49: Sun Xin: Isaac Nichols
49: Sun Xin: Isaac Nichols
11” x 14”
Sumi Ink on Washi Paper
Name: Sun Xin
Japanese Name: Shō’utsuchi Sonshin
Rank: 100th of the 108 Stars of Destiny
Nickname: Little Yuchi
Sun Xin is described as being a very powerful man; he was highly skilled with the iron club and the spear. He and his wife Gu Dasao, (plate 50) ran an inn outside the east gate of Dengzhou.
The Xie brothers (plates 75; 100) had been tasked with hunting and killing the tigers in Dengzhou. If they succeeded they would be rewarded, and if they failed they would be punished. They killed a tiger with a poisoned arrow, and it rolled down the hillside and into the garden of Squire Mao. When they tried to retrieve it, Squire Mao insisted his son had been the one to kill the tiger, and he would take it in for the reward. The Xie brothers angrily trashed the Mao home but were seized by the servants and taken to the Yamen for trial. They were held at the prison, and Squire Mao, not wanting any further trouble with the Xie brothers, bribed the warden to have them killed.
Sun Xin was enlisted by his wife to help rescue her cousins, the Xie brothers (see plate 47 for more story details). The rescue was a success, and several members of the team then made their way to Squire Mao’s home, looted his property, and killed him and his son. They met up with the remainder of their comrades, and the group made their way to Liangshan without delay to seek refuge and join the army of outlaws at Liangshan Marsh.
Sun Xin is depicted here with his steel club.
Isaac Nichols original