| Hu Ban | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 胡班 | ||
| Simplified Chinese | 胡班 | ||
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Hu Ban is a fictional character in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was the son of Hu Hua (胡華), a Consultant (議郎) who served Emperor Huan. Hu Ban was a subordinate of Cao Cao's general Wang Zhi, who was appointed Administrator of Xingyang (滎陽).
Guan Yu concluded his short service under Cao Cao and journeyed northward to reunite with his sworn brother Liu Bei. In his hurry, Guan forgot to obtain an official pass from Cao. During his journey, he fought his way through Dongling Pass, Luoyang and Sishui Pass, as the generals defending these locations refused to allow him to pass through. Guan eventually arrived at Xingyang and decided to spend the night there. Wang Zhi pretended to be hospitable to Guan, while secretly giving orders for Hu Ban to burn down the guesthouse that Guan was staying in.
Hu heard stories about Guan's feats and wanted to see how the legendary general looked like. He sneaked into the guesthouse and caught a glimpse of Guan, who was reading a book inside his room. Guan noticed Hu lurking outside his room and asked him to come in. Hu introduced himself, and Guan produced a letter from Hu's father after hearing Hu's name. Hu read his father's letter and learnt about Guan's character. He decided to disobey Wang Zhi's orders and secretly warned Guan that Wang was planning to kill him. Guan alerted his followers and they escaped from Xingyang. Wang Zhi led his men on pursuit and was killed by Guan after catching up.
Years later, Hu went to meet Guan in Jing Province. Guan remembered him and was grateful to him for saving his life in Xingyang. He sent Hu to accompany Fei Shi to Liu Bei's main base at Chengdu.