条 张顺

Ruăn Xiăo Èr, the God of Longetivity.
天剑星 立地太岁 阮小二

Ruăn Xiăo Wŭ, the Short Lived Second Brother.
天罪星 短命二郎 阮小五

Ruăn Xiăo Qī, the Living Hades.
天败星 活阎罗 阮小七

Intelligence and Scout --

Dài Zōng, the Magical Messenger.
天速星 神行太保 戴宗

The seventy-two Earthly Stars (junior officers): 七十二地煞星

Assistant Military Advisor --

Zhū Wŭ, the Military Advisor of Mysterious Knowledge.
地魁星 神机军师 朱武

Sixteen Junior Cavalry Generals --

Huáng Xìn, the Protector of Three Mountains.
地煞星 镇三山 黄信

Sūn Lì, the Sick Yüchí.
地勇星 病尉迟 孙立
Note : 尉迟 was named after a famous general and pioneer of the Tang Dynasty.

Xuān Zàn, the Ugly Prince.
地杰星 丑郡马 宣赞

Hăo Sī Wén, the Jĭng Mù Àn (A legendary creature).
地雄星 井木犴 郝思文

Hán Tāo, the Hundred Victories General.
地威星 百胜将 韩滔

Péng Jĭ, the General With the Heavenly Eye.
地英星 天目将 彭玘

Shàn Tíng Guī, the General of Holy Water.
地奇星 圣水将 单廷珪

Wèi Dìng Guó, the General of Divine Fire.
地猛星 神火将 魏定国

Ōu Péng, the Golden Wings in the Cloud.
地阔星 摩云金翅 欧鹏

Dèng Fēi, the Fiery Eyed Lion.
地阖星 火眼狻猊 邓飞/鄧飛

Yān Shùn, the Hued Tiger.
地强星 锦毛虎 燕顺

Mă Lín, the Iron Flute Immortal.
地明星 铁笛仙 马麟

Chén Dá, the Brook Leaping Tiger.
地周星 跳涧虎 陈达

Yáng Chūn, the White Spotted Snake.
地隐星 白花蛇 杨春/楊春

Yáng Lín, the Golden Leopard.
地暗星 锦豹子 杨林/楊林

Zhōu Tōng, the Little Tyrant.
地空星 小霸王 周通

Seventeen Junior Infantry Generals --

Fán Ruì, the Demon King of the Chaotic World.
地然星 混世魔王 樊瑞

Bào Xù, the Mourning Door God.
地暴星 丧门神 鲍旭

Xiàng Chōng, the Eight Armed Nezha.
地飞星 八臂哪吒 项充

Lĭ Gŭn, the Great Flying Sage.
地走星 飞天大圣 李衮

Xuē Yŏng, the Sick Tiger.
地幽星 病大蟲 薛永

Shī Ēn, the Golden Eyed Tiger-Cub.
地伏星 金眼彪 施恩

Mù Chūn, the Little Obstacle.
地镇星 小遮拦 穆春

Lĭ Zhōng, the Tiger Fighting General.
地僻星 打虎将 李忠

Zhèng Tiān Shòu, the White Faced Man.
地异星 白面郎君 郑天寿

Sòng Wàn, the Arahat in the Cloud.
地魔星 云里金刚 宋万

Dù Qiān, the One Who Can Touch the Sky.
地妖星 摸着天 杜迁

Zōu Yuān, the Dragon Exiting the Forest.
地短星 出林龙 邹渊

Zōu Rùn, the Single Horned Dragon.
地角星 独角龙 邹润

Gōng Wàng, the Tattoo Necked Tiger.
地捷星 花项虎 龚旺

Dīng Dé Sūn, the Tiger Struck by an Arrow.
地速星 中箭虎 丁得孙

Jiāo Tĭng, the Faceless.
地恶星 没面目 焦挺

Shí Yŏng, the Stone General.
地丑星 石将军 石勇

Two Junior Navy Generals --

Tóng Wēi, the Wyrm Exiting the Cave.
地进星 出洞蛟 童威

Tóng Měng, the Serpent that Disturbs the River.
地退星 翻江蜃 童猛

The Keepers of the Four Taverns --

East Mountain Side Tavern

Sūn Xīn, the Little Yüchí.
地数星 小尉迟 孙新

Gù Dà Săo (Sūn Xīn's wife), the Mother Tigress
地阴星 母大蟲 顾大嫂

West Mountain Side Tavern

Zhāng Qīng, the Gardener
地刑星 菜园子 张青

Sūn Èr Niáng (Zhāng Qīng's wife), the Mother Yasha.
地壮星 母夜叉 孙二娘

South Mountain Side Tavern

Zhū Guì, the Dry Land Crocodile.
地囚星 旱地忽律 朱贵

Dù Xīng, the Ghost Face.
地全星 鬼脸儿 杜兴

North Mountain Side Tavern

Lĭ Lì, the Executioner Judge.
地奴星 催命判官 李立

Wáng Dìng Liù, the Lively Yan Po / Lightning.
地劣星 活闪婆 王定六 *or 活阎婆?

Assistant Intelligences and Scouts --

Yuè Hé, the Iron Singer.
地乐星 铁叫子 乐和

Shí Qiān, the Flee on a Drum.
地贼星 鼓上蚤 时迁

Duàn Jĭng Zhù, the Golden Haired Hound.
地狗星 金毛犬 段景住

Bái Shèng, the Mouse in the Daylight.
地耗星 白日鼠 白胜

Cavalry Guards of the Central Division --

Lü Fāng, the Little Marquis.
地佐星 小温侯 吕方

Guō Shèng, the One Comparable to Rén Guì.
地佑星 赛仁贵 郭盛
Note : Rén Guì referred to Xuē Rén Guì (薛仁贵), a famous Tang dynasty general who served Emperor TaiZong.

Infantry Guards of the Central Division --

Kŏng Míng, the Hairy Headed Star.
地猖星 毛头星 孔明

Kŏng Liàng, the Single Fire Star.
地狂星 独火星 孔亮

Punishers and Executioners --

Cài Fú, the Iron Armed.
地平星 铁臂膊 蔡福

Cài Qìng, the Single Flower.
地损星 一枝花 蔡庆

Commanders of the Scouts Regarding Intelligence Within the Three Divisions (Internal Millitary Affairs) --

Wáng Yīng, the Short Legged Tiger.
地微星 矮脚虎 王英

Hù Sān Niáng (Wáng Yīng's wife), the One Yard Green Snake.
地慧星 一丈青 扈三娘

Officers of Various Departments --

Documents: Xiāo Ràng, the Scholar With Sacred Hands.
地文星 圣手书生 萧让

Judge: Péi Xuān, the Iron Faced Judge.
地正星 铁面孔目 裴宣

Accountant: Jiăng Jìng, the Miraculous Accountant.
地会星 神算子 蒋敬

Shipmaking: Mèng Kāng, the Jade Sailpost.
地满星 玉幡竿 孟康

Seal-making: Jīn Dà Jiān, the Jade Armed Craftsman.
地巧星 玉臂匠 金大坚

Flags and Capes Production: Hóu Jiàn, the Lively Armed Ape.
地遂星 通臂猿 侯健

Vetenarian: Huángfŭ Duān, the Purple Beared Elder.
地兽星 紫髯伯 皇甫端

Physician: Ān Dào Quán, the Miraculous Physician.
地灵星 神医 安道全

Weaponry and Armory: Tāng Lóng, the Golden Spotted Leopard.
地孤星 金钱豹子 汤隆


Canon-making: Líng Zhèn, the Roaring Thunder.
地轴星 轰天雷 凌振

House-building: Lĭ Yún, the Blue Eyed Tiger.
地察星 青眼虎 李云

Butchery: Cáo Zhēng, the Sword Carrying Ghost.
地嵇星 操刀鬼 曹正

Host for Feast: Sòng Qīng, the Iron Fan.
地俊星 铁扇子 宋清

Keeper of Wine and Sauce: Zhū Fù, the Smiling Tiger.
地藏星 笑面虎 朱富

Fortress-building: Táo Zōng Wàng, the Nine-Tailed Turtle.
地理星 九尾龟 陶宗旺

Holder of the Commander Flag: Yù Băo Sì, the God in the Dangerous Path.
地健星 险道神 郁保四

Maybe i correct it based on ENglish version??? I don't know too

Also I add the star of each individual

The 36 Stars of Heaven (senior officers):
Leaders --
Commander: Song Jiang, the Welcomed Rain. ->The Chief Star of Heaven
Second in Command: Lu Jun Yi, the Jade Unicorn. ->The Fiery Star of Heaven

Military Advisors --
Wu Yong, the Star of Intelligence. -> The Wise Star of Heaven
Gongsun Sheng, the Dragon in the Cloud. ->The Idle Star of Heaven

Treasurers --
Chai Jin, the Little Whirlwind. -> The Lofty Star of Heaven
Li Ying, the Soaring Pang. ->The Wealthy Star of Heaven

Five Tiger Generals of the Cavalry --
Guan Sheng, the Great Sword. ->The Brave Star of Heaven
Lin Chong, the Leopard Head. ->The Fierce Star of Heaven
Qin Ming, the Thunder Fire. ->The Swift Star of Heaven
Huyan Zhuo, the Double Clubs. ->The Majestic Star of Heaven
Dong Ping, the Double Spears. -> The Standing Star of Heaven

Eight Cavalry Generals --
Hua Rong, the Little Li Guang. ->The Heroic Star of Heaven
Xu Ning, the Golden Spearman. ->The Guardian Star of Heaven
Yang Zhi, the Blue Faced Beast. -> The Dark Star of Heaven
Suo Chao, the Expedient Vanguard. ->The Empty Star of Heaven
Zhang Qing, the Featherless Arrow. ->The Swift Star of Heaven
Zhu Tong, the Beautiful Bearded Man. ->The Abundant Star of Heaven
Shi Jin, the Nine Tattooed Dragons. -> The Humble Star of Heaven
Mu Hong, the Unstoppable One. -> The Penetrating Star of Heaven

