Zhang Rang

Historical Record

(No historical biographical material.)

In the Novel

In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Zhang Rang is portrayed as the head of the eunuch clique known as the "Ten Attendants" who threw the court into chaos at the end of the Eastern Han. He won the deep favor of Emperor Ling, who even honored him with the title "Foster Father" ^c:1784. This extreme favor allowed Zhang Rang and his cohort to interfere in court politics, causing all under Heaven to grow restless and bandits to rise in swarms, hastening the decline of the Eastern Han dynasty ^c:5362.

After Emperor Ling's death, Zhang Rang, with Jian Shuo and others, attempted to block the General-in-Chief He Jin from assisting in government, but Jian Shuo's plot was exposed and he was killed. To save themselves, Zhang Rang and the others pleaded with Empress Dowager He, claiming that only Jian Shuo was guilty and that it had nothing to do with them. Mindful of old ties, Empress Dowager He came forward to protect Zhang Rang and the others, and persuaded He Jin not to exterminate them all ^c:1784. Zhang Rang, however, did not restrain himself; instead he colluded with Empress Dowager Dong and tried to hollow out the power of Empress Dowager He and He Jin. He advised Empress Dowager Dong to attend court and govern from behind a screen, to enfeoff the imperial son Xie as Prince of Chenliu, and to give heavy authority to the imperial maternal uncle Dong Zhong, seeking to seize military power ^c:1785.

As the power struggle between He Jin and Empress Dowager Dong escalated, Zhang Rang and the other eunuchs again chose to attach themselves to Empress Dowager Dong. When Empress Dowager Dong lost power and was forced out of the palace by He Jin, Zhang Rang, Duan Gui, and the others instead bribed He Jin's younger brother He Miao and his mother Lady Wuyang, thereby continuing to receive the protection and favor of Empress Dowager He and to wield power in the palace ^c:1786.

In the end, He Jin resolved to wipe out the eunuch faction completely and summoned outside troops into the capital. When Zhang Rang and the others learned of this, knowing that disaster was upon them, they decided to strike first. They falsely told Empress Dowager He that He Jin had forged an edict to summon outside troops into the capital intending to rebel, and asked the Empress Dowager to summon He Jin into the palace. Although Chen Lin, Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, and others strenuously dissuaded him, He Jin insisted on entering. As a result, Zhang Rang and the others set an ambush in the Jiade Hall and hacked He Jin to death ^c:1788. After killing He Jin, Zhang Rang and the others threw his head over the wall, proclaiming that He Jin had been executed for rebellion ^c:1790. This act utterly enraged Yuan Shao, Cao Cao, and the others, who led troops storming into the palace and carried out a bloody slaughter of the eunuchs. In the chaos, Zhang Rang, Duan Gui, Cao Jie, Hou Lan, and others seized Empress Dowager He, the heir apparent, and the Prince of Chenliu, attempting to flee the Northern Palace by a back route ^c:1790. In the end, however, Zhang Rang and the others, finding no way out in their flight, threw themselves into a river and drowned, ending their wicked lives.

Key Relationships

* Ten Attendants: Zhang Rang was the head of the "Ten Attendants," forming a self-serving clique with Zhao Zhong, Feng Xu, Duan Gui, Cao Jie, Hou Lan, Jian Shuo, Cheng Kuang, Xia Yun, Guo Sheng, and others, together interfering in court politics and throwing all under Heaven into chaos ^c:5362. (novel only)
* Emperor Ling: Zhang Rang won the deep favor of Emperor Ling, who honored him as "Foster Father" ^c:5362—the chief reason he was able to lord it over the court. (novel only)
* Empress Dowager He: Zhang Rang repeatedly pleaded with Empress Dowager He and gained her protection ^c:1784. Mindful that Zhang Rang and the others had helped her gain wealth and rank, Empress Dowager He protected them at critical moments. In the end, however, Zhang Rang and the others seized Empress Dowager He ^c:1790. (novel only)
* Empress Dowager Dong: Zhang Rang offered Empress Dowager Dong a stratagem, advising her to attend court and govern from behind a screen and to give heavy authority to Dong Zhong, in order to counter the power of Empress Dowager He and He Jin ^c:1785. (novel only)
* He Jin: Zhang Rang and He Jin were in a hostile relationship. He Jin sought to wipe out the eunuch faction, while Zhang Rang and the others contrived to lure He Jin into the palace and kill him ^c:1788. (novel only)
* He Miao: Zhang Rang bribed He Miao and his mother Lady Wuyang in order to gain the protection of Empress Dowager He ^c:1786. (novel only)

Iconic Scenes

* Honored by Emperor Ling as "Foster Father": Emperor Ling's favor for Zhang Rang reached its extreme, even calling him "Foster Father"—not only a symbol of Zhang Rang's power but also a foreshadowing of the corruption and decline of Eastern Han court politics ^c:5362. (novel only)
* Contriving to lure and kill He Jin: To save themselves, Zhang Rang and the others used Empress Dowager He's summons to lure He Jin into the palace and ambushed and hacked him to death in the Jiade Hall. This event directly opened the prelude to the warlord chaos of the late Eastern Han ^c:1788. (novel only)
* Seizing the Empress Dowager and the two princes: When Yuan Shao and the others stormed into the palace and slaughtered the eunuchs en masse, Zhang Rang, Duan Gui, and the others, in their desperation, seized Empress Dowager He, the heir apparent, and the Prince of Chenliu and tried to flee, but failed in the end ^c:1790. (novel only)
* Drowning himself in the river: With nowhere left to turn, Zhang Rang and Duan Gui and the others finally chose to throw themselves into a river and drown, ending their political careers in Romance of the Three Kingdoms ^c:1790. (novel only)