Zhang Wen 張溫
| Occupation | ROfficial · Grand Commandant NOfficial · Minister of Works | Faction | Eastern Han |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appears | RN | Biography in | |
| Born | Native place | 吳郡 | |
| Cause of death | RExecuted NExecuted Unverified | ||
| Existence | Historical | Mentions | R10 |
Profile
Zhang Wen was a high minister of the Later Han, a different person from Zhang Wen of Wu. He has no biography of his own in the Records and appears scattered through the biographies of others. In the 3rd year of Zhongping (186), as Minister of Works acting as General of Chariots and Cavalry, he set out west to attack Bian Zhang and Han Sui, who had rebelled in Liang Province, and memorialized to have Sun Jian made his Military Adviser (canjunshi). Records, Wu 1 §8Records, Wei 6 §14Records, Wei 8 §24
At this time he rebuked Dong Zhuo, who had been summoned and arrived late, and though Sun Jian urged him to behead Dong Zhuo under military law, he could not bring himself to do it. Later, while he was Minister of the Guards, Dong Zhuo, with whom he had long been on bad terms, had someone say that he was in collusion with Yuan Shu and had him flogged to death. Records, Wu 1 §8–10Records, Wei 6 §14
In his assessment in the biography of Sun Jian, Chen Shou cited Sun Jian's leading Zhang Wen to kill Dong Zhuo as a mark of his loyal and heroic spirit. In the Romance he appears in Chapter 8 as the Minister of Works who, at a gathering of all the officials called by Dong Zhuo, is dragged out by Lü Bu and beheaded; he appears in 1 of its 120 chapters, and his name is in no chapter title. Records, Wu 1 §41Romance, Ch. 8 §6–7
In the Records
Bian Zhang and Han Sui rebelled in Liang Province, and the General of the Household Dong Zhuo resisted and attacked them without success. In the 3rd year of Zhongping (186) the court made the Minister of Works Zhang Wen acting General of Chariots and Cavalry and sent him west to attack Bian Zhang and the others. Zhang Wen memorialized requesting that Sun Jian be made his Military Adviser and encamped at Chang'an. The biography of the Consultant Tao Qian also records that he took part in the army of the General of Chariots and Cavalry Zhang Wen and campaigned west against Han Sui. Records, Wu 1 §8Records, Wei 8 §24
Zhang Wen summoned Dong Zhuo with an edict, but Dong Zhuo came only after a long delay. When Zhang Wen rebuked him, Dong Zhuo's answers were disrespectful. Sun Jian, who was present, stepped forward and whispered to Zhang Wen that Dong Zhuo was not afraid of punishment and was talking big, and that he should be beheaded under military law for failing to come promptly when summoned. Zhang Wen replied that Dong Zhuo had long been known for his prestige and reputation between Longxi and Shu, and that if he were killed today they would have no one to rely on in advancing west. Records, Wu 1 §8–9
Sun Jian asked why, when Zhang Wen himself was leading the royal army, he should depend on Dong Zhuo, and he listed Dong Zhuo's three crimes: slighting his superior and behaving without courtesy; obstructing the army and confusing the troops by saying the time was not yet right when he should have advanced; and achieving nothing in his charge, delaying in answer to the summons and yet behaving arrogantly. Zhang Wen could not bring himself to act and said, 'You had better go back for now; Dong Zhuo will grow suspicious,' and Sun Jian rose and left. When Bian Zhang and Han Sui heard that the great army was about to arrive, their followers scattered and they all begged to surrender. Records, Wu 1 §9–10
When the army returned, those deliberating did not determine merit and rewards, since the army had not faced the enemy. But when they heard that Sun Jian had listed Dong Zhuo's three crimes and urged Zhang Wen to behead him, there was no one who did not sigh. Records, Wu 1 §11
According to the Biography of Dong Zhuo, the Grand Astrologer (taishi 太史) observed the vapors and said that one of the great ministers would be put to death. The former Grand Commandant Zhang Wen was then Minister of the Guards; he had long been on bad terms with Dong Zhuo, who resented him in his heart. Seizing on the celestial portent to shift the blame onto him, Dong Zhuo had someone say that Zhang Wen was in collusion with Yuan Shu and then had him flogged to death. The Records do not give the year. The Biography of Dong Zhuo places this after Dong Zhuo reached the western capital and became Grand Preceptor (taishi 太師), and before Dong Zhuo was killed in the 4th month of the 3rd year of Chuping (192). Records, Wei 6 §12 · 14 · 16
