"Water Margin" Wu Song went back to Qinghe from Chaijinzhuang to visit relatives, why did he end up at Jingyanggang?

This question is very interesting. We might as well discuss it as a post-dinner conversation without taking it seriously.

We know that Wu Song first appeared on Chai Jinzhuang. At that time, Wu Song introduced himself and said that he was from Qinghe County and had fled to Chaijinzhuang for refuge after committing a crime.

So let’s take a look at these two places.

Chai Jin’s manor was located in Cangzhou, which is now near Cangzhou City, Hebei Province.

Qinghe County is located in what is now Qinghe County, Xingtai City, Hebei Province.

As you can see, Cangzhou and Qinghe are actually located in what is now Hebei Province, and they are not too far apart. Let's take a look at the map.

From the map we can see that Qinghe County is located about 250 kilometers southwest of Cangzhou City.

Then let’s see where Yanggu County is.

Yanggu County is located in Liaocheng City, Shandong Province. Let's look at it on the map.

From the map we can see that Yanggu County is located about 130 kilometers south of Qinghe County.

Comparing the three places together, Qinghe County is located in the south of Cangzhou City, and Yanggu County is located in the south of Qinghe County. In other words, Qinghe County is located approximately halfway between Cangzhou City and Yanggu County. Let's take a look at the map.

Obviously, if you follow the normal route from Cangzhou to Qinghe, you don't actually need to pass through Yanggu County. In other words, Wu Song came full circle and took many unnecessary steps.

This is the famous geographical error in Water Margin.

There are many similar mistakes. For example, when Song Jiang was dispatched from Yuncheng County to Jiangzhou, how could he pass by Liangshan? Not on the same line at all.

Why does this error occur? Later generations of research concluded that Shi Naian, the author of Water Margin, was from the south. He was not particularly familiar with the north, so he made many geographical errors. At the same time, we see that in the relevant chapters of Zheng Fangla, the author has never made similar mistakes again. Because the author is from Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

However, this small mistake is harmless and adds a lot of topics for readers to discuss.

One day, Wu Song came out of Chaidaguanren Manor and wanted to go back to Qinghe County to visit his eldest brother Wu Dalang. In the afternoon, Wu Song came to a small shop and said, "Waiter, bring some wine, two Plate of Beef". After a while, the waiter brought the wine and food: "Sir, your wine and food, plus a plate of peanuts." Wu Song ate a large bowl of wine and a large piece of meat. Wu Song was tall and powerful with well-developed limbs, and a bowl of wine would not be enough for him. So he said to the waiter, "Come here, waiter, bring some wine." The waiter brought a bowl of wine, and Wu Song drank it all in one gulp. The waiter stood next to Wu Song and pointed to the small flag outside the door, which read "Three bowls of water are not enough." "What kind of bird is it that three bowls of water are not enough? You are surprised that I have no money to give you." Wu Song took out a flower from the chain. Silver, put it on the table. The waiter said to the waiter, "Just get the wine." Wu Song drank eight bowls of wine in a row. Wu Song, who was full of wine and food, stood up with some staggering and walked out. "Sir, you can't leave here." "Is there anything you can't leave here?" The waiter pointed to a line of words under the banner. Wu Song took a closer look: The Jingyang County Magistrate said: Recently, a tiger was found in Jingyanggang, which kept hurting pedestrians and merchants. He sent people to capture it, but it didn't work. For the safety of pedestrians and merchants, if anyone wants to cross the steel, please Passed by in groups in the afternoon. Wu Song was startled: Jingyang County Magistrate seemed to be right. How can it be good? Just now the waiter complained that the three bowls should not be overdone. If you step back at this time, you will definitely be laughed at. Instead of being laughed at, why not open it yourself and see what the tiger looks like? So, Wu Song was heartbroken, picked up the bag and walked toward Yanggang with a sway.

The scene in Water Margin where Wu Song fights the tiger in Jingyanggang is very satisfying. The original text says that Wu Song was homesick and wanted to go back to Qinghe County to find his brother Wu Dalang. So why did he take a long way to Yanggu County (Jingyanggang)? Boundary?

Why did Wu Song choose the distance instead of the near? I think the reasons may be the following three points. 1. The needs of the plot and the careful planning of the author Shi Naian

"Water Margin" is a novel after all, and all plot arrangements serve to express the characters. In order to make Wu Song's character more vivid and increase the enjoyment of the novel, it is understandable that Shi Naian arranged a scene of a tiger fight in Yanggang.

Just imagine that this tiger hunting scene is arranged in Jingyanggang, which is relatively close to Qinghe County. It seems reasonable and reasonable.

