Liao Hua 廖化

Liao Hua was Registrar (zhubu) to Guan Yu, General of the Front, and when Guan Yu was defeated he came under Wu. Wanting to return to the First Sovereign, he feigned death, and people at the time believed it; taking the chance, he set out west day and night with his aged mother. As it happened, the First Sovereign had set out on his eastern campaign, and they met at Zigui; the First Sovereign was overjoyed and made him Administrator of Yidu. Records, Shu 15 §24

When the First Sovereign died he became Army Adviser to the Chancellor (chengxiang canjun). In the 1st year of Jianxing (223), when Zhuge Liang opened his office and made Jiang Wan Officer of the Eastern Bureau, Jiang Wan was nominated as Flourishing Talent (maocai) and firmly declined, yielding it to four men, among whom was Liao Chun. Liao Hua later commanded at Guangwu. Records, Shu 15 §24Records, Shu 14 §4

When Jiang Wei went out to Shiying and headed west to meet Zhiwudai, Liao Hua, Administrator of Yinping, remained on Mount Chengzhong to build a fortress and gathered the defeated Qiang as hostages. Guo Huai of Wei, reasoning that if he attacked Liao Hua, Jiang Wei would look back over his shoulder in unease, attacked Liao Hua in person, and Jiang Wei did indeed ride back to rescue him. In the 1st year of Jiaping (249) Jiang Wei sent Liao Hua to make camp south of the Bai River facing Deng Ai of Wei, but Deng Ai judged that this was meant to pin him down, went to Taocheng by night, and seized it first. A Wei edict cited the crushing of Liao Hua among Guo Huai's merits. Records, Wei 26 §75–77Records, Wei 28 §54–55

Liao Hua rose step by step to General of Chariots and Cavalry of the Right, was granted the Credential (jiajie), concurrently served as Inspector of Bing Province, and was enfeoffed as Marquis of Zhongxiang. He was known for being bold and fierce, and in office and rank he was level with Zhang Yi and above Zong Yu. When Zhuge Zhan first took charge of court affairs, Liao Hua called on Zong Yu and proposed that they visit Zhuge Zhan together, but Zong Yu, saying, "We are past seventy and have already taken more than our due; all we lack is death," declared that he could not go calling at a young man's gate, and in the end did not go. Records, Shu 15 §24 · 21–22

In the 6th year of Jingyao (263), Jiang Wei, anticipating Zhong Hui's invasion, memorialized proposing that Zhang Yi and Liao Hua be sent to guard the entrance of Yang'an Pass and the bridgehead at Yinping respectively, but Huang Hao spoke to the Latter Sovereign and had the matter shelved. Only when Zhong Hui and Deng Ai moved was Liao Hua, General of Chariots and Cavalry of the Right, sent to Tazhong to help Jiang Wei. When Jiang Wei, beaten by Deng Ai, returned to Yinping and the entrance of the pass fell, Jiang Wei and Liao Hua abandoned Yinping and withdrew, joined Zhang Yi and Dong Jue, and held Jiange against Zhong Hui. Records, Shu 14 §43–45Records, Shu 3 §43Records, Wei 28 §105

When the Latter Sovereign surrendered to Deng Ai and issued an edict, Jiang Wei and the others went to Zhong Hui and surrendered. In a memorial Zhong Hui wrote that Jiang Wei, Zhang Yi, Liao Hua, Dong Jue and others had fled to escape death and tried to head for Chengdu. In the spring of the 1st year of Xianxi (264), Liao Hua was moved to Luoyang together with Zong Yu, but died of illness on the way. Records, Shu 14 §47Records, Wei 28 §115Records, Shu 15 §25

In the assessment for this volume Chen Shou discussed Deng Zhi, Zhang Yi, Zong Yu and Yang Xi, saying that Zhang Yi stood up to Jiang Wei's sharp drive, but he gave no separate assessment of Liao Hua. Records, Shu 15 §85