| Occupation | RNOfficial · Administrator of Guangling | Faction | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appears | RN | Biography in | Book of Wei |
| Born | Native place | Guangling Commandery | |
| Cause of death | RIllness NIllness Unverified | ||
| Existence | Historical | Mentions | R20 |
Chen Deng, courtesy name Yuanlong, is called Chen Deng of Xiapi in the Biography of the First Sovereign. When Tao Qian died he urged Liu Bei to take charge of Xu Province, and later, following the wishes of his father Chen Gui and with Lü Bu's permission, he went to Taizu (Cao Cao), advised him that Lü Bu should be dealt with early, and was made Administrator of Guangling. Records, Shu 2 §9Records, Wei 7 §31 · 20–21
He won an awe-inspiring name in Guangling, was given the added title of General Who Calms the Waves (fubo jiangjun) for his merit in pinning down Lü Bu from front and rear, and when Sun Quan's troops besieged Guangling Commandery and then withdrew, he pursued them and crushed them. The illness that Hua Tuo had cured flared up again three years later, and he died at thirty-nine. Records, Wei 7 §31Records, Wei 22 §59–60Records, Wei 29 §17
In his assessment, Chen Shou lamented that Chen Deng had heroic spirit and firm integrity but died early without completing his achievements. In the Romance he first appears in Chapter 11 as a man of Guangling under Tao Qian and features in 10 of its 120 chapters, though no chapter has his name in its title. Central to his role is the stratagem in Chapter 19 by which he deceives Lü Bu into losing Xu Province and Xiaopei. Records, Wei 7 §62Romance, Ch. 11 §3Romance, Ch. 19 §13–18
Chen Deng's biography is appended briefly after those of Lü Bu and Chen Gong in Records of Wei 7 (Biographies of Lü Bu, Zhang Miao and Zang Hong). His courtesy name was Yuanlong. According to the Biography of the First Sovereign, when Tao Qian, Governor of Xu Province, died and the Attendant Officer Mi Zhu led the people of the province to welcome the First Sovereign (Liu Bei), the First Sovereign did not dare to accept, whereupon Chen Deng of Xiapi said that the house of Han was now in decline and the realm overturned, so that the time to achieve merit was this very day, and asked him to take charge of the province's affairs. When the First Sovereign suggested giving it to Yuan Gonglu (Yuan Shu) at Shouchun, Chen Deng said that Gonglu was arrogant and willful and no lord to bring order out of chaos, and that he would gather 100,000 infantry and cavalry for His Excellency. Records, Wei 7 §30–31Records, Shu 2 §9–10
When Yuan Shu sought a marriage alliance with Lü Bu, Chen Deng's father Chen Gui, Chancellor of Pei, persuaded Lü Bu to break off the marriage. Chen Gui wished to send Chen Deng to Taizu (Cao Cao), but Lü Bu would not let him go. Just then an envoy arrived and appointed Lü Bu General of the Left, and Lü Bu, greatly pleased, allowed Chen Deng to go and had him present a memorial of thanks. Chen Deng met Taizu and advised him that Lü Bu was brave but without plans and took going and staying lightly, so he should be dealt with early. Records, Wei 7 §19–20
Taizu said that Lü Bu harbored the ambitions of a wolf cub and was truly hard to keep for long, and that no one but Chen Deng could have fathomed his true nature. He at once raised Chen Gui's salary to fully two thousand dan and made Chen Deng Administrator of Guangling. At parting, Taizu took Chen Deng's hand, said, 'The affairs of the east I entrust to you,' and had him secretly gather followers to act as an inside collaborator. Records, Wei 7 §21
Lü Bu had sought the governorship of Xu Province through Chen Deng, so when Chen Deng returned he flew into a rage, drew his halberd and hacked at the desk, saying that only Chen Deng and his father had risen to high positions and that he himself had been sold out. Without changing his expression, Chen Deng calmly explained that he had told Lord Cao that dealing with the general was like keeping a tiger, which must be fed its fill, but that Lord Cao had replied it was like keeping a hawk, which is useful when hungry but flies away when full. Only then did Lü Bu's anger subside. Records, Wei 7 §22–23
