Pang Tong, whose courtesy name was Shiyuan, was a native of Xiangyang. When he was young, he seemed somewhat foolish, and few people regarded him highly. There was a man named Sima Hui from Yingchuan, who was upright and had a keen eye for people. When Pang Tong was around twenty years old, he went to visit Sima Hui. Sima Hui was perched in a tree, gathering mulberries, while Pang Tong sat beneath the tree. They talked from morning till night. Sima Hui held Pang Tong in high regard and said that he would become a leader among the scholars in the south, and from then on, Pang Tong gradually became famous. Later, he was appointed as a county magistrate.
Pang Tong was honest and focused on nurturing talent. He often praised others, exaggerating more than necessary. People at the time found it strange and asked him why he did that. Pang Tong replied, "The world is in chaos now, the righteous path is in decline, and there are few good people and more bad people. I want to promote good customs and develop the right path. If I don't praise those people more strongly, their reputation won't be loud enough, and fewer people will follow their example. If I praise ten people now, maybe only five of them are true, but there's still the other half. This way, we can improve the social atmosphere and allow ambitious people to strive for success. Isn't that good?" Later, the Wu general Zhou Yu helped Liu Bei conquer Jingzhou, and Pang Tong became the Prefect of Nanjun. After Zhou Yu passed away, Pang Tong traveled to Wu to pay his respects, and many people in Wu had heard of his reputation.
While passing through Changmen in Kuaiji on his way back to Shu, Lu Ji, Gu Shao, and Quan Cong came to visit him. Pang Tong said, "Lu, you are like an ordinary-looking horse that runs very fast; Gu, you are like an ordinary-looking ox that can carry heavy loads over long distances." Then he said to Quan Cong, "You have a tendency to show off and chase after fame, somewhat like Fan Zizhao from Runan. Although your talent is not very high, you can still be regarded as a talent." Lu Ji and Gu Shao told Pang Tong, "If the world becomes peaceful, we must judge the talents of the world together with you." They shared a good rapport with Pang Tong before taking their leave.
After Liu Bei took over Jingzhou, Pang Tong was appointed to serve as an official responsible for Lei Yang County, but he did not manage the county well and was dismissed from his position. Wu general Lu Su wrote a letter to Liu Bei saying, "Pang Shiyuan is not the kind of talent only suitable for managing small places. Let him take on positions like Zhong's assistant so that he can display his talents." Zhuge Liang also recommended Pang Tong to Liu Bei. After meeting Pang Tong, Liu Bei had a good conversation with him, valued him almost as much as Zhuge Liang, and appointed him as Zhong's assistant. Zhuge Liang stayed in Jingzhou, while Pang Tong followed Liu Bei into Shu.
When Liu Zhang met Liu Bei in Fucheng, Fa Zheng advised Liu Bei, "Take advantage of this opportunity now, directly seize Liu Zhang, and you can easily get Yizhou without any effort." Liu Bei said, "I have just arrived in someone else's territory; I haven't built trust yet, that wouldn't be wise."
After Liu Zhang returned to Chengdu, Liu Bei prepared to attack Hanzhong from the north. Fa Zheng suggested again, "Select elite soldiers, march day and night straight to Chengdu; Liu Zhang is not good at fighting and usually has no defenses. Once our army arrives, we can easily capture Chengdu. This is the best strategy. Yang Huai and Gao Pei are Liu Zhang's famous generals, each leading elite soldiers to guard the passes. They have repeatedly advised Liu Zhang to let you return to Jingzhou. Before you arrive, send someone to tell them that there is an urgent matter in Jingzhou and you need to go back for rescue, and let them prepare to welcome you, pretending to leave. These two people admire your reputation and will be happy to see you leave. You can take advantage of the situation to seize their military power, then attack Chengdu. This is a viable strategy. Retreat to Baidi City, unite the forces of Jingzhou, and slowly plan for Yizhou. This is a last resort. If you hesitate and do not take action, things will get worse; you must act quickly." Liu Bei adopted the viable strategy, so he killed Yang Huai and Gao Pei, then attacked Chengdu, advancing like a broken bamboo.
