guests present at the banquet. (It was an honour for junior officials to serve wine to senior officials at the time.) When Zhuge Ke came to Zhang Zhao, the latter refused to drink and said, "This isn't the proper form for a ceremony to pay respect to an elder." After learning of Zhang Zhao's refusal, Sun Quan told Zhuge Ke, "Get Zhang Zhao to drink for me." Zhuge Ke then returned to Zhang Zhao and said, "Long ago, the great strategist Jiang Ziya, at the age of 90, went to battle holding a signal flag and carrying a battleaxe; he never considered himself old. In days of trial by arms, you are always in the rear; in days of feasting, you are always in the front. What do you mean when you say this is not a proper ceremony to pay respect to an elder?" At a loss for words, Zhang Zhao consented and accepted the wine offered by Zhuge Ke. After this incident, Sun Quan regarded Zhuge Ke even more highly and consequently appointed him as a close aide to his then-heir apparent, Sun Deng. On another occasion, an ambassador from Wu's ally state, Shu, showed up with a gift of horses for Sun Quan. Knowing that Zhuge Ke was a good rider, Sun Quan summoned him with the intention of giving him one of the horses. When Zhuge Ke arrived, he immediately knelt down and thanked Sun Quan for the gift. Sun Quan was surprised at how Zhuge Ke already knew why he was summoned there, so he asked him. Zhuge Ke replied, "Shu is only capable of serving as Your Majesty's stable. That is why I am certain that the ambassador came here to offer a tribute of fine steeds." Sun Quan was impressed. Physical Appearance In the Record of Wu (《吴录》), Chinese author Zhang Bo noted that Zhuge Ke was a loud spoken man and was about 182–184 cm tall, and that he had a crooked nose, wide forehead, large mouth, with little facial hair and eyebrows. See also Lists of people of the Three Kingdoms Notes References Chen, Shou (3rd century). Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi). Pei, Songzhi (5th century). Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi zhu). Sima, Guang (1084). Zizhi Tongjian. 203 births 253 deaths 3rd-century executions Eastern Wu generals Eastern Wu regents Executed Eastern Wu people People from East China