#qin yilu

[ttoca]

Li Qian and Qin Yilu

Two of Cao Cao’s most valued lieutenants, of whom sadly not much is known. So I’m putting my own spin on things.

Li Qian of Jiyin first meets Cao Cao when the young prodigy first take sup office in the capital as a Captain of the North Wall Gate. Li Qian serves as his Adjutant and demonstrates a forthright and honourable character which Cao Cao admires greatly. One might be surprised the famously crafty Cao Cao gets on so well with a man of upright morals but Li Qian understands Luoyang very well and knows that it’s no safe place for good-hearted men. While Cao Cao isn’t afraid to play dirty, respect for the law means a great deal to him and in this, the two are united and Li Qian rises beside Cao Cao as a stalwart and much-valued officer. Through Li Qian, another legend is born; that of his nephew, Li Dian.

Qin Yilu has never been a lucky individual and ever since his father, Qin Jie, raked up massive gambling debts with the powerful Cao Song, the boy was a hostage of the Cao family and became a friend of the young, impressionable Cao Aman. As Qin Yilu’s prospects improve beside Cao Cao’s, he uses his one reliable skill, that of being ignored and dismissed by others, to his advantage as he begins serving as Cao Cao’s spy, send into the courts of enemy lords to watch, listen, learn and pass on information. Qin Yilu’s no slouch in military matters either; while his father was a terrible gambler, he was an excellent commander of troops and as a commander of irregular militia, Qin Yilu can be counted on to appear in the most perilous of places, largely ignored by the majority of the enemy, ready to provide support for Cao Cao. One matter that a Cao Cao arranged when the two were young was Qin Yilu’s marriage to another hostage of the Cao family, Miss Du Jiaojun.

[1time2study4ravages]

missing from the lineup: Cao Yuan, Wang Yun, Zang Ba, Cao Bao, and so on...

[threekingdomsstuff]

Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIII: Lady Du, Qin Yilu

[statesrightssunquan]

Wang Zhaoyuan’s 36 Strategems Chapter 1-Fake the News Until It’s Real

Although the 36 strategems have sometimes been accredited to Zhuge Liang, this is more fake news. Zhuge Liang’s biographers, just like Zhao Yun’s, were paid off shills. They plagiarized from the very real strategic accomplishments and genius of Wang Zhaoyuan in order to make certain losers from the inferior state of Shu (as opposed to the great state of Later Shu) seem much better. What follows are the REAL 36 strategems, written by the brilliant and occasionally inebriated mind of Wang Zhaoyuan.

1.) Deceive with invisible soldiers: Sometimes you will be caught unprepared, facing an enemy army numerically superior than your own, assuming you even have an army at all. At such a time, you should constantly make hand gestures, beckoning soldiers from your left or right, or looking over your shoulder and waving, whether the soldiers are there or not. In the midst of battle, wise commanders look past their enemies toward the horizon, dramatically pulling both hands forward and then thrusting them back, as if to call on allies from behind the enemy lines. At least a few of their adversaries will glance over their shoulders, and in that moment of vulnerability, victory is certain.

When Sun Jian had no men to speak of and encountered pirates, pretending he had the government’s support is how he vanquished his foes. When Dong Zhuo first entered the capital, he lit additional fires and planted additional flags to make it seem as if his forces were more numerous and intimidating than they actually were. Lastly, when Hefei was besieged, Jiang Ji sent out messengers with notes claiming tens of thousands of more soldiers were coming to reinforce the garrison. When Sun Quan found out, he fled even though no such men were coming. If the enemy thinks you have an army, it is as good as having one.

2.) Surrender Wan to save Wan: If the enemy’s force is overwhelming, there is no choice but to surrender. But once you have surrendered, there are many more choices, such as betraying again when the enemy least expects it. This was how Zhang Xiu survived the period of Late-Han civil war. When Cao Cao came, he surrendered, and when Cao Cao came again while sleeping with the widow of Zhang Ji, Zhang Xiu suddenly reneged on his agreement and attacked. As a result Cao Cao was utterly defeated.

3.) Make a sound in a random direction, and then attack at random too: When making plans, if the enemy predicts your movement, your plans are useless. To remain unpredictable, make plans, then roll a dice to see if you should follow through with them. Then in the midst of carrying out those plans, roll another dice to see if you should change your mind. With such randomness as part and parcel of your strategy, the enemy will never know whether you are retreating or attacking, or hitting their eastern walls or tunneling under their front gate, or even dancing and drinking insanely while throwing dung. Without the aid of heaven on their side, your strategies will be as mysterious as a Mulan verse.

