Guan Yu of the Three Kingdoms

Guan Yu (c. 160 - 219 AD), born in the reign of Emperor Huan Di Yan Xi of the Eastern Han Dynasty, was a native of Xieliang in Hedong (present-day Yuncheng City in Shanxi Province), with the character of Yun Chang (云长), and the original character of Chang Sheng (长生). He was a famous general of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. After his death, he was honored by the people and praised by the imperial court, and was worshipped as Guan Sheng Di Jun (关圣帝君), known as Gyalan Bodhisattva in Buddhism. A famous general of Shu during the Three Kingdoms period. He was honored as the "Sage of Martial Arts" by later rulers, and was on a par with Confucius, who was known as the "Sage of Literature". Guan Yu was praised in a poem:

At the end of the Han Dynasty, he was unrivaled, but Yun Chang was the only one who stood out from the rest.

God's might was able to stimulate the martial arts, and his elegance was even better known as a man of letters.

The heart of heaven and earth is like a mirror, and the righteousness of the Spring and Autumn Annals is like a cloud,

Sharing a thousand years of history, and more than just a three-point crown.

Guan Yu's life has not been clear before. Until the beginning of the Qing Dynasty during the Kangxi period, Xiezhou guard Wang Zhu Dan in the dredging repair of the ancient well, unearthed Guan Yu's tomb brick. Above is engraved with Guan Yu ancestor, father of two generations of table words, birth and death dates, etc., the information is more detailed, but also slightly mentioned Guan Yu's family situation. He therefore wrote "Guan Hou Zu Tombstone Record". According to the text on the tombstone, Guan's family was actually a literati family. Guan Yu's grandfather's name was Guan Xuan (关审), and his character Ask Zhi (问之). He was born in the second year of Emperor Yongyuan of the Han Dynasty, Geng Yin, and lived in Baochi Li, Changping Village, Xiezhou. Records say that he was a "good Taoist," and used to train his son in the Book of Changes and the Spring and Autumn Annals. He died in the second year of Emperor Huan's Yongshou's reign, at the age of sixty-eight. Yu's father, Guan Yi, was called Dao Yuan. Sex to filial piety, after the death of the father trial, in the tomb of the hut mourning for three years, in addition to mourning, in the Huan emperor Yan Xi three years gengzi June 24th born Guan Yu. After Yu grew up, he married Hu, and on May 13th of the first year of Emperor Ling's Guanghe's reign, he gave birth to a son, Guan Ping.

Guan Yu met the Eastern Han government in Zhuo County (present-day Zhuo County, Hebei), which mobilized powerful landowners from all over the country to organize armed forces to **** together to suppress the Yellow Turban Uprising. Here he got acquainted with Liu Bei (Liu Bei claimed to be the descendant of Liu Sheng, the son of Emperor Jing of Western Han Dynasty) and Zhang Fei, who were like-minded and loved at first sight, and were unusually friendly and close to each other as brothers. Later legend has it that Liu, Guan and Zhang were once united in the Peach Orchard. "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" is "acting" out their vows: "Although different surnames, both brothers, then work together to save the poor and help the perilous; on the country, under the peace of the common people, do not seek the same year, the same month, the same day, I wish the same year, the same month, the same day, the same year, the same day, the same day, to die." Although this is a novelist's words, but because it meets the lower and middle class people's mentality in the era of frequent turmoil, so the impact is huge. In later times, many peasants revolted and followed the form of yingyi to consolidate their ranks and strengthen their unity. The three of them organized an armed force and participated in the attack on the peasant insurgents. Guan Yu began his military career from then on. From the first year of Zhongping (184) until his death, Guan Yu followed Liu Bei loyally, "following him around, not avoiding difficulties and dangers" ("Three Kingdoms Zhi-Shu Shu-Guan Yu Biography").

Liu Bei started an army to suppress the Yellow Turban Uprising, and Guan Yu and Zhang Fei acted as his guards and were his right-hand men. In the first year of Zhongping (185), Liu, Guan and Zhang, with their newly organized troops, first defected to Zou Jing, the lieutenant of Zhuo County. When the Yellow Turbans came to Zhuo County, they cooperated with the officials and soldiers to put up resistance and won the first battle, making a great achievement. Then they left Zhuo County and went to join Lu Zhi, the general who was besieging Zhang Jiao, the leader of the Yellow Turbans, in Guangzong (in the east of Wei County, Hebei Province). After arriving at Guangzong, they decided to return to Zhuo County because Lu Zhi was falsely accused and sent back to the capital. On the way back, they encountered the Yellow Turbans' General Zhang Jiao, who was pursuing Dong Zhuo, who had replaced Lu Zhi. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei led a troop of men who swooped down on the Yellow Turban army and saved Dong Zhuo. Liu Bei later defected to the warlord Gong Sun Zan of Youzhou, and was appointed Minister of the Plain for his repeated victories, while Guan Yu and Zhang Fei took up the post of Generals of the Other Department to organize the ministries. As usual, the three of them "slept together in the same bed, and were as kind as brothers" (Three Kingdoms Records - Shu Shu - Guan Yu's Biography), and Guan Yu and Zhang Fei served Liu Bei on his left and right all day long to protect him.

