List of fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms

The following is a chronologically arranged list of fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Romance of the Three Kingdoms, written by Luo Guanzhong in the 14th century, is a Chinese historical novel based on the events in the turbulent years near the end of the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history, starting in 169 and ending with the reunification of the land in...

, one of the Four Great Classical Novels

Four Great Classical Novels

The Four Great Classical Novels, or the Four Major Classical Novels of Chinese literature, are the four novels commonly regarded by scholars to be the greatest and most influential of pre-modern Chinese fiction. Dating from the Ming and Qing dynasties, they are well known to most Chinese readers...

of Chinese literature

Chinese literature

Chinese literature extends thousands of years, from the earliest recorded dynastic court archives to the mature fictional novels that arose during the Ming Dynasty to entertain the masses of literate Chinese...

. Although the novel is a romanticised retelling of the history of the late Han Dynasty

Han Dynasty

The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...

and Three Kingdoms

Three Kingdoms

The Three Kingdoms period was a period in Chinese history, part of an era of disunity called the "Six Dynasties" following immediately the loss of de facto power of the Han Dynasty rulers. In a strict academic sense it refers to the period between the foundation of the state of Wei in 220 and the...

period, due to its widespread popularity, many people falsely believe it to a real account of the events that happened during that era. Some historians have also used the novel as a source to study the history of the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period, regardless of factual basis. The authoritative source for the history of the Three Kingdoms is Records of Three Kingdoms
Records of Three Kingdoms
Records of Three Kingdoms , is regarded as the official and authoritative historical text on the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history covering the years 184-280 CE. Written by Chen Shou in the 3rd century, the work combines the smaller histories of the rival states of Cao Wei , Shu Han and...

, a historical text written by Chen Shou

Chen Shou

Chen Shou was a historian during the Jin Dynasty period of Chinese history. He is best known as the author of Records of Three Kingdoms, a historical account of the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period.-Biography:...

, which includes annotations by Pei Songzhi

Pei Songzhi

Pei Songzhi was commissioned by Emperor Wen of Liu Song to write a commentary on Chen Shou's Records of Three Kingdoms, providing additional detail omitted from the original work. His commentary, completed in 429, became integral to later editions of the Records, making the joint work three times...

from other historical texts such as Weilue
Weilüe
The Weilüe written by Yu Huan between CE 239, the end of Emperor Ming’s reign, and 265 CE, the end of the Cao Wei . Although not an "official historian," Yu Huan has always been held in high regard amongst Chinese scholars....

and Jiangbiao Zhuan (江表傳). Other historical sources covering the history of that period include the Book of the Later Han and the Book of Jin
Book of Jin
The Book of Jin is one of the official Chinese historical works. It covers the history of Jin Dynasty from 265 to 420, which written by a number of officials commissioned by the court of Tang Dynasty, with the lead editor being the Prime Minister Fang Xuanling, drawing mostly from the official...

. Since Romance of the Three Kingdoms is a historical novel, many stories in it are either fictitious or based on folktales and historical incidents that happened in other periods of Chinese history. What follows is an incomplete list of the better known fictitious stories in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, each with accompanying text that explains the differences between the story and historical accounts.

Oath of the Peach Garden

The story follows three protagonists, Liu Bei

Liu Bei

Liu Bei , also known as Liu Xuande, was a warlord, military general and later the founding emperor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history...

, Guan Yu

Guan Yu

Guan Yu was a general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han Dynasty of China. He played a significant role in the civil war that led to the collapse of the Han Dynasty and the establishment of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period, of which Liu Bei was the...

and Zhang Fei, who take an oath of brotherhood in a place known as the Peach Garden, believed to be in present-day Zhuozhou

Zhuozhou

Zhuozhou is a county-level city with 628,000 inhabitants in Hebei province of China. It is administered by Baoding prefecture. Zhuozhou has 3 subdistricts, 6 towns, 5 townships, and 1 development zone.-Administrative Divisions:Subdistricts:...

, Hebei

Hebei

' is a province of the People's Republic of China in the North China region. Its one-character abbreviation is "" , named after Ji Province, a Han Dynasty province that included what is now southern Hebei...

.

There is no mention of the three men becoming sworn brothers in Records of Three Kingdoms. In Guan Yu's biography, their relationship was simply described to be "as close as brothers", to the point of "sharing the same bed".

Zhang Fei thrashes the imperial inspector

An inspector was sent to survey Liu Bei's county when the latter had assumed office as a minor county-level magistrate after helping to suppress the Yellow Turban Rebellion

Yellow Turban Rebellion

The Yellow Turban Rebellion, also translated as Yellow Scarves Rebellion, was a peasant revolt that broke out in 184 AD in China during the reign of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty...

. The inspector hinted to Liu Bei that he wanted bribes, but Liu did not understand what the inspector meant. Later, even after his assistant explained to him, Liu Bei still refused to give bribes. The inspector was unable to find any fault with Liu Bei's administration so he attempted to force the locals to file a complaint against Liu. Zhang Fei was furious when he heard about it and he barged into the county office, dragged the inspector out, tied him to a post and gave him a severe thrashing. Liu Bei showed up and stopped Zhang Fei. When Guan Yu suggested to kill the inspector and seek their fortune elsewhere, Liu Bei refused and he resigned, returning his official seal to the inspector before leaving.

Liu Bei's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms mentioned that Liu Bei was the one responsible for beating up the inspector. Apparently, the inspector refused to see Liu Bei and claimed that he was ill, but Liu broke into the inspector's room and dragged him out, tied him to a tree and flogged him more than 100 times.

Cao Cao presents a precious sword

Wang Yun

Wang Yun was a Minister over the Masses under Emperor Xian during the late Eastern Han Dynasty of China. During Wang Yun's time, the emperors were mere puppets under the power of eunuchs and warlords. In 192, Wang Yun plotted and successfully staged Lü Bu's assassination of Dong Zhuo, the...

lent Cao Cao

Cao Cao

Cao Cao was a warlord and the penultimate chancellor of the Eastern Han Dynasty who rose to great power during the dynasty's final years. As one of the central figures of the Three Kingdoms period, he laid the foundations for what was to become the state of Cao Wei and was posthumously titled...

his Seven Gems Sword after Cao promised to assassinate the tyrannical warlord Dong Zhuo

Dong Zhuo

Dong Zhuo was a politician and warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He seized control of the capital city Luoyang in 189 when it was in a state of turmoil following the death of Emperor Ling and a clash between the eunuch faction and some court officials led by...

. Cao Cao met Dong Zhuo in the latter's bedroom the following day and attempted to stab Dong with the sword just as Dong faced away. However Dong Zhuo saw Cao Cao drawing his sword through a reflection in a mirror and immediately turned around to question Cao. Cao Cao sensed trouble and quickly knelt down, lying to Dong Zhuo that he intended to present the sword as a gift. Concurrently, Lü Bu

Lü Bu

Lü Bu was a military general and later a minor warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. According to the Records of Three Kingdoms, Lü Bu was highly-skilled in horse-riding and archery, and was thus nicknamed "Flying General"...

had also returned after Dong Zhuo sent him to choose a new steed for Cao Cao, so Cao escaped from the capital Luoyang

Luoyang

Luoyang is a prefecture-level city in western Henan province of Central China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyang to the south, Sanmenxia to the west, Jiyuan to the north, and Jiaozuo to the northeast.Situated on the central plain of...

on the pretext of test-riding the horse.

Cao Cao's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms stated that Dong Zhuo wanted to appoint Cao Cao as a "Colonel of Valiant Cavalry" (驍騎校尉) and recruit Cao Cao to serve him. Cao Cao refused as he felt that Dong Zhuo was doomed to failure so he disguised himself and escaped back to his hometown.

Cao Cao arrested and released by Chen Gong

Cao Cao fled from the capital Luoyang

Luoyang

after failing to assassinate Dong Zhuo. Dong Zhuo ordered notices for Cao Cao's arrest to be put around the areas surrounding Luoyang. During his escape, Cao Cao was spotted in Zhongmu County

Zhongmu County

Zhongmu County is a county in Zhengzhou, Henan Province, People's Republic of China. It has an area of 1416.8 square kilometers and a population of 680,000....

by an official called Chen Gong

Chen Gong

Gong Chen was an advisor to the warlord Lü Bu during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. However, he started his career under Cao Cao before defecting to Lü Bu and was executed when the latter was defeated by Cao....

and captured. Chen Gong had a private conversation with Cao Cao and decided to release the latter after being inspired by Cao's sense of righteousness. Chen Gong even gave up his official post and became Cao Cao's companion.

Cao Cao's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms did mention that when Cao Cao passed by Zhongmu County, a patrol officer suspected him and put him under arrest, but released him later. However there is no evidence that Cao Cao attempted to assassinate Dong Zhuo before his arrest and the identity of the patrol officer is unknown. Besides, in Cao Cao's biography, Chen Gong was first mentioned only after Liu Dai

Liu Dai

Liu Dai , style name Gongshan , was an official of the late Eastern Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. His ancestral home was in Mouping County , Donglai Commandery ....

's death in 192 when he urged Cao Cao to assume governorship of Yan Province (兗州; covering present-day southwestern Shandong

Shandong

' is a Province located on the eastern coast of the People's Republic of China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese...

and eastern Henan

Henan

Henan , is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country. Its one-character abbreviation is "豫" , named after Yuzhou , a Han Dynasty state that included parts of Henan...

). This happened two years after the Campaign against Dong Zhuo

Campaign against Dong Zhuo

The Campaign against Dong Zhuo was a punitive expedition initiated by a coalition of regional officials and warlords against Dong Zhuo, Chancellor of State, in 190 during the late Han Dynasty of Chinese history...

was initiated in 190. As such, it contradicts Romance of the Three Kingdoms, because in the novel Cao Cao initiated the campaign only after he killed Lü Boshe (in Chen Gong's presence) and returned to his hometown of Chenliu (陳留; in present-day Kaifeng

Kaifeng

Kaifeng , known previously by several names , is a prefecture-level city in east-central Henan province, Central China. Nearly 5 million people live in the metropolitan area...

, Henan

Henan

Guan Yu slays Hua Xiong

During the fictional Battle of Sishui Pass (part of the Campaign against Dong Zhuo

Campaign against Dong Zhuo

), Guan Yu volunteered to fight Dong Zhuo's general Hua Xiong

Hua Xiong

Hua Xiong was a military general under the warlord Dong Zhuo during the late Eastern Han Dynasty of China. In 190, various warlords from around the country formed a coalition against Dong Zhuo, who was holding Emperor Xian hostage in the imperial court...

, who had already slain four generals (Bao Zhong

Bao Zhong

Bao Zhong is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was a younger brother of Bao Xin, and participated in the campaign against Dong Zhuo. He led a cavalry unit against Dong's forces of about 5,000 men...

, Zu Mao

Zu Mao

Zu Mao was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Jian during the late Han Dynasty period in China. He was one of the first four generals of Sun Jian and set out with Sun Jian to fight Dong Zhuo....

, Yu She

Yu She

Yu She is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was a military general serving under the warlord Yuan Shu. During the Battle of Sishui Pass against Dong Zhuo's forces, Yu volunteered to fight Dong's general Hua Xiong...

and Pan Feng

Pan Feng

Pan Feng is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was a military general serving under the warlord Han Fu of Ji Province .-Biography:...