Ten Infantry Generals --
Lu Zhi Shen, the Tattooed Monk. -> The Lone Star of Heaven
Wu Song, the Wandering Friar. -> The Wounded Star of Heaven
Liu Tang, the Red Haired Ghost. -> The Strange Star of Heaven
Lei Heng, the Winged Tiger. -> The Retreating Star of Heaven
Li Kui, the Black Whirlwind. -> The Murderous Star of Heaven
Yan Qing, the Wanderer. -> The Clever Star of Heaven
Yang Xiong, the Sick Guan Xuo. -> The Gaol Star of Heaven
Shi Xiu, the Daring Third Brother. -> The Intelligent Star of Heaven
Xie Zhen, the Double Headed Snake. -> The Savage Star of Heaven
Xie Bao, the Double Tailed Scorpion. -> The Weeping Star of Heaven

Six Navy Generals
Li Jun, the Dragon in the River. -> The Long Lived Star of Heaven
Zhang Heng, the Hotheaded Boatman. -> The Level Star of Heaven
Zhang Shun, the White Fish in the Waves. -> The Broken Star of Heaven
Yuan Xiao Er, the Standing Tai Shui. -> The Dagger Star of Heaven
Yuan Xiao Wu, the Short Lived Second Brother. -> The Sinning Star of Heaven
Yuan Xiao Qi, the Lively Yen Luo. -> The Vanquished Star of Heaven

Intelligence and Scout --
Dai Zong, the Tai Bao of Miraculous Walking. ->The Speedy Star of Heaven

The Seventy two Stars of the Earth
Assistant Military Advisor --
Zhu Wu, the Military Advisor of Mysterious Knowledge. -> The Chief Star of the Earth

Sixteen Cavalry Junior Generals --
Huang Shin, the Protector of Three Mountains. -> The Savage Star of the Earth
Sun Li, the Sick Hui Qi. -> The Brave Star of the Earth
Xuan Zan, the Ugly Prince. -> The Noble Star of the Earth
Hao Shi Wen, the Jian Wu Gan. -> The Heroic Star of the Earth
Han Tao, the Invincible General. -> The Majestic Star of the Earth
Peng Chi, the General With the Heavenly Eye. -> The Courageous Star of the Earth
Shan Ting Gui, the General of Holy Water. -> The Strange Star of the Earth
Wei Ding Guo, the General of Miraculous Fire. -> The Ferocious Star of the Earth
Ou Peng, the Golden Wings in the Cloud. -> The Eminent Star of the Earth
Deng Fei, the Fiery Eyed Lion. -> The Folding Star of the Earth
Yan Shun, the Golden Haired Tiger. -> The Strong Star of the Earth
Ma Lin, the Immortal With a Iron Flute. -> The Clear Star of the Earth
Chen Da, the River Leaping Tiger. -> The Complete Star of the Earth
Yang Chun, the White Spotted Snake. -> The Hidden Star of the Earth
Yang Lin, the Golden Leopard. -> The Dark Star of the Earth
Zho Tong, the Little Conqueror. -> The Empty Star of the Earth

Seventeen Junior Infantry Generals --
Fan Rui, the Demon King of the Chaotic World. -> The Silent Star of the Earth
Bao Xu, the Mourning Door God. ->The Barbarous Star of the Earth
Xiang Chong, the Eight Armed Lo Chao. -> The Flying Star of the Earth
Li Kun, the Flying Da Xin. -> The Walking Star of the Earth
Xue Yong, the Sick Tiger. -> The Obscure Star of the Earth
Shi En, the Golden Eyed Tiger. -> The Hiding Star of the Earth
Mu Chun, the Little Obstacle. -> The Suppressing Star of the Earth
Li Zhong, the Tiger Fighting General. -> The Lonely Star of the Earth
Zheng Tian Shou, the White Faced Man. ->The Peculiar Star of the Earth
Song Wan, the Arahat in the Cloud. -> The Devil Star of the Earth
Du Qian, the One Who Can Touch the Sky. -> The Magic Star of the Earth
Zhou Yuan, the Dragon Exiting the Forest. -> The Short Star of the Earth
Zhou Run, the Single Horned Dragon. ->The Corner Star of the Earth
Kung Wang, the Tattoo Necked Tiger. -> The Quick Star of the Earth
Ding De Sun, the Tiger Struck by an Arrow. -> The Hasty Star of the Earth
Jiao Ting, the Faceless. -> The Fierce Star of the Earth
Shi Yong, the Stone General. -> The Ugly Star of the Earth

Two Junior Navy Generals --
Tong Wei, the Jiao Exiting the Cave. -> The Forward Star of the Earth
Tong Meng, the Shi that Disturbs the River. -> The Retreating Star of the Earth

The Keepers of the Four Taverns –
East Mountain Side Tavern
Sun Xin, the Little Wei Chi. -> The Mathematic Star of the Earth
Gu Da Sao (Sun Xin's wife), the Mother Tigress -> The Shadowy Star of the Earth
West Mountain Side Tavern
Zhang Qing, the Gardener -> The Avenging Star of the Earth
Sun Er Niang (Zhang Qing's wife), the Mother Er Chia. -> The Strong Star of the Earth

South Mountain Side Tavern
Zhu Gui, the Dry Land Crocodile. ->The Prisoner Star of the Earth
Du Xing, the Ghost Face. -> The Finished Star of the Earth

North Mountain Side Tavern
Li Li, the Judge. -> The Serving Star of the Earth
Wang Ding Liu, the Lively Xian Po.-> The Inferior Star of the Earth

Assistant Intelligences and Scouts --
Yue He, the Iron Singer. -> The Musical Star of the Earth
Shi Qian, the Flee on a Drum. -> The Thieving Star of the Earth
Duan Jing Zhu, the Golden Haired Hound. -> The Dog Star of the Earth
Bai Sheng, the Mouse in the Daylight. -> The Rat Star of the Earth

Cavalry Guards of the Central Division --
Lu Fang, the Little Duke Wen. -> The Aiding Star of the Earth
Guo Sheng, the One Comparable to Ren Gui. -> The Helpful Star of the Earth

Infantry Guards of the Central Division --
Kong Ming, the Hairy Headed Star. -> The Wild Star of the Earth
Kong Liang, the Single Fire Star. -> The Ambitious Star of the Earth

Punishers and Executioners --
Cai Fu, the Iron Armed. -> The Smooth Star of the Earth
Cai Qing, the Single Flower. -> The Wounded Star of the Earth

Commanders of the Scouts Regarding Intelligence Within the Three Divisions (Internal Millitary Affairs) --
Wang Ying, the Short Legged Tiger. -> The Least Star of the Earth
Hu San Niang (Wang Ying's wife), the One Yard Green Snake. -> The Intelligent Star of the Earth

Officers of Various Departments –
Documents: Xiao Rang, the Scholar With Holy Hands. -> The Learned Star of the Earth
Judge: Pei Xuan, the Iron Faced Judge. -> The Guileless Star of the Earth
Accountant: Jiang Jing, the Miraculous Accountant. -> The Gathering star of the Earth
Shipmaking: Meng Kang, the Jade Sailpost. -> The Full Star of the Earth
Seal-making: Jin Da Jian, the Jade Armed Craftsman. -> The Cunning Star of the Earth
Flags and Capes Production: Hou Jian, the Lively Armed Monkey.->The Fulfilled Star of the Earth
Vetenarian: Huang Pu Duan, the Purple Beared Elder. -> The Beast Star of the Earth
Physician: An Dao Quan, the Miraculous Physician. -> The Clever Star of the Earth
Weaponry and Armory: Tang Long, the Golden Spotted Leopard. -> The Orphan Star of the Earth
Canon-making: Ling Zhen, the Roaring Thunder. -> The Axis Star of the Earth
House-building: Li Yun, the Blue Eyed Tiger. -> The Searching Star of the Earth
Butchery: Cao Zheng, the Sword Carrying Ghost. -> The Haltered Star of the Earth
Host for Feast: Song Qing, the Iron Fan. -> The Elegant Star of the Earth
Keeper of Wine and Sauce: Zhu Fu, the Smiling Tiger. -> The Hoarding star of the Earth
Fortress-building: Tao Zong Wang, the Nine-Tailed Turtle. -> The Just Star of the Earth
Holder of the Commander Flag: Yu Bao Si, the God in the Dangerous Path. -> The Mighty Star of the Earth

I spent a long time writing a brief chronology for the novel and the short biographies for four of the heroes, but for some reason my post disappeared. I'll work on it again later if they can't find out what happened to the stuff I wrote.

Basically what we need for each hero is:

1) Name (Chinese and pinyin)
2) Title (Chinese and English)
3) Star Name (Chinese and English)
4) Job Descriptions
5) Short Biographies (including Fate)

I'll try to focus on 5). We need to put together a list that integrates all of the above for each hero.

wahhh mengtzu you are correct some post disappear suddenly, i don't know why??? cheer up you can do it, i know u will

Why don't we make discussion about this. We put all of the story in some kind of container, after it is done, we can finally release it in the forum.... That's what i told in my previous post, which is disappear some where, yikessss

He3x.... For the star of all 108 Liang Shan Bandit, you can look it, in my previous posts, u can copy them, and paste them

Update : Edited post #2 with the hanyupinyin and corrected some names.
Just discovered a problem with Wang Ding Liu, please see the post.

I think should be 闪.

Does 闪婆 mean "lightning?"

That's from wikipedia's entry.
IIRC, KOEI translated it as "The Lively One".

So should we translate it as "The Lightening" or "The Lively Lightening"?

I did a Yahoo! search on the term 闪婆 and some websites explained that the nick was derived from Wang Ding Liu being fast at jumping (跳得快). Am confused about what exactly it means by being fast at jumping - I would guess it means he's agile and good at dodging or leaping.

So which do you suggest? "The Lively One," "the Lightening," or "the Lively Lightening?"

Haiiii how is the progress of The Bandit of Liang Shan Po.... need ur verification thx

I think 青面兽 means Green Faced Beast?

I am not sure.

Outlaws of the Marsh is one of my favourite classic (besides Romance of the Three Kingdoms)
Memorable Character: Yan Qing, the wanderer.

