Man Chong () (before 175According to the chronology of Man Chong's biography in ''

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– ...

'', he was older than 17 when he was recruited by Cao Cao during Cao's tenure as Governor of Yan Province between 191 and 192. By calculation, his birth year must be before 175. - April or May 242),

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 Theobald ...

Boning, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of

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

Middle Chinese

: *''ŋjwei^C'' <

during the

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 Han dynasty#Eastern Han, Eastern Han dynasty and wa ...

period of China. He previously served 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 (China), grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the End of ...

during the late

Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

. He is best known for defending the city of

Hefei Hefei (; ) is the capital and largest city of Anhui Province, People's Republic of China. A prefecture-level city, it is the political, economic, and cultural center of Anhui. Its population was 9,369,881 as of the 2020 census and its built-up ( ...

from a series of invasions by Wei's rival state,

Eastern Wu Wu ( Chinese: 吳; pinyin: ''Wú''; Middle Chinese *''ŋuo'' <

Eastern Han Chinese

: ''*ŋuɑ''), known in h ...

, between 230 and 235.

Early life and career

Man Chong was from Changyi County (),

Shanyang Commandery Shanyang Commandery ( zh, 山陽郡) was a historical commandery in China, located in present-day southern Shandong province. In early Han dynasty, Shanyang was part of the Liang Kingdom. In 144 BC, Liang was split into five kingdoms among the so ...

(), which is located northwest of present-day

Jinxiang County Jinxiang County () is a county of southwestern Shandong province, People's Republic of China, bordering Jiangsu province to the southeast. It is under the administration of Jining Jining () is a prefecture-level city in southwestern Shandong ...

Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...

. When he was 17, he served as an Investigator () in his home commandery. At the time, there was a group of armed thugs led by Li Shuo () who were causing harm to the locals. After the commandery administrator put Man Chong in charge of dealing with them, Li Shuo surrendered to the authorities and never caused trouble again. As Man Chong grew older, he became the Prefect () of Gaoping County (高平縣; northwest of present-day

Weishan County, Shandong Weishan County () is a county of southwestern Shandong province, People's Republic of China, bordering Jiangsu province to the south. It is under the administration of Jining Jining () is a prefecture-level city in southwestern Shandong provin ...

). Around the time, an official Zhang Bao () was abusing his powers by soliciting bribes and causing trouble for the local administration. One day, Man Chong led his guards into the guesthouse where Zhang Bao stayed and arrested him on allegations of corruption. After Zhang Bao died under torture during the interrogation on the same day, Man Chong resigned and went home.

Service under Cao Cao

As the Prefect of Xu County

When the warlord

held the position of Governor of

Yan Province Yan Province or Yanzhou was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China. During the Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE), it covered roughly present-day southwestern Shandong, eastern Henan, and the northwestern corner of Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ...

between 191 and 192, he recruited Man Chong to serve as an Assistant Officer () under him. Later, when Cao Cao briefly served as General-in-Chief in 196, he appointed Man Chong as an Assistant in the West Bureau () of his administration. Man Chong was later appointed as the Prefect of Xu County (許縣; present-day

Xuchang Xuchang (; postal: Hsuchang) is a prefecture-level city in central Henan province of China, province in Central China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the northwest, Kaifeng to the northeast, Zhoukou to the east, Luohe to the s ...

Henan Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...

), the imperial capital of the

between 196 and 220. During his tenure, Man Chong got into two controversial incidents. In the first incident,

Cao Hong Cao Hong (died 232), courtesy name Zilian, was a Chinese military general of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He started his career in the late Eastern Han dynasty under the warlord Cao Cao, who was his older secon ...

