Yang Xiong is a fictional character in Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels in Chinese literature. Nicknamed "Sick Guan Suo", he ranks 32nd among the 36 Heavenly Spirits, the first third of the 108 Stars of Destiny. Background Good-looking with thick eyebrows, eyes like those of a fenghuang and a sparse beard on his chin, Yang Xiong, whose body is covered with tattoos of flowers, resembles Guan Suo but has a pale complexion. He is thus nicknamed "Sick Guan Suo". Guan Suo is a character in Chinese folklore said to be the son of Guan Yu of the Three Kingdoms era and imaged to look like his father. A skilled fighter from Henan, Yang Xiong works as a chief prison warden and executioner in Jizhou (薊州; present-day Ji County, Tianjin). Killing his adulteress wife One day, after beheading a criminal, Yang Xiong is showered with gifts from grateful onlookers as he makes his way back to his office through a busy street. A group of hooligans intent on snatching away the gifts suddenly spring on and restrain him, catching him off-guard. Shi Xiu, who is stranded in Jizhou and happens to come by carrying firewood which he sells for a living, rushes to his aid. The two together drive away the thugs. Yang is grateful to Shi Xiu and requests they become sworn brothers. Yang Xiong invites Shi Xiu to live with him and sets up a meat shop for him to run. Shi Xiu is sharp-eyed and soon detects that Yang's wife Pan Qiaoyun is having a secret affair with the monk Pei Ruhai. He informs Yang Xiong about it. However, Yang goes to dine with his colleagues after the tip-off and in a drunken state chastises his wife for being unchaste when he gets home. He forgets the scolding the next day, which allows the woman to turn the table on Shi Xiu before Yang questions her. She lies that she has rejected Shi's advances, inducing Yang to conclude that Shi has bad-mouthed her so as to save himself. Believing his wife, Yang signals to Shi that their ties are severed by closing the meat shop. Knowing he has been maligned, Shi is determined to clear his name. One night, Shi Xiu ambushes and kills Pei Ruhai in a deserted lane outside Yang Xiong's house when the monk is leaving it after a tryst with