) from the coalition army (Guan Yu's side) in earlier skirmishes. Before Guan Yu left, Cao Cao gave him a cup of warm wine to drink and boost his morale, but Guan declined, saying that he would return in a moment. Guan Yu slew Hua Xiong and returned in triumph, bringing along with him Hua's head. He then proceeded to gulp down the wine, which was still warm.

Sun Jian

Sun Jian

Sun Jian was a military general and warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He allied himself with Yuan Shu in 190 when warlords from eastern China formed a coalition to oust Dong Zhuo, a tyrannical warlord who held the puppet Emperor Xian in his power...

's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms stated that during the campaign against Dong Zhuo, Sun Jian defeated Dong Zhuo's army at Yangren (陽人) and killed its commander Hua Xiong

Hua Xiong

Battle of Hulao Pass

The highlight of the fictional Battle of Hulao Pass

Battle of Hulao Pass

The Battle of Hulao Pass is a fictional battle described in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The battle was fought between Dong Zhuo and a coalition of regional warlords and officials as part of the Campaign against Dong Zhuo in 190 during the prelude to the Three...

(also part of the Campaign against Dong Zhuo

Campaign against Dong Zhuo

) is the duel involving the three sworn brothers (Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei) fighting against Dong Zhuo's foster son, the mighty warrior Lü Bu

Lü Bu

. Lü Bu had previously defeated three generals (Fang Yue

Fang Yue

Fang Yue is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was a military general serving under the warlord Wang Kuang. Wang was one of the members of the coalition against Dong Zhuo. When the coalition faced Dong's forces at the Battle of Hulao Pass,...

, Mu Shun

Mu Shun

Mu Shun is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was a military general serving under the warlord Zhang Yang. Mu participated in the Battle of Hulao Pass during the campaign against Dong Zhuo, during which he engaged Dong's general Lü Bu in a duel...

and Wu Anguo) of the coalition army, as well as the warlord Gongsun Zan

Gongsun Zan

Gongsun Zan , style name Bogui , a native of Liaoxi , was a warlord during the late Han Dynasty era of Chinese history.-Biography:...

, before being challenged by Zhang Fei. As Zhang Fei and Lü Bu were unable to overcome each other, Guan Yu and Liu Bei consecutively joined in the fray as well, turning it into a three-on-one duel. Neither side was able to achieve an edge against the other, and Lü Bu eventually retreated as he grew weary. In the novel the three sworn brothers were serving under Gongsun Zan then and participated in the campaign against Dong Zhuo under Gongsun's banner.

Records of Three Kingdoms did not mention Gongsun Zan's involvement in the campaign. Besides, Dong Zhuo's biography in Book of the Later Han also stated that Lü Bu was defeated in battle twice by Sun Jian. The first time was at Yangren (陽人), when Dong Zhuo sent Lü Bu and Hu Zhen

Hu Zhen

Hu Zhen, style name Wencai , was a general serving under the warlord Dong Zhuo during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was described as a man of influence in Liang Province ....

to attack Sun Jian but both of them could not get along well, leading to disorder in their army, so Sun Jian used the opportunity to attack them and forced them to retreat. The second time was when Sun Jian entered Luoyang

Luoyang

's Xuanyang Gate (宣陽城門), there he attacked Lü Bu and drove him back.

Lü Bu and Diaochan

Diaochan

Diaochan was one of the Four Beauties of ancient China. She was said to have been born in 161 or 169 or 176, depending on the source. However, unlike the other three beauties, there is no known evidence that suggests her existence, therefore she is likely to be a fictional character.Diaochan...

is a fictional character introduced in the novel. She was sent by Wang Yun

Wang Yun

to sow discord between Dong Zhuo and Lü Bu and succeeded in her mission, eventually causing the latter to kill the former.

Lü Bu's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms mentioned that Lü Bu had a secret affair with one of Dong Zhuo's maids, and was afraid that Dong might find out about them. Besides, he already bore a grudge against Dong Zhuo, who threw ji
Ji (halberd)
The ji , the Chinese halberd, was used as a military weapon in one form or another from at least as early as the Shang dynasty until the end of the Qing dynasty. They are still used for training purposes by many Chinese martial arts...

s (a type of halberd

Halberd

A halberd is a two-handed pole weapon that came to prominent use during the 14th and 15th centuries. Possibly the word halberd comes from the German words Halm , and Barte - in modern-day German, the weapon is called Hellebarde. The halberd consists of an axe blade topped with a spike mounted on...

) at him on some occasions to vent his frustration, but Lü Bu dodged and Dong Zhuo's anger subsided. That is no historical evidence to prove that the maid's name was Diaochan. It is also unlikely that it was, because "Diao" was not, and is not, commonly used as a Chinese family name. "Diaochan" likely referred to the sable (diao) tails and jade decorations in the shape of cicadas (chan), which at the time adorned the headgears of high ranking government officials.

Guan Yu's three conditions

Cao Cao and Liu Bei joined forces to attack Lü Bu in Xu Province (徐州; covering parts of present-day Shandong

Shandong

and Jiangsu

Jiangsu

' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from jiang, short for the city of Jiangning , and su, for the city of Suzhou. The abbreviation for this province is "苏" , the second character of its name...

), eventually defeating Lü Bu at the Battle of Xiapi

Battle of Xiapi

The Battle of Xiapi was a battle fought by the forces of Lü Bu against the allied armies of Cao Cao and Liu Bei in 198 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history...

. Cao Cao put Che Zhou (車冑) in charge of Xu Province. Liu Bei broke ties with Cao Cao later and seized control of Xu Province after Guan Yu killed Che Zhou. Cao Cao led an army to attack Liu Bei and take back Xu Province. In one battle, Liu Bei and Zhang Fei led a force to attack Cao Cao's camp but fell into an ambush and were separated during the chaos. Guan Yu, who remained behind to defend Xiapi (Xu Province's capital), was lured out of the city and isolated on a small hill. Cao Cao's forces took control of Xiapi and captured Liu Bei's spouses. Cao Cao sent Zhang Liao

Zhang Liao

Zhang Liao was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty and early Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He participated in many campaigns, including those against Yuan Shao's clan and the Wuhuan tribes...

to ask Guan Yu to surrender and Guan agreed, provided that three conditions were fulfilled:

Liu Bei's spouses must not be harmed and must be well taken care of
In name, Guan Yu surrenders to the emperor and not Cao Cao (who actually wields state power)
Guan Yu is allowed to leave and reunite with Liu Bei if he one day he ever finds out the latter's whereabouts

Cao Cao agreed to Guan Yu's three conditions and Guan served under him temporarily before leaving to rejoin Liu Bei later.

Guan Yu's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms stated that Liu Bei launched a surprise attack on Xu Province and killed Che Zhou. He then placed Guan Yu in charge of defending Xiapi while he moved to Xiaopei. In 200, Cao Cao led an army east to attack Liu Bei, and defeated him. Liu Bei fled to join Yuan Shao

Yuan Shao

Yuan Shao was a warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He occupied the northern territories of China during the civil war that occurred towards the end of the Han Dynasty and the beginning of the Three Kingdoms era...

. Cao Cao captured Guan Yu and brought him back to Xuchang

Xuchang

Xuchang is a prefecture-level city in central Henan province in Central China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the northwest, Kaifeng to the northeast, Zhoukou to the east, Luohe to the southeast, and Pingdingshan to the southwest....

, and appointed him as a Lieutenant General (偏將軍) and treated him well. There was no mention of Guan Yu surrendering nor any preconditions named by Guan if he agreed to surrender.

Guan Yu slays Yan Liang and Wen Chou

Prior to the Battle of Guandu

Battle of Guandu

The Battle of Guandu was a military conflict between the warlords Cao Cao and Yuan Shao in 200 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. The battle, which concluded with victory for Cao Cao, was a turning point in the war between the two warlords...

between Yuan Shao

Yuan Shao

and Cao Cao, both sides had engaged in two skirmishes known as the Battle of Boma

Battle of Boma

The Battle of Boma or Battle of Baima was the first of a series of battles that led to the decisive Battle of Guandu between the warlords Yuan Shao and Cao Cao in northern China during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history...

and Battle of Yan Ford

Battle of Yan Ford

The Battle of Yan Ford was a battle that took place along the banks of the Yellow River during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. The battle was closely preceded by the Battle of Boma, and was part of series of engagements leading to the decisive confrontation between the...

. Yuan Shao sent his generals Yan Liang

Yan Liang

Yan Liang was a military general serving under the warlord Yuan Shao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was slain by Guan Yu at the Battle of Boma.-Biography:...

and Wen Chou

Wen Chou

Wen Chou was a military general serving under the warlord Yuan Shao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. His force was defeated by that of rival warlord Cao Cao in the Battle of Yan Ford and he was killed in the midst of battle....

to attack Cao Cao's fortress at Boma (白馬; near present-day Hua County

Hua County, Henan

Hua County is a county under Anyang municipality, Henan, China.-Location:The Hua county is located in the southmost part of Anyang. To its north lies Neihuang County, also in Anyang; to its east Puyang County in Puyang; to its south the counties of Changyuan and Fengqiu, both in Xinxiang; to its...

, Henan

Henan

). During the battle, some of Cao Cao's best warriors, including Xu Huang

Xu Huang

Xu Huang was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty era of Chinese history. He served the state of Cao Wei, founded by Cao Cao's successor Cao Pi, during the Three Kingdoms period...

and Zhang Liao

Zhang Liao

, went forth to take up Yan Liang's challenge but were defeated by him. Cao Cao reluctantly allowed Guan Yu to fight Yan Liang and Guan emerged victorious. Wen Chou later came to avenge Yan Liang but was also slain by Guan Yu in a rout. The siege on Boma was lifted as a result.

Guan Yu's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms mentioned that Yuan Shao ordered Yan Liang to besiege Cao Cao's general Liu Yan (劉延) at Boma. Cao Cao then sent Zhang Liao and Guan Yu to lead the vanguard force to attack Yan Liang. In the midst of battle, Guan Yu spotted Yan Liang and charged through enemy lines towards him, killing Yan Liang and taking his head. Yuan Shao's other generals were unable to resist the assault and the siege on Boma was thus lifted. Yuan Shao's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms mentioned that after Yan Liang's death, Yuan Shao's army crossed the Yellow River

Yellow River

The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...

to the south of Yan Ford (延津; north of present-day Yanjin

Yanjin County, Henan

Yanjin County is a county in Xinxiang, Henan province, China....

, Henan), where he sent Liu Bei and Wen Chou to attack Cao Cao. They were defeated and Wen Chou was killed in battle (nothing mentioned about him being slain by Guan Yu). Yuan Shao launched another attack but was defeated again and his generals were captured by Cao Cao.

Guan Yu crosses five passes and slays six generals

Guan Yu heard that Liu Bei was in Hebei (Yuan Shao's territory) so he left Cao Cao to reunite with his sworn brother, bringing along Liu Bei's spouses with him. Along the journey, he crossed five passes and slew six generals who were hostile towards him or denied him permission to pass through the passes.

Records of Three Kingdoms does not mention anything about Guan Yu crossing the five passes, nor about the six generals (Kong Xiu

Kong Xiu

Kong Xiu is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He served as a military general under the warlord Cao Cao and was in charge of defending Dongling Pass...

