Wang Ziping being born in Cangzhou, Hebei, residing in the YiheJie street area behind the great mosque, within the moslem quarter. He was allowed to learn martial arts and studied under the tutelage of M. Li Shuting (李树亭) in Cangzhou (Cangzhou Daliuhe Men) and also said to have some guidance from Sha Baoxing (Cangzhou Chahua Men).
Wang followed his teacher Li Shuting who was asked to join warlord, Ma Liang (马良 then the garrison commander of Jinan and brigade commander of the arm, later founder of the Shandong Military Training Institute in Jinan, Shandong), as an instructor. Li refused and sought to return to Cangzhou, but Wang wanted to remain.
It was there, along with many invited experts he was able to futher develop his skills, teaching and formally became a disciple under Yang Hongxiu (杨鸿修), who became the founder of his own type of Cha Quan (Yang Family Cha Quan), Yang had studied with Li Baotai. Cha Quan, or Chahua Men as we call it, itself includes elements of Hong, Hua, Pao, Tantui & Cha within. It is not a series of different styles per se.
Ma Liang was trying to modernize martial arts at the time. With the invited masters he commissioned the creation of the “New Chinese Martial Arts” 《中华新武术》 Textbook Between 1911 and 1914, it also adopted training methods from Western and Japanese “military gymnastics,” breaking down the originally continuous martial arts routines into segmented and sectioned movements, accompanied by verbal commands. The New Martial Arts of China, was once designated as a required skill for the military and police nationwide and promoted in secondary schools.
Ma Liang was born in Kongcheng Village, Qingyuan County. He had two brothers; his elder brother, Ma Zhong, came from the Beiyang New Army and graduated from the Beiyang Military Academy. He served as the commander of the Left Garrison Supply Battalion of the Beiyang Army’s Regular Army, a staff officer of the 6th Division, the commander of the 21st Regiment of the 11th Brigade of the 6th Infantry, and the commander of the 6th Artillery Regiment of the 6th Division. He studied under the renowned wrestling master Ping Jingyi, and his troops, mostly Hui Muslims, practiced wrestling extensively.
In 1912, the first year of the Republic of China, he served as the brigade commander of the 9th Brigade under Jin Yunpeng, the commander of the 5th Division of the Central Army. Later, he was transferred to Shandong as the brigade commander of the 47th Mixed Brigade. In 1916, he was promoted to garrison commander of Jinan. Ma Liang also served as the commander of the 2nd Division of the participating army. In 1919, he was reorganized into the 2nd Division of the Northwest Border Defense Army, still stationed in Shandong.
The “Shandong Martial Arts Training Institute” “山东武术传习所” was founded in 1917 by Ma Liang at the former site of the Wanshou Palace in Jinan’s West Gate to train instructors. Ma Liang utilized military and political resources to hire masters from various schools to teach there.
The training institute recruited educated youth from various counties (requiring graduation from teacher training colleges or higher primary schools), implementing a two-year formal education system with a strict graded assessment model. The institute trained over 700 graduates, who were then assigned to various levels of schools or the military as instructors, spreading the seeds of martial arts throughout the country.
Leveraging his military and political influence within the Beiyang government (especially the Anhui clique under Duan Qirui), Ma Liang vigorously lobbied and promoted it nationwide: Mandatory for Military and Police: In 1917, “New Chinese Martial Arts” was officially designated as a mandatory course for military and police personnel nationwide by the Beiyang government.
In 1920, Duan Qirui launched the Northwest Border Defense Army to participate in the Zhili-Anhui War, appointing himself Commander-in-Chief of the Dingguo Army, with Ma Liang as the commander of the southern route, capturing Dezhou. The war resulted in a major defeat for the Anhui clique, Duan Qirui’s resignation, and Ma Liang’s dismissal, retiring to Jinan.
National Martial Arts Conference: Ma Liang also initiated the “National Chinese Martial Arts Games” “中华全国武术运动大会” in Jinan, one of the earliest nationwide martial arts competitions in modern China, further expanding the influence of the new martial arts.
Wang Ziping became one of the premier “faces” of Ma Liang’s movement. Wang traveled with Ma Liang to major national exhibitions, such as a famous 1922 showcase in Shanghai, such as feats of strength heavily promoted Ma’s martial programs to the public and the foreign press
Ma Liang’s attempt broke the old custom of “passing down knowledge only within the family,” establishing the modern term “martial arts.” His educational experience and teaching methods directly inspired the later Jingwu Athletic Association, Nanjing Central Martial Arts Academy, and Shandong Martial Arts Academy. Simultaneously, his extreme advocacy and promotion of wrestling directly established Jinan’s historical status as the “Wrestling City” “跤城” of the country.
Coupled with the intellectuals’ criticism of “national essence” during the New Culture Movement, “Chinese New Martial Arts” gradually faded from the historical stage in the mid-to-late 1920s, replaced by the “National Martial Arts Movement” led by the Nanjing Nationalist Government.
In 1927, at the invitation of Zhang Zhijiang, Ma Liang served as the director of the teaching affairs department of the Nanjing Central Martial Arts Academy, and was responsible for teaching wrestling. Wang Ziping was appointed to head the Shaolin Division (Shaolin Men) under the institute’s umbrella. Both shared a deep commitment to transforming traditional martial arts from secret family lineages into a unified, transparent curriculum aimed at building national strength.
In 1930, Han Fuqu became the chairman of Shandong Province and appointed Ma Liang as the chairman of the Shandong Anti-Drug Committee. In February 1933, he served as a councilor of the Military Advisory Council of the Nationalist Government. In January 1936, he was awarded the rank of Lieutenant General.
In 1937, the Second Sino-Japanese War began. The Japanese army captured Nanjing and established the Provisional Government of the Republic of China in Beijing. Ma Liang joined as a member. In 1938, he was appointed as the governor of Shandong Province and concurrently the commander-in-chief of the security forces. In 1940, Wang Jingwei established the central government in Nanjing, and Ma Liang served as the acting chairman of the Nationalist Government, the premier of the Executive Yuan, and the chairman of the Military Commission. Ma Liang joined the North China Political Affairs Committee and was issued an arrest warrant by the Chongqing Nationalist Government.
In 1945, the Japanese army announced its unconditional surrender. In the same year, Ma Liang was arrested in Jinan by Li Yannian’s troops and imprisoned on charges of treason.
(suppressing the May Fourth Movement and later becoming a traitor, who was heavily criticized for his later brutal suppression of student movements and his treason. During the War of Resistance against Japan, he joined the Wang Jingwei government)
In 1947, he died in prison in Jinan at the age of 72.
Of course, given the nature of Ma Liang’s ending, much of this part of Wang Ziping’s background is not emphasised afterwards, leaving only legends.
