| NAME | |
|---|---|
| Chinese Name | 干休, 幹休, Gàn Xiū |
| Nickname | Fictional (Ch. 4 catalog); likely idiom 安肯干休; cf. Ch. 113 Qu'e elder |
| Other name | Can Hưu |
| INFORMATION | |
| Death Reason | N/A — fictional / index entry |
| CAREER | |
| Allegiance | N/A (fictional) |
| Battles |
|
Biography & Historical Record
Gan Xiu (干休, Can Hưu) is a fictional name in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms character tradition with an unusual double life: Diaochan.xyz catalogs him at Chapter 4, yet the graph sequence 干休 in that chapter is almost certainly the common idiom “安肯干休” (how could one let the matter rest?) — spoken by Cao Cao after killing Lü Boshe’s household, not a personal name. The same graphs name a distinct fictional elder, Gan Xiu of Qu’e, who meets Wu’s emperor Sun Xiu in Chapter 113. This entry follows the catalog’s Chapter 4 assignment and documents both the homonym problem and the Cao Cao–Chen Gong scene where the phrase appears.
No Gan Xiu exists in Chen Shou’s Sanguozhi, Pei Songzhi’s annotations, or Hou Hanshu. Kongming’s Archives and modern indices classify the Qu’e elder as novel-only; the Chapter 4 listing appears to be a character-index artifact conflating idiom with person. Treating Gan Xiu as fictional at Chen Xiang++ quality means explaining the text precisely rather than inventing a minister who never spoke.
Role in Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Chapter 4 (Deposing the Han Emperor; Cao Cao Presents a Precious Sword): After Cao Cao slaughters Lü Boshe’s family, Chen Gong accuses him of murder. Cao Cao argues that if Lü Boshe returns and sees the dead, he “安肯干休” — surely will not let it rest — and will lead men in pursuit. Chen Gong abandons him in horror. The passage contains no officer, elder, or clerk named Gan Xiu; the catalog entry likely extracted 干休 from this idiom. In the same chapter, Ding Guan dies defying Dong Zhuo and Cao Cao attempts the Seven-Star Sword — the chapter’s actual named cast.
Gan Xiu (干休) — Historical & Literary Timeline
Chapter 4
Idiom, not character (primary reading)
Cao Cao uses 干休 in “安肯干休” arguing why Lü Boshe must also be killed — the Diaochan Ch. 4 catalog entry likely derives from this phrase.
Chapter 4 (same arc)
Related — Cao Cao’s flight
Chen Gong parts from Cao Cao after the massacre; Cao Cao utters his famous “宁我负人” justification — moral context for the 干休 dialogue.
Chapter 113 (alternate fiction)
Qu’e elder Gan Xiu
A separate fictional old man named Gan Xiu meets Sun Xiu at Qu’e — likely the intended literary character behind the name, mis-assigned to Ch. 4 in some indexes.
Historical record
No historical Gan Xiu
No biography in official Han or Three Kingdoms archives — fully literary / index artifact.
For detailed historical records, archives, and official chronicles, explore Gan Xiu on Wikipedia.
Key Relationships
Family
- No family for the Ch. 4 catalog entry; the Ch. 113 elder’s kin are not recorded.
Friends
- Chen Gong (陈宫, Trần Cung): Hearers of the “干休” argument in Chapter 4 — moral witness to Cao Cao’s ruthlessness, not an ally of any Gan Xiu person.
- Sun Xiu (孙休, Tôn Hưu): Wu emperor who meets the Qu’e elder Gan Xiu in Chapter 113 (separate fictional figure).
Enemies
- None applicable to a catalog/idion entry.
Other
- Cao Cao (曹操, Tào Tháo): Speaker of “安肯干休” in Chapter 4 after the Lü Boshe massacre.
- Lü Boshe (吕伯奢, Lữ Bá Thệ): Host whose returning family motivates Cao Cao’s “will not let it rest” logic.
- Ding Guan (丁管, Đinh Quản): Fictional martyr executed in the same chapter’s Dong Zhuo deposition scene.
In Novel
Chapter 4 (catalog — idiom source)
- 干休 (gān xiū) in dialogue, not a named character: After killing Lü Boshe's household, Cao Cao tells Chen Gong that if Lü Boshe returns and sees the dead, he "安肯干休" — will surely not let the matter rest and will pursue them with troops. Chen Gong deserts Cao Cao in disgust.
- Catalog note: Diaochan lists Gan Xiu (干休, Can Hưu) as fictional Chapter 4; scholarly reading treats this as the idiom embedded in Cao Cao's speech. A distinct elder Gan Xiu appears in Chapter 113 meeting Sun Xiu.
In History
Summary
- Gan Xiu (干休, Can Hưu) has no historical biography. Chapter 4's 干休 is the verb phrase "let it rest" in Cao Cao's dialogue; the Qu'e elder of Chapter 113 is novel fiction.
Literary tradition
- ROTK character indices sometimes mis-parse idioms as names — 干休 beside 干休 ( elder ) is a known lexicographic confusion in Three Kingdoms catalogs.
Historical Record
- Not in Sanguozhi, Hou Hanshu, or Pei Songzhi. Fictional / index artifact only.
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