| Occupation | RGeneral · General Who Guards the East NGeneral · Grand Commander | Faction | Wei |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appears | RN | Biography in | |
| Born | Native place | Pei Commandery Qiao County Unverified | |
| Existence | Historical | Mentions | R6 |
Xiahou Mao was a son of Xiahou Dun of Wei who married Princess Qinghe, daughter of the Grand Progenitor Cao Cao. He has no biography of his own in the Records and appears in two passages at the end of the record of Xiahou Dun in the Biographies of the Xiahou and Cao Clans in Records of Wei 9. Chen Shou's main text says only that he had originally been enfeoffed separately as a full marquis and that he served as Palace Attendant and Master of Writing and as General Who Pacifies the West and General Who Guards the East and was granted the Tally; it does not record his courtesy name, the years of his birth and death, or any of his other deeds. Records, Wei 9 §9–10
The assessment in Records of Wei 9 discusses Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan and others, saying that the Xiahou and Cao clans had intermarried for generations, but does not mention Xiahou Mao separately. In the Romance he first appears in Chapter 91 as a son of Xiahou Yuan who became Xiahou Dun's heir and an imperial son-in-law, and he appears in 4 of the 120 chapters, though no chapter has his name in its title. Putting himself forward, he becomes Grand Commander to resist Zhuge Liang, is captured at Nan'an in Chapter 92, and after being released in Chapter 93 he abandons even the city of Tianshui and flees. Records, Wei 9 §132Romance, Ch. 91 §48–49Romance, Ch. 92 §41Romance, Ch. 93 §15 · 28
Xiahou Dun received the posthumous name Marquis Zhong, and his son Xiahou Chong succeeded him. Recalling Xiahou Dun's merits, the emperor wished to make all his descendants marquises, so he divided Xiahou Dun's fief of 1,000 households and granted his seven sons and two grandsons the rank of Marquis Within the Passes. Xiahou Dun's younger brother Xiahou Lian and his son Xiahou Mao had originally been enfeoffed separately as full marquises. Records, Wei 9 §9
Chen Shou goes on to write that earlier the Grand Progenitor had given a daughter in marriage to Xiahou Mao, namely Princess Qinghe. He does not say when or for what reason the marriage took place. Records, Wei 9 §9
Xiahou Mao served in turn as Palace Attendant and Master of Writing and as General Who Pacifies the West and General Who Guards the East, and was granted the Tally. Xiahou Dun's line passed, on Xiahou Chong's death, to his son Xiahou Yi, and on Xiahou Yi's death to his son Xiahou Shao. Records, Wei 9 §10
Chen Shou's main text does not record Xiahou Mao's courtesy name, the years of his birth and death, or when he held his offices. The assessment at the end of Records of Wei 9 says that because the Xiahou and Cao clans had intermarried for generations, Xiahou Dun, Xiahou Yuan, Cao Ren, Cao Hong, Cao Xiu, Xiahou Shang, Cao Zhen and others were honored and valued as close kin and old friends, but Xiahou Mao is not among those named. Records, Wei 9 §9–10 · 132
In Chapter 91 of the Romance, when news comes that Zhuge Liang has led a great army out to Hanzhong and Cao Rui asks who can drive back the Shu troops, Xiahou Mao steps forward, saying he will avenge his father, who died at Hanzhong. The Romance introduces him as a son of Xiahou Yuan, with the courtesy name Zixiu, extremely hot-tempered and extremely stingy, who as a child was adopted as Xiahou Dun's son and became his heir. After Xiahou Yuan was beheaded by Huang Zhong, Cao Cao took pity on him and gave him his daughter Princess Qinghe, making him an imperial son-in-law; he held military authority but had never been in battle. Cao Rui makes him Grand Commander. Romance, Ch. 91 §47–49
When the Minister over the Masses Wang Lang objects that he has no experience of war, Xiahou Mao rebukes him, asking whether Wang Lang is in league with Zhuge Liang and means to act as his inside man, and swears that if he does not capture Zhuge Liang alive he will not come back to face the Son of Heaven. Travelling through the night he reaches Chang'an and gathers more than 200,000 troops from the various districts west of the passes. Romance, Ch. 91 §50–51
In Chapter 92 Xiahou Mao makes Han De, a great general of Xiliang, his vanguard. After Han De's four sons fall to Zhao Yun at Mount Fengming and Han De himself dies on Zhao Yun's spear, Xiahou Mao, as Zhao Yun charges at him, hastily takes refuge inside his own lines. Then, following the plan of the Army Adviser Cheng Wu, he gives Dong Xi and Xue Ze 30,000 men each to lie in ambush on the left and right, and from the top of a hill he points to wherever Zhao Yun goes, directing the three armies to surround him. Romance, Ch. 92 §4–8 · 12–17
