Wu Yayu

Historical Record

As for Wu Yayu (Jailer Wu), there is no clear mention of him in the official histories such as the Records of the Three Kingdoms. His life and deeds, his native place and origin, and even whether he truly existed, are all beyond historical verification. It is therefore impossible to make any objective statement or assessment of him from a historical standpoint.

In the Novel

In Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Wu Yayu, as a jailer, plays a key role when Hua Tuo is imprisoned^[1]. The novel depicts him serving Hua Tuo in prison with wine and food each day, an act that won Hua Tuo's gratitude and trust^[1]. Grateful for his kindness, Hua Tuo, before his death, entrusted Wu Yayu with his precious medical work, the Book of the Blue Bag, and wrote a letter asking Wu Yayu to go to his home and fetch the book on his behalf^[1]. Wu Yayu was overjoyed at this, thinking that if he could obtain this book he might leave his post to practice medicine, benefiting all under heaven and carrying on Hua Tuo's art^[1].

Wu Yayu did not fail the trust placed in him: he traveled far to Jincheng, retrieved the Book of the Blue Bag from Hua Tuo's wife, and brought it back to the prison to present to Hua Tuo for inspection. After Hua Tuo confirmed it was correct, he gave the book to Wu Yayu^[1]. However, when Wu Yayu brought the book home to treasure it, and after Hua Tuo's death wished to take it out to study, he found his wife burning the book^[1]. Wu Yayu was aghast, and though he struggled to snatch it back, the greater part of the Book of the Blue Bag had already been burned, leaving only one or two pages^[1]. Faced with Wu Yayu's angry cursing, his wife retorted: "Even if you learned to be as miraculously skilled as Hua Tuo, you would only end up dying in prison—so what use is it?"^[1] Hearing this, Wu Yayu could only sigh and let the matter rest. Thus the Book of the Blue Bag did not pass down to the world intact, and the minor arts of gelding cockerels and pigs that survive come from the one or two pages spared the flames^[1]. Through Wu Yayu's experience, the novel explains the reason for the loss of the Book of the Blue Bag, and thereby shapes the image of a minor figure brought together by chance yet toyed with by fate.

Key Relationships

* Hua Tuo (student): The relationship between Wu Yayu and Hua Tuo is central in Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Wu Yayu carefully looked after the imprisoned Hua Tuo, serving him wine and food each day; this kindness moved Hua Tuo, before his death, to entrust him with the Book of the Blue Bag and to regard him as the potential heir to his medical art^[1] (novel only).

Signature Scenes

* Entrusting the Book of the Blue Bag in prison: In prison, Hua Tuo, grateful for Wu Yayu's generous treatment, entrusted him with the weighty charge of carrying on the Book of the Blue Bag, the work of his whole life. Hua Tuo wrote a letter in his own hand asking Wu Yayu to go to his home and fetch the book, and promised to give it to him in return for his kindness^[1] (novel only). This scene displays not only Hua Tuo's trust in Wu Yayu but also foreshadows the turn in the fate of the Book of the Blue Bag.
* The burning of the Book of the Blue Bag: Wu Yayu retrieved the Book of the Blue Bag from Hua Tuo's wife and treasured it at home, only for it to be consigned to the flames by his own wife's "pragmatic" outlook^[1] (novel only). This scene is the most dramatic moment of Wu Yayu's life and directly led to the loss of the Book of the Blue Bag, becoming a classic, lamentable episode in Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Wu Yayu's anger and helplessness, together with his wife's practical reckoning, together form the profound import of this scene.