RNo direct record — estimated from his being a general under Cao RenWu 11 §52
NClashed with Zhu Huan and was cut down by his blade in fewer than three boutsCh. 85 §12
Chang Diao 常雕
Profile
Chang Diao was a general of Wei. He has no biography of his own in the Records; his name appears in the Biography of the Lord of Wu in the Records of Wu and in the records of Zhu Huan and Luo Tong. According to the Biography of the Lord of Wu, in the 3rd month of the 2nd year of Huangwu (223), on the orders of the Grand Marshal Cao Ren, he crossed at dawn in oiled boats with 5,000 troops to the island in the middle of the river at Ruxu (Zhongzhou), but was defeated by the Wu army. The record of Zhu Huan states that he was beheaded and his head displayed. Records, Wu 2 §49Records, Wu 11 §51–52Records, Wu 12 §62
Chen Shou's main text does not record his courtesy name, his origin or any of his other deeds, and there is no assessment of him. In the Romance he appears in Chapter 85 as the vanguard of Wei and is cut down by Zhu Huan before the city of Ruxu without lasting even three bouts; he appears only in this one of its 120 chapters, and no chapter has his name in its title. Records, Wu 2 §49Records, Wu 11 §51–52Records, Wu 12 §62Romance, Ch. 85 §12
In the Records
According to the record of Zhu Huan, in the 1st year of Huangwu (222) Wei sent the Grand Marshal Cao Ren with several tens of thousands of infantry and cavalry toward Ruxu. Cao Ren, intending to seize the island in the middle of the river by surprise, first spread word that he would attack Xianxi to the east, and when Zhu Huan divided his troops and sent them to Xianxi, Cao Ren suddenly fell upon him. At that time only 5,000 men remained at Zhu Huan's side. The biography of Jiang Ji in the Records of Wei states that in the 3rd year of Huangchu (222), when Cao Ren was about to attack the island at Ruxu, Jiang Ji tried to dissuade him, saying that the enemy held the western bank and had arrayed their boats upstream, so that sending troops onto the island would be walking into hell of one's own accord; Cao Ren did not listen and was indeed defeated. Records, Wu 11 §49Records, Wei 14 §121
Zhu Huan lowered his banners and silenced his drums, feigning weakness to lure Cao Ren. Cao Ren indeed sent his son Cao Tai to attack the city of Ruxu, and detached the general Chang Diao to lead Zhuge Qian, Wang Shuang and others in oiled boats in a separate attack on Zhongzhou. Zhongzhou was where the wives and children of the troops were. Cao Ren himself stayed at Tuogao with 10,000 men as rear support for Cao Tai and the others. Records, Wu 11 §51
Zhu Huan divided his officers and men to attack and seize the oiled boats and separately to attack Chang Diao and the others, while he himself held off Cao Tai. Cao Tai burned his camp and withdrew. In the end Chang Diao was beheaded and his head displayed, Wang Shuang was captured and sent to Wuchang, and more than a thousand men were cut down on the field or drowned. Records, Wu 11 §52
The Biography of the Lord of Wu dates this battle to the 3rd month of the 2nd year of Huangwu (223). Cao Ren gave the general Chang Diao and others 5,000 troops and had them cross at dawn in oiled boats to the island in the middle of the river at Ruxu, and Cao Ren's son Cao Tai took the opportunity to lead his army in a fierce attack on Zhu Huan, but Zhu Huan's troops held him off. The general Yan Gui and others were sent to defeat Chang Diao and the others, and in that month the Wei army withdrew entirely. Records, Wu 2 §49
The record of Luo Tong states that at the beginning of Huangwu, when Cao Ren attacked Ruxu and had his subordinate general Chang Diao and others raid Zhongzhou, Luo Tong and Yan Gui together held them off and defeated them, and he was enfeoffed as Marquis of Xinyang Village. In Chen Shou's main text Chang Diao appears only in these three records, and his courtesy name, his origin and his official career are not recorded. Records, Wu 12 §62Records, Wu 2 §49Records, Wu 11 §51–52
In the Romance
