REntered Wudu and was wiped out by Lord Cao's armyShu 2 §37Shu 12 §12
NCaught Zhang He in a pincer with a surprise force of 5,000, and drove back the relief troops of the two campsCh. 70 §2Ch. 70 §3Ch. 70 §11
Lei Tong 雷銅
| Occupation | RGeneral · General | Faction | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appears | RN | Biography in | |
| Born | R? Unverified | Native place | |
| Died | R218 Unverified | Place of death | NWakou Pass |
| Cause of death | RKilled in battle NKilled in battle Unverified | ||
| Existence | Historical | Mentions | R2 |
Profile
Lei Tong was a general of Liu Bei. The Records gives him no biography of his own and records neither his courtesy name nor his place of origin; his name appears once each in the Biography of the First Sovereign and the record of Zhou Qun. In the 23rd year of Jian'an (218), when Liu Bei advanced on Hanzhong, Lei Tong entered Wudu together with Wu Lan and others, and all of them were wiped out by Cao Cao's army. Records, Shu 2 §37Records, Shu 12 §12
The record of Zhou Qun cites this as an instance of Zhou Qun's words coming true, that sending out a detached force would fare badly. In the Romance he first appears in Chapter 62 as a man recommended as a lieutenant together with Wu Lan by Wu Yi, the brother-in-law of Liu Zhang, and he appears in 6 of its 120 chapters, and his name is in no chapter title. He surrenders to Liu Bei in Chapter 64, and in Chapter 70, helping Zhang Fei fight Zhang He, he is caught by Zhang He's ambush and killed. Records, Shu 12 §11–12Romance, Ch. 62 §49Romance, Ch. 64 §11Romance, Ch. 70 §13
In the Records
In the 23rd year of Jian'an (218), as Liu Bei led his generals forward to Hanzhong, he sent the generals Wu Lan, Lei Tong and others separately into Wudu. All of them were wiped out by Cao Cao's army, and Liu Bei halted at Yangping Pass and held off Xiahou Yuan, Zhang He and others. Records, Shu 2 §37
According to the record of Zhou Qun, when Liu Bei, intending to contend with Cao Cao for Hanzhong, asked Zhou Qun's opinion, Zhou Qun said, 'You will gain the land but not its people; if you send out a detached force, it will surely fare badly, so be wary and cautious.' When the generals Wu Lan, Lei Tong and others were sent into Wudu and were all lost and did not return, everything was as Zhou Qun had said, and so Zhou Qun was recommended as Flourishing Talent (maocai). Records, Shu 12 §11–12
The Annals of Emperor Wu records the fighting of this period from Cao Cao's side. In the 22nd year of Jian'an (217), when Liu Bei stationed Zhang Fei, Ma Chao, Wu Lan and others at Xiabian, Cao Cao sent Cao Hong to resist them; the following year Cao Hong defeated Wu Lan, and in the 3rd month Zhang Fei and Ma Chao fled to Hanzhong and Wu Lan was beheaded by Qiang Duan, a Di chieftain of Yinping. Lei Tong's name is not in this record of the Annals of Emperor Wu, and the Records does not say when Lei Tong came to follow Liu Bei or how he died in Wudu. Records, Wei 1 §156 · 158–160Records, Shu 2 §37Records, Shu 12 §12
In the Romance
In Chapter 62 of the Romance, as Liu Bei approaches Luo, Liu Zhang's brother-in-law Wu Yi sets out to relieve it, recommending the two men Wu Lan and Lei Tong as his lieutenants, and arrives at Luo with 20,000 troops. When Leng Bao offers to breach the Fu River and drown Liu Bei's army, Wu Lan and Lei Tong are given the task of leading troops to support him from the rear. In Chapter 63 Leng Bao is captured by Wei Yan, and the two, coming to rescue him, are driven back by Huang Zhong's troops. Romance, Ch. 62 §49–50Romance, Ch. 63 §3–4
