[Wen Mang — Voiceover]
An ally in that condition was never someone you could truly trust.
Shu-Han's blind faith became the seed of everything that followed.
The first tragedy was strategic.
Liu Bei completely underestimated how much both Sun Quan and Cao Cao valued the Xiangfan region. Worse, he trusted Sun Quan far too much. At the critical moment, he allowed Shu-Han's main forces—the very army that should have pinned the enemy in place—to withdraw back to Chengdu. What remained at the front was Zhuge Liang, holding the line with nothing more than a small diversionary force.
Both The Biography of Liao Li and the Records of Yuanhe record what happened next. After returning to Chengdu, Liu Bei sent Kongming through Luogu and the Xingshi Mountains, hoping to create pressure by distraction.
But a distraction was still only a distraction.
It wasn't enough to make Cao Cao hesitate.
The Cao army ignored it entirely and advanced with full force.
Thanks to the light screen's earlier explanation of Yi Province's geography, everyone in the hall immediately understood the map.
"Xingshi Mountain and Luogu…" Zhang Fei said, realization dawning. "Isn't that just the Tangluo Path? The screen said that road was built during the Tang Dynasty. If it's that bad, how many troops could even pass through? No wonder Cao Cao didn't care!"
"The fault lies with me." Liu Bei shook his head.
"Brother, don't say that!" Guan Yu said firmly. "The collapse at Xiangfan happened in less than a month. Who could have predicted it?"
Zhang Fei's fingers clenched. Just thinking of Mi Fang's betrayal—how it caused everything to fall apart so completely—made his knuckles itch.
[Wen Mang — Voiceover]
The second tragedy was one of personnel.
Guan Yu was an exceptional battlefield commander in Jing-Xiang. That much was undeniable. But he was also the Governor of Xiangyang—and his diplomatic skills were, frankly, disastrous.
To seize Hanzhong, Liu Bei had stripped Jing-Xiang of its talent. Those who could have advised or restrained Guan Yu—men like Kongming and Ma Liang—had all been transferred elsewhere. Militarily, key fortresses such as Gongan and Jiangling were left in the hands of absolute straw bags like Shi Ren and Mi Fang.
While reports of victory poured in from the Jing-Xiang front, Sun Wu quietly infiltrated the region politically. By the time the blow came, Jing Province was already full of holes.
One decisive strike was enough to bring it all down—and to secure Lu Meng's fame.
Mi Zhu lowered his head, tears falling silently. His own younger brother… the thought alone broke his heart.
The others glanced at Guan Yu, expecting anger or denial.
Instead, Guan Yu stepped forward and clasped his hands.
"The chaos in Jing-Xiang," he said evenly, "is my responsibility. I also request that Ma Liang be appointed as my Chief of Staff. Is this acceptable?"
Liu Bei was startled. Is this still my proud, stubborn second brother?
But Guan Yu's thoughts were clear. Time waits for no man.
The Green Dragon Blade in his hand seemed to thirst for the blood of barbarians once more.
"Then it shall be as Yunchang says," Liu Bei replied without hesitation.
[Wen Mang — Voiceover]
Yet what is most regrettable are those Han officials with bones of iron.
Consider Yuan Long and Wu Dang, who rose to support Guan Yu before the Xiang River Treaty. Yuan Long was killed by Lu Dai at Liling. Wu Dang openly rebuked Lu Su:
"I received my mandate from the Han Emperor. I know only Han—I know nothing of Wu."
He returned to his village and never served again.
Zhao Lei, Guan Yu's Chief of Staff, stayed by his side until the very end and died rather than surrender.
Liao Hua, a registrar under Guan Yu, pretended to surrender to Sun Wu, then faked his own death just to carry his mother back to Shu.
In Lingling, the brothers Xi Zhen and Xi Hong joined Fan Zhou of Wuling and rebelled against Wu. They resisted the defector Pan Jun for an entire year before finally being defeated. Xi Hong ended up in Sun Wu but never served again. Fan Zhou refused to surrender and was killed by Pan Jun.
Xi Zhen left behind a final message:
"I must be a ghost of Han, not a minister of Wu. You cannot force me."
Then he took his own life.
The weight of those words filled the hall.
For a moment, no one spoke.
"Fine men!" Zhang Fei slammed his hand on the table. "Every one of them—fine men of the Great Han!" He turned toward Liu Bei. "Brother, with people like this, why fear a lack of talent? These are Han ministers of one heart with us!"
At the upper table, Liu Bei said nothing. He spread out a sheet of paper and carefully wrote down each name, stroke by stroke.
At the same time, he cast Zhang Fei a flat glance.
Do you really need to tell me that?
Zhang Fei admired the names one by one. Guan Yu did the same, though Zhao Lei's name made him pause slightly—he had just promised Ma Liang the same role.
"Since the Xi brothers and Fan Zhou rebelled against Wu," Kongming said slowly, "that means Yunchang had already fallen by then. And they held out against Pan Jun for a full year?"
He looked up, eyes sharp.
"That means even if Jiangling and Gongan fell quickly, Sun Wu still needed an entire year to truly control Jing Province. Under my lord's rule, the people's hearts still leaned toward us."
Kongming turned to Jiang Wan, noticing his strange expression.
"Gongyan," he asked, "is there someone here you know?"
