Three Kingdoms

by Luo Guanzhong (Moss Roberts trans. )

  12. According to the SGZ ( "Wudi ji" ), "After absorbing the troops of Gongsun Zan and bringing the four northern provinces under his rule, Yuan Shao amassed more than one hundred thousand men to attack Xuchang—a force that Cao's commanders regarded as irresistible" (p. 17). Yuan Shao's biography in the SGZ states that before Cao Cao brought the Emperor to the new capital of Xuchang, Guo Tu had advised Yuan Shao to receive the Emperor at Ye and make that the new capital. Yuan Shao did not adopt this plan; but after Cao Cao received the Emperor at Xuchang, he tried to have Cao Cao move the Emperor to the city of Juan, closer to Ye. Cao Cao refused (p. 194).

  13. The PH mentions the evaluation of heroes and the incident of the dropped chopsticks. It attributes to Cao, not Xuande, the idea of sending Xuande to intercept Yuan Shu. The SGZ ( "Wudi ji" ) also attributes the move to Cao Cao, but includes the protest of Guo Jia and Cheng Yu over "letting Liu Bei go" (p. 18).

  14. In the TS, Xuande says to Xu Chu, "Cheng Yu and Guo Jia continually demanded bribes of me. I refused to pay, and so they slandered me to the prime minister. If I were a cruel man, I would cut you to pieces right here. However, since I shall never forget His Excellency's kindness, [I shall let you] hurry back and give him my answer" (p. 211).

  15. Tao Qian gave Xuzhou to Xuande (chap. 12). Lü Bu usurped the province and was its de facto ruler when Cao Cao killed him. Instead of restoring Xuande as protector, however, Cao put his own man, Che Zhou, in office.

  16. Yuan Shu's assumption of imperial authority is described in chapter 13.

  17. Mao (introductory note): "When Gongsun Zan died, he had three hundred thousand pecks of grain. When Yuan Shu died, he had thirty pecks of wheat. Both were doomed. Why? Both lacked strategy; the amount of grain made no difference. Still, Zan had his recommendation of Xuande to his credit; but Yuan Shu in his whole life had nothing to his. He once wronged a man [Sun Jian, see chap. 5] by denying him grain [Shu was Yuan Shao's grain dispatcher during the campaign against Dong Zhuo], Now he perishes for want of grain. Heaven's retribution is most exacting."

  18. Mao (introductory note): "Not only does this chapter bring to an end the stories of Gongsun Zan and Yuan Shu, it also winds up the story of the lost imperial seal."

  19. Chen Deng had supported Mi Zhu in turning the rule of Xuzhou over to Xuande; see SGZ ( "Xianzhu zhuan" ), p. 873.

  20. Chen Deng and Chen Gui betrayed Lü Bu to Cao Cao in chapter 19.

  21. Mao: "They had the troops of Zhu Ling and Lu Zhao; there was no need to dress specially."

  22. Mao (introductory note): "Lord Guan's killing of Che Zhou becomes a casus belli for Cao Cao. Xuande would have preferred Che Zhou alive. With the girdle decree still secret and Dong Cheng's plot undisclosed, Xuande would have wanted to preserve formal relations while working covertly against Cao."

  23. Mao (introductory note): "After Che Zhou was killed, why did Xuande not publish the Emperor's edict? In fact, the edict was given to Dong Cheng; and since Cheng was still at court, premature disclosure of the document could have cost Cheng his life. After Dong Cheng's death, the edict was made known to the realm."

  CHAPTER 22

  1. Shi jing, ode 36, "Shi wei," and ode 26, "Bo zhou."

  2. See chapter 1.

  3. The following text, to the end of Chen Lin's indictment, is not in the TS. Mao added the famous essay from the Wen xuan "for the reading pleasure of those who love antiquity." See his fan li ( "general instances" ), number 4.

  4. Liyang is just north of the Yellow River, due south of the city of Ye. Ye was the capital of Jizhou, which as the foremost of the four northern provinces was Cao Cao's base.

  5. Mao: "[The author] implicitly compares Yuan Shao to the former [lord of Jiang, Zhou Bo], and Xuande to the latter [lord of Zhuxu, Liu Zhang]."

  6. Cao Cao never held this title.

  7. Teng has a favorable biography in the HHS (p. 2519). He served four emperors and was widely admired, even by his enemies.

  8. Mao: "Yuan Shao was proud of his family's tradition of imperial service; hence, the proclamation opens with the evils of Cao Cao's family history."

  9. See chapter 6.

  10. Mao: "Cao Cao took the leadership of Yanzhou on his own initiative. Shao takes the credit for the appointment by [Chen Lin's] distortion of the record."

  11. Meng Ming led a Qin army against the state of Jin. He was defeated, but the king of Qin refrained from punishing him in order to whet his desire for vengeance, and later he did overcome Jin in battle.

