14 Facts About Dong He

Dong He, courtesy name Youzai, was an official in the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China.

Dong He originally served under the warlord Liu Zhang before becoming a subordinate of Liu Bei after Liu Zhang's surrender to Liu Bei in 214.

Dong He was known for his frugality and virtue which earned him the admiration of the people of the land of Shu.

Dong He was born in Zhijiang, Nan Commandery, which is present-day Zhijiang, Hubei.

Dong He wore simple clothing and was known to be a vegetarian.

Local officials and commoners learnt of this; several thousands begged to have Dong He stay, and among them were the elderly and the frail.

Liu Zhang listened to them and allowed Dong He to stay for two years before he was appointed as the Administrator of Yizhou, again a far away and still unruly land.

Dong He resolved the common affairs with a sincere heart and would seek to work with the non-Han people.

Dong He received praises from Chang Qu for being one of the few officials who could restrain the locals.

Dong He was loved and trusted by the people of the whole province.

In those positions, Zhuge Liang and Dong He were of the same mind.

Since Dong He opened his office and started receiving a salary, he has been in charge of difficult regions, had to oversee important matters and managed high positions for more than twenty years.

Only Xu Shu could deal quickly and without doubts with Dong He who managed the office for seven years, if a matter was not completed then he would examine it as much as ten times then reach mutual understanding.

Zhuge Liang always spoke highly of Dong He and had fond memories of him after his death.