Hua Tuo

華佗
Courtesy name: Yuanhua (元化)
Born
151
Died
207
Ancestral home
Qiao County, Pei (Bozhou, Anhui)
Book mentions
30
Roles:
fangshi physician
Links:
Appears in 4 chapters:
  • Chapter 15 — Taishi Ci Fights With The Young Overlord; Sun Ce Cuts Short The White Tiger King.
    Hua Tuo's first appearance - physician who treats Zhou Tai's many wounds. Will reappear later treating Guan Yu and Cao Cao.
  • Chapter 29 — The Little Chief Of The South Slays Yu Ji; The Green Eyed Boy Lays Hold On The South Land.
    Hua Tuo; sent for by the dying Sun Ce; pronounces him untreatable due to the poison-arrow wound's spread.
  • Chapter 75 — Guan Yu Has A Scraped-Bone Surgery; Lu Meng Crosses The River In White Robe.
    Hua Tuo; arrives at Guan Yu's camp from across the river and operates on the poisoned arm - scrapes the bone clean with no anaesthetic; admires Guan Yu's iron will. The novel's most famous surgery scene.
  • Chapter 78 — Treating A Headache, A Famous Physician Dies; Giving The Last Words, The Crafty Hero Departs.
    Hua Tuo; summoned to treat Cao Cao's head-pain. Proposes opening the skull with an axe to remove the source - Cao Cao thinks he means to murder him in revenge for Guan Yu; throws Hua Tuo in prison where he dies of starvation. With him dies his Book of the Black Bag - the jailer's wife burns the manuscript while it is being copied by a grateful jailer. Chinese medicine's great loss.