Ma Lin is a fictional character in the Water Margin

Water Margin

Water Margin , also known as Outlaws of the Marsh, All Men Are Brothers, Men of the Marshes, or The Marshes of Mount Liang, is one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature.Attributed to Shi Nai'an and written in vernacular Chinese, the story, set in the Song Dynasty,...

, one of the Four Great Classical Novels

Four Great Classical Novels

The Four Great Classical Novels, or the Four Major Classical Novels of Chinese literature, are the four novels commonly regarded by scholars to be the greatest and most influential of pre-modern Chinese fiction. Dating from the Ming and Qing dynasties, they are well known to most Chinese readers...

 of Chinese literature

Chinese literature

Chinese literature extends thousands of years, from the earliest recorded dynastic court archives to the mature fictional novels that arose during the Ming Dynasty to entertain the masses of literate Chinese...

. He ranks 67th of the 108 Liangshan heroes and 31st of the 72 Earthly Fiends. He is nicknamed "Iron Flute Deity".

Background

Ma Lin is from Jiankang Prefecture (present-day Nanjing

Nanjing

' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions...

). He is highly-skilled in martial arts and can take on dozens of enemies at the same time. He wields a pair of bronze saber

Dao (sword)

Daois a category of single-edge Chinese swords primarily used for slashing and chopping , often called a broadsword in English translation because some varieties have wide blades. In China, the dao is known as one of the four major weapons, along with the gun , qiang , and the jian , and referred...

s in battle. Ma can also play the flute very well and earns himself the nickname "Iron Flute Deity".

Ma Lin becomes one of the leaders of a group of bandits on Mount Yellow Gate together with Ou Peng

Ou Peng

Ou Peng is a fictional character in the Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. He ranks 48th of the 108 Liangshan heroes and 12th of the 72 Earthly Fiends. He is nicknamed "Golden Wings Brushing Against the Clouds"....

, Tao Zongwang and Jiang Jing

Jiang Jing

Jiang Jing is a fictional character in the Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. He ranks 53rd of the 108 Liangshan heroes and 17th of the 72 Earthly Fiends. He is nicknamed "Divine Mathematician".-Background:...

.

Joining Liangshan

After the outlaws from Liangshan Marsh

Mount Liang

Mount Liang is a mountain in Liangshan County, Shandong province, China which rises to 197.9 m above sea level. It is well known as the stronghold of the 108 legendary Song Dynasty heroes of the classic Chinese novel Water Margin...

 storm the execution ground in Jiangzhou (present-day Jiangxi

Jiangxi

' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...

) and rescue Song Jiang

Song Jiang

Song Jiang was the leader of a group of outlaws who lived during the Song Dynasty. The outlaws were active in the present-day provinces of Shandong and Henan before their eventual surrender to the government. Song Jiang is also featured as a character in the Water Margin, one of the Four Great...

 and Dai Zong, they pass by Mount Yellow Gate on the return journey. The four bandit leaders stop Song Jiang's party and request to join Liangshan. Song Jiang agrees and they follow him back to Liangshan.

Ma Lin participates in many of the campaigns against the enemies of Liangshan and makes great contributions. He disguises himself as a constable and pretends to arrest Li Ying and Du Xing

Du Xing

Du Xing is a fictional character in the Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. He ranks 89th of the 108 Liangshan heroes and 53rd of the 72 Earthly Fiends. He is nicknamed "Demon Face".-Background:...

 and brings them to Liangshan to join the outlaw band as well.

Campaigns and death

Ma Lin becomes one of the leaders of the Liangshan cavalry after the Grand Assembly. He follows the heroes on their campaigns against the Liao

Liao Dynasty

The Liao Dynasty , also known as the Khitan Empire was an empire in East Asia that ruled over the regions of Manchuria, Mongolia, and parts of northern China proper between 9071125...

 invaders and rebel forces after they have been granted amnesty by the emperor. During the Fang La

Fang La

Fang La was a rebel leader who lived during the Song Dynasty. He is also featured as one of the antagonists and nemesis of the 108 Liangshan heroes in Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature.-Biography:...

 campaign, Ma Lin is assigned to attack Black Dragon Ridge. He engages the enemy general Bai Qin in a fight and Bai knocks him off his horse when he is distracted. Shi Bao

Shi Bao (Water Margin)

Shi Bao is a fictional character in the Water Margin, one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. Shi Bao is the South Departing Great General serving under the rebel leader, Fang La, one of the antagonists and enemy of the 108 Liangshan outlaws...

then seizes the opportunity to slice Ma Lin into two when he is down.