Dynasties of ChinaThree KingdomsShuhan
Zhangwu · Reign 221—223
He started out as a weaver of mats and peddlers of shoes as a member of the Han clan, and spent his entire life in a state of ups and downs with repeated failures. He established Shu Han based on Jingyi, and the White Emperor entrusted the heir.
Liu Bei, whose courtesy name was Xuande, was from Zhuoxian County, Zhuo County. "Three Kingdoms" stated that he was the son of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty, after Liu Sheng, King Jing of Zhongshan. His father died when he was young, and he and his mother made a living by selling shoes and weaving mats. He once studied under the famous Confucian Lu Zhi. After the Yellow Turban Uprising broke out, he, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei recruited people to join the army and were appointed captain of Anxi County due to their merit. After that, he attached himself to Gongsun Zan and Tao Qian, and in 194 he led Xuzhou as a pastoralist, but was attacked and captured by Lu Bu. He also attached to Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, and Liu Biao successively. He spent half his life but never lost the support of the people.
In 207, Liu Bei visited the thatched cottage three times to invite Zhuge Liang. The following year, Cao Cao went south and was defeated in Changban. He immediately formed an alliance with Sun Quan. After defeating Cao in Chibi, he captured the four Jiangnan counties of Jingzhou. In 211, he entered Shu at the invitation of Liu Zhang and captured Yizhou in 214. In 219, he defeated Cao Cao in Hanzhong and claimed to be the king of Hanzhong. However, Guan Yu was defeated in the same year and Jingzhou was lost.
In 221, Liu Bei proclaimed himself emperor in Chengdu, and his country was named Han, and its history was called Shu Han. In order to regain Jingzhou, he conquered Sun Quan personally despite the dissuasion of his ministers. In 222, he was defeated by Lu Xun's fire attack in Yiling and retreated to Yong'an (today's Fengjie, Chongqing). He died of illness in Yong'an Palace in April 223 at the age of sixty-three. Before his death, he entrusted Crown Prince Liu Shan to Zhuge Liang and was buried in Huiling, Chengdu.
Liu Bei was born in a humble background and had many ups and downs throughout his life. He won the life-long followers of Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhuge Liang and others with his generosity and understanding of others. Finally, he took over Jingyi and established the Shu Han Dynasty. Chen Shou said that he was "resolute and generous, knows people and treats people well, and has a noble style". However, his strategy and power were not as good as Cao Cao's. He was criticized for seizing Yizhou, which belonged to Liu Zhang. In his later years, he devoted all his efforts to conquer Wu in order to capture Jingzhou. The defeat at Yiling severely damaged the vitality of the Shu Han Dynasty. The White Emperor entrusted the heir and was sincere to his ruler and ministers, which was regarded as a model by later generations.
MilitaryRaising troops to fight against the Yellow Turbans
Following the school captain Zou Jing, he served successfully in the campaign against the Yellow Turbans and was appointed as the captain of Anxi County. When the governor came to the county on official business, Liu Beiqiu couldn't see him, so he broke in, tied him up, beat him 200 yuan with a stick, and abandoned his official position. "The Romance of Three Kingdoms" moved the matter to Zhang Fei.
PoliticsLead Xuzhou Mu
When Cao Cao led his army to rescue Tao Qian during his eastern expedition to Xuzhou, he stationed himself in Xiaopei. When Tao Qian was critically ill, he said to his friend Mi Zhu, "Without Liu Bei, this state cannot be settled." Liu Bei was persuaded by Chen Deng, Kong Rong and others to lead Xuzhou as pastoralist.
MilitaryXuzhou was attacked
When Liu Bei and Yuan Shu were fighting in Xuyi and Huaiyin, Lu Bu, who had defected to him before, attacked Xiapi and captured Liu Bei's wife. Liu Bei had no choice but to seek peace from Lu Bu, but was later defeated by Lu Bu and defected to Cao Cao.
PoliticsRevolt against Cao Cao
Cao Cao once said to him, "The only heroes in the world today are your envoy and Cao'er." Liu Bei was so shocked that he dropped his dagger. He secretly participated in Dong Chengyi's plan to lead the imperial edict. He took advantage of the opportunity to intercept Yuan Shu and ran away, killing Xuzhou governor Che Zhou and raising an army. In 200, he was defeated by Cao Cao's personal expedition and Yuan Shao was defeated in Beitou.
