Yan Shun
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Yan Shun (燕顺) is a character in the Water Margin.
Yan Shun was from Laizhou, Shandong. He had red hair, a yellow beard and rounded eyes, along with long arms and a wide waist. He was exceptionally skilled in using his sabre, and earned himself the nickname 'Multi-coloured tiger' (锦毛虎).
Yan Shun was a travelling trader initially, but he suffered a great loss and became an outlaw at Qingfeng Mountain with Wang Ying and Zheng Tian-shou. Once, Song Jiang was making his way to Qingfeng Fort to meet Hua Rong and passed by Qingfeng Mountain along the way. Yan Shun's bandits captured Song Jiang and were about to kill him when Song Jiang sighed to heaven. Yan Shun found out Song's identity and was shocked, and released Song immediately. Yan treated Song well, much like his own brother. Then, the lustful Wang Ying captured a woman, who was Liu Gao's (governor of Qingfeng Fort) wife. Song Jiang sympathised with her and managed to persuade Wang to release her.
Later, Song Jiang left the stronghold and made his way to the fort. Liu Gao's wife repaid kindness with evil and asked her husband to have Song Jiang arrested. Later, Song Jiang and Hua Rong were escorted by Huang Xin as prisoners and passed by Qingfeng Mountain. Yan Shun and his band fought with Huang and rescued the two prisoners. The government sent Qin Ming to subdue the outlaws but was defeated and captured. Eventually, Qin agreed to surrender and join the band. Qin persuaded Huang Xin to open the gates of the fort, and the heroes charged in and killed Liu Gao and his family. Then, they made their way to Liangshan.
Yan Shun became one of the leaders of the Liangshan cavalry and 72 Earthly Fiends. He followed the heroes on their campaigns against the Liao Tartars and southern rebels, making great contributions. During the Fang La campaign, Yan Shun was assigned to attack Wulong Ridge. He was shocked to see Ma Lin being killed by Shi Bao and tried to avenge Ma. Yan Shun fought with Shi Bao but was no match for Shi and killed when Shi Bao struck him with his spiked mace.