, one of Cao Cao's cousins and trusted generals, had some

retainers Retainer may refer to: * Retainer (orthodontics), devices for teeth * RFA ''Retainer'' (A329), a ship * Retainers in early China, a social group in early China Employment * Retainer agreement, a contract in which an employer pays in advance for ...

under him who broke the law while they were in Xu County. After Man Chong arrested and imprisoned the retainers, Cao Hong wrote to him and asked him to release them. When Man Chong ignored his request, Cao Hong brought up the issue to Cao Cao, who summoned the official in charge to come and see him. Man Chong thought that Cao Cao wanted to pardon Cao Hong's retainers, so he immediately executed them. Cao Cao was pleased when he heard about it and he remarked, "Isn't this what an officeholder should do?" In the second incident,

Yang Biao Yang may refer to: * Yang, in yin and yang, one half of the two symbolic polarities in Chinese philosophy * Korean yang, former unit of currency of Korea from 1892 to 1902 * YANG, a data modeling language for the NETCONF network configuration p ...

(), the Grand Commandant, was arrested and imprisoned for allegedly conspiring with

Yuan Shu Yuan Shu () (died July or August 199), courtesy name Gonglu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. He rose to prominence following the collapse of the Han central government in 189 ...

, a warlord who rebelled against the Eastern Han dynasty. Man Chong, who was in charge of interrogating Yang Biao, received requests from his colleagues

Xun Yu Xun Yu (163–212), courtesy name Wenruo, was a Chinese military official and politician who served as an adviser to the warlord Cao Cao during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Early life Xun Yu was from Yingchuan Commandery (around pr ...

and

Kong Rong Kong Rong () (153 – 26 September 208), courtesy name Wenju, was a Chinese poet, politician, and minor warlord. who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was a 20th generation descendant of Confucius. As he was once the Chance ...

to refrain from using torture on Yang Biao during the interrogation. However, Man Chong ignored them and did everything by the book. A few days later, Man Chong reported to Cao Cao: "Yang Biao had nothing to say when I interrogated him. Before executing a criminal, we must first produce evidence of his guilt and show it to the public. Yang Biao is a reputable man. If we execute him without sufficient evidence to show that he is guilty, the people will lose faith in us. I hope you will reconsider your decision carefully and not be too hasty in ordering Yang Biao's execution." Cao Cao then released Yang Biao. Xun Yu and Kong Rong were initially angry with Man Chong when they found out that he tortured Yang Biao during the interrogation. However, they became more amiable towards him after they heard what he told Cao Cao. The historian

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 later. He i ...

criticised Man Chong for his cruelty and said that he should not have tortured Yang Biao, who had a reputation for being virtuous. From his viewpoint, even though Man Chong deserved praise for doing things by the book, it was not enough to make up for his cruelty.

As the Administrator of Runan Commandery

In 200 CE, the

Battle of Guandu The Battle of Guandu was fought between the warlords Cao Cao and Yuan Shao in 200 AD in the late Eastern Han dynasty. Cao Cao's decisive victory against Yuan Shao's numerically superior forces marked the turning point in their war. The victory ...

broke out between Cao Cao and his rival,

Yuan Shao Yuan Shao (, ; died 28 June 202), courtesy name Benchu (), was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty. He occupied the northern territories of China during the civil wars that occurred to ...

, whose hometown was in

Runan Commandery Runan Commandery ( zh, 汝南郡) was a Chinese commandery from Han dynasty to Tang dynasty, located in modern Henan and Anhui provinces. The name referred to its location to the south of Ru River (汝水), a historical river that flowed into th ...

(汝南郡; covering parts of present-day southeastern

and northwestern

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

). Although Yuan Shao was not in Runan Commandery, he maintained some influence there through his

, who led small groups of armed men and had strongholds scattered throughout the commandery. Cao Cao was worried that they would pose a threat to his base in Xu County while he was away at the frontline at Guandu, so he appointed Man Chong as the Administrator () of Runan Commandery to deal with Yuan Shao's retainers. Upon assuming office, Man Chong managed to induce some of Yuan Shao's retainers and their followers, numbering about 500 people, to surrender. He then led his troops to attack and destroy over 20 strongholds, lured the remaining retainers into a trap and killed over 10 of them. Runan Commandery was thus pacified. During his tenure, Man Chong gained control over 20,000 households, drafted about 2,000 men into military service, and implemented the ''

tuntian Tuntian (屯田) or Tunken (屯墾) is a type of frontier "military-agricultural colonies" over the history of China. Troops were sent to harsh landscapes at the Chinese frontier to turn uncultivated land into self-sustained, agrarian settler ...

