Hao Siwen

Hao Siwen
Water Margin character
First appearance Chapter 63
Nickname "Wood Dog of Well"
井木犴
Rank 41st, Magnificent Star (地雄星) of the 72 Earthly Fiends
Tiger Cub Scouting General of Liangshan
Origin Imperial general
Names
Simplified Chinese 郝思文
Traditional Chinese 郝思文
Pinyin Hǎo Sīwén
Wade–Giles Hao Szu-wen

Hao Siwen is a fictional character in Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels in Chinese literature. Nicknamed "Wood Dog of Well", he ranks 41st among the 108 Stars of Destiny and 5th among the 72 Earthly Fiends.

Background

Hao Siwen's mother dreamt that the celestial "Wood Dog of Well"[lower-alpha 1] is going to be born into the human world. She became pregnant shortly after and subsequently gave birth to Hao Siwen. Hao Siwen is nicknamed after the deity because he is believed to be its human incarnation. He excels in martial arts but holds a minor position in Pudong County (蒲東縣; in present-day Dezhou, Shandong).

Becoming an outlaw

When the outlaws from Liangshan Marsh besiege Daming Prefecture to rescue Lu Junyi, Grand Secretary Liang Shijie, who governs Daming Prefecture, seeks reinforcements from his father-in-law, the Imperial Tutor Cai Jing. During this time, Xuan Zan recommends the general Guan Sheng, who is based in Pudong County, to deal with the outlaws. The imperial court then appoints Guan Sheng as the commander of the government forces sent to save Daming Prefecture; Hao Siwen and Xuan Zan serve as Guan Sheng's deputies.

Guan Sheng leads his troops to attack the outlaws' base at Liangshan Marsh to force them to turn back and hence lift the siege on Daming Prefecture. As he expected, the outlaws turn back to save their base and attack the government forces. Although Guan Sheng is a formidable fighter, he finds it very challenging when he engages in one-on-one duels against Liangshan's top warriors. Liangshan's Huyan Zhuo later lure Guan Sheng into a trap, where the outlaws capture the general. Xuan Zan loses in a duel against Liangshan's Qin Ming and ends up being captured as well. In the meantime, Hao Siwen fights with Liangshan's Lin Chong and Hua Rong but decides to retreat after failing to overcome them. While he is fleeing, Liangshan's Hu Sanniang catches up with him and pulls him off horseback with her lasso and captures him. Liangshan's chief, Song Jiang, treats the three captives with respect and succeeds in persuading them to join the outlaw band.

After learning of Guan Sheng's defection, Cai Jing orders Shan Tinggui and Wei Dingguo, two generals based in Lingzhou (凌州; in present-day Dezhou, Shandong), to eliminate the Liangshan outlaws. Guan Sheng, along with Hao Siwen and Xuan Zan, volunteer to lead Liangshan forces to attack Lingzhou and stop the two generals. During the battle, Shan Tinggui and Wei Dingguo lure Hao Siwen and Xuan Zan respectively into their battle formations and captures them. While Hao Siwen and Xuan Zan are being escorted as prisoners back to the imperial capital Dongjing, the bandits from Mount Deadwood ambush the convoy and rescue them.

Campaigns and death

Hao Siwen becomes one of the leaders of the Liangshan cavalry after the 108 heroes come together in what is called the Grand Assembly. He follows the heroes on their campaigns against the Liao invaders and rebel forces on Song territory after they received amnesty from Emperor Huizong.

During the campaign against Fang La's rebel forces, Hao Siwen and Xu Ning are part of the scouting team assigned to keep watch near the northern gate of the enemy-controlled city of Hangzhou. They are caught off guard by a sudden attack and Hao Siwen gets overwhelmed and captured. Xu Ning attempts to save him but gets hit by a poisoned arrow. Hao Siwen subsequently meets a gruesome death at the hands of the enemy general Fang Tianding, who beheads and dismembers him.

Notes

  1. ↑ Well is one of the twenty-eight mansions in Chinese astronomy. Symbolised by a dog, it represents Wood of the Five Elements.

References

  • Buck, Pearl S. (2006). All Men are Brothers. Moyer Bell. ISBN 9781559213035.
  • Ichisada, Miyazaki (1993). Suikoden: Kyoko no naka no Shijitsu (in Japanese). Chuo Koronsha. ISBN 978-4122020559.
  • Keffer, David. "Outlaws of the Marsh: A Somewhat Less Than Critical Commentary". Poison Pie Publishing House. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
  • Li, Mengxia (1992). 108 Heroes from the Water Margin (in Chinese). EPB Publishers. p. 83. ISBN 9971-0-0252-3.
  • Miyamoto, Yoko (2011). "Water Margin: Chinese Robin Hood and His Bandits". Demystifying Confucianism. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
  • Shibusawa, Kou (1989), Bandit Kings of Ancient China, Koei, p. 97
  • Zhang, Lin Ching (2009). Biographies of Characters in Water Margin. Writers Publishing House. ISBN 978-7506344784.
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