When they met Lu Bu, why did Zhang Fei curse while Guan Yu was respectful?

In the fifth chapter of "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms", when Liu Guan and Zhang Sanying were fighting Lu Bu, Zhang Fei slapped his horse and shouted: "The slaves of the three surnames will not leave!" He cursed Lu Bu. In Chapter 16, Liu Bei stationed his troops in Xiaopei, and Lu Bu helped Ji Ling and Liu Bei fight. At this time, Zhang Fei also looked down upon Lu Bu and yelled at him.

Guan Yu said: "Let's see what General Lu thinks. It's not too late for everyone to return to the camp and fight." Compared with Zhang Fei's several verbal abuses at Lu Bu, calling Lu Bu a "family slave with three surnames" . Guan Yu was very polite to Lu Bu and even called him "General Lu". Why is this? The following is my personal opinion. First, let’s analyze Zhang Fei and Guan Yu’s completely different personalities.

As we all know, Liu, Guan, and Zhang became sworn brothers in Taoyuan and became brothers with different surnames. After that, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei became Liu Bei's two fierce generals. According to the "Three Kingdoms·Zhang Fei Biography":

When the First Lord heard that Duke Cao had died, he left his wife and sent the flying generals to refuse the rear with twenty horses. Flying to the water and breaking the bridge, he raised his spear with angry eyes and said: "I am Zhang Yide, so I can come and fight to the death!" None of the enemies dared to approach, so he was spared.

As a rough man, Zhang Fei is informal and rough. But he respects loyal people very much. Faced with someone like Lu Bu who kills his master repeatedly, Zhang Fei will naturally not give him a good look. It was also expected that he would angrily scold him as a "house slave with three surnames".

Guan Yu is different from Zhang Fei. Zhang Fei has a straightforward personality, and he says it when he has something to say. But Guan Yu was able to consider the overall situation and assess the situation. Moreover, one of Guan Yu's major character traits was that he looked down on the scholar-bureaucrat class, but he was friendly to the civilian class. Although Lu Bu killed his lord twice, he also relied on his own ability to work his way up to the top, and eventually became a prince. This made Guan Yu respect him very much.

What's more, Lu Bu's own force value is still relatively high. When the eighteen princes attacked Dong Zhuo, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei joined forces, but they could only draw with Lu Bu. From this, Guan Yu had a better understanding of Lu Bu's martial arts, and it was understandable that he would call him "General Lu" when he saw Lu Bu. Second, analyze the different scenarios and situations faced by Zhang Fei and Guan Yu.

When the eighteen princes attacked Dong Zhuo, the enemy was weak and we were strong. Zhang Fei naturally had this confidence and confidence, and cursed Lu Bu for being a "house slave with three surnames". In "Three Kingdoms", Zhang Fei is evaluated like this: "Both Guan Yu and Zhang Fei are known as enemies of ten thousand people and are tiger ministers in the world. Yu serves Duke Cao, flies righteousness to explain Yan Yan, and has the style of a national scholar." And Zhang Fei. Fei also lived up to this evaluation. He fought with Lu Bu for more than fifty rounds, but there was still no winner. Looking at the heroes of the Three Kingdoms, there are only a few who can force Lu Bu to do this. Moreover, Zhang Fei has always been straight-tempered, so he would not show mercy to Lu Bu, whom he disliked, and it was inevitable that he would curse him loudly.

When Guan Yu called Lu Bu "General Lu", it was after Lu Bu occupied Xuzhou and Liu Bei was stationed in Xiapi. At this time, Liu Bei also relied on Lu Bu's protection. Just as Yuan Shu was about to attack Liu Bei, it was Lu Bu who stepped in to "break the fight" and helped Liu Bei resolve a war by shooting a halberd through the gate. At this moment, Liu Bei is weak. As Liu Bei's general, Guan Yu is not as reckless as Zhang Fei. Since he wants Lu Bu, he will naturally correct his attitude and treat him respectfully. Calling Lu Bu "General Lu" was also Guan Yu's consideration of the overall situation. Third, from the analysis that Guan Yu respects people who are more powerful than himself.

In fact, I personally think Guan Yu still has a great temper. For example, when Sun Quan's son asked to marry Guan Yu's daughter, he was directly rebuffed by Guan Yu who said, "How can a tiger girl marry a dog son?" Later, he felt that the veteran Huang Zhong was not worthy of the post of general, saying, "A real man will never be ranked with the veterans!" He refused Liu Bei's appointment as a former general. He even offended Jiangdong talents with the phrase "Jiangdong rats". But regarding Lu Bu, although his character cannot be said to be good, Guan Yu did not scold him. I personally think that one of the reasons is that Guan Yu respects people who are better than him.

Guan Yu holds the Qinglong Yanyue Sword in his hand and the red rabbit horse under his crotch, which can be described as majestic. But in the third battle with Lu Bu at Hulao Pass, Lu Bu's strength refreshed Guan Yu's understanding of him and left a deep impression on Guan Yu. You know, with Guan Yu's martial arts, basically others besieged Guan Yu, but Lu Bu made Guan Yu join forces with others to besiege him, and they still didn't win. And the strong have always respected those who are stronger than themselves.

Guan Yu is not as strong as Lu Bu in terms of martial arts, so he will naturally admire him, instead of yelling at Lu Bu like Zhang Fei. Therefore, Guan Yu respects people who are more powerful than him, so naturally he will not scold Lu Bu.

From the reasons mentioned above, it is not difficult for us to know that the reason why Zhang Fei repeatedly cursed at Lu Bu was not only due to his character, but also because of Lu Bu's own bad behavior that Zhang Fei couldn't stand. But Guan Yu was very polite to him. In addition to the situation, he also had a bit of respect for Lu Bu.