Jiang Wan stood, hesitating. "I am from Lingling. I have only heard of the Xi brothers… but Pan Jun is my cousin. He recently wrote to me, hoping I would recommend him."
"That bastard!" Zhang Fei cursed. "The nerve! Surrendering is one thing—but harming loyal men? Let him come! I want to see just how shameless he is!"
Sweat broke out on Jiang Wan's forehead.
Liu Bei intervened gently. "Let him come. He seems capable. As long as we do not lose our lands to Sun or Cao, why would such a man defect? Assign him under Yunchang. If he shows any sign of betrayal—then deal with him."
[Wen Mang — Voiceover]
Sun Quan traded Second Lord Guan's head for the title of Prince of Wu under Great Wei.
Guan Yu was gone.
But his legacy had only begun.
Among the common people, his name became synonymous with loyalty and righteousness.
During the Northern Song, the so-called Brothel Emperor—Zhao Ji—started the trend, enfeoffing Guan Yu as the Duke of Loyal Grace.
After painting was added to the Imperial Examinations, Guan Yu was elevated to True Sovereign of Chongning. Following a bad omen from the Yellow River, he became the Prince of Martial Peace. After the Song Jiang and Fang La rebellions, his title expanded to Righteous and Brave Prince of Martial Peace.
Later, Emperor Wanyan Gou—also known as Zhao Gou—added even more words: Righteous, Brave, and Martial Peace Prince of Stately Mourning. Song Xiaozong appended Heroic Relief.
As for the Yuan Dynasty… let's not even start. They gave him twelve titles in total.
During the Ming, the Slacker Emperor Jiajing outdid them all, naming him:
Holy Emperor Guan, Great Demon-Subduing Emperor of the Three Realms, the Heavenly Worthy Whose Divine Might Reaches Far.
Not to be outdone, the Tree-Hanging Emperor Chongzhen added:
True Essence Manifesting, Brightly Shining, Han-Supporting Heavenly Worthy.
As for the Qing… forget it. Just reciting the titles feels like padding the runtime. Second Lord Guan would probably find the whole thing both ridiculous and tragic.
But for him—
Swearing the Peach Garden oath,
Slaying Yan Liang,
Striking terror into Xiangfan—
He had done all he could.
He had no regrets.
The people saw his deeds clearly. Otherwise, why would they worship him of their own accord?
As the poem The Immortals by the River says:
Success or failure, right or wrong—
All fade in the blink of an eye.
The green mountains remain.
How many sunsets have they seen?
That's all for this episode.
We'll see you next time.
[[Live Comment Barrage]
ShadowHunter_91: Read them! Why won't you read them! Are you afraid that the title given by the poisoned Emperor Guangxu—"Holy Emperor Guan, Loyal, Righteous, Divine, Brave, Miraculous, Guardian of the People, Protector of the State, Sincere, Peaceful, Supporter of Virtue"—is too much of a mouthful?
xX_Dark_Slayer_Xx: Point of order: Wen Mang forgot to add the "Nine Sister" prefix before "Wanyan Gou." That's total sacrilege!
Tofu_Delivery_Guy: My heart aches for Second Lord. He was peerlessly loyal to Big Brother, only to be played with like a toy by later emperors who couldn't lead their way out of a paper bag.
GhostInTheShell: It wasn't just emperors. The Tang Dynasty literati were dirty, too. They teamed up with monks to invent a story about Guan Yu falling into a "ghost path" because his kill count was too high, only to be saved by a monk. To thank the monk, Big Brother supposedly built a temple. Talk about a top-tier scam.
Pwnage_King: +1 on the shamelessness. That guy was actually a friend of the poet Du Fu, yet he had the gall to say he saw Guan Yu's manifestation in a temple. If Guan Yu actually manifested, he'd have been cleaved in half instantly.
GlitchFinder_Zero: Tang monks were a literal mafia. They seized so much land they basically helped crash the Tang server. Later, they forced Emperor Wuzong to hit them with the "Purge" patch.
Sleepy_Panda: Wuzong was such a waste. He could have been a great Restorer-King, but he had to follow his ancestor "Second Phoenix" and chug those alchemy pills until his brain rotted.
Cloud_Strife_99: "Second Phoenix" couldn't help it; the medicine didn't work, and he dropped dead after the pills. Wuzong, on the other hand, popped them even when he wasn't sick. Mercury in the brain—total system crash.
NoobsGetRekt: The "Slacker Emperor" was actually a natural talent for cultivation. He probably gave Guan Yu that title just so Guan Yu would carry him in the afterlife.
Lag_Spike_Pro: The Yuan was even funnier. They didn't know which title actually gave the buff, so they just gave him all of them. Technically, the ghost of Guan Yu was eligible for a government paycheck.
Zero_Tolerance: Sigh, even though Guan Yu's direct line went extinct, the spirit of loyalty and righteousness lives on.
Steel_Resolve: Pang De was somewhat of a man, but his son had zero character. Battlefield grudges should never touch the family. Low-tier behavior.
Viper_Strike: Guan Yu was never a man of many words. If he knew what a disaster Pang De's son would become, he wouldn't have bothered talking to Pang De at all. One swing, and done.
Li Shimin: This Song Dynasty is truly absurd. How can painting be part of the Imperial Exams! Also, who is this "Second Phoenix" ancestor of Wuzong? How could he be so pathetic?