Wen Ping ( third century),

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theo ...

Zhongye, was a military general who lived during the late

Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...

and

Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Eastern Han dynasty and was followed by the West ...

period of China. During his tenure as a general under the warlord

Cao Cao Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the dynasty's final years. As one o ...

, he was credited with defeating the enemy general

Guan Yu Guan Yu (; ), courtesy name Yunchang, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Along with Zhang Fei, he shared a brotherly relationship with Liu Bei and accompanied him on ...

and defending Cao Cao's interests in

Jiangxia Commandery Jiangxia Commandery ( zh, 江夏郡) was a Chinese commandery that existed from Han dynasty to Tang dynasty. Its territories were located in present-day eastern Hubei province. History Jiangxia Commandery was established during the reign of Emper ...

from the eastern warlord

Sun Quan Sun Quan (, Chinese: 孫權) (183 – 21 May 252), courtesy name Zhongmou (), posthumously known as Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of the Eastern Wu dynasty, one of the Three Kingdoms of China. He inherited control of the warlord regime ...

.''Sanguozhi'' vol. 18.

Early life

Wen Ping was from Wan County (), which is in present-day

Nanyang, Henan Nanyang is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Henan province, China. The city with the largest administrative area in Henan, Nanyang borders Xinyang to the southeast, Zhumadian to the east, Pingdingshan to the northeast, Luoyang to the ...

. He originally served under

Liu Biao Liu Biao () () (151 – September 208), courtesy name Jingsheng, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He is best known for serving as the Governor of Jing Province (coveri ...

, the Governor of

Jing Province Jingzhou or Jing Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China referenced in Chinese historical texts such as the '' Tribute of Yu'', ''Erya'' and '' Rites of Zhou''. Jingzhou became an administrative division during the reign of Empe ...

, and was tasked with defending the province's northern frontier, stationed at Xiangyang. In 208, after Liu Biao's death, his younger son and successor Liu Cong surrendered to the warlord

, who was the ''de facto'' head of the Han central government. When Liu Cong went to greet Cao Cao, he passed by Wen Ping's camp and urged him to come with but Wen Ping replied "I could not defend the province, and must go face my failure and nothing more". Once when Cao Cao crossed the Han River did Wen Ping go to meet the warlord. When Cao Cao asked him why he surrendered so late, he weepingly replied "In former days, I failed to assist Liu Biao serve the state. Though Liu Biao is dead, I was still hoping to hold the line of the Han and maintain that territory intact. That way, if I lived I would not be turning my back on the orphaned and weak, and if I died there would be no shame below the ground. The decision, however, has been taken out of my hands, and so we come to this. Indeed, I am sad and ashamed and I could not face coming to audience any earlier". Cao Cao praised Wen Pin's loyalty and returned his military command though the later commentator Sun Sheng was critical, wondering how the former officer of

Lü Bu Lü Bu () (died 7 February 199), courtesy name Fengxian, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of Imperial China. Originally a subordinate of a minor warlord Ding Yuan, he betr ...

Zang Ba Zang Ba ( 162–230s), courtesy name Xuangao, was a military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of China. He served the warlord Tao Qian initially, followed by Lü Bu and finally Cao Cao and his s ...

and Wen Ping could retain their reputation for loyalty yet change loyalty after one meeting with Cao Cao.

Service under Cao Cao

Wen Ping was sent with cavalry commander Cao Chun to pursue Cao Cao's fleeing rival,

Liu Bei Liu Bei (, ; ; 161 – 10 June 223), courtesy name Xuande (), was a warlord in the late Eastern Han dynasty who founded the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period and became its first ruler. Although he was a distant relative of the ...

, and caught up with him at the

Battle of Changban The Battle of Changban was fought between the warlords Cao Cao and Liu Bei in October 208 in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. The battle took place at Changban (長坂; south of present-day Duodao District, Jingmen, Hubei). Background ...

. However, Liu Bei managed to escape and form an alliance with the eastern warlord

. In the winter of 208–209, the allied forces of Sun Quan and Liu Bei defeated Cao Cao's forces at the decisive

Battle of Red Cliffs The Battle of Red Cliffs, also known as the Battle of Chibi, was a decisive naval battle in the winter of AD 208–209 at the end of the Han dynasty, about twelve years prior to the beginning of the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history ...

