Xing Daorong

Historical Record

Xing Daorong is not recorded in the Records of the Three Kingdoms or other official histories. His life and deeds, his origins, and any of his activities during the Three Kingdoms period are absent from any verifiable historical document. Therefore, as to Xing Daorong's historical authenticity, the consensus among historians is that he is a literary invention rather than a general who truly existed during the Three Kingdoms period. Within the framework of the official histories' narrative, Liu Du, Grand Administrator of Lingling, and his son Liu Xian are likewise never mentioned as having a subordinate general named Xing Daorong. Thus, in the historical materials, Xing Daorong is a wholly blank figure, with no source to support his existence or deeds. This leaves him with no place in historical research; all his image and stories derive from later literary creation, especially the classic novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Any description of Xing Daorong must therefore be sought in the materials of the novel and cannot draw any information from the histories.

In the Novel

In the literary world of Luo Guanzhong's Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Xing Daorong, as a subordinate general of Liu Du, Grand Administrator of Lingling, first appears in Chapter 52 and is an important figure during Liu Bei's seizure of the four commanderies of southern Jing. He is cast as a valiant but reckless general who, presuming on his martial skill, wields a great mountain-splitting axe and claims to be "a match for ten thousand men." ^c:3852 When Liu Bei's great army bore down, Liu Du's son Liu Xian told his father not to worry, precisely because a fierce general like Xing Daorong could hold them off. When Xing Daorong first faced Zhuge Liang—who rode in a four-wheeled carriage, wearing a silken headband and a crane-feather cloak and holding a feather fan—he showed great contempt. He mocked that Zhuge Liang's merit at the Battle of Red Cliffs had not been his own doing but the strategy of Zhou Yu, and cursed Zhuge Liang loudly, "How dare you come spouting deceptions!" ^c:14891 then swung his great axe and charged straight at Kongming. But this was precisely a trap laid by Zhuge Liang. Xing Daorong pursued the yellow banner, only to encounter Zhang Fei at the foot of the hill. After scarcely a few bouts, Xing Daorong, his strength failing, fled in defeat. Then Zhao Yun blocked his escape, and at his wits' end he could only dismount and surrender. ^c:14892

After surrendering, Xing Daorong, to save his life, offered Zhuge Liang a plan, expressing his willingness to act as an inside agent to help Liu Bei capture Liu Xian. He vowed to Zhuge Liang that if released he had a way to persuade Liu Xian, and that when Zhuge Liang raided the camp that night he would, as inside agent, capture Liu Xian alive. This, however, was no genuine surrender but a delaying ruse on Xing Daorong's part. On returning to the city of Lingling, he at once informed Liu Xian of Zhuge Liang's plan and advised Liu Xian to turn the scheme back, setting an ambush outside the city to capture Kongming when he came to raid the camp. ^c:14892 But Zhuge Liang had long anticipated that Xing Daorong would prove fickle, and so he laid another trap, foiling Xing Daorong's scheme. In the end, Xing Daorong was killed by Zhao Yun in the melee, ending his brief and dramatic career in the novel. His image is that of the typical "valiant but reckless" general of the novel, often serving as a foil to set off the wisdom and valor of Liu Bei's camp.

Key Relationships

* Liu Xian: In the novel, Xing Daorong is a subordinate general of Liu Du, Grand Administrator of Lingling, and is moreover the fierce general "a match for ten thousand men" on whom Liu Du's son Liu Xian relied. ^c:3852 (unique to the novel) He stood in a master-subordinate relationship with Liu Xian and, when Liu Bei attacked Lingling, jointly deliberated strategies of resistance. Xing Daorong once offered Liu Xian a plan in an attempt to counter Zhuge Liang, showing the close military connection between the two (unique to the novel).
* Zhuge Liang: Xing Daorong and Zhuge Liang were direct adversaries. Zhuge Liang repeatedly used stratagems to toy with Xing Daorong, including luring him into pursuit and seeing through his feigned surrender. ^c:14891 (unique to the novel) Zhuge Liang was the arbiter of Xing Daorong's fate, and in the end it was Zhuge Liang's stratagem that brought about Xing Daorong's defeat and death.
* Zhang Fei: Xing Daorong had a brief clash with Zhang Fei on the battlefield and was quickly defeated. ^c:14891 (unique to the novel) Zhang Fei's valor directly showed Xing Daorong's lack of martial skill and was one of the major causes of his rout.
* Zhao Yun: After losing to Zhang Fei, Xing Daorong had his escape blocked by Zhao Yun and was forced to surrender. ^c:14892 (unique to the novel) Zhao Yun was Xing Daorong's ultimate slayer, symbolizing the strength of the generals in Liu Bei's camp and directly bringing about Xing Daorong's end.

Iconic Scenes

* First battle against Zhuge Liang, pursuing the yellow banner: Xing Daorong faced Zhuge Liang for the first time outside the city of Lingling, wielding his great mountain-splitting axe and shouting fiercely, mocking Zhuge Liang's merit at the Battle of Red Cliffs. He was then lured into Zhuge Liang's formation, pursuing the four-wheeled carriage and the yellow banner, and at last fell into the ambush of Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun. ^c:14891 This scene fully displays Xing Daorong's valor and his reckless impetuosity, while also highlighting Zhuge Liang's wit.
* Feigned surrender and offered plan, seen through: After being captured by Zhao Yun, Xing Daorong, to save his life, falsely surrendered to Zhuge Liang and offered to act as inside agent to capture Liu Xian alive. But Zhuge Liang had long seen through his scheme and turned it back, so that Xing Daorong's plan ultimately failed. ^c:14892 This scene is an important reflection of Xing Daorong's character, revealing his cunning and shortsightedness while again emphasizing Zhuge Liang's discernment.
* Slain before the lines, ending his career: After Zhuge Liang saw through Xing Daorong's feigned-surrender ruse, Xing Daorong was killed by Zhao Yun in the ensuing melee. This end marks Xing Daorong's complete exit from the novel and confirms his tragic fate as a valiant but reckless man. Though the description of this scene is brief, it is the terminus of his career in the novel and carries important symbolic significance. (unique to the novel)