The Four Uniques, the Four Fierce, and the Thirteen Masterpieces are the settings in the commentary "Romance of the Sui and Tang Dynasties", but they also work when applied to "Water Margin". Today, we will count the one hundred singles and eight generals in Liangshan to see which twenty-one will be able to be shortlisted for these three major combinations.
Four uniques
The first must: Dai Zong
Dai Zong is proficient in the "Divine Technique", and he only needs to tie four pieces of Divine Walking Armor to his legs, and he can travel 800 miles a day, but he should avoid wine and meat during the exercise. This unique skill not only earned him the nickname "Shenxing Taibao", but also became an indispensable intelligence leader for Liangshan.
However, the magic technique is not unique in the book, and Ma Ling, the "divine colt" under Tian Hu, is better than Dai Zong, and can travel thousands of miles a day. After returning to the imperial court, Ma Ling generously passed on this method, which means that in the final stage, Dai Zong's secret method was upgraded.
The second absolute: time shifts
Shi Qian is different from most of the leaders on Liangshan, he belongs to the snitch, and the eaves are like walking on the ground. Now that I'm used to reading martial arts novels, I may not feel anything, but when "Water Margin" was written, there was no martial arts-themed chapter hui style romance, so in Liangshan, where there are many generals, Shi Qian's kung fu can be called a unique stunt, and even throughout the book, no one can compare with it in this field.
Although Dai Zong is the head of the "Intelligence Section", he is really inferior to Shi Qian in this regard, after all, he can only wander around the periphery, and Shi Qian can enter the enemy's interior to listen to information. In addition, Liangshan broke through the city several times, and Shi Qian shouldered a heavy responsibility, sneaking into the city and setting fire to it, so in terms of military achievements, Shi Qian was actually higher than most of the leaders on Liangshan. It's a pity that because it is the reincarnation of the "Earth Thief Star", it can only be ranked second to last in the big row, and of course, it may also be that the robber looks down on stealing.
The third must: Zhang Qing
It is mentioned more than once in the book that Zhang Qing's marksmanship is ordinary, and the battle of Dusong Pass seems to confirm this by poking the spear that stabbed the sky and couldn't pull it out when it poked into the tree, so he was killed by the opponent at the opportunity. However, in terms of combat performance, the other one hundred and seven leaders together may not be comparable to Zhang Qing, for no other reason, the flying stone stunt of "no feather arrows" is too practical.
In the battle of Dongchang Mansion, Zhang Qingqing defeated Yan Shun with marksmanship, and the other dozen or so leaders were all defeated by his flying stone skills, which made Song Jiang praise him and call him Wang Yanzhang alive, but this also made Zhang Qing excited after he was captured, and they wanted to kill him alive.
The fourth must: Hua Rong
Compared with the other three's amazing stunts, bows and arrows seem to be very conventional, after all, for military generals, being skilled in bows and horses is a basic operation. But in this kung fu that everyone can excel in, no one can outstand, from a certain point of view, it is even more rare.
Hua Rong used the magic archery many times in the book to make meritorious contributions, and countless enemy generals died under his arrows, in addition to many jaw-dropping performances such as shooting geese and red tassels on halberds. It is precisely because of "Xiao Li Guang's" unparalleled shooting that many book friends underestimate Hua Rong's hand-to-hand martial arts skills, you must know that Hua Rong is a ruthless person who can fight with Qin Ming for fifty times without falling behind.
Shi Fierce
The first fierce: Lu Zhishen
Lu Zhishen is the first strong man in the book, the weapon used is sixty-two pounds, the heaviest in the book, and the upside-down weeping willow is even more shocking, from a scientific point of view, so thick trees are not at all human power can be pulled out, even with a crane may not be easy.
Basically, no one will question the fierceness of Monk Hua, but he is so fierce that he is a little different, because although Lu Zhishen does not know a few big characters, he is a typical thick and fine, and he is also a rare leader in Liangshan who has experienced foreign wars (Lu Zhishen was once under the command of the seed master), this kind of military general who has undergone a real baptism of blood is often the most terrifying existence on the battlefield.
Second fierce: Wu Song
If it weren't for Lu Zhishen's uprooting of the weeping willows, Wu Song would definitely be able to surpass the generals in terms of strength, after all, killing a tiger with his bare hands would make people feel terrifying when they think about it.
