RNo direct record — estimated from his role as General Who Conquers the WestWei 6 §27
NAnswered the Son of Heaven's summons and came to the rescueCh. 13 §48
Hu Cai 胡才
| Occupation | RGeneral · General Who Conquers the West NGeneral | Faction | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appears | RN | Biography in | |
| Cause of death | RKilled NKilled in battle Unverified | ||
| Existence | Historical | Mentions | R3 |
Profile
Hu Cai was a former leader of the White Wave of Hedong. He has no biography of his own in the Records and appears three times in the account of Li Jue and Guo Si in the Biographies of Dong Zhuo, the Two Yuans and Liu Biao in Records of Wei 6. When Li Jue and Guo Si caught up with the Son of Heaven at Caoyang in Hongnong, he joined forces with Han Xian, Li Le and others at Yang Feng's summons and fought them, and when the Son of Heaven made Anyi his capital he became General Who Conquers the West and held the government together with Yang Feng and Dong Cheng. Later he stayed in Hedong with Li Le and was killed by a family that bore a grudge against him. Records, Wei 6 §26–27 · 31
Chen Shou's main text does not give his courtesy name or origin, nor does it assess him. In the Romance he appears in Chapter 13 as one of the three former White Wave leaders whom Dong Cheng and Yang Feng hastily summon from Hedong. He appears only in this one of its 120 chapters and no chapter has his name in its title; in the same chapter, while following the imperial carriage pursued by Li Jue and Guo Si, he is killed by troops in the melee. Romance, Ch. 13 §48 · 50
In the Records
The account of Li Jue and Guo Si in Records of Wei 6 records that while the two were fighting each other in Chang'an, Li Jue's general Yang Feng turned against Li Jue, and when the Son of Heaven, who had got away through the mediation of Zhang Ji (張濟), fled to Yang Feng's camp, Yang Feng and the general Dong Cheng escorted the Son of Heaven back to Luoyang. Records, Wei 6 §24–25
Li Jue and Guo Si, regretting that they had let the Son of Heaven go, made peace with each other again and caught up with him at Caoyang in Hongnong. Yang Feng hastily summoned Han Xian, Hu Cai, Li Le and others, former White Wave leaders of Hedong, joined forces with them and fought a great battle with Li Jue and Guo Si. When Yang Feng's troops were defeated, Li Jue and the others killed ministers and officials, carried off palace women and entered Hongnong, while the Son of Heaven fled to Shan County, crossed the Yellow River northward and reached Dayang. Records, Wei 6 §26
Yang Feng, Han Xian and the others then made the Son of Heaven establish his capital at Anyi. Han Xian became General Who Conquers the East, Hu Cai General Who Conquers the West and Li Le General Who Conquers the North, and they held the government together with Yang Feng and Dong Cheng. Han Rong was sent to Hongnong to make peace with Li Jue and Guo Si, and they returned the palace women, ministers and officials they had carried off. Records, Wei 6 §27
The generals could not command one another, superiors and inferiors fell into disorder, and the provisions ran out. Yang Feng, Han Xian and Dong Cheng escorted the Son of Heaven back to Luoyang, while Hu Cai and Li Le stayed in Hedong. Hu Cai was killed by a family that bore a grudge against him, and Li Le died of illness. Records, Wei 6 §28 · 31
In Chen Shou's main text these three passages are the only places where Hu Cai appears. His courtesy name, his origin and the year of his death are not recorded, and there is no assessment of him. Records, Wei 6 §26–27 · 31
In the Romance
In Chapter 13 of the Romance, when Yang Feng and Dong Cheng rescue the imperial carriage and head for Hongnong, Li Jue and Guo Si combine their troops and pursue them. In the battle at Dongjian, Yang Feng and Dong Cheng abandon all the officials and palace women, the documents and records, barely getting the carriages of the emperor and empress out, and flee to the north of Shan County. While on the one hand negotiating peace with Li Jue and Guo Si, the two on the other hand secretly send an imperial decree to Hedong, urgently summoning the troops of the three former White Wave leaders Han Xian, Li Le and Hu Cai to come to the rescue. Hearing that the Son of Heaven will pardon their crimes and grant them office, the troops of the three all come and, meet with Dong Cheng to strike at Hongnong again together. Romance, Ch. 13 §45–48
