Liu Zan

Historical Record

Liu Zan, whose dates of birth and death are unknown, was a general of the state of Wu during the Three Kingdoms period. In the history of Wu, he took part in an important military operation. According to the *Records of the Three Kingdoms*, after the lord of Wu, Sun Quan, moved the capital to Jianye in the first year of Huanglong, the Dongxing dike was built in the second year of Huanglong (230 CE) to hold back the lake waters, but because of failure in the campaign against Huainan the dike was abandoned and left unrepaired. Not until the tenth month of the first year of Jianxing (252 CE) did the Grand General Zhuge Ke again muster troops at Dongxing and rebuild the great dike, erecting a city at each end of the dike along the contour of the mountains, leaving a thousand men to garrison each, with Quan Duan and Liu Lue in charge of the defense, after which Zhuge Ke led his main force back ^c:6006.

The state of Wei, ashamed that the Wu army had intruded into its territory, then sent its great generals Hu Zun, Zhuge Dan, and others to lead a host of seventy thousand, intending to besiege the two cities and destroy the great dike. Facing the Wei army's incursion, Zhuge Ke swiftly mustered a host of forty thousand and marched day and night to the relief of Dongxing. On the Wei side, Hu Zun and the other generals ordered their forces to set up pontoon bridges to cross the river, drew up in array atop the dike, and divided their forces to attack the two cities. However, because the cities stood high and steep, the Wei army was unable to take them quickly ^c:6006.

At this critical juncture, Zhuge Ke sent the generals Liu Zan, Lü Ju, Tang Zi, and Ding Feng as the vanguard to meet the enemy. At the time it was bitter cold and snowing, and the Wei generals were drinking and making merry. Seeing that Liu Zan and the others' troops were few in number, and that the soldiers had cast off their armor, carried no long spears or halberds, wore only helmets, and bore swords and shields, climbing up bare, they laughed aloud and did not at once draw up in readiness. Yet once the Wu soldiers had climbed the dike, they immediately raised a clamor and hacked about with their swords. Caught off guard, the Wei army panicked and routed, scrambling to cross the pontoon bridges. The bridges, unable to bear the weight, broke, and many Wei soldiers threw themselves into the water and trampled one another, causing grievous casualties. The Grand Administrator of Le'an, Huan Jia, and others also perished in this battle, the dead numbering tens of thousands. In addition, Han Zong, who had earlier defected to Wei and served as a vanguard commander overseeing the Wei army, was also beheaded. In this battle the Wu army captured several thousand carts, horses, oxen, donkeys, and mules, along with supplies and equipment heaped like mountains, and finally returned in triumph. For this battle Zhuge Ke was advanced in rank to Marquis of Yangdu, with the additional titles of Governor of Jing and Yang Provinces and Commander of All Military Affairs Within and Without, and was granted a hundred catties of gold, two hundred warhorses, and ten thousand bolts each of silk. As a vanguard general, Liu Zan played an important role in this Battle of Dongxing ^c:6006.

In the Novel

In the literary work *Romance of the Three Kingdoms*, no independent chapter or detailed depiction of Liu Zan can be found at present. His deeds are not given prominent shape in the novel, nor is there specific dialogue or plot to display his personal image. Therefore, the literary shaping of Liu Zan is largely absent from the novel; compared with the historical materials, the novel gives him no greater dramatic or personal color. Liu Zan has almost no presence in the novel, forming a sharp contrast with his identity in the histories as a vanguard general in the Battle of Dongxing. The novel's depiction of the Battle of Dongxing may focus on major figures such as Zhuge Ke, while passing over generals like Liu Zan in a single stroke, or not mentioning them at all ^c:6006.

Key Relationships

* Eastern Wu: Liu Zan was a general of the Eastern Wu regime, serving the state of Wu. As a vanguard general in the Battle of Dongxing, he helped Wu win an important military victory, and was a part of Eastern Wu's military strength ^c:6006.
* Zhuge Ke: In the Battle of Dongxing, Liu Zan was a general under Zhuge Ke, obeying Zhuge Ke's dispatch and jointly taking part in the defense against and counterattack on the Wei army. Zhuge Ke was the supreme commander of this battle, and Liu Zan, as vanguard, carried out Zhuge Ke's military deployment ^c:6006.
* Lü Ju, Tang Zi, Ding Feng: In the Battle of Dongxing, Liu Zan was sent by Zhuge Ke as the vanguard together with these generals to confront the Wei army. They were comrades fighting shoulder to shoulder, jointly accomplishing the surprise assault on the Wei army ^c:6006.

Signature Scenes

* Surprise Assault on the Wei Army in the Battle of Dongxing: This is Liu Zan's most signature scene. In the Battle of Dongxing in the first year of Jianxing (252 CE), facing the besieging host of seventy thousand under Hu Zun, Zhuge Dan, and others, Zhuge Ke sent Liu Zan, Lü Ju, Tang Zi, and Ding Feng as the vanguard. At the time it was cold and snowing, and the Wei generals were drinking; seeing that Liu Zan and the others' troops were few and that the soldiers had cast off their armor, carried no long spears, wore only helmets, and bore swords and shields, climbing up bare, they mocked them greatly and did not at once prepare for battle. Yet once the Wu soldiers had climbed the dike, they immediately raised a clamor and hacked about with their swords, throwing the Wei army into panicked rout as they scrambled to cross the bridges, until the pontoon bridges broke and the Wei army suffered grievous casualties. In this battle the Wu army won a great victory, and Liu Zan played a key role in the surprise assault ^c:6006. This scene fully displays the valor and the surprise tactics of Liu Zan and his troops. Although the histories give him but a single line of dialogue, his performance in the Battle of Dongxing is enough to make him a general not to be overlooked in the history of Wu.