'' policy in the commandery. In 208, Man Chong led his troops from Runan Commandery to join Cao Cao on a military campaign to conquer

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 attack the rival warlords

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 es ...

and

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 H ...

. After Cao Cao retreated back to the north following his defeat at the

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. T ...

in the winter of 208–209, he appointed Man Chong as acting General of Vehement Might () and ordered him to remain behind in Jing Province to defend

Dangyang Dangyang () is a city in western Hubei province, People's Republic of China, lying east of the Gezhouba Dam on the Yangtze River. During the Western Han Dynasty (206-24 BC). Emperor Jing of Han established an administration in Dangyang on an ar ...

. However, after Cao Cao's forces lost the Battle of Jiangling against Sun Quan's forces, Cao Cao ordered Man Chong to abandon Dangyang and return to his previous post in Runan Commandery. The Han imperial court awarded Man Chong the title of a Secondary Marquis ().

Battle of Fancheng

In 219, Liu Bei's 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 ...

led his forces to attack Fancheng (樊城, present-day

Fancheng District Fancheng is a District (PRC), district of the city of Xiangyang, Hubei, People's Republic of China. History Fancheng, or Fan City, was an ancient city in Hubei, situated on the northern side of the Han River (Hanshui), Han River, opposite Xia ...

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 ...

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 prov ...

), which was guarded by

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 – f ...

, one of Cao Cao's cousins and trusted generals. At the time, Man Chong was in Fancheng to assist Cao Ren in resisting Guan Yu's attack. They were thrown into a dangerous situation when heavy rains caused flooding in the region and parts of Fancheng's walls began to crumble. To make matters worse, the flood destroyed the reinforcements led by Cao Cao's general

Yu Jin Yu Jin (died 221), courtesy name Wenze, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He joined Cao Cao in 192 around the start of the civil wars leading to the collapse of the dyna ...

, who surrendered to the enemy. Guan Yu kept pressing the attack on Fancheng all this while. Someone suggested to Cao Ren to abandon Fancheng and escape while there was still time, since Guan Yu's forces had not completely surrounded Fancheng yet. Man Chong disagreed and said, "The floodwaters may be flowing very fast, but the flood might not last long. Guan Yu had already sent a detachment of troops from his army to station at Jia County (郟縣). There is already much panic and fear among the people living in the lands south of Xu County (許縣). Guan Yu doesn't dare to advance further because he's worried that his base (in southern

) will come under attack. If we abandon Fancheng and leave, we'll end up losing all the territories south of the river. Sir, you should continue to hold up here." Cao Ren agreed with him. Man Chong drowned his horse and pledged to stay with the soldiers in Fancheng to the end. When

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 ...

, another of Cao Cao's generals, showed up at Fancheng with reinforcements, Man Chong joined him in attacking Guan Yu and succeeded in breaking the siege on Fancheng. As a reward for his efforts, the Han imperial court promoted Man Chong from a secondary marquis to a village marquis under the title "Marquis of Anchang Village" ().

Service under Cao Pi

Following Cao Cao's death in 220, Man Chong continued serving under his son and successor,

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 son ...