The novel Water Margin (shui hu zhuan) is probably the 1st novel in chinese history to be written in Baihua (i.e. vernacular) language instead of classical chinese. It was written during late Yuan/early Ming period, although some scholars commented that its establishment was during Ming Jia Jing period (sometime aorund 1550 AD).

The novel Water Margin has been viewed by PRC as an analogy of Peasant Revolts. To study each character, it's important to see how the author (Shi Naian 施耐庵 or Luo Guanzhong 罗贯中) uses various technique to bring out the personality of each character.

1. Unique Personification of the characters (人物的个性化)

One of the main technique in Water Margin is to break the "stereotype character personification", by focusing on the development of the unique personality of each character. The novel describes different personalities of characters having different background and experience, but it also describes different personalities of characters having quite similar background and experiences. This creates an effect of "similarity has differences", "differences have similarity".

2. Development and Change in the Personality of Characters (人物性格的发展规律变化)

One important aspect of shaping the personality of the Characters in Water Margin is to allow the personality of the characters to develop 'continuously' as the environment (settings/plot) in the novel changes. This is unlike other novels (such as Romance of 3 kingdoms) which focused on fixing the personality of characters without any change (i.e. static personality). Most of the characters in Water Margin has a development process in their personality, for instance Song Jiang, Lin Chong, Wu Song 's change in personality are remarkable.

3. Description of Character's Action and Detail

Another key area in which Water Margin stands out was that it created the personality of the characters through their 'actions'. At its beginning, the character would immediately start their action. There was less description of the character's background, feelings and external environment. It was from these actions that one can see the character's personality. E.g. Lin Chong at "Wind Snow Hill God Temple (风雪山神庙)" where he killed 3 people who attempted to burn him alive ; Lu Da killing Zhen Guan Xi (鲁达杀镇关西)

I'll describe some of the characters here

Song Jiang (宋江) (天魁星呼保义)

He was described as "Rain at the right time (及时雨)" . He was a magistrate assistant at Yun city in Shandong province (山东郓城押司), just involved in paperwork. During the event when Chao Gai and other 7 heros plundered the birthday presents for the emperor, they were caught, but due to Song Jiang, they were able to escape. This secret relationship with the bandits was known to Song Jiang's wife Yan Poxi, and she threatened Song Jiang. Song Jiang killed her in a fit of anger and then escaped to Cangzhou and was forced to go up to Mt. Liang. Later, Song Jiang became the leader of the Bandits in Mt. Liang.

After surrendering to the Court, he was conferred the title "Wu De Dai Fu 武德大夫" by Emperor Song Hui Zong. But in the end, he was poisioned by Gao Qiu and died.

Li Kui (李逵) (天杀星黑旋风)

Li Kui was one of the characters in Shui Hu Zhuang who displayed a rather crude/rough brainless personality. His appearance was dark and rough, and he was called "Iron Boar 铁牛". In the Pugilist world, he was called "Black Whirlwind 黑旋风", and was the no. 22 hero in ranking of Outlaw of Marshes. He was the no. 5 leader in the Infantry of Mt. Liang.

When Song Jiang was dispatched to Jiangzhou (for imprisonment), Wu Yong 吴用 (one of the strategist for Mt. Liang) wrote a letter to let the Jail Janitor of Jiangzhou, Dai Zong 戴宗, to take care of Song Jiang. Li Kui was one of the subordinates (a soldier) of Dai Zong and got to know Song Jiang. As Dai Zong's secret connection with Wu Yong was discovered, both Dai Zong and Song Jiang were sent for execution, and Li Kui was the first to use the axe to fight their way out and escape to Mt. Liang. After reaching Mt. Liang, he thought of his mother and sought to bring his mother to Mt. Liang, but on the way, his mother was eaten up by tigers. In a fit of anger, he killed 4 tigers. During the surrender to the court, Li Kui at first refused to surrender and even raided the city court and tore the emperor's edict.

Li Kui was in the end poisoned to death when Song Jiang let him drink the poisoned wine together with him.

Yan Qing 燕青 (天巧星浪子)

Yan Qing was the last hero in the 36 heavenly stars. In the 10 leaders of Mt. Liang's infantry, he ranked no. 6. Yan Qing was Lu Junyi (卢俊义)'s care-taker. His parents died when he was young, and he was raised by Lu Junyi. He could play the flute very well and was well-skilled in archery. When Lu Junyi was deceived to go up to Mt. Liang, one of the care-takers Li Gu 李固 (who had an affair with Lu Junyi's wife), took this chance to snatch over Lu Junyi's property and wealth and banish Yan Qing. When Lu Junyi returned home, Li Gu went to the court and accused Lu Junyi of secret liaisons with Mt. Liang's bandits. Lu Junyi was dispatched to Sa Meng Island. Li Gu bought over Dong Chao, Xue Ba in an attempt to kill Lu Jingyi on the route to Sa Meng Island. But when they were about to Kill Lu Junyi, they were shot to death by Yan Qing's two arrows and Yan Qing saved Lu Junyi. After that, they went up to Mt. Liang.

Song Jiang uses Yan Qing to liase with Li Shishi in an attempt to meet the emperor hoping to surrender to the court. After the surrender, Yan Qing left the team.

Lin Chong (林冲) (天雄星豹子头)

Lin Chong was ranked no. 6 in the hero of outlaw of marshes. He was the no. 2 Tiger in the Cavalry troop of Mt. Liang. During his early time, he was the leader of the 800,000 imperial guards in the Eastern Capital, i.e. Kaifeng (东京八十万禁军枪棒教头). Because his wife was sexually harassed by Gao Qiu's son (Gao Wei Nei 高卫内) and he was also victimized by Gao Qiu, he was later dispatched to Cangzhou. On the way to Cangzhou, Gao Qiu ordered the guards to kill him, but he was saved by Lu Zhi Shen 鲁智深 at Wild Boar Forest. After being dispatched to Cang Zhou, Gao Qiu's assistant Lu Qian tried to kill Lin Chong by setting fire to his dwelling hut. Lin Chong killed Lu Qian, and after that he went to Mt. Liang. At that time, the leader of Mt. Liang Wang Lun (王伦) did not want to take him in. After Chao Gai and Wu Yong plundered the Emperor's birthday presents and went to Mt. Liang, Wang Lun did not want to accept them. In a fit of anger, Lin Chong killed Wang Lun and pushed Chao Gai to be the new leader of Mt. Liang.

Lin Chong was highly-skilled in martial arts. He fought several battles. After the campaign against Fang La, Lin Chong began to fall ill and was forced to rest at Hangzhou's Liuhe temple. 1/2 year later, he passed away.

In the novel, Lin Chong was initially described as one who was content with his life (he has a good profession, a happy family), such that he did not dare to rebel and keep to his life. But as the plots unfold where he was increasingly victimized (his wife was harassed by Gao Wei Nei, someone in high rank), and later a series of assassination attempts on him, his character began to change and develop. He grew to be a determined, resolute, impatient, direct and righteous person. This was reflected by him killing 3 people at "Wind Snow Hill God Temple (风雪山神庙)" and him killing Wang Lun (unable to tolerate his narrow-mindedness). He was one who demonstrated multiple "tolerance" until at some point in time, he was not able to tolerate anymore.

I think there's a typo here, his name should be Lu Zhishen:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lu_Zhishen

Lu Zhishen (鲁智深) (天孤星花和尚)

Lu Zhishen was the no. 13 hero of the Outlaws of the Marsh. He was no. 1 leader in the infantry of Mt. Liang. His real name was "Lu Da 鲁达" and he was a local military constable (经略提辖). On one occasion, he saw that the butcher Zheng Guanxi (郑关西) was taking advantage of the weak Jin Cuilian and her father (金翠莲父女), and killed him with only 3 punches. Later he was chased after by the court people who wanted to arrest him for the murder, and he escaped to Mt. Wutai to become a monk and changed his name to Zhishen. Lu was not able to tolerate the peaceful and quiet nature of Buddhist monastery regulations, and he became drunk and made a havoc in the temple. Later he was sent to the Xiangguo monastery in Kaifeng to look after a vegetable plantation. Because he kicked Popi 泼皮, who attemped to steal vegetables, into a dung pit, he became famous. Later Lu saved Lin Chong at Wild Boar Forest , but Gao Qiu sent someone to arrest Lu and Lu was forced to become a bandit at Mt. Er Long. Later he defected to Mt. Liang and became the leader of the infantry. During the invasion against Fang La, Lu fought successfully against Fang La. He later passed away at Hangzhou Liuhe temple.

In the novel, through his action, we can see Lu as one who is righteous, and free-spirited in terms of personality. He was not bound by any rules and hated evil and was always acting to restore righteousness. We can see this from the scenes of him killing Zheng Guanxi, creating havoc at Shanmen, and saving Lin Chong at Wild Boar Forest.

thanks.. already corrected the error.

Yang Zhi (杨志) (天暗星青面兽)

Yang Zhi was the no. 17 in the heros of outlaw of marshes. He was the no. 8 tigers and vanguard in Mt. Liang's Cavalry forces, and was ranked no. 3. When Lin Chong came to Mt. Liang, Wang Lun did not welcome him, and wanted him to kill a person. When Lin Chong went down, he met Yang Zhi and they fought without any win or loss. Actually, Yang Zhi was the descendent of the Yang Family's general, and was initially the guard operator (殿试府制使). He was initially ordered to transport the Flower Stone (花石纲) but lost it at Yellow river (when it overturned), and tried to escaped. Later, Lin Chong welcomed him to Mt. Liang, but Yang Zhi had always wanted to be an official in the city and refused to join Mt. Liang. In the city, he tried to sell his sword , but was involved in a quarrel with Niu Er. Unwillingly, he killed Niu Er and was dispatched to Da Ming Court to become a soldier. When he was involved in transporting the birthday present to the capital, his envoy was plundered by Chao Gai. Unwillingly, Yang Zhi (together with Lu Zhi Shen) went up to Mt. Long Er, killed Deng Long and became the chief. Later he joined Mr. Liang. During the campaign against Fang La, he fell ill and passed away.

