He Man (rebel)
Introduction
He Man was a Yellow Turban rebel general during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history.
After the decline of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, He Man's men, like other Yellow Turban remnants in Runan, allied themselves with Yuan Shu and Sun Jian in the early 190s. By the mid-190s their forces were numbered at by the tens of thousands. In 196, the warlord Cao Cao waged war against the Yellow Turban remnants; in the battles that ensued, He Man's colleague Huang Shao (黄邵) was killed and He Man surrendered with the other leaders. Nothing about He Man's fate after his surrender was recorded in history.
In fiction
In Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, He Man, along with He Yi and Huang Shao, pillaged Runan. Cao Cao then raided Runan. Cao's bodyguard Dian Wei killed He Yi's second-in-command in the battle that followed, and successfully routed the Yellow Turban army. The following day, Huang Shao took command; He Man, wielding an iron mace, advanced on foot and offered combat, pronouncing "I am He Man, the devil who shoots across the sky. Who dare fight with me?" Cao Hong accepted the challenge, and they fought for 50 rounds with neither emerging as the victor. Then Cao Hong feigned defeat, but then wheeled round, struck He Man twice and killed him.