The Song court commandeers men like Meng Kang, who is an expert in building boats, to construct sailing vessels for the purpose of transporting rare plants and rocks from all over the empire to the capital Dongjing (東京; present-day Kaifeng, Henan) to decorate an imperial park.
He subsequently joins Deng Fei, who leads a bandit gang at Yinma River (飲馬川; in present-day Ji County, Tianjin).
Later they make Pei Xuan, an upright magistrate's clerk who has been framed by his corrupt superiors and whom they incidentally rescued when he was escorted past Yinma River in his exile to a distant island, their leader.
When Dai Zong and Yang Lin are searching for Gongsun Sheng around Jizhou, who has left Liangshan Marsh to visit his mother, they come by Yinma River.
In the attack on Black Dragon Ridge (烏龍嶺; northeast of present-day Meicheng Town, Jiande, Zhejiang) in the campaign against Fang La, Meng Kang is trapped by the enemy and blasted into bits by cannon.