In the first year of Jian'an (195 A.D.), Cao Cao welcomed Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty and moved his capital to Xuchang (east of Xuchang, Henan Province), where he took over the military and political power, and the emperor became a puppet. In the third year of Jian'an (198 AD), Liu Bei was defeated by Lu Bu and joined Cao Cao. Cao Cao recognized him as a left general and made Guan Yu a lieutenant general (a military official second to a general). At that time, General Dong Cheng of the Che Cavalry accepted the Emperor's Clothesline Edict and plotted to eliminate Cao Cao with Liu Bei and Changshui Lieutenant Seed Cultivation, General Wu Zilan, and Wang Clothing.

In the fourth year of Jian'an (199), Liu Bei, fearing Cao Cao's suspicion and wanting to wait for an opportunity to break away from Cao Cao's control, took advantage of the rout of the right general, Yuan Shu, and took the initiative to request that he and general Zhu Ling go to intercept him. Cao Cao's strategists Cheng Yu, Guo Jia, and Dong Zhao argued that the ill-intentioned Liu Bei should not be let go, and Cao Cao immediately sent his men after him, but it was too late. Yuan Shu fled south to Shouchun (present-day Shouxian, Anhui Province), and Zhu Ling returned to the court. In December, Liu Bei killed Xuzhou's assassin Che Hu, and used Guan Yu to act as the governor of Xiapi (present-day Suining, Jiangsu Province, northwest of the city), and he had been cantoned in Xiaopei, recruiting troops, buying horses, and expanding his strength, which was echoed by anti-Cao Cao forces in the court. Chang Hei, the leader of the Changmin in Donghai (present-day Tancheng, Jiangsu Province), and the surrounding counties all affiliated with Liu Bei, and Liu Bei's troops soon grew to tens of thousands of people, and he also sent emissaries to make an alliance with Yuan Shao, which posed a serious threat to Cao Cao. Liu Bei also defeated Liu Dai, the chief minister of Sima, and Wang Zhong, the lieutenant general, and temporarily acquired the regions of Xuzhou and Xiapi, which served as bases for recuperation and development.

In the first month of the fifth year of Jian'an (200), an attempt by General Dong Cheng to assassinate Cao Cao was leaked, and Dong Cheng, Wang Su, and Seeds were slaughtered and their clans exterminated, with the exception of Liu Bei, who was involved in the conspiracy but escaped, and his power was growing. When Cao Cao personally conquered Liu Bei, Liu Bei was shocked to learn that Cao Cao's army was approaching, and led dozens of riders out of the city to observe the army's flags, so he had to respond in haste and was routed by Cao Cao's army, and Liu Bei's wife was captured. Cao Cao then captured Xiapi and forced Guan Yu to surrender. Liu Bei fled to Yecheng (southwest of Linzhang, Hebei) and joined Yuan Shao.

Cao Cao admired Guan Yu's character and made him a general. Soon after, he realized that Guan Yu was not sure if he wanted to stay, so he said to Zhang Liao, who had a good relationship with Guan Yu, "I'll try to ask him about his feelings". Zhang Liao went to ask Guan Yu, Guan Yu sighed: "I know very well that Cao Gong treats me thick, but I received General Liu's generous kindness, swore to *** death, can not back. I will not stay, I want to be when the effect to repay Cao Gong乃去"(《三国志-蜀书-关羽传》). Zhang Liao told Cao Cao about Guan Yu's words, and when Cao Cao heard about them, not only did he not resent Guan Yu, but he thought he was kind and righteous, and valued him even more.

In the fifth year of Jian'an (200), the Battle of Guandu broke out, and in February, Jizhou's Yuan Shao mobilized more than 100,000 men to march into Liyang (northeast of present-day Shixian County, Henan Province) to conquer Cao Cao, and sent his general Yan Liang to besiege the Baima and attack Liu Yan, the governor of the East County, to secure the main body of his army as it crossed the Henan River to enter the city. Liu Yan appealed for help. In April, Cao Cao rescued Liu Yan from the north in order to remove the threat from his flanks. Strategist Xun You suggests, "We are outnumbered and outgunned, so we should divide our forces. When he arrives at Yanjin, he will cross the river to the latter, and Shao will respond to him from the west. Then he will attack Baima with light troops, covering him up, and then Yan Liang will be able to take advantage of him" ("The Three Kingdoms: The Book of Wei - The Biography of Emperor Wu"), which Cao Cao follows. When Yuan Shao heard that Cao's troops had crossed the river, he split his army to the west and advanced into Yanjin. Cao Cao took the opportunity to lead his troops towards Baima, and when he was more than 10 miles from Baima, Yan Liang was shocked and rushed to meet him. Cao Cao sends Zhang Liao and Guan Yu to spearhead the attack. Guan Yu jumped in front of the formation, and when he saw Yan Liang's banner cover (the military vehicle in which the general was riding, with a banner and a cover), he rushed straight over and stabbed Yan Liang to death in the midst of a crowd of 10,000 people, decapitating him and returning to Yuan Shao's generals, "no one was able to take him on" (Three Kingdoms - Shu Shu - Guan Yu's Biography). Cao Cao ordered his army to charge and kill him, and Yuan Shao's army was defeated and dispersed, thus lifting the siege of Baima.