But Zhang Bao kills Xue Ze and Guan Xing kills Dong Xi, and when they attack along three routes together with Zhao Yun, the Wei army is badly broken. Xiahou Mao flees to Nan'an Commandery with over a hundred brave officers of his headquarters and shuts the city gates tight. When Zhuge Liang sends a false Pei Xu to lure out Cui Liang, Administrator of Anding, Xiahou Mao hears of Cui Liang's secret letter from Yang Ling, Administrator of Nan'an, and hides over a hundred swordsmen and axemen in his headquarters, intending to kill the two Shu generals and draw Zhuge Liang into the city. Romance, Ch. 92 §20–23 · 28 · 34 · 38–39 · 43
When Guan Xing kills Yang Ling, Zhang Bao kills Cui Liang, and the Shu troops pour into the city all at once, Xiahou Mao opens the south gate and fights his way out, but Wang Ping captures him alive in a single bout, and Zhuge Liang locks him in a cart. In Chapter 93 Zhuge Liang tells him that Jiang Wei, holding Ji, has said he will submit if only the imperial son-in-law is safe, and asks whether he will summon Jiang Wei to surrender; when Xiahou Mao prostrates himself and begs for his life, Zhuge Liang gives him clothes and a horse and lets him go alone. Romance, Ch. 92 §40–42Romance, Ch. 93 §14–15
On the road Xiahou Mao hears from people of Ji County that Jiang Wei has surrendered the city, and he goes to Ma Zun at Tianshui. That night a Shu soldier disguised as Jiang Wei shouts from below the walls that Xiahou Mao had told him by letter to surrender and is now going back on his word. Later, when Ma Zun says that Liang Xu and Yin Shang mean to act as inside men for Jiang Wei, Xiahou Mao says the two must be killed, and when the two open the city gates and let in the Shu troops, he abandons the city with Ma Zun and flees to the Qiang-Hu city. Zhuge Liang says that letting Xiahou Mao go was like letting go a duck, while gaining Jiang Wei was gaining a phoenix. Romance, Ch. 93 §16–19 · 27–29
Word reaches the Wei court that the imperial son-in-law Xiahou has lost three commanderies and fled into Qiang territory, and Cao Rui makes Cao Zhen Grand Commander. In Chapter 102, when Sima Yi recommends the four sons of Xiahou Yuan, Cao Rui says that the imperial son-in-law Xiahou Mao bungled the campaign, lost many men and horses, and is still too ashamed to return, and asks whether these four will not be the same. Sima Yi answers that they are not to be compared with the likes of Xiahou Mao. Romance, Ch. 93 §30 · 32Romance, Ch. 102 §7–9
His father: In Chapter 91 of the Romance, Xiahou Mao is a son of Xiahou Yuan who as a child was adopted as Xiahou Dun's son and became his heir. The Records names Xiahou Mao as a son of Xiahou Dun, and the one who succeeded Xiahou Dun was his son Xiahou Chong. Romance, Ch. 91 §48–49Records, Wei 9 §9
Courtesy name: Chapter 91 of the Romance gives his courtesy name as Zixiu. Chen Shou's main text does not record Xiahou Mao's courtesy name. Romance, Ch. 91 §49Records, Wei 9 §9–10
Marriage to Princess Qinghe: In Chapter 91 of the Romance, after Xiahou Yuan is beheaded by Huang Zhong, Cao Cao takes pity on Xiahou Mao and gives him his daughter Princess Qinghe. The Records says only that earlier the Grand Progenitor had given a daughter in marriage to Xiahou Mao, without giving the reason or the time. Romance, Ch. 91 §49Records, Wei 9 §9
How he came to command west of the passes: In Chapter 91 of the Romance, Xiahou Mao asks on his own to go on campaign, becomes Grand Commander, and gathers more than 200,000 troops from west of the passes. The Records says only that he served as Palace Attendant and Master of Writing and as General Who Pacifies the West and General Who Guards the East and was granted the Tally, without saying when or in connection with what he held these offices. Romance, Ch. 91 §49–51Records, Wei 9 §10
Capture at Nan'an: In Chapter 92 of the Romance, Xiahou Mao is defeated at Mount Fengming, flees to Nan'an, and is captured by Wang Ping. The Annals of Emperor Ming and the Biography of Zhuge Liang in the Records say only that when Zhuge Liang came out to Mount Qi, the three commanderies of Nan'an, Tianshui and Anding rebelled against Wei and went over to Zhuge Liang, and Xiahou Mao does not appear. The record of Xiahou Dun has nothing of this either. Romance, Ch. 92 §23 · 41Records, Wei 3 §8Records, Shu 5 §32Records, Wei 9 §9–10
