Zhuge Rong 諸葛融

Zhuge Rong's father Zhuge Jin was a man of Yangdu in Langya; when Sun Quan assumed the imperial title, he became General-in-Chief and Left Protector-General and concurrently Governor of Yu Province. Zhuge Jin's son Zhuge Ke enjoyed great renown in his day and Sun Quan valued him highly, but Zhuge Jin always worried about him, saying he was not a son who would preserve the family. Zhuge Jin died in the 4th year of Chiwu (241) at the age of sixty-eight. Records, Wu 7 §51 · 63

Since Zhuge Ke had already been enfeoffed as a marquis in his own right, his younger brother Zhuge Rong inherited the title. Zhuge Rong took over the command of the troops and was stationed at Gong'an, and the officers and soldiers of his retinue were closely attached to him. According to the biography of Zhu Ran, Zhuge Jin's son Zhuge Rong and Bu Zhi's son Bu Xie each succeeded to their fathers' posts, but Sun Quan specially made Zhu Ran Grand Commander over them all. Records, Wu 7 §65Records, Wu 11 §22

When there was no trouble beyond the borders, Zhuge Rong hunted and practiced martial arts in autumn and winter, and in spring and summer received guests and held grand gatherings. Among officers and soldiers on leave there were some who came to him without regard for a journey of a thousand li. At each gathering he had every guest state his own talents, then, weighing their skills, matched opponents and had them compete by category in weiqi and chupu, pitch-pot and archery, and pellet-bows. As fine fruit and clear wine kept coming, Zhuge Rong went round watching everything and did not tire all day. Records, Wu 7 §65

Zhuge Rong's father and elder brother were plain and simple and wore no ornament even in the army, but Zhuge Rong alone was extravagant and showy, dressed in brocade, wool and embroidered clothes. Records, Wu 7 §66

According to the biography of Shi Ji, in the year after Zhu Ran's death, Wang Chang, General Who Conquers the South for Wei, attacked the city of Jiangling but could not take it and withdrew. Shi Ji wrote to Zhuge Rong, General Who Displays Might, proposing that he would break the enemy in front and Zhuge Rong should follow up on the momentum from behind, and Zhuge Rong agreed. Shi Ji caught up with Wang Chang at Jinan, thirty li from the city, and at first fought and won, but because Zhuge Rong did not advance he was later worsted. Records, Wu 11 §24 · 26–28

Sun Quan praised Shi Ji highly and rebuked Zhuge Rong in great anger, but because Zhuge Rong's elder brother, the General-in-Chief Zhuge Ke, was eminent and powerful, Zhuge Rong escaped dismissal. Shi Ji had been on bad terms with Zhuge Ke and Zhuge Rong from the beginning, and this affair deepened the rift. The biography of Shi Ji already calls him General Who Displays Might at this time, but the biography of Zhuge Jin records that he was transferred to General Who Displays Might after Sun Quan's death. Records, Wu 11 §27–28Records, Wu 7 §66

When Sun Quan died, Zhuge Ke sent a letter to his younger brother Zhuge Rong, Area Commander of Gong'an. He wrote that he had received the testamentary charge to assist the young sovereign but was anxious that his talents fell short, and that since his brother's post was interlocked with the enemy like a dog's teeth, he should put his military equipment in order, encourage his officers and men, keep watch more closely than usual, disregard his own life to repay the court and not disgrace their forebears. Records, Wu 19 §23–25

In the spring of the 2nd year of Jianxing (253), as Zhuge Ke headed for Xincheng, he asked Shi Ji to join forces with him, but then left him at Banzhou and had Zhuge Rong take over his duties as well. The biography of Zhuge Jin records that when Zhuge Ke campaigned against Huainan he gave Zhuge Rong the tally and had him lead troops into the Mian River to attack the western forces. Records, Wu 11 §28–29Records, Wu 7 §66

When Zhuge Ke was executed that winter, the Wunan Commander Shi Kuan was sent to the generals Shi Ji, Sun Yi (孫壹), Quan Xi and others to seize Zhuge Rong. Hearing that troops had suddenly come, Zhuge Rong was frightened and wavered, unable to decide, and when the troops arrived and surrounded the city he took poison and died. His three sons were all executed. The biography of Sun Huan (孫奐) also records that when Sun Jun killed Zhuge Ke, Sun Yi attacked Zhuge Rong, Area Commander of Gong'an, together with Quan Xi and Shi Ji, and Zhuge Rong killed himself. Records, Wu 11 §29Records, Wu 7 §66Records, Wu 6 §21

In the assessment of Records of Wu 7, Chen Shou said that Zhuge Jin and Bu Zhi were valued in their day for their virtue and magnanimity, propriety and restraint, but he did not mention Zhuge Rong. In the assessment of Records of Wu 19 he said that had Zhuge Ke himself practiced what he wrote in his letters to Lu Xun and to his younger brother Zhuge Rong, he would have met with neither fault nor disaster. Records, Wu 7 §100Records, Wu 19 §108