Wu Dalang, a native of Wujiana Village, Qinghe County, Hebei Province, was born in poverty, but brilliant. Middle-aged scholar, he became the county magistrate of yanggu county. It is worth mentioning that Wuzhi, the county magistrate of yanggu county in Yongle period of Ming Dynasty (1403- 1424), can't be the Wu Dalang prototype written by Shi Naian who died three years after Hongwu's death.
Wu Dalang, a fictional supporting role in the classic Water Margin, is a new character compiled by Shi Naian according to the stories of Song Wu described in The Unknown Story of the Great Song Dynasty in Yuan Dynasty and the Walker described in Song Wu and Song Jiang's Thirty-six Zans (both of which are regarded as the prototype or blueprint of Water Margin). According to Zhejiang tongzhi.
Historical events in Wu Dalang:
Wu Zhi was poor in his early years and was supported by his good friend Huang Tang. After Wu Zhi became an official, Huang Tang's house caught fire. He went to Wu Zhi in the hope of getting an official position. Unexpectedly, he lived in the Wu family for three months, drinking good wine and food every day, but he never saw support. Huang Tang was dissatisfied.
In order to vent his resentment, Huang Tang fabricated and publicized rumors about Wu Pan on his way home, and posted leaflets to fabricate the "scandal" of Wu Pan and his wife. Ximen Qing, a local villain, was in cahoots with him, adding fuel to the fire.
But when Huang Tang came home, he found that a new house had been built at home. His wife told him that it was made by Wu Zhi. Huang Tang was remorseful, but the ugly image of Mr. and Mrs. Wu Pan, which he fabricated, had already caused a sensation in all directions, and was written into the novel Water Margin by Shi Naian.
Reference to the above content: Baidu Encyclopedia-Wu Dalang