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129-478: The Records are the primary source of information for the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms , considered to be one of the four classic novels emblematic of written vernacular Chinese . While large subsections of the work have been selected and translated into English, the entire corpus has yet to receive an unabridged English translation. The Book of Han and Records of

258-522: A Chinese idiom — lèbùsīshǔ ( 樂不思蜀 ), figuratively meaning "joyful and does not think of home / the past". The phrase has a negative connotation with regards to the person's character. Former Shu official Xi Zheng then advised Liu Shan that the appropriate response was to lament how far he had been removed from his family tombs. Liu Shan followed the advice when he was asked the same question later, however Sima Zhao quickly guessed that he had been coached in his answer, and Liu Shan admitted as much. This

387-641: A Wei attack, with troops positioned in such a way as to trap the Wei troops should they do so — a strategy that would be used several years later, in 263, when Wei did attack, but which would prove to be a failure. By 261, Huang Hao's power appeared paramount. Among the key domestic officials, only Dong Jue and Zhuge Liang's son Zhuge Zhan were able to maintain their posts without flattering Huang Hao. In 262, Huang Hao would in fact try to remove Jiang Wei and replace him with his friend Yan Yu ( 閻宇 ). Upon hearing this, Jiang Wei advised Liu Shan to execute Huang Hao, but

516-420: A bloody massacre of his population base at Liaodong. In contrast, Liu Shan's surrender led to a peaceful transfer of power to the Wei kingdom, with most of the population unharmed, except during the week of unrest caused by Jiang Wei 's plotting. Liu Shan appears as a character in the historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong , which romanticises the historical events before and during

645-530: A brain tumour in Luoyang. His son and successor, Cao Pi , forced Emperor Xian to abdicate the throne to him and established the state of Cao Wei to replace the Han dynasty. About a year later, Liu Bei declared himself emperor and founded the state of Shu Han as a continuation of the Han dynasty. While Liu Bei was planning to avenge Guan Yu, Zhang Fei was assassinated in his sleep by his subordinates. As Liu Bei led

774-588: A calamitous defeat on Liu Bei at the Battle of Yiling . Lu Xun initially pursued Liu Bei during his retreat, but gave up after getting trapped inside and barely escaping from Zhuge Liang's Stone Sentinel Maze . Liu Bei died in Baidicheng from illness a few months later. On his deathbed, Liu Bei granted Zhuge Liang permission to take the throne if his son and successor, Liu Shan , proved to be an inept ruler. Zhuge Liang firmly refused and swore to remain faithful to

903-728: A capable and charismatic ruler. With assistance from Zhou Yu , Zhang Zhao and others, Sun Quan found hidden talents such as Lu Su to serve him, built up his military forces, and maintained stability in Jiangdong. Liu Bei and his oath brothers Guan Yu and Zhang Fei swore allegiance to the Han Empire in the Oath of the Peach Garden and pledged to do their best for the people. However, their ambitions were not realised as they did not receive due recognition for helping to suppress

1032-473: A coalition and launched a punitive campaign against Dong Zhuo . After Dong Zhuo lost the battles of Sishui Pass and Hulao Pass , he forced the citizens of Luoyang to relocate to Chang'an with him and burnt down Luoyang. The coalition ultimately broke up due to indecisive leadership and conflicting interests among its members. Meanwhile, in Chang'an, Dong Zhuo was betrayed and murdered by his foster son Lü Bu in

1161-503: A consort, and in 238 created her empress. Her title remained the same as her sister, Empress Zhang . In 243, Jiang Wan grew ill and transferred most of his authority to Fei Yi and Fei's assistant Dong Yun . In 244, when Wei's regent Cao Shuang attacked Hanzhong, it was Fei Yi who led the troops against Cao Shuang and dealt Wei a major defeat in the Battle of Xingshi . Jiang Wan, however, remained influential until his death in 245. Soon after Jiang Wan's death, Dong Yun also died — allowing

1290-455: A devastating defeat that eventually caused so much resentment that Zhuge Ke was assassinated. This was the last of the coordinated attacks by Shu and Wu on Wei in the duration of the Shu-Wu alliance. In 255, on one of Jiang Wei's campaigns, he dealt Wei forces a major defeat in the Battle of Didao , nearly capturing the important Wei border city Didao , but in 256, as he tried to again confront

1419-447: A diplomatic mission to Jiangdong to meet Sun Quan and discuss forming a Sun–Liu alliance to counter Cao Cao. Although Sun Quan was initially hesitant due to many of his followers advising him to surrender to Cao Cao, he ultimately made up his mind to ally with Liu Bei, placing Zhou Yu in command of his forces to prepare for the upcoming war. Zhuge Liang temporarily remained in Jiangdong to assist Zhou Yu, who sensed that Zhuge Liang posed

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1548-524: A dispute over the maiden Diaochan as part of a plot orchestrated by the minister Wang Yun . In the meantime, the Han Empire was already disintegrating into civil war as warlords fought for territories and power. Sun Jian found the Imperial Seal in the ruins of Luoyang and secretly kept it for himself. When Yuan Shao confronted him, he refused to hand over the Imperial Seal and left, but

1677-414: A far more positive light. Among them, Yi Zhongtian argued that even competent emperors like Emperor Wu of Han had evil courtiers beside him; Liu Shan is not the only case. Moreover, surrounding Liu Shan were not only evil courtiers, but also many competent and talented officers like Jiang Wan, Fei Yi and Dong Yun. Secondly, Liu Shan surrendering without much fighting is blameworthy, but the fall of Shu Han

1806-657: A full translation of fascicle 29. Rafe de Crespigny , in addition to his translation of Sun Jian's biography (Fascicle 46), also translated excerpts of the Records of the Three Kingdoms in his translation of the Zizhi Tongjian that deals with the last years of the Han dynasty, as does Achilles Fang , who translated the Zizhi Tongjian fascicles that deal with the Three Kingdoms period proper. The Zizhi Tongjian fascicles in question draw heavily from Records of

1935-497: A future threat to his lord. Zhou Yu attempted to outwit and kill Zhuge Liang, but failed and had no choice but to cooperate with the latter. The Sun–Liu forces scored a decisive victory over Cao Cao at the Battle of Red Cliffs . Sun Quan and Liu Bei started vying for control of southern Jing Province after their victory, but Liu Bei won and took over the territories from Cao Cao's general Cao Ren . Sun Quan, unhappy over having gained nothing, sent messengers to ask Liu Bei to "return"

2064-491: A group of influential court eunuchs, feared that He Jin was growing too powerful, so they lured him into the palace and assassinated him. In revenge, He Jin's followers broke into the palace and indiscriminately slaughtered any person who looked like a eunuch. In the ensuing chaos, Emperor Shao and his younger half-brother, the Prince of Chenliu , disappeared from the palace. The missing emperor and prince were found by soldiers of