In the novel, Yang Zhi was described as someone who always favored being an official. He was the descendent of 3 generations of generals. Even though he lost the Flower Stone, he still did not give up being an officer. His hope of being official only ended after he lost the birthday present when they were plundered by Chao Gai.

Greetings:
While I am in no position to make a contribution to this discussion, but, can not resist saying sincere thanks to the members who have organized this data and posted it. It must have been an gigantic effort. The descriptions of the characters give life to the names. It is amazing how effective the few words about each historical figure sum up the essence of the person.

This is a treasure trove for any author looking for the flavor of the times and place , and also a source of enjoyment to this member.

Well done, perhaps the the title "DOERS OF VALUABLE AND FANTASTIC FEATS" should be affixed to those who have produced this thread.

A would be : Master Ghost Valley

It's sad that this thread is pretty dead. Let's see if I can revive it by doing the bios for the 108 heroes. Perhaps after these, I can do the bios for other characters as well.

Needless to say, there'll be lots and lots of spoilers. For the ones that GZ already did, I'm gonna build on what he already wrote, making some modifications where I see fit (I hope you don't mind, GZ). Edit: I started out building on the bio of Song Jiang written by GZ, but I added so much to it and changed so much of it that I ended up writing almost all of it. And I am just writing all the other bios myself.

Before I do the bios, let me post a basic plot summary for the entire novel so the bios would be easy to follow.

:SPOILERS:

Note: There are many version of the Outlaws of the Marsh. Some of you are probably reading the 70 (or 71) chapter version or the 100 chapter version. The following is the plot line in some of the versions that have use a 120 chapter format.

Introduction - Ch 1: prologue

Ch 2 - 13: the stories and adventures of Gao Qiu, Wang Jin, Shi Jin, Lu Da, Lin Chong, and Yang Zhi.

Ch 13 - 23: Chao Gai and his robber gang, and their robbing of the Imperial Tutor's treasures; Song Jiang helped Chao Gai escape; Chao Gai took over Mount Liang; Song Jiang was blackmailed by Yan Poxi and killed her; Song Jiang fled and met Wu Song.

Ch 23 - 32: Wu Song's story and adventures -- killing a tiger, avenging his brother's death, meeting the Zhang's couple, defeating Jiang Zhong, masscring at the Meng Prefecture, reuniting with the Zhang's couple, becoming a wandering monk, reuniting with Song Jiang, and joining the Mount Double Dragons bandits.

Ch 32 - 42: Song Jiang's story and adventures -- being captured by Mount Clear Wind bandits, trouble in Fort Mount Clear Wind, joining the Mount Clear Wind bandits, defeating Qin Ming, going to Mount Liang, going home, turning himself in, being exiled to the Jiang Prefecture, meeting various heroes en route and at the Jiang Prefecture, being sentenced to death for writing rebellious poems, being rescued, receiving the "heavenly books" from the Goddess Jiu Tian Xuan Nu.

Ch 43: short adventure of Li Kui -- fetching his mother, killing four tigers.

Ch 44 - 46: story of Yang Xiong and Shi Xiu

Ch 46 - 60: the "expansion sequence" -- Song Jiang led the heroes on various battles and campaigns: the Zhu Family Village campaign, the Gao Tang Prefecture campaign, the battle against Huyan Zhuo, the Qing Prefecture campaign, the Hua Prefecture campaign, and the battle with the Mount Mang Dang bandits.

Ch 60: the first Town of Zengtuo campaign; death of Chao Gai.

Ch. 61 - 70: the "Lu Jun Yi sequence" -- Lu Jun Yi's getting into trouble, the first Da Ming campaign, the battle with Guan Sheng, the second Da Ming campaign, the Ling Prefecture campaign, the second Town of Zhengtuo campaign, the "city-capture" race between Song Jiang and Lu Jun Yi.

Ch. 71: the heroes held a religious ceremony for all those who have died as a result of their military expeditions. The stone tablet containing the names of the 108 heroes fell from the sky. The appointment of the heroes to their positions. The "great gathering" and swearing into brotherhood.

Ch. 71 - 82: The "amnesty sequence." The "chrysanmenthum flower celebration," in which Song Jiang expressed his wish for amnesty. The heroes visited the Kaifeng imperial capital. Li Kui and Yan Qing's adventures. The first amnesty. The first invasion of Mount Liang (two battles.) The second invasion of Mount Liang (three battles, with the second amnesty taking place after the second of the three battles.) The third amnesty.

Ch. 82 - 90: The Liao campaign.

Ch. 90 - 100: The Tian Hu campaign.

Ch. 100 - 110: The story of Wang Xing; the Wang Xing campaign.

Ch. 110-119: The Fang La campaign.

Ch. 119-120: The ending.

:END OF SPOILERS:




There are 108 Mount Liang heroes. I'll first post the bios of the 36 major heroes (a.k.a. heavenly stars,) and thenpost the bios ofthe 72 minor heroes (a.k.a. earthly stars.)

So, first, the 36 major heroes:

:SPOILERS:

Song Jiang, the Opportune Rain, a.k.a. the One Who Calls for Righteousness, the Filially Pious and Righteous Black Third Brother; The Heavenly Head Star
天魁星 及時雨 呼保義 孝義黑三郎 宋江

The first in command in the Mount Liang lair. Called "the Opportune Rain" because of his readiness to perform acts of charity for both the average people and the "good fellows" (好漢) travelling the world. Though born into a wealthy landowner family, he decided, like any student in ancient time, to make a career and a name serving the country. He left the countryside and moved to the nearby town, where he became a low level magistrate assistant at Yun city in Shandong province. When Chao Gai and his gang of robbers were identified as the thieves of the Imperial Tutor's one-hundred-thousand-guan birthday present, Song informed Chao Gai just in time that his gang could escape the pursuit by the government troops. This secret relationship with the bandits was known to Song Jiang's concubine Yan Poxi, and she blackmailed Song Jiang for money. Song Jiang killed her in a fit of anger and then escaped to various locations where he could hide at his friends' houses. Later, he became the leader of the bandits on Mount Clear Wind and led them to fight against governmental troops. He then led them to Liangshan, only to receive the news of his father's death.

He left his friends to go home, only to find that the news of his father's death was a lie made up by his father himself in order to lure him home, as his father wished that that he would no longer associate himself with the bandits and hide out at home to wait for imperial amnesty. Divided between his loyalty to his father and his friends, he had a sudden ethical epiphany and turned himself in to the court. He was sent to the Jiang prefecture for exile. While there, he met new friends, including Li Kui, who would become one of his most loyal follower. Then one day, Song went to a restaurant by himself. Having had a little too much to drink, he wrote two poems on the wall with hidden rebellious messages. A scholar saw the poems and reported them to the magistrate, resulting in Song's imprisonment, his receiving the sentence to death, and the gang from Mount Liang, led by Chao Gai, saving him last minute at the execution site.

Song now had no choice but to join the Liangshan bandits, but he must return home first to fetch his folks. On his way there, he was pursued by government troops. While he hid in a temple, the troops attempted to enter but was driven away by a strange wind. Then, while sleeping inside the temple, Song had a dream in which he met the Goddess Jiu Tian Xuan Nu, who entrusted to him the three volumes of the heavenly book, charging him with the mission to punish corrupt government officials and, after receiving imperial anmesty, serve the state.

Song Jiang then became the second in command of the bandits in Mt. Liang, where Chao Gai was the leader. He led them into many victories and considerably expanded the influence of Mt. Liang. Many heroes came to join the gang during this time. Then during the campaign against Town Jin Tou, Chao Gai died from a poisonous arrow. Before he died, he charged Song Jiang with the promise to let whoever capture his killer become the next leader. Song became the temporary leader. Eventually, however, another hero, Lu Jun Yi, captured Chao Gai's killer. But since most of the heroes wanted Song to become the leader, Song and Lu decided to fate decide: each of them were to attack a prefecture, and whoever succeeds first will become the leader. Song won that contest, and it was eventually decided both of them became "lords of the lair", with Song as the first in command and Lu as second.

After the entire gang of Mount Liang was granted imperial amnesty, Song led the 108 heroes to fight in various campaigns for the court. They defeated the Liao armies and the armies of three rebels -- Tian Hu, Wang Xing, and Fang La. In the last campaign, most of the heroes passed away. To reward the heroes for their works, the government appointed Song Jiang and most of the surviving heroes to various positions in the government, in addition to granting honorary titles to some of the heroes who have passed away (some of the surviving heroes chose not to continue serving the government). Jealous of Song's achievement and feeling their positions threatened, the villain Gao Qiu and another official had Song poisoned. The emperor ordered a temple be built for Song and his fallen heroes.

Song Jiang's achievement must not be overlooked. Before he joined Mount Liang, Mount Liang was mostly in a defensive, self-sufficient position, as the the leader of Mount Liang, Chao Gai, had little ambition for expansion. After Song Jiang took over as second in command, he led the heroes in many battle and campaigns: the Zhu Village campaign, the Gao Tang Prefecture campaign, the battles with Huyan Zhuo, the Qing Prefecture campaign, the Hua Prefecture campaign, and the Mount Mang Dang campaign. After Chao Gai's death, Song Jiang led the heroes to the fight the first Da Ming Prefecture campaign, the battles with Guan Sheng, the second Da Ming Prefecture campaign, the Eastern Ping Prefecture campaign, the Eastern Chang Prefecture campaign, and perhaps most remarkably, the five battles against the two enormous invasions of government forces. It was through these numerous battles and campaigns as well as Song Jiang's ability to recruit new members that Mount Liang became the most powerful gang at least in the north. He continued to lead the heroes after the amnesty to fight the four campaigns.

Song Jiang was perhaps the most complex of all the heroes. He had a dual personalty: on the one hand, he wanted to leave behind a good name as a loyal subject of the state, serving the emperor and the people. On the other hand, he treasured his friendship with the heroes. When the heroes became involved in criminal activities, he could no longer remain neutral. When he helped Chao Gai escape, it was his "heroic" side prevailing. When he turned himself in, it was his "loyal" side prevailing. Imperial amnesty was his way to reconcile the two sides of his personality -- if all the heroes were granted amnesty, they could together serve the state as loyal subjects, and at the same time, he could ensure the well-being of the heroes and continued his friendship with them. Unfortunately, it was amnesty that eventual led to the demise of the heroes.