At the conference in Fucheng, Liu Bei hosted a banquet and said to Fa Zheng, "I'm having a great time at this banquet!" Fa Zheng replied, "How can you be so happy while attacking another country? That's not how a righteous army behaves!" Liu Bei, now drunk and furious, retorted, "King Wu attacked King Zhou with singing and dancing; wasn't he a righteous army? You are wrong, get out of here!" Fa Zheng quietly stepped back. Liu Bei later regretted this and asked Fa Zheng to come back. Fa Zheng returned to his position without a word of thanks, simply eating and drinking as usual. Liu Bei asked, "Who was wrong in what we discussed earlier?" Fa Zheng answered, "Both the ruler and the minister were wrong." Liu Bei laughed heartily, and the banquet continued.
During the attack on Luo County, Fa Zheng commanded the army to attack the city, was hit by a stray arrow, and died at the age of thirty-six. Liu Bei was deeply saddened and would often shed tears when speaking of him. Liu Bei posthumously honored Fa Zheng's father with the title of court gentleman, promoted him to a grand councilor, and Zhuge Liang personally paid tribute to him. Fa Zheng was posthumously appointed as the Marquis of Guannei, with the posthumous title of Jinghou. Fa Zheng's son, Fa Hong, styled Jushi, was upright and outspoken, held contempt for Chen Zhi, the Minister Over the Masses, was oppressed by Chen Zhi, ultimately dying while serving as the Administrator of Fuling. Fa Zheng's younger brother, Fa Lin, served as an official in Jingzhou and accompanied General Huang Quan in the campaign against Wu. After defeat, he surrendered to the Wei Kingdom, where he was granted the title of marquis and eventually became the Administrator of Julu.
Fa Zheng, styled Xiaozhi, was from Meixian, Fufeng. His grandfather, Fa Zhen, was renowned for his integrity and reputation. During the Jian'an period, the land faced a severe drought and famine. Fa Zheng and his fellow villager Meng Da fled to Shu to seek refuge with Liu Zhang. Later, he became the magistrate of Xindu County and was later promoted to Military Advisor. However, he was not given much importance and was even falsely accused by officials from other regions of having poor character. Fa Zheng was deeply discontented and felt stifled in his ambitions.
Zhang Song, the deputy of Yizhou, was on good terms with Fa Zheng. He thought Liu Zhang was inept and lacked talent, often sighed to himself. After Zhang Song returned from Jingzhou, where he had met Cao Cao, he advised Liu Zhang to sever ties with Cao Cao and seek refuge with Liu Bei instead. Liu Zhang asked, "Who will be the messenger?" Zhang Song recommended Fa Zheng. Fa Zheng hesitated several times before finally agreeing. Upon his return, Fa Zheng lauded Liu Bei's talents to Zhang Song and secretly conspired to support Liu Bei. However, the timing wasn't right then. Later, when Liu Zhang learned that Cao Cao planned to send troops against Zhang Lu, he was quite fearful. Zhang Song urged Liu Zhang to invite Liu Bei to come and fight Zhang Lu and also asked Fa Zheng to bring Liu Bei's command. After receiving the command, Fa Zheng privately advised Liu Bei, saying, "With your wisdom and talent, General, capitalize on Liu Zhang's weaknesses; Zhang Song is a key figure in Yizhou who can rally support for you from within; then leverage Yizhou's wealth and its strategic position as a land of plenty to establish dominance; it'll be a piece of cake!" Liu Bei took his advice and traveled west along the river, meeting Liu Zhang in Fuxian County. He then headed north to Jiange Pass before moving south to defeat Liu Zhang.
Zheng Du said to Zhang Lu: "General Liu Bei's army launched a surprise attack on us, with less than ten thousand soldiers. His soldiers haven't fully pledged their allegiance to him yet, relying on supplies from the fields, and his army lacks proper logistical support. The best way is to drive all the people of Baxi and Zitong west of the Fu River, burn their granaries and field supplies, build tall walls and deep trenches, and wait quietly for them. When they come asking for battle, do not agree. After some time, when they run out of supplies, within a hundred days, they will definitely retreat on their own. When they retreat, attack and you'll surely capture them." Liu Bei was furious when he heard this and asked Fa Zheng. Fa Zheng replied, "In the end, they won't use this strategy, so don't worry." Indeed, as Fa Zheng predicted, Zhang Lu told his subordinates: "I've heard that to resist the enemy, we should calm the people, but I have never heard of mobilizing the people to avoid the enemy." He then dismissed Zheng Du and chose not to adopt his strategy.