2193-455: A large army to avenge Guan Yu and retake Jing Province, Sun Quan attempted to appease him by offering to return him the territories in southern Jing Province. Liu Bei's subjects urged him to accept Sun Quan's offer but Liu Bei insisted on avenging his oath brother. After initial victories against Sun Quan's forces, a series of strategic mistakes resulted in Sun Quan's general Lu Xun inflicting

2322-409: A large number of troops, reasoning that Shu was in no position for a major military confrontation with Wei. In 253, Fei Yi was assassinated by the general Guo Xun ( 郭循 ), a former Wei general who had been forced to surrender but who secretly maintained his loyalty to Wei. Fei Yi's death left Jiang Wei as the de facto regent, but with a power vacuum in domestic affairs, as Jiang Wei continued to be on

2451-574: A major campaign to terminate the Shu threat once and for all. Upon hearing rumours of this plan, Jiang Wei submitted a request to Liu Shan, warning him about the mustering of Wei troops under the generals Deng Ai , Zhuge Xu , and Zhong Hui near the border. However, Huang Hao persuaded Liu Shan with fortunetelling to take no action on Jiang Wei's requests for war preparations. In 263, Sima Zhao launched his attacks, led by Deng Ai, Zhuge Xu, and Zhong Hui. Liu Shan followed Jiang Wei's previous plans and ordered

2580-521: A more positive view towards Liu Shan's capability, as Liu Shan's long reign in Shu Han was free of bloody court coups unlike its rivals. Nevertheless, the name "Adou" is today still commonly used in Chinese as an epithet for someone so incompetent at a task that no amount of assistance will help them succeed. The main source of historical information about Liu Shan and his contemporaries is Records of

2709-417: A note or even offer a correction. In regard to historical events and figures, as well as Chen Shou's original text, he added his own commentary. Crucially, he cited his sources in almost every case. The Records of the Three Kingdoms was the main source of inspiration for the 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms , one of the four great Classic Chinese Novels . As such the records is considered one of

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2838-482: A political crisis. Unable to supply the troops sufficiently, Zhuge Liang's co-regent Li Yan forged an edict by Liu Shan, ordering Zhuge Liang to retreat. When Zhuge Liang discovered this, he recommended that Li Yan be removed from his office and put under house arrest, and Liu Shan accepted the recommendation. In 234, while Zhuge Liang was on his final campaign against Wei, he grew seriously ill. Hearing about Zhuge's illness, Liu Shan sent his secretary Li Fu ( 李福 ) to

2967-496: A rebellion by former Yellow Turbans, and consolidating power in the central government, Cao Cao turned his attention north to Yuan Shao, who had recently eliminated Gongsun Zan and now controlled most of northern China. Yuan Shao amassed a large army and camped along the northern bank of the Yellow River. In the summer of 200, after months of preparations, Cao Cao and Yuan Shao clashed at the Battle of Guandu . Although Cao Cao

3096-674: A rich tapestry of personalities. Luo Guanzhong's version in 24 volumes, known as the Sanguozhi Tongsu Yanyi , is now held in the Shanghai Library in China, Tenri Central Library in Japan, and several other major libraries. Various 10-volume, 12-volume and 20-volume recensions of Luo's text, made between 1522 and 1690, are also held at libraries around the world. However, the standard text familiar to general readers

3225-521: A short duration. These campaigns instead had a detrimental effect on Shu, whose government no longer had the efficiency that it had during Zhuge Liang's and Jiang Wan's regencies, and therefore was unable to cope with the drain of resources that Jiang Wei's campaigns were having. In 253, Jiang Wei made a coordinated attack on Wei, along with Wu's regent Zhuge Ke , but was eventually forced to withdraw after his troops ran out of food supplies — allowing Sima Shi to concentrate against Zhuge Ke, dealing Wu forces

3354-452: A single work. Pei collected other records to add information he felt should be added. He provided detailed explanations to some of the geography and other elements mentioned in the original. He also included multiple accounts of the same events. Sometimes, the accounts he added contradicted each other, but he included them anyway since he could not decide which version was the correct one. If Pei added something that sounded wrong, he would make

3483-465: A small city, and Guan Yu temporarily served under Cao Cao and helped him slay two of Yuan Shao's generals in battle. The three oath brothers were eventually reunited and managed to establish a new base in Runan , but they were defeated by Cao Cao's forces again so they retreated south to Jing Province , where they took shelter under the governor Liu Biao . After pacifying the nearby provinces, suppressing

3612-645: A southern campaign against the Nanman, defeated them seven times, and won the allegiance of the Nanman king Meng Huo . After pacifying the south, Zhuge Liang led the Shu army on five military expeditions to attack Wei as part of his mission to restore the Han dynasty. Each time, as Zhuge Liang was on the verge of success, he was recalled due to various unfortunate circumstances, such as Liu Shan listening to rumours spread by eunuchs. Moreover, his days were numbered because he had been suffering from chronic illness and his condition worsened under stress. He died of illness at

3741-438: A southern campaign to eliminate Liu Bei and Sun Quan. By then, Liu Biao had died and his younger son Liu Cong decided to surrender control of Jing Province to Cao Cao. In 208, although Liu Bei managed to repel two attacks by Cao Cao at Xinye, he was eventually forced to flee due to the overwhelming strength of the enemy forces. Cao Cao and his cavalry caught up with Liu Bei and his forces at Changban and defeated them. During

3870-452: A treacherous mountain pass and deep into Shu territory. There he launched a surprise attack on Jiangyou (江油; in present-day Mianyang , Sichuan ). After defeating Zhuge Zhan there, Deng Ai had virtually no Shu troops left between his army and the Shu capital Chengdu . Faced with the prospect of defending Chengdu against Deng Ai's troops with no defences, Liu Shan took the advice of Secretary Qiao Zhou and promptly surrendered. This surrender

3999-426: Is "the nature of human ambition", to which Moody adds the relationship between politics and morality, specifically the conflict between the idealism of Confucian political thought and the harsh realism of Legalism , as a related theme. Other dominant themes of the novel include: the rise and fall of the ideal liege (Liu Bei); finding the ideal minister (Zhuge Liang); the conflict between the ideal liege (Liu Bei) and

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4128-709: Is a 14th-century historical novel attributed to Luo Guanzhong . It is set in the turbulent years towards the end of the Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history , starting in 184 AD and ending with the reunification of the land in 280 by the Western Jin . The novel is based primarily on the Records of the Three Kingdoms , written by Chen Shou in the 3rd century. The story – part historical and part fictional – romanticises and dramatises

4257-513: Is a recension by Mao Lun and his son Mao Zonggang . In the 1660s, during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor in the Qing dynasty , Mao Lun and Mao Zonggang significantly edited the text, fitting it into 120 chapters, and abbreviating the title to Sanguozhi Yanyi . The text was reduced from 900,000 to 750,000 characters; significant editing was done for narrative flow; use of third-party poems