, who usurped the throne from

Emperor Xian Emperor Xian of Han (2 April 181 – 21 April 234), personal name Liu Xie (劉協), courtesy name Bohe, was the 14th and last emperor of the Eastern Han dynasty in China. He reigned from 28 September 189 until 11 December 220. Liu Xie was a so ...

later that year, ended the

, and established the state of

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

Middle Chinese

: *''ŋjwei^C'' <

with himself as the emperor. After his coronation, Cao Pi promoted Man Chong to General Who Spreads Martial Might (). Sometime between 220 and 222, Man Chong participated in two battles against Wei's rival state,

Eastern Wu Wu ( Chinese: 吳; pinyin: ''Wú''; Middle Chinese *''ŋuo'' <

Eastern Han Chinese

: ''*ŋuɑ''), known in h ...

, founded by Cao Cao's old rival

. In the first battle, he defeated Wu forces at Jiangling (江陵; around present-day

Jingzhou Jingzhou () is a prefecture-level city in southern Hubei province, China, located on the banks of the Yangtze River. Its total residential population was 5,231,180 based on the 2020 census, 1,068,291 of whom resided in the built-up (''or metro' ...

). After the battle, Cao Pi promoted him to General Who Calms the Waves () and ordered him to station at Xinye (新野; present-day

Xinye County Xinye () is one of the counties of Nanyang that lies in the southwest of Henan province, China. To the south lies the prefecture-level city of Xiangyang in Hubei province, to the east is Tanghe County and to the west is the county-level city of ...

). In the second battle, Man Chong led the Wei army's vanguard force during a Wei campaign against Wu. The vanguard force, under his command, reached the Jing Lake () and established their position on the side of the lake directly across the enemy's side. Man Chong foresaw that the enemy would attempt to set fire to his camp at night as the winds were strong, so he warned his subordinates and put his troops on high alert. His prediction came true that night. Since they were prepared, Man Chong and his troops successfully repelled the attack and defended their position. As a reward for his contributions, Man Chong was promoted from a village marquis to a district marquis under the title "Marquis of Nan District" (). In 222, Cao Pi granted Man Chong imperial authority and awarded him a ceremonial axe. Two years later, he promoted Man Chong to General of the Vanguard ().

Service under Cao Rui

Following Cao Pi's death in 226, his son

Cao Rui Cao Rui () (204 or 206 – 22 January 239), courtesy name Yuanzhong, was the second emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period. His parentage is in dispute: his mother, Lady Zhen, was Yuan Xi's wife, but she later remarr ...

succeeded him as the emperor of Wei. After his coronation, Cao Rui elevated Man Chong from the status of a district marquis to a county marquis under the title "Marquis of Changyi" (). In 228, he appointed Man Chong as the Inspector () of Yu Province. In the spring of 228, defectors from Wei's rival state, Wu, claimed that Wu forces were preparing to attack the territories north of the

Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest list of rivers of Asia, river in Asia, the list of rivers by length, third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in th ...

, with the Wu emperor

personally leading his forces. Man Chong deduced that the Wu forces were deliberately spreading misinformation and that their true target was Xiyang County (西陽縣; southwest of present-day

Guangshan County Guangshan County (; postal: Kwangshan) is a county in the southeast of Henan province, China. It is under the administration of Xinyang city. The regional dialect is the Xinyang city dialect of Southwestern Mandarin. The 13th five-year plan o ...

), so he gave orders to strengthen the defences at Xiyang County. When Sun Quan found out, he had no choice but to call off the attack. In the autumn of the same year, Cao Rui ordered the general

Cao Xiu Cao Xiu (died 29 September 228?), courtesy name Wenlie, was a Chinese military general of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. A distant younger relative of the warlord Cao Cao, Cao Xiu started his career in the late Easte ...

to lead troops from Lujiang Commandery (廬江郡; around present-day

Lu'an Lu'an (), is a prefecture-level city in western Anhui province, People's Republic of China, bordering Henan to the northwest and Hubei to the southwest. As of the 2020 census, it had a total population of 4,393,699 inhabitants whom 1,752,537 liv ...