:END OF SPOILERS:

I'll try to continue the bios in the order of the heroes' ranks. Stay around for more!

:SPOILERS:

Lu Jun Yi, the Jade Unicorn; the Heavenly Northern Star
天罡星 玉麒麟 盧俊義

The second in command in the Mount Liang lair. One of the "Three Greats of Hebei" (the book never mentioned who the other two "Greats" are.) Born to a reputable family in the Da Ming Prefecture, Lu was a very wealthy merchant. When Song Jiang and his advisor, Wu Yong, heard about Lu's greatness from a monk, they decided to "invite" Lu to the gang. Wu Yong tricked Lu into travelling to Mount Liang, only to have him captured. Wu Yong then tricked Lu's servants into believing that Lu had decided to join the gang and become a bandit. The gang treated and entertained Lu for months, while Lu's treacherous steward, Li Gu, seized Lu's properties and married his wife. When Lu finally expressed that he could no longer stay on Mount Liang, the gang let him return home. Upon returning home, Lu was tricked by Li Gu and arrested by the government soldiers.

Having heard the news of Lu's arrest, the gang of Mount Liang hurried down to Da Ming, and a series of battles ensued, culminating in Wu Yong's master plan of sending in the heroes into the Da Ming city in disguise on the night of Yuan Xiao (the so-called "Chinese Valentines Day," when many men and women customarily went out to the many festivities at night.) The heroes captured the city by fighting within and outside, driving out the government commander and saving Lu.

Lu later captured Chao Gai's killer. Pursuant to a promise that the captor of the killer (see Song Jiang's bio), Lu were to become the first in command, but most heroes wanted Song Jiang to become the leader. Song and Lu decided to let fate decide had a competition in which the first to capture a prefecture becomes the new leader. Although Lu lost, both Song and Lu became "lord of the lair", with Song as first in command and Lu second. In many expeditions, before and after the amnesty, Song Jiang and Lu Jun Yi would often divide the troops in two (not including those who stay behind to defend newly captured cities) and fight in coordination.

After the imperial amnesty, Lu led the heroes along with Song Jiang to fight in various campaigns for the court. At the end, the villain Gao Qiu had Lu poisoned and killed.

It's debatable how brilliant a leader Lu was. Early in his career, he made a devastating strategic mistake during the Liao campaign, but he improved over time. His physical strength and martial art skills were not always clear in the novel, but one incident should be enough to show his ability -- in the Liao campaign, his troops were separated from Song's (this was before the aforementioned incident in which he made a strategic blunder). He fought four of the Liao's princes all by himself at the same time and managed to slay one of them. He then, again all by himself, fought back a thousand Liao troops.

:END OF SPOILERS:

:SPOILER:

Wu Yong, the Intelligent Star; the Heavenly Shrewd Star
天機星 智多星 吳用

The main military advisor (out of two) of Mount Liang. Practically the Zhuge Liang of Mount Liang. He first appeared in the story as a village teacher in Eastern Stream Village and was a friend of Chao Gai, the "lizheng" of Eastern Stream Village. (A lizheng is some sort of village elder or leader appointed by the government to take care a certain number of village units. The division of families into such units was a part of Wang Anshi's reform.) When a man named Liu Tang approached Chao Gai to convince him to organize a group of robbers to seize the Imperial Tutor's birthday gift of one hundred thousand guan, Wu Yong offered assistance. (I have no idea how much one guan is worth, but I have the feeling that one hundred thousand guan is a lot of money.) With a gang of seven assembled (not including Bai Sheng, an accomplice), Wu Yong created the plan to rob the treasure. The plan went smoothly, but because the accomplice, Bai Sheng, was later arrested, and the cover of Chao Gai and his gang were blown, Wu Yong organized for the escape route -- to flee to Mount Liang. Before doing so, the gang -- under the direction of Wu Yong -- dealt a devastating blow to the pursuing government soldiers.

At the time, there were already bandits on Mount Liang under the leadership of Wang Lun, a scholar who failed the imperial exam. Seeing that Chao and his gang were capable enough to steal treasures from the government soldiers and defeat them, Wang Lun feared that they would replace him and take over the lair. Sensing that they would soon be ousted from the lair, Wu Yong instigated one of Wang Lun's men, the great Lin Chong, who was also treated poorly by Wang Lun, to kill Wang Lun. Lin Chong killed Wang Lun, and the gang took over the lair, with Chao Gai as the new leader.

Wu Yong continued to be the master mind behind the many expeditations of the Mount Liang heroes. He planned the strategies of almost every single campaign and battle. He was arguably the most important person in obtaining favorable imperial amnesty for the entire gang: when the court offered amnesty under harsh terms, he instigated the heroes to reject the amnesty despite Song's ardent wish. The government then sent in two waves of massive invasion, but under Wu's strategies, the heroes defeated them in five battles. The court eventually granted amnesty to all the heroes under favorable terms.

Wu Yong continued to be the strategist for the four campaigns after the amnesty. When Song Jiang was poisoned and killed, Wu Yong committed suicide.

:END OF SPOILER:

:SPOILERS:

Gongsun Sheng, the Dragon Entering the Clouds; the Heavenly Leisurely Star
天閒星 入雲龍 公孫勝

One of the two militiary advisors of Mount Liang. A Daoist priest and a student of Master Luo. When Chao Gai was planning with several men about seizing the Imperial Tutor's birthday gift of one hundred thousand guan (see Wu Yong's bio), Gongsun Sheng approached Chao Gai with the information of where the delivery route of the treasures. He helped with capturing the treasures, and later when they fled, he fled with the gang to Mount Liang. Later, he left Mount Liang to return to serve his mother and his master.

Later, when the Mount Liang heroes were battling Gao Lin, a relative of the villain Gao Qiu and a master of magic, the heroes lost because of Gao Lin's spells. The heroes then sought out Gongsun Sheng and invited him back to the lair. With his master's permission, Gongsun Sheng helped the gang defeat Gao Lin with superior magic and joined the gang of Mount Liang.

In the chapter of the "Great Gathering" (when the heroes' number reached 108, Song Jiang first held a religious ceremony for all lives they have killed. He then held another ceremony where the heroes swore brotherhood, which I'll simply call the "Great Gathering"), Gongsun Sheng was appointed as the second military advisor (Wu Yong was appointed the first military advisor).

After the heroes were granted imperial amnesty, Gongsun Sheng participated in three of the four campaings for court. Before the last one, he left the gang and returned home to his mother and his master.

:END OF SPOILER:

I presume you are referring to the phrase 河北三绝 hé běi sān jué?

Personally, I'd translate to Three Ultimates of Hebei.

水浒传中河北玉麒麟卢俊义号称河北三绝，请问是哪三绝？ makes a compelling case to identify the three.

1. 卢俊义的棍棒 : Lu Junyi's wielding of the staff/pole
2. 燕青的厮扑 : Yan Qing's wrestling/grappling skills
3. 张清的飞石 : Zhang Qing's stone-throwing.

Both Lu Junyi and Yan Qing lived in Daming prefecture seat in Hebei proper. Zhang Qing (the featherless arrow, not to be confused with the other Zhang Qing who was husband to Sun ErNiang) was from Zhangde (彰德), north of the Yellow River, and probably under jurisdiction of Hebei during the Song era.


On a side note, the ostensible reason for the outlaws to recruit him was to help them deal with the Zeng fortified hamlet because the latter had the formidable Shi Wengong (史文恭).

Somehow, I rather doubt if it was really so.
The best mounted combatant was supposed to be Lin Chong (林冲) while the best combatant on foot was supposed to be Wu Song (武松).

One commentary I read had it that Song Jiang just wanted to introduce more top-notched followers under his sponsorship. A reluctant and noble-background Lu as the second-in-command would make things easier for Song Jiang in persuading the other more belligerent outlaws to be open to amnesty.

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Guan Sheng, the Great Scimitar; the Heavenly Courageous Star
天勇星 大刀 關勝

One of the Five Tiger Generals of the Mount Liang Cavalry. First appeared in chapter 63. He was the descendant of Guan Yu of the Romance of Three Kingdoms. He started out as some sort of "police chief" in Pu Dong Prefecture (today's Shanghai). When the Mount Liang was fighting with the forces of Da Ming Prefecture, the Imperial Tutor, Cai Jing, was looking for a general to lead the reinforcement troops to help out, as the commander in Da Ming is Cai Jing's son-in-law. Xuan Zan, the Ugly Prince, recommended Guan Sheng. Guan Sheng was then appointed the commander of a 15000-men army, with the assistance of Xuan Zan and another friend, Hao Si Wen. Guan Sheng suggested that they should attack Mount Liang directly instead of reinforcing at Da Ming. The Mount Liang troops were forced to retreat. However, Guan Sheng did not seize the opportunity to ambush the retreating Mount Liang troops (either an oversight due to inexperience, or perhaps out of honor for a fair fight.) Song Jiang then sent Huyan Zhuo to fake surrender and lure Guan Sheng into attacking the Mount Liang's encampment, only to have himself and his assistants, Xuan and Hao, both captured. Song Jiang spared their lives and tried to convince them to join. Touched by Song Jiang's mercy and noble purpose, Guan and both of his assistants joined the gang.

In the chapter of the "Great Gathering," Guan Sheng was appointed one of the Five Tiger Generals of the Cavalry. Guan Sheng participated in various battles and campaigns after joining the gang, both before and after the amnesty. His weapon of choice was the Blue Dragon Half Moon Scimitar -- the same weapon that of Guan Yu from ROTK (which is why he was called the Great Scimitar). His horse was also a Red Hare Horse like Guan Yu's. He led the campaign against Ling Prefecture and convinced Shan Ting Gui and Wei Ding Guo to join. During the campaign against Tian Hu, he convined three of Tian Hu's generals to join. It was his deep sense of honor that convinced some of these men to join.

