Song Qing is a fictional character in ''

Water Margin ''Water Margin'' (''Shuihu zhuan'') is one of the earliest Chinese novels written in vernacular Mandarin, and is attributed to Shi Nai'an. It is also translated as ''Outlaws of the Marsh'' and ''All Men Are Brothers''. The story, which is s ...

'', one of the

Four Great Classical Novels Classic Chinese Novels () are the best-known novels of pre-modern Chinese literature. These are among the world's longest and oldest novels. They represented a new complexity in structure and sophistication in language that helped to establish t ...

in Chinese literature. Nicknamed "Iron Fan", he ranks 76th among the

108 Stars of Destiny The 108 Heroes are the main characters of the Ming dynasty classic Chinese novel the ''Water Margin'', which was written in the 14th century and usually attributed to Shi Nai'an. The heroes are divided into the 36 Heavenly Spirits and 72 Earthly F ...

and 40th among the 72 Earthly Fiends.

Background

Song Qing is the younger brother of

Song Jiang A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetition ...

. While Song Jiang is famous in ''

jianghu ''Jianghu'' () is a term that generally refers to the milieu, environment, or sub-community in which many Chinese wuxia stories are set. The term is used flexibly, and can be used to describe a fictionalized version of Historical China (usually u ...

'' (the scofflaw community) for his chivalry and lives in the town district of Yuncheng, being a clerk of the county's magistrate, Song Qing keeps a low profile, taking care of their father at their suburban house and managing the family's properties.

Tricking Song Jiang to come home

After killing his mistress Yan Poxi in a fit of anger, Song Jiang sneaks back to hide in his father's house. Although sent to arrest him, Yuncheng's chief constable

Zhu Tong Zhu Tong is a fictional character in ''Water Margin'', one of the four great classical novels in Chinese literature. Nicknamed "Lord of the Beautiful Beard", he ranks 12th among the 36 Heavenly Spirits, the first third of the 108 Stars of Desti ...

lets Song off after finding him hiding in a pit in his house. Song decides to seek refuge in the house of the nobleman

Chai Jin Chai Jin is a fictional character in ''Water Margin'', one of the four great classical novels in Chinese literature. Nicknamed "Little Whirlwind", he ranks 10th among the 36 Heavenly Spirits, the first third of the 108 Stars of Destiny. Backgr ...

. He travels there with Song Qing. Later Song Qing returns home while Song Jiang moves to the Kong Family Manor at Mount White Tiger. He subsequently shifts to

Hua Rong Hua Rong is a fictional character in ''Water Margin'', one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. Nicknamed "Little Li Guang", he ranks ninth among the 36 Heavenly Spirits, the first third of the 108 Stars of Destiny. Backgr ...

's house at Qingfeng Fort in

Qingzhou Qingzhou () Wade–Giles: Tsing-chou, sometimes written as Ching-chow-fu, formerly Yidu County (Yitu) (), is a county-level city, which is located in the west of the prefecture-level city of Weifang, in the central part of Shandong Province, Chin ...

. While in Qingzhou, he sparks a battle between his bandit friends at Mount Qingfeng and the local government. Despite having beaten the army from Qingzhou, Song Jiang, Hua Rong and the bandits of Mount Qingfeng, fearing attack by a bigger government force, decamp to join

Liangshan Marsh Mount Liang (, often referred to in Chinese as ) is a mountain in Liangshan County, Shandong, China which rises to 197.9 metres above sea level. It is well known as the stronghold of the 108 Heroes in the classic Chinese novel ''Water Margin ...

. On the way, Song Jiang runs into

Shi Yong Shi Yong is a fictional character in ''Water Margin'', one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. Nicknamed "Stone General", he ranks 99th among the 108 Stars of Destiny and 63rd among the 72 Earthly Fiends. Background The no ...

in an inn, who has a letter from Song Qing which says their father has passed on and urges him to rush home for the funeral. Upon reaching home, Song Jiang is shocked to find his father alive and well. In fact, Song Qing has penned the letter under the instruction of their father, who fears Song Jiang will tarnish the family's reputation by falling into bad company. As it is not possible to keep his homecoming a secret, Song Jiang is arrested by Yuncheng's authorities for the murder of Yan Poxi. He is exiled to a prison camp in Jiangzhou (江州; present-day

Jiujiang Jiujiang (), formerly transliterated Kiukiang or Kew Keang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level city ...

Jiangxi Jiangxi (; ; formerly romanized as Kiangsi or Chianghsi) is a landlocked province in the east of the People's Republic of China. Its major cities include Nanchang and Jiujiang. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze river in the north int ...

Joining Liangshan

Song Jiang finally joins Liangshan after getting into yet more troubles, this time in Jiangzhou, which nearly got him killed. Worried that his family will be implicated, Song, after being elected second-in-command of Liangshan, goes back to Yuncheng personally to fetch his father and brother. Song Qing thus becomes a member of Liangshan.

Campaigns

Song Qing is placed in charge of organising banquets after the

came together in what is called the Grand Assembly. He participates in the campaigns against the Liao invaders and rebel forces on

Song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...

territory following amnesty from Emperor Huizong for Liangshan. Song Qing is one of the few Liangshan heroes who survives all the campaigns. Although he is conferred an appointment, he declines it, choosing to return home to tend to his family's properties.

References

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Song, Qing 72 Earthly Fiends Fictional farmers Fictional characters from Shandong