Shi Ren

Historical Record

Shi Ren, styled Junyi, a native of Guangyang, served as a general during the Three Kingdoms period. He originally belonged to the Shu Han regime and was under the command of Guan Yu, garrisoning Gong'an. However, there was friction between Shi Ren and Guan Yu. When Sun Quan launched his attack on Jing Province, Shi Ren chose to betray Shu Han and surrendered to Sun Quan^[1].

In a similar situation to Shi Ren was Mi Fang, styled Zifang, a native of Donghai, who had served as Grand Administrator of Nan Commandery. Mi Fang likewise had a quarrel with Guan Yu and in the end also surrendered to Sun Quan. In addition, Hao Pu, styled Zitai, a native of Yiyang, was appointed Grand Administrator of Lingling after the Former Lord Liu Bei entered Shu. Under a stratagem of Lü Meng, Hao Pu opened the city gates and surrendered to Lü Meng. Pan Jun, styled Chengming, a native of Wuling, was appointed Administrative Aide of Jing Province after Liu Bei entered Shu, charged with handling Jing Province's affairs, but his relations with Guan Yu were likewise not harmonious. After Sun Quan attacked Guan Yu, Pan Jun too surrendered to Eastern Wu. The experiences of these figures together form the historical picture of instability within Shu Han and the disaffection of its generals around the time Jing Province was lost^[1].

In the Novel

In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Shi Ren's image is given more drama and detail. As the defending general of Gong'an, on learning that Jing Province had already been lost, he at first ordered the city closed and held firm^[2]. However, when Yu Fan shot in a letter calling for his surrender, Shi Ren—mindful of Guan Yu's prior displeasure with him—concluded it was better to surrender early. He then threw open the city gates, welcomed Yu Fan into the city, and finally went with Yu Fan to Jing Province to surrender to Sun Quan^[2].

After surrendering to Sun Quan, Shi Ren was sent by Sun Quan to continue guarding Gong'an. But Lü Meng, worried that Guan Yu had not yet been captured and that Shi Ren left guarding Gong'an might cause trouble, advised Sun Quan to send Shi Ren to win over Mi Fang, with whom he had a deep friendship^[2]. Shi Ren readily accepted the order and, with a dozen or so riders, went to Nan Commandery to win over Mi Fang. Mi Fang at first wavered, unwilling to betray Liu Bei. At this point Guan Yu sent an envoy to demand a hundred thousand piculs of white rice, threatening to behead Mi Fang if he delayed. Seeing this, Shi Ren at once drew his sword and slew the envoy, thereby cutting off Mi Fang's retreat, and urged Mi Fang to surrender to Eastern Wu, declaring that if he did not surrender he would surely be killed by Guan Yu^[3]. In the end, with Lü Meng's great army bearing down, Mi Fang and Shi Ren came out of the city together to surrender, and Sun Quan richly rewarded the two^[3].

Shi Ren and Mi Fang's fate did not settle there after their surrender to Eastern Wu. During Liu Bei's campaign against Wu, Shi Ren and Mi Fang were garrisoned at Jiangzhu under Ma Zhong. At night they heard the soldiers discussing killing the two of them and going over to the Shu camp to surrender, so as to avenge Guan Yu. In terror Mi Fang conferred with Shi Ren and decided to assassinate Ma Zhong and carry his head to the Shu camp to beg pardon. Shi Ren at first hesitated, but finally agreed to Mi Fang's proposal^[4]. After the two assassinated Ma Zhong, they went to Liu Bei's camp to present the head, weeping that they had surrendered to Wu only out of compulsion. However, Liu Bei flew into a rage, holding that they had come to plead glibly for their lives only when the tide turned against them, and before Guan Yu's spirit tablet he personally stripped Mi Fang and Shi Ren of their clothes and had them hacked to death by knife as a sacrifice to Guan Yu^[5]. This episode is unrecorded in history and is an artistic elaboration by the Romance of the Three Kingdoms to shape its characters' fates and stress the theme of loyalty and righteousness.

Key Relationships

* Guan Yu (rival_of): There was clear friction between Shi Ren and Guan Yu, which was not only one direct cause of his surrender to Eastern Wu^[1] but also an important argument in the novel when Shi Ren urged Mi Fang to surrender, holding that if Guan Yu returned victorious he would surely not let them off lightly^[3].
* Sun Quan (defected_to): Shi Ren finally betrayed Shu Han and surrendered to Sun Quan^[1]. In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Sun Quan welcomed Shi Ren's surrender and put him to use winning over Mi Fang^[2].
* Sun Quan's Faction (defected_to): After surrendering, Shi Ren joined Sun Quan's Faction and served Eastern Wu, helping to win over Mi Fang^[2].
* Mi Fang (friend_of): Shi Ren and Mi Fang were close friends; it was precisely this that Sun Quan counted on when he sent Shi Ren to win over Mi Fang^[2]. In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms the two went together through surrendering to Eastern Wu, persuading the other to surrender, and finally being put to death by Liu Bei—an interdependent alliance (novel only).
* Liu Bei (executed_by): In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Shi Ren and Mi Fang are finally put to death by Liu Bei himself as a sacrifice to Guan Yu, reflecting Liu Bei's deep hatred of traitors (novel only)^[5].

Signature Scenes

* Surrendering to Wu at Gong'an: On learning that Jing Province had already been lost, Shi Ren, facing Yu Fan's call to surrender and mindful of his friction with Guan Yu, finally chose to throw open the city gates and surrender to Sun Quan. This was a major turning point in his political career, marking his shift from the Shu Han camp to Eastern Wu^[2].
* Slaying the Envoy and Persuading Mi Fang to Surrender: In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, when Guan Yu sent an envoy to demand grain, Shi Ren, to cut off Mi Fang's retreat for good, decisively drew his sword and slew the envoy, and thereby persuaded Mi Fang to surrender to Eastern Wu. This act displayed Shi Ren's decisiveness and ruthlessness at a critical moment and directly brought about Mi Fang's surrender^[3].
* Assassinating Ma Zhong and Presenting His Head to Beg Pardon: In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, during Liu Bei's campaign against Wu, Shi Ren and Mi Fang, fearing for their own lives, jointly plotted and assassinated Ma Zhong, attempting to beg Liu Bei's pardon with Ma Zhong's head. This scene highlights the struggle and will to live of Shi Ren and Mi Fang in their desperate plight, but it also finally led to their tragic end (novel only)^[4].
* Hacked to Death by Liu Bei as a Sacrifice to Guan Yu: After presenting Ma Zhong's head, Shi Ren and Mi Fang did not gain Liu Bei's pardon; instead Liu Bei, before Guan Yu's spirit tablet, personally stripped them of their clothes and had them hacked to death by knife. This scene is the final verdict on Shi Ren's fate in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, stressing the wretched end of traitors and reinforcing Guan Yu's image of loyalty and righteousness (novel only)^[5].