Unlike most battlefield generals, Wu Song's kung fu path is more martial arts style, and at the same time, he fights bravely and is not afraid of death, but he is different from Lu Zhishen, the relative balance of the combination of strength and skill in martial arts, I feel that Shi Nai'an deliberately created an alternative character that is different from others, so in the past, when I was doing martial arts reviews, Wu Song gave me the most headache, because I couldn't accurately locate it.
Third place: Qin Ming
"Thunderbolt" is probably the most criticized of the five tiger generals, and because he often loses battles, more and more people question his strength. In fact, in the case of fair fighting, Qin Ming only lost to Shi Wengong, and the others were basically captured, it can be said that simple deception and luring the enemy against Qin Ming is simply an unsolvable problem, and there are many attempts in a hundred ways.
Qin Ming's bravery is undoubted, and there are many similar characters in Liangshan, such as Dong Ping, Suo Chao, etc., but Qin Ming is the most impressive among similar characters, so he can occupy a place in the "Four Fierce".
Fourth fierce: Li Kui
According to the level of martial arts, Li Kui is not qualified to be compared with the three just mentioned, but if it is only about "fierce", there is no way to say anything without Li Kui.
When Jiangzhou rescued Song Jiang, after the official army was killed and dispersed, he plunged into the people and chopped people when he saw them; when he fought Zhujiazhuang, he rushed into the village and killed Hu Sanniang's whole family when Hujiazhuang had already surrendered, and only one Hu Cheng ran away; when the two armies fought, Li Kui took Bao Xu, Xiang Chong, and Li Gon to kill in front, and none of his own soldiers dared to step forward, because he was afraid of dying in the hands of his boss......
All in all, you can say that Li Kui is stupid, his skills are not at home, and his overall martial arts are not high...... But there is no denying his fierceness.
Thirteen Masterpieces
First master: Lu Junyi
There is no suspense about "Jade Qilin" being at the top of the list, he is almost the first in the world as hand-picked by the author, and he has the feat of single-handedly killing and dispersing the thousand people of the Liao Army, so I won't explain too much.
Second Hero: Guan Sheng
"There is no first in the text, there is no second in the martial arts", whoever ranks here will cause controversy. In terms of seats, Guan Sheng's position above Lin Chong can only be said to be the author's order to correspond to Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, and Zhang Fei cannot surpass Guan Yu in status, so Guan Sheng's position above Lin Chong in terms of seat is somewhat unreasonable in terms of plot. However, as far as martial arts are concerned, at least in terms of theoretical strength, Guan Sheng is better than Lin Chong.
First of all, Guan Sheng's more than ten combinations made Suo Chao cowardly, which is a rare obvious advantage in the five tigers against the eight biaos, which is the lead in the record; secondly, Guan Sheng's appearance The author arranged Lin Chong and Qin Ming's double battle, although it was explained to fight for merit, but looking at it at a deeper level, this is obviously a way of writing that the author wants to highlight Guan Sheng's strength over Lin Chong and Qin Ming.
So I think that regardless of the record or the author's setting, Guan Sheng is worthy of the top of the five tigers of the Ma Army.
The third master: Lin Chong
Lin Chong's biggest characteristic is stability, and he will always give people a sense of peace of mind when he fights, even if he can't win, at least he won't lose, unlike Qin Ming, who is worried about a battle.
However, because Lin Chong has a very large number of fans, he is now being raised a little too high, what "Lin Chong immediately", "the first in the world" and "undefeated in life", these not only can not enhance Lin Chong's military status in the hearts of objective readers, but are quite black.
Fourth Hero: Hu Yanzhuo
Hu Yanzhuo was born in a famous family, and he was a descendant of Hu Yanzan, the founding father of the Great Song Dynasty. However, it is precisely because the weapon is too short, and he rarely uses the spear, which makes Hu Yanzhuo "defend the strong and attack the weak", so there are many draws, and he is nicknamed the "master of draws". And even if it is abusing vegetables, it is slower than the generals of the same level, such as more than ten defeats of Li Zhong and twenty captures of Kong Ming.
But this is not a bad thing, there is no hurry, and the victory is slow but it will not be defeated because of radicalism, so like Lin Chong, it gives people a sense of peace of mind. The difference is that Lin Chong sometimes makes people look forward to it, and he may suddenly pick the enemy with a loud shout, while Hu Yanzhuo basically ends in a draw, because when someone with a little strength perceives that it is not as good as Hu Yanzhuo, it is not difficult to run.
