| Occupation | RGeneral · General-in-Chief Who Guards the North | Faction | Shu |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appears | RN | Biography in | Book of Shu |
| Born | R? Unverified | Native place | Ba Commandery Dangqu County |
| Died | R248 Unverified | Place of death | |
| Existence | Historical | Mentions | R22 |
Wang Ping, courtesy name Zijun, was a native of Dangqu County in Baxi Commandery. He was raised in the household of his mother's family, the He clan, and later reclaimed the surname Wang. He was a warrior who came to Hanzhong with Cao Cao and surrendered to the Former Lord, Liu Bei. Records, Shu 13 §35
In the 6th year of Jianxing (228) at Jieting he repeatedly remonstrated with Ma Su to no avail, and even after Ma Su's crushing defeat he kept the ranks of the 1,000 men under his command intact, gathered up the scattered troops, and brought them back, for which he was given high office. Later, as General-in-Chief Who Guards the North, he took charge of Hanzhong, and in the 7th year of Yanxi (244) he held off an army of more than 100,000 led by Cao Shuang of Wei at Xingshi; he died in the 11th year of Yanxi (248). Records, Shu 13 §35–36 · 38–41
In his assessment, Chen Shou wrote that Wang Ping was loyal, brave, and strict. In the Romance he first appeared in Chapter 71 as a General of the Standard in Cao Cao's camp and featured in 20 of its 120 chapters, though his name never appeared in a chapter title; his best-known scene is in Chapter 95, where he tried to stop Ma Su from pitching camp on the hill at Jieting. Records, Shu 13 §65Romance, Ch. 71 §51Romance, Ch. 95 §15–17
Wang Ping went to Luoyang with Du Hu and Pu Hu and became an acting Colonel; he came with Cao Cao on the campaign against Hanzhong and took the opportunity to surrender to the Former Lord, who appointed him General of the Standard (yamen jiang) and Subordinate General (pi jiangjun). Records, Shu 13 §35
In the 6th year of Jianxing (228) he was assigned to the vanguard of Army Adviser (canjun) Ma Su. When Ma Su abandoned the water and went up the hill, and his dispositions were confused and disorderly, Wang Ping repeatedly remonstrated with him, but Ma Su would not listen and suffered a crushing defeat at Jieting. The troops all scattered, but the 1,000 men under Wang Ping alone beat their drums and held their ranks, so the Wei general Zhang He, suspecting an ambush, did not close in. Wang Ping slowly gathered the stragglers from the various camps and led the officers and men back. Records, Shu 13 §35–36
Zhuge Liang executed Ma Su and the generals Zhang Xiu and Li Sheng and stripped General Huang Xi and others of their troops, but he singled out Wang Ping for distinction, making him Army Adviser in command of the Five Divisions and in charge of camp affairs, promoting him to General Who Suppresses Bandits (taokou jiangjun), and enfeoffing him as a precinct marquis. Records, Shu 13 §36
In the 9th year of Jianxing (231), when Zhuge Liang besieged Mount Qi, Wang Ping separately held the southern siege lines. Sima Yi of Wei attacked Zhuge Liang and Zhang He attacked Wang Ping, but Wang Ping held firm and did not budge, and Zhang He could not overcome him. Records, Shu 13 §37
In the 12th year of Jianxing (234), when Zhuge Liang died and the army was withdrawing, Wei Yan rose in revolt. Wei Yan seized the mouth of the Southern Valley and sent troops to attack Yang Yi and the others, who put He Ping (Wang Ping) in front to hold him off. He Ping rebuked Wei Yan's vanguard: "The Chancellor has died and his body is not yet cold—how dare you do this!" and Wei Yan's troops scattered. The Biography of Wang Ping records that Wei Yan's defeat in a single battle was Wang Ping's achievement. Records, Shu 13 §38Records, Shu 10 §63–64
He then became Rear Army Supervisor (hou dianjun) and General Who Pacifies Han, stationed in Hanzhong as deputy to General of Chariots and Cavalry Wu Yi, and concurrently Administrator of Hanzhong. In the 15th year (237) he was advanced to Marquis of Anhan and took over from Wu Yi the supervision of Hanzhong. In the 1st year of Yanxi (238), when General-in-Chief Jiang Wan was stationed at Mianyang, he became Protector of the Army of the Front and handled the affairs of Jiang Wan's headquarters, and in the 6th year (243), when Jiang Wan returned to Fu County, he became Army Supervisor of the Front and General-in-Chief Who Guards the North, in command of Hanzhong. Records, Shu 13 §38
