Chinese Name: Hou Jian

Name: Tsūhien Kōken

Rank: 71st among the 108 Stars of Destiny

Nickname: Nimble Monkey

Hou Jian was from Hongdu and a tailor by trade. Thin, light, and nimble, he was a student of Xue Yong’s (plate 33) who skillfully tutored him in the use of the staff and spear. Hou Jian had been hired to work in Wuweijun village at the house of the government official, Huang Wenbing. Huang Wenbing was an opportunistic ladder-climber who consistently went out of his way to hurt others, especially when it improved his station. He was known by the people of his village as, “Stinging Wasp”. One day he found a seditious poem, signed by a drunken Song Jiang (plate 107), written on the wall of a restaurant. Huang Wenbing reported it to his superiors, and Song Jiang was sentenced to death for harboring treasonous sentiments.

When the Liangshan bandits got word of Song Jiang’s impending execution, they mounted a rescue mission to save him (see plates 34; 36 for details). The mission was carried out successfully, and Song Jiang sought revenge on Huang Wenbing. Xue Yong had been part of the rescue mission and suggested he should persuade Hou Jian to help them sneak into Huang Wenbing’s home. Hou Jian agreed, and with his help, Song Jiang and his comrades broke into Huang Wenbing’s house and killed fifty of his servants and family members—but, Huang Wenbing was not there.  

The bandits set fire to his house which quickly began spreading to the village. Huang Wenbing saw the fire, hurriedly made his way home, and was spotted by the bandits and captured. He was tied to a willow tree where Li Kui (plates 36; 81; 107) slowly cut him to pieces, roasting his flesh as it was sliced from his body—Liangshan’s men drank wine and devoured him bit by bit. Finally, they removed his heart and boiled it as a hangover remedy. 

Hou Jian was inducted into the ranks of Liangshan’s legions and he and his fellow bandits returned to their stronghold at Liangshan Marsh.

*. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *. *

As the saga of the Liangshan bandits continued, Song Jiang and his legions were granted amnesty by the Emperor. To prove their merit they were sent to battle the rebel leader Fang La; he had amassed his own large bandit army, taken control of several prefectures, and appointed himself king of the region. 

In the midst of the altercation, Hou Jian was on a boat captained by Ruan Xiaoqi (plate 21) attempting to go inland up a river. However, the wind and tide carried them out to sea where the ship was capsized by a large wave. Hou Jian as well as Duan Jingzhu (plate 66) both drowned as neither could swim.  

Hou Jian is depicted here standing at the bow of the ship as it is overturned into the sea.

Isaac Nichols original