Fifth master: Dong Ping
Dong Ping's record is very small, only fifty and Xu Ning are evenly matched, because the book mentions that Song Jiang is afraid that Xu Ning will lose and Ming Jin withdraws his troops, so we can only think that Dong Ping is stronger than Xu Ning in line with the principle of helping the disadvantage first, but I feel that it is difficult to win Xu Ning without more than 100 Dong Ping. This shows that he does not have much of a lead over the strong of the eight hussars.
However, Dong Ping has one thing that is extraordinary, that is, his agility is excellent, facing Zhang Qingneng to dodge two flying stones in a row, which once made the "Feather Arrow" panic, and in the end, he forgot to beware that he was only wiped by the flying stone, and he was not seriously injured. In general, the five tiger generals have their own characteristics, which can be described as their own merits.
Sixth master: Yang Zhi
Yang Zhi has a lot of tough battles, including Lin Chong and Lu Zhishen in foot battles, Hu Yanzhuo and Suo Chao in horse battles, so he is considered to be the leader closest to the Five Tigers, and even more so that Yang Zhi should replace Qin Ming, who has suffered a lot of defeats, and be shortlisted for the Five Tigers.
In fact, Yang Zhi belongs to a typical "not weak when strong, not strong when weak", and is a connecting figure between the previous and the next. It is not bad for first-class generals, but it can only be regarded as decent for the performance of the last second-level combat power, for example, although there are elements of not doing their best, they did not win Cao Zheng in twenty or thirty times. So on the whole, it makes sense to list it here.
Seventh master: Xu Ning
Dongping Mansion 50 He drew with Dong Ping, indicating that Xu Ning compared with the lower limit of the Five Tigers is very small, and also became one of the three Eight Hussars who have drawn with the Five Tigers (the other two are Hua Rong and Yang Zhi), at the same time, Lin Chong also gave him a high evaluation when mentioning Xu Ning, saying that the two used to learn from each other, respect each other, and love each other. Therefore, Xu Ning is often regarded as one of the members of the "Strong Eight Biao".
However, in the crusade against Da Liao, Xu Ning lost to Aliqi in more than 30 rounds, which is a relatively minus point. But then again, Aliqi only has this one record, maybe Hua Rong and Yang Zhi may not be stronger than Xu Ning when they meet him, but since the author only gave Xu Ning a defeat, this may also be a vague expression that Xu Ning is slightly inferior to Hua Rong and Yang Zhi.
Eighth Jie: Suo Chao
Many people think that Yang Zhi released water in the first battle of the Daimyo Mansion, but I don't think so, at least just look at the fifty together, and the two are a real draw.
First of all, in the eyes of the generals of the Daimyo Mansion, Yang Zhi is an outsider, which can be seen from the attitudes of Li Cheng and Wenda, so even if Yang Zhi sells favors to Suo Chao, the generals will only think that it is Suo Chao's ability out of subjective xenophobia.
Secondly, Liang Zhongshu clearly wanted to promote Yang Zhi, and the generals hoped that Suo Chao would fight for the Daimyo's mansion. Therefore, if Yang Zhi wants to gain a foothold, he can only hug Liang Zhongshu's thighs, otherwise he will not be able to please both sides.
In the end, Yang Zhi's emotional intelligence is not high, and he may not want to get the situation of being a person and other aspects, otherwise the birth gang will not be so unsuccessful.
However, Yang Zhi fought with Zhou Jin for a long time before facing Suo Chao and Zhou Jin, and there must have been a certain amount of consumption, so the battle against Suo Chao was not 100% in a state. At the same time, he is already a military position, so this draw is not mixed with water. And Suo Chao is inferior to Guan Sheng for more than ten times, which also corresponds to the strong and weak chain of martial arts between several people, that is, Guan Sheng is slightly stronger than Lin Chong, Lin Chong is slightly stronger than Yang Zhi, and Yang Zhi is slightly stronger than Suo Chao, so that the gap between the beginning and the end is naturally a little big.
Ninth master: Li Ying
Li Ying is easy to ignore, because he is in charge of money and food when he goes to Liangshan, and rarely participates in front-line battles, even if he has some impressions, he is more often called a flying knife in the book. However, his rare fighting generals performed remarkably, that is, he killed Zhu Biao in less than twenty times.
