The Hidden Dragon

Zhuge Liang (Chinese: 諸葛亮; pinyin: Zhūgě Liàng, 181–234) was Chancellor of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He is often recognised as the greatest and most accomplished strategist of his era.[2]
Often depicted wearing a robe and holding a fan made of crane feathers,[3] Zhuge was not only an important military strategist and statesman; he was also an accomplished scholar and inventor. His reputation as an intelligent and learned person grew even while he was living in relative seclusion, gaining him the nickname "Fulong" (伏龍, alternatively translated as "Hidden Dragon"[4]). Because he lived near to the Wolong border (臥龍彊), he was also called Mr. Wolong, pronounced "Wolong-xiansheng" (臥龍先生).[2]
Zhuge is an uncommon two-character compound family name. His name – even his surname alone – has become synonymous with intelligence and tactics in Chinese culture.

Five Wu Elders

Five Wu Elders or Five Veterans of Wu (吳大老) are Huang Gai, Ding Feng, Han Dang, Cheng Pu and Zhu Zhi. Those were the generals who serve Eastern Wu many generations, from Sun Jian, Sun Ce to Sun Quan, Sun Liang, Sun Xiu and even Sun Hao. They have many contributions for the empire and also have much influence in Eastern Wu's kings.
All five had served from the generation of Sun Jian.
Huang Gai served until his third lord Sun Quan. He is said to have been highly praised and deeply trusted amongst his colleagues, particularly his third lord, Sun Quan. Huang Gai received various titles throughout the years, including: "Auxiliary Corps Commander", "Acting Colonel of the Firm Attack", "Chief Commandant of Danyang", "General of the Gentlemen of the Household", and "Governor of Wu Ling."
Han Dang served until his third lord Sun Quan. He became favored by Sun Jian for his fighting skills and served the Sun family loyally for his entire life, serving three generations. He commanded a wing of the Wu Navy at times.
Ding Feng served until his last lord Sun Hao. His titles translate as "General Who Eliminates the Bandits" (灭寇將軍), "Lord of An Feng" （安豐侯）, and "Great Minister of War" (大將軍), "Lord of the Capital Precinct". He was known as a brave warrior and skilled strategist.
Cheng Pu served until his third lord Sun Quan. He was referred to by other generals as 'Master Cheng' and he was the prefect of Changsha.
Zhu Zhi served until his third lord Sun Quan. Zhu Zhi was made Minister of War and Deputy Commander of Army Inspection as well as the general and Grand Administrator of Wu commandry, a position he would retain for his entire life. Then, he was made Marquis of Pilang, and later, Zhu Zhi was made "General Who Guards the Kingdom" and "Lord of Gu Zhang".

Five Wei Generals

The Five Wei Generals were those considered by Luo Guanzhong, author of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, to be the finest military generals in the service of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms era of China. They were Zhang Liao, Xu Huang, Yue Jin, Zhang He and Yu Jin. The creation of the Five Wei Generals title is fictitious as opposed to the Five Tiger Generals of Shu Han which may have a factual background. The Five Wei Generals were more than likely created by Luo Guanzhong, to match the Five Tiger Generals in his classic novel. Eastern Wu, however, was the only kingdom of the three who lacked a top five general title, whether it be fact or fiction.

Five Tiger Generals of Shu

The Five Tiger Generals (五虎將) of the Kingdom of Shu during the Three Kingdoms era of China were Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Ma Chao, and Huang Zhong, named in honor of their contributions to the establishment of the kingdom. This title was bestowed on them by Liu Bei, the King of Shu Han, in the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The actual historical veracity of the Tiger Generals is unknown; the persons were known to exist, but whether or not they were actually granted these titles is uncertain: most likely this was a literary device used in the novel.
In the novel itself, Guan Yu was also said to be upset with the appointment of Huang Zhong as a Tiger General; as he understood it, Zhang Fei was his sworn brother and an able warrior, Zhao Yun also an accomplished general had served Liu Bei for so long that he was like a brother, and Ma Chao came from a very famous family (being the descendant of the famous Eastern Han general Ma Yuan) and also being an able warrior, whereas Huang Zhong fits in nowhere (Huang Zhong is a former officer of warlords Liu Biao and Han Xuan). But despite Guan Yu's misgivings, Huang Zhong's war ability was never questioned as he defeated many of Cao Cao's generals in battle, such as Xiahou Yuan and Zhang He.
The Five Tiger Generals were the most valiant generals in Shu, sadly their downfall was very tragic. Guan Yu was executed by Sun Quan after Sun's generals Lü Meng collaborated with Cao Cao's Forces to attack Jingzhou and captured Guan in 219. Huang Zhong died in 220, possibly of illness. Zhang Fei was assassinated by his 2 subordinates due to his strict methods of discipline and affinity for wine in 221. Ma Chao died of illness in 225. Only Zhao Yun died of old age, aged 70 in 229.

