Xie Bao

Xie Bao is a fictional character in Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels in Chinese literature. Nicknamed "Twin-tailed Scorpion", he ranks 35th among the 36 Heavenly Spirits, the first third of the 108 Stars of Destiny.

Background

The novel describes Xie Bao as a seven chi young man with a round face and a dark complexion. He sports a pair of flying yaksha tattoos on his legs, and dresses like his brother, using tiger's or leopard's hide as his clothes. Brave and daring, he can travel in harsh conditions, scale mountains, and climb dangerous cliffs. He is highly skilled in martial arts and uses a bronze forked spear as his weapon. He is nicknamed "Twin-tailed Scorpion".

Joining Liangshan

Xie Bao and his elder brother Xie Zhen are the best hunters in Dengzhou (登州; in present-day eastern Shandong). The magistrate orders them to, within three days, hunt down a ferocious tiger which has been terrorising Dengzhou's residents. On the second night, the brothers track down the tiger, corner it on a cliff, and fire poison arrows at it. The wounded tiger falls off the cliff and lands in the backyard of Squire Mao's mansion. When the Xie brothers are clambering down the hill, Squire Mao orders his servants to carry the dead tiger to the magistrate to claim the reward.

Finding no tiger, the enraged Xie brothers smash the furniture in Mao's mansion. The squire's son, Mao Zhongyi, lures them into a trap, frames them for robbery, and sends them to the local magistrate's office. Squire Mao also bribes the magistrate to sentence the Xie brothers to death.

Yue He, the jailer in charge of the brothers, is the brother-in-law of Sun Li, whom the Xie brothers are related to through Gu Dasao, their cousin who married Sun Xin, Sun Li's brother. Yue He delivers the news about the brothers to Sun Xin and Gu Dasao, who rope in Zou Yuan and Zou Run to help in the rescue. They also pressure Sun Li, who is the garrison major of Dengzhou, to join in. With Yue He helping them from inside the prison, Sun Li and his group successfully extricate the Xie brothers. They kill Squire Mao and his family in revenge and then flee to Liangshan Marsh to join the outlaw band there.

Before going up Liangshan, Sun Li volunteers to be the outlaws' mole in the Zhu Family Village, as he has studied martial arts alongside the village's martial arts instructor Luan Tingyu under the same master. With help from Sun Li and his companions, the Liangshan outlaws succeed in defeating the Zhus and taking the village.

Campaigns and death

The Xie brothers become leaders in the Liangshan infantry after the 108 Stars of Destiny came together in what is called the Grand Assembly. They follow 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 the rebel leader Fang La, the Xie brothers disguise themselves as hunters to scout Black Dragon Ridge (烏龍嶺; northeast of present-day Meicheng Town, Jiande, Zhejiang). While climbing up a cliff, they are discovered by the enemy soldiers, who attempt to entangle them with hooks. Xie Zhen is caught and tries to free himself by cutting the ropes tied to the hooks, but ends up falling off the cliff to his death. Xie Bao is crushed to death by the boulders and other debris thrown down by the enemy.

See also

• List of Water Margin minor characters for a list of supporting minor characters from Xie Bao's story

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. 71. 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
• Zhang, Lin Ching (2009). Biographies of Characters in Water Margin. Writers Publishing House. ISBN 978-7506344784.