Background
Zhang Qing is from Mengzhou, Jiaozuo, Henan. The novel describes him as a man with a weird looking face and thin facial hair. He used to work as a gardener in Guangming Monastery. He has a violent quarrel with the monks and kills them in a fit of anger and burns down the monastery. He goes to Cross Slope and becomes an outlaw there.
One day, he attempts to rob an old man but the man defeats him in a fight. The old man recognises Zhang Qing's interest in martial arts and accepts him as his disciple. Zhang Qing marries the old man's daughter, Sun Erniang. The couple run a tavern at Cross Slope. They lure unwary travelers into their tavern for drinks and knock them out using drugs. They kill their victims and rob them of their valuables. They also make meat buns with human flesh fillings from their victims and serve them to customers. Zhang Qing travels around the area and mingles with other pugilists. He earns himself the nickname "Gardener".
Read more about this topic: Zhang Qing (Gardener)
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