RNo direct record — estimated from the record that, as Administrator of Pingyuan, he had Guan Lu divine for himWei 29 §79
NAfter testing Guan Lu he was greatly astonished and treated him as an honored guestCh. 69 §11
Liu Bin 劉邠
| Occupation | ROfficial · Administrator of Pingyuan | Faction | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appears | RN | Biography in | |
| Existence | Historical | Mentions | R3 |
Profile
Liu Bin served as Administrator of Pingyuan. He has no biography of his own in the Records; in Chen Shou's main text he appears once, in the account of Guan Lu in the Biographies of Technicians (Records of Wei 29). He placed a seal pouch and mountain fowl feathers inside a vessel and had Guan Lu divine with milfoil stalks, and he asked the reason for the strange happenings that kept occurring in the commandery's official residence. His courtesy name, origins, other deeds and death are not in Chen Shou's main text. Records, Wei 29 §79
In the Romance he appears in Chapter 69 as the Administrator of the commandery in the story of Guan Lu that Xu Zhi, Assistant to the Grand Astrologer, tells Cao Cao, and he appears in 1 of its 120 chapters; no chapter has his name in its title. Not believing in Guan Lu's divination, he tested him by hiding a seal pouch and pheasant feathers, and when Guan Lu guessed them correctly he was greatly astonished and treated him as an honored guest. Romance, Ch. 69 §2–3 · 10–11
In the Records
The account of Guan Lu records that Liu Bin, Administrator of Pingyuan, placed a seal pouch and mountain fowl feathers inside a vessel and had Guan Lu divine with milfoil stalks. Saying that it was square inside and round outside, that its five colors formed a pattern, that it held a treasure and kept faith, and that when it came out it left an emblem, Guan Lu declared the first to be a seal pouch. Saying further that on a lofty mountain there was a bird with a red body whose feathers and wings were black and yellow and which never missed the dawn when it crowed, he declared the second to be mountain fowl feathers. Records, Wei 29 §79
Liu Bin then asked why strange happenings kept occurring one after another in the commandery's official residence and frightened people. Guan Lu answered that it was perhaps because in the turmoil at the end of the Han soldiers and horses had run riot and the corpses and flowing blood of the troops had defiled the hills and mountains, so that many strange shapes appeared at dusk. He then said that since the Administrator's virtue was lofty and profound and Heaven itself aided him, he should peacefully enjoy every blessing and add luster to the favor bestowed on him. Records, Wei 29 §79
This one passage is the only place where Liu Bin appears in Chen Shou's main text, and it does not say when the event took place. His courtesy name, origins, official career and death are not in Chen Shou's main text. The assessment of Records of Wei 29 discusses only the arts of five men, from Hua Tuo's medicine to Guan Lu's divination, and does not deal with Liu Bin. Records, Wei 29 §55–84 · 86
In the Romance
In Chapter 69 of the Romance, Cao Cao falls ill from shock after seeing corpses all rise up in a black wind, and Xu Zhi, Assistant to the Grand Astrologer, recommends the divine diviner Guan Lu and recounts his deeds. Liu Bin appears in that story. An old woman of the district lost her ox, and when she went where Guan Lu's divination pointed, she found seven men behind a thatched hut boiling and eating the ox; when she reported this to Liu Bin, Administrator of the commandery, he arrested the seven men and punished them, then asked the old woman how she had known. Romance, Ch. 69 §1–3 · 10
The old woman replied that it was Guan Lu's divine divination, but Liu Bin did not believe her; he invited Guan Lu to his office, hid a seal pouch and pheasant feathers in a box, and had him divine. When Guan Lu composed four-line verses and correctly named the first as the seal pouch and the second as the pheasant feathers, Liu Bin was greatly astonished and at last treated him as an honored guest. In the Romance Liu Bin does not appear again after this passage. Romance, Ch. 69 §10–11
Where the Romance differs