In Chapter 85 of the Romance, Cao Pi ignores the objections of Jia Xu and Liu Ye and sends a great army in three columns against Wu, and Wu has Zhu Huan hold Ruxu against Cao Ren. Zhu Huan, overseeing the army at Ruxu, hears that Cao Ren is leading a great army to attack Xianxi and sends all his troops to Xianxi, keeping only 5,000 horsemen; just then word comes that Cao Ren has ordered his chief general Chang Diao, together with Zhuge Qian and Wang Shuang, to lead 50,000 picked troops and race to the city of Ruxu. Romance, Ch. 85 §6–9
Telling his frightened men that victory and defeat depend on the general and not on the number of troops, Zhu Huan has the banners lowered and the drums silenced so that the city looks unguarded. Chang Diao, the Wei vanguard, sees no troops or horses at all on the walls and urges his men forward in haste, but when he comes near the city a cannon sounds, the banners are raised all at once, and Zhu Huan, his blade levelled, gallops out and makes straight for him. Before they have fought three bouts, Chang Diao is cut down from his horse by a single stroke of Zhu Huan's blade. Romance, Ch. 85 §10–12
As the Wu troops press their advantage, the Wei army is badly defeated with countless dead, and Zhu Huan captures countless banners, weapons and warhorses. Cao Ren, following behind, is also heavily defeated by Wu troops striking out from Xianxi and withdraws, and Cao Pi, hearing that all three columns have been defeated, laments that he suffered this defeat because he did not heed Jia Xu and Liu Ye. Romance, Ch. 85 §12–14
Where the Romance differs
The troops he led: In Chapter 85 of the Romance, Cao Ren has Chang Diao lead 50,000 picked troops together with Zhuge Qian and Wang Shuang. In the Biography of the Lord of Wu in the Records, the troops Cao Ren gave Chang Diao and the others numbered 5,000. Romance, Ch. 85 §9Records, Wu 2 §49
Where he attacked: In Chapter 85 of the Romance, Chang Diao comes as the vanguard to attack the city of Ruxu. In the record of Zhu Huan in the Records, the one who attacked the city of Ruxu was Cao Ren's son Cao Tai, while Chang Diao went separately in oiled boats to raid Zhongzhou, where the wives and children of the troops were. Romance, Ch. 85 §12Records, Wu 11 §51Records, Wu 2 §49
Who killed Chang Diao: In Chapter 85 of the Romance, Zhu Huan gallops out and personally cuts down Chang Diao with his blade in fewer than three bouts. In the record of Zhu Huan in the Records, Zhu Huan divided his officers and men to attack Chang Diao and the others separately while he himself held off Cao Tai, and Chang Diao was beheaded and his head displayed. The Biography of the Lord of Wu states that the general Yan Gui and others defeated Chang Diao and the others, and the record of Luo Tong states that Luo Tong and Yan Gui together held them off and defeated them. Romance, Ch. 85 §12Records, Wu 11 §52Records, Wu 2 §49Records, Wu 12 §62
Wang Shuang, who went with him: In Chapter 85 of the Romance, Wang Shuang is mentioned only as having come to the city of Ruxu with Chang Diao and Zhuge Qian. In the record of Zhu Huan in the Records, Wang Shuang, who raided Zhongzhou together with Chang Diao, was captured and sent to Wuchang. Romance, Ch. 85 §9Records, Wu 11 §51–52
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 total369 / 1000Rank 797 of 996 · Top 81%Romance total329 / 1000Rank 1,015 of 1,113 · Top 92%
Romance adaptation index−40Romance total − Records total
- LEA4240−2
- STR4025−15
- INT3828−10
- POL3331−2
- CHA3835−3
- VIR4542−3
- ADP3835−3
- SCH3131±0
- DIP3131±0
- DIS3331−2
Abilities shaped by the Romance — where it differs from the Records Differences of 10 or more
RNo direct record — estimated from his being a general under Cao RenWu 11 §51
NSeeing no troops on the walls, he pressed forward in haste and fell into the stratagemCh. 85 §12
8 similar abilities — show evidence
RLed 5,000 men in oiled boats to raid Zhongzhou, but was defeated and beheadedWu 11 §51Wu 11 §52Wu 2 §49
NWas the vanguard commander leading 50,000 picked troops, but fell into an ambush and was badly defeatedCh. 85 §9Ch. 85 §12
RNo direct record — estimated from his being a general under Cao RenWu 11 §52
NNo direct record — estimated from his being a general under Cao RenCh. 85 §12
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 (2)
- Ruxu Campaigns 213~223 · Command
- Battle of Ruxu 222~223 · Command
Includes automatic matching from Wikipedia infoboxes and source keywords (unverified).