Lü Jian 呂建
| Occupation | RGeneral · General NGeneral · Deputy General | Faction | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appears | RN | Biography in | |
| Existence | Historical | Mentions | R1 |
Profile
Lü Jian was a general of Wei. He has no separate biography in the Records, and his name appears once in Chen Shou's main text, in the Biography of Xu Huang in Records of Wei 17. In the 24th year of Jian'an (219), when Guan Yu besieged Cao Ren at Fan, Cao Cao sent the generals Xu Shang, Lü Jian and others to Xu Huang, who was stationed at Yanglingpo, to wait until all the troops and horses had assembled and then advance together. Chen Shou's main text does not record his courtesy name, his origins or the dates of his birth and death. Records, Wei 1 §168Records, Wei 17 §65
In the Romance he first appears in Chapter 75 as Xu Huang's deputy general and appears in 2 of its 120 chapters, Chapters 75 and 76; no chapter title bears his name. In Chapter 76 he goes with Xu Shang to Yancheng under Xu Huang's banners and fights Guan Ping, but is defeated and flees, and that night, when Guan Ping raids the Wei camp, he attacks him from both sides together with Xu Shang. Romance, Ch. 75 §15Romance, Ch. 76 §7–8 · 13
In the Records
Lü Jian was a general of Wei. He has no separate biography in the Records, and the only place in Chen Shou's main text where his name appears is a single passage in the Biography of Xu Huang in Records of Wei 17. His courtesy name, his origins, his later offices and his death are not recorded. Records, Wei 17 §56–70
According to the Annals of Emperor Wu, in the 7th month, in autumn, of the 24th year of Jian'an (219), Cao Cao sent Yu Jin to help Cao Ren attack Guan Yu. In the 8th month the Han River overflowed and Yu Jin's army was submerged, whereupon Guan Yu captured Yu Jin and went on to besiege Cao Ren, and Cao Cao had Xu Huang go to his relief. Records, Wei 1 §168
According to the Biography of Xu Huang, Xu Huang had been stationed at Wan, and when Guan Yu besieged Cao Ren at Fan and the general Lü Chang at Xiangyang, Xu Huang, judging that most of the troops under him were new recruits and that it would be hard to meet Guan Yu head-on, advanced and stationed himself at Yanglingpo. Taizu (Cao Cao) returned once more and sent the generals Xu Shang, Lü Jian and others to Xu Huang, ordering them to wait until all the troops and horses had assembled and then advance together. Records, Wei 17 §65
Xu Huang then reached Yancheng and, by deceptively digging a great trench as if to cut off the enemy's rear, made the enemy burn their camp and flee. When Taizu sent him twelve more encampments one after another, Xu Huang spread word that he would attack the camp at the head of the siege lines and secretly attacked Sizhong, defeating Guan Yu, who came out to fight, and broke into the siege lines. The Biography of Xu Huang does not record separately what Lü Jian did in this battle. Records, Wei 17 §66
In the Romance
In Chapter 75 of the Romance, after Yu Jin and the others have been submerged, Cao Cao says that he will send an envoy to Eastern Wu on the one hand, and on the other must find a great general to withstand Yunchang's spearhead. When Xu Huang steps forward, Cao Cao is overjoyed, assigns fifty thousand picked troops with Xu Huang as commander and Lü Jian as his deputy, has them set out on a fixed day and station themselves at Yanglingpo, and orders them to advance only after seeing a response from the southeast. Romance, Ch. 75 §14–15
In Chapter 76 Cao Cao sends a man to urge Xu Huang to fight Lord Guan quickly and lift the siege of Fancheng. When a scout reports that Guan Ping has stationed troops at Yancheng and Liao Hua at Sizhong, with twelve camps linked without a break, Xu Huang has his deputy generals Xu Shang and Lü Jian hoist his own banners as a ruse and go to Yancheng to fight Guan Ping, while he himself leads five hundred picked troops along the Mian River to strike Yancheng from the rear. Romance, Ch. 76 §6–8
Hearing that Xu Huang has come in person, Guan Ping comes out to meet him in battle and drives off Xu Shang in three bouts, and Lü Jian, who comes out to fight, is also defeated and flees after five or six bouts. While Guan Ping, riding his victory, pursues them for more than twenty li, fire breaks out inside Yancheng, and Guan Ping, turning back, is blocked by Xu Huang and flees to the camp at Sizhong. Romance, Ch. 76 §8–9