Cao Cao praised Guan Yu's bravery and rewarded him with the title of Marquis of Hanshou Pavilion (Hanshou is the name of a place; Pavilion is the name of a marquis). After Guan Yu killed Yan Liang, Cao Cao knew he would go, so he rewarded him heavily. Guan Yu sealed all the rewards Cao Cao had repeatedly given him, hung the seal and ribbon of the Marquis of Hanshou Pavilion in the hall, wrote Cao Cao a letter of farewell, and left Cao Cao's camp protecting Liu Bei's family and children to search for Liu Bei in Yuan Shao's army. When Cao Cao's generals heard of this, they wanted to go after him, but Cao Cao dissuaded them, saying, " Each one of them is his own master, so don't go after him" ("The Three Kingdoms - Shu Shu VI - Biography of Guan Yu").

From the time Guan Yu was captured to the time he made his mark on Cao Cao and rejoined Liu Bei, the story has been passed down by word of mouth and popularized. To the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", the formation of a flowery, brilliant story unit, including Guan Gong Tun Tushan about three things (surrendered to the Han not Cao; courtesy of the two sister-in-law; once you know the whereabouts of Liu Bei, it will be resigned); Cao Cao treats Guan Yu, a small feast for three days, a big feast for five days; Cao Cao gift robe, Guan Yu in the bottom of the coat, on the old robe given by Liu Bei cover, do not dare to forget the old with the new; Cao Cao gift Red Rabbit Horse, Guan Yu to thank you, thought that by riding the horse, can see Liu Bei in a day; Cao Cao gift Red Rabbit horse, Guan Yu, a day to see Liu Bei, a day to see Liu Bei. The first time I saw Liu Bei, I was able to see him in one day; Guan Yu beheaded Yan Liang and killed Wen Chou; Guan Yu hung up his seal and sealed it with gold; he rode a single horse for thousands of miles and crossed five hurdles to kill six generals; and he met his brothers in the ancient city. Few people in China do not know this story.

Yuan Shao raised a division to the south and sent Liu Bei south to Ru and Ying to attack and plunder Cao Cao's rear, where he was routed by Cao Cao's general Cao Ren. Liu Bei fled back to Yuan Shao's army and, being suspected, secretly planned to break away from Yuan Shao, so he suggested that Yuan Shao form an alliance with Liu Biao, the governor of Jingzhou, in order to put Cao Cao's back against the enemy. Yuan Shao was convinced, and sent Liu Bei to lead his troops south to Ru Nan to join the Yellow Turbans' leader Gong Du, expanding his force to several thousand men and posing another threat to Cao Cao's rear. In July of that year, Cao Cao, in an effort to stabilize his rear, sent his general Cai Yang to lead a crusade against Liu Bei. Liu Bei prepared and deployed his troops to meet Cai Yang. Cao Cao's army was defeated and Cai Yang was killed. In the fall of Jian'an 6 (201), Cao Cao's army attacked Liu Bei in Runan. In September, Guan Yu accompanied Liu Bei to join Liu Biao of Jingzhou, and Gong Du and his men were scattered. Liu Bei was thus separated from Yuan Shao and given the opportunity to develop his own power. Liu Biao treated Liu Bei with courtesy, and since then, Liu Bei has been stationing his troops in Jingzhou.

From the sixth to the thirteenth year of Jian'an (201-208), Liu Bei devoted himself to recruiting talents and expanding his military power. Especially in Jian'an 12 years (207 years), he "three visits", invited Zhuge Liang. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei saw Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang increasingly close relationship, heart upset. After Liu Bei noticed, he severely criticized him and Zhang Fei, saying: "I have Kong Ming, as if the fish have water. May you not repeat" ("Three Kingdoms Zhi- Shu Shu - Zhuge Liang biography"). Guan Yu and Zhang Fei then never expressed any more objections.

In the thirteenth year of Jian'an (208), Cao Cao personally led a large army to conquer Liu Biao. Liu Biao died, and Liu Cong, who succeeded him as pastor of Jingzhou, surrendered to Cao Cao. In order to avoid Cao Cao's army, Liu Bei withdrew from Fancheng and retreated towards Jiangling (present-day Jiangling, Hubei Province), and sent Guan Yu to lead more than 10,000 sailors to meet him at Jiangling by water. When Liu Bei's army retreated to Changbanpo in Dangyang (northeast of present-day Dangyang, Hubei Province), he was defeated by Cao Cao's cavalry, and the road to Jiangling was cut off by Cao Cao's army, so Liu Bei had to go diagonally to Hanjin. Guan Yu led his navy to meet him and protected Liu Bei as he retreated to Xiakou.

According to the Records of Shu, Liu Bei was at Xuchang, hunting with Cao Cao. Guan Yu had advised Liu Bei to take advantage of the scattered and chaotic crowd to kill Cao Cao to eliminate future problems. Probably due to the situation, Liu Bei did not agree. This time, when they met in Hanjin, Guan Yu was indignant and said, "If you had listened to me on the hunting ground, you would not have been in trouble today." Liu Bei explained, "At that time, it was also for the sake of the country to love Cao Cao as a rare talent. Besides, if Heaven's will aids the righteous, how can we know that today's drift is not a blessing for us?"

