\tThe Three Kingdoms period was one of unparalleled bloodshed and turmoil in Chinese history, as the three states in question, the Wei (\u9b4f), Shu (\u8700) and Wu (\u5434), waged decades-long war for control of China.<\/p>\n
\tStrictly speaking, the period started from 220 A.D. with the establishment of the first Wei Kingdom, and ended in 280 A. D. with the conquest of the last Wu Kingdom. However, some historians include the previous 36-year period, during which the three states rose to power amid the collapse of the Han Dynasty (206 B.C. – 220A.D.).<\/p>\n
\tUnsurprisingly, the Three Kingdom period has left a lasting mark on Chinese language and culture, including a number of four-character idioms based on famous stories from the conflict.<\/p>\n
\tFor instance, \u4e09\u987e\u8305\u5e90 (s\u0101ngù-máolú, three visits to the cottage) relates to the story of Liu Bei (\u5218\u5907), the leader of the Shu Kingdom, who visits Zhuge Liang (\u8bf8\u845b\u4eae) three times in a bid to recruit him as a strategist. Thus the idiom came to mean that you should call on someone repeatedly to show sincerity. Another saying is: “\u8bf4\u66f9\u64cd\u5230\uff0c\u66f9\u64cd\u5c31\u5230\uff08Shu\u014d cáoc\u0101o dào, cáoc\u0101o jiù dào, speaking of Cao Cao [the Wei leader], he is already here\uff09,” which is basically equivalent to saying “speak of the devil.”<\/p>\n
\tThe Three Kingdoms period is probably the most read about historical period in China and East Asia, as the historical events manifested in classic literature as well as popular culture. Many people are introduced to this history by one of the four great classics, “Romance of the Three Kingdoms (\u4e09\u56fd\u6f14\u4e49),” a fictional work written by Luo Guanzhong (\u7f57\u8d2f\u4e2d) in the Ming Dynasty (1368 A.D.-1644 A.D.), more than a thousand years after the events it relates to.<\/p>\n
\tIn the novel, Luo is generally acknowledged to have adopted a pro-Shu (\u8700) stance, and consequently depicted the other two states in a negative light.<\/p>\n
\tThose who are more interested in the actual historical events can refer to “The Record of the Three Kingdoms (\u4e09\u56fd\u5fd7),” which was written by Chen Shou (\u9648\u5bff) right after the fall of the Wu Kingdom.<\/p>\n
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