Guan Sheng survived all of the campaigns. He was later appointed commander of Da Ming's troops. While drunk one night, he fell his horse and died.

:END OF SPOLILERS:

:SPOILERS:

Lin Chong, the Leopard Head; the Heavenly Masculine Star
天雄星 豹子頭 林沖

One of the Five Tiger Generals of the Mount Liang Cavalry. He got his title because his head looked like that of a leopard. His physical appearance was remarkably similar to Zhang Fei of the Romance of Three Kingdoms, but his personalities were significantly different Zhang Fei's. He was a gentleman of quiet integrity and reservation, and at times appeared mild, timid, and even weak. But a part of his apparent cowardice was due to his concern for his family, which he loved dearly and strove every effort to protect. Therefore, he and Zhang Fei are two very different types of characters.

Despite his gentle personality, Lin Chong was one of the best fighters in Outlaws of the Marsh.

He first appeared in chapter 7. He started out as a trainer of the imperial army. One day, he went with his wife and maid to the temple, and he ventured off while his wife and maid were worshipping. He saw the monk Lu Zhi Shen performing martial arts. The two instantly became friends and swore brotherhood. On the other hand, Lin's wife was being harassed by the villain Gao Qiu's foster child, Gao Junior. Gao Qiu was one of the commanders of the imperial army and therefore Lin's supervisor, so Lin swallowed his pride and did not deal with Gao Junior. The confrontation was eventually broken up, but Gao Junior was determined to have Lin's wife. Lu Zhi Shen wanted to punish Gao Junior, but Lin Chong stopped him.

Gao Junior approached Lin's friend, Lu Xin (not to be confused with the monk Lu Zhi Shen mentioned above), to set up a plot to divert Lin and trap his wife in Lu Xin's house. The plot almost worked, except Lin's maid informed Lin so he could rescue Mrs. Lin just in time. Lin's friendship with Lu Xin ended as a result of this incident.

Lin's timely rescue scared Gao Junior so much that he fell sick. Lu Xin and Gao Junior's companion, Fu An, offered a new plan to Gao Qiu: have someone sell a sword to Lin Chong, then summon him to meet Gao Qiu at the White Tiger Hall, which was a place for discussing military matters and off limit to unauthorized personel. The plan worked perfectly. Gao Qiu accused Lin Chong of entering the forbidden area in an attempt to assassinate Gao Qiu. A righteous judge saw through the plot and helped Lin Chong, lowering the charge to "mistakenly venturing into a forbidden area with a sword." Lin Chong was sentenced to exile to Cang Prefecture.

Before leaving for Cang Prefecture, Lin Chong signed a divorce document allowing his wife to remarry, as he could no longer protect her from Gao Junior and he figured that this was the best way. His father-in-law, however, refused to have his daughter remarry. Mrs. Lin was also shocked with sorrow and fainted.

With his initial plan failed, Gao Qiu ordered the guards who were to escort Lin Chong to Cang Prefecture to kill Lin Chong while they were on their way. They tied him to a tree in a forest, and just before they could kill him, the monk Lu Zhi Shen rescued Lin Chong. Turned out that Lu Zhi Shen had been following them all along. Lin Chong begged Lu Zhi Shen to not kill the two guards, and Lu Zhi Shen complied. He then travelled with them all the way to Cang Prefecture and left. There, Lin Chong was welcomed by the landlord Chai Jin (not to be confused with the Imperial Tutor Cai Jing), who gave him money to bribe the prison guards at Cang Prefecture.

Gao Qiu had not given up. He ordered Lu Xin and Fu An to have Lin Chong killed in Cang Prefecture. The prison guard chief cooperated and had Lin Chong placed in an isolated camp with lots of hay. Lu Xin, Fu An, and a prison guard then went to burn the camp, but because his hut in the camp had collapsed, Lin Chong was resting in a temple nearby while the burning took place. Lin Chong killed all three assassins and fled.

Through Chai Jin's recommendation, Lin Chong then went to Mount Liang. The leader of the Mount Liang lair at the time was Wang Lun, a scholar who failed the imperial exam. He feared that Ling Chong was better than him and might took over the lair, so he initially refused to let him stay. However, Wang Lun's men begged him to let Lin Chong stay. Wang Lun compromised and made an offer: if Lin Chong could kill a person in three days, he could stay in Mount Liang. Although Lin Chong eventually failed, Wang allowed him to stay, but treated him with humiliation.

Eventually, Chao Gai and his gang of robbers went to Mount Liang, and Wang Lun likewise wanted them to leave (see Wu Yong's bio). Wu Yong instigated Lin Chong to kill Wang Lun, and Chao Gai took over the lair.

Lin Chong later learned that his wife had committed suicide because of pressure from Gao Junior, and his father-in-law died of illness half a year later. His maid had remarried.

Lin participated in various battles and campaigns before and after the imperial amnesty. His weapon of choice, like Zhang Fei's, was the snake spear. He was appointed one of the Five Generals of the Cavalry after the Great Gathering. He died of illness during or after the last campaign.

Lin Chong's story was adapted into a Hong Kong movie called 水滸傳之:英雄本色 starring Tony Leung Ka Fai as Lin Chong. Very flashy, kung fu-ish, but definitely a great film.

:END OF SPOILERS:

Continuing the biographies....

:SPOILERS:

Qin Ming, the Thunderous Fire; the Heavenly Ferocious Star
天猛星 霹靂火 秦明

One of the Five Tiger Generals of the Mount Liang Cavalry. First appeared in chapter 34. He was a man with a short temper and was easily provoked. He was a army commander in Qing Prefecture. At that time, Song Jiang had just joined the bandits at Mount Clear Wind. Qin Ming was sent to defeat the bandits. Song Jiang and his assistant, Hua Rong, set up various ambushes and traps and tricked Qin Ming into capture. They treated Qin Ming with a feast and convined him to stay for night. During that night, however, they sent out some bandits with their leader dressed in Qin Ming's armor and carrying his weapon to attack the Qing Prefecture, leaving its suburb in ruins. The next day, Qin Ming went back to the Qing city, and the magistratre refused to let him in. Instead, he showed Qin Ming that he had already executed his wife and children. Qin Ming then went back to Mount Clear Wind and was convined by Song Jiang to join the gang. Qin Ming later married Hua Rong's sister.

Song Jiang later led the bandits to join the gang at Mount Liang. Due to the false news of his father's death, Song Jiang left his men at Mount Liang and went home himself (see Song Jiang's bio.) Hereafter, Qin Ming became a member of the Mount Liang gang, and participated in variosu battles and campaigns. The Mount Liang troops later attacked the Qing Prefecture, and during that campaign, Qin Ming killed the governor who had executed his wife and children.

Qin Ming was appointed one of the Five Tiger Generals after the Great Gathering. His weapon choice was the Wolf-Teeth Spiked Staff. He died in battle in the final campaign.

:END OF SPOILERS:

:SPOILERS:

Huyan Zhuo, the Double Clubs, the Heavenly Mighty Star
天威星 雙鞭 呼延灼

One of the Five Tiger Generals of the Mount Liang Cavalry. A descendant of Huyan Zhan, a famous general who served in the founding of the Song dynasty. He first appeared in chapter 54. After the Mount Liang army had sacked the Gao Liang Prefecture, the villain Gao Qiu (whose relative, Gao Lin, was the governor of Gao Liang and was killed by a Mount Liang hero) wanted to exact vengeance and appointed Huyan Zhuo as commander of 8000 troops. The emperor also granted an audience to Huyan and gave him a valuable horse called the "Snow-Kicking Black Horse." Huyan, with his assistants Han Tao and Peng Ji, led the troops to invade Mount Liang.

Huyan requested 2000 spears, 1000 sabers, and 3000 armors for men and horses. He had the cavalry wearing heavy armora and chained horse-to-horse, with chaining together every 30 horses. He cavalries charged like tanks, and the Mount Liang forces were driven back into the lair. Huyan also recruited the help of Ling Zhen, the canon maker, and attacked the lair with canons.

Meanwhile, a hero named Tang Long suggested to the Mount Liang gang the use of the "hooked spear" (i.e., a spear with a hook attached), and suggested that they recruit his cousin Xu Ning, a master of hooked spear. Tang Long, a blacksmith, made the hook spears. The Mount Liang gang lured Xu Ning into the lair and convinced him to join. Jin Ling quickly trained some of the bandits to use the hooked spears, and the Mount Liang troops defeated Huyan's chained horses and forced Huyan to flee to the Qing Prefecture.

While on his way there, Huyan's horse, the gift from the emperor, was stolen by some bandits from the nearby Mount Peach Blossoms. Arriving at Qing Prefecture, Huyan led the troops from Qing to attack Mount Peach Blossoms. The bandits at Mount Peach Blossoms sought the help of the bandits of Mount Double Dragons, then led by the monk Lu Zhi Shen and by Yang Zhi. In the meantime, the bandits from Mount White Tiger attacked Qing Prefecture because the uncle of the leaders of the Mount White Tiger bandits was imprisoned in Qing Prefecture. Feeling that the combined power of the bandits of all three mountains could not defeat Huyan and his troops, the monk Lu Zhi Shen suggested that they recruit the help of Mount Liang. Thus the Mount Liang troops attacked the Qing Prefecture with the help of the three mountains' bandits and captured Huyan. Huyan joined the gang and tricked the governor of the Qing Prefecture to open the city's gate.

After joining Mount Liang, Huyan Zhuo participated in various battles and campaigns. His weapons of choice were two metal clubs. During the defense campaign against Guan Sheng and his invading army, Huyan tricked Guan Sheng into attacking the Mount Liang encampment and led him into a trap. Huyan was appointed one of the Five Tiger Generals of the Cavalry. He survived all of the campaigns of the Mount Liang heroes, and later died while fighting the Jin armies.

:END OF SPOILERS:

From this point on I'm not going to strictly follow the order of the ranking. Instead, I'll discuss the heroes at the same position together, while following the order of ranks of the heroes within the same position.