After Cao Cao's occupation of Jiangling, he became even more powerful, threatening to engulf Liu Bei and destroy Sun Quan in Jiangdong. This led to the famous Battle of Red Cliff, in which the allied forces of Sun Quan and Liu Bei defeated Cao Cao. In November, the allied forces of Sun and Liu defeated Cao Cao at Red Cliff (northwest of present-day Puqi County). The 10,000-strong navy led by Guan Yu was Liu Bei's main force and played an important role in the battle. In order to emphasize Guan Yu's "all-around righteousness," later generations have developed a detailed account of his explanation of Cao Cao's actions on the Huarong Road, which is still popular to this day.

After the Battle of Red Cliff, Liu Bei took the opportunity to capture the four counties of Wuling, Changsha, Guiyang, and Zuling (all in present-day Hunan Province). Liu Bei got the four counties, together with the southern counties lent to him by Sun Quan, and finally gained a foothold in Jingzhou. Liu Bei was then appointed Yuanxun. Guan Yu was appointed as the governor of Xiangyang and general of swordsmen to guard Jingzhou.

In December of the 16th year of Jian'an (211), Liu Bei led his troops into Sichuan and took Yizhou, while Guan Yu stayed in Jingzhou. As Yizhou was pacified, Guan Yu was given 500 pounds of gold, 1,000 pounds of silver, 50 million dollars, and 1,000 pieces of brocade.

Jingzhou includes seven counties: Nanyang, Nanxian, Jiangxia, Wuling, Changsha, Guiyang and Zuoling, and it is a strategic place where Cao Cao, Liu Bei and Sun Quan must fight. After the Battle of Red Cliff, Cao Cao still occupied Nanyang and the northern part of Nanxun, while Sun Quan occupied Jiangxia and the southern part of Nanxun. The so-called "Borrowing of Jingzhou" meant that Sun Quan lent Liu Bei the southern part of Nanxian County, which he occupied. In the second year after Liu Bei acquired Yizhou (215), Sun Quan sent Zhuge Jin as his envoy to discuss with Liu Bei, asking for the return of the southern counties of Jingzhou to the Eastern Wu. When Liu Bei refused, Sun Quan sent a group of officials to take over the three counties of Changsha, Zuoling and Guiyang. Guan Yu firmly refused to do so and sent Sun Quan's officials back. Sun Quan was furious and immediately sent Lu Meng with 20,000 soldiers to take over the three counties by force. After Lu Meng captured Changsha and Guiyang counties, Liu Bei hurriedly led an army of 50,000 troops down to Gongan, and sent Guan Yu to lead 30,000 troops to Yiyang to retake those two counties. Sun Quan also went to Lukou in person and sent Lu Su to lead 10,000 troops and horses to set up in Yiyang to oppose Guan Yu. Both Dong Wu's army and Guan Yu's army set up camp in Yiyang and confronted each other.

Sun and Liu were fighting over Jingzhou. At this time, Liu Bei (161-223) heard that Cao Cao (155-220) had captured Hanzhong, and hastened to fight against Cao Cao by dividing Jingzhou equally with Sun Quan (182-252). Meanwhile, Guan Yu hosts a banquet to invite Lu Su (172-217) to the banquet to discuss the affairs of Jingzhou, but he is rebuked by Lu Su.

After the Battle of Red Cliffs, Guan Yu, who was defending Jingzhou, was named "governor of Xiangyang," while the major towns of Jingzhou, such as Xiangyang and Fancheng, were still in the hands of Cao Cao. In order to realize the plan of Zhuge Liang and Liu Bei in the "Longzhong Pairing" to cross the two states of Jing and Yi, and when the time is ripe, the Jing army will go straight down to Wanyuan (present-day Nanyang, Henan Province) and Luo, and the Yi army will go west out of Qinzhou (present-day southern Shaanxi Province) to complete the unification of the great cause of the plan, Guan Yu has always been looking at Xiangyang and Fancheng.

In the twenty-fourth year of Jian'an (219), Liu Bei defeated Cao Cao's troops in Hanzhong, and Cao Cao had to withdraw from Hanzhong. As a result, Liu Bei made himself King of Hanzhong with the support of his civil and military officials. He appointed Guan Yu as a former general and gave him a section and battle-axe.

In June of that year, Liu Bei, after taking Hanzhong, sent Meng Da and Liu Feng to capture Fangling and Shangyong in the eastern part of Hanzhong County, thus expanding his power. In July, Sun Quan wanted to attack Hefei, and most of the Wei army mobilized to Huainan to defend against the Wu army. Guan Yu, who was guarding Jingzhou, seized the opportunity and left Mi Fang, the governor of Nanxian County (Jiangling, present-day Jiangling, Hubei Province), to guard Jiangling, and General Fu Shiren to guard Public Security (present-day northwest of Public Security, Hubei Province), and then attacked Jingxiang in the north at the rate of his own main force.

Xiangyang and Fancheng are opposite each other across the Han River, forming an angle to each other, and are the key battlefield for Cao's army to resist the southern army's northward march. At that time, Wei's southern general Cao Ren was stationed in Fancheng, and general Lu was stationed in Xiangyang. After withdrawing his troops from Hanzhong to Chang'an, he sent General Xu Huang to lead his troops to support Cao Ren, who was stationed in Wancheng (present-day Nanyang, Henan Province). After the Battle of Fancheng, Cao Cao sent General Yu Ban and General Pang De to help him defend the city, and they were stationed north of Fancheng.