How the divination came about: In Chapter 69 of the Romance, when an old woman who had lost her ox reports that she found the thieves through Guan Lu's divination, Liu Bin does not believe it and summons Guan Lu to test him. Chen Shou's main text records only that Liu Bin placed objects inside a vessel and had him divine with milfoil stalks; the story of the old woman and the ox is not in the account of Guan Lu. Romance, Ch. 69 §10Records, Wei 29 §55–84
Strange happenings in the residence: In Chen Shou's main text, after the divination Liu Bin asks the reason for the strange happenings that keep occurring in the commandery's official residence, and Guan Lu answers that they are caused by the corpses and blood of the turmoil at the end of the Han. Chapter 69 of the Romance lacks this exchange and ends with Liu Bin, astonished, treating Guan Lu as an honored guest. Records, Wei 29 §79Romance, Ch. 69 §11
Office: Chapter 69 of the Romance calls him only 'the Administrator of the commandery'. Chen Shou's main text identifies him as Administrator of Pingyuan. Romance, Ch. 69 §10Records, Wei 29 §79
Manner of telling: In the Romance, Liu Bin's episode is one part of the story Xu Zhi tells Cao Cao when recommending Guan Lu. In Chen Shou's main text, the account of Guan Lu narrates the episode directly. Romance, Ch. 69 §3 · 17Records, Wei 29 §79
Written by 3KDEX (not yet reviewed) — The tags at the end of each paragraph link to the exact passage in the Records volume or Romance chapter it is based on.
Abilities
The Records score (Chen Shou’s Records of the Three Kingdoms, main text) is the baseline. Each ability compares how the Romance redrew the same person, and the evidence from both sources explains the difference.
Records total406 / 1000Rank 579 of 996 · Top 59%Romance total421 / 1000Rank 372 of 1,113 · Top 34%
Romance adaptation index+15Romance total − Records total
- LEA3131±0
- STR3131±0
- INT4545±0
- POL4855+7
- CHA4242±0
- VIR4545±0
- ADP4040±0
- SCH4240−2
- DIP4040±0
- DIS4252+10
Abilities shaped by the Romance — where it differs from the Records Differences of 10 or more
9 similar abilities — show evidence
RNo direct record — estimated from the record that, as Administrator of Pingyuan, he had Guan Lu divine for himWei 29 §79
NNo direct record — estimated from the record that he was administrator of his home commanderyCh. 69 §10
RNo direct record — estimated from the record that, as Administrator of Pingyuan, he had Guan Lu divine for himWei 29 §79
NNo direct record — estimated from the record that he was administrator of his home commanderyCh. 69 §10
RNo direct record — estimated from the record that, as Administrator of Pingyuan, he had Guan Lu divine for himWei 29 §79
NNo direct record — estimated from the record that he was administrator of his home commanderyCh. 69 §10
RNo direct record — estimated from the record that, as Administrator of Pingyuan, he had Guan Lu divine for himWei 29 §79
NArrested and punished the seven men who stole an ox, on an old woman's reportCh. 69 §10
RNo direct record — estimated from the record that, as Administrator of Pingyuan, he had Guan Lu divine for himWei 29 §79
NNo direct record — estimated from the record that he was administrator of his home commanderyCh. 69 §10
RNo direct record — estimated from the record that, as Administrator of Pingyuan, he had Guan Lu divine for himWei 29 §79
NNo direct record — estimated from the record that he was administrator of his home commanderyCh. 69 §10
RNo direct record — estimated from the record that, as Administrator of Pingyuan, he had Guan Lu divine for himWei 29 §79
NNo direct record — estimated from the record that he was administrator of his home commanderyCh. 69 §10
RNo direct record — estimated from the record that, as Administrator of Pingyuan, he had Guan Lu divine for himWei 29 §79
NNo direct record — estimated from the record that he was administrator of his home commanderyCh. 69 §10
RNo direct record — estimated from the record that, as Administrator of Pingyuan, he had Guan Lu divine for himWei 29 §79
NNo direct record — estimated from the record that he was administrator of his home commanderyCh. 69 §10
Records Romance Unverified No direct record; scored from their actions (evidence grade C)
3KDEX scoring — the Records use the main text of Chen Shou’s Records of the Three Kingdoms; the Romance uses the 120-chapter Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Click a source tag to open that passage in the reader.
Romance chapters (1)
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