When Liu Bei's army surrounded Luo City, Fa Zheng wrote a letter to Zhang Lu, saying, "I am by nature foolish and lack talent, and I have broken my alliance with Liu Bei. I worry that my close confidants do not understand the seriousness of the situation and will push all the blame onto me, bringing me shame and consequences even after my death. Therefore, I have put up with some grievances outside and have not dared to disobey orders. I am afraid that the Emperor might believe the slanderous things said about me, so I didn't write to you earlier to express my respect, but only to recall the kindness we've shared and feel very worried. However, I have been honest from start to finish and have hidden nothing. It is just that my foolishness and poor strategies failed to earn your trust, leading to the current situation. Now the country is in great danger, calamity is imminent; even if I face exile and am despised by others, I still cling to my wishes, wanting to fulfill my final loyalty. General, I know your true intentions; I indeed did not want to disappoint General Zuo (Liu Bei)'s expectations, but in the end, it turned out like this because my confidants fail to grasp how heroes act, thinking they can break their promises and act untrustworthy, only pursuing superficial obedience and flattery, following the crowd, without thinking about the country’s long-term interests."
The situation has already unfolded; they failed to reassess the strengths of both sides, believing that General Zuo's army was far away and had insufficient food reserves, hoping to win with fewer troops through prolonged attrition. However, from Guanzhong to here, they have faced continuous defeats, splitting their troops to garrison, and reducing their numbers every day. Although Luocheng has ten thousand soldiers, they are all defeated armies, led by failed generals. If they want to compete for victory in a day, the strengths of both sides are simply mismatched. Everyone wants to plan for the long term and reserve food. Now our camp is already strong, food reserves are sufficient, while your land is decreasing day by day, the people are getting more and more miserable, the enemies are increasing, and supplies are getting further away. I estimate, General, that you must be exhausted and unable to hold out much longer. Simply defending against each other is already proving difficult to maintain. Now Zhang Fei leads tens of thousands of troops, has already pacified Ba Dong, entered the territory of Jianwei, and divided the troops to pacify Zizhong and Deyang, with three armies attacking simultaneously. What do you have to defend yourself with? Initially, we thought this army had a long way to travel, no food, transportation could not keep up, insufficient troops, and no follow-up support. Now the roads in Jingzhou are clear; Liu Bei's army outnumbers ours by several times, and Sun Quan has even sent his brother, along with Li Yi, Gan Ning, and others as follow-up support. If you want to seize the initiative and win through territory, now Liu Bei has completely occupied Ba Dong, and Guanghan and Jianwei are also more than half occupied; Baxi County is no longer yours. Yizhou relies only on Shu County, which has also been destroyed; we have lost two-thirds of our territory, the people are weary, with eight out of ten households desiring to rebel. If the enemy is distant, the people cannot be conscripted; if the enemy is close, they will quickly switch allegiances. The counties of Guanghan serve as clear evidence. Yufu and Guantou are the lifeblood gates of Yizhou; now both gates have been opened, the strong cities have been breached, all the armies have been defeated, the soldiers and generals have been lost, and the enemy's several armies are attacking simultaneously, having already penetrated deep into the hinterland. Defending Chengdu and Luocheng, the situation regarding survival has become painfully clear.
The above are just some general strategies; there are many details that are hard to cover in full. Even someone as foolish as I am realizes that this matter is unlikely to succeed. Surely the wise and capable strategists around you, General, must see this? They flatter you daily, without any thought for the long-term strategy. If we reach a dead end, everyone will try to save themselves, seeking a way out, unlike the current plan; they will not fight to the death for you, General. And you have to bear this worry. Although I will be criticized for disloyalty, I believe I have not betrayed your trust; I am just fulfilling my duty, and it pains me greatly. Since General Zuo's uprising, I have always been loyal to him, truly without any ulterior motives. I believe we can find a way to change the current situation and protect your family.
In the nineteenth year, Liu Bei attacked Chengdu, and the Prefect of Shu County, Xu Jing, planned to sneak out of the city to surrender, but his plan was exposed and failed. Realizing he was about to be finished, Liu Zhang chose not to kill Xu Jing. After Liu Zhang surrendered, Liu Bei did not pay much attention to Xu Jing because of this situation. Zhuge Liang said, "Some people have great reputations but actually have no real skills; Xu Jing is such a person. But now our lord has just started to conquer the world; we can't possibly know everyone's thoughts. Xu Jing's reputation is well known; if we don't show him respect, people will say our lord disdains talent. Therefore, we should treat him well, let everyone see, just as King Zhao of Yan valued Guo Kui in the past."
