In the sixth year of Emperor Xian of Han's Jian'an reign, as warlords clashed across the land, Liu Bei's campaign against Cao Cao failed, forcing him to flee to Jingzhou and seek refuge with Liu Biao.
To stage a comeback and achieve his ambitions, Liu Bei diligently sought talent. He specifically asked the famous scholar Sima Hui of Jingzhou where to find exceptional men. Sima Hui replied, "This land has 'the Sleeping Dragon and the Young Phoenix.' If you can obtain either of these two, you can pacify the realm."
"Sleeping Dragon" was Zhuge Liang, and "Young Phoenix" was Pang Tong. At that time, Zhuge Liang lived in seclusion in a thatched cottage at Longzhong, 20 li west of Xiangyang City, farming for a living. Liu Bei's advisor also considered Zhuge Liang a rare and outstanding talent. Liu Bei decided to invite Zhuge Liang to leave his seclusion and help him contend for the realm.
In 207 AD, Liu Bei, accompanied by Zhang Fei and Guan Yu, personally visited Zhuge Liang at Longzhong.
On his first visit, Zhuge Liang was absent, and the young attendant said he might not return for ten days or half a month, so Liu Bei had to return disappointed.
On his second visit, Liu Bei learned that Zhuge Liang had returned and hurried to Longzhong again. Liu, Guan, and Zhang arrived at the estate in the snow, saw the same young servant sweeping snow in the courtyard, and asked him:
"Master Zhuge, are you home?" "Yes," the young servant nodded, "the master is reading."
Liu Bei was overjoyed and quickly followed the young servant into the thatched cottage. To his dismay, Zhuge Liang was not there—only his younger brother, Zhuge Jun, who explained that Zhuge Liang had urgent business and would not return for several days. Liu Bei felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him, and he was deeply disappointed.
After returning to Xinye, just a few days later, Liu Bei wanted to visit Zhuge Liang again. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei both thought they had already gone twice, and if Zhuge Liang were sensible, he should return the visit, so they advised Liu Bei not to go. But Liu Bei said:
"I have neither power nor influence. If Zhuge Liang could be moved by my sincerity to emerge and work with us, that would be my great fortune. If you won't go, I'll go myself!"
Guan Yu and Zhang Fei could not talk him out of it, so they had no choice but to accompany him.
When the three men arrived at Longzhong once more, Zhuge Liang himself stepped out of his thatched cottage to greet them. Liu Bei ordered Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to wait outside, then entered the cottage with Zhuge Liang.
Upon entering the thatched cottage, Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang analyzed the state of the realm. Zhuge Liang's unique insights so impressed Liu Bei that he declared, "I wish to appoint you as my military strategist and ask you to leave the mountains to help me restore the Han dynasty."
Zhuge Liang was deeply moved by Liu Bei's sincerity in making three visits to his thatched cottage, decided to leave Longzhong to assist Liu Bei and fulfill his political ambitions. From then on, he became Liu Bei's chief strategist.
Following Zhuge Liang's strategy, Liu Bei allied with Sun Quan against Cao Cao, winning the Battle of Red Cliffs, then seized Jingzhou and Yizhou to establish the Shu Han regime, thus forming the Three Kingdoms of Shu, Wei, and Wu.
Later, people used the idiom "Three Visits to the Thatched Cottage" to describe sincerely inviting or visiting someone.
Source: *Zhuge Liang*, "Memorial on Sending Out the Troops"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "三顾茅庐" came to describe how sincerely inviting or visiting someone.