Contents
Biography & Historical Record
Bu Si is a minor officer who served as a subordinate military commander under the warlord Lu Bu during the late Eastern Han dynasty. Operating as a garrison and line officer in Xu Province during Lu Bu’s tenure as governor, Bu Si participated in local defensive deployments and regional military operations surrounding Xiapi.
In 198 AD, when Cao Cao launched a grand expeditionary campaign alongside Liu Bei to eliminate Lu Bu’s regime in Xu Province, Bu Si was stationed as part of Lu Bu’s defensive garrison protecting the outer strongholds and perimeters of Xiapi. As Cao Cao’s vanguard army commanded by general Xu Huang advanced across Xu Province, swept through peripheral garrisons, and captured key fortified passes, Bu Si found his forces outmatched. Confronted by Xu Huang’s overwhelming tactical assault, Bu Si surrendered alongside fellow officers Zhao Shu and Li Zou, handing over his garrison and troops to Cao Cao’s advancing vanguard. Following his surrender during the Siege of Xiapi, Bu Si fades entirely from historical records.
Role in Romance of the Three Kingdoms
In Luo Guanzhong’s Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Bu Si appears as a minor subordinate officer under Lu Bu during Cao Cao’s campaign against Xu Province in Chapter 18 and Chapter 19. Assigned to guard outer garrisons defending Xiapi, Bu Si witnesses the rapid collapse of Lu Bu’s external perimeter under the relentless pressure of Cao Cao’s vanguard led by Xu Huang. Recognizing the futility of continued resistance as Lu Bu’s command structure unravels, Bu Si surrenders his post to Xu Huang, illustrating the internal morale decay and desertion among Lu Bu’s ranks prior to the final encirclement at Xiapi.
Bu Si (卜巳) — Literary Timeline
Garrison Duty in Xu Province
Serves as a subordinate officer under Lu Bu, assigned to hold outer garrison points surrounding Xiapi against Cao Cao’s invading army.
Surrender to Xu Huang
Overwhelmed by Cao Cao’s vanguard forces during the Siege of Xiapi; surrenders his command and garrison to general Xu Huang.
Key Relationships
Family
- No information
Friends
- Zhao Shu (赵庶, Triệu Thứ): A fellow subordinate officer under Lu Bu who surrendered alongside Bu Si to Xu Huang’s vanguard during the Siege of Xiapi in 198 AD.
- Li Zou (李邹, Lý Trâu): A comrade and fellow officer who surrendered his garrison and troops to Cao Cao’s advancing forces during the collapse of Lu Bu’s outer defenses.
Enemies
- Xu Huang (徐晃, Từ Hoảng): The vanguard general under Cao Cao who overwhelmed Bu Si’s garrison and accepted his surrender during the 198 AD campaign in Xu Province.
- Cao Cao (曹操, Tào Tháo): The northern warlord who led the grand expeditionary campaign to eliminate Lu Bu’s regime at Xiapi.
- Liu Bei (刘备, Lưu Bị): A rival warlord allied with Cao Cao during the Siege of Xiapi who participated in the destruction of Lu Bu’s forces.
Other
- Lu Bu (吕布, Lã Bố): The warlord and ruler of Xu Province whom Bu Si served as a subordinate military commander and garrison officer.
- Chen Gong (陈宫, Trần Cung): The chief advisor of Lu Bu’s faction who oversaw the strategic defense of Xu Province against the invading coalition.
In Novel
Bu Si (卜巳, Bốc Tị) does not have a securely verified named appearance in the supplied Vietnamese edition under the exact Chinese name 卜巳. No chapter is assigned without an exact textual match.
In History
Summary
- Bu Si (卜巳, Bốc Tị) is a Yellow Turban commander associated with the suppression of the rebellion in the late Eastern Han.
Period I — Yellow Turban Rebellion
- Bu Si is recorded as a commander of the Yellow Turbans in the region around Yingchuan and Runan.
- He was defeated by Han imperial forces during the campaigns against the rebellion.
Historical Record
- Bu Si was historical. His name appears in the historical accounts of the Yellow Turban uprising, although the surviving biography is brief.