When Zhang Xiu’s army was beleaguered, Jia Xu told him to retreat. Xiu ignored his advice and attacked, meeting with defeat. Then, however, Jia Xu told him to attack, despite recently suffering a defeat. Somehow this worked, because Cao Cao was not expecting it. But if Cao Cao had chosen his plans at random, rather than trying to read the situation logically, who knows if this would have happened the same way? Jia Xu’s strategies only worked because he could see through the plans of his enemies, but not even Jia Xu could have predicted the roll of a dice.

4.) Kill with a borrowed wife: A smart warlord should always try to take hostage the wives and family members of their enemies, as this will likely induce them to surrender. This is why Qin Yilu eventually went to join Cao Cao, as doing so ensured the security of his wife. By sleeping with Qin Yilu’s wife, Cao Cao defeated two birds with one stone as he never had to fight Qin Yilu again.

5.) Wait at leisure in times of distress: A smart strategist always acts as if his enemies are nothing. If the enemy comes with a million men, the sage acts as if they are a mere triviality, like several ants to be crushed as easily as turning one’s palm. This was why Fei Yi played weiqi when Wei invaded, and upon seeing his example, the men of Shu were not frightened by the overwhelming odds stacked against them.

6.) Burn a looted house: Pillage is an expected outcome of war, but loot is heavy and weighs the army down. If you were to suddenly set fire to your possessions, the enemy would become confused, and the range of actions you can take without being bogged down by treasure would increase. Hence when Liu Bei was raiding Cao Cao, he suddenly burned his entire camp and fled, as if to suggest he was attempting a desperate getaway due to being put in dire straits. Xiahou Dun pursued him and was soundly defeated by an ambush. In other situations, you might burn supplies or stolen weapons so as to move quicker and avoid loot falling back into an enemy’s hands.

[the-archlich]

Maybe Qin Yilu was a cuck fetishist and he got off on Cao Cao fucking his wife.

Stranger things have happened.

[fuyonggu]

In your biography of Liu Bei, It is said that when Guan Yu asked for the wife of Qin Yilu. His own wife has given him no son, would it confirm the theory that Guan Ping was surely a kid/teenager when he got killed?

The math here does seem to check out (199 for the siege of Xiapi, Guan Ping’s death in 220), assuming Guan Ping was indeed a biological son.

[ttoca]

Page 32- Balance of Power

Page 33- Imbalance of Power

So who would you leave in charge?

Better establishing Cao Boshi, Cao Cao’s smart-alecky sister.

[ttoca]

Page 29- Never A Dull Moment

Page 30- A Lot Of Growing Up To Do

Page 31- Yes...There’s More Cousins...

Introducing several more youngsters who live on the Cao estate. Qin Yilu’s fiery sister, Bonan. And the brother and sister duo, Ding Fei and Ding Yifeng, members of a lesser branch of the Ding family but more closely related to the Cao family by marital bond.

Don’t worry, I’m going to work on a Family Tree later to clarify things.

I need to work on facial consistency. That’s for sure. I’m having trouble making two facial structures look the same on the same character.

[ttoca]

Page 14: Brothers

Page 15: Glorious Qiao

Page 16: Fury

Page 17: The Importance Of Strategy

Page 18: A Friend Indeed

Cao Cao and Liu Hong are kind of meant to be foils to each other. Liu Hong is a descendent of Emperors and yet has nothing while Cao Cao has no origins to boast of but his family has absurd amounts of money. It’ll be reflected on later.

I hope I didn’t make Cao Cao’s luggage look too modern. I wasn’t entirely sure how to portray it.

I wonder if I can make ‘mulberries’ a meme if this ever gets off the ground.

Before anyone points it out, yes, I do realise that the blonde hair, dark skin and other physical factors are unusual, if indeed possible, in Ancient China. This is actually meant to be a nod to traditional Chinese colour culture and character design where hair and eye colour and physical features were telling of personal character rather than any place of origin. Mangas do it too, it’s called Mukokuseki. Helps to make characters distinct and hint at personality traits at first glance.

Cao Ren started small. He has a long way to go before he’s a Four-Star General holding the Southern Frontier.

Also, in the last panel, I tried to make Cao Cao have a ‘pinkie-finger extended’ mannerism but it came out looking a bit warped. I had better luck in later pages. And yes, I am aware that is it considered effeminate in China. That’s deliberate. Cao Cao is meant to look like someone you don’t really take seriously until you realise you should have done.

[1time2study4ravages]

If you keep debating this I'll have to draft your families to defend the city!

chapter 249, The Ravages of Time

[1time2study4ravages]

Don't lose your head to anger. I beg of you!

chapter 228, The Ravages of Time

[1time2study4ravages]

I've been down this path already. And this path reeks of raw stench.

chapter 219, The Ravages of Time

[1time2study4ravages]

Hungry? But, that fish is covered in raw stench.

chapter 195, The Ravages of Time

[the-archlich]

Who's Lady Du, and why would Guan Yu be asking for her?

