三国演义 Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Chapter 2

罗贯中《三国演义》

Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Author: Luó GuànZhōng

Translator: Moss Roberts

Chapter 2

漢朝 / 汉朝 Hàn Cháo

董卓 Dǒng Zhuó

仲穎 Zhòng Yǐng

Founder

刘邦 Liú Bāng

汉高祖 Hàn Gāo Zǔ

Founder's Wife

吕后 Lǚ Hòu

孙坚 Sūn Jiān

文台 Wén Tái

General

朱俊 Zhū Jùn

公伟 Gōng Wěi

Crown Pince

1 刘辩 Liú Biàn

2 刘协 Liú Xié

Older Maternal Uncle of 刘辩 Liú Biàn

何进 Hé Jìn

袁绍 Yuán Shào

十常侍 Shí Cháng Shì

张让 Zhāng Ràng

赵忠 Zhào Zhōng

In the Western or Former Han dynasty, the Empress's relatives had more power than the eunuchs. In the Eastern or Later Han dynasty, it was reversed.

蜀漢 / 蜀汉 Shǔ Hàn

1 刘备 Liú Bèi

玄德 Xuán Dé

3 張飛 Zhāng Fēi

益德 Yì Dé

2 關羽 Guān Yǔ

雲長 Yún Zhǎng

曹魏 Cáo Wèi

曹操 Cáo Cāo

孟德 Mèng Dé

Thoughts

p. 15 bottom

Discussion of whether to accept Yellow Scarves surrender and reward their allegiance or to crush then to demonstrate the results of subversion.

p. 17 bottom

Not using power for personal gain and not being able to bribe others and therefore being defamed, versus using power for personal gain and creating a poor reputation with the commoners yet having financial clout.

p. 18 middle

Stay and fight or leave.

p. 19 top

Who to believe. Punished for speaking the truth or placate the powerful with lies.

p. 20 top

Kill the competition.

p. 22 bottom

Indecision

Definitions

Lèse-majesté or lese-majesty is an offence against the dignity of a ruling head of state or the state itself. The English name for this crime is a borrowing from the French, where it means "a crime against The Crown."

capon noun

a cockerel castrated to improve the flesh for use as food

crack troops noun

special military troops

Synonyms: elite troops, rapid deployment troops, special troops, storm troops.

This term was simply based on the analogy that employing these troops could create "cracks" in an enemy's military structure or strategy.

"Do not follow a feigned retreat. Do not attack crack troops" -Sun Tzu "The Art of War" (the book on Armed Struggle)