4386-570: Is arguably the most widely read historical novel in late imperial and modern China. Herbert Giles stated that among the Chinese themselves, this is regarded as the greatest of all their novels. Stories about the heroes of the Three Kingdoms were the basis of entertainment dating back to the Sui and Tang dynasty (6th–10th centuries). By the Song dynasty (10th–13th centuries), there were several records of professional oral storytellers who specialized in

4515-546: Is organised in the form of one or more biographies. The author Chen Shou was born in present-day Nanchong , Sichuan , then in the state of Shu Han . After the Conquest of Shu by Wei in 263, he became an official historian under the government of the Jin dynasty , and created a history of the Three Kingdoms period. After the Conquest of Wu by Jin in 280, his work received the acclaim of senior minister Zhang Hua . Prior to

4644-771: The Battle of Wuzhang Plains while leading a stalemate battle against the Wei general Sima Yi . The long years of battle between Shu and Wei saw many changes in the ruling Cao family in Wei. The influence of the Caos weakened after Cao Rui 's death and state power eventually fell into the hands of the regent Sima Yi and subsequently to his sons, Sima Shi and Sima Zhao . In Shu, Jiang Wei inherited Zhuge Liang's legacy and continued to lead another nine campaigns against Wei for three decades, but ultimately failed to achieve any significant success. The Shu emperor Liu Shan also turned out to be an incompetent ruler who trusted corrupt officials. Shu gradually declined under Liu Shan's rule and

4773-583: The Conquest of Shu by Wei in 263 rather than use the local rugged terrain along with other armies in his government to resist the invaders. Pei Songzhi qualified him (along with Fei Yi ) as an average individual who had no weight on the existence of his State. Chang Qu , who wrote extensively about the history of the Sichuan region in the Chronicles of Huayang ( Huayang Guo Zhi ), greatly praised Zhuge Liang but lamented that his lord, Liu Shan wasn't

4902-584: The Hanzhong Campaign and capturing Hanzhong Commandery. At the same time, Emperor Xian awarded Cao Cao the title of a vassal king – King of Wei – while Sun Quan was known as the Duke of Wu. In eastern China, Sun Quan and Cao Cao's forces fought in various battles along the Yangtze River , including the battles of Hefei and Ruxu , but neither side managed to gain a significant advantage over

5031-533: The Jin dynasty , before being extinguished in the turmoils caused by the Wu Hu . Liu Yuan , the founder of Han Zhao , one of the states in the Sixteen Kingdoms , claimed to be a legitimate successor of the Han dynasty. In that capacity, he bestowed Liu Shan the posthumous name "Emperor Xiaohuai" ( 孝懷皇帝 ; "the filial and kind emperor"). Liu Shan had a very negative reputation among his contemporaries. He

5160-466: The Records of the Three Kingdoms . However, since the state of Shu lacked an official history bureau, the Book of Shu in the Records was composed by Chen Shou himself based on his earlier personal notes about events in Shu and other primary sources he collected, such as his previously compiled writings of Zhuge Liang . The Records of the Three Kingdoms used the year 220 CE—when the last emperor of

5289-553: The Romance that could be dated with certainty in any language. Liu Shan Liu Shan ( pronunciation , 207–271), courtesy name Gongsi , was the second and last emperor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. As he ascended the throne at the age of 16, Liu Shan was entrusted to the care of the Chancellor Zhuge Liang and Imperial Secretariat Li Yan . His reign of 40 years

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5418-509: The Romance of the Three Kingdoms has been retold in numerous forms including television series, manga and video games. The Jurchen chieftain Nurhaci was an avid reader of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Water Margin , learning all he knew about Chinese military and political strategies from them. Thus, when his descendants founded the Qing dynasty and became the rulers of China,

5547-404: The Romance of the Three Kingdoms , though the Romance also includes a number of characters and stories that are fictional. However, most of the historical facts were drawn from Chen's Records . The Records of the Three Kingdoms has not been fully translated into English. William Gordon Crowell alludes to a project to translate Chen Shou's work with Pei Songzhi's commentary in full, but it

5676-496: The Yellow Turban Rebellion and participating in the campaign against Dong Zhuo . After Liu Bei succeeded Tao Qian as the governor of Xu Province , he offered shelter to Lü Bu , who had just been defeated by Cao Cao. However, Lü Bu betrayed his host, seized control of the province and attacked Liu Bei. After combining forces with Cao Cao to defeat Lü Bu at the Battle of Xiapi , Liu Bei followed Cao Cao back to

5805-434: The "breakdown of order" at the end of the Han dynasty to "the improper exercise of imperial authority, the destabilisation influence of special-interest groups (eunuchs, imperial clansmen), the problem of factional and individual idealism carried to the point of civil strife-all of which eventually surface in the body of the narrative." He goes on to say, the "overlapping claims to legitimacy and multiple spheres of power," give

5934-445: The 3rd century. The Records of the Three Kingdoms covered events ranging from the Yellow Turban Rebellion in 184 to the unification of the Three Kingdoms under the Jin dynasty in 280. The novel also includes material from Tang dynasty poetic works, Yuan dynasty operas and his own personal interpretation of elements such as virtue and legitimacy. The author combined this historical knowledge with his own storytelling skills to create

6063-495: The Han dynasty was forced to abdicate to Cao Pi—as the year in which the Wei dynasty was established. The Records refer to the rulers of Wei as 'Emperors' and those of Shu and Wu as 'Lords' or by their personal names. Due to the biographical rather than primarily annalistic arrangement of the work, assigning dates to the historical content is both imprecise and non-trivial. Certain fascicles contain background information about their subjects' forebears which date back centuries before

6192-688: The Jin dynasty . The fall of Wu marked the end of the near century-long era of civil strife historically known as the Three Kingdoms period. The novel draws from Chen Shou 's Records of the Three Kingdoms as the main historical source. Other major influences include Liu Yiqing's A New Account of the Tales of the World ( Shishuo Xinyu ), published in 430, and the Sanguozhi Pinghua , a chronological collection of eighty fictional sketches starting with

6321-456: The Jin dynasty, both the states of Cao Wei and Wu has already composed their own official histories: the Book of Wei by Wang Chen , Xun Yi , and Ruan Ji ; and the Book of Wu by Wei Zhao , Hua He , Xue Ying , Zhou Zhao ( 周昭 ), and Liang Guang ( 梁廣 ). Additionally, Yu Huan had completed his privately compiled history of Wei, the Weilüe . Chen Shou used these texts as the foundation of