) to

, and Man Chong to lead troops to Xiakou (夏口; in present-day

Wuhan Wuhan (, ; ; ) is the capital of Hubei, Hubei Province in the China, People's Republic of China. It is the largest city in Hubei and the most populous city in Central China, with a population of over eleven million, the List of cities in China ...

). Man Chong wrote a

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or works of a ...

to the emperor: "Cao Xiu may be wise and decisive, but he has little experience in battle. The route that he is taking has a lake behind it and the river beside it. It is easy to advance but difficult to retreat. Military leaders tend to avoid travelling across such terrain if possible. If he is going into Wuqiangkou (無彊口), he should be well-prepared." Before Man Chong's memorial reached Cao Rui, however, Cao Xiu and his army had already entered Wuqiangkou, where Wu forces blocked the path and forced them to turn back. As they came under attack while retreating, Zhu Ling showed up with reinforcements to cover their retreat. The Wu forces became fearful upon seeing the arrival of Wei reinforcements, so they retreated as well. Cao Xiu thus managed to escape with his life. After Cao Xiu died later in 228, Man Chong, as General of the Vanguard, was ordered to replace him as the supervisor of military operations in

Yang Province Yangzhou, Yangchow or Yang Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China mentioned in historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', ''Erya'' and ''Rites of Zhou''. Name There are four different theories regarding the origin of the ...

. As Man Chong had gained much support from the locals during his tenure as the Administrator of Runan Commandery, the people in Runan Commandery wanted to follow him when they learnt that he had been reassigned to Yang Province. Man Chong could not stop them. A military officer wrote to the emperor Cao Rui, seeking permission to execute the local leader as a warning to the people to stop making things difficult for Man Chong. However, Cao Rui did not approve and, as a compromise, he allowed Man Chong to bring only 1,000 people with him to Yang Province while the rest had to remain in Runan Commandery.

Battle of Hefei (231)

In 230, Cao Rui promoted Man Chong to General Who Attacks the East (). In the winter of that year, after receiving intelligence that the Wu emperor Sun Quan was planning to attack

, Man Chong immediately requested for reinforcements from

Yan Yan may refer to: Chinese states * Yan (state) (11th century – 222 BC), a major state in northern China during the Zhou dynasty * Yan (Han dynasty kingdom), first appearing in 206 BC * Yan (Three Kingdoms kingdom), officially claimed indepe ...

and Yu provinces and stepped up the defences at Hefei. When Sun Quan heard about it, he called off the attack on Hefei. Man Chong knew that Sun Quan was only pretending to retreat to put him off guard, and would come back to attack Hefei again once the reinforcements left. He was proven right as Sun Quan attacked Hefei after about 10 days. However, as Hefei was well-defended, Sun Quan's forces could not breach the walls and had to withdraw. In 231, a Wu officer Sun Bu () secretly sent a messenger to meet Wang Ling, the Wei inspector of

, and convey his desire to defect to Wei. Sun Bu also said in his message: "As we are too far apart from each other, I cannot come to you. You will need to send troops to escort me over." Wang Ling then passed the letter to Man Chong and asked him to send a convoy of troops to escort Sun Bu to Yang Province. Man Chong suspected that Sun Bu was pretending to defect so he refused and wrote a reply to Sun Bu in Wang Ling's name: "It is good to hear that you have recognised the folly of your ways and now desire to leave your tyrannical government and return to the path of righteousness. This is truly commendable. However, as much as I would like to send troops to escort you over, I do not think it is a good idea. If I send too few troops, they will not be able to protect you. If I send too many troops, the Wu government will find it suspicious. I think you should secretly make plans for yourself first and act accordingly when the time comes." Man Chong was not on good terms with his colleague, Wang Ling, who spread rumours that Man Chong was addicted to alcohol, physically unfit for his job, and unruly and defiant. When the rumours reached the Wei imperial capital

Luoyang Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River (Henan), Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the ...

