Chinese Name: Guan Sheng 

Japanese Name: Daitō Kanshō

Rank: 5th of the 108 Stars of Destiny  

Nickname: Great Halberd 

Guan Sheng was a descendant of, and closely resembled in appearance, the famous general Guan Yu. Guan Sheng was very knowledgeable of military lore, and was highly skilled in the use of several weapons, though he primarily fought with a crescent shaped halberd.

Guan Sheng had been in command of a police force in Pudong. Xuan Zan (plate 71) knew of his excellent military prowess and recommended to Prime Minister Cai Jing that he be called upon to help protect the city of Daming against the Liangshan bandits. The Liangshan forces had been sieging the city to rescue Lu Junyi (plate 68) from execution, and the imperial forces had been losing the battle. The Prime Minister agreed, and Guan Sheng was assigned the task of fighting the brigand army. Guan Sheng appointed his sworn brother Hao Siwen (plate 74), as well as Xuan Zan, as his lieutenants. 

Guan Sheng decided to attack the stronghold at Liangshan Marsh, forcing the bandits to abandon their campaign against Daming in order to defend their territory. The tactic worked and Song Jiang (plate 107) pulled a large faction of the Liangshan army back to defend their home base. 

In between the clashes of the two armies, Huyan Zhuo (plate 55) went secretly to Guan Sheng and told him he wanted to defect from the Liangshan army and return to fight for the empire. He then led Guan Sheng and his men on a night raid to attack Song Jiang’s camp. When they arrived, the camp was empty and Huyan Zhuo vanished. Guan Sheng realized he’d been deceived, but there was no escape. Liangshan soldiers sprang from their various hiding places and Guan Sheng and his men were surrounded. Caught with hooked poles, he was pulled from his horse and bound with rope. Hao Siwen and Xuan Zan were captured as well, and all three were taken to the Liangshan stronghold. Once there, Song Jiang welcomed them and invited them to join with their legions. Moved by Song Jiang’s kindness and respect (as well as being too disgraced to return to Daming), Guan Sheng, Hao Siwen, Xuan Zan, and their troops, joined with the bandits of Liangshan Marsh. 

Kuniyoshi recreation