Yu Ban made a fatal mistake in this battle. When Cao Ren told him and Pang De to station their troops to the north of Fancheng, he did not take into account the low terrain of the area, and brought all seven of his men there to garrison. In August, there was a heavy rainfall, and the Han River surged, and the water was several feet deep in the flat land. Yu Ban's seven armies were flooded, and he had to lead a few of his men to the high ground. Guan Yu attacked with his warships, Yu Ban had no way out and was forced to surrender. Pang De rate of a part of the continued resistance, swore to fight, from the morning until noon, the arrows are exhausted, on the short war. Some of the generals died in battle, some surrendered. Guan Yu intensified his attack, while the water rose even more violently, flooding the earthen embankment, and all of Cao Cao's troops surrendered. Pang De tried to withdraw to Cao Ren's camp by boat, but the water was so strong that the boat capsized and he was captured and died without succumbing.

Guan Yu took advantage of the victory to besiege Fancheng and surrounded Xiangyang with one of his forces. Fancheng defenders only a few thousand people, the city wall due to flooding in many places collapsed, Cao Ren had considered giving up Fancheng, was assisted by Cao Ren's RuNan TaiShou ManCao dissuaded. Man Cong thought: "The mountains and the water are fast and quick, and I hope it will be soon. I heard that Yu sent other generals already under Jia (now Jia County, Henan Province), since the south of Xu, the people are disturbed, so Yu did not dare to attempt to enter, for fear that our army use the ear after. Now, if we hide away, south of Honghe River, the country will not be restored. You should wait for it" ("Three Kingdoms - Wei Shu - full favor biography") Cao Ren is determined to die, inspire the generals and soldiers to work together to resist.

Guanyu army although the boat attack, a moment still can not go down. At this time, Wei Jingzhou assassin Hu Xiu, Nanxiang (rule Nanxiang, now Henan Xichuan southeast), Fu Fang, are surrendered to the Guan Yu, Luhun (now Henan Songxian northeast) Sun Wolf, etc., but also to kill the official soldiers, responding to the Guan Yu, the Guan Yu power a moment of "shocking the Chinese summer" ("Three Kingdoms - Shu Shu six - Guan Yu biography").

Cao Cao felt threatened, and at one point was ready to move the capital, but was admonished by the prime minister, Sima Sima Yi, and the Cao rafter, Jiang Ji. They think: "ban for the water was lost, not the loss of war and defense, in the country's grand plan has not been compromised, and then move the capital, both to show the enemy to be weak, but also the people of the Huai Shin people are upset carry on. Sun Quan, Liu Bei, outside the pro-inside the sparsity, the feather's pleased, the right does not want to also. Can be a metaphor for the right to use their hands, then the siege of Fan since the solution" ("Book of Jin - Xuan Di biography").

Cao Cao adopted this strategy of utilizing conflict to destroy the alliance between Sun and Liu in order to reap the benefits of fishing, and sent an emissary to meet Sun Quan. At the same time, he instructed Xu Huang to lead an army to rescue Cao Ren. When Xu Huang arrived at Yanglingpi (north of Fancheng), Cao Cao sent generals Xu Shang and Lu Jian to send an order that they must wait for reinforcements to arrive before attacking. When Guan Yu's front troops were in Yancheng (about five miles north of Fancheng), Xu Huang pretended to build a long moat to show that he would cut off the Shu army's rear road. The Shu army was afraid of being surrounded, burned camp withdrew, Xu Huang army into the basis of Yan Cheng, gradually to the siege of Shu army approaching.

In the beginning, Zhuge Liang in the "Longzhong Pair" said: "If across the Jing Yi, to protect its rock resistance, the West and the Rong, the South and Yi Yue, outside the knot Sun Quan, within the cultivation of politics. When there is a change in the world, then the order of a morning will be the Jingzhou troops to Wanluo. General (Liu Bei) body rate of Yizhou people to out of Qinchuan, the people have not fandango pot pulp to meet the generals of it "(Three Kingdoms - Shu Shu - Zhuge Liang biography")? The meaning is that Liu Bei in the acquisition of Jing, Yi two states after the establishment of the foundation, must be outside the knot Sun Quan, the formation of a consolidated alliance, and then only to the north of the Central Plains. It can be seen that the alliance between Sun and Liu was the foundation of Liu Bei's northernization of the Central Plains. However, this alliance has shown obvious cracks for several reasons:

One is on the ownership of Jingzhou. Jingzhou is located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, based on the Han River in the north, with the benefit of the South China Sea, connected to the Wu Hui in the east and Ba Shu in the west, and is of strategic importance to Sun, Liu and Cao. Cao Cao once wanted to occupy Jingzhou and unify the world, but the battle of Red Cliff made his dream come true; Sun's group has always believed that Jingzhou is the place to fight. Because Jingzhou according to the weight of the upper reaches, as long as the manipulation in the hands of others, they are in a passive position. The end of the Battle of Red Cliff, in order to continue to unite Liu against Cao, had no choice but to temporarily lend Jingzhou to Liu Bei. But Liu Bei obtained Yizhou, but no intention to return Jingzhou.