, an official Guo Mou () suggested to the emperor to summon Man Chong to Luoyang and see if the rumours were true, as opposed to immediately removing Man Chong from office. Cao Rui heeded the suggestion. When Man Chong met the emperor, he appeared to be in good health and remained sober after consuming one ''dan'' of alcohol. Cao Rui thus concluded that the rumours were untrue and ordered Man Chong to return to his post. Man Chong, however, wanted to remain in Luoyang so he repeatedly sought permission from Cao Rui but was denied. Cao Rui told him, "In the past,

Lian Po Lian Po (; – 243 BC), was a prominent general of the Zhao state in the Warring States period of Chinese history. He was named by Chinese historians as one of the four greatest generals of the late Warring States period, along with Bai Qi, W ...

ate and drank heavily to show that he was in good health, while Ma Yuan turned his body to look backward while he was on horseback to show that he was still fit for battle. You aren't even old, yet you say you're old. Why don't you compare yourself with Lian Po and Ma Yuan? You should be thinking about defending the border and serving your country." Before Man Chong left for Luoyang, he instructed his chief clerk, who was in charge during his absence, to not give Wang Ling command of any of his troops. Wang Ling, unable to get any troops from Man Chong's units, had to send his own subordinates and 700 soldiers from his own units to meet Sun Bu. As Man Chong foresaw, Sun Bu was indeed pretending to defect. Wang Ling's subordinates and 700 men fell into an ambush and suffered heavy casualties.

Battle of Lujiang (232)

In 232, when the Wu general

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. W ...

led troops to attack Lujiang Commandery (廬江郡; around present-day

), Man Chong's subordinates urged him to send reinforcements there. However, Man Chong refused and said, "Lujiang may be small, but its troops are well-trained and seasoned in battle. They can definitely defend Lujiang for some time. Besides, as the enemy has left their ships and travelled 200 ''li'' deep into our territory, their rear must be unguarded. We should use this opportunity to lure them deeper into our territory and wait for an opportunity to strike back. Let's allow them to push further in. By the time they want to retreat, it'll be too late for them." He then assembled his troops and waited at Yangyikou (). When the Wu forces heard about it, they immediately retreated that night. At the time, as the Wu emperor Sun Quan was eager to conquer Yang Province, he came up with new plans for invasion every year.

Battle of Hefei (233)

In 233, Man Chong wrote a

to the Wei imperial court, seeking permission to move the troops out of

and station them in an area some 30 ''li'' west of the city, and build a fortress there. His plan was meant to lure Wu forces to attack a weakly defended Hefei, cut off their retreat route, and use the opportunity to destroy them.

Jiang Ji Jiang Ji (died 18 May 249), courtesy name Zitong, was an official and military general of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in the late Eastern Han dynasty, Jiang Ji started his career as a low-level official i ...

, a Wei official, disagreed with Man Chong's plan because he believed that the Wu forces would see the drastic reduction in Hefei's defences as a sign of weakness on Wei's part, and become more emboldened to attack and pillage the city. The Wei emperor Cao Rui thought that Jiang Ji made sense so he did not approve Man Chong's idea. Man Chong sent in another memorial to argue that his plan would work because it would mislead the Wu forces into thinking that they were giving up on Hefei and lure them deeper into Wei territory, where they would lose their advantage in naval warfare and become more vulnerable. He also quoted lines from ''

The Art of War ''The Art of War'' () is an ancient Chinese military treatise dating from the Late Spring and Autumn Period (roughly 5th century BC). The work, which is attributed to the ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu ("Master Sun"), is com ...

