Li Ru
| Li Ru | |||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 李儒 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simplified Chinese | 李儒 | ||||||
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| Transcriptions | |
|---|---|
| Standard Mandarin | |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Lǐ Rú |
Li Ru, courtesy name Wenyou (文優), was a scholar and advisor to the warlord Dong Zhuo in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. He was a native of Heyang (郃陽), Pingyi (馮翊), located in the capital province Sili (司隷).
Li Ru was appointed as Prefect of the Household (郎中令) when Dong Zhuo controlled the imperial court. He served under Li Jue after Dong Zhuo's death. In 190, Li Ru was sent by Dong Zhuo to poison the Prince of Hongnong (the deposed Emperor Shao). In the winter of 192, Li Jue recommended Li Ru to be a Palace Attendant (侍中), but Emperor Xian's decree stated: "(Li) Ru was formerly a Prefect of the Household under the Prince of Hongnong. He killed my older brother and ought to be punished." In defence of Li Ru, Li Jue said, "It was not Li Ru's intention to follow Dong Zhuo's orders. We should not punish the innocent."
In Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Li Ru was a son-in-law of Dong Zhuo. He served as an advisor to Dong Zhuo on various campaigns against Ma Teng, the Ten Attendants, and later his attempts to keep Emperor Xian under his control. When Dong Zhuo was sent to the capital to deal with the Ten Attendants, Li Ru advised him to replace Emperor Shao with his younger brother, Liu Xie, who would become Emperor Xian later.
When Dong Zhuo announced his plans to the court, Ding Yuan and his adopted son Lü Bu objected to Dong Zhuo's plans. Dong Zhuo attempted to attack Ding Yuan, but after seeing his adopted son Lü Bu, Li Ru would put off Dong Zhuo, probably saving his life. The next day Ding Yuan challenged Dong Zhuo to a battle outside the capital with a small force. However Dong Zhuo's force was no match for Lü Bu. Li Su, a friend of Lü Bu, offered to bring Lü Bu to Dong Zhuo's side by offering him the horse, Red Hare. Dong Zhuo was reluctant but on the advice of Li Ru, he gave up the horse to Lü Bu, who killed Ding Yuan, and joined Dong Zhuo along with Zhang Liao and Gao Shun.
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