Secondly, Guan Yu was proud of his courage and disrespect for Sun's group. When Lu Su met with him to ask for Jingzhou, he refused to look at the issue from the perspective of the union of the two families to solve the problem properly, despite the fact that he was in the wrong. Sun Quan sent a messenger to ask Guan Yu's daughter for his son's hand in marriage, but Guan Yu not only refused to accept the marriage, but also scolded the messenger, and the relationship between the two sides became more and more rigid.

Thirdly, among the ministers of the Eastern Wu, Lu Su, who thought that he should mend fences with Liu Bei's group and reject Cao Cao from the perspective of the overall situation, has passed away, and other ministers, such as Lu Meng, who replaced Lu Su as the commander of the army, thought that Guan Yu was always brave and good at fighting and had the ambition of annexing the Wu kingdom, so he asked for troops to deal with Guan Yu. He said: "and Yu Junchen, reserved for its fraudulent power, where repeated, can not be treated in the heart of the abdomen" ("Three Kingdoms Zhi-Wu Shu-Lv Meng biography").

So when Sun Quan got Cao Cao's letter, he readily agreed. He called Lv Meng back to Jianye to ****discuss plans to seize the southern county. Guan Yu also knew that the Sun-Liu alliance was not consolidated, and at this time he had to capture Fancheng as well as guard against Sun Quan's sneak attack on Jingzhou. He saw the Wu general Lv Meng troops Lu Kou, and repeatedly instructed Mo Fang and Fu Shiren carefully guard Jingzhou, and most of the troops to stay in the South County, but also set up defenses along the river, twenty to thirty miles to set up a guard tower, built a beacon tower. Knowing that Guan Yu's defense was tight and flawless, Lu Meng pretended to be seriously ill and sent a letter to Sun Quan, asking to go back to convalesce. Sun Quan publicly issued an order to transfer Lu Meng back to Jianye to recuperate. Lu Meng recommended Lu Xun to replace himself. At that time, Lu Xun was young and talented, but had no reputation, and was serving as a lieutenant of Dingwei. Sun Quan then appointed him as a partial general and right departmental governor to replace Lu Meng. Upon his arrival, Lu Xun sent a messenger to Guan Yu with a gift and a letter, in which he complimented Guan Yu for flooding seven armies, surpassing Jin Wengong's Battle of Cheng Pu and Han Xin's Backwaters Breaking through Zhao, and encouraged Guan Yu to exert himself to win a complete victory. Seeing that Lu Xun is a nameless junior, and so respectful and sincere to himself, Guan Yu was bold and assured, and transferred most of the Jingzhou army to Fancheng one after another, intending to take advantage of Xu Huang's troops have not yet arrived, and the water has not yet completely receded, to capture Fancheng first. He personally supervised the battle and intensified the attack on the city, while Cao Ren remained firm. Lu Xun reported the movement of Guan Yu's men and horses to Sun Quan in detail, and explained his view that Guan Yu could be captured in one battle.

Guan Yu's army in Xiangfan was growing, and with tens of thousands of Yu Ban's surrendered troops, food was scarce. He blamed the southern county governor Mo Fang and Fu Shiren for not being able to keep up with the delivery of food and grass, and said angrily, "I should also be ruled" (Three Kingdoms - Shu Shu - Guan Yu Biography), and the two were then harboring rebellious intentions. Later on, in order to solve the urgent problem, Guan Yu took over the grain stored in Xiangguan by Dongwu without authorization. When Sun Quan learned of this, he ordered Lu Meng to send troops to attack Guan Yu's rear.

In November of that year, Lv Meng led the army to go out in hiding, into the search for Yang (now northeast of Hubei Guangji), the elite soldiers ambushed in the camouflaged merchant ships, so that the generals dressed in white, disguised as merchants, recruiting the people to scull and row the oars, day and night, back to the river to sail rapidly, straight to the river into the attack, all very covert and secretive. The Shu soldiers stationed at the river defense were deceived by the disguised Wu army and were caught off guard, all of them were captured, and the city of Jiangling was emptied and thrown into chaos. Lu Meng first let the former cavalry captain Yu翻 write a letter to lure down the Shu general Fu Shiren, who was stationed in Public Security (now north of Public Security in Hubei Province), and then Fu Shiren led the Wu army to force down Mi Fang, the governor of the southern county of Shu, who was guarding Jiangling. The two were usually displeased with Guan Yu's arrogance towards them, and when they heard that Guan Yu was coming back to punish them, they were even more fearful, so they offered their city to meet the Wu army when it was approaching the city. Lv Meng then led his army to Jiangling, thus recapturing Jingzhou, which had been occupied by Shu for a long time. After taking Jiangling, Lu Meng got all the family members of Guan Yu and his generals. He treated them favorably and comforted them, and ordered the army not to intrude on the people, but also expressed concern for the people of the city, giving medicine to the sick, giving clothes and food to the hungry and cold, so that the order of the city was quickly restored. The proud and gullible Guan Yu, on the other hand, was unaware of Lu Meng's attack.

