Zhang Fei
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In the Romance of Three Kingdoms, Zhāng Fēi (張飛, c. 168 - 221 AD), styled Yìdé (翼德), was first a butcher, then an officer of the Kingdom of Shu and the second member of the Five Tiger Generals. According to the legend, he was sworn blood brother of Liu Bei and Guan Yu.
At the Battle of Chang Ban he alone rode out on the Chang Ban Bridge to hold off the pursuing army of Cao Cao. He glared and pointed his spear, saying, "I am Zhang Fei of Yan, and anyone can come and challenge me to fight to the death," which was so powerful that it was said to have frightened and held off 10,000 troops (it is believed several generals fell off their steeds, and some sources even say the number of soldiers exceeded 100,000, but this is likely an exaggeration). However, Zhang was later rebuked by Zhuge Liang for ordering his soldiers to burn Chang Ban Bridge so as to delay the pursuit of Cao's forces. Zhang Fei was unhappy about this, and Zhuge Liang was later proven right when Cao Cao was to guess correctly that Zhang Fei had burnt the bridge out of fear. Ironically, Zhang Fei had successfully pulled off a ruse against Cao Cao when he commanded his soldiers to attach logs to their horses so as to raise large dust clouds, creating the illusion that Zhang had a large army with him.
In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, he is shown as exceedingly loyal and known for his strength and skill as a warrior, but also short tempered and a drunkard, which often got him into problems more times than not on the battlefield.
The historical Zhang Fei, however, was shown to have been a masterful general rather than simply a warrior. He was not known to have had an obsession with wine, that apparently being an invention of Luo Guanzhong for the novel. He treated his superiors with respect, but had little respect for his underlings.
Zhang Fei was killed by his own men Zhang Da and Fan Qiang while leading troops to attack the rival kingdom of Wu, in response for the death of Guan Yu.
The romanticised Zhang Fei is best portrayed in the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong.
The historical Zhang Fei is best portrayed through his description and actions depicted in his Sanguozhi Biography, a work by Chen Shou. Some sources suggest that Zhang Fei was also an excellent painter.ja:張飛 zh:张飞