Explored the relationship between literature and history, emphasizing that literature deconstructs history through creativity and freedom, and that the combination of fiction and historical facts in historical novels has equal value. Miyazaki Shiding's interpretation of "Water Margin" reflects his profound understanding of the relationship between fiction and historical facts. He analyzes it from five aspects: verifying the process of version establishment, proposing the "Two Song Rivers" hypothesis, exploring political systems, analyzing family life descriptions, and examining historical facts through character images. These interpretations demonstrate how Miyazaki combines literature with history, reality with fiction, and provides multidimensional perspectives for history.

1、 The 'Scars' of Water Margin: Version Verification

Miyazaki City proposed in his research on "Water Margin" that there are unnatural parts in multiple versions of the novel, namely "scars", which reflect the process of the novel's establishment. He inferred that the original version of the novel may be a hundred chapter version by analyzing the plot repetition and character configuration of "Water Margin", and subsequent versions were edited or supplemented based on this. Miyazaki Ichiro believes that the "scars" in the novel, such as the plot of the expedition to Liao and the shaping of character images, are intended to increase the fun of the story and conform to the fun of historical novels. He also suggested that the book "Water Margin" may have been written no earlier than 1592, based on an adaptation of the events in Changtai County during the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty. However, Chen Qijia and Wang Qizhou criticized Miyazaki Shiding's hypothesis, arguing that it relied too heavily on literature research and ignored the research results and historical context of Chinese scholars. They suggested combining literature and communication studies to comprehensively explore the early dissemination and writing period of "Water Margin".

2、 Two Song Rivers: Historical Facts in Fiction

Miyazaki proposed the viewpoint of "two Song rivers" in his research on "Water Margin", believing that there were two Song rivers with the same name in history, one was a bandit and the other was an official army. He found through analyzing historical materials such as "Outline of the Ten Dynasties of the Imperial Song Dynasty", "History of the Song Dynasty", and "Qingxi Kou Gui" that the recorded activities of Song Jiang during the Xuanhe period of the Northern Song Dynasty were extremely short and contradictory. Miyazaki City used the newly discovered "Compilation of Historical Materials on the Three Peasant Revolutions in the Song Dynasty" to further confirm that the bandit Song Jiang and the official army Song Jiang were not the same person. He pointed out that the reasons why people confuse the two Song Jiang names include the universality of Song Jiang's name, issues with the arrangement of the "History of Song", excessive trust in the "Xuanhe Yishi", and misleading wording in the "History of Song". Miyazaki's viewpoint has caused different reactions in the academic community, with some scholars expressing agreement and others questioning it. His research has driven a rethinking of the characters and historical facts of Song Jiang.

3、 Realistic Official System: Xuli and Subordinate Officers

Miyazaki City delved into the Song Dynasty's official and military systems while studying "Water Margin," and believed that the changes in the Song Dynasty's official system had a transformative significance for the development of ancient Chinese institutions. He pointed out that before the Song Dynasty, aristocratic politics collapsed due to the separation of nobility and land, and imperial examination bureaucrats gradually replaced aristocratic bureaucrats. The clan system for appointing officials was transformed into the individualistic imperial examination system for literati, which provided opportunities for the poor class to rise. The official system of the Song Dynasty formed a pyramid shaped autocratic monarchy, with local officials divided into 25 branches, including the capital transfer commissioner, the left behind department, and the prefectural military supervisor. The administrative center of the county yamen was composed of six rooms, and the petty officials were the last group of administrative institutions. The depiction of the image of Song Jiang and other petty officials in "Water Margin" is close to historical facts and reflects the special status of petty officials between the government and the people. The military system of the Song Dynasty was mainly composed of the Forbidden Army and the Xiang Army. The Forbidden Army was the Imperial Guard's side, while the Xiang Army was a non combat unit that had not received military training. The official positions and responsibilities of characters such as Gao Qiu, Lu Zhishen, and Lin Chong in "Water Margin" are consistent with historical facts. Miyazaki Ichiro also pointed out that there are some parts of the description of official positions in "Water Margin" that are inconsistent with historical facts, but as a literary novel, its depiction of the world of petty officials and junior officers still has certain historical value.

4、 The Difference between Interior and Exterior: Water Margin and Jiangnan Folk Houses

Miyazaki City decided to conduct research on "Water Margin" and found that the design of the houses in the suburbs of Shanghai was similar to the layout of the houses in "Water Margin" through on-site investigation. It is speculated that the author may have used Jiangnan houses as a creative blueprint. Miyazaki provided a detailed description of the structure and functions of buildings in Jiangnan, such as halls, kitchens, and interiors, and contrasted it with the plot of the novel, such as the interaction between Song Jiang and Yan Poxi, and the living environment of Wu Song and Wu Dalang. Miyazaki also explored the concept of "distinction between interior and exterior" in the novel, pointing out that it reflects the traditional Chinese concept of "ritual", that is, the distinction between interior and exterior space and the association of gender roles. Through these verifications, Miyazaki revealed the realism of the public housing in "Water Margin" and its close connection with ancient Chinese daily life and cultural traditions.

5、 Loyalty and Rebellion: A Study of Water Margin Characters

Miyazaki City explores the relationship between the novel and historical facts by analyzing the characters in "Water Margin: Historical Facts in Fiction". He divided the characters in the novel into two categories: historical reality and fiction, and through comparative analysis, revealed the historical background and social landscape in the novel. Miyazaki Shiding believed that Emperor Huizong's extravagant lifestyle and political corruption were important reasons for the downfall of the Northern Song Dynasty, while the Fangla Uprising reflected the dissatisfaction of society and the influence of religious organizations at that time. Although the image of Song Jiang in "Water Margin" has historical prototypes, many of the plots are fictional, reflecting the author and readers' different understandings of loyalty, righteousness, and rebellion. The fictional characters in the novel, such as Lu Zhishen, Lin Chong, Dai Zong, and Li Kui, embody the people's longing for heroes and their dissatisfaction with reality. Miyazaki emphasized that when reading "Water Margin," one should pay attention to the characters' interpersonal relationships and loyalty, and understand the historical and social significance behind the novel.

6、 Between Reality and Reality: The Relationship between Literature and History

Explored the relationship between literature and history, pointing out that fictional character images often reflect a longing for things that cannot be realized in reality. Miyazaki Ichiro believes that "Water Margin" conveys the author's ideas through fictional characters, and its ending reflects Taoist values and the common beliefs of the people at that time. Historical novels, while omitting narration, cannot completely ignore historical facts and require both authors and critics to have a sense of history. Miyazaki Ichiro commented on the literary color of "Water Margin" from a historical perspective, believing that it presents the authenticity of history and reflects the author's contemplation of history. He used the method of historical research to interpret the versions, characters, official system, and society of "Water Margin", providing historical narrative explanations for literary works. This historical narrative has a propositional nature and helps to construct complete historical facts. Literary novels spread historical background and knowledge through creative and flexible narrative techniques, which is beneficial for the popularization of history. In his later years, Miyazaki's historical research underwent a slight shift from traditional political history to micro history that focused on daily life, which may have been influenced by the Western historical trends of the 1960s and 1970s. He pays attention to the daily lives of individuals and ordinary people, believing that there is a way and truth in ordinary daily life. Miyazaki City will study "Water Margin" from a historical perspective, paying attention to its literary nature and boldly observing the lives of ordinary people. He integrated history and literature within the scope of historical narrative, focusing on the mutual influence and composition of fiction and historical facts, history and narrative, providing methodological thinking and inspiration for interdisciplinary research.