PeopleSojourn in Xinye
Liu Biao in Jingzhou, Nantou, stationed in Xinye, defeated Cao General Xia Houdun and Yu Jin in Bowang. According to "Kyushu Spring and Autumn Period", when he saw that he had not been riding a horse for a long time and his buttocks had regenerated, he shed tears with emotion and lamented that he had not accomplished anything.
PeopleThree visits to the thatched cottage
On Xu Shu's recommendation, Liu Bei visited Zhuge Liang, who lived in seclusion in Longzhong. "Every time I visit, I will see him." Zhuge Liang proposed "Longzhong Dui", and Liu Bei relied on him as his confidant from then on, claiming that "a solitary person has a clear sky, just like a fish has water."
Lasting legacyThe two idioms "look at the thatched cottage three times" and "like a fish in water" come from this and are still commonly used today.
MilitaryThe defeat of Nagasaka
After Liu Biao's death, Liu Cong surrendered to Cao Cao, and Liu Bei withdrew southward, accompanied by more than 100,000 people. He traveled more than ten miles a day and was chased by Cao Cao's fine cavalry at Dangyang Changban. He escaped with Zhuge Liang, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun and dozens of other cavalry. Zhang Fei blocked the water and broke the bridge, with his angry eyes and spears raised. No one in pursuit dared to approach.
MilitaryLian Wu against Cao
Zhuge Liang sent Chai Sang as an envoy to persuade Sun Quan, and Sun and Liu formed an alliance to defeat Cao's army in Chibi. Liu Bei took advantage of the opportunity to conquer the four counties of Wuling, Changsha, Guiyang, and Lingling in the south. He first appointed Liu Qi as the governor of Jingzhou, and after Liu Qi's death, he took charge of Jingzhou as herdsman.
DiplomacyBorrowing from Jingzhou
Liu Bei went to Jingkou to meet Sun Quan in person and asked for the governorship of Jingzhou. Zhou Yu advocated detaining him, and Lu Su persuaded Sun Quan to lend Nanjun to Liu Bei to jointly fight Cao Cao. Sun Quan accepted Lu Su's suggestion, which was known as "borrowing Jingzhou" in history.
MilitaryEntering Sichuan to capture Yizhou
At the invitation of Liu Zhang, the herdsman of Yizhou, he went to Shu to resist Zhang Lu. The following year, he turned against Liu Zhang and went south to attack from Jiameng. Military advisor Pang Tong was killed during the siege of Luocheng. In 214, Liu Bei besieged Chengdu, Liu Zhang surrendered from the city, and Liu Bei took charge of Yizhou.
EconomyCast a hundred coins
After taking Yizhou, the treasury was empty. Liu Bei adopted Liu Ba's suggestion to mint "one hundred and five baht" coins to stabilize prices and set up a government-run market. The treasury was full within a few months.
PoliticsFormulate "Shu Ke"
Zhuge Liang, Fa Zheng, Liu Ba, Li Yan, and Yi Ji were ordered to jointly formulate the "Shu Ke". Zhuge Liang believed that during Liu Zhang's period, "virtue and governance were not promoted, and threats and punishments were not implemented", and he advocated the strict rule of law to rectify the powerful powers in Sichuan.
DiplomacyDemarcation of the Xiangshui River
Sun Quan wanted to return Jingzhou, and the two sides were at war with each other. When Cao Cao captured Hanzhong, Liu Bei was eager to return aid and negotiated peace with Sun Quan, dividing Jingzhou equally with the Xiang River as the boundary: Changsha, Jiangxia, and Guiyang returned to Wu, while Nanjun, Lingling, and Wuling returned to Liu Bei.
MilitaryBattle of Hanzhong
He personally led an army to fight for Hanzhong. In the first month of 219, Huang Zhong beheaded Xia Houyuan, the commander-in-chief of Cao's army, at Dingjun Mountain. Cao Cao came to fight in person, but Liu Bei stood firm and refused to fight. Cao's army had difficulty transporting food, so he withdrew after a few months, and Hanzhong fell to Liu Bei.
PoliticsCalled the King of Hanzhong
In the seventh month, all the ministers went to court, and Liu Bei set up an altar in Mianyang to proclaim himself the King of Hanzhong, established Liu Shan as the Crown Prince, and promoted Wei Yan to the position of prefect of Hanzhong, guarding the northern gate. The entire army was shocked.
PeopleGuan Yu's defeat
Guan Yu attacked Fancheng from the north and flooded the Seventh Army, which shocked China; Sun Quan sent Lü Meng to take advantage of the opportunity to attack Jiangling and Gong'an. Guan Yu was attacked from both sides and defeated Maicheng. At the end of the year, he was captured and killed by the Wu army. Jingzhou was completely lost, and the Sun-Liu alliance collapsed.