  12. Mao: "See chapter 10."

  13. Mao: "See chapter 11."

  14. Mao: "See chapter 14."

  15. Mao: "Yuan Shao did not participate in the rescue of the sovereign [when he was chased from Chang'an by the four insurgent generals], Chen Lin finesses his absence. The emergency on the northern border refers to Gongsun Zan."

  16. See chapter 20.

  17. See chapter 21.

  18. This is the end of the document as quoted in the interlinear citations to Yuan Shao's biography in SGZ, pp. 197-99. The paragraph ending with the words "blood and blade" is not in the extract from the original source, the Weishi chunqiu, cited in the SGZ.

  CHAPTER 23

  1. In chapter 18, Jia Xu guided Zhang Xiu to victory over Cao Cao.

  2. Emperor Wu (Liu Che) reigned from 141 to 87 b. c.

  3. Sang Hongyang, a key participant in the salt and iron debates of 81 b. c., had the ability to do computations in his head. Zhang Anshi, who directed the Secretariat for Emperor Xuan (74-49 b. c. ), earned a reputation for the power of his memory when he recited the texts of three cases of books lost by the Emperor.

  4. During the Warring States period Ren Zuo defended a critic of the king of Wei in the face of his sovereign's displeasure. Shi Yu gave up his life protesting the appointment of a wicked minister in the state of Wei during the Spring and Autumn period.

  5. I. e., in the inner sanctum.

  6. Liu Bang's political and military advisers.

  7. Generals under Liu Xiu, founder of the Eastern Han.

  8. Dated by the TS to Jian An 5 (a. d. 200), early in the eighth month.

  9. The earliest and primary of the Confucian classics.

  10. A convict who was made a ranking official after appearing to the Emperor in a dream.

  11. Mao: "Mi Heng's head is the Han Emperor; the courtiers' head is Cao Cao."

  12. In his commentary to the ZZTJ (p. 2018), Hu Sanxing notes: "According to the Han system, only the commander of the Capital Districts had assigned imperial corpsmen (congshi zhonglang), but by the end of the Han provincial protectors also had such officials."

  13. Mao: "Emperor Xian stabbed his finger to write the secret edict. Ji Ping echoes the action by biting off a joint to mark his oath."

  14. Mao: "He only mentions five of the names—excellent touch."

  15. Mao: "The seventh man was Liu Xuande. Ji Ping would have made the eighth. But he was not one of the signatories; and the informer did not mention Xuande. Cao's guess is an ingenious touch on the author's part."

  16. Mao: "All along Cao Cao knew only of the oath, not of the edict. All along he thought there were six; now he knows of the seventh [Xuande]." In the PH, Cao assumes immediately that Liu Xuande is the man behind Ji Ping (p. 49).

  17. Mao: "At last Cao Cao expresses the wish to do what Dong Zhuo did."

  18. Mao (introductory note): "This chapter opens with Cao Cao planning a campaign against Liu Bei. Then Cao drops the plan because he wants to win Zhang Xiu's support first. Suddenly Dong Cheng is brought into the picture; but Xuande's involvement in Dong Cheng's conspiracy remains unknown to Cao Cao. Only when Dong Cheng's quarters are searched and the loyalists' oath is brought to light does Cao Cao discover Liu Bei's name. After that he orders Liu Bei attacked without further delay. And so, although this chapter contains none of Liu Bei's doings, Liu Bei is the main topic."

  The end of this chapter is dated to the first month of Jian An 5, which began February 3, a. d. 200. The chapter begins with event
s of the eighth month of the same year.

  CHAPTER 24

  1. Mao: "Cao Cao had participated in the collective campaign that Yuan Shao led against Dong Zhuo [to punish him for deposing the previous emperor]. Ultimately Cao Cao was dissuaded from deposing Emperor Xian [lest he become the focus of a similar campaign]."

  2. Mao: "The mistake is intentional; the Emperor is hinting that Cao Cao is another Dong Zhuo."

  3. Royal wives who fell from favor were housed in the "cold palace."

  4. Liu Bei's position in northwest Xuzhou threatened coordination between Yanzhou, Cao Cao's home province, and Qingzhou, the southern part of which Cao Cao controlled. Moreover, Cao Cao wanted to punish Liu Bei for killing Che Zhou, whom Cao had appointed governor of Xuzhou, and taking over the province. Not only did Cao Cao have ample reason to attack Liu Bei, but he could do so in the name of the Emperor and thus declare Liu Bei a rebel. According to Liu Bei's biography, the "Xianzhu zhuan," "Before Liu Bei left the court,... General of Chariots and Cavalry Dong Cheng, on parting from the Emperor, received from him a girdle that contained a secret decree calling for Lord Cao to be executed" (SGZ, p. 875). Liu Bei, then, had imperial sanction to take military action against Cao Cao; this makes understandable Zhu Xi's topic sentence for the account of the incident in his redaction of the ZZTJ, the ZZTJ gangmu: "Liu Bei musters an army in Xuzhou to punish Cao Cao in the name of loyalty to the Emperor [tao]" (see the Gangmu's last entry for the year a. d. 199).