6450-673: The Maos in their substantially revised edition of 1679. None of the earlier editions contained this phrase. In addition, Mao also added Yang Shen 's The Immortals by the River as the famous introductory poem (which began with "The gushing waters of the Yangzi River pour and disappear into the East", 滾滾長江東逝水 ) to the novel. The earlier editions, moreover, spend less time on the process of division, which they found painful, and far more time on

6579-434: The Three Kingdoms ( Sanguozhi ), in his appraisal commends Liu Shan when he appointed Zhuge Liang for following reason but condemns him for the employment of Huang Hao as being ignorant. He noted that when something is without substance, it reflects what's around. And this expression fits Liu Shan perfectly. However, modern historians have taken a revisionist view , challenging the common portrayal of Liu Shan seeing him in

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6708-402: The Three Kingdoms . Its author Chen Shou noted in his postface that Zhuge Liang did not employ scribes at Liu Shan's court, contrary to tradition. This custom would never be established in Shu Han, so details of Liu Shan's rule are hazy in comparison to the richness of information available for Shu's rival states of Wei and Wu. Much of his reign is recorded in spare, terse synopsis. Liu Shan

6837-548: The Three Kingdoms is acclaimed as one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature ; it has a total of 800,000 words and nearly a thousand dramatic characters (mostly historical) in 120 chapters. The novel is among the most beloved works of literature in East Asia , and its literary influence in the region has been compared to that of the works of Shakespeare on English literature . It

6966-726: The Three Kingdoms join the original Han-era universal history Records of the Grand Historian to constitute the first three entries in the Twenty-Four Histories canon, with each work cementing the new genre's literary and historiographical qualities as established by Sima Qian . The Records of the Three Kingdoms consist of 65 fascicles divided into three books—one per eponymous kingdom—totaling around 360,000 Chinese characters in length. The Book of Wei , Book of Shu , and Book of Wu receive 30 fascicles, 15 fascicles, and 20 fascicles respectively. Each fascicle

7095-519: The Three Kingdoms . Further excerpts of the Records can be found in various sourcebooks dealing with East Asian history. Below is a table containing the known English translations of the Records of the Three Kingdoms that have been published in academia: Romance of the Three Kingdoms Romance of the Three Kingdoms ( traditional Chinese : 三國演義 ; simplified Chinese : 三国演义 ; pinyin : Sānguó Yǎnyì )

7224-421: The Three Kingdoms hero cycles. The earliest written work to combine these stories was a pinghua named Sanguozhi Pinghua published sometime between 1321 and 1323. Romance of the Three Kingdoms is traditionally attributed to Luo Guanzhong , a playwright who lived sometime between 1315 and 1400 (late Yuan to early Ming period) known for compiling historical plays in styles which were prevalent during

7353-427: The Three Kingdoms period, creating "believable" situations and characters, even if they are not historically accurate. Romance of the Three Kingdoms , like the dramas and folk stories of its day, features Liu Bei and his associates as the protagonists; hence the depiction of the people in Shu Han was glorified. The antagonists, Cao Cao, Sun Quan and their followers, on the other hand, were often denigrated. This suited

7482-414: The Wei forces, he was instead dealt a defeat by Deng Ai , and this was a fairly devastating loss that left Jiang Wei with a weakened standing with the people. Many officials now openly questioned Jiang Wei's strategy, but Liu Shan took no actions to stop Jiang. Further, in 259, under Jiang Wei's suggestion, Liu Shan approved a plan where the main troops were withdrawn from major border cities to try to induce

7611-482: The Yuan period. It was first printed in 1522 as Sanguozhi Tongsu Yanyi ( 三國志通俗演義 ; 三国志通俗演义 ) in an edition which bore a preface dated 1494. The text may well have circulated before either date in handwritten manuscripts. Regardless of when it was written or whether Luo was the writer, the author made use of several available historical records, primarily the Records of the Three Kingdoms compiled by Chen Shou in

7740-514: The battle, Liu Bei's generals Zhao Yun and Zhang Fei displayed heroics: the former fought his way through enemy lines to rescue Liu Bei's infant son Liu Shan and deliver him safely back to his father; the latter single-handedly held off enemy forces at a bridge by intimidating and staring them down. Liu Bei and his forces managed to rendezvous with Guan Yu , who had left earlier to seek help from Liu Biao's elder son Liu Qi , and they retreated to Xiakou . In 208, Liu Bei dispatched Zhuge Liang on

7869-524: The book was one of the first Chinese books to be translated into their Manchu language along with military manuals. Indeed, it is one of only two Chinese novels that had a Manchu translation put into print during the Qing dynasty (the other being Jin Ping Mei ). A Manchu translation of the Romance , known in Manchu as Ilan gurun-i bithe ( ᡳᠯᠠᠨ ᡤᡠᡵᡠᠨ ᡳ ᠪᡳᡨᡥᡝ ), was first attempted in 1631 by

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7998-443: The border troops to withdraw and prepare to trap Wei forces, rather than to confront them directly. The plan, however, had a fatal flaw — it assumed that Wei forces would siege the border cities, which, instead, Deng Ai and Zhong Hui ignored, and they advanced instead on Yang'an Pass (陽安關; in present-day Hanzhong , Shaanxi ), capturing it. Jiang Wei was able to meet their troops and initially repel them, but Deng Ai led his army through

8127-502: The borders, conducting campaigns against Wei. Huang Hao's influence increased greatly as a result. After Fei Yi's death, Jiang Wei assumed command of Shu's troops and began a number of campaigns against Wei —but while they were troubling to the Wei regents Sima Shi and Sima Zhao , the attacks largely inflicted no real damage against Wei, as Jiang Wei's campaigns were plagued by one problem that had plagued Zhuge Liang's—the lack of adequate food supply—and largely had to be terminated after

8256-481: The common people for his personal gain. During this time, there were two attempts on his life: the first was by a military officer Wu Fu ( 伍孚 ), who failed and died a gruesome death; the second was by Cao Cao , who was also unsuccessful but managed to escape. Cao Cao fled from Luoyang, returned to his home commandery , and sent out a fake imperial edict to various warlords, calling them to rise up against Dong Zhuo. Under Yuan Shao 's leadership, eighteen warlords formed

8385-403: The consummate villain (Cao Cao); and the cruelties and injustice of feudal or dynastic government. The opening lines of the novel, "The empire, long divided, must unite; long united, must divide. Thus it has ever been", added by Mao Lun and Mao Zonggang in their recension, epitomise the tragic theme of the novel. One recent critic notes that the novel takes political and moral stands and lets

8514-427: The crown prince proved incapable, and may have indicated permission for Zhuge Liang to take the throne himself. While Zhuge Liang was alive, Liu Shan treated him as a father figure, allowing Zhuge to handle all state affairs. Zhuge Liang recommended many trusted officials, including Fei Yi , Dong Yun , Guo Youzhi and Xiang Chong into key positions. Under Zhuge Liang's advice, Liu Shan entered into an alliance with