After Guan Ping and Liao Hua go to relieve the First Camp due north, Guan Ping raids the Wei camp that night but finds not a single man there. Realizing it is a trap, he hastily withdraws, but Xu Shang from the left and Lü Jian from the right attack him from both sides; badly defeated, Guan Ping and Liao Hua abandon the First Camp and head for the camp at Sizhong, only to find nothing but Wei banners there. The Romance records nothing more of Lü Jian after this. Romance, Ch. 76 §11–13
Where the Romance differs
How he joined Xu Huang: In Chapter 75 of the Romance, Cao Cao makes Xu Huang commander and Lü Jian his deputy and sends them out together from the start. In the Biography of Xu Huang in the Records, Xu Huang first stationed himself at Yanglingpo, after which Taizu returned once more and sent the generals Xu Shang, Lü Jian and others to Xu Huang, telling them to wait until all the troops and horses had assembled and then advance together. Romance, Ch. 75 §15Records, Wei 17 §65
The battle of Yancheng: In Chapter 76 of the Romance, Lü Jian goes with Xu Shang under Xu Huang's banners, fights Guan Ping at Yancheng and is defeated and flees, while in the meantime Xu Huang strikes Yancheng from the rear. The Biography of Xu Huang in the Records says only that when Xu Huang reached Yancheng and dug a great trench as if to cut off the enemy's rear, the enemy burned their camp and fled; Lü Jian does not appear. Romance, Ch. 76 §7–9Records, Wei 17 §66
The battle of Sizhong: In Chapter 76 of the Romance, Lü Jian attacks Guan Ping from both sides together with Xu Shang when Guan Ping raids the camp. The Biography of Xu Huang in the Records states that Xu Huang spread word that he would attack the camp at the head of the siege lines, secretly attacked Sizhong and defeated Guan Yu, and neither Lü Jian nor Guan Ping appears in this passage. Romance, Ch. 76 §13Records, Wei 17 §66
Rank: In Chapters 75 and 76 of the Romance, Lü Jian is called Xu Huang's deputy general. The Biography of Xu Huang in the Records describes him, together with Xu Shang, as a 'general'. Romance, Ch. 75 §15Romance, Ch. 76 §7Records, Wei 17 §65
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.
- LEA4850+2
- STR4538−7
- INT3538+3
- POL3131±0
- CHA3535±0
- VIR4545±0
- ADP4040±0
- SCH3131±0
- DIP3131±0
- DIS3131±0
Abilities shaped by the Romance — where it differs from the Records Differences of 10 or more
No ability differs by 10 or more — the Romance portrays this person much as the Records do.
10 similar abilities — show evidence
RNo direct record — estimated as a general sent to Xu HuangWei 17 §65
NAttacked Guan Ping from left and right with Xu Shang and routed himCh. 76 §13Ch. 75 §15
RNo direct record — estimated from his title of generalWei 17 §65
NWas defeated by Guan Ping in five or six bouts and fledCh. 76 §8
RNo direct record — estimated from his deedsWei 17 §65
NNo direct record — estimated from his deedsCh. 76 §7
RNo direct record — no record of administrationWei 17 §65
NNo direct record — no record of administrationCh. 75 §15
RNo direct record — estimated from his deedsWei 17 §65
NNo direct record — estimated from his deedsCh. 75 §15
RNo direct record — estimated from his deedsWei 17 §65
NNo direct record — estimated from his deedsCh. 75 §15
RNo direct record — estimated from his deedsWei 17 §65
NNo direct record — estimated from his deedsCh. 76 §8
RNo direct record — no record of learningWei 17 §65
NNo direct record — estimated as a military officerCh. 75 §15
RNo direct record — estimated from his deedsWei 17 §65
NNo direct record — estimated from his deedsCh. 75 §15
RNo direct record — estimated from his deedsWei 17 §65
NNo direct record — estimated from his deedsCh. 75 §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.
Romance chapters (2)
AppearsNot present Chapter list →
Related events (2)
- Xu Huang Battles on the Mian River 219 · Appears (Romance scene)
- Battle of Fancheng 219 · Command
Includes automatic matching from Wikipedia infoboxes and source keywords (unverified).