The Life of Guan Yu

Guan Yu becomes famous for loyalty, courage, and honor during the chaos of the late Eastern Han. His story also shows how pride can bring danger even to a great hero.

HSK 4–5

Illustration inspired by The Life of Guan Yu.

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  1. 东汉末年，天下大乱。

    dong1 han4 mo4 nian2 tian1 xia4 da4 luan4

    At the end of the Eastern Han dynasty, the empire was in great disorder.

  2. 皇帝没有力量，军阀互相争斗，百姓常常离开家乡，到处逃难。

    huang2 di4 mei2 you3 li4 liang5 jun1 fa2 hu4 xiang1 zheng1 dou4 bai3 xing4 chang2 chang2 li2 kai1 jia1 xiang1 dao4 chu4 tao2 nan2

    The emperor had no real power, warlords fought one another, and common people often left their hometowns and fled from place to place.

  3. 就在这个混乱的时代，有一个人因为忠诚、勇敢和重义气，被后人记住了一千多年。

    jiu4 zai4 zhe4 ge4 hun4 luan4 de5 shi2 dai4 you3 yi1 ge4 ren2 yin1 wei4 zhong1 cheng2 yong3 gan3 he2 zhong4 yi4 qi4 bei4 hou4 ren2 ji4 zhu5 le5 yi1 qian1 duo1 nian2

    In this chaotic age, one man was remembered by later generations for more than a thousand years because of his loyalty, courage, and sense of honor.