8643-748: The death of Sun Hao in 284. One abstract regarding the chronology is translated as follows: In the 24th year (of Jian'an), the Former Lord became the King of Hanzhong, and he appointed (Guan) Yu as the General of the Vanguard. In the same year, (Guan) Yu led his men to attack Cao Ren at Fan. Lord Cao sent Yu Jin to aid (Cao) Ren. In autumn, great rains caused the Han River to flood. (Yu) Jin and all seven armies he oversaw were inundated. During

8772-478: The earliest extant native record being the Kojiki of 712. The text forms the foundation on which the 14th-century novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong is based. In addition, Chen Shou's literary style and vivid portrayal of characters have been a source of influence for the novel. The Records include biographies of historical figures such as Cao Cao and Guan Yu who feature prominently in

8901-459: The emergence of written vernacular during the Ming period, as part of the so-called "Four Masterworks" ( si da qishu ). Romance of the Three Kingdoms recorded stories of a Buddhist monk called Pujing (普净), who was a friend of Guan Yu . Pujing made his first appearance during Guan's arduous journey of crossing five passes and slaying six generals, in which he warned Guan of an assassination plot. As

9030-399: The eminent scholar Dahai ( 達海 ; 1595–1632), but he died the following year before it could be finished. A complete translation based on the 1522 edition of the novel was done in 1647 and published in 1650 by a team of high-ranking officials including Kicungge ( 祁充格 ; d. 1651) and Fan Wencheng (1597–1666), commissioned by the prince-regent Dorgon . This is the first translation of

9159-525: The emperor denied the request, saying that the eunuch was but a servant who ran errands. Fearing retaliation, Jiang Wei left Chengdu to garrison troops at Tazhong ( 沓中 ; northwest of present-day Zhugqu County , Gansu ). According to the Wu ambassador Xue Xu , who visited Shu in 261 on the order of the Wu emperor Sun Xiu , the status that Shu was in at this point was: In 262, aggravated by Jiang Wei 's constant attacks, Wei's regent Sima Zhao planned to carry out

9288-801: The end of 207, after a victorious campaign beyond the frontier against the Wuhuan , Cao Cao achieved complete dominance of northern China. The territories in central and northern China which came under Cao Cao's control became the foundation of the state of Cao Wei , which would later be established by Cao Cao's son and successor Cao Pi . In the meantime, Liu Biao had put Liu Bei in charge of Xinye . During this time, Liu Bei visited Zhuge Liang thrice and recruited him. Acting on Zhuge Liang's advice, Liu Bei built up his forces in preparation for war against Cao Cao. Following his unification of central and northern China under his control, Cao Cao, having been appointed Imperial Chancellor by Emperor Xian, led his forces on

9417-537: The eunuch Huang Hao , a favourite of Liu Shan's, whose power Dong Yun had curbed, to start aggrandising his power. Huang Hao was viewed as corrupt and highly manipulative in domestic matters, and the governmental efficiency that was achieved during Zhuge Liang's and Jiang Wan's regencies began to deteriorate. After Jiang Wan and Dong Yun's deaths, Liu Shan named Jiang Wei as Fei Yi's assistant, but both were largely involved only in military matters, as Liu Shan gradually became more self-assertive in non-military matters. It

9546-625: The family members of Liu Bei. Holding the infant Liu Shan in his arms, Zhao Yun led the mother and child to safety. An alternative story of Liu Shan's early life was given in Yu Huan 's Weilüe . It was said that Liu Shan, then already several years old, was separated from Liu Bei when the latter was attacked by Cao Cao in Xiaopei in 200. He somehow landed in Hanzhong and was sold by slave traders. Only when Liu Bei declared himself emperor in 221

9675-589: The fifth century, the Liu Song dynasty historian Pei Songzhi (372–451) extensively annotated Chen Shou's Records of the Three Kingdoms using a variety of other sources, augmenting the text to twice the length of the original. This work, completed in 429, became one of the official histories of the Three Kingdoms period, under the title Sanguozhi zhu (三国志注 zhu meaning "notes"). Bibliographical records indicate that up until Pei's own Liu Song dynasty, Chen Shou's three books had circulated individually rather than as

9804-406: The front line to visit Zhuge Liang and request instructions on important state matters. Among other things, Zhuge Liang recommended that Jiang Wan succeed him, and that Fei Yi succeed Jiang Wan. Zhuge Liang refused to answer Li Fu's next question — who should succeed Fei Yi. Zhuge Liang died soon thereafter. Liu Shan followed these recommendations, installing Jiang Wan as the new regent. Jiang Wan

9933-495: The imperial capital, Xu, where Emperor Xian honoured him as his "Imperial Uncle" upon learning that he was also a descendant of the imperial clan. When Cao Cao showed signs that he wanted to usurp the throne, Emperor Xian wrote a secret decree in blood to his father-in-law, Dong Cheng , and ordered him to get rid of Cao Cao. Dong Cheng secretly contacted Liu Bei, Ma Teng and others, and they planned to assassinate Cao Cao. However, their plans were leaked, and Cao Cao had Dong Cheng and

10062-463: The kind of man that could unite a country. In the volume 7 of the Huayang Guo Zhi , he ends Liu Shan's biography with Wang Chong 's eulogy toward his former State of Shu Han where Wang Chong comments that Liu Shan was a mediocre ruler without ambition toward the world and was in part responsible for the decline of his State. Chen Shou , who wrote Liu Shan's biography in the Records of

10191-502: The lives of feudal lords and their retainers, who tried to supplant the dwindling Han dynasty or restore it. While the novel follows hundreds of characters, the focus is mainly on the three power blocs that emerged from the remnants of the Han dynasty, and would eventually form the three states of Cao Wei , Shu Han , and Eastern Wu . The novel deals with the plots, personal and military battles, intrigues, and struggles of these states to achieve dominance for almost 100 years. Romance of

10320-423: The main record. For example, the biography of Liu Yan begins with discussing his ancestor Liu Yu 's enfeoffment at Jingling (present-day Tianmen , Hubei ) in around 85 CE. The first event to receive detailed description throughout the work is the Yellow Turban Rebellion in 184. Many biographies make passing mention of the event, but more concrete information such as correspondence and troop movements during

10449-421: The meantime, the common people suffered, and the Yellow Turban Rebellion (led by Zhang Jiao and his brothers) eventually broke out during the reign of Emperor Ling . The rebellion was barely suppressed by imperial forces commanded by the general He Jin . Shortly after Emperor Ling's death, He Jin installed the young Emperor Shao on the throne and took control of the central government. The Ten Attendants ,