, Meng Tan, Han Fu

Han Fu (fictional)

Han Fu is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He served as a general under the warlord Cao Cao, and was appointed as Administrator of Luoyang...

, Bian Xi

Bian Xi

Bian Xi is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was said to be a former Yellow Turban rebel who later surrendered to the warlord Cao Cao. During the Battle of Guandu in 200, Bian was tasked with guarding Sishui Pass...

, Wang Zhi

Wang Zhi (fictional)

Wang Zhi is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He served as a general under the warlord Cao Cao, and was appointed as Administrator of Xingyang...

and Qin Qi

Qin Qi

Qin Qi is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was a subordinate of Xiahou Dun, a general serving under the warlord Cao Cao. Qin was in charge of guarding a ferry point on the southern bank of the Yellow River...

), who are fictional characters.

Guo Jia's strategy to pacify Liaodong

Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao at the Battle of Guandu

Battle of Guandu

and continued to launch a series of campaigns against Yuan Shao's heirs in the following years, gradually seizing control of territories that used to be under Yuan's control. Around 207 Cao Cao had brought most of northern China under his control after defeating the Wuhuan

Wuhuan

The Wuhuan were a proto-Mongolic nomadic people who inhabited northern China, in what is now the provinces of Hebei, Liaoning, Shanxi, the municipality of Beijing and the autonomous region of Inner Mongolia....

tribes at the Battle of White Wolf Mountain

Battle of White Wolf Mountain

The Battle of White Wolf Mountain was a battle fought in 207 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. The battle took place in northern China, beyond the frontiers of the ruling Later Han Dynasty. It was fought between the warlord Cao Cao and the nomadic Wuhuan tribes,...

. Yuan Shao's sons Yuan Xi

Yuan Xi

Yuan Xi was the second son of the warlord Yuan Shao during the late Han Dynasty era of Chinese history.Yuan was described in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms as "intelligent but weak and indecisive", in contrast to his older brother Yuan Tan, who was described as...

and Yuan Shang

Yuán Shàng

Yuan Shang , style name Xianfu , was a warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was the third son of the warlord Yuan Shao, and succeeded his father...

fled to Liaodong after their defeat to seek refuge under Gongsun Gong

Gongsun Gong

Gongsun Gong was a minor warlord during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He was the younger brother of Gongsun Kang and son of Gongsun Du. Gongsun Gong advised his brother to kill Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang and deliver their heads to Cao Cao. After the death of Gongsun...

, the warlord of Liaodong. Cao Cao's generals were discussing plans to attack Liaodong when Cao stopped them, claiming that Gongsun Gong would surrender soon. Not long later, Gongsun Gong sent a messenger to Cao Cao, expressing his decision to surrender. The messenger also brought along the heads of Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang. Cao Cao's followers were surprised and asked him how he knew that Gongsun Gong would surrender. Cao Cao then revealed that his strategist Guo Jia

Guo Jia

Guo Jia was a strategist and advisor to the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. During his 11 years of service, Guo Jia's brilliance greatly aided Cao Cao in his victories over rival warlords Lü Bu and Yuan Shao, as well as chief of the Wuhuan tribe, Tadun...

had left him a note, predicting that Gongsun Gong would surrender without showing resistance. Guo Jia accompanied Cao Cao on his campaigns in the north, but fell ill and remained in Ye

Ye, China

Ye or Yecheng was an ancient Chinese city located in what is now Linzhang County, Hebei and the neighbouring Anyang County, Henan....

(located around present-day Handan

Handan

Handan is a prefecture-level city located in the southwestern part of Hebei Province of China.- History :Handan was the capital of the State of Zhao during the Warring States period , after the capital moved from Zhongmu. The city was conquered by the State of Qin after the virtual annexation of...

and Anyang

Anyang

Anyang is a prefecture-level city in Henan province, People's Republic of China. The northernmost city in Henan, Anyang borders Puyang to the east, Hebi and Xinxiang to the south, and the provinces of Shanxi and Hebei to its west and north respectively....

) to recover while Cao Cao continued to press further north until Liaodong. When Cao Cao returned to Ye he learnt that Guo Jia had already died of illness.

There is no mention about Guo Jia's prediction in Records of Three Kingdoms.

Guan Yu slays Cai Yang at Gucheng

Guan Yu met Zhang Fei at Gucheng (古城) after crossing five passes and slaying six generals. Zhang Fei was initially suspicious of Guan Yu, as he believed that Guan had betrayed their oath of brotherhood and joined Cao Cao. Despite explanation from Liu Bei's spouses, Zhang Fei refused to listen and he attacked Guan Yu. Both of them were locked in a duel when a group of Cao Cao's soldiers led by Cai Yang (蔡陽) showed up. Guan Yu turned around and slew Cai Yang in a duel to prove his loyalty and regain Zhang Fei's faith in him.

Liu Bei's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms mentioned that Yuan Shao sent Liu Bei to Runan, and Liu Bei combined forces with the bandit leader Gong Du

Gong Du

Gong Du was a bandit operating against the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty of Chinese history. In 200, Cao Cao's rival Yuan Shao sent Liu Bei to Runan to support Gong Du in his operations. The combined forces of Liu Bei and Gong Du were able to kill Cao Cao's general Cai Yang , who was...

there. Cao Cao sent Cai Yang to attack them, and Cai was killed by Liu Bei.

Xu Shu serves Cao Cao

Cao Cao was impressed with Xu Shu

Xu Shu

Xu Shu was an advisor to the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He initially served Liu Bei before joining Cao Cao in 208.-Biography:...

when he heard that the latter helped Liu Bei break Cao Ren

Cao Ren

Cao Ren was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He played a significant part in assisting Cao Cao in the civil wars leading to the end of the Han Dynasty...

's army formation, and he was eager to recruit Xu Shu as an advisor. Cao Cao invited Xu Shu's mother to his place and asked her to write a letter to her son, requesting that her son come and serve him. Xu Shu's mother refused and denounced Cao Cao as a traitor and threw an ink stone at him. Cao Cao was furious and ordered Xu Shu's mother to be executed but refrained when Cheng Yu

Cheng Yu

Cheng Yu , originally named Cheng Li and changed his name to Yu after dreaming of the sun on top of Mount Tai, was one of the major advisors to the Han Dynasty warlord Cao Cao, and became a high-ranking official of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms era of China...

reminded him that Xu Shu would be more determined to help Liu Bei oppose him if he killed Xu's mother. Cao Cao then had Xu Shu's mother detained and asked Cheng Yu to pretend to be Xu Shu's sworn brother and win the trust of Xu's mother. After some time Cheng Yu got close to Xu Shu's mother and learnt to mimic her handwriting. He wrote a letter to Xu Shu in the handwriting of her latter's mother, asking him to come to Xuchang

Xuchang

. Xu Shu was a filial son and he immediately left Liu Bei for Xuchang after reading the letter, only to discover that he had been tricked. Xu Shu's mother committed suicide in anger and Xu Shu remained by Cao Cao's side, but he swore never to give advice to Cao Cao.

Zhuge Liang's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms mentioned that both Zhuge Liang and Xu Shu accompanied Liu Bei when he led his followers south to escape from Cao Cao around the time of the Battle of Changban

Battle of Changban

The Battle of Changban was a battle fought between the warlords Cao Cao and Liu Bei in 208 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history...

. Xu Shu's mother was captured by Cao Cao's pursuing forces, so Xu Shu left Liu Bei to reunite with his mother. Before leaving he pointed at his heart and told Liu Bei, "I wanted to join you, General, in making great achievements. This is my purpose in life. Now that I've lost my mother, I've also lost my sense of direction. This isn't going to be helpful. Now I bid farewell to you." Xu Shu then went to join Cao Cao. Xu Shu later became Right General of the Household (右中郎將) and Palace Assistant Imperial Clerk (御史中丞) in the state of Wei

Cao Wei

Cao Wei was one of the states that competed for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period. With the capital at Luoyang, the state was established by Cao Pi in 220, based upon the foundations that his father Cao Cao laid...

during Cao Pi

Cao Pi

Cao Pi , formally known as Emperor Wen of Wei, was the first emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Born in Qiao County, Pei Commandery , he was the second son of the late Han Dynasty warlord Cao Cao.Cao Pi, like his father, was a poet...

's reign.

Three visits to the thatched cottage

Before leaving for Xuchang, Xu Shu

Xu Shu

Xu Shu was an advisor to the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He initially served Liu Bei before joining Cao Cao in 208.-Biography:...

recommended Zhuge Liang

Zhuge Liang

Zhuge Liang was a chancellor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He is often recognised as the greatest and most accomplished strategist of his era....

to Liu Bei to be his strategist, telling Liu that he needed to recruit Zhuge Liang personally. Accompanied by Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, Liu Bei travelled to Longzhong

Longzhong

Longzhong is a scenic area with 1700 years of history and a total area of located at the junction of three counties away from Hubei Xiangfan: Xiangyang, Nanzhang and Gucheng, which is approximately away from Xiangfan City. The famous statesman Zhuge Liang from the Three Kingdoms period of...

(in present-day Xiangyang

Xiangyang

Xiangzhou District is a district of Xiangyang, Hubei, China. The district itself was formerly known as Xiangyang. It was a city famous for the Siege of Xiangyang by invading forces of the Mongol-founded Yuan Dynasty...

, Hubei

Hubei

' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...

) to find Zhuge Liang. They reached Zhuge Liang's thatched cottage but Zhuge's servant said that his master was not at home. Liu Bei then asked the servant to pass a message to Zhuge Liang, telling him that Liu Bei came to visit him. Several days later during winter, Liu Bei brought his sworn brothers along with him again to visit Zhuge Liang. This time, the servant led Liu Bei to his "master", who turned out to be actually Zhuge Liang's younger brother Zhuge Jun. Just as he was about to leave, Liu Bei saw someone approaching and thought it was Zhuge Liang, but the person was Zhuge Liang's father-in-law Huang Chengyan

Huang Chengyan

Huang Chengyan was a scholar from Longzhong commandery during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history.Huang's wife was the sister of Lady Cai and Cai Mao...

. When winter was over and spring came, Liu Bei decided to visit Zhuge Liang again, much to the displeasure of his sworn brothers. This time, Zhuge Liang was at home but was asleep. Liu Bei waited patiently until Zhuge Liang woke up and they had a discussion. Zhuge Liang drafted a Longzhong Plan

Longzhong Plan

The Longzhong Plan is the name given to a strategic plan given by the third century Chinese tactician and administrator Zhuge Liang. It formed the basis for the grand plan of the warlord Liu Bei and later the Three Kingdoms state of Shu. In essence it envisaged the securing of a viable regional...

for Liu Bei and agreed to leave home and become Liu's strategist.