2. Shi Naian is from the south and is not familiar with the geographical location of the north.

From the perspective of Liangshan heroes conquering Fang La, Shi Naian’s description of the south can be said to be exquisite! Especially the geography, mountains, rivers, waterside pavilions and pavilions of Hangzhou are vividly described with few flaws.

On the contrary, his description of the north cannot withstand scrutiny. For example, Lin Chong's description of the cold weather in the north in Yesushan Temple makes one feel that he is not a northerner.

So I think the main reason is Shi Naian's geographical concept error.

3. Wu Song didn’t plan well when he was on the road

If it wasn’t the author’s arrangement or mistake, the reason might be that the protagonist Wu Song was a road idiot. He was anxious to go home to see his brother, but he forgot how to get there as quickly as possible. The route reaches Qinghe County.

I thought of a sentence that I would like to share with you:

You have to lower your head to pull the car hard, but also raise your head to see the road ahead clearly. Let’s encourage everyone.

Wu Song set out from Cangzhou and could have gone straight to Qinghe. However, he mistakenly entered Yanggu, and the tiger hunting scene at Jingyanggang happened. From then on, he became famous and established the title of a great hero. It was just a coincidence. !

As I said, this is just a novel. You must not break the casserole and ask the truth. This is no fun at all. The above is my humble opinion, welcome to interact with me.

END

Ordinary people also have small ways, pay attention to ordinary small ways, and read classic Chinese classics.

Wu Song did not go the wrong way, because Qinghe County in "Water Margin" refers to "Qinghe" County in Shandong, not Qinghe County in Hebei.

However, historically there was no Qinghe County in Shandong. Qinghe County is indeed located in Xingtai, Hebei today. Even so, Wu Song still took the right path. On his way back from Chaijinzhuang to Qinghe County to visit relatives, he had to pass through Jingyanggang in Yanggu County, Shandong.

Why is this? Where is Jingyanggang in "Water Margin"?

The book explains very clearly that the place where Wu Song fought the tiger was in Yanggu County, Dongping Prefecture, Shandong Province. The name of this hill was "Jingyang Gang". This should be certain. But can a tiger be hidden in Jingyanggang?

Many readers question whether Jingyanggang can hide tigers. With the current scene, I don’t think tigers can be hidden. Could it be that the geology has changed now? Maybe Jingyanggang was a high mountain back then.

There is actually no need to discuss this question whether tigers can be hidden in Jingyanggang. Because Shi Naian just borrowed this place name to write another story. So, what kind of other story is hidden in Shi Naian's "Wu Song Fights the Tiger"?

The word "Jingyang" appears in two other stories in "Water Margin" in addition to marking Jingyang Gang where Wu Song fought the tiger. These two stories are about Gao Qiu and Cai Jing requesting Song Huizong to send troops to conquer Liangshan in the early dynasty. There is a description in these two stories: at the fifth watch of the next day, I was waiting for the Jingyang bell to ring in the Tailu Courtyard; at the fifth watch of the next day, the Jingyang bell rang, and all the civil and military officials in the Tailu Courtyard gathered.

It turns out that "Jingyang Gang" in "Water Margin" is here, which is a metaphor for the Forbidden Palace.

Since Jingyanggang is just a borrowed place name, why bother whether Qinghe County is in Shandong or Hebei? Qinghe County should also be a borrowed place name. Like "Jingyanggang", it hides another thing or meaning.

I think, based on the Northern Song Dynasty history hidden in "Water Margin", "Qinghe" means Haiyanheqing. Wu Song killed the tiger in "Jingyanggang", and of course "the world was at peace and everything was fine".

Because it also wrote about the early court meeting, which took place at three o'clock on the third day of the third month of the third year of Jiayou's reign, but Shi Naian did not write "Jingyang bells ring". Although demons later appeared in Song Renzong's dynasty, Shi Naian praised Song Renzong's first twenty-seven years after he took the throne as "the age of three ascendants".

With the different writing methods of the three court meetings, with "Jingyanggang" sandwiched in the middle, the meaning of Qinghe County is self-evident.

The question is, since we have found a place name with the same name as "Jingyang" from Yanggu County, Shandong, why do we have to make up a Qinghe County? Wouldn't Shi Naian not write a real-name place that can also be a metaphor for "peace in the world"?

This matter must start from Yanggu County. Qinghe County in "Water Margin" is a neighboring county to Dongping Prefecture

Shi Naian must be very familiar with the geographical location of Shandong, so there are three details in the book that mention the location of Qinghe County.

