page_title: Song Jiang
section_title: As chief of Liangshan
hierarchical_section_title: Song Jiang / Exile to Jiangzhou / As chief of Liangshan
caption_attribution_description: 清明上河図/清明上河图
context_page_description: Song Jiang was the leader of a band of robbers who marauded over a region straddling the present-day provinces of Shandong and Henan some time in the middle period of the Song dynasty. They finally surrendered to the government. The historical Song Jiang was turned into a fictional character in Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels in Chinese literature, in which he is depicted as the leader of the 108 Stars of Destiny, who gather as bandits in Shandong's Liangshan Marsh.
context_section_description: Song Jiang goes home to fetch his father and Song Qing to Liangshan. But news of his return leaks and constables come after him. Fleeing, Song stumbles into the temple of a goddess and hides in a closet. Falling into a nap, he dreams of meeting the goddess, who gives him three heavenly books which she says would guide him in his leadership of Liangshan. He wakes up to find himself holding the three books. 
  In almost every of Liangshan's military conflicts, Song Jiang is the commander. He leads the three offensives on the Zhu Family Manor, the attack on Gaotangzhou to save Chai Jin, the fight against Huyan Zhuo's attempt to stamp out Liangshan, the battle at Qingzhou which ends with absorption of three strongholds, the effort to rescue Shi Jin and Lu Zhishen at Huazhou, the engagement with Fan Rui at Mount Mangdang, the assault on Daming to save Lu Junyi and Shi Xiu, the face-off against Guan Sheng, and the expedition against the Zeng Family Fortress to avenge the death of Chao Gai. Chao is killed in action when he, for the first time heading a military force, battles with the Zeng Family Fortress. Song Jiang becomes Liangshan's acting chief pending the capture of Chao's killer Shi Wengong. Chao has left word that whoever seizes his killer would succeed him. Although it is Lu Junyi who catches Shi, in the end Song Jiang becomes the chief of Liangshan. That comes after he beat Lu in a contest in which they agreed whoever overran the prefecture assigned to him first would be made chief. Song conquered Dongping first while Lu stalled in his effort to take Dongchang.  
  Although his crimes are egregious and he is regarded as a colossal threat by the government, Song Jiang harbours the wish to serve the Song Empire. He crafts a slogan "Deliver Justice on Heaven's behalf" (替天行道)" to signal that Liangshan is committed to just causes and is led by people loyal to the emperor. After many attempts, including enlisting the help of Li Shishi, a courtesan patronised by Emperor Huizong, Song Jiang finally wins amnesty for Liangshan. But the emperor sends them on a series of expeditions against invaders from the Liao Empire and rebel forces in Song territory to prove their loyalty. The last of these, which is against the rebel Fang La, is highly costly, with at least two thirds of the 108 heroes killed in action or by disease.
caption: A stone statue of Song Jiang at Hengdian World Studios.
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