In the Water Margin, where is Liangshan in Shui Bo at present?

"Water Margin" describes the story of the last years of the Northern Song Dynasty, and tells the story of 108 heroes gathered in Liangshan, which embodies the rebellious spirit of Liangshan heroes and the ideal of "upholding justice for heaven", and also reveals the fundamental reasons for the failure of ancient rebellious heroes. If the Romance of the Three Kingdoms is regarded as a model of elite literature, Water Margin can be summarized as a classic of civilian literature.

The "Liangshan Mountain in Shui Bo" in Water Margin is not an environmental product in the author's imagination, but it does have a place in the real world. In fact, Shui Bo Liangshan Scenic Area is located in Liangshan County, Jining City, Shandong Province, with a total area of about 5 square kilometers. At present, the scenic spot has become an important place to attract domestic tourists in Shandong Province. Shui Bo Liangshan Scenic Area is one of the first provincial-level scenic spots announced by Shandong Province, and it has also been rated as a national 4A-level tourist area by the National Tourism Administration. Together with Mount Tai and Qufu, it constitutes the inland "Golden Triangle" tourist area in Shandong Province.

However, Shi Naian, the author of Water Margin, once called Liangshan a "800-Li Water Margin", but at present, the area of Liangshan scenic spot in Shui Bo is far less than this. Why? In fact, Shi Naian's "800-Li Water Park" does have fictional and exaggerated elements, but the diversion of the Yellow River will indeed reduce the area of the "800-Li Water Park" in history. After all, the historical events of the Sung River Uprising did exist, and the area of Shui Bo in Liangshan was large enough to resist the attack of Song Jun Navy, so the area of Liangshan Lake in history would not be too small.

In Song Dynasty, the Yellow River was difficult to harness, and many breaches occurred, resulting in the formation of many Shui Bo in the downstream areas. Liangshan, where heroes live, should have formed a large-scale Shui Bo including Liangshan and Yuncheng at the end of the Song Dynasty, which became the prototype of Shi Naian's Eight Hundred Miles of Water Margin.

However, after the demise of the Northern Song Dynasty, the Yellow River continued to divert its course, and the amount of water injected into Liangshan Shui Bo was decreasing, and the area of Shui Bo was also shrinking. The land exposed after Shui Bo's retreat has been continuously converted into agricultural land by residents. Therefore, the area of Liangshan Shui Bo scenic spot at this stage can no longer be compared with that of the Northern Song Dynasty.