She was the wife of Qin Yilu, an officer of Lv Bu. He’s likely the same Qin Yi who participated in Dong Zhuo’s assassination. She followed her husband to Xiapi.

According to the Shuji, Guan Yu had a thing for her. During the siege of Xiapi, he asked Cao Cao for Lady Du after the victory. Initially, Cao Cao agreed, but Guan Yu kept making the request over and over again. When the city fell, Qin Yilu was elsewhere, since he’d been sent to get reinforcements from Yuan Shu. Instead of being given to Guan Yu, Lady Du became one of Cao Cao’s concubines instead.

Qin Yilu, at that point, joined Yuan Shu, who arranged a marriage between him and a member of the imperial Liu clan. After Yuan Shu’s death in the next year, he went to join Cao Cao. This suggests that he was comfortable with the arrangement. He was made a magistrate in Pei but was soon killed when Liu Bei rebelled.

Qin Yilu’s son Qin Lang was raised as one of Cao Cao’s own, and he became a highly trusted member of the Wei court under Cao Pi and especially Cao Rui.

Two of Cao Cao’s sons (Cao LIn and Cao Gun) as well as a daughter were also born to a Lady Du, likely the same woman.

I don’t really think there’s any way to tell this story where Guan Yu doesn’t come off creepy as fuck.

[the-archlich]

Why do you fault Guan Yu for being creepily obsessed with Lady Du, but not Cao Cao even though Cao Cao was just as creepily obsessed as Guan Yu was (after all, Cao Cao was the one who made her a concubine)

When Lord Cao and Liu Bei surrounded Lu Bu at Xiapei, Guan Yu said to the Lord, “Lu Bu has sent Qin Yilu to go for help; I beg to have his wife in marriage.” The lord granted him. And right before defeating Lu, he asked the lord several more times. The lord then, suspecting that the woman was of exceptional beauty, had her fetched over first so he could have a look, and he kept her there. Guan Yu was troubled in his heart over that.

Guan Yu is the one being a creep here. He’s asking Cao Cao give him a married woman. And then repeatedly harassed him about it over and over again during the siege. That’s creepy as hell.

Lady Du probably became one of Cao Cao’s concubines just to keep Guan Yu away from her.

[the-archlich]

What is your take on Yangshi, Fengshi, Zhao E/ Pang E, Dushi, Cuishi, Zhugeshi, Fan Yufeng being introduced in DW?

I’m guessing these are women who have cards in SSMB. I’m going to have to do some guesswork about who you’re asking about, so if I get any wrong let me know.

*cracks knuckles*

Lady Yang: Presumably referring to the wife of Ma Chao. Admired Wang Yi. Killed by loyalists after they turned on Ma Chao. She could add an interesting dynamic to the game and wouldn’t be an inherently bad choice. But I think she’d be too wrapped up in Ma Chao’s personal drama and not be allowed to stand on her own.

Lady Feng: Presumably Yuan Shu’s concubine. He loved her, but due to slander from her rivals she killed herself. The story is much less sweet when you remember that Yuan Shu was already married to Lady Yang (Yang Biao’s sister). If Yuan Shu had a faction, Lady Feng could be a good character to bring out a softer side of him. If Yuan Shu doesn’t have a major role, though, there isn’t any point.

Zhao E: A woman noted for avenging her family’s murder with her own hands. She was a very cool lady, but her exploit was somewhat before the relevant time period. I like her, but I don’t think she’d fit into the game well.

Lady Du: Wife of Qin Yi/Yilu, concubine of Cao Cao. Mother of Qin Lang and object of Guan Yu’s lust. While there are ways it could work (expanding on the dynamic between Guan Yu and Cao Cao; adding Qin Lang as a character) I don’t see much value in her own right. And if we’re going to add any of Cao Cao’s women, Lady Bian gets top billing.

Lady Cui: Wife of Cao Zhi; she was killed for violating proprietary laws during the succession argument. She has my sympathies but I don’t think she’d be a good character to add. Not much point in having Cao Zhi’s wife without Cao Zhi himself, after all.

Lady Zhuge: presumably Zhuge Dan’s daughter, Sima Zhou’s wife. She could make for an interesting addition - with her father defecting to Wu while she stays loyal to Wei. If her husband was added to help flesh her out (and Sima Zhou is a strong candidate) I think she could actually be a fairly good contributor.

Lady Fan: The sister-in-law of an administrator in southern Jing. Zhao Yun refused to marry her because he shared a surname with her late husband. I can’t for the life of me figure out what she’d contribute, especially given that she is famous specifically for not being married to someone important. I have nothing against the woman, but she isn’t someone of any relevance.