Xu Chu

Xu Chu (died c. 230), style name Zhongkang, was a military general who lived in the late Eastern Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period. He served as a bodyguard to the warlord Cao Cao, and continued to serve as a general in the state of Cao Wei (founded by Cao Cao's successor Cao Pi) in the Three Kingdoms period. He was described to be a big and strong man, yet simple-minded and honest, so he was nicknamed "Tiger Fool" by his men. After his death, he was posthumously granted the title of "Marquis Zhuang", which literally means "robust marquis".

Early life
Xu Chu was a native of Qiao (譙; present-day Bozhou, Anhui). He was over eight chi tall (about 190-200 centimetres) with a waist circumference of ten wei (approximately 52 inches or 132 centimetres). He had an imposing and sturdy look and was known for his great strength and courage.

Towards the end of the Han Dynasty, Xu Chu rallied thousands of his clan members and they constructed a fortress to fend off the Yellow Turban rebels. An army of rebels from Runan (汝南; present-day Runan County, Henan), numbering more than 10,000, once attacked Xu Chu's fortress. The defenders were outnumbered and worn out as the battle dragged on. When the arrows were used up, Xu Chu told all the men and women within the fortress to gather stones the size of chess pieces and place them in the four corners of the fortress. He then hurled the stones at the enemies, crushing the bones of all those who were hit. The rebels then kept a distance away and did not dare to come close. When the food supply was exhausted, Xu Chu pretended to negotiate a truce with the rebels and discuss a deal to exchange an ox for food. When the rebels came to collect the ox, the animal would always run back. Then Xu Chu, holding on to the ox's tail, pulled it along for more than a hundred steps. Seeing this, the startled rebels took off without the ox. The rebels in the surrounding areas heard of this incident and became fearful of Xu Chu.

Service under Cao Cao
In 197, when the warlord Cao Cao came to the Runan and Huainan area, Xu Chu led his militia to join Cao. Upon seeing Xu Chu's strength, Cao Cao exclaimed, "This man is my Fan Kuai!" Xu Chu was appointed as a commandant (都尉) among Cao Cao's close guards, who were known as the "Tiger Warriors" (虎士). During Cao Cao's campaign against a rival warlord Zhang Xiu, Xu Chu was at the forefront of the battle and he slew thousands of enemy soldiers. He was promoted to Colonel (校尉) for his achievement.

In 200, Xu Chu followed Cao Cao to the Battle of Guandu against the northern warlord Yuan Shao, during which Xu Ta (徐他) and some conspirators plotted to assassinate Cao Cao. They feared Xu Chu so they waited until he went to rest before they entered Cao Cao's tent with swords hidden under their clothes. Xu Chu felt uneasy so he had returned to protect Cao Cao. Xu Ta and the others, not expecting to find Xu Chu there, could not hide their astonishment when they entered the tent. Xu Chu sensed their intentions and killed them. After this incident, Cao Cao trusted Xu Chu even more and would go nowhere without Xu by his side. Xu Chu participated in the Battle of Ye in 204 and received the title of a "Secondary Marquis" (關內侯) as a reward for his efforts.

Battle of Tong Pass
In 211, during the Battle of Tong Pass against a coalition of northwestern warlords led by Ma Chao and Han Sui, Cao Cao led his troops north across the Ji River (濟河) in an attempt to circle to the rear of the enemy. The bulk of Cao Cao's troops had already crossed the river, leaving Cao and his Tiger Warriors to bring up the rear, when Ma Chao and his 10,000 horsemen caught up with them. As the enemies were approaching fast, Cao Cao's soldiers rushed to get on board the ferry, which was on the verge of sinking under the weight. Xu Chu held up a saddle with his left hand to shield Cao Cao from arrows and carried a sword on his right hand, using it to slash enemy soldiers were trying to clamber onto the vessel. By then, the boatman had been killed by arrows, so Xu Chu, still holding up the saddle with his left hand, used his other hand to grab a bargepole and push the ferry away from the ford to safety.

Cao Cao later agreed to meet Ma Chao and Han Sui for talks, and he brought along only Xu Chu. Ma Chao had confidence in himself and he secretly planned to use that opportunity to charge forward and capture Cao Cao, but he had heard of Xu Chu's might before and he suspected that the man beside Cao Cao was Xu. Ma Chao asked Cao Cao, "Where is your Tiger Marquis?" Cao Cao pointed at Xu Chu, who glared at Ma Chao. Ma Chao was afraid and did not dare to make his move. Both sides then returned to their respective camps. Several days later, a battle was fought, and Cao Cao scored a major victory. Xu Chu killed several enemies and was promoted to Military Guard General of the Household (武衞中郎將) for his achievement. This was the first time the term "Military Guard" (武衞) was used. Cao Cao's soldiers knew that Xu Chu possessed the might of a tiger, but he was also simple-minded, so they nicknamed him "Tiger Fool" (虎癡).