When Yuan Shu, enraged, joined forces with Han Xian and Yang Feng and sent his chief general Zhang Xun to attack Lü Bu, Lü Bu blamed Chen Gui. Chen Gui said that Han Xian, Yang Feng and Yuan Shu were a hastily assembled army, and that by his son Chen Deng's reckoning they were like chickens tied together that could not perch on the same roost, so they could be split apart. When Lü Bu persuaded Han Xian and Yang Feng according to this plan, Zhang Xun was badly defeated. Records, Wei 7 §24
According to the Biography of Chen Jiao, Chen Deng as Administrator of Guangling made Chen Jiao his Officer of Merit and had him find out his reputation in Xudu. When Chen Jiao returned and said that people called the Administrator arrogant and conceited, Chen Deng replied that he respected Chen Yuanfang (Chen Ji) and his brothers for their virtue, Hua Ziyu (Hua Xin) for his propriety, Zhao Yuanda for his discernment and righteousness, Kong Wenju (Kong Rong) for his learning, and Liu Xuande (Liu Bei) for his strategy of a true king or hegemon, so how could he be arrogant? Chen Jiao and Xu Xuan were both valued by Chen Deng and, together with Chen Deng, set their hearts on Taizu. Records, Wei 22 §58 · 68
When Guangling Commandery was besieged by Sun Quan at Kuangqi, Chen Deng sent Chen Jiao to ask Taizu for relief, and Taizu sent troops. When the Wu troops withdrew, Chen Deng set ambushes in many places, led his troops in pursuit and crushed them. Chen Deng won an awe-inspiring name in Guangling and was given the added title of General Who Calms the Waves for his merit in pinning down Lü Bu from front and rear. Records, Wei 22 §59–60Records, Wei 7 §31
According to the Biography of Hua Tuo, Chen Deng, the Administrator of Guangling, suffered from an illness in which his chest felt oppressed, his face turned red and he could not eat. Hua Tuo said that worms had formed in his stomach from eating raw food, gave him a decoction and made him vomit about three sheng of worms, and said that the illness would flare up after three years and that he could be saved only if he met a good physician. When the time came the illness did flare up, and as Hua Tuo was not at hand, Chen Deng died just as he had said. He was thirty-nine years old. Records, Wei 29 §17Records, Wei 7 §31
Later, when Xu Si was seated with Liu Bei at the side of Liu Biao, Governor of Jing Province, Xu Si said that Chen Yuanlong was a man of the lakes and seas who had never shed his unrestrained spirit; when he had visited him at Xiapi, Chen Deng had lain on the big bed himself and made his guest lie on the lower bed. Liu Bei said that Yuanlong had shunned Xu Si because at a time when one should worry about the state he had sought only fields and houses, and that if it had been himself, he would have lain atop a hundred-chi tower and made Xu Si lie on the ground. When Liu Biao laughed heartily, Liu Bei said that a man of Yuanlong's civil and military talent, courage and resolve could be found only among the ancients. Records, Wei 7 §31–33
In his assessment, Chen Shou lamented that Chen Deng and Zang Hong both had heroic spirit and firm integrity, but that Chen Deng's allotted span was short and he passed away early without completing his achievements. Records, Wei 7 §62
In Chapter 11 of the Romance, Chen Deng first appears as a man of Guangling under Tao Qian. When Tao Qian looks for someone to go to Qing Province to ask for relief, he readily volunteers and brings back word that Tian Kai will come with troops. When Tao Qian wishes to hand Xu Province over to Liu Bei, Chen Deng urges Liu Bei not to decline, since Lord Tao is often ill, and in Chapter 12, when Liu Bei takes charge of the affairs of Xu Province, he becomes a member of his staff. In Chapter 14, Chen Yuanlong, to whom Zhang Fei has entrusted routine matters, tries to stop Zhang Fei from forcing wine on Cao Bao and is told, 'You are a civil official, so mind the business of civil officials.' Romance, Ch. 11 §3 · 24 · 40Romance, Ch. 12 §20Romance, Ch. 14 §52 · 54
