Xun You | Wei

Name: Xun You

Age: 43 (Born 157 AD)

Appearance: Xun You is a slender 5'7” man with dark and messy unkempt hair, a weary expression, and unshaved stubble. He wears layered, simple clothes in shades of blue that are easy to move in with gloves, since he’s often strategizing on the front lines.

Personality: Xun You is a humble, skilled individual with a calm exterior, but also struggles to give himself enough credit. He feels his capabilities are undervalued compared to others like Jia Xu and his cousin Xun Yu. Xun You is loyal to those who use his strengths. His plans are more safe than risk-versus-reward, adding diversity to Wei's strategists.

Although not seen interacting much with others, his biggest relationships seem to be with Xun Yu and Jia Xu. He is often shown being friendly and sociable with these two in particular. Jia Xu’s flippant attitude and constant pranks get on his nerves at times, but he enjoys the interactions and occasionally tries to get Jia Xu back. Other than this, Xun You prefers to be alone. He wields an urumi in battle.

Xun You is known for being a highly profound and insightful thinker who hides secrets very well. Since he started accompanying Cao Cao on his military campaigns, he has often helped Cao Cao devise and develop strategic plans. Many people, including his family members and relatives, hardly know what’s on his mind or what he has said. He is intelligent but appears foolish; he is courageous but appears cowardly; he is resilient but appears weak. He neither flaunts his talents nor brags about his achievements. He comes off as blunt, a little awkward, and succinct. He gets rather chatty when drunk, though.

Background: Xun You, born in Yingchuan, was part of the Xun family and was known for his frugal, wise, and humble nature. Xun You was orphaned at a young age. He was raised by his uncle Xun Qu and his grandfather Xun Tan. When his grandfather died, a minor administrative assistant, Zhang Quan, offered to be the tomb keeper. Xun You, who was 12 years old then, sensed that something was wrong and told his uncle about his suspicions. Upon investigation, it was revealed that Zhang Quan was actually a murderer on the run. Because of this incident, the young Xun You was seen as an extraordinary boy. When Xun You was six or seven, Xun Qu once accidentally injured him while he was drunk. Since then, every time Xun You left or entered his home, he would do so at times to deliberately avoid meeting his uncle.

He was recruited as an adviser to He Jin in 189, ensuring his command in the imperial palace. After He Jin's assassination by the eunuchs, control over the capital and emperor fell to Dong Zhuo, who appointed Xun You as his service. Xun You and two officials planned to assassinate Dong Zhuo, but were discovered and imprisoned. While he was incarcerated, Xun You spoke and behaved normally as though nothing had happened. After Dong Zhuo was killed by Lu Bu, Xun You was released and sought refuge in Jing Province.

In 196, Xun You was recommended to serve Cao Cao, who promoted him to Master of the Army. He advised Cao Cao to hold back a large-scale assault on Zhang Xiu, who had allied with Liu Biao after his victory at Wan Castle. Cao Cao took the advice and besieged Zhang Xiu only at Rang, but had to withdraw when Yuan Shao began mobilizing troops against Cao Cao.

When Lu Bu allied himself with Yuan Shu, Xun You urged Cao Cao to attack him. He served Cao Cao as a military advisor during the campaign against Lu Bu. Lu Bu suffered numerous defeats and retreated to Xiapi castle. Cao Cao wanted to retreat, but Xun You and Guo Jia persuaded him to keep up the attack. By the end of 198, Lu Bu surrendered. Two years later, Cao Cao began to engage Yuan Shao in battle. Cao Cao set out to help Liu Yan at Baima, who was attacked by Yan Liang. Xun You advised Cao Cao to send out a decoy unit to lure Yan Liang away from the main unit and take him by surprise. Cao Cao followed his advice and conducted a successful surprise attack on Yan Liang, who was killed by Guan Yu. Xun You then served as Cao Cao's chief adviser during the campaign and advised him to send Xu Huang to assault Han Meng's barrage train, depriving Yuan Shao of a large portion of his supplies.