The Lands Liu Bei Conquered in the History Books

The Lands Liu Bei Conquered in the History Books

I’m Tao Jian, a greasy thirty-something man in the twenty-first century. I failed at studying science, and I failed at studying the humanities, too. But there was one thing: thanks to the boom in college enrollment, I spent a few extra years in school and earned a degree. Now I think I’m well-read and love playing the teacher. Recently, after a long spell of doing nothing, I’ve felt the urge to “share knowledge and answer questions” again. But who wants to listen to someone ramble, or be their student? What can I do? So I’ve decided to tell stories online. Maybe someone will enjoy listening! But enough of that. Let’s take a look at the rise of Emperor Zhaolie, Liu Bei.

Who was Liu Bei? There’s no need to elaborate. What Chinese person doesn’t know Romance of the Three Kingdoms? Who hasn’t heard of Uncle Liu? The founder of the Shu Han regime, he wept his way to a great kingdom. He was the elder brother of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, Zhuge Liang’s lord, and the father of Liu Shan, the Later Lord. The Liu Bei we know is the one polished by novelists, colored by their personal feelings and their support for Liu and opposition to Cao. Here, I, Tao Jian, will join you readers in exploring what sort of person Liu Bei was according to historical works such as Records of the Three Kingdoms, Book of the Later Han, and Zizhi Tongjian. Together, we’ll examine how a man who wove mats and sold shoes began his rise and became an emperor of his age.