Zhuge Liang in Romance of the Three Kingdoms always shakes his feather fan, acting as if he were in command. He wears a Taoist robe on many occasions, such as borrowing the east wind and praying for the continuation of life with a seven-star lamp. He lived in seclusion in Longzhong before coming out of the mountain, saying that he would retire after his success. He was a Taoist priest who lived at large and avoided the world.

Is Zhuge Aliang a Taoist? Of course not. The main purpose of Taoism is to cultivate monasticism, make an alchemy for health, avoid the world, and be boundless. Zhuge Liang worked hard in his official career all his life and was a standard Confucian intellectual. He is hands-on and diligent in politics. When he died at the age of 54, he could not exercise at all.

So, why is The Romance of the Three Kingdoms written like this?

First of all, this is Luo Guanzhong's arrangement. Lu Xun commented on The Romance of The Three Kingdoms, saying that "Zhuge Liang is as clever as a demon", and wrote Zhuge Liang so badly that he was hardly human. In order to achieve this effect, he deliberately mythologized Zhuge Liang by various means. The most mysterious thing is undoubtedly religion, and Taoist priests always give people the feeling of being immortal.

The second is the social environment at that time. Buddhism was not popular in China at that time, and Taoism was the local religion in China, which had a great influence at that time. The teachings of Taoism basically come from the Tao Te Ching, but there are also differences between different schools:

Zhang Jiao's Taiping Road had the greatest influence and even led to the demise of the Eastern Han Dynasty. The main way for Zhang Jiao to win people's hearts is to see a doctor and make the patient repent. If he recovers, it means that the patient is sincere, otherwise it means that his heart is not sincere enough. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the epidemic disease was prevalent, and the people were as frightened as tigers. This move is very effective.

Pentecostalism in Zhang Daoling also has a great influence. Zhang Daoling made his fortune in Hanzhong in the middle of Shu. His son, grandson, granddaughter, etc. They are all masters of the game. Zhang Lu, the grandson, became a general in the south of the city and became a household name. Cao Cao also attached great importance to Zhang Lu. After Zhang Lu defected, his son married Zhang Lu's daughter.

Another in Kyrgyzstan is said to be the author of Taiping Jing, which has a great influence on Zhang Jiao and Zhang Daoling. Yu Ji seldom contacts the people at the bottom, and mainly takes the route of the top dignitaries. Although he also makes water for people to see a doctor, it has little impact.