Friday, September 19, 2008

Hao Si-wen

Hao Si-wen is a character in ''Water Margin''.

Hao Siwen was the sworn brother of Guan Sheng. Once, his mother had a dream that the celestial *Jing-Mu-An was coming into the human realm, and she became pregnant after that, giving birth to Hao Siwen. Thus, Hao Siwen earned the nickname 'Jing-Mu-An' . Hao Siwen excelled in martial arts, and served as Guan Sheng's subordinate.

When Xuan Zan recommended Guan Sheng to be the man to subdue the Liangshan rebels, Hao Siwen followed Guan Sheng into battle. Guan Sheng initially gained the upper hand, but Huyuan Zhuo tricked Guan Sheng into a trap and Guan was caught. Hao Siwen fought with Lin Chong, then Hua Rong joined in the fight. Hao could not resist both heroes at the same time, so he retreated. Later, Hao was captured by Hu San Niang.

Song Jiang treated his captives with respect and Guan agreed to join the band. Hao Siwen and Xuan Zan also agreed. When Shan Ting-gui and Wei Ding-guo attacked Liangshan, Guan volunteered to fight the enemy. Xuan Zan and Hao Siwen also followed Guan Sheng into battle. Shan Tinggui lured Hao Siwen into the enemy formation, where Hao Siwen was captured. Hao Siwen was then escorted as a captive to Beijing but Bao Xu and ambushed the guards along the way and rescued Hao Siwen.

Hao Siwen became one of the leaders of the Liangshan cavalry and was one of the 72 Earthly Warriors. He followed the heroes on their campaigns against the Liao Tartars and southern rebels, making invaluable contributions. During the Fang La campaign, Hao Siwen and Xu Ning attacked the northern gate of the city. They saw the gates wide open and tried to rush in, but fell into an ambush at the drawbridge. Xu Ning fought for his life and managed to escape, but Hao Siwen was caught. Hao Siwen met with a gruesome death when Fang Tianding dismembered his body and displayed his severed head to the Liangshan heroes.

*Note: Jing-Mu-An is a mythical figure in Chinese mythology.

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