Jian Yong
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Jian Yong (簡雍), styled Xianhe (憲和) was a minister serving under Liu Bei during the Three Kingdoms era of China. Jian Yong served under Liu Bei since the very beginnings of him raising his own army, acting as an envoy and advisor. After Liu Bei entered Sichuan, Jian Yong was appointed as the "General who Shines of Virtue". Jian Yong was also noted to be a carefree character without much regard for mannerisms.
[edit] Life
Jian Yong was born in Zhuozhou commandery, You Province (modern day Zhuozhou, Hebei) with the surname Geng (耿), but since in his native You province, the surname Geng was pronounced the same as the surname "Jian" (簡), he changed his surname to the latter. He had known Liu Bei since youth and followed Liu in his volunteer army to put down the Yellow Turban Rebellion in 184. When Liu Bei went to Jing province, Jian Yong, along with Sun Qian and Mi Zhu, were Liu's emissaries.
In 211, when Liu Bei entered the Yi Province under the pretext of helping its lord Liu Zhang defend the land, Jian Yong was sent as an emissary to Liu Zhang's court. There, he was much admired by Liu Zhang for his wits. Later, when Liu Bei motioned against Liu Zhang and surrounded his capital at Chengdu, Jian Yong was the one sent to Liu Zhang to advocate surrender. Liu Zhang accepted, and with Jian Yong by his side, rode out on a chariot to surrender. For this, Jian Yong was promoted to the “General who Shines of Virtue” (昭德將軍) and shared the highest ranks with Sun Qian and Mi Zhu in Liu Bei's camp.
In an anecdotal story, Jian Yong's sense of humour is shown. There was a time of drought in Liu Bei's territory, and a prohibition law went into effect. Officers seized brewing utensils from families, and planned to punish the utensil owners as brewers. At the time, Liu Bei and Jian Yong were patrolling the lands, and saw a couple walking past. Jian Yong then said to Liu Bei, "they plan to commit indecent acts, why not arrest them?" Liu Bei asked, "how do you know?" and Jian Yong replied, "they have the utensils to do so, just like the ones who wish to brew." Liu Bei laughed, and pardoned the families with the brewing utensils.
[edit] References
- Chen Shou, Records of the Three Kingdoms.
[edit] See also
- Three Kingdoms
- Personages of the Three Kingdoms
- Records of Three Kingdoms
- Romance of the Three Kingdoms
zh-classical:簡雍 ko:간옹 ja:簡雍 zh:簡雍