Zhu Biao is the best kung fu among the three brothers of the Zhu family, which Shi Nai'an clearly pointed out. Judging from the battle between his two elder brothers and Lin Chong, Qin Ming and others, Li Ying suppressed Zhu Biao in such a short period of time, and almost had the strength comparable to the Five Tigers, but his record was too small, so I chose to position him in the middle of the Eight Hussars.
Tenth masterpiece: Shi Jin
Shi Jin is a growth-oriented military general clearly mentioned in the book, and most of the martial arts learned by Wang Jin before learning martial arts are flower fists and embroidered legs, and the upper limit may not exceed his master Li Zhong. However, due to his extraordinary talent, and Wang Jin also has the good ability to teach his disciples, he has achieved a qualitative leap in half a year, and he has more than ten battles against Lu Zhishen, who is in a state of hunger, and let Lu Zhishen recover his courage because of Shi Jin's help, which shows Shi Jin's level.
In addition, during the expedition to the four Kou, Shi Jin also drew with Bian Xiang in thirty times, which is a very remarkable record, because even if you put aside the famous circle of force, Bian Xiang also has the level of five tigers.
However, Shi Jin is young in the end, although he has the true biography of Wang Jin, he has not yet fully integrated it, especially the lack of actual combat experience, otherwise he would not have fought for a long time before he captured Chen Da alive, let alone lost his sense of proportion due to a knife cut in the air when he fought against Qiong Demon Nayan, and ran away when he returned to the horse.
Eleventh master: Zhu Tong
Zhu Tong is probably the leader of the best character in the entire Liangshan, and he really sticks a knife in the ribs for his friends, and has a life-saving grace for Chao Gai, Song Jiang, and Lei Heng, so although he has been on the mountain for a short time, he is quite respected.
In terms of martial arts, Zhu Tong's most brilliant thing is that when Liangshan sent eight generals to fight against the eight hussars under Fang Maung, the two sides fought for thirty times, and Zhu Tong won first, and the gun was correct. foolishly thought that according to the hierarchy, between Zhu Tongdang and Shi Jin, they were generally at the same level.
Twelfth master: Shi Xiu
Shi Xiu is the leader of the infantry army, and more often participates in the melee, the most impressive thing is to play tricks with Sun Li in Zhujiazhuang, but it is also this battle that the author uses Sun Li to clarify Shi Xiu's military status - Shi Xiu is not inferior to Sun Li.
On the surface, this is undoubtedly equivalent to saying that Shi Xiu is greater than or equal to Sun Li. Many Sun Lifan thinks that this explanation is wrong, after all, language is not equal to the size of straightforward mathematics. Therefore, in their opinion, this sentence should be understood as Sun Li is not much stronger than Shi Xiu.
But judging from the context and context, if Shi Xiu is not as good as Sun Li, then even if he and Sun Li were deliberately defeated and captured, the author does not need to mention it. So I think Shi Xiu and Sun Li are generally on the same level, if it is more detailed, according to the author's statement, Shi Xiu should be listed above Sun Li.
Thirteenth master: Sun Li
Sun Li didn't have much to say, Liangshan Dou E, who lived unjustly, not only fell into the ranks of the sixteen Xiaobiao, but also ranked below Huang Xin, which is simply naked humiliation.
Because Sun Li suffered relatively unfair treatment, I don't know if it was out of sympathy or what, in short, in recent years, he has been praised to the level of five tigers. In fact, Sun Li entered the Eight Hussars at most, and he could only squeeze out Mu Hong. As for what many people say, Hu Yanzhuo used a single whip to draw and suffered a loss, which is quite ridiculous.
First of all, on the one hand, Sun Li's single whip is the author's intention to carry out a Huyanzan battle against Wei Chigong. On the other hand, he will only make one, all of which are in order, and Sun Li will probably not be able to play with a whip if you add a whip to him, otherwise Dong Ping will be invincible in the world with two guns.
Some people say that whips and guns are not the same thing, but I really don't bother to explain. In short, in my opinion, Shi Xiu locked Sun Li's upper limit, but he was not as strong as Zhu Tong and Shi Jin, so Sun Li's position at the end of the Thirteen Masters was very reasonable.
Finally, a little principle, if you are shortlisted for any of the lists, you can't appear in the other two lists, for example, Lu Zhishen's martial arts are enough to occupy a place among the thirteen masters, but because he is already one of the four fierce, the four peers and the thirteen masters will no longer be taken into account.