Who resisted Zhuge Liang: In Chapters 92–93 of the Romance, Xiahou Mao first leads the Wei army and is defeated, and only then does Cao Zhen become Grand Commander. In the Annals of Emperor Ming in the Records, the General-in-Chief Cao Zhen commanded the region west of the passes and the General of the Right Zhang He routed Zhuge Liang at Jieting; in the Biography of Zhuge Liang, Cao Zhen held off Zhao Yun and Deng Zhi at Ji Valley and Ma Su was defeated by Zhang He at Jieting. Romance, Ch. 92 §12Romance, Ch. 93 §32Records, Wei 3 §8Records, Shu 5 §32–33
Jiang Wei's surrender: In Chapter 93 of the Romance, Zhuge Liang releases Xiahou Mao to summon Jiang Wei and deceives Xiahou Mao and Ma Zun with a soldier disguised as Jiang Wei. In the Biography of Jiang Wei in the Records, the Administrator of Tianshui suspected Jiang Wei and the others of disloyalty and fled by night to hold Shanggui, and Jiang Wei and the others, unable to enter the city gate and not admitted at Ji County either, went together to Zhuge Liang. Xiahou Mao does not appear. Romance, Ch. 93 §15 · 19Records, Shu 14 §29–30
Liang Xu and Yin Shang: In Chapter 93 of the Romance, when Xiahou Mao says inside the city of Tianshui that the two must be killed, they judge that matters are urgent, open the city gates and let in the Shu troops. In the Biography of Jiang Wei in the Records, the Officer of Merit Liang Xu and the Registrar Yin Shang accompanied the Administrator on his tour of inspection together with Jiang Wei and went to Zhuge Liang together with Jiang Wei. Romance, Ch. 93 §27–28Records, Shu 14 §30
Year of the campaign: Chapter 93 of the Romance places the arrival of the report that Xiahou Mao had lost three commanderies in the 1st year of Taihe of the Wei ruler Cao Rui. The Annals of Emperor Ming in the Records records the rebellion of the three commanderies after the entry for the first month of spring in the 2nd year of Taihe (228), and the Biography of Zhuge Liang places it in the spring of the 6th year of Jianxing (228). Romance, Ch. 93 §30Records, Wei 3 §7–8Records, Shu 5 §32
Afterwards: In Chapter 102 of the Romance, Cao Rui says that Xiahou Mao lost many men and horses and is still too ashamed to return. The Records has no record of Xiahou Mao fleeing into Qiang territory, and it records that he served as Palace Attendant and Master of Writing. Romance, Ch. 102 §8Records, Wei 9 §10
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.
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.
RNo direct record — estimated from his service as General Who Pacifies the West and General Who Guards the EastWei 9 §10
NLed 200,000 men without any experience of battle and was crushed; when the commander fled, the army scatteredCh. 91 §49Ch. 92 §23
RNo direct record — estimated from the offices he heldWei 9 §10
NDescribed as having no strategy of his own; tried to turn Cui Liang's ruse back on him and fell into the trapCh. 92 §23Ch. 92 §39
RNo direct record — estimated from his conductWei 9 §10
NDescribed as extremely stingy; begged for his life, promised to summon Jiang Wei, then went to TianshuiCh. 91 §49Ch. 93 §15Ch. 93 §16
RNo direct record — estimated from the offices he heldWei 9 §10
NProstrated himself to beg for his life, and abandoned Tianshui to flee to the Qiang-Hu cityCh. 93 §15Ch. 93 §28
RNo direct record — estimated from his posts as general with no record of battleWei 9 §10
NTook refuge inside his lines when Zhao Yun charged, and was captured by Wang Ping in a single boutCh. 92 §13Ch. 92 §41
RNo direct record — estimated from his service as Palace Attendant and Master of WritingWei 9 §10
NNo direct record — estimated from his status as imperial son-in-law and Grand CommanderCh. 91 §49
RNo direct record — estimated from his conductWei 9 §10
NRebuked Wang Lang, who had remonstrated with him, as a traitor in league with the enemyCh. 91 §50
RNo direct record — estimated from his becoming the Grand Progenitor's son-in-law and being enfeoffed as a full marquisWei 9 §9
NNo direct record — estimated from the record that as imperial son-in-law he was respected at courtCh. 91 §49
RNo direct record — estimated from his conductWei 9 §10
NNo direct record — estimated from only his own claim to have studied strategyCh. 91 §50
RNo direct record — estimated from his conductWei 9 §10
NNo direct record — estimated from his posting of Dong Xi and Xue Ze in ambushCh. 92 §15
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.
AppearsNot present Chapter list →
| Parents | Xiahou Dun Records, Xiahou Yuan Romance |
|---|---|
| Spouse | Princess Qinghe Romance |
| Siblings | Xiahou Wei Romance, Xiahou Hui Romance, Xiahou He Romance |
Based on Wikidata items for the historical and Romance figures. Relations without the Unverified badge were also confirmed in the Records.
Includes automatic matching from Wikipedia infoboxes and source keywords (unverified).