Li Jue

Historical Record

Li Jue, styled Zhiran, was a native of Beidi. He began as a subordinate general under Dong Zhuo and followed him into Luoyang. In the summer, fourth month, of the third year of the Chuping era (192 CE), Minister over the Masses Wang Yun conspired with Lü Bu to assassinate Dong Zhuo ^c:2427. After Dong Zhuo's death, his former subordinates Li Jue, Guo Si, Fan Chou, Zhang Ji, and others, having received no pardon and hearing that Chang'an intended to slaughter all natives of Liang Province, grew fearful and did not know what to do. On Jia Xu's advice, they led their forces westward, gathering troops along the way, and by the time they reached Chang'an they numbered over a hundred thousand ^c:5687.

Li Jue and his companions, together with Dong Zhuo's former retainers Fan Chou, Li Meng, Wang Fang, and others, besieged the city of Chang'an. After the city fell, they fought Lü Bu within it, and Lü Bu fled in defeat. Li Jue's men then unleashed their soldiers to plunder Chang'an, slaughtering young and old until corpses covered the ground. They executed Wang Yun in the marketplace and put to death more than ten members of his clan ^c:5687. Afterward, Li Jue and the others seized control of the court at will; Li Jue was enfeoffed as General of Chariots and Cavalry and Marquis of Chiyang, holding the post of Colonel-Director of Retainers with the authority of the imperial credentials ^c:5687.

After taking control of the court, Li Jue, Guo Si, Fan Chou, and the others began to struggle for power and profit. Because Fan Chou had once spoken privately with Han Sui, Li Jue suspected him of harboring disloyal intentions. Li Jue thereupon held a banquet to which he invited Fan Chou, and at the feast he had him killed and absorbed his troops ^c:2432. Soon a rift also arose between Li Jue and Guo Si, and the two waged war within Chang'an for several months, with the dead numbering in the tens of thousands ^c:5687.

Amid the chaos, Li Jue abducted Emperor Xian to his own camp, burned the palace halls and city gates, and looted the offices and their goods. He was even harshly stinting in supplying the emperor's food; when the emperor asked for five measures of rice and five sets of ox bones to bestow on his attendants, Li Jue said, "There are meals served morning and evening—what need is there for rice?" and provided only rotten beef, foul and unfit to eat ^c:2435. In the strife between Li Jue and Guo Si, the court officials were taken hostage and the common people were driven from their homes. Zhong Yao once advised Li Jue and Guo Si, pointing out that Cao Cao was loyal to the royal house and that they should not turn away his envoy, thereby allowing Cao Cao's mission to pass ^c:12237. Later, in the course of the emperor's departure from Chang'an, Zhong Yao also lent his efforts ^c:12237.

In the Novel

In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Li Jue, as Dong Zhuo's trusted subordinate general, is portrayed even more vividly as a brutal, greedy, and capricious warlord. He first appears entering the capital alongside Dong Zhuo and takes part in Dong Zhuo's various atrocities ^c:5688. During the coalition campaign against Dong Zhuo, Li Jue and Guo Si, on Dong Zhuo's orders, led fifty thousand troops to guard Sishui Pass and block the lords east of the pass ^c:2430. When Sun Jian wished to form a marriage alliance with Dong Zhuo, Dong Zhuo sent Li Jue to negotiate, but he was sternly rebuffed by Sun Jian ^c:2431.

After Dong Zhuo was killed by Lü Bu and Wang Yun, Li Jue, Guo Si, Zhang Ji, Fan Chou, and the others fled. On the advice of the strategist Jia Xu, they assembled Dong Zhuo's former troops from Liang Province and, in the name of avenging Dong Zhuo, attacked into Chang'an ^c:12231. In the novel, after Li Jue's men took Chang'an, they not only killed Wang Yun and his clan but also intended to murder Emperor Xian; later, dissuaded by Zhang Ji and Fan Chou, they instead held the emperor as a hostage to control the court ^c:12236.

In the novel Li Jue is depicted as more superstitious: he believed that his rise to power was aided by the strength of ghosts and spirits, so he lavished favor on shamans yet failed to reward the soldiers who risked their lives. This caused discontent among Cavalry Commandant Yang Feng and others, ultimately leading to Song Guo's attempt to assassinate Li Jue (unique to the novel); though it failed, Li Jue's military strength was thereby weakened ^c:5693.

