Wang Ying is a fictional character in the
Water Margin, one of the
Four Great Classical Novels of
Chinese literature. He ranks 58th of the 108 Liangshan heroes and 22nd of the 72 Earthly Fiends. He is nicknamed "Stumpy Tiger".
Background
The
Water Margin describes Wang Ying as a short man with sparkling eyes. He is rough, impatient, lecherous, highly-skilled in martial arts and capable of taking on 100 opponents at the same time. He is nicknamed "Stumpy Tiger" for his short stature.
Wang Ying was initially a carriage driver. He met a group of rich men and was overcome by greed and robbed them. He was arrested later and imprisoned, but managed to escape and had become an outlaw since then. He goes to Mount Qingfeng and leads a bandit gang there together with
Yan Shun and
Zheng Tianshou.
Joining Liangshan
Song Jiang passes by Mount Qingfeng on his journey to Qingfeng Fort to join
Hua Rong. He is captured by Wang Ying's gang, who want to kill him and make soup from his heart and liver. Song Jiang sighs, "Am I, Song Jiang, destined to die just like that?" Wang Ying and the other leaders are stunned when they hear the name "Song Jiang". They release Song Jiang and apologise to him after recognising him as the famous philanthropist.
Earlier on, Wang Ying had kidnapped the wife of Liu Gao, the official in charge of Qingfeng Fort, and he wants to rape her. Song Jiang stops him and manages to persuade him to release the woman. Later, Liu...
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