Incident with Cao Ren
Xu Chu was known to be a cautious and serious person who did not talk much and was very mindful of rules and regulations. Once, Cao Cao's cousin and general Cao Ren travelled from Jing Province to meet Cao Cao (who had received the title of a vassal king — "King of Wei" — from Emperor Xian) in the capital Xu (許; present-day Xuchang, Henan). Cao Cao was still in his personal chambers, with Xu Chu standing guard outside, when Cao Ren arrived, so Cao Ren asked Xu to join him in the side room for a chat. However, Xu Chu replied, "The King is coming out soon," and then entered Cao Cao's chambers. Cao Ren was very unhappy with Xu Chu. Later, someone told Xu Chu, "The General (Cao Ren) is a close relative and important subject of the King. He lowered himself when he asked to chat with you. How could you reject him?" Xu Chu responded, "He may be a close relative and important subject of the King, but he is in charge of external defences at the borders. I, Xu Chu, am in charge of internal security. If he wanted to chat with me, we could do so in public. Why did he ask to converse with me in private?" Cao Cao was impressed and he favoured Xu Chu even more after he heard about that incident, and he promoted Xu to Central Resolute General (中堅將軍).

Service under Cao Pi
When Cao Cao died in 220, Xu Chu was so overwhelmed with sorrow that he vomited blood. Later that year, Cao Cao's son Cao Pi ended the Han Dynasty and established the state of Cao Wei, marking the start of the Three Kingdoms period. Cao Pi became emperor and he also favoured Xu Chu greatly. He promoted Xu Chu to Military Guard General (武衞將軍) and put him in charge of the palace guards, and also granted him the title of "Marquis of Wansui Village" (萬歲亭侯). The original Tiger Warriors under Xu Chu's command were all commissioned as officers by Cao Cao, but among them, only slightly more than 10 rose through the ranks to become generals and received marquis titles, while only about a hundred were promoted to commandants and colonels.

Cao Pi died in 226 and was succeeded by his son Cao Rui. Cao Rui granted Xu Chu the title of "Marquis of Mou District" (牟鄉侯) and 700 taxable households under his control, and even conferred the title of a "Secondary Marquis" (關內侯) on one of Xu's sons. After his death, Xu Chu was given the posthumous name of "Marquis Zhuang" (壯侯), which literally means "robust marquis".

Family and descendants
Sometime during the Taihe era (227-233) in the reign of Cao Rui, the emperor issued an imperial edict, praising Xu Chu and conferring the title of a "Secondary Marquis" (關內侯) on Xu Chu's son and grandson.

Xu Chu's titles were inherited by his son Xu Yi (許儀). In 263, when Cao Wei launched a major campaign to conquer its rival state Shu Han, Xu Yi served as a yamenjiang (牙門將) under the Wei general Zhong Hui, who tasked him with overseeing the construction of roads leading into Shu. When the main army commanded by Zhong Hui passed through the roads, it turned out that the roads were poorly built. Zhong Hui had Xu Yi executed for his failure, and this incident shocked the Wei army. Xu Yi's titles were inherited by his son Xu Zong (許綜) during the reign of Emperor Wu of the Jin Dynasty.

Xu Chu's elder brother Xu Ding (許定) also served in the Wei military and was promoted to General Who Inspires Might (振威將軍) and commanded the Rapid as Tigers (虎賁) division of the imperial guards.

Appraisal
Chen Shou, who wrote Xu Chu's biography in the Sanguozhi, commented that Xu Chu and Dian Wei were powerful bodyguards and were comparable to Fan Kuai, a general who served Liu Bang (the founding emperor of the Han Dynasty).

In fiction
Xu Chu appears as a character in the historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong, which romanticises the historical events before and during the Three Kingdoms period. His bravery and strength was emphasised by a fictional episode in chapter 59, when he duelled with Ma Chao during the Battle of Tong Pass. See Battle of Tong Pass (211) for more information.

Modern references
Xu Chu is featured as a playable character in Koei's Dynasty Warriors and Warriors Orochi video game series. His name is spelled as "Xu Zhu" in the games.