In the spring of the 7th year of Yanxi (244), General-in-Chief Cao Shuang of Wei headed for Hanchuan with more than 100,000 infantry and cavalry, and his vanguard had already reached the Luo Valley. The troops guarding Hanzhong numbered fewer than 30,000, and the generals were greatly alarmed; some proposed holding only the two cities of Hancheng and Lecheng and waiting for relief from Fu County. Wang Ping said that Fu was nearly 1,000 li from Hanzhong and that it would be a disaster if the enemy took the pass; he proposed sending Protector of the Army Liu Min and others ahead to occupy Xingshi while he himself held the rear. Only Liu Min agreed with him, and the plan was carried out at once; when the armies from Fu and Fei Yi from Chengdu arrived one after another, the Wei army withdrew. At this time Deng Zhi in the east, Ma Zhong in the south, and Wang Ping on the northern frontier all won renown for their achievements. Records, Shu 13 §39–40Records, Shu 14 §17Records, Shu 3 §24
Having grown up in the army, Wang Ping could not write, and the characters he knew did not exceed ten, yet the documents he dictated were all meaningful and well reasoned. He had others read the Records of the Grand Historian and the Book of Han to him and fully grasped their main ideas. He kept to rules and regulations, did not jest, and sat upright from morning till evening, but his narrow, suspicious nature and his tendency to hold himself cheaply were his failings. He died in the 11th year of Yanxi (248), and his son Wang Xun succeeded him. Records, Shu 13 §41
In his assessment, Chen Shou named Wang Ping together with Huang Quan, Li Hui, Lü Kai, Ma Zhong, and Zhang Ni, saying that Wang Ping was loyal, brave, and strict, and writing that all of them made their names and achievements through their particular strengths because they met with the right times. Records, Shu 13 §65
In Chapter 71 of the Romance, Wang Ping stepped forward before Cao Cao's tent, saying that he knew the terrain there well and offering to help Xu Huang, and as a General of the Standard he became Xu Huang's deputy vanguard. When Xu Huang, citing the precedent of Han Xin, wanted to cross the Han River and form up his troops, Wang Ping dissuaded him, saying that Han Xin had reckoned that his enemy had no strategy. In Chapter 72, after a heavy defeat by Zhao Yun and Huang Zhong, Xu Huang tried to kill Wang Ping for not coming to his rescue, and that night Wang Ping set fire to the camp, crossed the Han River, and surrendered to Zhao Yun. Liu Bei said, "Now that I have gained Wang Zijun, there is no doubt that I will take Hanzhong," made him Lieutenant General, and put him in charge of guiding the way. Romance, Ch. 71 §51–52Romance, Ch. 72 §3–4
On the southern campaign in Chapter 87 he went along as a deputy general with Zhang Yi, and facing Meng Huo he feigned flight to lure him into an ambush. In Chapter 93 he and Zhang Yi attacked Jiang Wei from both sides. Romance, Ch. 87 §7 · 45–48Romance, Ch. 93 §21
In Chapter 95 Zhuge Liang, saying that he knew Wang Ping had always been cautious, had him guard Jieting together with Ma Su. Wang Ping proposed building the camp at the junction where five roads met, and when Ma Su wanted to camp on the hill, he tried to stop him, warning that if the Wei army cut off their route to water, the troops would fall into disorder without even fighting. With the 5,000 men Ma Su allotted him, he built a camp 10 li from the hill, drew a map of its layout and sent it to Zhuge Liang, and when the Wei army arrived, he fought Zhang He for dozens of bouts before withdrawing. Romance, Ch. 95 §9 · 14–18 · 25
In Chapter 96 Zhuge Liang first summoned Wang Ping and rebuked him for not remonstrating, and Wang Ping replied that he had urged Ma Su two or three times but Ma Su would not listen, going on to report how he had rescued Wei Yan and Gao Xiang from encirclement. Zhuge Liang told Ma Su that had he listened to Wang Ping early on, this disaster would not have happened. Romance, Ch. 96 §6–9
In Chapter 102, when the Wei army was transporting grain with wooden oxen and gliding horses, he followed Zhuge Liang's plan, disguised his men as Wei troops and slipped in, beheaded the Wei general Cen Wei, and seized the wooden oxen and gliding horses. When Guo Huai gave chase, he twisted the tongues of the oxen and horses so that they could not move and withdrew, then came back and defeated Guo Huai. Romance, Ch. 102 §55–56 · 59–61
In Chapter 105, when Wei Yan burned the plank roads and camped in the Southern Valley, Yang Yi sent his vanguard He Ping ahead. He Ping rebuked Wei Yan, asking how he could rebel when the Chancellor's body was not yet cold, and called on the soldiers of Xichuan to return to their homes, scattering more than half of them; then, after fighting Wei Yan for a few bouts, he feigned flight. In this passage the Romance calls this general only "He Ping." Romance, Ch. 105 §12–16
Surrender: In Chapters 71–72 of the Romance, Wang Ping came out as Xu Huang's deputy vanguard, and when Xu Huang, after his defeat, tried to kill him, he set fire to the camp and surrendered to Zhao Yun. The Records' Biography of Wang Ping has nothing about Xu Huang and says only that he came with Cao Cao on the campaign against Hanzhong and took the opportunity to surrender to the Former Lord. Romance, Ch. 71 §51Romance, Ch. 72 §3–4Records, Shu 13 §35 · 34–41
