Guan Yu with a long beard and a white face turned out to be a scholar. After some data investigation, Guan Yu probably came from a Confucian family. The elders at home should take teaching Confucian classics as their job, which is equivalent to being teachers. According to historical records, Guan Yu often reads books and likes to read Zuo Zhuan. His literary talent is also very good. Guan Yu once wrote to Cao Mengde and Zhou Yu, and his pen and ink left a deep impression on the world.
Being born in a Confucian family has a certain influence on the shaping of Guan Yu's character. For example, he knows loyalty. No matter how Cao Mengde treated him, he just followed Liu Bei, and he also supported Liu Bei to revive the Han Dynasty. It proves that he attaches great importance to orthodoxy, which may also be influenced by Confucianism.
When his family came down, Guan Yu had to work as a blacksmith. Guan Yu's family should not be those noble families. He had to flee his hometown because of his crime, which made him know Liu Bei and Zhang Fei. There are some records that Guan Yu is very familiar with smelting iron, which shows that he was probably forced to be a blacksmith in his early years. From a Confucian family to a blacksmith, I don't know what happened to Guan Yu. The gap is so big.
Some studies believe that it is related to the environment at that time. Because of the weakness of the Han dynasty, people who want to be officials by learning Confucianism have no chance, so many people give up learning Confucian classics. This may make Guan Yu's family lose economic income. Of course, it may also be because Guan Yu had to flee his hometown, so he made a living by striking iron.
Generally speaking, Guan Yu's knowledge and literary talent show that he was born in a family with a high degree, but because of some changes, he had to live on the streets and work as a blacksmith, but this did not affect Guan Yu's becoming a member of the Three Kingdoms.