Zhang Liao and Li Dian were both capable generals under Cao Cao, but the relationship between them was not very good. According to the Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms and the Biography of Li Dian, Sun Quan took advantage of Cao Cao's expedition to Hanzhong to lead an army to attack Hefei, which Was jointly defended by Zhang Liao, Li Dian, and Le Jin. Zhang Liao advocated taking the initiative, but because he had always been at odds with Li Dian and Le Jin, he was worried that they would not agree. Li Dian said indignantly that this was a major national affair, and he would not disregard the overall situation because of his personal grievances. In the end, the three joined forces to break the Wu Army.
(Li Dian) and Zhang Liao and Le Jintun Hefei, Sun Quan led the crowd to besiege him, and Liao wanted to go to war with his teachings. Jin, Dian, and Liao were all not harmonious, and Liao was afraid that they would not obey, and the dian sighed and said: "This is a major national event, Gu Jun's plan is like an ear, I can regret it privately and forget justice!" ”
This incident was later written into the Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong, so it was widely circulated. However, whether it is "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" or "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", there is no mention of why Li Dian and Zhang Liao are not in harmony, so let's explore the reasons for this.
The first possibility is that Zhang Liao may have killed Li Dian's relatives and friends.
Unlike Li Dian, who went to join Cao Cao when he recruited volunteer soldiers to fight Dong Zhuo and was appointed as a former official, Li Dian was actually the first to follow his uncle Li Qian.
Li Qian is a local magnate in the Chengshi area, and there are thousands of diners in his family. During the chuping years, Li Qian took his men and horses into Cao Cao's command, followed him in a crusade against the Yellow Turban Army, and participated in wars with Yuan Shu, Tao Qian, and others.
In the first year of Xingping (194 AD), during Cao Cao's second eastern expedition to Xuzhou, Zhang Mi, Chen Gong, and others who remained in Yanzhou colluded with Lü Bu to launch a rebellion because they were dissatisfied with Cao Cao's rule. Li Qian was ordered to lead his army back to his hometown of Chengshi to resist the attack of Lü Bu's army, but unfortunately was killed by Lü Bu's general Xue Lan and Li Feng.
After Li Qian's death, his son Li Zhen commanded his father's old forces to defeat Xue Lan and Li Feng, and then followed Cao Cao to quell the Rebellion in Gunzhou, and was promoted to Qingzhou For his merits. Soon after Li Quan fell ill and died, Li Dian was appointed as the commander of Yingyin County and the general of Zhonglang, taking over Li Quan's troops. At this time, he officially became Cao Cao's general.
At the time of the Gunzhou Rebellion, Zhang Liao was Lü Bu's subordinate. Although the Romance of the Three Kingdoms does not explicitly mention what Zhang Liao did during this period, it was inevitable that he would engage Li Qian and Li Zhen's troops.
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, when such local magnates formed private armed forces, they often used the backbone of their own clans. Therefore, in addition to his son Li Quan and nephew Li Dian, there must be many other clans in Li Qian's army. Casualties were inevitable in battle, and li dian's relatives and friends should have died in the battle with Lü Bu's army.
Zhang Liao was also a fierce general, often charging forward as a soldier, like the Battle of Hefei, he personally rushed into the Wu army and killed dozens of Wu soldiers. Therefore, it is not certain that some of Li Dian's clan members died at the hands of Zhang Liao, so the relationship between the two naturally could not be good.
The second possibility is a simple competitive relationship, which leads to a bad relationship between the two.
According to the Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms, the relationship between Li Dian, Zhang Liao, and Le Jin was not harmonious. Le Jin was a veteran general who had followed Cao Cao for many years, and his seniority was even older than Li Dian, no more than Zhang Liao, who joined halfway. It is obvious that there can be no blood feud between Li Dian and Le Jin to cause their discord, so the contradiction between the three people may only be caused by competition.
Li Dian, Zhang Liao, and Le Jin were all very capable people, and they were all promoted quickly under Cao Cao. During the Battle of Hefei, Zhang Liao's officials Judang Kou, Le Jin as the general of Folding Chong, and Li Dian as the general of the Broken Guard, all of them were miscellaneous generals, and they were of equal rank to each other.
Since they are at the same level and have strong ability, Li Dian, Zhang Liao, and Le Jin are of course all making meritorious achievements and going further, and it is inevitable that they will have some sense of competition with each other. What's more, capable people often have a big temper, and it is inevitable that some unpleasant verbal conflicts and the like will occur when competing, so that the relationship between them will naturally not be too harmonious.
Of course, it is also possible that the discord between Li Dian and Zhang Liao is caused by a combination of the above two reasons, or there are other things that we do not know.
But no matter what, Li Dian, Zhang Liao, and Le Jin are also reasonable people, so although the relationship is not good, but if they really encounter major events, they can still unite and fight against the enemy together, and there is no mistake. From this point of view, Cao Cao is still knowledgeable and good at his duties.