10578-469: The most famous tale to be associated with Liu Shan: One day, the Wei regent Sima Zhao invited Liu Shan and his followers to a feast, during which Sima Zhao arranged to have entertainers perform traditional Shu music and dance. The former Shu officials present were all saddened, but Liu Shan was visibly unmoved. When asked by Sima Zhao if he missed his former state, Liu Shan replied: I am too happy here to think about Shu. ( 此間樂不思蜀 ) This phrase has become

10707-467: The most influential historical and cultural texts in Chinese history. In addition, the records provide one of the earliest accounts of Korea and Japan. Chen's Records set the standard for how Korea and Japan would write their official histories as well. Chen's Records is the chronologically final text of the "Four Histories" ( 四史 ), which together influenced and served as a model for Korean and Japanese official histories. The Records are important to

10836-460: The new imperial capital in Xu , and became the new head of the central government. He also defeated rival warlords such as Lü Bu , Yuan Shu and Zhang Xiu in a series of wars and gained control over much of central China. Meanwhile, Sun Jian was killed in an ambush by Liu Biao's forces. His eldest son, Sun Ce , delivered the Imperial Seal as a tribute to the warlord Yuan Shu , a rising pretender to

10965-408: The novel a "sense of epic greatness" with its "combination of grandeur and futility." Besides the famous Peach Garden Oath, many Chinese proverbs in use today are derived from the novel: It means that wives and children, like clothing, are replaceable if lost but the same does not hold true for one's brothers (or friends). The writing style adopted by Romance of the Three Kingdoms was part of

11094-505: The novel was written in the Ming dynasty , more than 1,000 years after the era, these stories showed that Buddhism had long been a significant ingredient of the mainstream culture and may not be historically accurate. Luo Guanzhong preserved these descriptions from earlier versions of the novel to support his portrait of Guan as a faithful man of virtue. Guan has since then been respectfully addressed as "Lord Guan" or Guan Gong . The story of

11223-420: The officials and hunger among the people. Lu Kai noted that the natural defences of Sichuan along with a strong army were enough to protect his State yet Liu Shan allowed disorder and corruption in his court, failed to recognize honest officials from dishonest more interested in luxury which is how his State and subordinates became prisoners from another. This statement about the impressive natural defenses of

11352-488: The other. Meanwhile, Sun Quan plotted to take Jing Province after growing tired of Liu Bei's repeated refusals to hand over the territories. He secretly made peace and allied with Cao Cao against Liu Bei. While Guan Yu, who guarded Liu Bei's territories in Jing Province, was away attacking Cao Ren at the Battle of Fancheng , Sun Quan sent his general Lü Meng to launch a stealth invasion on Jing Province . Guan Yu

11481-442: The others arrested and executed along with their families . Liu Bei had already left the imperial capital when the plot was exposed, and he moved on to seize control of Xu Province from Che Zhou , the new governor appointed by Cao Cao. In retaliation, Cao Cao attacked Xu Province and defeated Liu Bei, causing him to be separated from his oath brothers. While Liu Bei briefly joined Yuan Shao after his defeat, Zhang Fei took control of

11610-472: The peach garden oath and ending with Zhuge Liang's death. Some 50 or 60 Yuan and early Ming plays about the Three Kingdoms are known to have existed, and their material is almost entirely fictional, based on thin threads of actual history. The novel is thus a return to greater emphasis on history, compared to these dramas. The novel also shifted towards better acknowledgement of southern China's historical importance, while still portraying some prejudice against

11739-421: The point of war. Following Zhuge Liang's Longzhong Plan , Liu Bei led his forces westward into Yi Province and seized control of the territories from the governor Liu Zhang . By then, Liu Bei ruled over a vast stretch of land from Yi Province to southern Jing Province; these territories served as the foundation of the state of Shu Han later. Liu Bei declared himself King of Hanzhong after defeating Cao Cao in

11868-466: The political climate in the Ming dynasty, unlike in the Jin dynasty when Cao Wei was considered the legitimate successor to the Han dynasty. Some non-historical scenes in the novel have become well-known and subsequently became a part of traditional Chinese culture. In the introduction to the 1959 reprint of the Brewitt-Taylor translation, Roy Andrew Miller argues that the novel's chief theme

11997-633: The process of reunification and the struggles of the heroes who sacrificed for it. The following is a summary of the central plot and some well-known highlights in the novel. In the late second century, towards the end of the Han dynasty in China, corruption was rampant on all levels throughout the government, with treacherous eunuchs and villainous officials deceiving the emperor and persecuting those who stood up to them. The Han Empire gradually deteriorated and became increasingly fragmented, with many regional officials being warlords with their own armies. In

12126-431: The reader know which of the characters are heroes and which villains, yet the heroes are forced to make a tragic choice between equal values, not merely between good and evil. The heroes know that the end of the empire is ordained by this cosmic cycle of division and unity, yet their choices are moral, based on loyalty, not political. Plaks states the novel deals with the "cyclical theories of dynastic decline," and relates

12255-534: The region is repeated by Li Te , when he led his clan back to Yi Province . While passing through Jian'ge Pass (劍閣關, in modern Guangyuan , Sichuan ), he exclaimed that with such an impressive barrier, only a lesser man like Liu Shan could have been submitted by someone else. As previously stated, Sima Zhao thought of Liu Shan's attitude as pleasure seeker, saying that even someone as talented as Zhuge Liang couldn't assist and safeguard him forever so even less Jiang Wei . Jia Chong answered to Sima Zhao that this

12384-750: The research of early Korean ( 삼국지 Samguk ji ) and Japanese history (三国志 Sangokushi). It provides, among other things, the first detailed account of Korean and Japanese societies such as Goguryeo , Yemaek and Wa . The passages in Fascicle 30 about the Wa, where the Yamatai-koku and its ruler Queen Himiko are recorded, are referred to as the Wajinden in Japanese studies . The Japanese did not have their own records until more than three centuries later, with

12513-407: The south. The Qing dynasty historian Zhang Xuecheng famously wrote that the novel was "seven-parts fact and three-parts fiction." The fictional parts are culled from different sources, including unofficial histories, folk stories, the Sanguozhi Pinghua , and also the author's own imagination. Nonetheless, the description of the social conditions and the logic that the characters use is accurate to

12642-480: The state of Eastern Wu , helping both states to survive against the much larger state of Cao Wei . During Zhuge Liang's regency, the government was largely efficient and not corrupt, allowing the relatively small state of Shu to prepare itself for military campaigns. In 223, Liu Shan married Zhang Fei 's daughter, Empress Zhang . In the aftermath of Liu Bei's death, the southern Nanman tribes had peeled away from Shu dominion. In 225, Zhuge Liang headed south and

12771-424: The state of Cao Wei. In Wu, there had been internal conflict among the nobles since Sun Quan's death. The regents Zhuge Ke and Sun Chen consecutively attempted to usurp the throne but were eventually ousted from power and eliminated in coups. Although stability was temporarily restored in Wu, the last Wu emperor, Sun Hao , turned out to be a tyrant. Wu, the last of the Three Kingdoms, was eventually conquered by

