Yuan Shu's Army, later known as the Zhong Dynasty, is one of the main antagonistic factions in the early parts of the 14th-century Chinese classic novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms and it's multiple adaptations. They are a military force and later dynasty led by the warlord Yuan Shu.
History[]
Yuan Shu or Gonglu was an official in Han Dynasty and half-brother of another official named Yuan Shao. The two didn't get along but when Dong Zhuo came to power, they formed an alliance to overthrow him. Yuan Shao was the leader and Yuan Shu served as his second-in command and in charge of the armie's provisions. Even though Yuan Shu wasn't the leader he achieved much more than his half-brother as one of his generals named Sun Jian scored the most victories against Dong Zhuo's forces. Soon the different factions started to distrust and fight each other so the anti-Dong Zhuo alliance was dissolved.
Yuan Shu's force resided in South East China with their capital being the city of Souchun. Yuan Shu allied himself with his rival's Yuan Shao northern enemy Gongzun San and soon expanded his power being the second most powerful warlord next to Yuan Shao for some years. However, he suffered many defeats mostly by Cao Cao's forces which forced him to make new allies, one of them being Lu Bu. Their alliance didn't go well and Yuan Shu soon found himself as an enemy of Lu Bu as well his ally at the time Liu Bei. In 196 Yuan Shu ordered an attack led by one of his top generals Ji Ling against Liu Bei, but Lu Bu intervended and stopped their clash with the famous trident halberd shooting, forcing Ji Ling to retreat. Yuan Shu wanted to attack Lu Bu, but his advisors told him not to, as that would benefit Cao Cao.
Some time later, Sun Jian's son, Sun Ce who was serving under him, offered him the Imperial Seal (which his father had found years ago) in order to let him return to his home. Yuan Shu was pleased and let Sun Ce and his men go. He then decided to declare himself Emperor, and overthrow the Han Dynasty, despite some of his advisers objecting, something that would turn out to be a fatal mistake. In 197 AD Yuan Shu declared himself Emperor and named his dyansty Zhong. That action enraged various warlords all over the country and led to a punitive campaign against him by Cao Cao, Liu Bei, Lu Bu and Sun Ce. Yuan Shu suffered a disastrous defeat and was once again forced to seek new allies.
He managed to convince Lu Bu (who was also having troubles with Liu Bei and Cao Cao) to ally with him, even offering to marry his son to Lu Bu's daughter. However, Lu Bu was defeated and executed by Cao Cao in 199 AD, leaving Yuan Shu without any support. Desperate, Yuan Shu sought to take shelter under Yuan Shao, even offering to give him the Imperial Seal. Soon, he was stopped by Liu Bei's forces and took his own life thus ending the short lived Zhong Dynasty. Most of the remnants of his army surrendered to Cao Cao and Sun Ce.
Other Media[]
TV Shows[]
Yuan Shu's Army appear as major antagonists in the early parts of the 2010 TV series Three Kingdoms, specifically being the secondary antagonists of episodes 3-14 , the main antagonists of episodes 15-16 and minor antagonists in episode 21.
Video Games[]
Yuan Shu's forces appear as a playable and also antagonistic faction in the Dynasty Warriors video-game series.
Relationships[]
Enemies[]
- Han Dynasty
- Cao Cao's Army
- Lu Bu's Army (formerly)
- Liu Bei's Army
- Sun Ce's Army (formerly)
- Dong Zhuo's Army
- Liu Biao's Army
Allies[]
- Lu Bu's Army
- Yuan Shao's Army
Gallery[]
[]
 Villains
| ||
|
Wei Empire Wu Empire Shu Empire Jin Empire Other Villains Lu Bu's Army Nanman Tribe Yellow Turbans Yuan Shao's Army Zhong Dynasty Others | ||
 Villains
| ||
|
Wei Empire Wu Empire Shu Empire Jin Empire Other Villains Lu Bu's Army Nanman Tribe Yellow Turbans Yuan Shao's Army Zhong Dynasty Others Guest Characters | ||