諸葛瑾

Profile

Zhuge Liang’s elder brother — and a pillar of the rival kingdom of Wu. Though the brothers anchored enemy states, they held to one rule for life: meet only on public business, never in private. He was the envoy of choice for every awkward negotiation with Liu Bei’s camp, and his gentle manner, it was said, could soften even an angry Sun Quan. He rose to Grand General; his son Zhuge Ke would later rule Wu in all but name.

Key events

1. 215

   The Xiang River Accord

   Guan Yu and Lu Su face off at Yiyang over Jing Province — the single-blade parley — settling on a split along the Xiang River.

   Guan YuLu SuSun QuanLiu Bei

2. 253

   The Fall of Zhuge Ke

   Zhuge Jin’s son Zhuge Ke, master of Wu after his victory at Dongxing, is assassinated in a coup after his reckless Hefei campaign fails.

History vs. the novelHistoryvsNovel

The novel plays him for comedy, forever failing to wheedle Jing Province out of his brother. In the histories, Sun Quan declared their bond unbreakable even by death — no minister stood closer.