Fan Chou

Historical Record

Fan Chou, one of Dong Zhuo's former subordinate troops, joined with Li Jue, Guo Si, and others to launch the assault on Chang'an after Dong Zhuo was killed. At that time Dong Zhuo's troops, leaderless now that Dong Zhuo had fallen and Lü Bu had fled, were about to disperse each in his own direction. However, since there was no edict of amnesty and they had heard that all the men of Liang Province in Chang'an were to be put to death, the men grew anxious and panicked, not knowing what to do. In this situation Jia Xu offered a plan, advising them to lead their men westward and gather troops along the way. In the end they assembled more than a hundred thousand men, and joining forces with Dong Zhuo's former subordinates Fan Chou, Li Meng, Wang Fang, and others, they together besieged the city of Chang'an^[1].

After a ten-day siege, the city of Chang'an fell. Fan Chou, Li Jue, Guo Si, and the others fought Lü Bu within the city, and Lü Bu was at last defeated and fled. Once the city had fallen, Li Jue and the rest let their soldiers loose to burn, kill, and plunder throughout Chang'an, slaughtering countless innocent old and young, until corpses lay everywhere. They also put to death Wang Yun, who had taken part in the plot against Dong Zhuo, and displayed his body in the market. Dong Zhuo was then buried at Mei Fortress, but according to the records a great storm shook Dong Zhuo's grave, water poured into the tomb, and washed away his coffin. After this, Fan Chou was enfeoffed as General of the Right and Marquis of Wannian, and together with Li Jue (General of Chariots and Cavalry, Marquis of Chiyang) and Guo Si (General of the Rear, Marquis of Meiyang) and others, monopolized power over the government^[1].

However, this good fortune did not last; struggles for power soon arose among these generals who held power. Fan Chou was ultimately killed, and his troops were absorbed by others. According to the Jiuzhou Chunqiu, after Ma Teng and Han Sui were defeated, Fan Chou pursued them as far as Chencang. Han Sui spoke with Fan Chou, saying, "Heaven and earth turn upside down—who can know what will come? What we contend over is no private quarrel, but the affairs of the royal house. You and I are men of the same province; though we are now slightly at odds, in the larger matter we must be of one accord. I wish to part from you with kind words. Should it chance that things turn out otherwise than we hope, may we meet again hereafter!" The two clasped arms on horseback and talked together for a long while before parting. Li Jue's nephew Li Li reported to Li Jue how intimately Han Sui and Fan Chou had conversed on horseback, and Li Jue therefore suspected that Fan Chou had privately reconciled with Han Sui and harbored disloyal intentions. When Fan Chou wished to lead troops eastward out of Guanzhong and asked Li Jue for reinforcements, Li Jue took the opportunity to invite Fan Chou to a council, and killed him at the banquet^[2]. After Fan Chou's death, Li Jue and Guo Si also fell into months of warfare out of mutual suspicion, leaving countless dead and wounded in Chang'an^[2].

In the Novel

In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Fan Chou's portrayal largely matches the histories, but with added detail and dramatic color. He first appears when Dong Zhuo enters the capital by edict; as one of Dong Zhuo's trusted generals, he accompanied Dong Zhuo to Luoyang together with Li Jue, Guo Si, Zhang Ji, and others^[3]. After Dong Zhuo had established his footing in the capital, he once planned to receive the throne by abdication, and ordered Li Jue, Guo Si, Zhang Ji, and Fan Chou to lead three thousand of the Flying Bear troops to guard Mei Fortress, while he himself returned to the capital to prepare for the abdication ceremony^[4]. This differs from history, where it was only after Dong Zhuo was killed that his former subordinates besieged Chang'an; the novel here advances the appearance and duties of Fan Chou and the others.

After Dong Zhuo was killed by Lü Bu, Fan Chou, Li Jue, Guo Si, Zhang Ji, and the others heeded Jia Xu's advice and joined forces to attack Chang'an. After breaking into Chang'an, Li Jue and Guo Si wished to kill Emperor Xian, but Fan Chou and Zhang Ji remonstrated, saying, "It cannot be done. If we kill him now, we fear the multitude will not submit; better to honor him as our sovereign as before, lure the lords into the passes, first strip away his wings, and then kill him—then the realm may be ours to seize."^[5] This episode has no clear basis in the histories and was added by the novel to shape the characters and advance the plot. In the end, Emperor Xian was forced to enfeoff Li Jue as General of Chariots and Cavalry, Guo Si as General of the Rear, Fan Chou as General of the Right and Marquis of Wannian, and Zhang Ji as General of Agile Cavalry, the four jointly holding the reins of government^[5].