In his assessment in the biography of Sun Jian, Chen Shou said that Sun Jian was brave, resolute, upright and steadfast, and that in leading Zhang Wen to kill Dong Zhuo and in filling and closing the imperial tombs he showed a loyal and heroic spirit. Records, Wu 1 §41
In the Romance
In Chapter 8 of the Romance, Dong Zhuo travels back and forth between Chang'an and the Mei Fortress, and the ministers see him off outside the Heng Gate. One day Dong Zhuo detains the officials who have come out to see him off and holds a banquet, and before their seats he has several hundred soldiers who had surrendered from Beidi have their hands and feet cut off, their eyes gouged out and their tongues cut out, and boiled in cauldrons. Romance, Ch. 8 §5–6
On another day Dong Zhuo holds a great assembly of the officials at the Secretariat and seats them in two rows. When the wine has gone round several times, Lü Bu walks straight in and says a few words in Dong Zhuo's ear; Dong Zhuo laughs and orders Lü Bu to seize the Minister of Works Zhang Wen from his seat and drag him down from the hall. Before long an attendant comes in bearing Zhang Wen's head on a red platter. Dong Zhuo tells the officials not to be alarmed: Zhang Wen had colluded with Yuan Shu to do him harm, but the letter he had someone send had mistakenly fallen into the hands of his son Fengxian (Lü Bu), and so he had simply beheaded him. Romance, Ch. 8 §6–7
The Minister over the Masses Wang Yun returns to his residence and, brooding over what happened at the banquet that day, cannot sit at ease; going out into the rear garden at night, he comes upon the singing girl Diaochan. This is the only chapter of the Romance in which Zhang Wen appears. Romance, Ch. 8 §8
Where the Romance differs
Manner of death: In Chapter 8 of the Romance, at a gathering of all the officials, Dong Zhuo has Lü Bu drag Zhang Wen out and behead him, and his head is brought in on a platter. In the Biography of Dong Zhuo in the Records, Dong Zhuo had someone say that Zhang Wen was in collusion with Yuan Shu and then had him flogged to death. Romance, Ch. 8 §6Records, Wei 6 §14
Reason for the killing: In Chapter 8 of the Romance, Dong Zhuo says that a letter Zhang Wen sent in collusion with Yuan Shu mistakenly fell into Lü Bu's hands. In the Records, when the Grand Astrologer (taishi 太史) said that one of the great ministers would be put to death, Dong Zhuo, in order to shift the blame for the celestial portent onto Zhang Wen, with whom he had long been on bad terms, had the charge of collusion fabricated. There is no story about a letter. Romance, Ch. 8 §7Records, Wei 6 §14
Office at death: Chapter 8 of the Romance calls him Minister of Works. The Biography of Dong Zhuo in the Records states that he was then a former Grand Commandant serving as Minister of the Guards. In the biography of Sun Jian, Minister of Works is his office when he set out on the western campaign in the 3rd year of Zhongping (186). Romance, Ch. 8 §6Records, Wei 6 §14Records, Wu 1 §8
The western campaign and Sun Jian's advice: The Romance mentions neither Zhang Wen's setting out, as acting General of Chariots and Cavalry, to attack Bian Zhang and Han Sui, nor Sun Jian's urging him to behead Dong Zhuo for arriving late. In the biography of Sun Jian in the Records, Zhang Wen heard Sun Jian's advice but, saying that Dong Zhuo would grow suspicious, could not bring himself to act. Romance, Ch. 8 §6Records, Wu 1 §8–10
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.
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.
Records total447 / 1000Rank 377 of 996 · Top 38%Romance total397 / 1000Rank 540 of 1,113 · Top 49%
Romance adaptation index−50Romance total − Records total
- LEA5031−19
- STR3131±0
- INT4535−10
- POL5545−10
- CHA4540−5
- VIR5562+7
- ADP2835+7
- SCH4040±0
- DIP4040±0
- DIS5838−20
Abilities shaped by the Romance — where it differs from the Records Differences of 10 or more
6 similar abilities — show evidence
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 (1)
AppearsNot present Chapter list →
Allegiance history
- Eastern Han · Records · 「中平三年，遣司空張溫行車騎將軍，西討章等」 · 「導溫戮卓」 · 「故太尉張溫時爲衞尉…遂笞殺之」 · 「參車騎將軍張溫軍事」
Related events (1)
- Liang Province rebellion · Command
Includes automatic matching from Wikipedia infoboxes and source keywords (unverified).