The novel also depicts in detail the internal conflict between Li Jue and Guo Si, which arose when Guo Si's wife, believing slanderous talk, suspected that Li Jue had poisoned him, causing the two to become bitter enemies ^c:2434. After Li Jue abducted the emperor to Meiwu, his harsh treatment of the emperor and empress is rendered even more concretely: when the emperor asked for five measures of rice and five sets of ox bones, Li Jue gave him rotten meat and decayed grain ^c:12220. Huangfu Li, on the emperor's order, went to mediate between Li Jue and Guo Si, but Li Jue not only refused to listen, he drew his sword to kill Huangfu Li—who was saved only by the intercession of Yang Feng and Jia Xu ^c:12225. In the end, through Zhang Ji's intervention, Li Jue and Guo Si reached a temporary reconciliation and escorted the emperor eastward back to Hongnong ^c:5693. Soon, however, they went back on their word and once more pursued the imperial carriage, seeking to seize the emperor ^c:12228.

Key Relationships

* Dong Zhuo's Faction (lord_of): Li Jue was Dong Zhuo's trusted subordinate general, campaigning at his side, and after Dong Zhuo's death he avenged him by taking Chang'an, thus continuing the rule of Dong Zhuo's faction ^c:5688.
* Wang Yun (enemy_of): Wang Yun was the mastermind behind Dong Zhuo's assassination. After Li Jue and the others stormed Chang'an, they slaughtered Wang Yun and his entire clan to avenge Dong Zhuo ^c:5687.
* Guo Si (rival_of): Li Jue and Guo Si were both former subordinates of Dong Zhuo who together took Chang'an and seized control of the court. Yet the two turned on each other over the struggle for power, repeatedly taking up arms within Chang'an and bringing ruin upon the people ^c:5687. In the novel, the estrangement scheme of Guo Si's wife was the direct trigger for their falling-out ^c:2434 (unique to the novel).
* Fan Chou (betrayed_by): Fan Chou was likewise a former subordinate of Dong Zhuo who took Chang'an together with Li Jue. But suspecting Fan Chou of colluding with Han Sui, Li Jue held a banquet and had him killed, then absorbed his troops ^c:2432.
* Jia Xu (advisor_of): Jia Xu was a key strategist of Li Jue's faction. After Dong Zhuo's death, it was Jia Xu's plan that drove Li Jue and the others to attack Chang'an and seize power ^c:12231. During the conflict between Li Jue and Guo Si, Jia Xu also repeatedly sought to mediate and advised Li Jue to grant high rank to pacify his soldiers, but Li Jue did not fully adopt his counsel ^c:5693.
* Emperor Xian of Han (captor_of): While Li Jue held control of the court in Chang'an, he repeatedly abducted Emperor Xian, restricting his freedom and even stinting on his food, subjecting the emperor to great humiliation ^c:2435.
* Zhong Yao (intervened_for): Zhong Yao once advised Li Jue and the others, pointing out that Cao Cao was loyal to the royal house and that they should not turn away his envoy, thereby allowing Cao Cao's mission to pass. He also lent his efforts during the emperor's departure from Chang'an ^c:12237.

Iconic Scenes

* Storming Chang'an and Executing Wang Yun: After Dong Zhuo's death, Li Jue, Guo Si, and the others, under Jia Xu's planning, led their army into Chang'an. They fought fiercely with Lü Bu, finally defeating him and capturing the city. They then executed Wang Yun in the marketplace and carried out a great massacre of the people of Chang'an, displaying their brutal nature ^c:5687.
* A Hongmen Banquet to Kill Fan Chou: Suspecting Fan Chou of colluding with Han Sui, Li Jue set out a banquet and invited Fan Chou to attend. At the feast Li Jue suddenly struck, beheading Fan Chou and absorbing his troops. This scene highlights Li Jue's treachery and scheming ^c:2432.
* Strife with Guo Si and the Abduction of the Emperor: Li Jue and Guo Si turned on each other over power and waged prolonged warfare within Chang'an. During this time Li Jue abducted Emperor Xian to his own camp, treating the emperor and empress with utmost cruelty, even refusing to provide adequate food, so that the emperor suffered hunger and terror ^c:2435.
* Refusing Huangfu Li's Mediation and Seeking to Kill the Envoy: Emperor Xian once sent Huangfu Li to mediate between Li Jue and Guo Si. Huangfu Li bluntly pointed out Li Jue's conduct in abducting the emperor, enraging Li Jue. Li Jue drew his sword to kill Huangfu Li and desisted only thanks to the intercession of Yang Feng and Jia Xu ^c:12225. This scene displays Li Jue's arrogance and brutality, as well as his contempt for imperial authority.
* Superstitious in Sorcery, Withholding Rewards from His Generals: In the novel, Li Jue is portrayed as a man given to superstition about ghosts and spirits, believing his success owed to sorcery. He therefore richly rewarded shamans while slighting the soldiers who risked their lives, undermining morale and ultimately provoking the defection of Yang Feng and others ^c:5693 (unique to the novel).