So I'm going to talk about the fifth Tiger General, even though he is actually ranked lower than some of the heroes that I'll discuss later.

:SPOILERS:

Dong Ping, the Double Spear General; the Heavenly Standing Star
天立星 雙槍將 董平

One of the Five Tiger Generals of the Cavalry. A great cavalier with a sharp mind and with swift moves. The fact that he fought with two spears showed his great dexterity. He was also described as very talented with a wide range of skills and knew many different arts. He was called the "Heroic Double Spear General" and the "Elegant Duke with Ten Thousand Houses."

He first appeared in chapter 69. At the time, the Mount Liang heroes could not decide whether Song Jiang or Lu Jun Yi should become the leader (see Song Jiang's bio and Lu Jun Yi's bio). Song and Lu decided to let fate decide and had a competition where each of the two men will lead an attack on a prefecture, and whoever captures the targeted prefecture first becomes the leader of Mount Liang. Song Jiang was to attack the Eastern Ping Prefecture, and Lu Jun Yi was to attack the Eastern Chang Prefecture.

Dong Ping was a commander of the Eastern Ping Prefecture. In the first encounter with the Mount Liang troops, he was surrounded by the Mount Liang troops, but the Mount Liang troops could not capture him as he rode east and west amongst the Mount Liang troops while fighting with his two spears. He eventually broke through and went back to the city.

Meanwhile, Dong Ping wanted to marry the daughter of the governor, who was a corrupt official, but the governor refused.

Eventually, the Mount Liang heroes set up an ambush with ropes hidden in the dirt. They pulled up the ropes to trip Dong Ping's horse and captured him. Dong Ping agreed to join Mount Liang and to help them capture Eastern Ping. He killed the corrupt governor and took his daughter back to Mount Liang.

Dong Ping participated in various campaigns and battles. His weapons of choice were two spears. He was appointed one of the Five Tiger Generals of the cavalry. He was killed during the last campaign.

:END OF SPOILERS:

Darn it, you stole my thunder. I was going to mention that Lu Jun Yi was recruited because Song Jiang needed a leader who is friendly to the idea of amnesty, but I decided to leave that out because that's only a speculation and not expressly stated in the novel -- plus I was too lazy to find the evidence in the novel to back up the speculation when I was writing Lu Jun Yi's bio. Good to know that someone else thinks the same though.

One can say that the Lu Jun Yi sequence is so out of place that it seems like author just wanted to introduce the would-be second in command with a bang but failed to execute it well. Big fans like myself would of course rather speculate on hidden reasons that the author had. Like I said, your speculation is one of my speculations as well, but I think there's more to it than that.

The relationship between Chao Gai and Song Jiang was gradually strained with hidden tension. Song Jiang basically became the de facto leader in all of Mount Liang's activities, with Chao Gai relegated to a sort of 太上皇 position. Had Chao Gai not died, things might have eventually ended up in open conflicts. The campaign against Town Zheng Tuo was Chao Gai's way of regaining his leadership, but unfortunately not only did he fail to do so, he died in that campaign. But he did leave behind what author Ma You Tan called a curse: the promise that the captor of the killer become the next leader. This way, Song Jiang could not simply take over the leadership -- he would appear overly ambitious if he did so.

So to accomplish his plan for amnesty, Song Jiang would need to find someone who 1) could lead the gang, 2) could capture Shi Wen Gong, and 3) would seek amnesty. Regarding point 1 and 2, Song Jiang had high hopes, and his hopes were probably not misplaced. The story wasn't very clear how well Lu fought. He captured Shi Wen Gong, but that was when Shi Wen Gong was already in a state of fright and confusion after seeing Chao Gai's ghost. however, Lu Jun Yi did slay one of the four Liao princes while taking on all of them at once, and drove back a thousand Liao troops all by himself. This happened later in the story, but Lu probably had other feats of martial art that Song already knew about. Lu's leadership was at least questionable at first, though. He was an arrogant and stubborn man (otherwise, he would've listened to Yan Qing and wouldn't have gone to Mount Liang, and none of this would've happened in the first place.) It appeared that Lu improved over time, though, so Song probably didn't bet on the wrong horse after all.

Regarding point 3, Lu Jun Yi had said that he would "live to be a man of the Song dynasty, die to be a ghost of the Song dynasty." He was unmistakeably loyal. His wish for amnesty was made clear when he escorted the imperial emissories amidst the angry crowd after the first failed attempt at amnesty. He was also clearly ambitious for making a good name, as his wish to capture the Mount Liang heroes and his later efforts fighting for the state showed. The author never made these clear, but Song Jiang probably figured that Lu would be friendlier to the amnesty than almost anyone else from his conversation with the monk.

But Song Jiang needed one more thing: someone who would not really have actual power. Lu was clearly unlike the other heroes: he was a reluctant rich merchant who didn't want to have anything to do with the bandits in the first place. It would be impossible for the heroes to follow someone like that. With Lu in place, Song Jiang could again become a de facto leader, like the way he was during Chao Gai's reign, because the heroes would in fact follow him, even though Lu was the leader in name.

Song Jiang probably didn't foresee that the issue would eventually be solved by a competition. The fact that he tried to place Lu in position to capture Shi Wen Gong made it clear that he really wanted Lu to become the leader (unless this was a part of Song's plot to show that he had no ambition for the leadership.)

I'm not saying that Song Jiang was a power-hungry person -- he clearly wasn't. If he was, he wouldn't have sought amnesty. All of his ploting and scheming was to carry out what he thought was best for everyone -- amnesty. Without the amnesty, the Mount Liang situation cannot last forever. Eventually the government could defeat them, or something else could happen (like an internal strife.) If he really wanted power, he would've tried to declare himself emperor, the way Tian Hu, Wang Xing, and Fang La did. If he merely wanted prosperity, he would've surrendered to the Liao. What he sought was a good name and a decent life for all of his brothers.

Amnesty was a solution to Song Jiang's dual personality: on the one hand, he believed in the dream of "leaving behind a good name" as a loyal subject of the state, achieving great feats in service of the state. On the other hand, he was loyal to his friends and to the "way of heroic living". But the two sides are in conflict: he cannot serve the state if he wants to keep his friendship with criminals. That is: 忠義兩難全. When he helped Chao Gai, that was his "friendship/hero" side prevailing; when he turned himself in, that was his "loyalty to the state" side prevailing. We can see in the novel that Song was pulled by these two sides of his personality and that he tried to reconcile the two sides.

If amnesty was granted, he could solve two issues with one stone: serve the state, bring well-being to all of his friends. Another reason is, of course, the premise of the Goddess Jiu Tian Xuan Nu's message: they were to serve the state after the amnesty. The amnesty was a precondition of completing the mission.

Unfortunately, even though the amnesty was granted, their lives didn't end up what Song had hoped they would.

A lot of these speculations are gathered from various interpretations by various authors, especially from Ma You Tan. The idea that there was tension between Song Jiang and Chao Gai probably began with Mao Zedong, and it appears to be a valid point even if Mao made that point to reflect his political situation. Also, we must remember that a lot of these are speculations: it's possible that the author simply did a bad job trying to incorporate Lu Jun Yi.

Correction. The cousin's name is Xu Ning, and the blacksmith is Tang Long. Huyan Zhuo's subordinate's name is Peng Qi.

Oops. Yeah, I know they are Xu Ning and Tang Long, but I wrote these late at night, and my mind must've been pretty dazed then I probably confused Xu Ning with ROTK's Jin Ning, and I'm not a very good Mandarin speaker, so I thought Ning is pronounced Ling. I probably mixed up Tang Long's name with Le He's name.

As for Peng Ji, I think the correct pinyin is in fact Peng Ji and not Peng Qi, but I'll let you mandarin speakers duke it out over that one.

I'm going from the Shapiro version of Outlaws, but I need to check the Chinese characters if you want to be certain. >>

Well, his name is 彭玘. Let me know if it's pronounced Peng Ji or Peng Qi.

:SPOILERS:

Hua Rong, the Little Li Guang; the Heavenly Heroic Star
天英星 小李廣 花榮

One of the Eight Swift Cavaliers and Vanguards. A bright young general extremely skilled in archery (hence his title Little Li Guang, as Li Guang is said to have shot an arrow into a stone.) Also a skilled user of the spear. His prowess is complemented by his intelligence -- he helped plan the strategies at the battle at Mount Clear Wind and saw through the villain Gao Qiu's deception at the reading of the second amnesty. He is practically the Zhao Yun of Mount Liang, with archery skills that remind the readers of Huang Zhong.

Hua Rong first appeared in chapter 33. He started out as a young commander at the Fort Clear Wind (not to be confused with Mount Clear Wind -- Fort Clear Wind belonged to the government. It was probably set up to guard the Qing Prefecture against bandits. Mount Clear Wind was the location of bandit lair.) He was a friend of Song Jiang (It is not clear whether he was a cousin of Song Jiang as well. He did mention that Song Jiang was his cousin, but that could part of a lie he made up to "con" his colleague. See below.) After Song Jiang became a fugitive for killing Yan Poxi (see Song Jiang's bio), he fled to Hua Rong's house at Fort Clear Wind to hide there (after he had already hid at Chai Jin's mansion for some time.) Prior to arriving at Fort Clear Wind, however, Song Jiang was captured by the Mount Clear Wind bandits. There, Song Jiang was honored as an important guest, and was given the seat of the "lord of the lair." While there, Song Jiang released a woman that one of the bandit leaders captured. That woman was the wife of Hua Rong's colleague, Liu Gao. Later, Song Jiang left Mount Clear Wind and went to Fort Clear Wind.

On the night of Yuan Xiao (a.k.a. Chinese Valentines Day), Liu Gao's wife caught a glimpse of Song Jiang, and told his husband to have him arrested for banditry. Since Song Jiang was a fugitive wanted for Yan Poxi's death, he lied that his name was Zhang the Third. In the meantime, Hua Rong wrote a letter to Liu Gao, saying that Song Jiang was his relative and that his name was Liu Zhang (he thought that Liu Gao would be lenient if Song Jiang had Liu's surname). Their stories were obviously inconsistent, and Liu Gao didn't budge, so Hua Rong went to plan B -- rescue by force. He marched right into Liu Gao's mansion and took Song Jiang. Liu Gao sent a group of soldiers to Hua Rong's house, where Hua Rong sat in the front hall with doors wide open, holding a bow in his hand. The soldiers fled out of fear of Hua Rong's archery skills.

