Zhan Zhao was a man who lived during the period of Northern Song in the era of Emperor Renzong. He was the royal guard of the palace. He was assigned to work together with Bao Zheng who was a governor of 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...

 city, the capital city of Northern Song. He was a very honest person who was good at martial arts. In his life he was known for serving Bao Zheng even more than being a royal guard of the imperial court. There are disputes between whether he really existed or whether he was a fictional character. People who argue for his non-fictionality point to a grave in a cemetery as proof that he was real.

Career

Zhan Zhao was best known for his martial art skills. He was the body guard of Bao Zheng and the third ranking royal guard of the Song's Royal Palace. His title was "The Royal Cat" (御猫, yùmāo). He was the only man who was allowed to enter the Inner Palace armed. People said that he represented the Wu (martial) aspect while Bao Zheng represented the Wen (civil) aspect. He was also the leader of Bao Zheng's' guards, namely Wang Chao, Ma Han, Zhang Long and Zhao Hu.

Legacy

Before Zhan Zhao became a royal guard, he was just a man travelling around the land. He was trained with high power martial art. There was one time that he fought against "The Five Rats" who each had a special power, specializing in water and others underground. Zhan Zhao was once ordered to catch Bai Yutang who was one of the "Five Rats". He invaded their island in order to fight against the five rats. He was able to defeat all of them. Of the Five Rats, Bai Yutang was the best among them and the youngest brother of Five Rats.