Peng Qi

Peng Qi is a fictional character in Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels in Chinese literature. Nicknamed "General of Heavenly Vision", he ranks 43rd among the 108 Stars of Destiny and 7th among the 72 Earthly Fiends.

Background

Peng Qi is from Dongjing (東京; present-day Kaifeng, Henan), the imperial capital of the Song Empire. Like his ancestors before him, he serves as a military officer and drill instructor in the Song imperial army. His weapon of choice is a Trident with Three Spikes and Two Blades (三尖兩刃刀), which resembles that wielded by Erlang Shen. Because of this, he earns himself the nickname "General of Heavenly Vision" – a nod to the three-eyed deity.

Becoming an outlaw

Following the battle of Gaotangzhou (高唐州; present-day Gaotang County, Shandong), the Song imperial court recognises that the outlaws of Liangshan Marsh pose a serious threat and decide to send an army to eliminate the outlaws. Emperor Huizong then puts the general Huyan Zhuo in command of an army, with Han Tao and Peng Qi serving as his deputies, and orders them to attack Liangshan.

During the battle, Peng Qi engages Liangshan's Hu Sanniang in a one-on-one duel. Unaware that his opponent is an expert at using the lasso, Peng Qi focuses his attention on parrying her sabre attacks, and gets caught off guard when she suddenly uses her lasso to pull him off horseback. Peng Qi then becomes her captive. Following Peng Qi's capture and Han Tao's defeat by the Liangshan outlaws, Huyan Zhuo deploys on the battlefield his chain-linked armoured cavalry formation, which easily overwhelms the outlaws.

At the Liangshan camp, the outlaw leader Song Jiang treats Peng Qi respectfully and manages to convince him to surrender and join the outlaw band. To prove his allegiance to Liangshan, Peng Qi points out a critical weakness in Huyan Zhuo's cavalry formation. Liangshan's Tang Long also recommends his cousin, Xu Ning, to his fellow outlaws as the person capable of breaking Huyan Zhuo's cavalry formation. After Xu Ning trains the Liangshan infantry to use the unique hooked lance to break Huyan Zhuo's cavalry formation, the outlaws score a major victory over the imperial forces.

In the aftermath of the battle, Peng Qi helps the Liangshan outlaws persuade his former colleagues Han Tao and Ling Zhen, who have been captured, to surrender and join the outlaw band at Liangshan.

Campaigns and death

Peng Qi becomes one of the leaders of the Liangshan cavalry after the Grand Assembly of the 108 Stars of Destiny. He follows the Liangshan 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, Peng Qi and Han Tao are assigned to lead Liangshan forces to attack Changzhou. After seeing Han Tao die at the hands of the enemy officers Gao Keli and Zhang Jinren, Peng Qi attempts to avenge his fallen comrade but gets caught off guard by Zhang Jinren, who kills him by stabbing him in the side.

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. 87. 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. 91
• Zhang, Lin Ching (2009). Biographies of Characters in Water Margin. Writers Publishing House. ISBN 978-7506344784.