Tong Wei is a fictional character in ''

Water Margin ''Water Margin'' (), also called ''Outlaws of the Marsh'' or ''All Men Are Brothers'', is a Chinese novel from the Ming dynasty that is one of the preeminent Classic Chinese Novels. Attributed to Shi Nai'an, ''Water Margin'' was one of the e ...

'', one of the

Four Great Classical Novels Classic Chinese Novels () are the best-known works of literary fiction across pre-modern Chinese literature. The group usually includes the following works: Ming dynasty novels '' Romance of the Three Kingdoms'', '' Water Margin'', ''Journey to t ...

Chinese literature The history of Chinese literature extends thousands of years, and begins with the earliest recorded inscriptions, court archives, building to the major works of philosophy and history written during the Axial Age. The Han dynasty, Han (202 ...

. Nicknamed "

Dragon A dragon is a Magic (supernatural), magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but European dragon, dragons in Western cultures since the Hi ...

Emerging from a Cave", he ranks 68th 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 ...

and 32nd among the 72 Earthly Fiends.

Background

Living at Jieyang Ridge (揭陽嶺; believed to be in present-day

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

Jiangxi ; Gan: ) , translit_lang1_type2 = , translit_lang1_info2 = , translit_lang1_type3 = , translit_lang1_info3 = , image_map = Jiangxi in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_caption = Location ...

) near the Xunyang River with his younger brother Tong Meng, Tong Wei is a very good swimmer and could fight in water. The brothers are sidekicks of salt smuggler Li Jun, assisting him in his illegal activity on the river.

Joining Liangshan

When

Song Jiang Song Jiang was a Chinese historical figure who led an armed rebellion against the ruling Song dynasty, Song Dynasty in the early 12th century. His band marauded over a region straddling the present-day Chinese provinces of Shandong and Henan. Th ...

is on his way to exile in Jiangzhou (江州; present-day

), a reduced sentence for killing his mistress Yan Poxi, he passes by Jieyang Ridge with his two escorts and stops to eat at Li Li's inn. Li knocks them out with his drugged wine. Just as Li waits for his men to come help cut up the three, Li Jun and the Tong brothers come to the inn for some refreshments. Li Jun finds the official document on the guards which confirms the exile is Song Jiang. Li Jun in fact has been waiting at the Xunyang River in the hopes of meeting Song, whom he admires for his chivalry. Li Li immediately revives Song Jiang. They treat Song as an honoured guest until he leaves for Jiangzhou. Song Jiang later offends the Mu brothers (

Mu Hong Mu Hong (; born December 1956) is a Chinese economist and official, who is currently a vice chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. He has also been serving since 2014 as the executive deputy director of the Offic ...

and Mu Chun) in the nearby Jieyang Town. While being pursued by the Mus, he boards the boat of the pirate boatman

Zhang Heng Zhang Heng (; AD 78–139), formerly romanization of Chinese, romanized Chang Heng, was a Chinese polymathic scientist and statesman who lived during the Han dynasty#Eastern Han (25–220 AD), Eastern Han dynasty. Educated in the capital citi ...

. Midway across the river, Zhang wants to kill and rob the three. Just then Li Jun and the Tong brothers who were passing by in their boat are able to save Song in the nick of time. Surprised to hear that the fellow is Song Jiang, Zhang offer his apologies. In Jiangzhou Song Jiang is arrested and sentenced to death for writing a seditious poem on a wall in a restaurant. The outlaws from

Liangshan Marsh Mount Liang 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''. The modern Liangshan County i ...

rush to Jiangzhou and save him just when he is going to be beheaded. But are stranded at a river bank. In the meantime, friends whom Song Jiang made at the Jieyang region, led by Li Jun and including Tong Wei, are sailing to Jiangzhou to rescue him. They come upon the group and ferry them to safety. Together they head to Liangshan, where Tong Wei becomes one of the chieftains.

Campaigns

Tong Wei is appointed as one of the leaders of Liangshan's

flotilla A flotilla (from Spanish, meaning a small ''flota'' ( fleet) of ships), or naval flotilla, is a formation of small warships that may be part of a larger fleet. Composition A flotilla is usually composed of a homogeneous group of the same cla ...

after the

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

Song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...

territory following amnesty from Emperor Huizong.for Liangshan. The Tong brothers and Li Jun make significant contributions in the capture of the city of

Suzhou Suzhou is a major prefecture-level city in southern Jiangsu province, China. As part of the Yangtze Delta megalopolis, it is a major economic center and focal point of trade and commerce. Founded in 514 BC, Suzhou rapidly grew in size by the ...

in the campaign against

Fang La Fang La (; died 1121) was a Chinese rebel leader who led an uprising against the Song dynasty. In the classical novel ''Water Margin'', he is fictionalised as one of the primary antagonists and nemeses of the 108 Stars of Destiny. He is sometim ...

, The Tong brothers are among the Liangshan heroes who survive the campaigns. When the remaining Liangshan heroes are returning to the imperial capital Dongjing to receive rewards, Li Jun feigns illness and requests that the Tong brothers stay to take care of him. They are never seen again. It is said that Li Jun, the Tong brothers and some friends whom they made at

Lake Tai Taihu (), also known as Lake Tai or Lake Taihu, is a lake in the Yangtze Delta and the third largest freshwater lake in China. The lake is in Jiangsu province and a significant part of its southern shore forms its border with Zhejiang. With ...

headed to the port city of

Taicang Taicang is a county-level city under the jurisdiction of Suzhou, Jiangsu province, China. The city located in the south of the Yangtze River estuary opposite Nantong, being bordered by Shanghai proper to the south, while the river also delineates ...

where they sailed into the open sea. They arrived in

Siam Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

, where Li Jun became king and the Tong brothers his high officials.

References

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tong, Wei 72 Earthly Fiends Fictional characters from Jiangxi