Chinese Name: Du Xing

Japanese Name: Kirenji Tokō

Rank: 89th of the 108 Stars of Destiny

Nickname: Demon Face

Du Xing was from Zhongshan Prefecture and is described as having a face so vicious and ugly he received the nickname, “Demon Face”. Du Xing left his home in Zhongshan and moved to Jizhou Prefecture to begin a business venture. When he got into an argument with one of his partners, he went into a fit of rage and killed him. He was arrested and tried, but Yang Xiong (plate 45) gave him a light sentence because he knew he was very skilled at fighting with the lance and the cudgel. Du Xing went on to become the close personal assistant to Li Ying (plate 69), head of the Li Family Village.                                        

The Li Family Village, the Hu Family Village, and the Zhu Family Village were all located around Dulong Ridge which was not far from Liangshan Marsh. Together they formed an alliance with a combined force of 20,000 men to fight against the Liangshan bandits when they would come and demand to borrow grain. The Liangshan bandits got into a dispute with the Zhu Village and in the ensuing conflicts the Zhu and the Hu families were wiped out.

The Li Family Village had remained neutral and when the fighting was over, Song Jiang (plate 107) wanted the Li Family to join with them. He sent men disguised as government officials to arrest Li Ying, accusing him of having colluded with the bandits. Li Ying and Du Xing were taken away, and Song Jiang and a group of Liangshan bandits intercepted them and chased away the fake officials. Song Jiang pointed out to the two men, that the court would not believe they hadn’t been involved with the Liangshan bandits. When Li Ying and Du Xing expressed concern about their families, they were informed their families had all been brought to the stronghold, and their village had been burned to the ground as further inducement for them to become part of their legions—Li Ying and Du Xing decided it was in their best interest to join the outlaw group. 

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Du Xing is shown here from a scene later in the novel when the Liangshan bandits rescue Shi Jin (plates 1; 4; 9) and Lu Zhishen (plate 6; 10) from Governor He of the Hua Prefecture (see plate 61 for story details). Du Xing raises a giant bell above his head as he is about to crush one of the governor’s men to death.

Kuniyoshi recreation