Not much details were provided in Records of Three Kingdoms on how Liu Bei recruited Zhuge Liang. Zhuge Liang's biography briefly mentioned that after Xu Shu recommended Zhuge Liang to Liu Bei, Liu visited Zhuge thrice and met him and their conversation led to the Longzhong Plan

Longzhong Plan

. However Pei Songzhi's annotations from Weilue
Weilüe
The Weilüe written by Yu Huan between CE 239, the end of Emperor Ming’s reign, and 265 CE, the end of the Cao Wei . Although not an "official historian," Yu Huan has always been held in high regard amongst Chinese scholars....

and Jiuzhou Chunqiu (九州春秋) in Zhuge Liang's biography presented a different account on how Liu Bei first met Zhuge Liang. Both Weilue and Jiuzhou Chunqiu claimed that Zhuge Liang visited Liu Bei instead of the other way round. Both Zhuge Liang and Liu Bei did not know each other at first when the former came to visit the latter. Liu Bei did not pay much attention to Zhuge Liang because of his young age. Zhuge Liang remained behind when Liu Bei's other guests left the meeting, but Liu did not ask him if he had anything to say and continued toying with a gift from one of the guests. Zhuge Liang then initiated a conversation with Liu Bei, and Liu recognised his talent and treated him with respect. Pei Songzhi commented that the accounts in Weilue and Jiuzhou Chunqiu contradict Zhuge Liang's own statement in Chu Shi Biao
Chu Shi Biao
There are two Chu Shi Biao , the former and the second were documents submitted by Shu Han Prime Minister Zhuge Liang to Emperor Liu Shan before his first and second Northern Expedition of Wei, in 225 and 226, respectively...

, which stated, "(Liu Bei) visited me thrice in the thatched cottage, (and) consulted me on the affairs of our time.", and Pei felt that it was obvious from Chu Shi Biao that Zhuge Liang did not visit Liu Bei first.

Liu Bei's horse leaps across the Tan Stream

Once when Liu Bei was stationed at Xinye

Xinye County

Xinye is one of the counties of Nanyang that lies in the southwest of Henan province in central China. Its south is Xiangfan city of Hubei province . Itseast is Tanghe county of Nanyang. Its west is county-level city...

he received an invitation from Liu Biao

Liu Biao

Liu Biao , style name Jingsheng , was a warlord and the governor of Jing Province during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was a member of the extended family of the Han Dynasty emperors...

, governor of Jing Province (荊州; covering present-day Hubei

Hubei

' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...

and Hunan

Hunan

' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...

), to attend a feast. However Liu Biao fell ill so he asked his sons Liu Qi and Liu Cong to entertain Liu Bei instead. Liu Bei arrived in Xiangyang (Jing Province's capital) with Zhao Yun

Zhao Yun

Zhao Yun was a military general who lived during the late Han Dynasty and early Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. For most of his career, Zhao served the warlord Liu Bei, playing a part in the establishment of state of Shu Han...

and was directed to the feast. Cai Mao

Cai Mao

Cai Mao was a military general specializing in naval warfare during the late Han Dynasty era of Chinese history. He was from Xiangyang in Jing Province and originally served the warlord Liu Biao before joining Cao Cao's forces. He gained his status when his sister married Liu Biao.Cai Mao initially...

and others attempted to use the opportunity to kill Liu Bei but Yi Ji

Yi Ji

Yi Ji, style name Boji , was a minister of Shu Han during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history.Yi Ji was introduced to Liu Bei by Zhuge Liang, among with Sima Hui, Ma Liang and other scholars who refused to serve in Liu Biao's regime...

secretly informed Liu Bei about Cai Mao's intention. Liu Bei escaped from Xiangyang under the pretext of going to the latrine. When Cai Mao discovered that Liu Bei had fled, he led a group of soldiers in pursuit. Liu Bei was riding Dilu (的盧), a horse said to bring ill luck to its rider. Liu Bei reached the Tan Stream (檀溪), located west of Xiangyang, and attempted to ride across the stream. After taking a few steps Dilu fell forward and Liu Bei's clothing became wet. Liu Bei whipped the horse and exclaimed, "Dilu! Dilu! Today you obstruct me!" Dilu suddenly rose above the surface and leapt three zhang (or 30 chi
Chi (unit)
The chi is a traditional Chinese unit of length, approximately equal to one foot. Its length is derived from the length of human forearm and has first appeared during the Shang Dynasty approximately 3000 years ago. Since then it has spread to and adopted by other East Asian cultures, such as...

) across the stream to the opposite bank, bringing Liu Bei to safety.

Pei Songzhi's annotations from Shiyu (世語) in Liu Bei's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms also gave a similar account of this incident. However Jin Dynasty historian Sun Sheng (孫盛) commented on this account, "I disapprove of this saying. At that time Liu Bei was making calculated moves. There was a big difference in the respective strengths of Liu Bei and Liu Biao's forces. If this incident really happened, why would Liu Bei remain silent about it throughout the period of time when Liu Biao was still living, and why were there no signs of dispute (between them)?"

The Battle of Bowang

Cao Cao's army led by Xiahou Dun

Xiahou Dun

Xiahou Dun was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. Cao Cao's original family name was Xiahou, but his father Cao Song was the adopted son of the eunuch Cao Teng, so Xiahou Dun and Cao Cao share blood relations...

set off to attack Liu Bei in Xinye

Xinye County

and reached Bowang Slope (博望坡) on the outskirts of Xinye. There Xiahou Dun fell into an ambush planned by Zhuge Liang and was defeated, with most of his supplies destroyed by fire. It was due to this battle that Zhuge Liang earned the respect of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, who had initially looked down on him, not recognising his talent.

Liu Bei's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms mentioned that Liu Bei resisted Xiahou Dun

Xiahou Dun

and Yu Jin

Yu Jin

Yu Jin was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He joined Cao in the early years of the civil wars that led to the collapse of the Han Dynasty...

at Bowang. He prepared an ambush and set fire to his own camp and pretended to retreat. Xiahou Dun pursued Liu Bei and fell into the ambush and was defeated. Nothing was mentioned in Records of Three Kingdoms about Zhuge Liang planning the ambush.

The Battle of Changban

During the Battle of Changban

Battle of Changban

The Battle of Changban was a battle fought between the warlords Cao Cao and Liu Bei in 208 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history...

, Liu Bei's wife Lady Mi

Lady Mi

Lady Mi was the second wife of the warlord Liu Bei, who lived during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Lady Mi was the sister of Mi Zhu and Mi Fang, who previously served the warlord Tao Qian before joining Liu Bei's side...

and infant son A'dou

Liu Shan

Liu Shan, , was the second and last emperor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. As he ascended the throne at the young age of 16, Liu Shan was entrusted to the care of the Chancellor Zhuge Liang and Imperial Secretariat Li Yan...

was isolated from the rest during an attack by Cao Cao's forces. Zhao Yun

Zhao Yun

braved danger by fighting his way through enemy lines in search of Lady Mi and A'dou. He encountered the enemy general Xiahou En

Xiahou En

Xiahou En is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao. He carried the Qinggang sword, one of Cao's prized personal weapons...

, defeated him and took the prized Qinggang Sword from him. When Zhao Yun finally found Lady Mi and A'dou beside a well, he urged them to mount his horse quickly, but Lady Mi refused as she did not want to be a burden to Zhao Yun. She entrusted A'dou to Zhao Yun and committed suicide by throwing herself into the well. Zhao Yun then strapped A'dou to his body and fought his way out against overwhelming numbers of enemy forces, bringing A'dou safely back to Liu Bei. Cao Cao's forces pursued Zhao Yun until they arrived at Changban Bridge, where Zhang Fei stood guard alone. Zhang Fei bellowed a challenge at the enemy and shocked Xiahou Jie (夏侯傑) to death. Cao Cao's soldiers also observed that the woods behind Zhang Fei were clouded in dust and believed that there was an ambush, so they retreated without a fight and Zhang Fei had the bridge destroyed and withdrew as well. Zhang Fei had earlier ordered his men to tie tree branches to the tails of their horses and ride around in the woods, churning up dust to create an illusion of an ambush.

Zhao Yun's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms briefly stated that during the Battle of Changban, after Liu Bei abandoned his family and fled, Zhao protected A'dou (carrying A'dou close to him) and Lady Gan

Lady Gan

Lady Gan was Liu Bei's first wife and mother of Liu Shan. Very little is mentioned about her. She was posthumously named as Empress Zhaolie and was buried alongside Liu Bei.-See also:*List of people of the Three Kingdoms...

and escorted them to safety. Both Lady Gan and Lady Mi also survived the battle. Zhang Fei's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms also briefly mentioned that Zhang remained behind with 20 horsemen to block Cao Cao's pursuing forces. The bridge was already destroyed when Zhang Fei bellowed a challenge, similar in tone to the one in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, but without the highly exaggerated effect on the enemy. Cao Cao's men did not dare to come near and Zhang Fei was safe. Xiahou En and Xiahou Jie were not mentioned in Records of Three Kingdoms at all.

Zhuge Liang's diplomatic mission to Jiangdong

Zhuge Liang went to Jiangdong

Jiangnan

Jiangnan or Jiang Nan is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, including the southern part of the Yangtze Delta...

on a diplomatic mission to discuss forming an alliance between Liu Bei and Sun Quan

Sun Quan

Sun Quan , son of Sun Jian, formally Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He ruled from 222 to 229 as King of Wu and from 229 to 252 as Emperor of Wu....

to counter Cao Cao. Lu Su

Lu Su

Lu Su , style name Zijing , was a politician, militarist and diplomat serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history...

first introduced Zhuge Liang to the civil officials and scholars under Sun Quan, who mostly advocated surrender to Cao Cao. In a subsequent debate, Zhuge Liang manage to silence all those who challenged him through his eloquent responses to their queries and comments, as well as insults and taunts. Among those who challenged Zhuge Liang include Zhang Zhao

Zhang Zhao

Zhang Zhao was an official of Eastern Wu during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of China.-Biography:Zhang was born in present-day Jiangsu. A brilliant scholar, he devoted his life mainly to the study of Chinese classic texts...

, Yu Fan

Yu Fan

Yu Fan , style name Zhongxiang , was an official of Eastern Wu during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Yu was formerly a district supervisor under the warlord Wang Lang. After Sun Ce defeated Wang, Yu surrendered and pledged allegiance to the Sun clan...

, Bu Zhi

Bu Zhi

Bu Zhi was an official of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He was a scholar from the Wu region and served as an advisor to the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty before the founding of Eastern Wu. He held several military posts from time to time, and was...

, Xue Zong, Lu Ji (陸績), Yan Jun

Yan Jun

Yan Jun, style name Mancai , was an official of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He was also the writer of Essay on Tides, which has disappeared over the course of history.-In fiction:...

and Cheng Bing

Cheng Bing

Cheng Bing, style name Deshu , was a Confucian scholar and official of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history.-Biography:...

. Zhang Wen and Luo Tong

Luo Tong

Luo Tong , style name Gongxu , was a politician and military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history.-Biography:...

also wanted to challenge Zhuge Liang, but Huang Gai

Huang Gai

Huang Gai was a military general who served the warlord Sun family of Eastern Wu for three generations during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history...

arrived and stopped the debate.

Subsequently, Lu Su introduced Zhuge Liang to Sun Quan's viceroy Zhou Yu

Zhou Yu

Zhou Yu was a military general and strategist who served his close friend, the warlord Sun Ce, during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history...

. Zhuge Liang and Zhou Yu had a conversation in the latter's house, with Lu Su present as well. Zhuge Liang said that he had a plan to make Cao Cao to retreat without a war - send Cao Cao the Two Qiaos

Two Qiaos

The Two Qiaos refer to two sisters who lived during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. Their names were not recorded, so in later times they are referred to simply as Da Qiao and Xiao Qiao . They were from Wan County, Lujiang Commandery...

