Friday, September 19, 2008

Gong Wang

Gong Wang is a character in the epic Chinese tale, ''Water Margin''.

Gong Wang was 's loyal servant alongside with Ding De-sun. He had tattoos all over his body which are like the spots on a tiger, and a tattoo of a tiger's head on his neck, thus earning him the nickname 'Flowery-necked tiger' . Gong Wang excelled in martial arts and fought well on foot and horseback.

When Lu Junyi led the Liangshan heroes to attack Dongchangfu, they were defeated in two battles by Zhang Qing. Song Jiang came with reinforcements, but Zhang Qing defeated more than fifteen top generals of the Liangshan army. Once, Gong Wang was trapped in battle by Lin Chong and Hua Rong, making him anxious and confused. He threw a javelin at them, but missed and were captured by Lin and Hua instead. Later, Zhang Qing was eventually subdued by Liangshan and he joined the Liangshan band. Gong Wang and Ding Desun also joined the band as well.

Gong Wang became one of the leaders of the Liangshan infantry and 72 Earthly Fiends. After the heroes had obtained amnesty from the emperor, Gong Wang followed them on their campaigns against the Liao Tartars and southern rebels, making great contributions. During the Fang La campaign, Gong Wang followed Huyuan Zhuo to attack Deqing Prefecture. He pursued Huang Ai, but unfortunately, he fell into a stream and was speared to death by enemy troops.

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