| NAME | |
|---|---|
| Chinese Name | 法真, 法真, Fǎ Zhēn |
| Nickname | Gaoqing (高卿, Cao Khanh); worthy hermit (贤士) |
| Other name | Pháp Chân |
| Courtesy name | 高卿, 高卿, Gāo Qīng, Gao Qing, tự Cao Khanh |
| INFORMATION | |
| Born | 100 |
| Birth Place | Mei County, Fufeng commandery (present-day Mei County, Shaanxi) |
| Died | 188 |
| Death Reason | Natural death at advanced age (188 AD) |
| CAREER | |
| Allegiance | Eastern Han (recluse, refused office) |
| Battles |
|
Biography & Historical Record
Fa Zhen (法真, Pháp Chân), courtesy name Gaoqing (高卿, Cao Khanh), was an Eastern Han recluse-scholar from Mei County in Fufeng and the father of Shu’s great strategist Fa Zheng (法正, Pháp Chính). The Hou Hanshu and local traditions remember him as a man of integrity who refused office and lived in seclusion; he died in 188 AD at roughly eighty-eight sui. He did not live to see his son serve Liu Bei, but his moral reputation frames Fa Zheng’s origin as that of a talented son of a worthy hermit house.
In the novel he appears only as a one-line pedigree note when Zhang Song visits Fa Zheng before the Liu Bei–Yi Province plot — a historical reference, not a speaking character.
Role in Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Chapter 60 (Zhang Song Turns Against Liu Zhang and Secretly Offers a Map; Liu Bei Discusses with Pang Tong How to Take the Riverlands): After Zhang Song (张松, Trương Tùng) returns from Cao Cao’s court disappointed, he visits his friend Fa Zheng (法正, Pháp Chính), styled Xiaozhi (孝直). The narrator identifies Fa Zheng as a man of Youfufeng, “son of the worthy scholar Fa Zhen” (贤士法真之子). Zhang Song confides that he has secretly offered Yi Province to Liu Bei (刘备, Lưu Bị) and recruits Fa Zheng and Meng Da (孟达, Mạnh Đạt) as inside agents — Fa Zhen is named only as pedigree, not present in the scene.
Fa Zhen (法真) — Historical & Literary Timeline
c. 100 AD
Birth in Fufeng
Born in Mei County, Youfufeng (Fufeng) — traditional date in character catalogs circa 100 AD.
Eastern Han
Recluse-scholar
Refused official service; known locally as a man of virtue (贤士) whose son Fa Zheng would later enter Liu Bei’s service.
188 AD
Death
Died at advanced age before Fa Zheng’s rise under Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang — recorded in Hou Hanshu tradition.
Chapter 60
Named as Fa Zheng’s father
One-line identification when Zhang Song recruits Fa Zheng for the Liu Bei–Yi Province conspiracy — no dialogue or action.
For detailed historical records, explore Fa Zhen on Wikipedia and Hou Hanshu notices on the Fa clan.
Key Relationships
Family
- Fa Zheng (法正, Pháp Chính): Son, Liu Bei’s chief strategist for the Hanzhong campaigns — the figure whose fame preserves Fa Zhen’s name.
- Fa Miao (法邈, Pháp Miễu): Grandson, Fa Zheng’s son — attested in later Shu records.
Friends
- Local Fufeng scholars who respected his reclusion — no individual names in ROTK Chapter 60.
Enemies
- None recorded — hermit who avoided court factionalism.
Other
- Zhang Song (张松, Trương Tùng): Visits Fa Zheng in Chapter 60 in the passage that names Fa Zhen as father.
- Meng Da (孟达, Mạnh Đạt): Co-conspirator recruited with Fa Zheng in the same chapter.
- Liu Bei (刘备, Lưu Bị): Ultimate beneficiary of Fa Zheng’s service — Fa Zhen’s moral legacy cited indirectly.
- Liu Zhang (刘璋, Lưu Chương): Yi governor whom Fa Zheng would betray — after Fa Zhen’s death.
In Novel
Chapter 60
- Fa Zhen (法真, Pháp Chân): Named in narration as "son of the worthy scholar Fa Zhen" (贤士法真之子) when introducing Fa Zheng (法正, Pháp Chính) to Zhang Song's Yi Province conspiracy — pedigree only, no speech.
In History
Summary
- Fa Zhen (法真, Pháp Chân), styled Gaoqing, was an Eastern Han recluse of Mei County, Fufeng, father of Fa Zheng; died 188 AD.
Year: c. 100 AD
- Born in Mei County, Youfufeng commandery (present-day Mei County, Shaanxi).
Year: 188 AD
- Died at advanced age; did not witness his son's service under Liu Bei.
Historical Record
- Hou Hanshu — notices on the Fa family and local reclusion traditions.
- Pei Songzhi's annotations to Fa Zheng's biography in Sanguozhi preserve references to his father's reputation.
- ROTK Chapter 60: one-line literary citation — historical figure, not fictional.
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