Wu Song met Song Jiang at Chai Daguan Renzhuang. When Chai Jin introduced Wu Song to Song Jiang, he said: This person is from Qinghe County. Here, there is no mention of where Qinghe County is. This is Shi Naian's "cunning", a deliberate foreshadowing of Wu Song's later "lost" and leading readers to the hidden story of Jingyanggang's tiger hunt.

Next, Qinghe County was mentioned several times in the book without the state capital. Shi Naian seemed to be emphasizing it repeatedly to remind the reader to pay attention. And when Wu Song took a "detour" to Yanggu County, he was probably stunned by Shi Naian.

Now that he has arrived in Yanggu County, Wu Song no longer "conceals" his place of origin. He told the store owner at the Sanwanbuogang Hotel: I am from Qinghe County. On this Jingyang Gang, I've been through this for ten or twenty times. How often do I see big insects?

Look, Wu Song is from Shandong. When he returns to Qinghe County to visit relatives, he must pass through Jingyanggang in Yanggu County.

After killing the tiger, Wu Song introduced himself to the wealthy households and hunters at the foot of the mountain and said: This villain is from Qinghe County, a neighboring county here... and came back from Cangzhou. The book explains that Yanggu County is in Dongping Prefecture, Shandong Province, and Qinghe County is a county adjacent to Dongping Prefecture. Therefore, even if "Qinghe County" is not located in Shandong, it does not refer to Qinghe County, Hebei.

The magistrate of Yanggu County liked this tiger-fighting hero, so he kept Wu Song as the capital of Yanggu County on the grounds that "although you are originally from Qinghe County, you are only close to me in Yanggu County." head.

By repeatedly writing about the relationship between Qinghe County and Yanggu County, Shi Naian is actually making up a "Qinghe County", which means the same meaning as mentioned above. Moreover, it seems that he was afraid that later readers would not understand the meaning and moved the fictional "Qinghe County" to Hebei, thus wasting all his efforts.

But the problem is that since Shi Naian wrote a real-name Yanggu County, why did he also create a virtual Qinghe County? Why not create another fictitious county and put the unknown Jingyanggang (or it is also fictitious) into this fictitious place?

I’m afraid that’s really not possible. The story of Wu Song’s fight against the tiger is far more than just the “Jingyang Bell Ringing” of the Northern Song Dynasty. "Jingyanggang" is actually in the Bauhinia City of the Ming Dynasty

I have interpreted the story of "Water Margin" in many articles. More importantly, it is a metaphor for the history of the Ming Dynasty, hiding the "Battle of Jingnan" and the The mysterious case of Emperor Jianwen. Among them, the story of "Wu Song kills his sister-in-law" also contains the death of Xu Da and the reduction of vassal status by Emperor Jianwen. Therefore, the story of Wu Song's fight against the tiger must take place in Yanggu County.

Let’s first talk about “Jingyanggang”. In the Ming Dynasty, there was a Jiming Temple near Bauhinia City in Nanjing, and a Jingyang Tower on the top of the Jiming Temple. This building was built in the Southern Song Dynasty and is now part of Jiming Temple. After Zhu Di succeeded in seizing the throne, the prime minister Yao Guangxiao, who instigated the Jingnan Campaign, lived in Jiming Temple.

In "Water Margin", Shi Naian used some characteristics of Lu Zhishen, Wu Song and others to metaphorize Yao Guangxiao. Among them, Wu Song used the two pieces of information of Zaobu Zhiyi and Tiger-faced Walker to correspond to the Prime Minister Yao Guangxiao who "shaped like a sick tiger".

The three words "Jiming Temple" also appeared in "Water Margin". Shi Naian very wonderfully used the dawn rooster to move to Zhujiazhuang in time, which concealed the story of Jingnan. The story of the battle that took place when Zhu Di entered the city hides the mystery of Emperor Jianwen's whereabouts in "Three Attacks on Zhujiazhuang".

I have repeatedly interpreted the metaphor of the "Zhujiazhuang" story, so I will briefly mention it here.

Killing tigers in Jingyanggang was actually "subduing the dragon and subduing the tiger", which alluded to the launch of the Jingnan Campaign. It forms a chain relationship with the story that happened in Yanggu County, and it is followed by the hidden meaning of "cutting down the feudal clan".

Wu Song’s murder of his sister-in-law implies that Emperor Jianwen cut down the vassal vassal. I also interpreted it based on Wang Po’s words that Pan Jinlian was “just ninety-three years old on New Year’s Day”, so I won’t repeat it here. However, when it comes to the question of why Shi Naian wrote "Jingyang Gang" in Yanggu County, we must also mention Ximen Qing in the story of Wu Song's murder of his sister-in-law.