. He also pretended that he did not know who the Qiao sisters were married to. When Zhou Yu asked Zhuge Liang for evidence that Cao Cao was after the Two Qiaos, Zhuge said he heard that Cao Cao asked his son Cao Zhi

Cao Zhi

Cao Zhi was a poet who lived during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. His poetry style, greatly revered during the Jin Dynasty and Southern and Northern Dynasties, came to be known as the Jian'an style....

to write a poem titled Ode to the Bronze Sparrow Platform (銅雀臺賦). Zhuge Liang then recited the poem and pointed out that Cao Cao's desire to take the Qiaos for himself was evident in the poem. Zhou Yu was enraged and he hardened his decision to ally with Liu Bei and fight Cao Cao.

The debate between Zhuge Liang and the scholars is not mentioned in any of the involved parties' biographies in Records of Three Kingdoms. The biographies of Zhuge Liang, Sun Quan, Zhou Yu and Lu Su all confirmed that Zhuge Liang met Sun Quan on that diplomatic mission, but it remains unknown whether Zhuge did meet any other person on that same trip. Zhuge Liang's biography, in particular, contains a detailed record of a conversation between Zhuge Liang and Sun Quan.

The Bronze Sparrow Platform (銅雀臺) was built in the winter of 210, nearly three years after the end of the Battle of Red Cliffs. Cao Zhi

Cao Zhi

's poem Ode to the Bronze Sparrow Platform was written in 212, two years after the platform was constructed. Besides, the poem in Romance of the Three Kingdoms contains seven additional lines that were not present in the original version recorded in Cao Zhi's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms. Therefore, the story in Romance of the Three Kingdoms about Zhuge Liang using the poem to incite Zhou Yu's anger towards Cao Cao is purely fiction.

Zhou Yu tricks Jiang Gan

Before the Battle of Red Cliffs

Battle of Red Cliffs

The Battle of Red Cliffs, otherwise known as the Battle of Chibi, was a decisive battle at the end of the Han Dynasty, immediately prior to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. It was fought in the winter of 208/9 AD between the allied forces of the southern warlords Liu Bei and Sun Quan...

, Cao Cao and Sun Quan's forces had a small skirmish on the Yangtze River

Yangtze River

The Yangtze, Yangzi or Cháng Jiāng is the longest river in Asia, and the third-longest in the world. It flows for from the glaciers on the Tibetan Plateau in Qinghai eastward across southwest, central and eastern China before emptying into the East China Sea at Shanghai. It is also one of the...

. Cao Cao's navy, led by Cai Mao

Cai Mao

and Zhang Yun

Zhang Yun

Zhang Yun was a military general serving under the warlord Liu Biao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was Cai Mao's maternal nephew and specialized in naval warfare like his uncle...

, was defeated by a smaller enemy force led by Gan Ning

Gan Ning

Gan Ning was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was born in Linjiang, Ba Commandery .-Early life as a pirate:...

. Cai Mao and Zhang Yun explained to Cao Cao that they lost because their troops, who were mostly from northerners, could not adapt well to naval warfare. They suggested constructing a naval base for training and Cao Cao agreed. The following day, Zhou Yu boarded a vessel disguised as a luxury cruiser, with a band on board playing music, and sailed towards Cao Cao's camp to observe the enemy. He saw the naval base and became worried, and felt that he needed to eliminate Cai Mao and Zhang Yun first. Cao Cao heard that Zhou Yu came to spy on his camp so he sent a small fleet to pursue Zhou Yu's vessel but Zhou had already escaped. Cao Cao then held a meeting with his subordinates to discuss how to deal with the enemy. One of Cao Cao's advisers named Jiang Gan

Jiang Gan

Jiang Gan was an advisor to the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history.The annotations to Records of Three Kingdoms from the Jiangbiao Zhuan described Jiang Gan as a good-looking man whose debating skills were unmatched in the Jiangnan and Huai River region...

, who was an old acquaintance of Zhou Yu, volunteered to persuade Zhou to surrender to Cao Cao. Zhou Yu understood Jiang Gan's purpose in visiting him at his camp and he tricked Jiang into believing that Cai Mao and Zhang Yun were planning to kill Cao Cao and defect to his side. Jiang Gan also got hold of a fake letter from Cai Mao and Zhang Yun addressed to Zhou Yu, so he stole the letter while Zhou was asleep and went back to his camp. Cao Cao too fell for the ruse and had Cai Mao and Zhang Yun executed.

Annotations from Wu Li (吳歷) in Sun Quan's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms mentioned an incident during the Battle of Ruxukou in 213 where Sun Quan sailed towards Cao Cao's base, similar to the one in Romance of the Three Kingdoms about Zhou Yu spying on Cao Cao's camp. Sun Quan sent men to taunt Cao Cao to come out to do battle but the latter firmly remained in his base. Sun Quan then personally sailed on a light vessel towards Cao Cao's base. Cao Cao's men thought that Sun Quan was attacking them and wanted to retaliate but Cao Cao stopped them, saying that Sun Quan was there to observe his army. Cao Cao's soldiers were put on high alert and orders were given that arrows must not be fired without permission. Sun Quan sailed for five to six li
Li (unit)
The li is a traditional Chinese unit of distance, which has varied considerably over time but now has a standardized length of 500 meters or half a kilometer...

before turning back and told the band on board to play music. Cao Cao saw that the crew on Sun Quan's vessel was orderly and organised and said, "One should have a son like Sun Zhongmou (Sun Quan), Liu Jingsheng (Liu Biao

Liu Biao

)'s sons are like dogs and pigs!"

Annotations from Jiangbiao Zhuan (江表傳) in Zhou Yu's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms state that Cao Cao heard of Zhou Yu's reputation as a young talent and wanted Zhou on his side, so he did send Jiang Gan to persuade Zhou Yu to join him, but this took place after the Battle of Red Cliffs. Jiang Gan was also described to have good looks, and his debating skills were unmatched in the Jiangdong

Jiangnan

Jiangnan or Jiang Nan is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, including the southern part of the Yangtze Delta...

and Huai River

Huai River

The Huai River is a major river in China. The Huai River is located about mid-way between the Yellow River and Yangtze River, the two largest rivers in China, and like them runs from west to east...

region. When they met, Zhou Yu indirectly affirmed his loyalty to Sun Quan in front of Jiang Gan. Jiang Gan smiled and did not respond. He later praised Zhou Yu's demeanor and elegance and claimed that Zhou's loyalty could not be shaken by words. Nothing was recorded about Zhou Yu tricking Jiang Gan. There is also no evidence in historical sources to prove that Cai Mao and Zhang Yun were involved in the Battle of Red Cliffs.

Borrowing arrows with straw boats

Zhou Yu was jealous of Zhuge Liang's talent and felt that the latter would become a threat to his lord in future. He assigned Zhuge Liang the task of making 100,000 arrows in ten days or face execution for failure in duties under military law. Zhuge Liang promised that he could complete the mission in three days. With help from Lu Su

Lu Su

Lu Su , style name Zijing , was a politician, militarist and diplomat serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history...

, Zhuge Liang prepared 20 large boats, each manned by a few soldiers and filled with human-like figures made of straw and hay. Near dawn, when there was a great fog, Zhuge Liang deployed the boats and they sailed towards Cao Cao's camp across the river. He ordered the troops to beat war drums loudly and shout orders to imitate the noise of an attack. Upon hearing the noise, Cao Cao's troops rushed out to engage the enemy, but they were unsure of the enemy's strength, because their vision was obscured by the fog. They fired volleys of arrows towards the sound of the drums and the arrows became stuck in the straw figures. The boats changed direction when one side became loaded with too much arrows so as to restore balance. In the meantime, Zhuge Liang was enjoying wine with Lu Su inside the cabin and they returned to camp when the fog cleared. By the time they returned to camp Zhuge Liang had acquired more than 100,000 arrows and Zhou Yu had no choice but to let him off.

This event is not documented in Records of Three Kingdoms. However, an annotation from Weilue in Sun Quan's biography mentioned a similar incident during the Battle of Ruxukou in 213. Sun Quan sailed on a large vessel to observe Cao Cao's base. Cao Cao ordered his archers to fire arrows at Sun Quan's ship. The arrow were stuck to one side of the vessel and the ship was on the verge of overturning due to the weight of the arrows. Sun Quan ordered the vessel to turn around so the other side would have arrows stuck to it. Balance was restored and Sun Quan sailed back to his camp.

Huang Gai's self-torture ruse

Huang Gai

Huang Gai was a military general who served the warlord Sun family of Eastern Wu for three generations during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history...

volunteered to defect over to Cao Cao to allow Zhou Yu's fire attack plan to succeed. He had a secret conversation with Zhou Yu one night and suggested his plan. The following morning when Zhou Yu called for an assembly of the generals to discuss their battle plans, Huang Gai pretended to challenge and insult Zhou Yu openly. Zhou Yu was "furious" and he ordered Huang Gai to be executed, but with some intervention from Gan Ning

Gan Ning

Gan Ning was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was born in Linjiang, Ba Commandery .-Early life as a pirate:...

and others, he spared Huang's life and had him severely flogged. Huang Gai then wrote a letter to Cao Cao expressing his willingness to defect over to Cao's side because he was unhappy with Zhou Yu. Cai Zhong

Cai Zhong

Cai Zhong is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was a military general serving under the warlord Liu Biao. He was a cousin of Cai Mao. Cai Zhong and Cai He later defected to Cao Cao after Liu Biao's death. Cao Cao sent them as spies to Sun...

and Cai He

Cai He

Cai He is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was a military general serving under the warlord Liu Biao, and a cousin of Cai Mao. Cai He and Cai Zhong later defected to Cao Cao after Liu Biao's death. Cao Cao sent them as spies to Sun Quan's...

, two spies planted by Cao Cao in Zhou Yu's camp, confirmed Huang Gai's account that he was flogged on Zhou Yu's order because of an argument. Kan Ze

Kan Ze

Kan Ze , style name Derun , was a scholar and advisor to the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history.-Biography:...

later helped in convincing Cao Cao that Huang Gai's defection was genuine, even though Cao initially saw through the ruse. Huang Gai then arranged with Cao Cao that on a certain night he would sail across the river over to Cao Cao's camp. That night, Huang Gai made use of the opportunity to launch the fire attack, leading to the Battle of Red Cliffs

Battle of Red Cliffs

.

Huang Gai's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms briefly covered Huang's role in the Battle of Red Cliffs, mentioning that he followed Zhou Yu to fight Cao Cao at Red Cliffs and planned the fire attack. The details of Huang Gai's involvement in the battle are found in Zhou Yu's biography, which stated that Huang Gai told Zhou Yu, "The enemy are superior in numbers in comparison with our side. I fear that we cannot last long. However I observe that Cao Cao's ships are linked to each other. We can destroy them by fire." Huang Gai then prepared about ten mengchongs (蒙沖; a type of leather-covered assault capital ship

Capital ship

The capital ships of a navy are its most important warships; they generally possess the heaviest firepower and armor and are traditionally much larger than other naval vessels...

