Han Heng 韓珩
| Occupation | RNOfficial · Attendant Officer with Separate Carriage | Faction | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appears | RN | Biography in | |
| Born | Native place | Dai Commandery | |
| Existence | Historical | Mentions | R4 |
Profile
Han Heng served the Yuan family as Attendant Officer with Separate Carriage. He has no biography of his own in the Records; he appears at the end of the record of Yuan Shao in the Biographies of Dong, the Two Yuans and Liu in Records of Wei 6. Records, Wei 6 §68
In the 10th year of Jian'an (205), when Yuan Xi's generals Jiao Chu and Zhang Nan rebelled and attacked Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang, and Jiao Chu drove the officials of the commanderies to swear an oath turning against the Yuan family, he alone cited the kindness he had received from Lord Yuan and his sons and said that he could not serve the Cao family. Jiao Chu let him keep to his resolve, and later Taizu esteemed his integrity and summoned him several times, but he did not come and ended his life at home. Records, Wei 1 §88Records, Wei 6 §68–70
Chen Shou's main text does not record his courtesy name or his home district, and his name does not appear in the assessment in Records of Wei 6 either. In the Romance he appears in Chapter 33 as Attendant Officer with Separate Carriage under Wuhuanchu, Inspector of You Province, and appears only in this 1 of its 120 chapters; there is no chapter with his name in its title. He flings his sword to the ground and cries out that he will not surrender to Cao Cao. Records, Wei 6 §68–70 · 96–97Romance, Ch. 33 §23–24
In the Records
According to the Annals of Emperor Wu in Records of Wei 1, in the 1st month of spring in the 10th year of Jian'an (205) Taizu defeated Yuan Tan, beheaded him and pacified Ji Province. In that month Yuan Xi's senior generals Jiao Chu, Zhang Nan and others rebelled and attacked Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang, who fled to the Wuhuan of the Three Commanderies, and Jiao Chu and the others surrendered with their counties and were enfeoffed as full marquises. Records, Wei 1 §88
The record of Yuan Shao in Records of Wei 6 says that Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang were attacked by their generals Jiao Chu and Zhang Nan and fled to the Wuhuan of Liaoxi. Jiao Chu styled himself Inspector of You Province and drove the Administrators of the commanderies and the Prefects and Chiefs of the counties to turn against the Yuan family and toward the Cao family. He drew up tens of thousands of troops, slaughtered a white horse to swear an oath and declared that anyone who disobeyed would be beheaded; no one dared speak, and each in turn smeared the blood on his lips. Records, Wei 6 §68
When it came to the turn of the Attendant Officer with Separate Carriage Han Heng, he said that he had received great kindness from Lord Yuan and his sons, and that now that they had been broken and destroyed he had lacked the wisdom to save them and the courage to die, so he had already fallen short in righteousness; to face north and serve the Cao family was something he could not do. The whole assembly blanched on Han Heng's account. Jiao Chu said that one who undertakes a great enterprise ought to uphold great righteousness and that whether the enterprise succeeded did not depend on one man, and that Han Heng should be allowed to keep to his resolve, as an encouragement to those who serve their lord. Records, Wei 6 §68–69
In the 12th year of Jian'an (207), when Taizu reached Liaoxi and attacked the Wuhuan, Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi fought against him together with the Wuhuan but were defeated and fled to Liaodong, where Gongsun Kang lured them in, beheaded them and sent their heads. Taizu esteemed Han Heng's integrity and summoned him several times, but Han Heng did not come and ended his life at home. Chen Shou's main text does not record Han Heng's courtesy name, his home district or the year of his death. Records, Wei 6 §70
In his assessment in Records of Wei 6, Chen Shou said that Yuan Shao and Liu Biao were outwardly generous but inwardly jealous, fond of planning but unable to decide, and that they set aside the rightful heir and raised a younger son, so that the overthrow of their successors was no mere misfortune. The assessment does not discuss Han Heng separately. Records, Wei 6 §96
In the Romance
In Chapter 33 of the Romance, after beheading Yuan Tan, Cao Cao follows Guo Jia's advice and has Jiao Chu, Zhang Nan and other generals who had surrendered from the Yuan side each lead the troops of his own command and attack You Province by three routes. Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi, knowing that Cao Cao's army will soon arrive and judging that they cannot withstand it, abandon the city, flee through the night to Liaoxi and take refuge with the Wuhuan. Romance, Ch. 33 §22–23
Wuhuanchu, Inspector of You Province, gathers the officials of You Province to drink blood and swear an oath, and they deliberate on turning against the Yuan family and going over to Cao Cao. Wuhuanchu first declares that Chancellor Cao is the hero of the age, that he will now go and surrender, and that anyone who does not obey will be beheaded; they drink the blood in turn until it comes to the Attendant Officer with Separate Carriage Han Heng. Romance, Ch. 33 §23