Fan Chou's end is depicted more vividly in the novel. While pursuing Ma Teng and Han Sui, Fan Chou was ordered to chase Han Sui. When the chase reached the vicinity of Chencang, Han Sui reined in his horse and said to Fan Chou, "You and I are men of the same hometown—how can you be so heartless today?" Fan Chou too reined in his horse and replied, "An order from above may not be defied!" Han Sui pressed his persuasion further: "I too have come here for the sake of the state—why do you press me so hard?" On hearing this, Fan Chou actually turned his horse about, withdrew his troops back to camp, and let Han Sui go^[6]. This episode is unique to the novel, meant to highlight Fan Chou's bond of common hometown. Yet this act brought down a fatal disaster upon him. Li Jue's nephew Li Bie reported to Li Jue that Fan Chou had let Han Sui go, and Li Jue, enraged, wished to punish Fan Chou. Jia Xu offered a plan: to hold a victory banquet and behead Fan Chou at the feast, after which his troops were taken over by Zhang Ji^[7]. The novel's account of Fan Chou's death reinforces Li Jue's cruelty and Jia Xu's cunning, and sets Fan Chou's bond of common hometown in sharp contrast with his tragic end.

Key Relationships

* Dong Zhuo's Faction (senior_official): Fan Chou was a former subordinate of Dong Zhuo who, after Dong Zhuo's death, joined Li Jue, Guo Si, Zhang Ji, and others to avenge Dong Zhuo and ultimately seize control of the government. He played the role of an important military general within Dong Zhuo's faction^[1].
* Han Sui (friend_of): In the novel, Fan Chou and Han Sui shared a bond of common hometown. While pursuing Han Sui, Fan Chou let him go because of his words, reflecting a character in which the bond of common hometown outweighed military orders^[6] (unique to the novel).
* Li Jue (rival/superior): Li Jue was Fan Chou's colleague and also his eventual killer. Li Jue killed Fan Chou out of suspicion that he was in secret communication with Han Sui, reflecting the brutality of the internal power struggles within Dong Zhuo's faction^[2].
* Jia Xu (strategist): Jia Xu was an important strategist of Dong Zhuo's faction, who devised plans for Li Jue and the others, including advising them to gather their troops and attack Chang'an, and later contriving the killing of Fan Chou^[1],^[7].

Signature Scenes

* Besieging Chang'an and Killing Wang Yun: After Dong Zhuo's death, Fan Chou joined Li Jue, Guo Si, and other former subordinates of Dong Zhuo with more than a hundred thousand combined troops to besiege Chang'an. After the city fell, they fought and defeated Lü Bu, then carried out a great slaughter throughout the city, killed Wang Yun, and took control of the government^[1]. This scene established Fan Chou's standing as an important member of Dong Zhuo's remnant faction.
* Enfeoffed as General of the Right, Monopolizing the Government: After breaking into Chang'an and gaining control of Emperor Xian, Fan Chou was enfeoffed as General of the Right and Marquis of Wannian, and together with Li Jue, Guo Si, and the others jointly held the reins of government, becoming one of the important separatist powers of the late Han^[1].
* Letting Han Sui Go at Chencang: In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Fan Chou was ordered to pursue Han Sui, but near Chencang, when Han Sui appealed to their bond of common hometown, Fan Chou heeded him and withdrew his troops, letting Han Sui go^[6] (unique to the novel). This scene is Fan Chou's most signature episode in the novel, showing his sense of personal loyalty and directly leading to his tragic end.
* Killed at the Banquet: Because of letting Han Sui go, Li Jue grew suspicious of Fan Chou. Jia Xu offered a plan, and Li Jue held a banquet to invite Fan Chou, then beheaded him at the feast on the pretext that he had "colluded with Han Sui and plotted rebellion"^[7]. This scene marks the intensification of the internal power struggles within Dong Zhuo's faction and reveals Fan Chou's tragic fate.