. After his defeat, Cao Cao was concerned about local loyalties with concerns about Eastern Wu's expansion so appointed Wen Ping as the Administrator of Jiangxia Commandery (commandery capital in present-day Xinzhou District, Wuhan,

Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The p ...

), which was located strategically near the border between Cao Cao and Sun Quan's territories and rivaled veteran Sun general Cheng Pu's claim to the area. Cao Cao also had Emperor Xian, the figurehead Han emperor, enoff Wen Ping as a Secondary Marquis (), the lowest among the marquis ranks of the Han dynasty. In 209, Wen Ping joined Cao Cao's general

Cao Ren Cao Ren () (168 – 6 May 223), courtesy name Zixiao, was a military general serving during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China under the warlord Cao Cao, who was also his older second cousin. He continued serving in the state of Cao Wei – ...

at the Battle of Jiangling against Sun Quan's forces led by the general

Zhou Yu Zhou Yu (, ) (175–210), courtesy name Gongjin (), was a Chinese military general and strategist serving under the warlord Sun Ce in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. After Sun Ce died in the year 200, he continued serving under Sun Quan, ...

. When Liu Bei's general

attempted to cut off Cao Ren's communication lines, Wen Ping and his colleague Yue Jin, station at Xiangyang, defeated Guan Yu at Xunkou (尋口) and drove him back. In recognition of his contributions in battle, the Han imperial court promoted Wen Ping to a village marquis under the title "Marquis of Yanshou Village" (延壽亭侯) and awarded him the appointment of General Who Attacks Rebels (討逆將軍). Wen Ping launched further raids, destroying Guan Yu's supply train at Han Ford (漢津) and burnt his fleet at Jingcheng. At the time, Wen Ping and Yue Jin successfully secured the supply and communication lines of Jiangling; however, the casualties on Cao Cao's forces were beyond affordable level after nearly a year of intense fighting, so Cao Cao admitted defeat and ordered his generals to forfeit Jiangling. From then on Wen Ping entered into a defensive position in the eastern flank at Jiangxia Commandery against Sun Quan and rival claimant Cheng Pu.

Service under Cao Pi

After Cao Cao's death in 220, his eldest living son

Cao Pi Cao Pi () ( – 29 June 226), courtesy name Zihuan, was the first emperor of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the second son of Cao Cao, a warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty, but the eldest s ...

became emperor of the

Cao Wei Wei ( Hanzi: 魏; pinyin: ''Wèi'' <

Middle Chinese

: *''ŋjwei^C'' < Lu Xun Zhou Shuren (25 September 1881 – 19 October 1936), better known by his pen name Lu Xun (or Lu Sun; ; Wade–Giles: Lu Hsün), was a Chinese writer, essayist, poet, and literary critic. He was a leading figure of modern Chinese literature. ...

's victory against Liu Bei at the

Battle of Xiaoting The Battle of Xiaoting (猇亭之戰), also known as the Battle of Yiling and the Battle of Yiling and Xiaoting, was fought between the state of Shu and the state of Wu, between the years 221 and 222 in the early Three Kingdoms period of Chin ...

removing a threat from King Sun Quan's borders, the Wu ruler refused to send his son

Sun Deng Sun Deng (Wade–Giles: Sun Teng) is the name of: *Sun Deng (Xin dynasty) (died 26 AD), rebel leader *Sun Deng (Eastern Wu) Sun Deng (209 – May or June 241), courtesy name Zigao, was an imperial prince of the state of Eastern Wu during the Th ...

as hostage to Wei court. Cao Pi formulated a plan for a three-pronged attack on Sun Quan, ordering Wen Ping to join the generals Zhang He,

Xu Huang Xu Huang () (died 227), courtesy name Gongming, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He later served in the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period under the first ...

, Xiahou Shang and Cao Zhen in attacking Sun Quan's stronghold at Jiangling. Like the last battle at Jiangling, the Wei forces enjoyed numerical advantage, but this time, they were on the offensive. However, the Wei forces ultimately did not make much progress because the defenders under

Zhu Ran Zhu Ran (182 – March or April 249), born Shi Ran, courtesy name Yifeng, was a Chinese military general of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Despite being a childhood friend of Wu's founding emperor, Sun Quan, h ...

put up a strong resistance. Wu sent a series of reinforcements and against one (commander unknown) of those waves, Wen Ping was sent with his detachment to defend Miankou, a key chokepoint of the Mian River, with his warships, winning at Shifan. Cao Pi eventually called off the attack on Jiangling due to epidemic through Wei ranks and rewarded Wen Pin with a promotion to General of the Rear (), in addition to elevating him from a district marquis to a county marquis under the title "Marquis of Xinye" ().