12900-584: The territories to him, but Liu Bei dismissed the messenger each time with a different excuse. Sun Quan was unwilling to give up, so he followed Zhou Yu's plan to trick Liu Bei to come to Jiangdong to marry his sister Lady Sun and then hold Liu Bei hostage in exchange for Jing Province. However, Zhuge Liang foiled Zhou Yu's plot, and the newlywed couple returned to Jing Province safely. Zhou Yu later died in frustration after Zhuge Liang repeatedly thwarted his moves to take Jing Province. Relations between Liu Bei and Sun Quan deteriorated after Zhou Yu's death, but not to

13029-472: The throne, in exchange for troops and horses. Sun Ce then secured himself a power base in the rich riverlands of Jiangdong ( Wu ), on which the state of Eastern Wu was founded later. Tragically, Sun Ce also died at the pinnacle of his career from illness under stress of his terrifying encounter with the ghost of Yu Ji , a venerable magician whom he had falsely accused of heresy and executed in jealousy. Sun Quan , his younger brother and successor, proved to be

13158-492: The trust Liu Bei had placed in him. After Liu Bei's death, Cao Pi induced several forces, including Sun Quan, a turncoat Shu general Meng Da , the Nanman and Qiang tribes, to attack Shu, in coordination with a Wei army. However, Zhuge Liang managed to make the five armies retreat without any bloodshed. He also sent Deng Zhi to make peace with Sun Quan and restore the alliance between Shu and Wu. Zhuge Liang then personally led

13287-409: The uprising can be found in fragmentary form in at least four fascicles: the biographies of Cheng Yu , Yu Jin , Liu Bei , and Sun Jian . The three books in the Records of the Three Kingdoms end at different dates, with the main section of the Book of Wei ending with the abdication of Cao Huan in 265, the Book of Shu ending with the death of Liu Shan in 271, and the Book of Wu ending with

13416-422: The vast difference in population and military capability between the two states, as well as the tendency of victors to massacre the citizens of enemy states that had refused to surrender. In particular, Liu Shan's surrender is often compared favorably with that of Gongsun Yuan , a regional warlord who attempted to retake power by allying with Eastern Wu, which eventually resulted in the extermination of his clan, and

13545-468: The warlord Dong Zhuo , who escorted them back to the palace and used the opportunity to seize control of the imperial capital, Luoyang , under the pretext of protecting the emperor. Dong Zhuo later deposed Emperor Shao and replaced him with the Prince of Chenliu ( Emperor Xian ), who was merely a figurehead under his control. Dong Zhuo monopolised state power, persecuted his political opponents, and oppressed

13674-463: Was Liu Shan reunited with his father. Pei Songzhi included this account in his Annotated Records of the Three Kingdoms but refused to give it any credence. After Liu Bei declared himself emperor of Shu Han in 221, Liu Shan was formally made the crown prince. In the following year, Liu Bei left the capital Chengdu on a campaign against Sun Quan , who had sent his general Lü Meng to invade and seize Jing Province from Liu Bei in 219. Liu Bei

13803-480: Was a capable administrator, and he continued Zhuge Liang's domestic policies, leaving the government largely efficient. He was also known for his tolerance of dissension and his humility. Not having much military aptitude, however, he soon abandoned Zhuge Liang's aggressive foreign policy towards Wei, and indeed in 241 withdrew most of the troops from the important border city of Hanzhong to Fu County ( 涪縣 ; in present-day Mianyang , Sichuan ). From that point on, Shu

13932-488: Was a good chance for northern expansion. However, Liu Shan carefully instructed Fei Yi to attack only in combination with Eastern Wu, and only when Cao Wei was unprepared. Several historical commentators thus compare Liu Shan's caution favorably with that of Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang's costly and ineffective campaigns. Finally, Liu Shan's surrender in 262-263 has been viewed with sympathy as an inevitable choice by commentators in both historical records and contemporary times, due to

14061-508: Was able to, by both military victories and persuasion, reintegrate the southern region into the empire. For the rest of Zhuge Liang's regency, the southern Nanman people would be key contributors to Shu's campaigns against Wei. Starting in 227, Zhuge Liang launched his five Northern Expeditions against Wei. All but one were modest military failures, with the Shu forces exhausting their provisions before they were able to inflict significant damage on Wei. On one expedition in 231, Zhuge Liang faced

14190-478: Was actually due to many reasons. Thirdly, for the case of Zhao Yun, Zhao's official position during his life was actually lower than Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Ma Chao and Huang Zhong. Hence, Liu Shan's awarding of posthumous Marquis titles to the latter four but not timely to Zhao Yun was understandable. Finally, Liu Shan's behavior in front of Sima Zhao was purposeful: he pretended to be stupid and despicable so that Sima Zhao would ignore him and spare his family, and Liu Shan

14319-407: Was also around this time that he became more interested in touring the countryside and increasing the use of luxury items, both of which added stress on the treasury, albeit not cripplingly so. Jiang Wei was interested in resuming Zhuge Liang's policies of attacking Wei aggressively, a strategy that Fei Yi partially agreed with — as he allowed Jiang Wei to make raids on Wei's borders, but never gave him

14448-602: Was apparently discontinued. Parts of that project are published by Robert Joe Cutter and William Gordon Crowell under the title Empresses and Consorts: Selections from Chen Shou's Records of the Three States With Pei Songzhi's Commentary ( University of Hawaii Press , 1999), which includes the translations for fascicles 5, 34, and 50. Other translations include Kenneth J. Dewoskin's Doctors Diviners and Magicians of Ancient China: Biographies of Fang-Shih ( Columbia University Press , 1983), which includes

14577-457: Was attacked by Liu Biao (acting on Yuan Shao's instruction) on the way back to his base. At the same time, Yuan Shao waged war against Gongsun Zan to consolidate his power in northern China. Other warlords such as Cao Cao and Liu Bei , who initially had no titles or land, were also gradually forming their own armies and taking control of territories. During those times of upheaval, Cao Cao saved Emperor Xian from Dong Zhuo's followers, established

14706-521: Was controlling the politics of the State and none among the people of Shu did not miss Dong Yun. Li Mi , a former official of Shu gave a mixed appraisal praising him for the employment of Zhuge Liang which allowed him to stabilize his power but also criticizing him for the employment of Huang Hao which allowed the later corruption of his court. Sun Sheng evaluated Liu Shan as a mediocre and ignorant ruler and denounced him for surrendering so quickly during