Cao Cao's emissary returned to Luoyang, bringing a secret message from Sun Quan saying that he was sending troops west to attack Guan Yu, but that he wanted to keep it a secret in case Guan Yu learned that he was prepared. Most of Cao Cao's men think that Sun Quan should keep the secret. However, Cao Cao's strategist Dong Zhao disagreed, believing that he should pretend to keep the secret while secretly revealing it. Guan Yu knows that Sun Quan is attacking, and if he withdraws his troops and returns to defense, the siege of Fancheng will be lifted. If Guan Yu returns to the south to fight with Sun Quan, he will be able to reap the benefits of the battle. If you keep it a secret, so that Sun Quan gained power, it is not favorable to me. Moreover, the besieged generals do not see rescue for a long time, worry about the lack of food to generate panic, once the accident, the situation will be difficult to clean up. Therefore, it is better to keep it a secret. Cao Cao took Dong Zhao's advice and ordered Xu Huang to shoot the content of Sun Quan's secret letter into Fancheng and Guan Yu's camp with arrows. When the besieged Wei army got the letter, their morale increased and their defense became stronger; when Guan Yu got the letter, he was afraid of being attacked from the back and was unwilling to give up, and at the same time, he judged that the cities of Jiangling and Gong'an were fortified, and that it would be impossible for the Wu army to conquer them if they really attacked them, and thus he was in a position of hesitation and dilemma. At this time, Cao Cao has led the main force from Luoyang to arrive at Mo Pei (now southeast of Jia County, Henan Province), and has sent 12 battalions of Yin Department, Zhu Gai, etc. to Yan City, under the command of Xu Huang. The main force of Guan Yu's army was in Weitou and a part of his army was in Sizuka. Xu Huang used the tactic of sounding out the east and hitting the west, threatening to attack Weitou, but unexpectedly attacked the four mounds. Guan Yu was afraid of losing Four Mound, so he led 5000 soldiers and riders to fight, but he was repulsed by Xu Huang, and when he retreated from his camp, Xu Huang chased after him and rushed into his camp right behind him. At that time, Guan Yu's camp was surrounded by ten deep trenches and antlers, and the barrier facilities were extremely tight, so it was extremely difficult to attack from outside the camp. Now take the opportunity of its troops in confusion, by the internal raid, a big break, kill Shu of Hu Xiu, Fu Fang. Guan Yu was shocked to learn that Jiangling lost its defense, so he withdrew and retreated, and the siege of Fancheng was lifted. Cao Ren's generals wanted to pursue the attack, but Zhao Yan thought that Guan Yu's strength should be retained to fight with Sun Quan and should not be pursued. Cao Ren agrees with Zhao Yan and does not pursue. When Cao Cao learns of Guan Yu's retreat, he indeed sends an order not to pursue Guan Yu.

When Guan Yu retreated, Sun Quan had already arrived at Jiangling, and sent Lu Xun to capture Yiling (present-day Yichang, Hubei) and Zigui (present-day Zigui, Hubei) to cut off Guan Yu's retreat into Sichuan. On the way back to the army, Guan Yu repeatedly sent people to Jiangling to ask for news. Each time, Lu Meng treated the envoys with courtesy and let them travel around the city. When the envoys returned to Guan Yu's army, most of the generals fled halfway through the journey, knowing that their families were safe. Knowing that he was alone, Guan Yu sent his men to Liu Feng and Meng Da, the Shu generals stationed in Shangyong, to ask for help, but they refused to support him on the grounds that Shangyong was a new city. Guan Yu was caught in a predicament of losing ground and being attacked from the back, so he went west to Mecheng (southeast of present-day Dangyang, Hubei Province). At this time, Lu Xun took advantage of the victory and captured Yidu. Seeing that the east, west and south sides of Maicheng were full of enemies, and reinforcements were delayed, Guan Yu decided to break through the siege and return to Xichuan.

Lu Meng knew that Guan Yu's army was small and expected him to take the path to Xichuan north of Mecheng to escape, so he sent troops to bury him beforehand. In December, Sun Quan sent a messenger to Mecheng to persuade Guan Yu to surrender. Guan Yu offered to tell the Wu army to retreat ten miles and then meet him at the south gate. Lu Meng really retreated ten miles and waited for Guan Yu to surrender. Guan Yu and his son Guan Ping took the opportunity to sneak out of the north gate with a dozen cavalrymen and fled to the west, where they were captured by Ma Zhong of the Panzhang Department of the Wu generals, and killed together with his son Guan Ping, who was about 58 years old at the time of his death. Liu Chan, the later lord of Shu, posthumously honored Guan Yu with the title of "Marquis of Strong Mew" in the third year of the Jingyao era (260 A.D.), and his son Guan Xing succeeded him.

Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are discussed in the Three Kingdoms Chronicle: "Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were both known as the enemies of ten thousand men, and as the Tiger Ministers of the world. Fei serves Cao Gong, Fei righteousness release Yan Yan, and has the style of a national scholar. However, Yu is rigid and self-possessed, Fei is violent and graceless, and he takes defeat by shortness, which is a common practice." He also said, "Yu treats his soldiers well but is proud of the scholarly men, and Fei loves and honors the gentlemen but does not sympathize with the little men." This is indeed the case.

