Xu Rong (general)

Xu Rong (died 192) was a military general serving under the warlord Dong Zhuo during the late Han Dynasty of China.

Biography
Xu Rong was originally from Xuantu commandery (玄菟郡) of You Province. In the year 190, when Yuan Shao led the campaign against Dong Zhuo, Xu Rong successively defeated the forces of Cao Cao and Sun Jian, who were part of the alliance to put down Dong Zhuo.

When Dong Zhuo was assassinated by Lü Bu and Wang Yun, Xu Rong served Wang Yun in the new government. Afterwards, Li Jue and Guo Si, former generals under Dong Zhuo, led an army and attacked Chang'an. Xu Rong, along with his ally Hu Zhen, went out to do battle against the invading army. Xu Rong, however, was defeated and slain in battle.

In fiction
The historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, is a dramatic novelization of the events of the Three Kingdoms era. In it, after Dong Zhuo moved his capital from Luoyang to Chang'an, Cao Cao set off in pursuit of Dong Zhuo's forces. According to the story, Xu Rong intercepted Cao Cao's army but Cao Cao's trusted general Xiahou Dun impaled him with a spear. In recorded history, Xu Rong's ambush of Cao Cao was successful, and Cao Cao would have been killed if he had not been rescued by his cousin, Cao Hong.