End of the Three Kingdoms

Jiang Wei carried on Zhuge Liang’s campaign against Wei for a bitter three decades. However, Liu Bei’s son Liu Shan did not heed Jiang Wei’s advice and listened to the evil eunuch Huang Hao instead. In order to escape from the rival officials in the court, Jiang Wei decided to resign from his military title for the time being and went off to a fertile land of Tazhong. The Wei general Deng Ai, who was at war with Jiang Wei, took the chance to attack Shu Han. Deng Ai and his troops arrived in front of Chengdu, the capital city of Shu-Han, by taking a shortcut. Liu Shan surrendered without a battle and ended the Kingdom of Shu-Han. Jiang Wei planned to rebuild Shu-Han by uniting forces with a Wei general, Zhong Hui, who was at odds with Deng Ai. However, he was not able to see it to the end when his heartache grew intolerable in the midst of the final battle. Seeing the rebellion has failed, he then killed himself with a sword, marking the last stand of Shu.

In Eastern Wu, there was internal conflict among the nobles ever since the death of Sun Quan. Zhuge Ke tried to usurp the throne of Eastern Wu but was assassinated by Sun Lin. Later, Sun Lin himself also lusted for power and had the emperor of Eastern Wu Sun Liang deposed and replaced with Sun Xiu. Sun Xiu sought help from the old veteran general Ding Feng and had Sun Lin assassinated, and the power of Eastern Wu went back into the hands of the emperor. This did not last for long.

In Wei, Sima Yan, son of Sima Zhao, finally forced the last Wei emperor Cao Huan to abdicate in the same manner as Cao Pi had forced Emperor Xian of Han to abdicate. Sima Yan established the Jin Dynasty in AD 265, declaring himself the first emperor of the new dynasty. The Kingdom of Wei came to an end.

Sima Yan ordered the Jin troops to attack Eastern Wu from the former land of Shu-Han and succeeded in conquering Eastern Wu after a long period of struggle when the last tyrannical emperor of Eastern Wu, Sun Hao surrendered. Thus the Three Kingdoms period concluded after almost a century of civil strife.

Sima family controls Wei

The long years of battle between Shu and Wei saw many changes in the ruling Cao family in Wei. The Cao family gradually grew weak after the death of Cao Rui and Sima Yi slowly plotted to usurp the throne. Sima Yi removed Cao Shuang, a powerful noble of Wei from power with a cunning strategy and since then the power of Wei had been in the hands of Sima Yi. After Sima Yi’s death, his sons Sima Shi and Sima Zhao continued wielding the power of Wei in their hands. Sima Zhao had Cao Fang removed from the throne and replaced Cao Fang with Cao Mao. Later, Cao Mao tried to assassinate Sima Zhao, who had the intention of usurping the throne, but was killed by Sima Zhao’s subordinate. Sima Zhao pretended to grieve and mourn Cao Mao’s death and even later had his subordinate, whom he ordered to kill Cao Mao, executed for committing regicide.

Battle of wits between Zhuge Liang and Sima Yi

At this time, Cao Pi also died of illness and was succeeded by Cao Rui. Ma Chao died of illness as well at age 46. In Jiangdong, Sun Quan declared himself Emperor of Eastern Wu. Zhuge Liang then turned his eyes northwards, and planned to attack Wei to restore the Han Dynasty as he had promised Liu Bei at the latter’s deathbed. However, his days were numbered and Shu was far too weak to overcome the material superiority of Wei. His last significant victory against Wei was probably the defection of Jiang Wei, a young general whose brilliance paralleled his own.

Zhuge Liang all along had a chronic illness, which was compounded when he refused to rest even into the early hours of the morning, so that he would be able to complete his analysis of the battlegrounds or to formulate his next plan. He finally died of sickness at the Battle of Wuzhang Plains, while leading a stalemated battle against the Wei commander, Sima Yi, with his far superior force. As a final ploy, he ordered his trusted generals to fake a statue of himself to scare off Sima Yi in order to buy time for the Shu army to retreat to Hanzhong.