Ruan Xiao'er

Ruan Xiao'er, also known as Ruan the Second, is a fictional character in Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels in Chinese literature. Nicknamed "Tai Sui Who Stands His Ground", he ranks 27th among the 36 Heavenly Spirits, the first third of the 108 Stars of Destiny.

Background

The novel describes Ruan Xiao'er as a muscular man with a sharp face, a wide mouth, a cold gleam in his eyes and some yellow hair on his chest. He is the elder brother of Ruan Xiaowu and Ruan Xiaoqi. They live in Shijie Village (石碣村; in present-day Liangshan County, Shandong), where they earn a living by fishing in the waters around the nearby Liangshan Marsh. All the three brothers are very skilful in swimming and underwater combat. Among the three brothers, Ruan Xiao'er is the only one who is married and has children.

Becoming an outlaw

When Wu Yong learns that Chao Gai intends to rob the convoy of birthday gifts for Cai Jing, he immediately thinks of roping in the Ruan brothers. He visits them at their village and easily convinces them to participate in the robbery. Their team comprises Chao Gai, Wu Yong, Gongsun Sheng, Liu Tang and the three Ruan brothers. After tricking the escorts into consuming wine spiked with drugs that will make them unconscious, the seven men escape with the birthday gifts and later go on the run when their cover is blown. When soldiers come to Shijie Village to arrest them, the seven men defeat the soldiers in battle and take refuge at the outlaw stronghold at Liangshan Marsh.

Wang Lun, the selfish leader of the outlaw band at Liangshan, refuses to accept the seven newcomers and tries to send them away with excuses and precious gifts. Wu Yong, sensing that Lin Chong is already unhappy with Wang Lun, uses the opportunity to instigate Lin Chong to kill Wang Lun. Chao Gai then replaces Wang Lun as the new chief of Liangshan, while Ruan Xiao'er takes the sixth position of leadership in the Liangshan hierarchy.

Ruan Xiao'er becomes a leader of the Liangshan flotilla and participates in several battles against Liangshan's enemies. He makes a major contribution when government forces led by Huyan Zhuo attack Liangshan Marsh. During the battle, the Ruan brothers infiltrate the enemy camp, sabotage Ling Zhen's artillery platforms, and lure the artillery commander into a trap and capture him. Ling Zhen later decides to join the outlaw band after Song Jiang convinces him to do so.

Campaigns and death

Ruan Xiao'er becomes one of the leaders of the Liangshan flotilla after the 108 Stars of Destiny come together in what is called the Grand Assembly. After the outlaws received amnesty from Emperor Huizong, Ruan Xiao'er follows them on their campaigns against the Liao invaders and other rebel forces on Song territory.

During the campaign against Fang La's rebel forces, Ruan Xiao'er is assigned to lead an assault on the enemy flotilla base near Black Dragon Ridge (烏龍嶺; northeast of present-day Meicheng Town, Jiande, Zhejiang). During the battle, Fang La's forces bombard his boat with heavy cannon fire and trap him in a sea of fire. Ruan Xiao'er attempts to dive into the water and escape but Fang La's soldiers throw hooks at him and cause him to get entangled. Fearing that he will be humiliated if he gets captured, he draws his sword and commits suicide by slitting his throat.

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. 55. 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. 95
• Zhang, Lin Ching (2009). Biographies of Characters in Water Margin. Writers Publishing House. ISBN 978-7506344784.