Wu Dalang (), also translated as Wu the Elder, is a major character in the classic Chinese novel ''

The Plum in the Golden Vase ''Jin Ping Mei'' () — translated into English as ''The Plum in the Golden Vase'' or ''The Golden Lotus'' — is a Chinese novel of manners composed in vernacular Chinese during the latter half of the 16th century during the late Ming dynasty ...

'', and a minor character in the ''

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 ...

'', another classic. In both novels, he is murdered by his adulterous wife

Pan Jinlian Pan Jinlian () is a fictional character in the 17th-century Chinese novel ''Jin Ping Mei'' (''The Plum in the Golden Vase)'', and a minor character in ''Water Margin'', one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. She is an arch ...

. A well-known figure in Chinese culture, he represents the quintessential

cuckold A cuckold is the husband of an adulterous wife; the wife of an adulterous husband is a cuckquean. In biology, a cuckold is a male who unwittingly invests parental effort in juveniles who are not genetically his offspring. A husband who is aw ...

. Wu Dalang and Pan Jinlian, as depicted in these two novels, are fictitious. The real people were nothing like the characters in these stories.

Story

Wu Dalang is the elder brother of the hero

Wu Song Wu Song ( zh, c=武松, p=wǔ sōng), also known as Wu the Second ( zh, c=武二郎, p=wŭ èrláng, labels=no), is a legendary hero recounted since the 13th century; and one of the well-known fictional characters in the ''Water Margin'', one of ...

. Because he is short and ugly, he is nicknamed "Three-inch nail". In contrast, Wu Song is a strong and powerful warrior with good looks. The brothers' parents died when they were young and Wu Dalang shouldered the responsibility of raising his younger brother. Wu Song once got into a fight and knocked out his opponent. He thought he had killed his opponent and fled to avoid arrest by the authorities. The brothers were later reunited after a long period of time. Wu Dalang was married to

and the two were known to be quite close in the early days of their marriage and neighbours usually referred to their marriage as "a rose placed atop a pile of cow dung". Eventually the couple could not stand it and moved to Yanggu County. In Yanggu, Wu made a living by selling pancakes while his wife stayed at home and managed domestic affairs. By coincidence, the brothers were reunited in Yanggu after Wu Song had killed a tiger. The brothers lived together and were quite close. Pan Jinlian was attracted to the handsome Wu Song and tried to seduce him, but Wu Song shoved her away and left. Once, the county magistrate sent Wu Song out for an errand which took two months. During that time, Pan Jinlian had an adulterous affair with

Ximen Qing Ximen Qing () is a fictional Chinese Song dynasty merchant, womanizer, and murderer in Yanggu County, Shandong. He is the male protagonist in the novel ''Jin Ping Mei'' and a minor character in the novel ''Water Margin''. In both novels, he i ...

, which Wu Dalang did not know about. The adulterous pair were making love when Wu Dalang returned home and caught them in the act. Ximen Qing hit Wu Dalang so hard that Wu Dalang was injured and fell ill. Pan Jinlian and Ximen Qing were worried that Wu Dalang might report their affair to Wu Song, who was serving as a head constable in the county office. Thus, they decided to finish Wu Dalang by poisoning his medicine. Wu Dalang drank the medicine and realised it was poison but was too late. He struggled but was eventually smothered with a pillow by his wife. Then, Ximen Qing had Wu Dalang's body cremated, and he tried to bribe the neighbours and the coroner to keep the affair a secret. When Wu Song returned from his errand he was shocked to hear of his brother's death. He started an investigation, found out about the adulterous affair and reported it to the magistrate. However, the magistrate had been bribed and he dismissed the case citing lack of evidence. Eventually, Wu Song managed to force a confession from Pan Jinlian and he killed her to avenge his brother. He then went to find Ximen Qing and after a fierce fight, killed Ximen and cut off his head as a sacrifice to his brother's spirit.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wu, Dalang Water Margin characters Fictional Chinese people in literature Fictional characters from Hebei Fictional characters with dwarfism