Qin Ming

Qin Ming (秦明) is a character in the Chinese literary classic "Water Margin". He was one of the highest ranking compatriots of Song Jiang and one of the 36 Heavenly Spirits.

Before he joined the Liangshan heroes however, he was formally a commander of the Qingzhou troops serving the Imperial Court. Nicknamed 'the Thunderbolt' (霹雳火), or 'the Thunderclap', and famed for his almost barbaric temper (which is continuously and repeatedly emphasized over the course of the novel) and thunderous voice, Qin Ming was peerless in the use of the toothed-mace and even the great Zhang Qing found him a handful. Respected for his strong sense of loyalty and bravery, it was the latter that would cost him his life when he was killed in the battle against Fang La.

Prior to joining Liangshan

In the beginning chapters of the tale, when Qin heard that Hua Rong from Qingfeng Fort had rebelled, he was furious and volunteered to lead his troops against the bandits from Qingfeng Mountain. Qin and Hua Rong fought for a long time, but none of them could gain the advantage. Hua feigned defeat and retreated, while Qin made a turn around the mountain, and fell into an ambush and was captured by Song Jiang and Hua Rong. Song tried to persuade him to surrender and join them, but Qin politely refused and stayed overnight on Qingfeng Mountain.

The next day when Qin Ming returned to Qingzhou, Governor Murong of Qingzhou reprimanded him, claiming that Qin rebelled and had led his troops last night to attack Qingzhou, so Murong killed Qin Ming's whole family for his rebellion and hung their bodies outside the city walls. In fact, it was Song Jiang who had secretly ordered the bandits to disguise themselves as Qin Ming's troops, and launched an attack on Qingzhou last night, thus sealing Qin's return route. Qin Ming was thus forced to join Song Jiang. Almost as a peace offering, Hua Rong's younger sister was married to him.

Qin rode alone to Qingfeng Fort and persuaded Huang Xin to join the Liangshan heroes. Huang agreed and opened the gates of the Fort, allowing Song Jiang and the bandits to enter. Once inside, Song Jiang sought revenge on Liu Gao who had repaid kindness with evil by framing Song Jiang earlier in the tale. Liu Gao and his family were killed and then the Qingfeng bandits joined Song Jiang on the way to Liangshan.

At Liangshan

Qin Ming eventually became one of the five tiger generals of the Liangshan cavalry and 36 Heavenly Chieftains, and managed to gain his revenge on Governor Murong later on. Qin followed the heroes through many famous skirmishes against villages and the imperial government and enjoyed tremendous success.

In the later chapters, when Song successfully sought the amnesty, the heroes were drafted to fight off the invading Liao Tartars and subdue the other rebels such as Tian Hu, Wang Qing and Fang La. In the end, when Qin Ming was attacking Qingxi prefecture during the calamitous Fang La campaign, he and Fang Jie had a fierce fight. Du Wei threw his flying daggers at Qin Ming; Qin dodged the daggers but was speared by Fang Jie when he was not looking and fell from his horse and died.

Films and TV adaptations

In the 1997 TV serial from Mainland China based on the novel, Qin Ming was played by Wang Wensheng. In the serial, Qin Ming was captured in an ambush during the Zhu Family Village Campaign. Also, he did not die in the manner as described in the novel, but was caught in a net and died under dozens of enemy arrows fired at him during the Fang La campaign.