| NAME | |
|---|---|
| Chinese Name | 陈应, 陳應, Chén Yìng |
| Nickname | Flying-fork hunter-general (飞叉将) of Guiyang |
| Other name | Trần Ứng |
| INFORMATION | |
| Birth Place | Guiyang Commandery (桂阳郡; quận Quế Dương) |
| Died | 209 |
| Death Reason | Beheaded by Zhao Yun when fake-defection assassination plot was exposed (209 AD, novel) |
| FAMILY | |
| Father | |
| Relatives | |
| CAREER | |
| Allegiance | Zhao Fan (Guiyang) |
| Battles |
|
Biography & Historical Record
Chen Ying (陈应, Trần Ứng) was a martial officer of Guiyang commandery in the late Eastern Han, remembered almost entirely through Luo Guanzhong’s Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He served Grand Administrator Zhao Fan (赵范, Triệu Phạm) as a senior general alongside Bao Long (鲍隆, Bào Long). Local tradition in the novel paints him as a mountain hunter famed for hurling flying forks (fei cha, 飞叉) — a weapon he deploys against Zhao Yun (赵云, Triệu Vân) when Liu Bei sends troops to secure southern Jing Province after Red Cliffs.
Chen Shou’s Sanguozhi records Zhao Fan’s surrender of Guiyang to Zhao Yun in 209 AD but does not name Chen Ying or Bao Long; their duel, capture, pardon, and later treachery are novel inventions dramatizing Zhao Yun’s magnanimity and vigilance. Chen Ying dies beheaded in 209 AD when Zhao Yun exposes Zhao Fan’s fake-defection assassination plot.
Role in Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Chapter 52 (Zhao Yun Slays Guiyang’s Four Generals; Sun Quan Submits to Cao Cao): When Liu Bei (刘备, Lưu Bị) orders Zhao Yun to take Guiyang, Administrator Zhao Fan debates surrender versus resistance. Chen Ying and Bao Long boast of their mountain-hunting prowess and lead three thousand vanguard troops against Zhao Yun. Chen Ying duels Zhao Yun for several passes, flees, turns in the saddle to throw his flying fork, and is caught barehanded when Zhao Yun snatches the weapon and unhorses him. Zhao Yun releases Chen Ying with wine and a message to surrender peacefully.
Chapter 52 (later scene): Humiliated when Zhao Yun refuses to marry Zhao Fan’s widowed sister-in-law Lady Fan (樊氏, Phàn thị), Zhao Fan sends Chen Ying and Bao Long with five hundred men in a fake defection. Zhao Yun feasts them, gets them drunk, finds concealed daggers, and beheads both generals before tricking Zhao Fan into opening the gates.
Chen Ying (陈应) — Historical & Literary Timeline
General under Zhao Fan
Senior commander in Guiyang famed for flying-fork skill in novel tradition.
Duel with Zhao Yun
Leads vanguard against Zhao Yun; defeated, captured, and pardoned outside Guiyang.
Fake surrender plot
Sent to assassinate Zhao Yun at a banquet; executed when the plot is exposed.
For the Guiyang campaign context, see Zhao Yun and Zhao Fan.
Key Relationships
Family
- No spouse or children named in Sanguozhi or the novel — a martial officer without recorded lineage in either tradition.
Friends
- Zhao Fan (赵范, Triệu Phạm): Guiyang Grand Administrator whom Chen Ying served as trusted field commander.
- Bao Long (鲍隆, Bào Long): Fellow general who co-led resistance and the assassination conspiracy.
Enemies
- Zhao Yun (赵云, Triệu Vân): Shu general who defeated, pardoned, and ultimately executed Chen Ying at Guiyang in 209 AD.
- Liu Bei (刘备, Lưu Bị): Sovereign whose southern Jingzhou expansion brought Zhao Yun to Guiyang.
Other
- Lady Fan (樊氏, Phàn thị): Zhao Fan’s widowed sister-in-law — Zhao Yun’s refusal to marry her triggers Zhao Fan’s revenge plot.
- Wei Yan (魏延, Ngụy Diên): Part of Liu Bei’s southern commandery pacification after Red Cliffs, though not directly linked to Chen Ying in the text.
In Novel
Chapter 52
- Chen Ying (陈应, Trần Ứng) and Bao Long (鲍隆, Bào Long): Step forward boasting, "We are hunters from the mountains who have slain wild beasts; why should we fear Zhao Yun?" — Chen Ying leads three thousand troops to battle.
- Chen Ying (陈应, Trần Ứng): After several passes with Zhao Yun (赵云, Triệu Vân), flees and hurls his flying fork; Zhao Yun catches it barehanded, pulls Chen Ying from his saddle, and later releases him with wine.
- Chen Ying (陈应, Trần Ứng): Returns in a fake defection with concealed daggers; Zhao Yun gets him drunk, discovers the weapons, and orders him beheaded outside the camp.
In History
Summary
- Chen Ying (陈应, Trần Ứng) is not attested in Sanguozhi; Guiyang's submission to Zhao Yun in 209 AD is historical, but the flying-fork duel and execution are novel episodes.
Year: 209 AD
- Zhao Fan, Grand Administrator of Guiyang, surrendered the commandery to Zhao Yun after Liu Bei's southern expansion — recorded in Zhao Yun's biography.
Historical Record
- Sanguozhi, Shu 36 (赵云传): Zhao Fan surrenders Guiyang; no mention of Chen Ying or flying forks.
- ROTK Chapter 52: literary invention — classify Chen Ying as a novel-only martial foil to Zhao Yun.
Gallery
COMMENTS (0)