Battle
Battle of Hulao Pass 虎牢關之戰
About this event
The Battle of Hulao Pass is the fight in Chapters 5 and 6 of the Romance in which eight contingents of lords fought Lü Bu before Hulao Pass, held by Dong Zhuo himself with 150,000 men; it is one episode of the Campaign against Dong Zhuo. Lü Bu swept through the lords' troops, running Fang Yue through among others, but while pursuing Gongsun Zan he was surrounded by the three men Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei and fled up onto the pass. On Li Ru's advice Dong Zhuo returned to Luoyang and moved the capital to Chang'an, and after Dong Zhuo left, the three stormed into Hulao Pass. Romance, Ch. 5 §41–44 · 48–50 · 54Romance, Ch. 6 §3–5 · 12
Chen Shou's text has no fight at Hulao Pass. The biography of Dong Zhuo records that Wang Kuang, Administrator of Henei, stationed at Heyangjin, was crushed by Dong Zhuo's surprise attack, and that Dong Zhuo, frightened when the heroes east of the mountains rose all at once, moved the Son of Heaven to Chang'an in the 2nd month of the 1st year of Chuping (190) and burned the palaces of Luoyang. The Chapter 5 title of the Romance calls the three men's fight "Three Heroes Fight Lü Bu" (sanying zhan Lü Bu). Records, Wei 6 §11Romance, Ch. 5 §48–50
In the Romance
In Chapter 5 of the Romance, Dong Zhuo, having lost Hua Xiong, wipes out the household of Yuan Wei, Yuan Shao's uncle, divides his 200,000 into two routes and has Li Jue and Guo Si guard Sishui Pass with 50,000, while he himself, with 150,000, holds Hulao Pass, fifty li from Luoyang, together with Li Ru, Lü Bu, Fan Chou and Zhang Ji. Lü Bu sets up a great camp before the pass with 30,000. On Cao Cao's advice, Yuan Shao sends eight contingents of lords—Wang Kuang, Qiao Mao, Bao Xin, Yuan Yi, Kong Rong, Zhang Yang, Tao Qian and Gongsun Zan—to Hulao Pass. Romance, Ch. 5 §40–42
Before Wang Kuang, Administrator of Henei, who arrives first, Lü Bu comes out wearing a purple-gold cap and riding Red Hare, leading three thousand armored cavalry; he runs through Fang Yue, a famous general of Henei, in fewer than five bouts and scatters Wang Kuang's troops. The troops of Qiao Mao and Yuan Yi come to rescue Wang Kuang, and the three contingents of lords fall back thirty li and make camp. Lü Bu then knocks one of Zhang Yang's lieutenants from his horse with a single thrust of his halberd and cuts off the wrist of Kong Rong's lieutenant Wu Anguo, and Cao Cao proposes gathering the eighteen contingents of lords to plan together how to capture Lü Bu. Romance, Ch. 5 §43–47
When Lü Bu challenges them again, Gongsun Zan meets him and is chased, and Zhang Fei, Guan Yu and Liu Bei step in one after another and surround Lü Bu. Lü Bu, hard put to hold them off, rides Red Hare up onto the pass in flight, and the three, who chase him to the foot of the pass, are turned back at the start of Chapter 6 by a hail of arrows and stones. Romance, Ch. 5 §48–55Romance, Ch. 6 §1
Sun Jian, receiving Yuan Shao's call to arms, goes to Yuan Shu and takes him to task for not sending provisions, and rebukes and rejects the marriage proposal brought by Li Jue on Dong Zhuo's behalf. When Li Ru says that Lü Bu has been defeated and the soldiers have no will to fight, Dong Zhuo, following the children's rhyme "A Han in the west, a Han in the east," decides to move the capital to Chang'an and returns overnight to Luoyang, taking Lü Bu with him. When Dong Zhuo abandons Luoyang and leaves, Zhao Cen surrenders Sishui Pass, and Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei storm into Hulao Pass. Romance, Ch. 6 §1–5 · 12
Where the Romance differs
Wang Kuang's defeat: In Chapter 5 of the Romance, Wang Kuang loses Fang Yue to Lü Bu before Hulao Pass and is badly beaten and scattered. In the biography of Dong Zhuo in the Records, when Wang Kuang, Administrator of Henei, stationed troops from Taishan at Heyangjin intending to move against Dong Zhuo, Dong Zhuo sent a feint force as if to cross at Pingyin and secretly sent elite troops north across at Xiaoping to strike him from behind, crushing him north of the ford and killing nearly all his men. Romance, Ch. 5 §43–44Records, Wei 6 §11
Why Dong Zhuo abandoned Luoyang: In Chapter 6 of the Romance, after Lü Bu is defeated by the three, Li Ru interprets the children's rhyme and urges moving the capital to Chang'an. The biography of Dong Zhuo in the Records says that Dong Zhuo, frightened when the heroes east of the mountains rose all at once, moved the Son of Heaven to Chang'an in the 2nd month of the 1st year of Chuping, and the Annals of Emperor Wu record that Dong Zhuo, hearing that troops had risen, moved the capital and himself stayed behind in garrison at Luoyang. Romance, Ch. 6 §3–5Records, Wei 6 §11Records, Wei 1 §8
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.
Belligerents
| Item | A | B |
|---|---|---|
| Factions | Dong Zhuo faction | |
| Commanders | Wang Kuang, Qiao Mao, Bao Xin, Yuan Yi, Zhang Yang, Tao Qian, Gongsun Zan, Kong Rong, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei | Dong Zhuo, Lü Bu, Li Ru, Fan Chou, Zhang Ji(張濟) |
| Strength | 卓自將十五萬，同李儒、呂布、樊稠、張濟等守虎牢關 |
Factions, commanders, strength and casualties are checked against the source texts (3KDEX). Strength and casualties show only figures stated in the sources. Source: Ch. 6 §12