14835-858: Was criticised by many: Chen Shou alone had sympathetic words, in a laconic coda to the biography of Qiao Zhou, his own former mentor. It would be until the Qing dynasty that other nuanced or positive assessments were made. In March 264, Zhong Hui would carry out an attempt to seize power — which Jiang Wei, who had surrendered to Zhong Hui, tried to take advantage of to revive Shu. He advised Zhong Hui to falsely accuse Deng Ai of treason and arrest him, and, with their combined troops, rebel against Sima Zhao. Zhong Hui did so, and Jiang Wei planned to next kill Zhong Hui and his followers, and then redeclare Shu's independence under emperor Liu Shan, and had in fact written to Liu Shan to inform him of those plans. However, Zhong Hui's troops rebelled against him, and both Jiang Wei and Zhong Hui were killed in battle. Liu Shan himself

14964-416: Was defeated at the Battle of Xiaoting and, having retreated to the city of Baidicheng , eventually died in 223. Before his death, Liu Bei entrusted the young Liu Shan to the care of his chancellor Zhuge Liang . Liu Bei made an ambiguous deathbed statement to Zhuge Liang about the possibility of Liu Shan's fitness to rule. The statement meant at minimum that Zhuge Liang was empowered to replace Liu Shan if

15093-425: Was eventually conquered by Wei forces . Jiang Wei attempted to restore Shu with the help of Zhong Hui , a disgruntled Wei general, but their plan failed and Zhong Hui was killed by Wei troops while Jiang Wei died by suicide. Shortly after the fall of Shu, Sima Zhao died and his son, Sima Yan , forced the last Wei emperor, Cao Huan , to abdicate the throne to him. Sima Yan then established the Jin dynasty to replace

15222-454: Was generally in a defensive posture and no longer posed a threat to Wei. According to histories of the Wu court, Shu's defensive posture was interpreted by many Wu officials as a sign that Shu was abandoning the alliance and had entered into a treaty with Wei; but Wu's emperor Sun Quan correctly identified it as merely a sign of weakness, not an abandonment of the alliance. In 237, Empress Zhang died. That year, Liu Shan took her younger sister as

15351-484: Was heavily outnumbered by Yuan Shao, he secured a decisive victory over his rival after launching a surprise raid on Yuan Shao's supply train and throwing the enemy into disarray. Yuan Shao retreated north after his defeat, fell ill and died about two years later. Cao Cao took advantage of Yuan Shao's death, which had resulted in internal conflict among his sons who were fighting over their father's territories, and advanced north to attack and seize all of Yuan Shao's lands. By

15480-536: Was not harmed in the disturbance, although his crown prince Liu Xuan was killed in the confusion. In early 264, Liu Shan with Empress Zhang and his entire family was relocated to the Wei capital Luoyang . On 11 April 264, he was enfeoffed as Duke of Anle ( 安樂公 ) while his sons and grandsons became marquises. This practice was referred to as èrwáng-sānkè    [ simple ; zh ] ( 二王三恪 ). The Chronicle of Han and Jin    [ zh ] by Xi Zuochi records an incident which has become

15609-459: Was noted by Sima Zhao as a sign that Liu Shan was an incompetent fool; some later historians believed that it showed Liu Shan's wisdom in intentionally displaying a lack of ambition so that Sima Zhao would not view him as a threat. Liu Shan died in 271 in Luoyang, and was given the posthumous name "Duke Si of Anle" ( 安樂思公 ; "the deep-thinking duke of peace and happiness"). This landless sinecure lasted several generations during Wei's successor state,

15738-463: Was quickly relocated to the Wei capital at Luoyang , and enfeoffed as "Duke Anle". There he enjoyed his last years peacefully before dying in 271, most probably of natural causes. Widely known to later generations by his infant name " Adou " ( 阿斗 ), Liu Shan was commonly perceived as an incapable ruler. He was also accused of indulging in pleasures while neglecting state affairs, allowing corrupt officials to take power. Some modern scholars have taken

15867-520: Was reduced and shifted from conventional verse to finer pieces; and most passages praising Cao Cao 's advisers and generals were removed. Scholars have long debated whether the Maos' viewpoint was anti-Qing (identifying Southern Ming remnants with Shu-Han ) or pro-Qing. The famous opening lines of the novel, " The empire , long divided, must unite; long united, must divide. Thus it has ever been" ( 話說天下大勢．分久必合，合久必分 ), long understood to be Luo's introduction and cyclical philosophy, were actually added by

15996-418: Was seen as an incompetent ruler, more interested in satisfying his desires than looking after his country and was held responsible for appointing corrupt officials to position of power. Both Xue Xu and Lu Kai , officials from the allied State of Eastern Wu described him as a mediocre ruler with Xue Xu further remarking that when he travelled to Shu for his mission as emissary in 261, he saw corruption among

16125-430: Was successful. Being able to fool the distrustful Sima Zhao meant Liu Shan was actually not a fool. Moreover, there were notable signs of Liu Shan's competence during his reign. He cleverly retook direct control of state affairs after the death of Zhuge Liang and appointed Jiang Wan and Fei Yi so that the two could keep each other in check. In 238, Cao Wei made war with Gongsun Yuan and many people in Shu Han believed it

16254-460: Was the eldest son of the warlord Liu Bei and was born to Liu Bei's concubine Lady Gan . In 208, Liu Bei's rival Cao Cao , who had by then occupied most of northern China, launched a campaign on Jing Province . During his retreat south, Liu Bei was caught up by an elite cavalry force led by Cao Cao at the Battle of Changban , and forced to leave behind Lady Gan and Liu Shan to resume his escape. Liu Bei's general Zhao Yun stayed behind to protect

16383-416: Was the longest of all emperors in the Three Kingdoms era. During Liu Shan's reign, many campaigns were led against the rival state of Cao Wei , primarily by Zhuge Liang and his successor Jiang Wei , but to little avail, due to their drastic mismatch in terms of population and geographic extent. Liu Shan eventually surrendered to Wei in 263 after Deng Ai led a surprise attack on the Shu capital Chengdu . He

16512-505: Was the same behaviour that allowed them to conquer Shu Han . A resounding anecdote when comparing with the events preceding the Wei invasion. When he was Emperor, Liu Shan repeatedly wanted to expand his harem however Dong Yun prevented him from doing so. Liu Shan was too afraid to act against him and for this disliked him. After Dong Yun's death, with the flattery of Chen Zhi and influence of Huang Hao , Liu Shan's hatred for Dong Yun grew each day. After Chen Zhi's death in 258, Huang Hao

16641-513: Was unable to capture Fancheng so he retreated, but was caught off guard by Lü Meng and had already lost Jing Province before he knew it. With his army's morale falling and the troops gradually deserting, Guan Yu and his remaining men withdrew to Maicheng, where they were surrounded by Sun Quan's forces. In desperation, Guan Yu attempted to break out of the siege but failed and was captured in an ambush. Sun Quan had him executed after he refused to surrender. Shortly after Guan Yu's death, Cao Cao died of

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