'' in his memorial to support his point on using deception to lure the enemy into a trap. Zhao Zi (), a Wei official, supported Man Chong's idea and managed to convince Cao Rui to approve it. Later that year, the Wu emperor

personally led his forces to attack Hefei and wanted to besiege the newly constructed fortress, known as Xincheng (新城; literally "new fortress/city"), at the west of Hefei. However, as Xincheng was too far from the riverbank, the Wu forces were hesitant to launch an all-out attack. They remained on their ships on the river for about 20 days. Man Chong gathered his subordinates and told them, "Sun Quan knows that I have moved the troops out of Hefei. He'll definitely want to put on a show of might so that he can brag about how powerful his army is. Although he doesn't have the courage to push further in and attack Xincheng, he'll definitely send his troops ashore just to show off how big his army is." He then ordered 6,000 troops to lie in ambush in Hefei and wait for the Wu soldiers to come ashore. As Man Chong predicted, Sun Quan did order his troops to go ashore and put on a show of might. When that happened, the 6,000 troops in Hefei launched a sudden and fierce attack on them. Hundreds of Wu soldiers were killed while some drowned as they tried to flee back to their ships.

Battle of Hefei (234)

In 234, Sun Quan personally led a 100,000-strong army to attack Xincheng, Hefei. Man Chong recruited dozens of fierce warriors to make torches from tree branches, douse them with oil, and take advantage of the winds to set fire to the Wu army's siege engines and destroy them. Sun Quan's nephew, Sun Tai, was killed in the battle. Sun Quan withdrew his forces. In the spring of 235, Sun Quan sent a few thousand of his soldiers and their families to farm on the north banks of the

Yangtze The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest river in Asia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains (Tibetan Plateau) and flows ...

as part of a ''

'' programme. By early autumn, Man Chong deduced that it was the harvest season, so the Wu soldiers and their families would be out in the fields collecting the harvest, and their strongholds would thus be undefended. He then sent his troops to launch a surprise attack on them, destroying their strongholds and burning down their crops. Cao Rui issued an imperial decree to praise Man Chong and award the spoils of war to Man Chong's troops.

Later career

Sometime between 22 March and 20 April 239, Man Chong retired from military service in

and returned to the Wei imperial capital,

, where he served as Grand Commandant () in the imperial court. Throughout his life, he did not accumulate wealth for his family and was quite poor in his old age. The Wei emperor

issued an imperial decree to praise Man Chong for his loyalty and dedication, and award him 10 ''qing'' of land, 500 ''hu'' of grain and 200,000 coins. The total number of taxable households in Man Chong's marquisate increased over the years until it reached 9,600. One of his sons and one of his grandsons were enfeoffed as village marquises.

Death

Man Chong died sometime between 17 April and 18 May 242 during the reign of Cao Rui's adopted son and successor,

Cao Fang Cao Fang () (232–274), courtesy name Lanqing, was the third emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period. He was an adopted son of Cao Rui, the second ruler of Wei. Cao Fang ruled from 239 to 254 as a nominal emperor bef ...

. He was honoured 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 or ...

"Marquis Jing" () after death.(正始三年薨，謚曰景侯。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 26.

Appraisal

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 the ...

, who wrote Man Chong's biography in the ''

'', appraised him as follows: "Man Chong was ambitious, resolute, courageous and resourceful."

Descendants

Man Chong had at least three sons and one daughter. He and his son Man Wei and grandsons Man Changwu and Man Fen were all described as eight ''chi'' tall (≈1.84 metres). * Man Wei (), whose

was Gongheng (), inherited his father's peerage and marquisate as the Marquis of Changyi (). He was known for being morally upright and magnanimous. Like his father, he served in the Cao Wei state and the highest appointment he held was Minister of the Guards (). ** Man Changwu () was Man Wei's eldest son and he resembled his grandfather Man Chong in character. When he was 23, he started served as an assistant under

Sima Zhao Sima Zhao () (211 – 6 September 265), courtesy name Zishang, was a Chinese military general, politician, and regent of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Sima Zhao capably maintained control of Wei, which had been ...