  According to the ZZTJ (pp. 2023-24), Liu Bei made Lord Guan acting governor of Xuzhou. Under Guan's leadership, the allegiance of tens of thousands of rebels in Donghai (a district northeast of Xiapi) was won away from Cao Cao and the central government. Guan then proposed to Yuan Shao joint action against Cao Cao. At this point Cao Cao sent Liu Dai and Wang Zhong against Liu Bei.

  A summary of the geographical and military situation may be found in Zhongguo gudai zhan-zheng zhanli xuanbian (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1983), 2: 1-23.

  5. Mao (introductory note): "The Son of Heaven could not save his consort; a feudal lord doted on his son. If the son's illness so engaged Shao's feelings, could the death of the Emperor's unborn child leave us unmoved?"

  6. Mao: "I. e., soldiers formerly serving Zhu Ling, Lu Zhao, and Che Zhou."

  7. Mao (introductory note): "He who makes a bid for the empire cannot concern himself with his family. When Xuande was defeated by Lü Bu, he abandoned his family. Now he abandons his family again, as Han Gao Zu [Liu Bang] did when Xiang Yu captured his family. [See Records of the Historian, trans. Watson, 1: 62. ] As for that Yuan Shao, whose family feeling was so strong—doting on that boy—how could he achieve royal power?"

  As a student of the Zuo zhuan, Lord Guan would have known the phrase da yi mie qin (For the higher loyalty one may have to sever the bonds of kinship); see "Yingong," year 4.

  Mao (introductory note): "Yuan Shao and Xuande had met twice before: the first time at Tiger Trap Pass; the second, at the River Bi; this is their third meeting. And Xuande has thrice sought Yuan Shao's help: first, through the offices of Zheng Xuan; second, by his own letter; and third, by riding to him unattended.... Previously, Xuande had depended on Lü Bu and Cao Cao. Later on, he will depend on Liu Biao and Sun Quan."

  8. Mao: "Xun Wenruo realized that Xuande had taken refuge with Yuan Shao [and would overcome his inertia]." All the events in this chapter took place in the spring of a. d. 200.

  CHAPTER 25

  1. Mao: "At this time Xuande's two wives, Lord Guan's sisters-in-law, Lady Gan and Lady Mi, were trapped in the city of Xiapi. Before this, Zhang Fei had lost the two wives in Xuzhou."

  2. See the end of chapter 19.

  3. Mao: "His tone is still disdainful."

  4. Mao: "In trying to persuade a hero, praise is useless; but criticism will move him. Gentle humility is far less effective than a severe tone and a direct look."

  5. Protector of Yuzhou is the title Emperor Xian (on Cao Cao's recommendation) gave Xuande. See chapter 16.

  6. TS (p. 240): "To preserve their chastity they must die; otherwise, they will be given to someone else."

  7. Mao (introductory note): "Lord Guan served the Han to begin with. Why did he insist on surrendering to the Han? Because he wanted to distinguish it from 'surrender to Cao. ' Cao Cao was using the word 'Han' to secure support around the empire. Lord Guan used the word 'Han' in opposition to Cao Cao.... The fact that Lord Guan drew a clear line between Han and Cao shows his depth of learning and understanding, something he could not have attained but for his familiarity with the Spring and Autumn Annals

  8. "If the king treats me commonly, my service will be common; if he treats me worthily, my service will be worthy." Bi Yurang served Zhi Bo, a leader of the kingdom of Jin at the end of the Spring and Autumn period. See chapter 29, n. 5.

  9. Mao (introductory note): "The third condition is implicit in the first. Cao Cao said 'I am the Han, ' but for Lord Guan the imperial uncle is the Han. When Lord Guan said he gave allegiance to the Han, not to Cao, it was tantamount to giving allegiance to Liu, and not to Cao."

  10. Mao (introductory note): "If Cao Cao were not interested in winning Lord Guan's affections, they would have suffered the same fate as High Consort Dong and the seven hundred executed at the capital gates."

  11. The famous hostel scene with Lord Guan holding a candle outside the door is not to be found in the TS. But the division of the living quarters into two compounds is mentioned in both the PH and the TS and goes back at least to the Yuan dynasty play Guan Yunchang Rides Alone a Thousand Li. See Li Diankui, "Sanguo gushi xiqu zhi yanjiu" (Master's thesis, National Taiwan Teacher's Normal Research Institute, 1980), p. 65. Lord Guan's amorous inclinations are not mentioned in the Three Kingdoms. According to the Shuji (cited in SGZ, p. 939), after the conquest of Xuzhou, Lord Guan wanted to take Lü Bu's concubine Diaochan for his wife, but Cao Cao kept her for himself on hearing of her extraordinary beauty—to Lord Guan's chagrin.

