Liu Yan (pronunciationⓘ) (died 194[3]),[2] courtesy name Junlang, was a Chinese politician and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China.
For most of his career he served as the governor of Yi Province (covering present-day Sichuan and Chongqing), which he developed into an independent power base.
However, in July 160,[4] with the death of his teacher Zhu Tian (祝恬), he resigned his position to observe a mourning period as per the traditions of the day.
Liu Yan joined forces with Han Sui and Ma Teng in an attempt to attack the capital and seize it.
In summer of the same year, Liu Yan's residence in Mianzhu was struck by lightning and burnt down, forcing him to relocate the provincial capital to Chengdu.
[8] In the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Liu Yan was the governor of You Province in northern China[9] during the events of the Yellow Turban Rebellion.