His first post: In Chapter 72 of the Romance, Liu Bei made him Lieutenant General and put him in charge of guiding the way. In the Records, after surrendering he was appointed General of the Standard and Subordinate General. Romance, Ch. 72 §4Records, Shu 13 §35
His troops at Jieting: In Chapter 95 of the Romance, he built a camp 10 li from the hill with the 5,000 men Ma Su allotted him, and fought Zhang He until his strength gave out and he withdrew. In the Records, when the 1,000 men under Wang Ping alone beat their drums and held their ranks, Zhang He suspected an ambush and did not close in, and Wang Ping gathered the scattered troops and returned. Romance, Ch. 95 §18 · 25Records, Shu 13 §36
After Jieting: In Chapter 96 of the Romance, Zhuge Liang first summoned Wang Ping and rebuked him for not remonstrating. In the Records, while Zhuge Liang executed Ma Su, Zhang Xiu, and Li Sheng and stripped Huang Xi of his troops, he singled out Wang Ping alone for distinction, making him Army Adviser and General Who Suppresses Bandits and enfeoffing him as a precinct marquis. Romance, Ch. 96 §6Records, Shu 13 §36
The wooden oxen and gliding horses: In Chapter 102 of the Romance, Wang Ping seized the Wei army's wooden oxen and gliding horses. This does not appear in the Records' Biography of Wang Ping, and in the Biography of Zhuge Liang the wooden oxen and gliding horses were what Zhuge Liang used to transport grain. Romance, Ch. 102 §59–61Records, Shu 13 §34–41Records, Shu 5 §37–38
He Ping: Chapter 105 of the Romance calls Yang Yi's vanguard, who blocked Wei Yan, only "He Ping," and he fought Wei Yan and then feigned flight. The Records' Biography of Wang Ping states that Wang Ping was originally raised in the household of his mother's family, the He clan, and in the Biography of Wei Yan, too, the one who rebuked Wei Yan's vanguard and scattered it was He Ping. The Biography of Wang Ping credits Wang Ping with Wei Yan's defeat in a single battle. Romance, Ch. 105 §12–15Records, Shu 13 §35 · 38Records, Shu 10 §63–64
Xingshi: Wang Ping's defense at Xingshi against Cao Shuang's army of more than 100,000 in the 7th year of Yanxi (244), recorded in the Records, does not appear in the Romance. In the Romance, Wang Ping appears no more after Chapter 105. Records, Shu 13 §39–40Romance, Ch. 105 §16
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.
RAt the defeat at Jieting kept his 1,000 men in formation and gathered the stragglers, and held off Zhang He's attackShu 13 §36Shu 13 §37Shu 13 §65
NBuilt a separate camp at Jieting, took Yinping, and led the forward unit several timesCh. 95 §18Ch. 99 §5Ch. 102 §21
RThe assessment calls him loyal and brave, but there is no record of personal feats of armsShu 13 §65
NFought Zhang He for dozens of bouts and cut down Cen Wei with a single strokeCh. 95 §25Ch. 102 §60
RRepeatedly remonstrated with Ma Su, and his plan to block the enemy first at Xingshi worked exactly as intendedShu 13 §35Shu 13 §39
NOpposed Xu Huang's crossing of the Han River and Ma Su's camp on the hill, and saw through Wang Shuang's feigned retreatCh. 72 §1Ch. 95 §15Ch. 97 §32
RNo direct record — estimated from his concurrent post as Administrator of HanzhongShu 13 §38
NNo direct record — estimated from his career as a warriorCh. 72 §4
RGathered the scattered troops and brought them back, but was said to be narrow and suspicious by natureShu 13 §36Shu 13 §41
NNo direct record — estimated from records of his being trusted as a general long seasoned in battleCh. 104 §8
RKept to rules and did not jest, and the assessment calls him loyal and strict, though his narrowness was said to be a failingShu 13 §41Shu 13 §65
NZhuge Liang called him a loyal and righteous man, and he rebuked Wei Yan's rebellionCh. 104 §8Ch. 105 §14
RWith fewer than 30,000 troops, when many urged holding only the cities, he resolved to go out and block the enemy at XingshiShu 13 §39
NWhen cornered by Xu Huang he crossed the Han River and defected, and at Jieting escaped disaster by building a separate campCh. 72 §3Ch. 95 §18
RKnew no more than ten characters, but grasped the main ideas of the Records of the Grand Historian and the Book of Han by having them read aloudShu 13 §41
NNo direct record — estimated from his career as a warriorCh. 72 §4
RWhen he rebuked Wei Yan's vanguard, the soldiers would not risk their lives and scatteredShu 10 §64
NAppealed to the soldiers of Xichuan and scattered more than half of Wei Yan's troopsCh. 105 §14
RNo direct record — estimated from his career as the general supervising HanzhongShu 13 §38
NNo direct record — estimated from his career as a warriorCh. 95 §18
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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