In the same chapter, after Pang Tong is killed by Zhang Ren's arrows and Wei Yan tries to cut his way through toward Luo, Wu Lan and Lei Tong, who are guarding Luo, block him in front while Zhang Ren pursues from behind, and Wei Yan is surrounded. But the two men's rear troops fall into disorder of their own accord, and while they go back to rescue them, Huang Zhong appears and defeats them. In Chapter 64, on Zhang Ren's orders, Lei Tong goes out by the north gate with Wu Lan and circles round to the east gate to oppose Huang Zhong and Wei Yan, and with help from Wu Yi and others in the city they put the two to flight. But, intent only on pursuing Huang Zhong and Wei Yan, they have their way back cut off by Liu Bei and Zhang Fei, and Lei Tong comes over and surrenders together with Wu Lan, bringing the men and horses of his own unit. In Chapter 65 his name is among the more than sixty surrendered officials whom Liu Bei promotes after becoming Governor of Yi Province. Romance, Ch. 63 §19–21Romance, Ch. 64 §6–7 · 10–11Romance, Ch. 65 §46
In Chapter 69 Lei Tong holds Baxi together with Zhang Fei. In Chapter 70, when Zhang He invades Baxi, Lei Tong says that Langzhong's terrain is rugged and its mountains steep, suitable for ambush, and that while Zhang Fei fights he will bring out a surprise force to help; given 5,000 picked troops, he strikes out behind Zhang He, and they catch him between them and pursue him to Mount Dangqu. Afterwards he challenges the enemy to battle below the mountain and climbs it, but is driven back by rolling logs and stones and defeated by the troops of the two camps at Dangshi and Mengtou. When Zhang Fei lures Zhang He out with a drinking party, Lei Tong and Wei Yan take the left and right wings, drive back the troops coming out of the two camps to the rescue, and take the two camps. Romance, Ch. 69 §45Romance, Ch. 70 §1–4 · 8 · 11
Zhang He, having withdrawn to Wakou Pass, places two groups of men in ambush in the hills in front of the pass and feigns defeat. Lei Tong pursues Zhang He, who flees after a few bouts, has his way back cut off by the ambushers, and is run through by the spear of the wheeling Zhang He, falling dead from his horse (Chapter 70). Zhang Fei says that Zhang He killed Lei Tong by an ambush stratagem, declares that he will turn the stratagem against him, capture Zhang He and avenge Lei Tong, and together with Wei Yan inflicts a heavy defeat on Zhang He. Romance, Ch. 70 §13–16
Where the Romance differs
Original allegiance: In Chapters 62–64 of the Romance, Lei Tong guards Luo as a lieutenant of Wu Yi, Liu Zhang's brother-in-law, and then surrenders to Liu Bei. In the Biography of the First Sovereign and the record of Zhou Qun in the Records, Lei Tong appears only as a general sent by Liu Bei from the start, and there is no record of his having served under Liu Zhang or having surrendered. Romance, Ch. 62 §49Romance, Ch. 64 §11Records, Shu 2 §37Records, Shu 12 §12
The battle at Luo: In Chapters 63–64 of the Romance, Lei Tong fights Wei Yan and Huang Zhong in front of Luo. In the Biography of the First Sovereign in the Records, the generals Liu Zhang sent to Fu County were Liu Gui, Leng Bao, Zhang Ren and Deng Xian, and Luo was besieged for nearly a year and fell in the summer of the 19th year of Jian'an (214). Lei Tong does not appear in this record. Romance, Ch. 63 §20Romance, Ch. 64 §6–7Records, Shu 2 §32–33
The battle at Dangqu: In Chapter 70 of the Romance, Lei Tong helps Zhang Fei attack Zhang He on Mount Dangqu and takes two camps together with Wei Yan. In the Biography of Zhang Fei in the Records, Zhang He came down into Baxi, advanced to Dangqu, Mengtou and Dangshi and held off Zhang Fei for more than fifty days, until Zhang Fei, with more than ten thousand picked troops, intercepted him by another road and defeated him. Lei Tong is not in this record, and Wei Yan does not appear either. Romance, Ch. 70 §3 · 11Records, Shu 6 §19