But at Weiyang, Li Le's troops scramble to pick up the clothes and goods that Guo Si has had thrown on the road, lose their formation and are badly defeated, and Yang Feng and Dong Cheng escort the imperial carriage in flight to the north. Li Le asks the Son of Heaven to mount a horse and go on ahead, but the emperor says he cannot abandon the officials, and as everyone follows wailing, Hu Cai is killed by troops in the melee. The emperor abandons his carriage, reaches the bank of the Yellow River on foot, crosses in a small boat and reaches Dayang, and the next day he appoints Li Le General Who Conquers the North and Han Xian General Who Conquers the East. Romance, Ch. 13 §49–50 · 52–53
Where the Romance differs
How he was summoned: In Chapter 13 of the Romance, Dong Cheng and Yang Feng secretly send an imperial decree to Hedong to summon the troops of the three, who come to strike at Hongnong again together. In the Records, when Li Jue and Guo Si caught up with the Son of Heaven at Caoyang, Yang Feng hastily summoned Han Xian, Hu Cai, Li Le and others, who joined forces with him and fought, but Yang Feng's troops were defeated. Romance, Ch. 13 §48Records, Wei 6 §26
His office: Chapter 13 of the Romance says only that after crossing the Yellow River Li Le is appointed General Who Conquers the North and Han Xian General Who Conquers the East, and does not give Hu Cai's office. In the Records, after the Son of Heaven made Anyi his capital, Hu Cai became General Who Conquers the West and held the government together with Yang Feng and Dong Cheng. Romance, Ch. 13 §53Records, Wei 6 §27
Death: In Chapter 13 of the Romance, before the crossing of the Yellow River, Hu Cai is killed by troops in the melee while following the imperial carriage pursued by Li Jue and Guo Si. In the Records, when the Son of Heaven returned to Luoyang, he stayed in Hedong with Li Le and was killed by a family that bore a grudge against him. Romance, Ch. 13 §50Records, Wei 6 §28 · 31
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 total370 / 1000Rank 788 of 996 · Top 80%Romance total369 / 1000Rank 743 of 1,113 · Top 67%
Romance adaptation index−1Romance total − Records total
- LEA4845−3
- STR4240−2
- INT3533−2
- POL3531−4
- CHA4038−2
- VIR3550+15
- ADP3835−3
- SCH3131±0
- DIP3333±0
- DIS3333±0
Abilities shaped by the Romance — where it differs from the Records Differences of 10 or more
9 similar abilities — show evidence
RAs a former White Wave leader, fought a great battle with Li Jue and Guo Si but was defeatedWei 6 §26
NBrought the troops of his own camp to strike at Hongnong againCh. 13 §48
RNo direct record — estimated from his role as General Who Conquers the WestWei 6 §27
NNo direct record — estimated as a former White Wave leaderCh. 13 §48
RNo direct record — estimated from his role as General Who Conquers the WestWei 6 §27
NNo direct record — estimated as a former White Wave leaderCh. 13 §48
RNo direct record — estimated from his role as General Who Conquers the WestWei 6 §27
NNo direct record — estimated as a former White Wave leaderCh. 13 §48
RNo direct record — estimated from his role as General Who Conquers the WestWei 6 §27
NNo direct record — estimated as a former White Wave leaderCh. 13 §48
RNo direct record — estimated from his role as General Who Conquers the WestWei 6 §27
NNo direct record — estimated as a former White Wave leaderCh. 13 §48
RNo direct record — estimated from his role as General Who Conquers the WestWei 6 §27
NNo direct record — estimated as a former White Wave leaderCh. 13 §48
RNo direct record — estimated from his role as General Who Conquers the WestWei 6 §27
NNo direct record — estimated as a former White Wave leaderCh. 13 §48
RNo direct record — estimated from his role as General Who Conquers the WestWei 6 §27
NNo direct record — estimated as a former White Wave leaderCh. 13 §48
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)
AppearsNot present Chapter list →
Related events (1)
- Emperor Xian of Han Returns East 195~196 · Appears (Romance scene)
Includes automatic matching from Wikipedia infoboxes and source keywords (unverified).