Biography
Jian Yong was born in Zhuo Commandery, You Province (present-day Zhuozhou, Hebei) with the surname Geng (耿). Since in his native You Province, the surname Geng was pronounced the same as "Jian" (簡), he hence changed his surname. He had known Liu Bei since his youth and followed Liu in his volunteer army to put down the Yellow Turban Rebellion in 184. When Liu Bei went to Jing Province, Jian Yong, along with Sun Qian and Mi Zhu, often acted as Liu's emissaries.
In 211, when Liu Bei entered Yi Province (covering the Sichuan Basin) under the pretext of helping its lord Liu Zhang defend the land, Jian Yong was an emissary to meet Liu Zhang. There, he was much favored by Liu Zhang for his wits. Later, when Liu Bei turned against Liu Zhang and surrounded his capital at Chengdu, Jian Yong was sent to persuade Liu Zhang to give up. Liu Zhang agreed, and, with Jian Yong by his side, rode out on a chariot to surrender. For this, Jian Yong was promoted to the rank of "General of Shining Virtue" (昭德將軍) and shared the highest ranks with Sun Qian and Mi Zhu in Liu Bei's court.
Jian Yong's wit was famous. One time, there was a drought in Liu Bei's territory and a prohibition law went into effect to preserve the grains. Over-zealous officials seized brewing utensils from families and suggested to punish the utensil owners as brewers. When Liu Bei and Jian Yong were patrolling the land, Jian Yong pointed to a couple walking past and said to Liu Bei, "They're planning to commit indecent acts, why not arrest them?" Liu Bei asked, "How do you know?" Jian Yong replied, "They have the utensils to do so, just like the ones who wish to brew." Liu Bei laughed, and pardoned the families with the brewing utensils.
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