PoliticsChengdu proclaims himself emperor
When Cao Pi came to Han Dynasty, there was a misinformation in Shu that Emperor Xian had been killed, and Liu Bei mourned him. In April, he ascended the throne of emperor in the south of Wudan Mountain in Chengdu. His country was named Han, and he changed his name to Yuan Zhangwu, with Zhuge Liang as Prime Minister and Xu Jing as Situ.
PeopleZhang Fei was killed
On the eve of the attack on Wu, the chariot general Zhang Fei was assassinated by his subordinates Zhang Da and Fan Qiang in Langzhong. The two took his head along the river and defected to Sun Quan. When Liu Bei heard that the commander of his camp came forward, he said, "Hey! He's flying to death."
MilitaryBattle of Yiling
He personally led a large army to attack Wu and camped dozens of villages from Wuxia to Yiling. Lu Xun insisted on not fighting, and in leap six months of 222, he defeated the Shu army with a fire attack. Feng Xi, Zhang Nan and others were killed in the battle. Huang Quan in Jiangbei was cut off from returning to Wei, and Liu Bei retreated to Yufu and changed his name to Yong'an.
PoliticsBai Di entrusting the heir
When he was critically ill, he summoned Zhuge Liang to Yong'an to entrust the heir: "If you are ten times more talented than Cao Pi, you will surely be able to secure the country and resolve major events. If the adopted child can help, assist him; if he is not talented, you can take care of yourself." He also left an edict to Liu Shan: "Do not do evil because it is small, and do not do good because it is small."
Lasting legacy"Don't do evil things because they are small, and don't do good things because they are small things." This is still a widely recited motto for self-cultivation.
CultureBuried in Huiling
Liu Bei died of illness in Yong'an Palace in April. His coffin was transported back to Chengdu and he was buried in Huiling in August. He was posthumously named Emperor Zhaolie. Crown Prince Liu Shan ascended the throne in Chengdu.
Lasting legacyHuiling is now located in Wuhou Temple in Chengdu, integrated with Han Zhaolie Temple and Zhuge Liang Temple, forming a rare "monarch and minister combined temple" pattern in the country.
After visiting the thatched cottage three times, he came out of the mountain and went to Jiangdong as an envoy to promote the alliance between Sun and Liu. After Liu Bei entered Shu, he settled in Jingzhou, and later went up the river to Shu with Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun. After Liu Bei became emperor, he was appointed prime minister, and Baidi City was entrusted to the heir. "Talking with Confucian Confucians" and "Borrowing the East Wind" are from novels.
A native of Jie County, Hedong, he joined the army with Liu Bei in his early years. According to historical records, Liu Bei, Guan and Zhang "sleeped in the same bed, and they were like brothers." The "Taoyuan sworn brotherhood" comes from "The Romance of Three Kingdoms". After Liu Bei entered Shu, he oversaw the affairs of Jingzhou and was defeated and killed in 219.
The courtesy name is Yide (Yide in "The Romance of Three Kingdoms"), a native of Zhuojun. Changban broke the bridge by the water, and when he entered Shu, he released Yan Yan, the prefect of Bajun, and later defeated Wei general Zhang He in Danqu. Those who respect gentlemen but do not care about soldiers will eventually be killed by their generals.
The courtesy name is Zilong, a native of Changshan Zhending. During the Battle of Changban, he protected the young master Liu Shan and Mrs. Gan from danger. According to "Yunbie Zhuan", he once advised Liu Bei to regard Cao Wei as his enemy and not to attack Soochow. The "seven entrances and seven exits" in the novel are literary renderings.
A native of Fufeng County, he was originally a subordinate of Liu Zhang. He secretly welcomed Liu Bei into Shu and was the main planner of the Hanzhong War. After the defeat of Yiling, Zhuge Liang sighed: "If the law and filial piety are upright, we can control the Lord and prevent him from traveling eastward."
A native of Xiangyang, his nickname is "Feng Chu". He and Zhuge Liang serve as military advisors and generals. He followed Liu Bei into Shu and offered him three strategies, middle and lower, to persuade him to take Yizhou quickly. During the siege of Luocheng, Liuya died at the age of thirty-six.
In 209, she married Liu Bei to consolidate the alliance between Sun and Liu. She was talented, strong and fierce, and had more than a hundred maids holding swords. After Liu Bei entered Shu, he was taken back to Wu by Sun Quan. The name "Sun Shangxiang" comes from later opera novels.