Mu Hong
| Mu Hong | |
|---|---|
| Water Margin character | |
| Nickname | "Unrestrained" 沒遮攔 |
| Rank | 24th, Investigative Star (天究星) of the 36 Heavenly Spirits |
| Tiger Cub Vanguard General of Liangshan | |
| Origin | Rich man |
| Hometown | Jieyang, Guangdong |
| First appearance | Chapter 37 |
| Weapon | Pudao |
| Names | |
| Simplified Chinese | 穆弘 |
| Traditional Chinese | 穆弘 |
| Pinyin | Mù Hóng |
| Wade–Giles | Mu Hung |
Mu Hong is a fictional character in the Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. He ranks 24th of the 36 Heavenly Spirits of the 108 Liangshan heroes and is nicknamed "Unrestrained".
Background
The Water Margin describes Mu Hong as a handsome and talented looking man with eyebrows that resemble silkworms and having an impressive bearing. Mu Hong has a younger brother called "Little Unrestrained" Mu Chun. The brothers are from a wealthy and influential family in Jieyang, Guangdong. Mu Hong is famous for his bravery and prowess in martial arts.
Meeting Song Jiang
When Song Jiang is exiled to Jiangzhou (present-day Jiangxi), he passes by Jieyang along the way and meets the street performer Xue Yong. Xue Yong does not acknowledge the Mu brothers' presence and angers them. Mu Chun forbids the townsfolk to pay Xue Yong for his performance. Song Jiang ignores Mu Chun and pays Xue Yong five silver taels. Mu Chun is furious with Song Jiang for disrespect towards him and he wants to beat up Song. Xue Yong comes to Song Jiang's aid and defeats Mu Chun in a fight.
Mu Chun feels humiliated after his defeat and orders the townsfolk not to let Song Jiang spend the night in the town. Mu Chun plots revenge on Song Jiang with his brother but Song overhears their conversation and flees from the village. Xue Yong is caught by the Mu brothers and severely beaten up. Song Jiang reaches the riverbank with the Mu brothers hot in pursuit and he boards Zhang Heng's boat in desperation to escape from them. Zhang Heng claims to be a ferryman but is in fact a pirate who robs unsuspecting travellers who board his boat. Zhang Heng wants to kill Song Jiang when the boat reaches the middle of the river but he is stopped by Li Jun. Li Jun introduces Song Jiang to Zhang Heng and the Mu brothers, who recognise him as the famous philanthropist. They apologise to Song Jiang and become friends with him.
Joining Liangshan
Song Jiang runs into some trouble in Jiangzhou later and is almost put to death. The Liangshan outlaws storm the execution ground and rescue Song Jiang. They reach the riverbank where Li Jun, Mu Hong and others are waiting with boats from them. They ferry the outlaws all the way back to Liangshan Marsh and the Mu brothers join Liangshan.
After the Grand Assembly, Mu Hong becomes one of the Eight Tiger Cub Vanguard Generals of the Liangshan calvary. He follows the Liangshan heroes on their campaigns against the Liao invaders and rebel forces after they have been granted amnesty by the emperor. Mu Hong makes great contributions during the campaigns and plays an important role in the capture of the enemy city of Runzhou during the Fang La campaign. He dies of illness after Hangzhou is captured and is posthumously granted an honorific title by the emperor in recognition of his contributions to the nation during the campaigns.
References
- (Chinese) Li, Mengxia. 108 Heroes from the Water Margin, page 49. EPB Publishers Pte Ltd, 1992. ISBN 9971-0-0252-3.
- Buck, Pearl. All Men are Brothers. Moyer Bell Ltd, 2006. ISBN 9781559213035.
- Zhang, Lin Ching. Biographies of Characters in Water Margin. Writers Publishing House, 2009. ISBN 978-7506344784.
- Keffer, David. Outlaws of the Marsh.
- Miyamotois, Yoko. Water Margin: Chinese Robin Hood and His Bandits.
- (Japanese) Ichisada, Miyazaki. Suikoden: Kyoko no naka no Shijitsu. Chuo Koronsha, 1993. ISBN 978-4122020559.
- Shibusawa, Kou. Bandit Kings of Ancient China. KOEI, 1989.