In Chapter 16, when Lü Bu seizes Yuan Shu's envoy Han Yin, Chen Deng takes a memorial of thanks and escorts Han Yin under guard to Xudu. He secretly advises Cao Cao that Lü Bu should be dealt with early, offers to act as an inside collaborator, and is made Administrator of Guangling. When on his return Lü Bu draws his sword to cut him down, he laughs aloud and explains that Lord Cao said he was raising the Marquis of Wen like a hawk and would not feed him his fill until the foxes and hares were all gone, adding that the foxes and hares were Yuan Shu, Sun Ce, Yuan Shao, Liu Biao, Liu Zhang and Zhang Lu. Romance, Ch. 16 §59–63
In Chapter 17, when Yuan Shu invades along seven routes, Chen Gong proposes beheading Chen Gui and his son and offering their heads. Chen Deng laughs that the seven columns are like seven heaps of rotten grass, and going in person to Han Xian's camp, he says, 'I am a minister of the great Han; why call me Lü Bu's man?' and turns him around. When Han Xian and Yang Feng set fires as a signal and respond from inside, Zhang Xun is defeated and flees. Romance, Ch. 17 §5–10 · 13
In Chapter 19, when Cao Cao approaches the Xiao Pass, Chen Deng induces Lü Bu to move his wife and children and his money and provisions to Xiapi, and tells his father Chen Gui to hold Xu Province together with Mi Zhu and not let Lü Bu in. At the Xiao Pass he ties letters to arrows at night and shoots them down below the pass, deceives Chen Gong into withdrawing by telling him Xu Province is in danger, and then sets a fire so that Chen Gong's and Lü Bu's troops attack each other in the dark. When Lü Bu, having lost both Xu Province and Xiaopei, curses him, Chen Deng retorts from atop the wall of Xiaopei, 'I am a subject of the Han.' After taking Xu Province, Cao Cao makes Chen Deng General Who Calms the Waves. Romance, Ch. 19 §11–18 · 22
In Chapter 21, when Che Zhou, Inspector of Xu Province, asks for a plan to kill Liu Bei, Chen Deng tells him to lay troops in ambush by the barbican, then on his father's orders warns Guan Yu and Zhang Fei of it. When Guan Yu lures Che Zhou out, Chen Deng shoots arrows from the wall so that Che Zhou cannot get back into the city. In Chapter 22 he tells Liu Bei to obtain a letter from Zheng Xuan and ask Yuan Shao for relief, and he reckons that Cao Cao's banners are a ruse. In Chapter 24, when Cao Cao attacks Xu Province, Chen Deng hands Xu Province over to him. Romance, Ch. 21 §42–46Romance, Ch. 22 §1–2 · 36Romance, Ch. 24 §28
In Chapter 78, in the words recommending Hua Tuo, there is a story that when Chen Deng, the Administrator of Guangling, felt oppressed in his chest, his face turned red and he could not eat, Hua Tuo gave him medicine and made him vomit three sheng of worms. Hua Tuo said it was because he had eaten too much raw fish and that the illness would surely return after three years, when he could not be saved, and it is said that Chen Deng did indeed die three years later. Romance, Ch. 78 §11–12
Origin: Chapter 11 of the Romance calls Chen Deng a man of Guangling. The Biography of the First Sovereign in the Records calls him Chen Deng of Xiapi, and his father Chen Gui was also a man of Xiapi. Guangling was the commandery Chen Deng later governed as Administrator. Romance, Ch. 11 §3Records, Shu 2 §9Records, Wei 6 §75Records, Wei 7 §21
The words urging Liu Bei to take Xu Province: In Chapter 11 of the Romance, the one who says that the house of Han is in decline, that the time to achieve merit is now and that Xu Province has a million households is Mi Zhu, and the one who calls Yuan Gonglu dry bones in the grave is Kong Rong. In the Biography of the First Sovereign in the Records, both of these statements were made by Chen Deng. Romance, Ch. 11 §39–40Records, Shu 2 §9–10
The envoy to Qing Province: In Chapter 11 of the Romance, Chen Deng goes as Tao Qian's envoy to Tian Kai in Qing Province to ask for relief. The Biography of the First Sovereign in the Records says only that Tao Qian sent an envoy to Tian Kai, and the envoy's name is not given. Romance, Ch. 11 §3 · 24Records, Shu 2 §8
How he went to Xudu: In Chapter 16 of the Romance, Lü Bu entrusts Chen Deng with escorting Han Yin under guard, and Cao Cao beheads Han Yin. In the Records, Lü Bu had Han Yin sent in fetters and beheaded and displayed in the marketplace of Xu County, and Chen Deng went because Lü Bu, pleased at his appointment as General of the Left, allowed the journey that Chen Gui had wanted. Romance, Ch. 16 §59Records, Wei 7 §20