Jian'an nineteen years (214 years), Liu Bei in the process of capturing Yizhou, surrendered Ma Chao, since the Yizhou pastor, worship Ma Chao as Pingxi general. Guan Yu because Ma Chao is not an old friend, but also heard that Ma Chao courage, the heart is not convinced, then wrote to Zhuge Liang, asked: "super talent can be compared to who class"? Zhuge Liang knew what he meant, then wrote back and said: "Meng Qi (Ma Chao word Meng Qi) both capital civil and military, androgynous, the world's best, tattoo (tattoo cloth that is, yingbu), peng (peng yuei) of the disciples, when and yi de (zhang fei word yide) and drive to compete with the first, not yet bearded of the outstanding Yiqun also" ("the three kingdoms - Shu Shu - guan yu biography"). Guan Yu has a good beard, so Zhuge Liang called him a beautiful beard. When Guan Yu got the letter, he was so pleased that he took it to his guests and passed it around.

In July of the twenty-fourth year of Jian'an (219), Huang Zhong beheaded Cao's famous general Xiahou Yuan, and was promoted to the rank of General of the West. The same year Liu Bei into the Hanzhong King, appointed Guan Yu as the former general, Huang Zhong as the rear general, Zhang Fei as the right general, Ma Chao as the left general. Zhuge Liang said Liu Bei said: "Zhong's reputation, so not Guan, Ma's Lun also, but now they will make the same column. Horse, Zhang in the near, personally see its achievements, can still be metaphorical; Guan remote heard, I am afraid that will not be happy, can not be right?" Liu Bei said: " I should be solved " (" Three Kingdoms - Shu Shu - Huang Zhong Biography "). And he sent Fei Shi, the former minister of Yizhou, to deliver the seal ribbons to Guan Yu.

Guan Yu heard that Huang Zhong was listed alongside himself, and was furious: "A great man will not be listed alongside an old soldier after all?" He refused to accept the appointment. Fei Shi said to Guan Yu: "The one who set up the king's business is not used in the same way. In the past, Xiao (Xiao He), Cao (Cao Sen) and Gao Zu (Liu Bang) were close to each other when they were young, and Chen (Chen Ping), Han dead (Han Xin) life after the Lord, on the list of his class, Han most of all, I have not heard of Xiao, Cao as a grudge. This time to a moment of success in the Han Sheng, but the importance of the intention, rather than with the Marquis of the King Qi? And the King and Marquis arm as one, the same rest and other relatives, woe **** of, I am not suitable for the Marquis counting the official number of the high and low, the number of titles and salaries for the intention also. Servant of the envoy, the person with the order, the Marquis is not worship, such as this will be returned, but the phase for the pity of this move, I am afraid that there are regrets "(The Three Kingdoms - Shu Shu - Fei Shi biography")? Guan Yu was greatly enlightened, so he worshiped the seal ribbons.

The weakness of Guan Yu's arrogant nature led to the Battle of Fancheng, from the beginning of the command correctly, shocking China, developed to the final deceived, the whole army was wiped out, careless loss of Jingshou, and ultimately led to the disintegration of the Sun, Liu alliance, the lesson of its bitter. When Cao Cao often warned Xiahou Yuan: "For the general when there is timidity, not but also rely on courage. Will be when the courage as the basis, the line with the wisdom of the plan; but know that Ren Yong, a pimp enemy ear "(Three Kingdoms - Wei Shu - Xiahou Yuan"), the final for the people play in the palm of your hand, Xiahou Yuan finally fruit of the courage and death, Xiahou Yuan, so Guan Yu, Xiang Yu are so.

But Guan Yu had an even better side, and that's what made him famous for centuries.

Guan Yu was a man of promise, a man of honor, and a man of infinite loyalty to Liu Bei and his group. He was with Liu Bei for many years, and he kept his word for all of them. Even if the white horse was captured, in the Cao camp, but still do not forget the old grace, and finally returned to Liu Bei, loyalty and righteousness of the moment.

Guan Yu's courage was exceptional, and he was the best in the army. Later novels, write his wine beheading Hua Xiong, three Ying battle Lubu, chopping car armor, chopping Yan Liang, kill Wen Chou, hanging seal seal gold, thousands of miles to go a single rider, through the five passes to cut the six generals, Huarong Road, a single sword to the meeting, drowning the seven armies, etc., although there are contrary to the historical facts, but also highlights his bravery and charisma. As for the bone-scraping, it is even better known.

Guan Yu had been shot by a random arrow, the arrow penetrated the other left arm. After the wound though, but when it comes to rainy weather, the bone is often painful. The doctor said: "arrowheads are poisonous, poisoned into the bone, when the broken arm for trauma, scraping the bone to remove the poison, and then this disease is removed from the ear." Guan Yu then stretched out his arm for the doctor to cut the wound. When Guan Yu is banqueting all the generals, "arm blood flow away, surplus in the plate, and Yu cut scorching lead wine, speech and laughter" ("Three Kingdoms Zhi-Shu Shu six-Guan Yu").

The novel "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" describes this paragraph, is even more wonderful: "Tuo is under the knife, cut open the flesh until the bone, the bone has been green; Tuo with a knife to scrape the bone, all the sound, the tent on the tent to see, all cover their faces. The public drinking wine and eating meat, laughing and playing chess, all without the color of pain."