Not wanting to get Hua Rong into trouble, Song Jiang fled at night to Mount Clear Wind, only to be captured again by Liu Gao's troops. Liu Gao also reported the incident to the governor of the Qing Prefecture, who sent the general Huang Xin to help Liu. Huang Xin ambushed and captured Hua Rong. Liu Gao and Huang Xin then, along with a group of soldiers, took both Song Jiang and Hua Rong to transfer them back to Qing Prefecture City.

On their way there, the Mount Clear Wind bandits stopped them in their tracks, and a brawl ensued. Huang Xin fled, and Liu Gao was captured and killed. The governor of the Qing Prefecture then send the general Qin Ming to attack Mount Clear Wind (see Qin Ming's bio). With Song Jiang, Hua Rong set up various ambushes and traps and captured Qin Ming. While Qin Ming rested, they sent a group of bandits with one of them wearing Qin Ming's armor and carrying his weapon. The next day, Qin Ming went back to the Qin Prefecture City, only to find that the governor had executed his wife and children. He went back to Mount Clear Wind and was convinced to join them. Qin Ming later married Hua Rong's sister.

Hua Rong participated in various battles and campaigns both before and after the amnesty. He was appointed one of the Eight Swift Cavaliers and Vanguards. He later committed suicide after Song Jiang was poisoned to death.

:END OF SPOILERS:

Here is a 19th century Japanese woodblock printing of a painting of Lin Chong killing his pursuers at the temple.



In the folklore biography of Yue Fei, it mentions how Lin Chong (and Lu Junyi) were former students of Zhou Tong, Yue's military arts teacher. I know the connection is purely fictional, but I wonder if it formed from popular folklore or the author of the book just made it up. Lin is still one of my favorite outlaws.

:SPOILERS:

Xu Ning, the Golden Spearman; the Heavenly Blessed Star
天佑星 金槍手 徐寧

One of the Eight Swift Cavaliers and Vanguards of the Mount Liang Cavalry. First appeared in chapter 56. He started out as a trainer of the imperial army, with specialties in the use of hooked spears (i.e., spears with hooks attached near the tip.) At that time, the court sent General Huyan Zhuo to invade Mount Liang with the chained horses (see Huyan Zhuo's bio). The chained horses charged like tanks and could not be stopped. One of the Mount Liang heroes, Tang Long, suggested to the gang the use of hooked spears, which could be used to trip the horses: since each chained horse units consisted of 30 horses chained together, if one could trip a leg of one of the horses, the entire unit will fall. While Tang Long, a blacksmith, could make the spears, no one could use it. It so happened that Xu Ning was Tang Long's cousin, so Tang Long suggested recruiting him to teach the soliders how to use the hooked spears.

Thus Wu Yong made up the plan: he first sent Shi Qian, the agile thief, to steal Xu Ning's much treasured golden armor, which was passed on to him from his ancestors. Then Tang Long and another hero were to lure him into pursuing the thief, eventually leading him to an inn and drugging him. The plan worked, Xu Ning was brought to Mount Liang while unconscious, all the while his family was also brought to Mount Liang. Xu Ning was convinced to join, and taught the soldiers how to use the hooked spears. With the hooked spears, the Mount Liang army soundly defeated Huyan Zhuo's chained horses.

Xu Ning fought in many battles and campaigns for Mount Liang, before and after the amnesty. He was appointed one of the Eight Swift Cavaliers and Vanguards of the Cavalry. He was killed in the last campaign.

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Yang Zhi, the Blue-faced Beast; the Heavenly Dark Star
天暗星 青面獸 楊志

One of the Eight Swift Cavaliers and Vanguards of the Mount Liang Cavalry. A descendant of the famous Yang Ling Gong of the Yang Family Generals. Called Blue-Faced because of the blue birthmark on his face. Yang Zhi was one of the ten commanders sent to collect precious stones from the south -- at that time, the Emperor Huizong wanted to build an artificial hill using precious stones from the south. He sent ten commanders to lead the troops to do the job. Some stone collectors were abusive -- sometimes entire houses torn down just to obtain the stones. This eventually led to the Fang La rebellion.

While Yang Zhi was transporting the stones across the Yangtze River, his ship wrecked and he lost the stones, and along with that, he lost his job. He then gathered some funds with the hopes of "buying back" his job. En route to the Kaifeng capital, Yang passed Mount Liang and encountered Lin Chong. At that time, Wang Lun, the leader of Mount Liang at the time, offered Lin Chong to stay in Mount Liang with the condition that he killed a person in three days. Lin Chong tried to kill Yang Zhi, and the two fought in a duel, with neither one winning. Wang Lun then offered Yang Zhi to stay, hoping that he could pit Lin Chong and Yang Zhi against each other, so that neither of them could take over the lair and Wang Lun could maintain his power. However, Yang Zhi declined the offer and continued on to the Kaifeng capital.

Yang Zhi tried to buy his job back from the villain Gao Qiu, who refused. After spending all of his money, Yang decided to sell his sword. He claimed that one could kill a person with his sword without seeing blood, and the bully Niu Er demanded to see such a demonstration. The two got into a quarrel, ending with Yang killing Niu Er. Not wanting others to get in trouble, Yang turned himself in. The court was happy that Yang killed a local bully, and gave him a lenient sentence -- exile to the prosperous Da Ming Prefecture. Several rich men even gave Yang money in gratitude for killing Niu Er.

After Yang arrived at Da Ming, the commander of Da Ming's troops, Liang Zhong Shu, appointed Yang an officer. Liang held a tournament for his officers, in which Yang defeated one of the officers and was awarded the position of the defeated officer.

Liang was the son-in-law of the Imperial Tutor Cai Jing. Every year, Liang would send to Cai Jing treasures worth a great amount of money as a birthday present, and this year was no exception. He placed Yang Zhi in charge of delivering the gift. En route, Yang Zhi fell into the trap of Chao Gai and his gang of robbers (see Wu Yong's bio), and the gift was lost. Yang Zhi at first attempted to kill himself, but realizing that he could still do so much with his life, decided to leave everything behind to look for a new life.

Yang then met a student of Lin Chong named Cao Zheng, who suggested that he unite with the monk Lu Zhi Shen to take over Mount Double Dragons. Yang, Lu, and Cao thus took over Mount Double Dragons and became bandits. Later, various heroes joined their group, including Wu Song the Travelling Monk (not to be confused with Wu Yong the Intelligent Star), Zhang Qing the Gardener (not to be confused with Zhang Qing the Featherless Arrow), Sun Er Liang, and Shi En.

Later, Mounts Double Dragons, Peach Blossoms, White Tiger, and Liang joined forces to attack the Qing Prefecture and battle Huyan Zhuo and his troops (see Huyan Zhuo's bio). After the victory, Mounts Double Dragons, Peach Blossoms, and White Tiger joined the gang of Mount Liang, and thus Yang Zhi became a bandit of Mount Liang.

Yang Zhi fought many battles and campaigns for Mount Liang hero, both before and after the amnesty. He was appointed one of the Eight Swift Cavalier and Vanguards of the Cavalry. He died of an illness during the last campaign.

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Suo Chao, the Hasty Vanguard; the Heavenly Empty Star
天空星 急先鋒 索超

One of the Eight Swift Cavaliers and Vanguards of the Mount Liang Cavalry. Named "Hasty Vanguard" for his hasty personality. Wielded a large battle ax as his weapon of choice. First appeared in chapter 13. He was an officer under the commander Liang Zhong Shu in the Da Ming Prefecture army. In a tournament Liang held for his officers, Yang Zhi defeated Suo Chao's student (see Yang Zhi's bio). In retaliation, Suo challenged Yang to a duel, in which neither came out victorious.

Much later, when the Mount Liang troops attacked Da Ming to rescue Lu Jun Yi (see Lu Jun Yi's bio), Suo Chao fell into the trap set up by Wu Yong and was captured. He agreed to join Mount Liang.

Suo Chao fought many battles and campaings with the Mount Liang heroes. He was appointed one of the Eight Swift Cavaliers and Vanguards. He was killed in the last campaign.

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So was 108 outlaws a fictional story of based on historical facts?

Note: Liang Zhong Shu (梁中书) was not the name of the person but the surname of the person (Liáng 梁) followed by his official designation (Secretary 中书).

http://bbs.ly.ha.cn/dv_rss.asp?s=xhtml&...=6&count=66 has a discussion on the unique status of Daming Imperial Administrative Department (大名府, located in present day Handan 邯郸) as one of the four regional capitals of Song Dynasty. Being the northern regional capital, its proximity to the northern borders and Liao Dynasty's southern capital (in present day Beijing) made it a strategically important military command centre.

In each of the four capitals was appointed a 留守 (Defence Commander). The History of Song (宋史) noted that Imperial princes, Privy Councsillors, Defence Commanders, and Governor-Generals also held appointments as Ministers, Secretaries etc. (("亲王、枢密使、留守、节度使兼侍中、中书令、同平章事者，皆谓之使相")

The appointment of Defence Commander sometimes also included co-appointment to the lower official rank of a 尹 (yĭn). Thus the Defence Commander of Daming also held the office 大名府尹 (roughly translated to Lord Mayor of Daming). The well-known historical Justice Bao (包青天) was appointed 開封府尹 (Lord Mayor of Kaifeng).

Due to the importance and high profile of the post of 大名府尹 (Lord Mayor of Daming), the appointees also usually carried other senior appointments, some of them honorary. One of these would be the Secretary (中书令).

In Song's history, during the reign of Emperor Huizong (徽宗), there was an official named Liáng ShìJié (梁世杰) who seemed to have held actual appointments as Defence Commander in Daming, and might have been a son-in-law of Cai Jing (蔡京).

He probably served as the model of Secretary Liang (Liang Zhong Shu) in the novel.