Chen Lin style name

Chinese style name

A Chinese style name, sometimes also known as a courtesy name , is a given name to be used later in life. After 20 years of age, the zì is assigned in place of one's given name as a symbol of adulthood and respect...

 Kongzhang (孔璋), was a minister during the late Han Dynasty

Han Dynasty

The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...

 period of Chinese history

History of China

Chinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the Cradle of Chinese Civilization. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest...

. Chen was one of the "Seven Scholars of Jian'an

Seven Scholars of Jian'an

Seven scholars of Jian'an , also translated as the "seven philosophers of Jian'an", or the "seven masters of Jian'an", is composed of seven Chinese intellectuals of the Eastern Han period. The name was coined by Cao Pi. "Jian'an" refers to the 196—220 period during the rulership of the Emperor Xian...

" and originally served under General-in-Chief He Jin

He Jin

He Jin was the elder half-brother of Empress He, consort to Emperor Ling of the late Eastern Han Dynasty in China. He shared power with his sister as regents in 189, following the death of Emperor Ling. In the ensuing struggle with the influential eunuch faction for power, He Jin was assassinated...

 in the imperial court.

Biography

According to Chen Shou

Chen Shou

Chen Shou was a historian during the Jin Dynasty period of Chinese history. He is best known as the author of Records of Three Kingdoms, a historical account of the late Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period.-Biography:...

's Records of Three Kingdoms

Records of Three Kingdoms

Records of Three Kingdoms , is regarded as the official and authoritative historical text on the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history covering the years 184-280 CE. Written by Chen Shou in the 3rd century, the work combines the smaller histories of the rival states of Cao Wei , Shu Han and...

, Chen attempted to dissuade He Jin from amassing an army outside the capital city of Luoyang

Luoyang

Luoyang is a prefecture-level city in western Henan province of Central China. It borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyang to the south, Sanmenxia to the west, Jiyuan to the north, and Jiaozuo to the northeast.Situated on the central plain of...

 to intimidate the Ten Attendants

Ten Attendants

The Ten Attendants were a group of eunuchs from the Eunuch Faction of the Han Imperial Court in China...

, a group of eunuch

Eunuch

A eunuch is a person born male most commonly castrated, typically early enough in his life for this change to have major hormonal consequences...

s who controlled the imperial court. He said: "To act in this manner is no difference from lighting a furnace to burn a strand of hair" (以此行事，无异于鼓洪炉以燎毛发). However, He Jin did not heed his advice and Chen was obliged to flee to Ji Province, where he worked as a secretary under the warlord Yuan Shao

Yuan Shao

Yuan Shao was a warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He occupied the northern territories of China during the civil war that occurred towards the end of the Han Dynasty and the beginning of the Three Kingdoms era...

.

Chen rose to fame when he wrote a declaration of war

Declaration of war

A declaration of war is a formal act by which one nation goes to war against another. The declaration is a performative speech act by an authorized party of a national government in order to create a state of war between two or more states.The legality of who is competent to declare war varies...

 for Yuan Shao to Cao Cao, listing the rationale for the subsequent campaign against Cao, which eventually culminated in the Battle of Guandu

Battle of Guandu

The Battle of Guandu was a military conflict between the warlords Cao Cao and Yuan Shao in 200 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. The battle, which concluded with victory for Cao Cao, was a turning point in the war between the two warlords...

. In Luo Guanzhong

Luo Guanzhong

Luo Ben , better known by his style name Luo Guanzhong , was a Chinese writer of the early Ming Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was also known as Huhai Sanren...

's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Romance of the Three Kingdoms, written by Luo Guanzhong in the 14th century, is a Chinese historical novel based on the events in the turbulent years near the end of the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history, starting in 169 and ending with the reunification of the land in...

, Cao was having a headache while the declaration was being read but his headache was gone after hearing it. After Yuan's defeat, Chen was captured by Cao, who reprimanded Chen for insulting his elders and ancestors in the declaration he wrote earlier. However, Cao spared Chen's life and instructed him to read the declaration again before Yuan's grave.

Chen was later appointed as an official to serve Cao Cao, as Cao admired his literary talent. Cao once said: "Reading Chen Lin's scripts heals my headaches much better than others." Nothing about Chen from then on was recorded in history.

Appointments and titles held

• Registrar (主簿) to General-in-Chief He Jin
  He Jin
  He Jin was the elder half-brother of Empress He, consort to Emperor Ling of the late Eastern Han Dynasty in China. He shared power with his sister as regents in 189, following the death of Emperor Ling. In the ensuing struggle with the influential eunuch faction for power, He Jin was assassinated...
  
  
• Libationer and Army Advisor to the Excellency of Works (司空軍師祭酒)