After Liu Bei listened to Zhuge Liang's advice, he treated Xu Jing especially well, appointing him as the Prefect of Shu Prefecture and the General of the Yangwu, entrusting him with command over the Chengdu area and allowing him to serve as a strategist internally. As for Fa Zheng, he was very clear about his grudges and affections and had a strong desire for revenge. Regardless of the offense, he would retaliate, even killing many people. Some people told Zhuge Liang, "Fa Zheng is being overly arrogant in Shu Prefecture. General, you should talk to the Lord and suppress his power." Zhuge Liang replied, "When the Lord was in Gong'an, he feared Cao Cao's strength in the north, worried about Sun Quan's pressure in the east, and was also afraid of Lady Sun causing trouble around him. At that time, the situation was precarious, and Fa Xiaozhi (Fa Zheng) helped the Lord a lot, turning the tide. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. How can we restrict Fa Zheng just because of this minor issue?"
At first, Sun Quan married his sister off to Liu Bei. Lady Sun was just as strong-willed and assertive as her brother, with over a hundred knife-wielding maids surrounding her. Every time Liu Bei went to see her, he felt a sense of dread. Zhuge Liang also knew that Liu Bei trusted Fa Zheng a lot, which is why he made this point.
In the year 222 AD, Liu Bei told Zhuge Liang, "Cao Cao took control of Hanzhong, but he didn't pursue further into Bashu. Instead, he left Xiahou Yuan and Zhang He to defend it and hurriedly returned north. This isn't because he's incapable; there must be some internal crisis. Right now, Xiahou Yuan and Zhang He aren't as capable as our generals. If we lead our troops against them, we’re sure to win! Once we win, we’ll focus on boosting agriculture, stockpiling food, and watching for the right moment. The best outcome would be to overthrow Cao Cao and restore the royal family; the middle outcome is to gradually take control of Yongzhou and Liangzhou, expanding our territory; the worst-case scenario is to hold key areas and prepare for the long haul. This is a chance from heaven; we can’t let it slip away!" Liu Bei thought Zhuge Liang's plan was excellent, so he led his generals to attack Hanzhong, with Zhuge Liang accompanying him.
In the year 224 AD, Liu Bei crossed the Mian River at Yangping, moved along the mountain path, and camped at Dingjun Mountain and Xingshi Mountain. Xiahou Yuan led his troops to fight for control of the area. Zhuge Liang declared, "Let’s fight!" Liu Bei ordered Huang Zhong to occupy the high ground, beat the drums and shout, and fiercely attack Xiahou Yuan. As a result, Xiahou Yuan's forces suffered a crushing defeat, and Xiahou Yuan and others were killed. When Cao Cao learned of this, he sighed, "I knew Liu Bei could not have done this on his own; someone must have given him the idea."
Liu Bei was appointed as the King of Hanzhong and appointed Zhuge Liang as the Chancellor and General Who Guards the Army. The following year, Zhuge Liang passed away at the age of forty-five. Liu Bei mourned for several days and posthumously conferred upon Zhuge Liang the title of Marquis of Yi, granting his son Zhuge Zhan the title of Marquis of Guannei, along with the official ranks of Attendant Cavalry Commandant and Prefect of Hanyang. Despite their differing interests, Zhuge Liang and Fa Zheng respected each other in their official capacities. Zhuge Liang always admired Fa Zheng's wisdom and strategy. After Liu Bei proclaimed himself emperor and sought to campaign eastward against Sun Quan to avenge Guan Yu, many officials advised him against it, but he ignored their counsel. In the second year of the Zhangwu era, the army suffered defeat and retreated to Baidi City. Zhuge Liang sighed and remarked, "If Fa Xiaozhi were still here, he could have persuaded His Majesty against the eastern campaign; even if it were necessary, it would not have ended up like this."
Commentary: Pang Tong was known for his elegance, love of reading, and expertise in Confucianism and strategy. At that time, people in Jingzhou and Chuzhou considered him outstanding. "Records of the Three Kingdoms" evaluates Fa Zheng: Fa Zheng was good at analyzing situations and proposing unique strategies, but his character cannot be considered noble. If we compare him to the strategists of Wei, Pang Tong would be akin to Xun Yu, while Fa Zheng would be more like Cheng Yu or Guo Jia, wouldn't you agree?