), all loaded with the necessary ingredients for starting a fire. He then wrote a letter to Cao Cao, lying that he wanted to surrender. When Cao Cao's men saw Huang Gai's fleet approaching they thought that Huang had come to surrender. Huang Gai then ordered the mengchongs to be set aflame concurrently and the fire spread across Cao Cao's ships to his bases on land. Nothing was documented in Records of Three Kingdoms about the self-torture ruse and Kan Ze's role in the plan, but one thing can be confirmed - Huang Gai did feign surrender to Cao Cao and that was crucial to the success of the fire attack.

Pang Tong presents the chain links strategy

Pang Tong

Pang Tong was an advisor to Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was nicknamed "Young Phoenix" by his uncle Pang Degong due to his ugly appearance but great capabilities and talent...

played an important role in the Battle of Red Cliffs by presenting a chain links strategy (連環計) to Cao Cao. The plan involved linking Cao Cao's battleships together with strong iron chains, so as to make the ships more stable when they sail on the river, as well as reducing the chances of Cao Cao's soldiers falling seasick from excessive rocking. This contributed to Cao Cao's defeat as his battleships were unable to separate from each other during the fire attack, and when one ship is set aflame, the other ships linked to it will catch fire as well.

Nothing was documented in Records of Three Kingdoms about Pang Tong's involvement in the Battle of Red Cliffs, but Cao Cao did indeed moor his ships from stem to stem to reduce the chances of his troops falling seasick.

Zhuge Liang prays for the eastern wind

After all preparations for the fire attack on Cao Cao's fleet had been made, Zhou Yu suddenly realised that in order for his plan to succeed, the wind must blow from southeast or else his own fleet would catch fire instead of Cao Cao's. He saw that the wind was blowing from the northwest and vomited blood, fainted. and became ill. Zhuge Liang visited him later and pointed out the root cause of Zhou Yu's "illness". He claimed that he knew Taoist magical arts and had the ability to change the wind direction. An altar was set up and Zhuge Liang performed rituals there for days until the southeast wind started blowing just before the fire attack was carried out. Zhuge Liang left immediately after the wind started blowing as he knew that Zhou Yu would send his men to kill him. As Zhuge Liang expected, Zhou Yu did send Ding Feng and Xu Sheng

Xu Sheng

Xu Sheng , style name Wenxiang , was a military general of Eastern Wu during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He fought in at least 5 wars for the southern regime during his lifetime...

to kill him, but Zhuge had already fled on a vessel commanded by Zhao Yun

Zhao Yun

.

Nothing was mentioned in Records of Three Kingdoms about this event.

Guan Yu releases Cao Cao at Huarong Trail

Guan Yu was sent to guard Huarong Trail (believed to be near Dongshan Town, Huarong County, Hunan

Hunan

' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...

) and intercept Cao Cao when the latter was retreating after his defeat at the Battle of Red Cliffs

Battle of Red Cliffs

. Initially Zhuge Liang was reluctant in allowing Guan Yu to take up that responsibility, since he was worried that Guan might take into account the kindness Cao Cao showed towards him when he temporarily served Cao years ago, and release Cao as a result. Guan Yu insisted, claiming that he had already repaid Cao Cao's kindness by slaying Yuan Shao's generals Yan Liang

Yan Liang

Yan Liang was a military general serving under the warlord Yuan Shao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was slain by Guan Yu at the Battle of Boma.-Biography:...

and Wen Chou

Wen Chou

and lifting the siege on Boma

Battle of Boma

. He made a military pledge not to let Cao Cao off, while Zhuge Liang also stated that he would give up his head to Guan Yu if Cao Cao did not pass through Huarong Trail. As Zhuge Liang predicted, Cao Cao did reach Huarong Trail and encountered Guan Yu there. However Guan Yu decided to spare Cao Cao in consideration of their past dealings, and taking pity on the plight of Cao Cao's men. He allowed Cao Cao and his men to pass through Huarong Trail unharmed. When he returned to camp he confessed the truth to Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang. Zhuge Liang ordered Guan Yu to be executed for failing in his mission and agreed to pardon Guan when Liu Bei intervened.

This incident is not mentioned in Records of Three Kingdoms and is entirely fictional. Annotations from Shanyang Gong Zaiji (山陽公載記) in Cao Cao's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms state that after Cao Cao lost the Battle of Red Cliffs, he retreated on foot with his surviving men and passed by Huarong Trail. The path was muddy and difficult to access, so Cao Cao told the weaker soldiers to lay the ground with vegetation so that his horsemen can pass. Many of those weaker soldiers were trampled to death by horses when they became stuck in the mud. When Cao Cao finally got out of the dire situation, he expressed joy so his generals asked him why he was happy. Cao Cao replied, "Liu Bei, he's my mate. However he doesn't think fast; if he set fire earlier I'd have no chance of escaping." Liu Bei did catch up later and set fire but Cao Cao had already left.

Liu Bei and Lady Sun's marriage

Sun Quan adopted Zhou Yu's "beauty scheme" (美人計) to seize control of Jing Province (荊州; covering present-day Hubei

Hubei

' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...

and Hunan

Hunan

' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...

) from Liu Bei. In the plan, Liu Bei was lured to Jiangdong under the pretext of marrying Sun Quan's younger sister Lady Sun

Lady Sun

Lady Sun, known as Sun Shangxiang in Chinese opera and contemporary culture, was a noble lady in the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. She was a daughter of Sun Jian and younger sister of the warlords Sun Ce and Sun Quan, who laid the foundation for the state of...

to affirm the Sun-Liu alliance. Sun Quan would then hold Liu Bei hostage in exchange for Jing Province. Zhuge Liang foiled Zhou Yu's scheme and the marriage became reality. Liu Bei also left Jiangdong and returned to Jing Province safely with his bride. Zhou Yu led troops in an attempt to pursue the couple after they left, but fell into an ambush by Liu Bei's forces and defeated. Liu Bei's men chanted, "Zhou Lang (a reference to Zhou Yu)'s brilliant strategy brings peace to the world. He lost both the lady and his soldiers." (周郎妙計安天下，陪了夫人又折兵！). The infuriated Zhou Yu coughed blood and fainted.

The marriage between Liu Bei and Lady Sun was mentioned in Liu Bei's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms as follows: After Liu Qi died of illness, Liu Bei's subordinates urged him to take up governorship of Jing Province, with the provincial capital at Gong'an (公安; present-day Gong'an County

Gong'an County

Gong'an County is a county in the municipal region of Jingzhou , Hubei Province.-Administration:The county oversees 14 towns and two townships as of 2005...

, Hubei

Hubei

' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...

). Sun Quan felt slightly uneasy so he married his younger sister to Liu Bei to strengthen relations between him and Liu Bei. This suggests that the marriage took place in Gong'an, as Sun Quan sent his sister there to marry Liu Bei, instead of Liu travelling to Sun's territory for the marriage.

However, Zhou Yu's biography mentioned that Zhou Yu did suggest to Sun Quan to have Liu Bei confined in their territory. After Liu Bei assumed governorship of Jing Province, he went to Jing (京; present-day Zhenjiang

Zhenjiang

Zhenjiang is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Jiangsu province in the eastern People's Republic of China . Sitting on the southern bank of the Yangtze River, it borders the provincial capital of Nanjing to the west, Changzhou to the east, and Yangzhou across the river to the north.Once...

, Jiangsu

Jiangsu

) to meet Sun Quan. At that time, Zhou Yu said to Sun Quan, "Liu Bei possesses characteristics of a fierce and ambitious hero. Besides, he also has under him generals with the might of bears and tigers, such as Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. He's definitely not someone who will remain subservient to another lord. I suggest moving Liu Bei to Wu (吳; in present-day Suzhou

Suzhou

Suzhou , previously transliterated as Su-chou, Suchow, and Soochow, is a major city located in the southeast of Jiangsu Province in Eastern China, located adjacent to Shanghai Municipality. The city is situated on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and on the shores of Taihu Lake and is a part...

, Jiangsu), build a palace for him there, and present him with women and gifts to entertain him. We'll then put the two men (Guan Yu and Zhang Fei) each in a different location. If I can use Liu Bei as a hostage and attack (his men) at the same time, our goal (take over Jing Province) will be accomplished. And now yet we carve out land for them as resources, and allow the three men to be together? I'm afraid once the dragon encounters clouds and rain, it'll no longer remain in a pond." Sun Quan considered that Cao Cao was still a threat in the north, so he thought it would be better for him to have more allies (instead of creating hostility between him and his allies), and besides, he was also worried that Liu Bei's men might not submit to him, so he rejected Zhou Yu's idea. This shows that Zhou Yu did wanted to confine Liu Bei in Wu and use him as a hostage to control his men (Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and others), but nothing was mentioned about him using Lady Sun as a bait to lure Liu Bei into a trap. The women mentioned in the plan were used to entertain Liu Bei during his confinement and distract him from his men. Most importantly, the plan was not carried out because Sun Quan disapproved, therefore the story in Romance of the Three Kingdoms is entirely fiction.

Fa Zheng

Fa Zheng

Fa Zheng , style name Xiaozhi , was an advisor to the warlord Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history....

's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms hinted that Liu Bei and Lady Sun's relationship was not as romantic as described in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, but rather, Liu Bei was suspicious of Lady Sun and feared her. Zhuge Liang once said, "When our lord (Liu Bei) was in Gong'an, he was wary of Cao Cao's influence in the north, feared Sun Quan's presence in the east, even in home territory he was afraid that Lady Sun might stir up trouble." Lady Sun's personality was described as follows in Fa Zheng's biography: Sun Quan married his sister to Liu Bei. She was fierce and tough in character, much like her older brother. She had about 100 female servants, each of them standing on guard and carrying a sword. Every time Liu Bei entered (her room), he felt a chill in his heart.

Zhao Yun crosses the river to rescue A'dou

When Liu Bei left Jing Province (荊州; covering present-day Hubei

Hubei

' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...

and Hunan

Hunan

' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...

) for Yi Province (益州; covering the Sichuan Basin

Sichuan basin

The Sichuan Basin is a lowland region in southwestern China. Despite its historical name, it is not only synonymous to Sichuan province, comprising its central and eastern portions as well as part of Chongqing Municipality...

), Zhuge Liang and others remained behind to defend Jing Province. Sun Quan, disgruntled by Liu Bei's repeated excuses in refusing to return Jing Province, decided to adopt a scheme suggested by Zhang Zhao

Zhang Zhao

to take Jing Province. He sent a general called Zhou Shan

Zhou Shan

Zhou Shan is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms.-Biography:Zhou served under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty. He was sent by his lord to fetch Lady Sun back to Eastern Wu. Lady Sun brought Liu Bei's young son, Liu Shan, along...

to Jing Province to meet Lady Sun, lying to her that her mother (Lady Wu) was critically ill and wanted to see her. Lady Sun immediately prepared to board Zhou Shan's ship and return to Wu, bringing along Liu Bei's son A'dou

Liu Shan

with her. When Zhao Yun

Zhao Yun

heard about it, he rushed to the dock but Zhou Shan's ship had already set sail. Zhao Yun then boarded a small boat, caught up with the ship, fought with Zhou Shan and his men, and managed to take back A'dou. Just as Zhao Yun was being cornered, a fleet of vessels commanded by Zhang Fei appeared and blocked Lady Sun's ship. Zhang Fei boarded the ship and killed Zhou Shan. After some negotiations, Lady Sun was allowed to leave but Zhao Yun and Zhang Fei insisted that A'dou stays. Lady Sun returned to Wu and never met Liu Bei again.