Han Heng flings his sword to the ground and cries out that he has received great kindness from Lord Yuan and his sons, and that now that his lord has been defeated and destroyed he has lacked the wisdom to save him and the courage to die with him, so he has already fallen short in righteousness; if he is told to face north and surrender to Cao Cao, he will not do it. Everyone blanches, but Wuhuanchu says that one who undertakes a great enterprise must uphold great righteousness and that whether it succeeds does not depend on one man, tells them to let Han Heng do as he pleases, and has him pushed out. Romance, Ch. 33 §24
Wuhuanchu leaves the city to welcome the three columns of troops and comes straight to Cao Cao to surrender, and Cao Cao, greatly pleased, makes him General Who Guards the North. The Romance does not show what became of Han Heng afterward. Romance, Ch. 33 §25
Where the Romance differs
Who administered the oath: In Chapter 33 of the Romance, Wuhuanchu, Inspector of You Province, gathers the officials of You Province and has them swear the oath. In the Records, Yuan Xi's senior general Jiao Chu styled himself Inspector of You Province and drove the Administrators of the commanderies and the Prefects and Chiefs of the counties to swear it. Romance, Ch. 33 §23Records, Wei 6 §68Records, Wei 1 §88
Jiao Chu and Zhang Nan: In Chapter 33 of the Romance, Jiao Chu and Zhang Nan are Yuan generals who have already surrendered to Cao Cao, and on Guo Jia's advice they come on Cao Cao's orders to attack You Province. In the Records, Yuan Xi's senior generals Jiao Chu, Zhang Nan and others rebelled and attacked Yuan Xi and Yuan Shang, and Jiao Chu and the others surrendered with their counties and were enfeoffed as full marquises. Romance, Ch. 33 §22Records, Wei 1 §88Records, Wei 6 §68
Manner of refusal: In Chapter 33 of the Romance, Han Heng flings his sword to the ground and cries out. In the Records, Han Heng's words are almost the same as in the Romance, but nothing is said of his flinging down a sword. Romance, Ch. 33 §24Records, Wei 6 §68
End of the oath-taking: In Chapter 33 of the Romance, Wuhuanchu tells them to let Han Heng do as he pleases and has him pushed out. In the Records, Jiao Chu said that Han Heng should be allowed to keep to his resolve, as an encouragement to those who serve their lord. Romance, Ch. 33 §24Records, Wei 6 §69
Afterward: In the Romance, Han Heng does not appear after Chapter 33. The Records, after recording that Yuan Shang and Yuan Xi were beheaded by Gongsun Kang in the 12th year of Jian'an (207), says that Taizu esteemed Han Heng's integrity and summoned him several times but he did not come, and that Han Heng ended his life at home. Romance, Ch. 33 §25Records, Wei 6 §70
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.
- LEA3533−2
- STR3133+2
- INT4240−2
- POL4542−3
- CHA5245−7
- VIR8888±0
- ADP4540−5
- SCH4240−2
- DIP4848±0
- DIS4038−2
Abilities shaped by the Romance — where it differs from the Records Differences of 10 or more
No ability differs by 10 or more — the Romance portrays this person much as the Records do.
10 similar abilities — show evidence
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate Carriage under the Yuan familyWei 6 §68
NNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate CarriageCh. 33 §23
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate Carriage under the Yuan familyWei 6 §68
NNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate CarriageCh. 33 §23
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate Carriage under the Yuan familyWei 6 §68
NNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate CarriageCh. 33 §23
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate Carriage under the Yuan familyWei 6 §68
NNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate CarriageCh. 33 §23
RThe whole assembly blanched, Jiao Chu let him keep to his resolve, and Taizu summoned him several timesWei 6 §69Wei 6 §70
NNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate CarriageCh. 33 §23
RCited the Yuan family's kindness to refuse the oath of betrayal, and Taizu esteemed his integrityWei 6 §68Wei 6 §70
NFlung down his sword and cited Lord Yuan's kindness to refuse surrendering to Cao CaoCh. 33 §23Ch. 33 §24
RDid not come though Taizu summoned him several times, and ended his life at homeWei 6 §70
NNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate CarriageCh. 33 §23
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate Carriage under the Yuan familyWei 6 §68
NNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate CarriageCh. 33 §23
RUnder threat of arms, declared his refusal on grounds of righteousnessWei 6 §68
NCried out before the assembly, refusing on grounds of righteousnessCh. 33 §24
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate Carriage under the Yuan familyWei 6 §68
NNo direct record — estimated from his post as Attendant Officer with Separate CarriageCh. 33 §23
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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