Nai'an Shi

Shi Nai'an is the traditional name attached to Water Margin (Shuihu zhuan), one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. He is generally placed in the late Yuan and early Ming period, but surviving evidence about his life is sparse, and many details repeated in later accounts are hard to verify.

Because the historical record is so thin, scholars often describe him cautiously rather than with confidence on every biographical point. What has lasted most clearly is his literary reputation: Water Margin became one of the great landmarks of Chinese fiction, celebrated for its vivid storytelling, outlaw heroes, and lasting influence on later literature and popular culture.

For many readers, that mix of mystery and importance is part of his appeal. He stands as a figure at the edge of history and legend, associated with a book that helped shape the Chinese novel as generations of readers came to know it.