A similar incident was mentioned in an annotation from Yun Biezhuan (雲別傳) in Zhao Yun's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms. It stated that when Liu Bei went to Yi Province, Zhao Yun remained behind to guard Jing Province. At that time Lady Sun was arrogant and used her brother's influence to allow her followers to behave lawlessly. Liu Bei knew that Zhao Yun was a serious and orderly person, so he specially put Zhao in charge of internal affairs (in Jing Province). When Sun Quan heard that Liu Bei had travelled west (to Yi Province), he sent a ship to fetch his sister. Lady Sun attempted to bring Liu Shan

Liu Shan

(A'dou) with her back to Wu, but Zhao Yun and Zhang Fei led troops to block her from crossing the river and retrieved Liu Shan.

Battle of Tong Pass

Ma Chao

Ma Chao was the oldest son of Ma Teng and a military general during the late Han Dynasty and early Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. In Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, he received the nickname "Ma Chao the Splendid" due to his elaborate armour and grand skill...

rallied an army to attack Cao Cao for revenge after the latter murdered his father Ma Teng

Ma Teng

Ma Teng was a warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He controlled Liang Province together with his sworn brother Han Sui...

and younger brothers Ma Xiu

Ma Xiu

Ma Xiu was the son of the warlord Ma Teng during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. When his older brother Ma Chao rebelled against Cao Cao, Ma Xiu and his father were executed.-See also:*List of people of the Three Kingdoms...

and Ma Tie

Ma Tie

Ma Tie was a son of the warlord Ma Teng during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. While serving the imperial army, Ma Tie was made Colonel of the Cavalry. When his older brother Ma Chao revolted against Cao Cao, Ma Tie was killed in battle, while Ma Teng and Ma Xiu were executed....

. Cao Cao was defeated by Ma Chao in the first skirmish of the Battle of Tong Pass

Battle of Tong Pass (211)

The Battle of Tong Pass was fought between the warlord Cao Cao and a coalition of forces from Guanxi from March to September 211 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. The battle was initiated by Cao Cao's western expansion, which triggered uprisings in Guanxi...

. Amidst the chaos, Cao Cao fled and was pursued by Ma Chao. Ma Chao shouted that the man dressed in the red robe was Cao Cao, so Cao took off his robe and discarded it to avoid being recognised. When Ma Chao saw that he shouted again that the man with a long beard was Cao Cao, so Cao drew his sword and quickly trimmed his beard until it was very short. Ma Chao then shouted that the man with a short beard was Cao Cao, and Cao responded by wrapping a flag around his jaw. Cao Hong

Cao Hong

Cao Hong was a military general of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He started his career during the late Han Dynasty under the warlord Cao Cao, who was also his cousin.-Early career:...

appeared and held off Ma Chao long enough for Cao Cao to escape. Ma Chao also engaged Cao Cao's general Xu Chu

Xu Chu

Xu Chu was a warrior who lived during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He served as a bodyguard to the warlord Cao Cao. Gigantic and strong, yet simple-minded and honest, Xu Chu was referred to as "Dumb Tiger" by his fellow men...

in a duel. Xu Chu removed his upper garments, fighting topless against Ma Chao both on horseback and on foot. Neither of them managed to overcome his opponent. Eventually, Cao Cao followed Jia Xu

Jia Xu

Jia Xu , style name Wenhe , was an advisor to the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He previously served Dong Zhuo, Li Jue and Zhang Xiu before finally joining Cao Cao...

's strategy to turn Ma Chao and his ally Han Sui

Han Sui

Han Sui was a warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. For most of his life he was active in Liang Province and was involved in several rebellions against the Han Dynasty and against the warlord Cao Cao.-Biography:With the backing of the Qiang people who populated much of...

against each other. Ma Chao fell for the ruse and believed that Han Sui was planning to betray him so he barged into Han Sui's tent and attacked him. Han Sui lost his left arm during the fight and narrowly escaped under the protection of his subordinates. Cao Cao then took advantage of their internal conflict to attack them and defeated Ma Chao. Ma Chao fled to join the warlord Zhang Lu in Hanzhong

Hanzhong

Hanzhong is a municipality in southwest Shaanxi Province, China, occupying a historically significant valley in the mountains between the Xi'an area, home to many Chinese capitals, and the fertile but isolated Sichuan Basin...

after his defeat.

Both Ma Chao and Cao Cao's biographies in Records of Three Kingdoms confirmed that Ma Chao started a rebellion in 211 together with Han Sui

Han Sui

, Yang Qiu

Yang Qiu

Yang Qiu was a warlord who joined Ma Chao's rebellion against Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. Upon the coalition's defeat in the Battle of Tong Pass, he fled to Anding but was forced to surrender to Cao Cao the next winter and was awarded a post as a marquis.-In...

, Li Kan and Cheng Yi in Guanzhong

Guanzhong

Guanzhong , or Guanzhong Plain, is a historical region of China corresponding to the lower valley of the Wei River. It is called Guanzhong or 'within the passes' to distinguish it from 'Guandong' or 'east of the pass', that is, the North China Plain. The North China Plain is bordered on the west by...

and they formed a coalition army to attack Cao Cao, leading to the Battle of Tong Pass

Battle of Tong Pass (211)

. An annotation from Dianlue in Ma Chao's biography stated that around a year after Ma Chao rebelled, Emperor Xian

Emperor Xian of Han

Emperor Xian of Han , personal name Liu Xie, style name Bohe, was the last emperor of the Han Dynasty period of Chinese history...

issued an imperial decree to Cao Cao, ordering him to have Ma Chao's family in Ye

Ye, China

Ye or Yecheng was an ancient Chinese city located in what is now Linzhang County, Hebei and the neighbouring Anyang County, Henan....

executed. This proves that the order of events had been reversed in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, because Ma Chao started a rebellion in the first place, and then his clan was exterminated by Cao Cao about a year later.

The duel between Ma Chao and Xu Chu

Xu Chu

is not documented in Records of Three Kingdoms and is likely to be fictional. Ma Chao, Cao Cao and Xu Chu's biographies gave an account of a meeting between Cao Cao, Ma Chao and Han Sui during the battle. Cao Cao rode forth on horseback to speak with Ma Chao and Han Sui. Cao Cao was accompanied only by Xu Chu

Xu Chu

. Ma Chao had confidence in himself and secretly harboured the intention of charging forward and capturing Cao Cao when they met. However he had heard of Xu Chu before and suspected that the man with Cao Cao was Xu Chu. He then asked Cao Cao, "Where's your Tiger Marquis?" Cao Cao pointed at Xu Chu, and Xu glared at Ma Chao. Ma Chao was afraid and did not dare to make his move.

Ma Chao, Cao Cao and Jia Xu

Jia Xu

's biographies all mentioned about Cao Cao heeding Jia Xu's suggestion to sow discord between Ma Chao and Han Sui and turn them against each other. Cao Cao's biography gave a detailed account of this incident, which is mainly similar to the description in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, except that there is no mention about Ma Chao cutting off Han Sui's arm in a fight. Besides, the generals Cheng Yi, Li Kan, Yang Qiu and others were not subordinates of Han Sui, but rather, independent members who joined Ma Chao's alliance.

Pang Tong's death

Liu Bei attacked Liu Zhang

Liu Zhang (warlord)

Liu Zhang was a warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He became governor of Yi Province , succeeding his father Liu Yan and ruled the region until 214, when he surrendered to Liu Bei...

in Yi Province on the advice of Pang Tong

Pang Tong

. Before a battle at Luo County (雒縣; present-day Guanghan

Guanghan

Guanghan is a county-level city in Deyang, Sichuan province, China. The predominant industries are tourism, pharmaceuticals and the supply of building material....

, Sichuan

Sichuan

' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...

), Pang Tong's horse reared and threw him off its back. This was regarded as a bad omen. Liu Bei then offered to Pang Tong his own steed, Dilu (的盧), out of kindness. Dilu was said to bring bad luck to its rider. Liu Zhang's general Zhang Ren

Zhang Ren

Zhang Ren was a general serving under the warlord Liu Zhang during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history.-In fiction:In Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Zhang Ren served under Liu Zhang...

, who planned an ambush near Luo County, recognised Dilu and mistook its rider to be Liu Bei, so he ordered his archers to fire at the rider, who was actually Pang Tong. Pang Tong's place of death was called Valley of the Fallen Phoenix

Valley of the Fallen Phoenix

The Valley of the Fallen Phoenix is located in Sichuan, China. In Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Pang Tong was killed at the valley in 214 in an ambush by Zhang Ren's archers during Liu Bei's takeover of Yi Province . Following the death of Pang Tong, Liu Bei...

(Pang Tong's nickname was "Young Phoenix" (鳳雛)).

Not much details were provided on Pang Tong's death in his biography in Records of Three Kingdoms. It briefly stated that Pang Tong led an attack on Luo County and was hit by stray arrows and died at the age of 36 (by East Asian age reckoning

East Asian age reckoning

East Asian age reckoning is a concept and practice that originated in China and is widely used by other cultures in East Asia, which share this traditional way of counting a person's age. Newborns start at one year old, and each passing of a Lunar New Year, rather than the birthday, adds one year...

Battle of Jiameng Pass

Liu Zhang

Liu Zhang (warlord)

requested aid from his former rival Zhang Lu when he came under attack by Liu Bei. Zhang Lu sent Ma Chao

Ma Chao

to lead an army to help Liu Zhang (Ma Chao came to serve Zhang Lu after being defeated by Cao Cao). Liu Bei and Ma Chao's armies battled at Jiameng Pass (葭萌關; near present-day Jiange County

Jiange County

Jiange County is a county of Sichuan Province, China. It is under the administration of Guangyuan city....

, Sichuan

Sichuan

' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...

). Zhang Fei dueled with Ma Chao for more than 200 rounds but neither emerged the winner. Liu Bei was impressed with Ma Chao's valour and wanted him on his side, so he consulted Zhuge Liang for advice. Zhuge Liang sent Sun Qian

Sun Qian

Sun Qian , style name Gongyou , was an advisor and emissary to the warlord Liu Bei during the late Han Dynasty of China. He originally served Tao Qian, the Governor of Xu Province, together with Mi Zhu, Mi Fang and Cao Bao. After the death of Tao Qian and Xu Province's governorship was passed to...

to bribe Zhang Lu's aide Yang Song

Yang Song

Yang Song is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was an advisor to the warlord Zhang Lu of Hanzhong...

to speak ill of Ma Chao in front of Zhang Lu, causing Zhang Lu to doubt and suspect Ma Chao's loyalty towards him. In the meantime, Liu Bei also sent Li Hui to meet Ma Chao and Li Hui succeeded in persuading Ma Chao to defect to Liu Bei's side. Ma Chao helped Liu Bei in taking over Yi Province from Liu Zhang, and later became one of the Five Tiger Generals

Five Tiger Generals

The Five Tiger Generals is a popular appellation in Chinese culture for any five military generals serving under a ruler. This term is used in literature texts, plays and popular culture. In the historical context, "Five Tiger Generals" usually refers to the five best military generals serving...

.

