Yang Zhi

Overview

杨志是《水浒传》中武功一流的梁山好汉，曾与林冲、鲁智深等顶尖高手战成平手。他出身名将世家，是宋朝开国名将杨老令公一脉的后裔，因脸上的青色胎记而人称“青面兽”。杨志的悲剧，在于他一心想凭借自身本领建功立业、重振家门，却屡遭命运捉弄：先是失陷花石纲，继而卖刀误杀牛二，好不容易重新获得机会，押送生辰纲又被晁盖等人智取。杨志拥有一个职业武将应有的武艺、韬略、素养和抱负，却又性格孤傲清高、过于谨慎，不善与人相处。性格的缺陷与命运的捉弄交织在一起，使他一次次被现实击败，最终彻底放弃仕途，只得与鲁智深、武松等人占据二龙山，落草为寇。

Yang Zhi is one of the finest fighters among the Liangshan heroes in Water Margin, capable of battling elite warriors such as Lin Chong and Lu Zhishen to a standstill. Born into a distinguished military family, he is a descendant of the celebrated Yang Linggong line and is nicknamed the “Blue-Faced Beast” for the large blue birthmark on his face. Yang Zhi’s tragedy lies in his persistent desire to win distinction through his own abilities and restore the honor of his family, only to have fate frustrate him again and again. He loses the precious stones intended for the imperial court, accidentally kills Niu Er while trying to sell his sword, and, after finally receiving another opportunity, loses the Birthday Gifts when Chao Gai and his companions outwit his escort. Yang Zhi possesses everything expected of a professional warrior—martial skill, tactical judgment, discipline, and ambition—yet he is also proud, aloof, excessively cautious, and poor at dealing with others. His own character flaws and repeated turns of misfortune combine to defeat him at every step, until he finally abandons his hopes of an official career and joins Lu Zhishen and Wu Song as an outlaw at Mount Erlong.