In 1402 AD, Zhu Di led the Jin soldiers from Zhenjiang ("Jiangzhou") Longtan to the city of Nanjing. Zhu Su and Li Jinglong, who were guarding Jinchuan Gate, saw Zhu Di's umbrella cover outside the city, so they opened the city gate to welcome the Yan army into the city.

When Zhu Di entered Nanjing City, the city defenders had already knelt on the roadside and shouted "Long live". This was a premeditated rebellion against Emperor Jianwen. Zhu Su, who opened the Jinchuan Gate, was named King of Valley by Zhu Yuanzhang in 1391.

The King of "Valley", Li "Jing" Long, is probably Shi Naian's Yanggu County and Jingyanggang. Jinchuan Gate is the northwest gate of Nanjing City. Zhu Di entered the city through this gate, and the battle for the throne was declared successful. Isn't it worth celebrating?

This answer can only explain Yanggu County and Jingyanggang in such a concise way. There are other stories in the book that hide these historical secrets.

The Battle of Jingnan lasted for four years. The world lost peace and the people could not be happy. The "Introduction" of "Water Margin" writes about a peaceful world where "people enjoy peace and quiet, and the orioles sleep high all day long". However, the end of the Jingnan Campaign returned to the peaceful world of "sea, rivers and rivers are clear" era.

Judging from the story relationship between Wu Song and Lu Zhishen, Lu Zhishen and Lin Chong, these three people will all appear at the same time to fight against the Jin soldiers in the defense battle of Bianjing because of the prophetic poem "The heroes of the capital will be revealed", presenting a unique situation. The true story of Wu Song's "Tiger Hunting at Jingyanggang".

On his way home to meet his brother Wu Dalang, Wu Song happened to run into a liquor store. Heroes always like to drink, and it happened that the sign of this restaurant said "three bowls are not enough", which aroused Wu Song's competitive mentality. Wu Song simply entered the shop and drank three bowls in a row. Not only did he not get drunk, he continued to ask for wine from the restaurant. The shopkeeper had no choice but to move all the wine to Wu Erlang. He drank eighteen bowls in a row and was still sober. It has to be admired. After drinking, the night was already dark, and Wu Song was eager to go home and ready to set off. At this time, the waiter in the store insisted on stopping Wu Song from going up to the hill, telling him that there were big insects on Jingyang Hill that specialized in eating people. Wu Songcai didn't believe this, thinking that the waiter thought he had eaten a lot of wine in the store and deliberately told stories to scare him. So I took my luggage and went to Jingyanggang without hesitation.

Wu Song walked crookedly towards Jingyanggang. He got a little tired halfway and fell asleep on the stone. He didn't take the waiter's words to heart at all. Just when he was sleeping, a big insect appeared. Maybe God will take care of him. Wu Song suddenly became conscious and immediately calmed down and devoted himself to the battle with the big insect. In the end, he succeeded in killing the big insect and met his brother Wu Dalang by chance in Yanggu County.

This was actually the restriction of Shi Naian's conditions at the time. There may be some geographical deviations, which is completely understandable. Whether it is Shi Naian, Luo Guanzhong or Wu Chengen, they are just literati, and If you are not a geographer, it is normal to be unfamiliar with geographical locations.

In fact, this geographical mistake was also made in "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms". For example, Guan Yu's route of passing five passes and killing six generals is completely illogical based on the modern geographical location.

Pang Tong died in Luofengpo, but in fact there is no such place as Luofengpo. If readers want to take it seriously, they will be in big trouble. Can you say that Mr. Luo didn't think well and got involved?

In the same way, Mr. Shi did not deliberately study the geographical location. In addition, most of the plots of "Water Margin" may come from folk tales, fabrications, or exaggerated or fictionalized historical facts. . The stories of Wu Song, Wu Da, and Pan Jinlian are fictitious and real, so it is understandable that such unrealistic geographical differences will occur, and it will not affect the excitement of the novel.

In addition, at that time, looking at a map was not as convenient as it is now. Now there are electronic maps on the Internet, which can be checked very conveniently.

Another possibility is that the place name has changed? Or are there several places with the same name?

None of the above possibilities are excluded!

There are so many reasons. If you ask for reasons, you should also ask the author. Just like when we write essays, why do we write like that? Just because we write like that, I feel that the score of the essay can be higher. It is as simple as that.

It’s just a novel, there’s no problem if it’s written right or wrong. In Harry Potter, you can walk through walls. Why aren't people passing by surprised? Just read it, don't study it as a formal book.

I drank too much and took the wrong route without navigation.

First, I got lost. Second, I asked for directions without asking for tolls and pointed in the wrong direction.