The Battle of Jiameng Pass was not documented in Records of Three Kingdoms and there is no mention of a duel between Ma Chao and Zhang Fei. Ma Chao's defection from Zhang Lu to Liu Bei's side is described in Ma's biography as follows: Ma Chao could not get along well with Zhang Lu and there was suspicion between them. When Ma Chao heard that Liu Bei was besieging Liu Zhang in Chengdu

Chengdu

Chengdu , formerly transliterated Chengtu, is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status...

(Yi Province's capital) he secretly wrote a letter to Liu Bei, expressing his willingness to surrender. Liu Bei sent men to receive Ma Chao, and Ma led his troops to outside Chengdu. This caused panic in the city and Liu Zhang surrendered. An annotation from Dianlue in Ma Chao's biography stated: When Liu Bei heard that Ma Chao had arrived he was pleased and said, "Yi Province is mine." He then sent men to meet Ma Chao and sent reinforcements and supplies to the latter. When Ma Chao reached Chengdu he stationed his army north of the city and Chengdu fell (to Liu Bei) within 10 days of Ma Chao's arrival. Nothing is mentioned about the roles Zhuge Liang, Yang Song and Li Hui played in Ma Chao's defection.

Guan Yu attends a banquet alone armed with only a blade

Guan Yu attended a banquet hosted by Sun Quan's viceroy Lu Su

Lu Su

Lu Su , style name Zijing , was a politician, militarist and diplomat serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history...

, armed with only his Green Dragon Crescent Blade. The banquet was actually a mask for an attempt by Lu Su and Sun Quan's generals to coerce Guan Yu to hand over Jing Province (荊州; covering present-day Hubei

Hubei

' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...

and Hunan

Hunan

' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...

). Lü Meng

Lü Meng

Lü Meng was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He served as the commanding general in the invasion of Jing Province that led to the death of Guan Yu.-Early life:Lü Meng was born in Fupo, Runan Commandery in 178...

, Gan Ning

Gan Ning

Gan Ning was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was born in Linjiang, Ba Commandery .-Early life as a pirate:...

and some soldiers were lying in ambush near the banquet area, waiting for a signal from Lu Su to dash out and kill Guan Yu. Guan Yu knew it was a trap for him but he still attended the banquet, chatting with Lu Su. He sensed imminent danger but pretended to be drunk and grabbed Lu Su, using him as a hostage and releasing him only after he had boarded his vessel bound for Jing Province.

Records of Three Kingdoms did mention Guan Yu and Lu Su having talks over the division of Jing Province between their respective lords. During the negotiations, both sides had their soldiers stationed at least a hundred paces away from the meeting area, while each of the generals present at the talks was armed with a blade weapon.

Hua Tuo heals Guan Yu's arm

During the Battle of Fancheng

Battle of Fancheng

The Battle of Fancheng was fought between the forces of warlords Liu Bei and Cao Cao in 219 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history...

Guan Yu was injured in the arm by a poisoned crossbow bolt. Just then a famous physician named Hua Tuo

Hua Tuo

Hua Tuo was an ancient Chinese physician who lived during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. The Records of Three Kingdoms and Book of Later Han record Hua as the first person in China to use anesthesia during surgery. He used a general anesthetic combining wine with a...

came to Guan Yu's camp and offered to cure Guan's arm. Hua Tuo diagnosed that the poison had already seeped through the flesh into the bone and he needed to perform surgery on Guan Yu's arm. He also told Guan Yu that Guan must be blindfolded and his arm must be secured in place before the surgery was conducted, but Guan told Hua Tuo it was too troublesome and he could just perform the surgery on the spot. Hua Tuo cut open the flesh on Guan Yu's arm, exposing the bone, then scrapped off the venom on the bone and stitched up the wound. Guan Yu showed no sign of pain and continued playing weiqi with Ma Liang during the surgery. He thanked Hua Tuo for healing his arm and wanted to reward the physician but Hua declined.

According to history Hua Tuo died in 208, 11 years before the Battle of Fancheng, so it is impossible that he was around to heal Guan Yu's arm.

Lü Meng's death

Sun Quan threw a feast to celebrate and honour his general Lü Meng

Lü Meng

, who led a campaign on Jing Province (荊州; covering present-day Hubei

Hubei

' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...

and Hunan

Hunan

' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...

) and succeeded in seizing it from Guan Yu. Guan Yu was captured after his defeat and executed on Sun Quan's order. During the feast, Lü Meng was suddenly possessed by Guan Yu's spirit and he grabbed Sun Quan. As Sun Quan's men rushed forth to save their lord, the possessed Lü Meng shoved Sun Quan away and sat on Sun's seat, announcing that he was Guan Yu and swearing vengeance on Lü Meng. As Sun Quan and his men quickly sank to their knees in fear, Lü Meng collapsed and died, bleeding from seven body orifices.

Lü Meng's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms mentioned that Sun Quan rewarded Lü Meng handsomely after he conquered Jing Province, including granting him a large sum of money and gold, as well as the title of a marquis. Lü Meng rejected the gold and money but Sun Quan insisted that he accept. Lü Meng had yet to receive his marquis title when he became ill and his condition deteriorated. Sun Quan was very worried about Lü Meng's condition and tried his best to preserve Lü Meng's life, including offering a large sum of gold to any person who could heal Lü Meng, as well as hiring priests to perform rituals to increase Lü Meng's lifespan. He also visited Lü Meng personally. Despite Sun Quan's efforts, Lü Meng still eventually died of illness at the age of 42 (by East Asian age reckoning

East Asian age reckoning

), and Sun Quan was deeply grieved by the loss of Lü Meng.

Gan Ning's death

Liu Bei sought vengeance on Sun Quan after the latter conquered Jing Province (荊州; covering present-day Hubei

Hubei

' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...

and Hunan

Hunan

' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...

) and captured Guan Yu and executed him. He led a large army to attack Sun Quan, leading to the Battle of Xiaoting

Battle of Xiaoting

The Battle of Xiaoting, also known as the Battle of Yiling and the Battle of Yiling and Xiaoting, was fought between the states of Eastern Wu and Shu Han in 222 during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history...

. Gan Ning

Gan Ning

Gan Ning was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was born in Linjiang, Ba Commandery .-Early life as a pirate:...

was down with dysentery

Dysentery

Dysentery is an inflammatory disorder of the intestine, especially of the colon, that results in severe diarrhea containing mucus and/or blood in the faeces with fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, dysentery can be fatal.There are differences between dysentery and normal bloody diarrhoea...

then but he still participated in the battle regardless of his illness. He was resting when he heard that enemy forces were approaching, so he quickly mounted his horse and prepared for battle. Gan Ning encountered a group of barbarian warriors led by Shamoke

Shamoke

Shamoke was the king of the tribal people of the five valleys in Wuling during the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. During the Battle of Xiaoting between the warlords Liu Bei and Sun Quan, Shamoke led his troops to support Liu and was granted an official post by Liu...

, a tribal king who was Liu Bei's ally. He saw that the enemy force was too large and decided to withdraw without fighting. While retreating on horseback, Gan Ning was hit in the head by an arrow fired by Shamoke. He fled, with the arrow still embedded in his head, reached Fuchi (富池; in present-day Yangxin County

Yangxin County, Hubei

Yangxin County is a county within the prefecture-level city of Huangshi in China's Hubei province. It occupies the southern half of the Huangshi "prefecture-level city", bordering on the Jiangxi Province in the south, and with the Tongshan County of the Xianning prefecture-level city in the west...

, Hubei), sat down under a big tree and died. Dozens of crows on the tree flew around Gan Ning's body. When Sun Quan heard of Gan Ning's death, he was deeply saddened and ordered Gan Ning to be buried with full honours.

No details were given on Gan Ning's cause and time of death in his biography in Records of Three Kingdoms. Gan Ning's death was briefly stated as follows: Gan Ning died, Sun Quan lamented his death.

Meng Huo captured and released seven times

The Nanman

Nanman

Nanman were aboriginal tribes who lived in southwestern China. They may have been related to the Sanmiao, dated to around the 3rd century BC. The Nanman were multiple ethnic groups including the Miao, the Kinh, the Thai, and some Tibeto-Burman groups such as the Bai. There was never a single...

barbarian leader Meng Huo

Meng Huo

Meng Huo was popularly regarded as a local leader representing the gentries of the Nanzhong region during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history...

rebelled against the state of Shu Han

Shu Han

Shu Han was one of the three states competing for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period, after the fall of the Han Dynasty. The state was based on areas around Sichuan, which was then known as Shu...

. Shu's chancellor Zhuge Liang led an army to pacify the Nanman tribes. Meng Huo was defeated and captured by Zhuge Liang's forces seven times. During the first six times, Meng Huo complained that he was dissatisfied as he was captured by strategy and did not have a chance to fight a real battle, so Zhuge Liang released him each time to come back for another battle. On the seventh time, Meng Huo felt ashamed of himself and swore eternal allegiance to Shu.

Pei Songzhi

Pei Songzhi

's annotations to Zhuge Liang's biography in Records of Three Kingdoms contained a line about "capture and release seven times" but no details were provided. Characters associated with Meng Huo such as E'huan (鄂煥), Lady Zhurong

Lady Zhurong

Lady Zhurong, sometimes known as Madam Zhurong, is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. She was the wife of the Nanman chieftain Meng Huo, who controlled the lands in southern Shu Han. She claimed to be descended from the fire deity Zhu Rong, from...

, Meng You

Meng You

Meng You is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was the younger brother of the Nanman chieftain Meng Huo. When Meng Huo rebelled against the state of Shu Han, the chancellor Zhuge Liang personally led a southern campaign to suppress the...

and King Mulu

King Mulu

King Mulu is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was a vassal under the Nanman chieftain Meng Huo, and was the lord of the Bana Cave . Mulu appeared in the chapter about Zhuge Liang's southern campaign to suppress the Nanman rebellion...

are purely fictional.

Zhuge Liang's Empty Fort Strategy

During one of Zhuge Liang's Northern Expeditions, Shu forces were defeated at the Battle of Jieting

Battle of Jieting

The Battle of Jieting was fought between the states of Cao Wei and Shu Han in 228 during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. The battle was part of the first Northern Expedition led by Shu's chancellor Zhuge Liang to attack Wei...

due to the incompetence of the Shu general Ma Su

Ma Su

Ma Su was a military general and strategist of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He was the younger brother of Ma Liang. Ma Su had conspicuous talent in military theories and was admired by the Shu chancellor Zhuge Liang...

. Zhuge Liang's lightly defended position was exposed as a result of Ma Su's defeat. When he received news of Wei troops approaching, Zhuge Liang ordered his men to leave the city gates wide open and disguise themselves as civilians doing ordinary routine tasks such as sweeping near the gates. Zhuge Liang stationed himself at the top of the gates, playing a guqin

Guqin

The guqin is the modern name for a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument of the zither family...

calmly in the face of great danger. The Wei general Sima Yi

Sima Yi

Sima Yi was a general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He is perhaps best known for defending Wei from Zhuge Liang's Northern Expeditions...

was baffled by the sight before him. He suspected an ambush in the city and eventually ordered a retreat.

Evidence from historical sources indicate that Sima Yi was not present around that area at that time, and there was no mention about Wei forces pursuing their retreating Shu counterparts after the Battle of Jieting. Historians have also pointed out logical fallacies in the story.

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