Editing Romance of the Three Kingdoms (section)

===Expansion of the history===
''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' is traditionally attributed to [[Luo Guanzhong]],<ref name="taylor1998">{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of Literary Translation into English|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C1uXah12nHgC&pg=PA1221|access-date=2011-09-22|year=1998|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=1-884964-36-2|pages=1221–1222}}</ref> a playwright who lived sometime between 1315 and 1400 (late [[Yuan dynasty|Yuan]] to early [[Ming dynasty|Ming]] period) known for compiling historical plays in styles which were prevalent during the Yuan period.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book| title = Romance of the Three Kingdoms| last = Lo| first = Kuan-chung| author-link =Luo Guanzhong| publisher = Tuttle| others = C.H. Brewitt-Taylor (Translator), Robert E. Hegel (Introduction)| year = 2002| isbn = 978-0-8048-3467-4| volume = 1| pages = viii}}</ref> It was first printed in 1522<ref name=":0" /> as ''Sanguozhi Tongsu Yanyi'' ({{Zh|s=三国志通俗演义|t=三國志通俗演義|labels=no|first=t}}) in an edition which bore a preface dated 1494.<ref name=AfterwordRoberts/> The text may well have circulated before either date in handwritten manuscripts.<ref name=AfterwordRoberts>Moss Roberts, "Afterword," in Luo, ''Three Kingdoms'' (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991), pp. 937, 938, 964.</ref>

Regardless of when it was written or whether Luo was the writer, the author made use of several available historical records, primarily the ''[[Records of the Three Kingdoms]]'' compiled by [[Chen Shou]] in the 3rd century. The ''Records of the Three Kingdoms'' covered events ranging from the [[Yellow Turban Rebellion]] in 184 to the unification of the Three Kingdoms under the [[Jin dynasty (265-420)|Jin dynasty]] in 280. The novel also includes material from [[Tang dynasty]] poetic works, Yuan dynasty operas and his own personal interpretation of elements such as virtue and legitimacy. The author combined this historical knowledge with his own storytelling skills to create a rich tapestry of personalities.<ref>Roberts 1991, pp. 946–53.</ref>