Liu Bei overcame a number of setbacks to carve out his own realm, which at its peak spanned present-day Sichuan, Chongqing, Guizhou, Hunan, and parts of Hubei and Gansu.

Culturally, due to the popularity of the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Liu Bei is widely regarded as the ideal benevolent and humane ruler who cared for his people and selected good advisers for his government.

[b][4] The historical text Records of the Three Kingdoms described Liu Bei as a man seven chi and five cun tall (approximately 1.74 metres), with long arms that "extended beyond his knees" and ears so large that "he could see them".

He called for the assembly of a militia to help government forces suppress the rebellion, rallying a group of loyal followers, including among them Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Jian Yong.

Liu Bei was furious; he returned to his office, led clerks and soldiers to the postal relay station, and forced his way through the door, proclaiming: "I have been secretly instructed by the commandery administrator to arrest the inspector!"

Around this time, the General-in-Chief He Jin sent the Chief Commandant Guanqiu Yi (毌丘毅) to Danyang with the mission to recruit soldiers and Liu Bei joined him in fighting the Yellow Turbans remnants in Xu Province.

Liu Bei led his army to Xiaopei, then proceeded to raise troops around the area, and actively built-up connections with influential clans and people of the region.

[Sanguozhi 20] At that time, Chen Deng with Mi Zhu along with the others sent a messenger to call on to Yuan Shao saying: "Heaven has sent down disastrous stench and misfortune has fallen upon our humble and small region.

[Huayang Guo Zhi 10] Liu Bei was greatly pleased and became a closer colleague of Zhuge Liang's each day saying that he felt like a fish that has found water.

[Sanguozhi 41][Huayang Guo Zhi 14] Sun Quan's forces, led by Zhou Yu, attacked Cao Ren after their resounding victory to wrestle for control of Jiangling County.

After the political marriage, Sun Quan not only recognised the legitimacy of Liu Bei's control over southern Jing Province, but also agreed to "lend" Nan Commandery to him.

With such a strategy of advance and withdrawal, you can reap both the benefits of Sun Quan and the Yi province.” Liu Bei agreed and followed this plan, he then had Yin Guan promoted to be mounted escort attendant.

"Also he ordered Guan Yu to encamp at Jiangling, Zhang Fei at Zigui, Zhuge Liang in Nan commandery and Liu Bei himself led his men at Zhanling.

Sun Quan was furious then sent Lü Meng and Ling Tong to lead 20,000 men to attack southern Jing Province and they succeeded in capturing Changsha, Guiyang and Lingling commanderies.

Liu Bei led the main army to the south of the Mian River (沔水) and ordered Huang Zhong to set up camps on Mount Dingjun, where Xiahou Yuan's encampment in the valley below could be easily monitored.

[Sanguozhi 63] Zhang He also retreated to Chencang County (陳倉縣; east of present-day Baoji, Shaanxi) to set up defences for a potential invasion by Liu Bei.

[Sanguozhi 67] After learning of Guan Yu's death and the loss of Jing Province, Liu Bei turned furious and ordered his troops to begin preparing for war with Sun Quan.

[Sanguozhi 70] In the August 221, Liu Bei personally led an army to attack Sun Quan to avenge Guan Yu and retake his lost territories in Jing Province, while leaving Zhuge Liang in charge of state affairs in Chengdu.

[Sanguozhi 71] Knowing that his enemy was not expecting a sudden strike, Lu Xun ordered a counterattack and set fire to the Shu camps linked to each other by wooden fences.

When Huang Yuan (黃元), the administrator of Hanjia, heard that Liu Bei was ill, he rebelled because he feared that after his death, his bad relationship with Zhuge Liang would bring him problems.

Liu Shan succeeded him as the emperor of Shu Han, while Zhuge Liang later solidified peace with Sun Quan and rebuilt the old Sun–Liu alliance against Cao Pi formally.

[Sanguozhi 77]Chang Qu, historian and compiler of the Chronicles of Huayang in the fourth-century later used by Pei Songzhi in his annotations to the historical text Records of the Three Kingdoms also gave his appraisal of Liu Bei: At the end of the Han dynasty, there was great chaos.

Despite romantic legend, the subsequent victory at the Red Cliffs was largely the achievement of Sun Quan's troops led by Zhou Yu, but Liu Bei took advantage of the success to occupy the greater part of Jing province south of the Yangzi.

After his officer Guan Yu was surprised by Sun Quan's general Lü Meng in 219, Liu Bei launched a revenge attack down the Yangzi to regain Jing province, but suffered a humiliating defeat in 222 and died soon afterwards

[f] He was remarkably successful, for he was an effective fighting general and had several good advisers and officers, but the basics of his survival and that of his state was his isolation in the west and the fortunate series of chances which had led him there.

From his earliest days, Liu Bei had changed his coat and his allegiance at any time it seemed to suit, and his take-over of Yi Province was a betrayal of the kinsman who had sought his aid.

It is not inappropriate that the destruction of his wider ambitions came through an even greater and quite unexpected act of treachery and trickery by his ally Sun Quan.However, behind the ostensible realities of history and the exaggerations of the romance, we may perceive a man who could inspire great loyalty and admiration, and whose recovery from repeated set-backs – in an age when defeat so frequently brought death – reflects personal qualities and a presence which can no longer be properly reconstructed.

From humble background with an erratic record, Liu Bei was a man of remarkable character: certainly courageous, surely un-trustworthy to superiors and rivals, but clearly loyal to his subordinates; in many respects an ideal hero for an age of individuals.

Written by Luo Guanzhong more than 1,000 years after the Three Kingdoms period, the novel incorporates many popular folklore and opera scripts into the character of Liu Bei, portraying him as a benevolent and righteous leader, endowed with charismatic potency (called de 德 in Chinese)[15] who builds his state on the basis of Confucian values.

It mentions that Liu Bei is seven chi and five cun tall, with ears so large that they touch his shoulders and that he can even see them, long arms that extend beyond his knees, a fair and jade like face, and lips so red that it seems as though he is wearing lipstick.