Death: In Chapter 70 of the Romance, Lei Tong is caught by Zhang He's ambush in front of Wakou Pass and killed by Zhang He's spear. In the Records, Lei Tong entered Wudu with Wu Lan and others in the 23rd year of Jian'an (218) and was wiped out by Cao Cao's army. There is no record of his being killed by Zhang He. Romance, Ch. 70 §13Records, Shu 2 §37Records, Shu 12 §12
Time of death: In the Romance, Lei Tong dies in the battles of Dangqu and Wakou in which Zhang Fei fought Zhang He. The Biography of the First Sovereign in the Records records Zhang Fei's defeat of Zhang He at Wakou after the entry on Cao Cao's pacification of Hanzhong in the 20th year of Jian'an (215), and records Lei Tong's entry into Wudu in the later entry for the 23rd year of Jian'an (218). Romance, Ch. 70 §13Records, Shu 2 §35–37
Relationship with Wu Lan: In Chapter 69 of the Romance, Wu Lan goes out to Xiabian as Ma Chao's vanguard, while Lei Tong holds Baxi together with Zhang Fei. In the Biography of the First Sovereign and the record of Zhou Qun in the Records, Wu Lan, Lei Tong and others entered Wudu together. Romance, Ch. 69 §45Records, Shu 2 §37Records, Shu 12 §12
Zhou Qun's words: The record of Zhou Qun in the Records cites the loss of Wu Lan, Lei Tong and others as an instance of Zhou Qun's words coming true, that sending out a detached force would fare badly. In the Romance, Zhou Qun's name appears only in the list of surrendered officials promoted in Chapter 65, and these words are absent. Records, Shu 12 §11–12Romance, Ch. 65 §46
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 total364 / 1000Rank 820 of 996 · Top 83%Romance total412 / 1000Rank 421 of 1,113 · Top 38%
Romance adaptation index+48Romance total − Records total
- LEA4055+15
- STR4252+10
- INT3548+13
- POL3331−2
- CHA3838±0
- VIR4545±0
- ADP3850+12
- SCH3131±0
- DIP3131±0
- DIS3131±0
Abilities shaped by the Romance — where it differs from the Records Differences of 10 or more
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as generalShu 2 §37
NProposed the ambush plan at Langzhong and succeeded, but fell for Zhang He's feigned defeatCh. 70 §1Ch. 70 §13
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as generalShu 2 §37
NJudged that he could not hold out, surrendered and was given officeCh. 64 §11
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as generalShu 2 §37
NWas driven back attacking Mount Dangqu, and was run through and killed by Zhang HeCh. 70 §4Ch. 70 §13
6 similar abilities — show evidence
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as generalShu 2 §37
NNo direct record — estimated from his career as a generalCh. 62 §49
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as generalShu 2 §37
NNo direct record — estimated from his career as a lieutenantCh. 62 §49
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as generalShu 2 §37
NNo direct record — estimated from his helping Zhang Fei after surrenderingCh. 64 §11
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as generalShu 2 §37
NNo direct record — estimated from his career as a generalCh. 62 §49
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as generalShu 2 §37
NNo direct record — estimated from his career as a generalCh. 62 §49
RNo direct record — estimated from his post as generalShu 2 §37
NNo direct record — estimated from his career as a generalCh. 62 §49
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 (6)
AppearsNot present Chapter list →
Related events (2)
- Zhang Fei Takes Wakou Pass by Wit 215 · Appears (Romance scene)
- Hanzhong Campaign 217~219 · Command
Includes automatic matching from Wikipedia infoboxes and source keywords (unverified).