| Chen Da | |
|---|---|
| Water Margin character | |
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| First appearance | Chapter 2 |
| Nickname | "Stream Leaping Tiger" 跳澗虎 |
| Rank | 72nd,Complete Star (地周星) of the 72 Earthly Fiends |
| Tiger Cub Scouting General of Liangshan | |
| Origin | Bandit leader from Mount Shaohua |
| Ancestral home / Place of origin | Ye (present-dayHandan,Hebei) |
| Weapon | Ironspear |
| Names | |
| Simplified Chinese | 陈达 |
| Traditional Chinese | 陳達 |
| Pinyin | Chén Dá |
| Wade–Giles | Ch'en Ta |
Chen Da is a fictional character inWater Margin, one of theFour Great Classical Novels ofChinese literature. Nicknamed "Stream Leaping Tiger", he ranks 72nd among the108 Stars of Destiny and 36th among the 72 Earthly Fiends.
Chen Da is depicted as impatient and hot-tempered with a loud booming voice. Nicknamed "Stream Leaping Tiger", he fights well with an ironspear.
Originally fromYe (present-dayHandan,Hebei), Chen Da is one of the three bandit chiefs at Mount Shaohua (少華山; southeast of present-dayHua County, Shaanxi), ranked second betweenZhu Wu andYang Chun. The three would plunder the nearby counties when their grain stock runs low for replenishment.
One day Chen Da suggests raiding the well-stockedHuayin County for grain as the stronghold is facing insufficiency. But Zhu Wu objects, warning that the route to Huayin runs past the Shi Family Village where he might encounter the formidable fighterShi Jin. Dismissing Zhu as cowardly, Chen Da leads some men towards Huayin.
Just as Zhu Wu has foreseen, Shi Jin blocks the path of Chen Da and captures him in a one-on-one horseback combat. Upon hearing that, Zhu Wu goes with Yang Chun to plead with Shi Jin to arrest them as well so that they can fulfil their oath of dying together. Moved by their bond, Shi Jin frees Chen Da and befriends the three. Henceforth, the two sides often exchange gifts and visit each other for drink.
One day a hunter finds a reply letter from Mount Shaohua on a servant of Shi Jin, who has fallen drunk in a grove after an errand to invite the outlaws to attend a feast at his master's house. The matter is reported to the authorities, which sends an arrest party to Shi's house on the night of the gathering. Finding his manor besieged, Shi Jin burns it down and fights his way out with the bandit chiefs. They get to Mount Shaohua safely, where Shi Jin becomes the chief after failing to locate his teacher Wang Jin inWeizhou.
Shi Jin tries to save a woman abducted by Governor He ofHua Prefecture, or Huazhou, but falls into the latter's trap and is captured.Lu Zhishen, who has come to invite Shi Jin to join theLiangshan Marsh, tries to rescue him but also falls into He's ambush. The Mount Shaohua outlaws turn toLiangshan for help. At Huazhou, the force from Liangshan lures He out of the city and kills him. After Shi and Lu are rescued, the Mount Shaohua bandits, including Chen Da, are absorbed into Liangshan.
Chen Da is appointed as one of the leaders of the Liangshan cavalry after the108 Stars of Destiny came together in what is called the Grand Assembly. He participates in the campaigns against theLiao invaders and rebel forces onSong territory following amnesty fromEmperor Huizong for Liangshan.
In the attack on Yuling Pass (昱嶺關; near present-day Zhupu Village,She County, Anhui) in the campaign againstFang La, Chen Da, Shi Jin and four other heroes face the enemy generalPang Wanchun. Pang kills Shi Jin with a shot while his archers rain arrows on Chen and the rest, killing all of them.