Service under Cao Rui and legacy

Wu had avoided attacking Wen Ping's position at his capital of Shiyang (), something Wei recorded credited due to his fame shaking Wu after decades of good service. There was one exception, in the autumn of 226 after the death of Cao Pi with his son Cao Rui new to the throne. Sun Quan sought to take advantage on hearing the news and led 50,000 troops against Wei Ping's capital. There are two versions of what exactly happened. In the main Sanguozhi, Wen Ping was besieged for over twenty days but put up a resilient defence. Word reached the Cao Wei court but Cao Rui was confident since he believed Sun Quan had only attacked in the hopes of catching the defenders by surprise and wouldn't dare stay too long now he was engaged in a siege with Wen Ping. The official Xun Yu was dispatched with a thousand troops and he gathered more from the counties he passed through on the way to Jiangxia. On arrival Xun Yu and his army took to the hills, setting fires as a show of force. Sun Quan retreated and Wen Ping pursued during the night, inflicting casualties with the isolated enemy general

Pan Zhang Pan Zhang (died 234), courtesy name Wengui, was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He continued serving in the state of Eastern Wu (founded by Sun Quan) during the Three Kingdoms ...

having to be rescued by

. For his victory, Wei Ping's fief was increased by 500 households. The Cao Wei historian

Yu Huan Yu Huan ( third century) was a historian of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Life Yu Huan was from Jingzhao Commandery, which is around present-day Xi'an, Shaanxi.''Shitong'' vol. 12. He is best known for writin ...

provides an alternative account in his Weilue. Sun Quan led tens of thousands against Shiyang where heavy rains had damaged the walls while the people were scattered among the fields so repairs could not be carried out in time. Without the walls and outnumbered, Wen Ping was in a bind but then thought that, if it seemed nobody was in the city, Sun Quan would get suspicious and expect a ploy. Wen Ping had everyone hide and remained in his residence. Sun Quan was puzzled since the Cao Wei court would not leave such an important post in the hands of a figure they did not trust so Wei Ping's lack of reaction to an invading army must be due to a ploy or knowing reinforcements were coming so Sun Quan ordered an immediate withdrawal.

Pei Songzhi Pei Songzhi (372–451), courtesy name Shiqi, was a Chinese historian and politician who lived in the late Eastern Jin dynasty and Liu Song dynasty. His ancestral home was in Wenxi County, Shanxi, but he moved to the Jiangnan region late ...

notes the account contradicts the base text of

Chen Shou Chen Shou (; 233–297), courtesy name Chengzuo (), was a Chinese historian, politician, and writer who lived during the Three Kingdoms period and Jin dynasty of China. Chen Shou is most known for his most celebrated work, the '' Records of ...

. It would be his last known battle. It is not known when Wen Ping died. After his death, he was honored with the

posthumous title A posthumous name is an honorary name given mostly to the notable dead in East Asian culture. It is predominantly practiced in East Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Thailand. Reflecting on the person's accomplishments o ...

"Marquis Zhuang" () by the Wei government. His adopted son, Wen Xiu (), inherited his marquis title ("Marquis of Xinye") because his biological son, Wen Dai (), died early. Wen Xiu was in turn succeeded by his son, Wen Wu (), after his death. Wen Ping also had a nephew, Wen Hou (), who was enfeoffed as a secondary marquis. In August 243, with the young Cao Fang on the throne under the regency of Cao Shuang and

Sima Yi Sima Yi ( ; 179 CE – 7 September 251 CE), courtesy name Zhongda, was a Chinese military general, politician, and regent of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He formally began his political career in 208 un ...

, sacrifices were made at Cao Cao's temple to a select group of former officers, including Wen Ping.''Sanguozhi'' vol. 4.

In ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms''

Wen Ping first appears in chapter 34, he and Wang Wei recommended by Kuai Yue to hold a banquet for military officers so

Zhao Yun Zhao Yun ( ) (died 229), courtesy name Zilong (), was a military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. Originally a subordinate of the northern warlord Gongsun Zan, Zhao Yun later came ...

would have to attend, allowing Cai Mao to attempt to kill Liu Bei without his bodyguard though, thanks to a tip off, the attempt to kill Liu Bei would fail. He next appears after Liu Cong surrenders, Liu Bei appears at the regime's capital of

Xiangyang Xiangyang is a prefecture-level city in northwestern Hubei province, China and the second largest city in Hubei by population. It was known as Xiangfan from 1950 to 2010. The Han River runs through Xiangyang's centre and divides the city no ...

to seek a meeting and Wei Yan opens the gates. Wen Ping takes some horsemen to stop him and fights Wei Yan, Liu Bei is concerned by this reception and leaves. The battle between Wei Yan and Wen Ping lasts for some hours with most combatants dead before Wei Yan flees. Refuses to go to Cao Cao, then the weeping submission scene, immediately made Governor of Jiangxia and enoffed. Takes part in pursuit of Liu Bei at Changban, intercepting Liu Bei but is ashamed when Liu Bei calls him a turncoat and retreats. When Zhao Yun rescues the infant

Liu Shan Liu Shan () (207–271), courtesy name Gongsi, was the second and last emperor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. As he ascended the throne at the age of 16, Liu Shan was entrusted to the care of the Chancellor Zhuge ...

and fights his way back to Liu Bei, Wen Ping pursues but halts when they come against Zhang Fei's fierce appearance on the bridge and what they fear is an ambush. At Chibi, as a man used to the waters, given command of the left squadron of the naval forces, dispatched with thirty ships to support Jiao Chu and Zhang Neng's unsuccessful attack, battles the naval forces of

Han Dang Han Dang (died 227), courtesy name Yigong, was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under Sun Quan's predecessors – Sun Jian (Su ...

and

Zhou Tai Zhou Tai () (died 223), courtesy name Youping, was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under Sun Ce, Sun Quan's elder brother a ...

but soon discovers his forces are outmatched so retreat. Sent to intercept Huang Gai's approaching ships as Cheng Yu realizes the defection is fake, however Wen Ping is injured by an arrow to the arm and his forces collapse with Huang Gai launching his fire attack on the main fleet. Is able to escape with

Mao Jie Mao Jie (died 216), courtesy name Xiaoxian, was an official serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was from Pingqiu County, Chenliu Commandery, which is located east of present-day Fengqiu County, H ...

and a few horsemen to rejoin Cao Cao on the troubled march home. Takes part in archery contest to celebrate opening of the

Bronze Bird Terrace The Bronze Bird Terrace () was an iconic structure in the city of Ye built in AD 210 by Cao Cao, the prominent warlord of the late Eastern Han dynasty. Despite reconstructions after Cao Cao's time that exceeded his in scale, the Bronze Bird Te ...

in Ye, impressing as he hits bulls-eye at full gallop. Takes part in the defense of Hanzhong, when Huang Zhong attempts to raid the supply lines the attackers are surrounded and Zhang Zhu's attempt to return to camp is intercepted by Wen Ping but Zhao Yun arrives to drive off Wei Ping's men with subordinate Murong Lie killed. In 224, with Cao Cao dead and Cao Pi having taken the throne, made a chief commander for camapign against Eastern Wu who were negotiating to restore alliance with Shu-Han. Cao Pi's forces arrive at Guangling but are shocked as opposing commander Xu Sheng builds fake-walls overnight. As Cao Pi considers his options, his capital ship is hit by a storm and Cao Zhen sends Wen Ping to rescue those on the ship. Wen Ping's sailors were too scared by the storm so, with the great ship seeming likely to capsize, Wen Ping leapt on board and got Cao Pi to the safety of a small boat that took the Emperor to a creek to stay out the storm. With news coming of an attack by Zhao Yun in the north-west, Cao Pi retreats and Wen Ping's time in the novel ends.

References

* Chen, Shou (3rd century). ''

Records of the Three Kingdoms The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220� ...

'' (''Sanguozhi''). * * Pei, Songzhi (5th century). ''

Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms () by Pei Songzhi (372-451) is an annotation completed in the 5th century of the 3rd century historical text ''Records of the Three Kingdoms'', compiled by Chen Shou. After leaving his native land, Pei ...