The hawk metaphor: In Chapter 16 of the Romance, Lü Bu draws his sword to cut Chen Deng down, and Chen Deng even passes on Cao Cao's words that the foxes and hares are Yuan Shu, Sun Ce, Yuan Shao, Liu Biao, Liu Zhang and Zhang Lu. In the Records, Lü Bu drew his halberd and hacked at the desk, and what Chen Deng passed on was only the metaphor of the tiger and the hawk. Romance, Ch. 16 §62–63Records, Wei 7 §22–23
The plan that broke Yuan Shu's army: In Chapter 17 of the Romance, Chen Deng goes in person to Han Xian's camp and persuades him. In the Records, Chen Gui passed on his son Chen Deng's plan of the 'tied chickens' to Lü Bu, and Lü Bu sent men to persuade Han Xian and Yang Feng. Romance, Ch. 17 §8–10Records, Wei 7 §24
The stratagem that ruined Lü Bu: In Chapter 19 of the Romance, through Chen Deng's stratagem Lü Bu loses the Xiao Pass, Xu Province and Xiaopei one after another. The biography of Lü Bu in the Records has no such stratagem of Chen Deng; Lü Bu was captured after being besieged at Xiapi for three months, when his generals tied up Chen Gong and surrendered. Chen Deng's biography says only that he was given the added title of General Who Calms the Waves for his merit in pinning down Lü Bu from front and rear. Romance, Ch. 19 §13–18Records, Wei 7 §25–26 · 31
Che Zhou: In Chapter 21 of the Romance, Che Zhou discusses with Chen Deng a plan to kill Liu Bei, Chen Deng warns Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, and Guan Yu beheads Che Zhou. The Biography of the First Sovereign in the Records says only that after the First Sovereign occupied Xiapi he killed Che Zhou, Inspector of Xu Province, and Chen Deng does not appear. Romance, Ch. 21 §43 · 47Records, Shu 2 §16
The battle of Kuangqi: In the Biography of Chen Jiao in the Records, Chen Deng asked for relief when he was besieged by Sun Quan at Kuangqi, and when the Wu troops withdrew he pursued and crushed them. This battle does not appear in the Romance. Records, Wei 22 §59–60Romance, Ch. 78 §11–12
Hua Tuo's words: In Chapter 78 of the Romance, Hua Tuo says that if the illness returns after three years he cannot be saved. In the Biography of Hua Tuo in the Records, Hua Tuo said he could be saved if he met a good physician, and Chen Deng died because Hua Tuo was not at hand when the illness flared up. Romance, Ch. 78 §12Records, Wei 29 §17
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.
RSet ambushes and pursued Sun Quan's besiegers to crush them, and became General Who Calms the Waves for pinning down Lü BuWei 22 §60Wei 7 §31
NNo direct record — estimated from little more than holding off Che Zhou with arrows from the wallCh. 21 §46Ch. 19 §14
RAssessment: heroic spirit and firm integrity, though a reputation for arrogance is also recordedWei 7 §62Wei 22 §58
NDeceived and betrayed Lü Bu, calling himself a subject of the Han, and later handed Xu Province to Cao CaoCh. 19 §18Ch. 24 §28
RSaid to have a name weighty throughout the realm, and Chen Jiao and Xu Xuan set their hearts on Taizu with himWei 7 §31Wei 22 §68
NNo direct record — estimated from the trust shown when Cao Cao entrusted the affairs of the east to himCh. 16 §61
RWon an awe-inspiring name as Administrator of GuanglingWei 7 §31
NNo direct record — estimated from his post on the staff of Xu ProvinceCh. 12 §20
RSaw through Lü Bu's lack of plans and fickleness, and devised the plan to split off Han Xian and Yang FengWei 7 §20Wei 7 §24
NSet Chen Gong and Lü Bu against each other with false letters, and saw through Cao Cao's false bannersCh. 19 §13Ch. 22 §36Ch. 17 §7
RUnder Lü Bu he promised Taizu to act from inside, and kept his composure before the enraged Lü BuWei 7 §20Wei 7 §22
NLaughed his way out before Lü Bu's drawn sword, and laid plans in advance to keep his family safeCh. 16 §62Ch. 19 §11
RNo direct record — estimated from Liu Bei's praise of his civil and military talent and courageWei 7 §33
NNo direct record — estimated as the only record is of shooting arrows from the wallCh. 21 §46
RNamed Liu Bei and others as men he respected, and made Chen Jiao his friendWei 22 §58
NPointed out Zheng Xuan as the man who could move Yuan ShaoCh. 22 §1
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.
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