, the regent and ''de facto'' ruler of the Cao Wei state in its final years. In 260, when the Wei emperor

Cao Mao Cao Mao () (241 – 2 June 260), courtesy name Yanshi, was the fourth emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was a grandson of Cao Pi, the first emperor of Wei. Described as intelligent and studious, ...

launched a coup in an attempt to seize back power from Sima Zhao, Man Changwu was in charge of guarding one of the palace gates. Sima Zhao's younger brother,

Sima Gan Sima or SIMA may refer to: People * Sima (Chinese surname) * Sima (given name), a Persian feminine name in use in Iran and Turkey * Sima (surname) Places * Sima, Comoros, on the island of Anjouan, near Madagascar * Sima de los Huesos, a ca ...

(), led his men to the palace to assist Sima Zhao, but Man Changwu refused to let him pass and told him to enter through another gate instead. Later, when Sima Zhao asked Sima Gan why he was late, Sima Gan told him what happened. Wang Xian (), a military adviser to Sima Zhao, was also denied entry so he bore a grudge against Man Changwu and later often spoke ill of him in front of Sima Zhao. In 257, when a rebellion broke out in

Shouchun Shou County or Shouxian () is a county in the north-central part of Anhui Province, China, and is located on the southern (right) bank of the Huai River. It is the southernmost county-level division of the prefecture-level city of Huainan. Its po ...

, Sima Zhao ordered Man Wei to join him in suppressing the rebellion. When Man Wei reached

, he fell sick so he remained in Xuchang and did not meet up with Sima Zhao at Shouchun. When Man Changwu, who was with Sima Zhao at Shouchun, heard about his father's illness, he left Shouchun and went to Xuchang to see his father. Sima Zhao was very unhappy with Man Changwu because of this. Later, he found an excuse to order Man Changwu's arrest and imprisonment. Man Changwu died under torture while in prison, while his father Man Wei was stripped of his titles and reduced to the status of a commoner. Many people saw this incident as a grievous injustice to Man Wei and Man Changwu. * Man Bing () had the courtesy name Gongyan () and he served as a Major of Separate Command () in the Wei army. * Man Chong's daughter married

(), a younger brother of the Wei regent

. * Man Chong had another unnamed son, who was younger than Man Wei. ** Man Fen () was the son of Man Chong's unnamed son. He was known for being understanding, cultured, virtuous and discerning, and for resembling his grandfather Man Chong in character. He served in the government of the

Jin dynasty (266–420) The Jin dynasty (; ) or the Jin Empire, sometimes distinguished as the (司馬晉) or the (兩晉), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed from 266 to 420. It was founded by Sima Yan (Emperor Wu), eldest son of Sima Zhao, who had pr ...

and rose to the positions of Prefect of the Masters of Writing () and Colonel-Director of Retainers () during the reign of Emperor Hui.(偉弟子奮，晉元康中至尚書令、司隷校尉。) ''Shiyu'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 26.(晉諸公讚曰：奮體量通雅，有寵風也。) ''Jin Zhu Gong Zan'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 26.

In popular culture

Man Chong is a playable character in the ninth instalment of the ''

Dynasty Warriors is a series of Japanese hack and slash action video games created by Omega Force and Koei (now is Koei Tecmo). The series is a spin-off of Koei's turn-based strategy '' Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' series, based upon the Chinese novel of ...

'' video game series by

Koei Tecmo is a Japanese video game, amusement and anime holding company created in 2009 by the merger of Koei and Tecmo. Koei Tecmo Holdings owns several companies, the biggest one of those being its flagship game developer and publisher Koei Tecmo Game ...

Notes

References

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

'' (''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 ...

'' (''Sanguozhi zhu''). * Sima, Guang (1084). ''

Zizhi Tongjian ''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynast ...

''. * Xiao, Tong ( 520s). '' Wen Xuan''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Man, Chong Year of birth unknown 242 deaths Cao Wei generals Cao Wei politicians Generals from Shandong Han dynasty politicians from Shandong Officials under Cao Cao Political office-holders in Anhui Political office-holders in Henan Politicians from Jining