  12. Lü Bu betrayed two lords, Ding Yuan and Dong Zhuo.

  13. TS (p. 245): "Zhang Liao realized that Lord Guan could never be made to stay, and withdrew. He thought, 'If I tell Lord Cao the truth, Lord Guan's life might be endangered. If I don't, I shall have done my lord a disservice.... Lord Cao is my lord, a father; Lord Guan, a brother. It would be disloyal to deceive my lord-patriarch for the sake of fraternal sentiment. I can live with denying fraternal sentiment though it is dishonorable; but disloyalty is unthinkable. ' He therefore told Cao Cao what Lord Guan had said."

  This striking passage was probably omitted from the Mao text because it shows a fairly sympathetic character, Zhang Liao, speaking of loyalty (zhong) to Cao Cao, and making it a higher virtue than honor [yi], on which the fraternal bond is based. In effect Zhang Liao is rejecting the bond of brotherhood in favor of the duties to king and father, summed up in the term "loyalty."

  14. A note in the TS (pp. 247-48) takes something from the glory of Lord Guan's feat: "When Yan Liang took leave of Yuan Shao, Liu Xuande told him privately, 'I have a brother, Guan Yunchang, nine spans five tall, with a beard one span eight; his face is ruddy as a date, his eyes are like those of the crimson-faced phoenix, topped by brows like nestling silkworms. He prefers to wear a green brocade battle gown; he rides a tawny mount and wields a green-dragon blade. I am certain he is with Cao Cao. If you see him, have him come to us as soon as possible. ' Accordingly, when Yan Liang saw Cao Cao approaching, he thought he was coming to join him and so had made no defensive preparations when Lord Guan struck him down."

  A poem cited in the TS underlines this point: "Because of Xuande's last-minute words, / A hero [Yan Liang] met his death unprepared for battle."

  15. The relationship between Cao Cao and Lord Guan is an important part of the novel. The relationship, however, is a fictional invention. The histories hardly mention it. Here are some relevant passages from the PH, beginning with the court's sending Xuande to deal with rebels to the south:

  Xuande had been traveling for a m
onth when he reached the border reception house, some thirty li from the city [Xuzhou], where officials and commoners received him. Cao Cao meanwhile had made Che Zhou governor of the province, depriving First Ruler [of Shu, i. e., Xuande] of his office. Che Zhou also came to the reception house and demanded of First Ruler, "Have you documents from the prime minister?" Imperial Uncle replied, "I have a command from the Emperor. What use is a document from the prime minister?" Che Zhou hurried away and stealthily returned to Xuzhou. First Ruler said, "If Che Zhou gets to Xuzhou before us and will not come out, what then?" Lord Guan said, "Let me go ahead."

  Lord Guan assassinated Che Zhou not far from the city. On arriving, First Ruler was met on the way by all the officials and the village elders who welcomed him to the yamen. A general banquet was held. Xuande said, "I want my brothers and all of you to prepare for war. Cao's army will be coming."

  About a month later Cao's army came. Lord Guan said to First Ruler, "Divide our troops into three units. I will take your family to Xiapi." First Ruler approved.

  Zhang Fei said, "Cao Cao's hundred thousand mean nothing to me!" Told they were camped ten li from the city, Zhang Fei said, "I know a way to defeat Cao Cao completely.... Sunzi teaches us that an army cannot attack a city after crossing a river but that exhausted troops can be attacked. During the night I will take three thousand men, raid the camp, and kill Cao Cao." First Ruler approved.

  What Zhang Fei could not help was that a squad leader in his command, Zhang Ben, was determined to avenge his father-in-law, Zhang Bao, who had been killed by Lord Guan for assisting Lü Bu's successful raid on Xuzhou. Zhang Ben slipped out of Xuzhou and informed Cao Cao. [As a result of the betrayal, Zhang Fei's raid fails and Cao Cao seizes Xuzhou.]

  Seated in his tent, Cao Cao said, "Liu Bei and Zhang Fei are dead. Lord Guan is now in Xiapi. I would dearly love to have him. How can it be done?" Zhang Liao volunteered to lure Lord Guan to Cao's side. Cao Cao said, "If Lord Guan sees you, they will all surrender."

  Lady Gan and Lady Mi, cradling Ah Dou, lamented to Heaven and told Lord Guan, "Brother-in-law, if you and the imperial uncle perish, what will happen to our family?" Lord Guan wept and said, "If you live, sisters-in-law, I will live with you. If you die, I will die with you." Cao's envoy arrived at the city wall demanding to speak with Lord Guan. Lord Guan had him admitted.