Guan Yu was a general of the Shu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms era. He was regarded as "the Saint of War", on par with Confucius as “the Saint of Culture". He was known as “Lord of the Magnificent Beard”.
Background
Guan Yu was born into a family of scholars. When he was young, he studied and practised martial arts at home, while working as a farmer. He was well-versed in the Zuozhuan and had a long lush beard. In AD 184, Guan Yu fled his hometown after slaying a local despot to defend the weak. He met with Liu Bei, who was recruiting volunteers to form, a civilian army to suppress the Yellow Turban Rebellion. Guan Yu and Liu Bei got along well. Together with Zhang Fei, he joined Liu Bei’s group and actively helped Liu Bei in his quest to unify China.
Career
Guan Yu won decisive victories over Cao Cao’s army and rose to fame. Yuan Shao started a campaign against Cao Cao. He killed Yan Liang and Wen Chou, who were both important generals of Yuan Shao, and relieved the siege on Baima. Xu Huang seized the chance to attack Guan Yu's base and defeated him, opening up the passage to Fancheng. Guan Yu faced major setbacks and was defeated.
Politics
Guan Yu embodied core Chinese values like loyalty, righteousness, intelligence, faithfulness, benevolence and bravery. He exemplified the morals, ethics and ideology of traditional Chinese culture: Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism.