Battle of Xiapi

Battle of Xiapi
Part of the wars of the Three Kingdoms
Date Winter 198 CE Location Xiapi, Xu Province (present-day Pizhou, Jiangsu) Result Decisive Cao Cao and Liu Bei victory
Belligerents
Cao Cao	Lü Bu
Commanders and leaders
Cao Cao	Lü Bu
Strength
Unknown	Unknown
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown

Battle of Xiapi
Traditional Chinese	下邳之戰
Simplified Chinese	下邳之战
Transcriptions Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin Xiàpī Zhī Zhàn

The Battle of Xiapi was a battle fought by the forces of Lü Bu against the allied armies of Cao Cao and Liu Bei in 198 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Lü Bu was defeated in the battle and subsequently executed on Cao Cao's order.

Background

In 194, while Cao Cao was away attacking Tao Qian in Xu Province, his subordinates Chen Gong and Zhang Miao rebelled against him and aided Lü Bu in taking over Cao's home base of Yan Province. Cao Cao abandoned his invasion of Xu Province and turned back to attack Lü Bu, culminating in the Battle of Yan Province that lasted for more than 100 days. By 195, Cao Cao had retaken all his cities in Yan Province and defeated Lü Bu at Juye. Lü Bu and his men fled east to join Liu Bei, who had succeeded Tao Qian as Governor of Xu Province.

In 196, Cao Cao found Emperor Xian in the ruins of Luoyang and brought him to Xuchang, where the new capital and imperial court would be based. In the same year, Lü Bu took advantage of the conflict between Liu Bei and Yuan Shu to capture Xiapi (present-day Pizhou, Jiangsu), capital of Xu Province, effectively seizing control of the province from Liu Bei. Liu Bei was forced surrender his governorship of Xu Province to Lü Bu and settle in the nearby city of Xiaopei. Not long later, Lü Bu felt threatened by Liu Bei's presence and led his troops to attack Liu. Liu Bei was defeated by Lü Bu and had no choice but to join Cao Cao. Cao Cao provided Liu Bei with supplies and sent him to garrison at Xiaopei.

Around 197, Yuan Shao was in control of the three provinces of Ji, Qing and Bing north of the Yellow River, so he wrote a letter to Cao Cao in an arrogant tone. Around the same time, Cao Cao had just been defeated by Zhang Xiu at the Battle of Wancheng and the letter angered him. Cao Cao felt threatened by Yuan Shao's growing influence in northern China and wanted to attack Yuan, but felt that his forces were not strong enough. Cao Cao's strategists Guo Jia and Xun Yu assessed the situation, listing out the various advantages Cao Cao had over Yuan Shao. They also advised him to use the opportunity to eliminate Lü Bu when Yuan Shao was at war with Gongsun Zan, because it was possible that Yuan Shao might ally with Lü Bu to attack him. Cao Cao then made preparations for a campaign against Lü Bu.

The battle

Conflict between Lü Bu and Yuan Shu

In 197, Yuan Shu declared himself emperor and sent his official Han Yin to meet Lü Bu, proposing a marriage between his son and Lü Bu's daughter, so as to foster a stronger alliance between him and Lü Bu. Lü Bu initially agreed to the proposal and sent his daughter to follow Han Yin back. However, Lü Bu still bore a grudge against Yuan Shu for attacking him five years ago, so he changed his mind after listening to Chen Gui. Lü Bu pursued the convoy and retrieved his daughter, captured Han Yin and sent him to Xuchang, where Han was executed on Cao Cao's order. Cao Cao appointed Lü Bu as General of the Left and personally wrote him a letter to console him. Lü Bu sent Chen Deng to meet Cao Cao and thank Cao on his behalf. When Chen Deng met Cao Cao, he said that Lü Bu was bold but not very astute, and was untrustworthy, so he should to be eliminated as soon as possible. Cao Cao agreed with Chen Deng's view. Chen Deng was appointed Administrator of Guangling and secretly implanted by Cao Cao as a mole in Lü Bu's forces.

On the other hand, Yuan Shu was angered by Lü Bu's betrayal, so he sent his generals Zhang Xun, Qiao Rui to lead an army to attack Xiapi from seven directions in collaboration with the White Wave Bandits led by Han Xian and Yang Feng. Lü Bu was in an disadvantageous situation, with only 3,000 men and 400 warhorses. He was afraid that he might not be able to resist Yuan Shu so he blamed Chen Gui for giving him poor counsel. Chen Gui, however, thought that Han Xian and Yang Feng were not genuinely loyal to Yuan Shu, so he advised Lü Bu to persuade them to break their alliance with Yuan Shu. When Lü Bu attacked Yuan Shu's forces, Han Xian and Yang Feng defected to his side. Yuan Shu's troops were defeated and Lü Bu pursued them until he reached south of the Huai River.

Siege of Xiapi

In 198, Lü Bu made peace with Yuan Shu again, and sent his general Gao Shun to attack Liu Bei at Xiaopei. Cao Cao sent Xiahou Dun with an army to reinforce Liu Bei, but they were still defeated by Gao Shun. Xiaopei fell to Lü Bu's forces in the ninth month and Liu Bei escaped but his wife was captured.

Following that, Cao Cao officially launched his military campaign against Lü Bu. When Cao Cao's army reached Pengcheng (present-day Xuzhou, Jiangsu), Chen Gong urged Lü Bu to attack Cao Cao because Cao Cao's troops were weary from their long march from Xuchang. Lü Bu, however, insisted on staying in Xiapi and wait for Cao Cao to arrive before attacking. A month later, Cao Cao conquered Pengcheng. At the same time, Chen Deng defected to Cao Cao's side and led his men from Guangling to Xiapi. Lü Bu personally his troops out to engage the enemy but was defeated and forced to retreat. Lü Bu returned to Xiapi and defended the city firmly without advancing.

Cao Cao wrote a letter to Lü Bu, explaining the perilous situation the latter was in. Lü Bu became afraid and had the intention of surrendering, but Chen Gong felt that Cao Cao's army had travelled a long distance and would not be able to fight a prolonged battle. Chen Gong advised Lü Bu to garrison part of his forces outside the city, while the rest would remain with him inside, so that they can support each other if either side came under attack. Chen also said the best time to engage Cao Cao's forces would be months later, when Cao's supplies run out. Lü Bu agreed with the plan and wanted to leave Chen Gong and Gao Shun behind to defend Xiapi while he was stationed outside the city. However, Lü Bu's wife claimed that Chen Gong and Gao Shun could not get along with each other, so that would be a problem if Lü Bu was not around. She also felt that Cao Cao treated Chen Gong better (before the latter's defection to Lü Bu) than how Lü Bu was treating Chen now, so Chen might betray Lü Bu. Lü Bu thus aborted Chen Gong's plan.

Lü Bu sent Wang Kai (王楷) and Xu Si (許汜) to request reinforcements from Yuan Shu, but Yuan rejected when he recalled how Lü Bu reneged on the marriage proposal earlier. Wang Kai and Xu Si attempted to persuade Yuan Shu to send aid, claiming that Yuan Shu would be isolated if Lü Bu was eliminated. Yuan Shu considered sending relief forces, but did not do so immediately. In the meantime, Lü Bu thought that Yuan Shu was unwilling to help him because of the marriage proposal incident, so he personally escorted his daughter out of Xiapi and attempted to send her to Yuan Shu's side. However, Lü Bu ran into Cao Cao's troops outside the city and was unable to break out of the siege so he had to turn back.

Cao Cao's troops began to become tired and weary after failing to capture Xiapi despite besieging it for a long time. Cao Cao had the intention of withdrawing, but his strategists Xun You and Guo Jia thought that Lü Bu's army was already low on morale after having suffered so many defeats, so they advised Cao Cao to press on the siege. Cao Cao then ordered his soldiers to direct the waters of the Yi and Si rivers to flood Xiapi. The beleaguered Lü Bu prepared to surrender after Xiapi was flooded for over a month, but Chen Gong stopped him.

Lü Bu's surrender

Lü Bu's general Hou Cheng found a man to help him take of 15 horses but the man escaped with the horses, planning to present them to Liu Bei. Hou Cheng personally pursued the man and retrieved the horses. The other generals congratulated Hou Cheng on his achievement and Hou prepared food and wine and presented to Lü Bu. Lü Bu was furious and said, "I ordered a ban on alcohol, and now you prepare wine. Are you planning to make me drunk and then turn against me?" Hou Cheng was unhappy and afraid, so in the twelfth month of 198, he plotted with Song Xian and Wei Xu to capture Chen Gong and Gao Shun before surrendering to Cao Cao.

When Lü Bu heard about Hou Cheng's defection, he led his remaining men to White Gate Tower, where he saw that Cao Cao's troops were closing in on him. He asked his men to kill him and bring his head to Cao Cao, but they refused. Lü Bu then surrendered.

Aftermath

After surrendering, Lü Bu was tightly bound and brought before Cao Cao. Lü Bu then expressed his willingness to pledge allegiance to Cao Cao and help Cao pacify the empire. Cao Cao was slightly convinced to accept Lü Bu as he ordered Lü Bu's bonds to be loosened. Just then, Liu Bei reminded Cao Cao that Lü Bu cannot be trusted, using the fates of Ding Yuan and Dong Zhuo as examples to justify this point, and Cao Cao came to a sudden realization. At this time, Cao Cao guards surrounding Gao Shun hustled him in front of Cao Cao. Gao Shun showing no fear nor resistance, Cao Cao asked him "Anything to say?" Not wishing to join Cao Cao, Gao Shun remained silent and accepted his fate. He then turned to Chen Gong and asked Chen to surrender, but Chen stubbornly refused and requested to be executed immediately. Unable to control his tears anymore, Cao Cao promised Chen Gong that he would take good care of his mother and family. He then ordered Chen Gong and Gao Shun to be executed and Lü Bu executed by hanging and sent their severed heads to Xuchang to be buried.

Cao Cao accepted Zhang Liao, Chen Qun and others who previously served Lü Bu, and appointed them as generals or officials under him. Other minor warlords such as Zang Ba, Sun Guan (孫觀), Wu Dun (吳敦), Yin Li, and Chang Xi (昌豨) who used to side with Lü Bu also surrendered to Cao Cao, and he put them in charge of various commanderies along the coastline.

With the end of the Battle of Xiapi, Cao Cao completely eliminated the threat posed by Lü Bu. The following year, Liu Bei broke ties with Cao Cao and seized control of Xu Province after killing Che Zhou (車冑), but Cao Cao quickly defeated Liu and regained control of the province. With Xu Province now firmly in his control, Cao Cao no longer had any impending threats on his home base in Yan and Yu provinces. This became an advantage to Cao Cao in the subsequent Battle of Guandu in 200 against Yuan Shao.

Order of battle

Cao Cao and Liu Bei forces

• Cao Cao
  • Xun You
  • Guo Jia
  • Xiahou Dun
    • Han Hao

• Liu Bei
  • Guan Yu
  • Zhang Fei

Lü Bu forces

•   Lü Bu, executed
  • Chen Gong, executed after capture
  • Gao Shun, executed after capture
  •   Hou Cheng
  •   Song Xian
  •   Wei Xu
  •   Zhang Liao
  • Cheng Lian (成廉), nothing recorded about him in history about the battle

In fiction

The battle was dramatized in Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, with the inclusion of some fictional events and modifications to actual ones. In the novel, the battle was divided into two stages, with the first at Xiaopei (present-day Pei County, Jiangsu) and the second at Xiapi (present-day Pizhou, Jiangsu).

Xiaopei

Chen Gui wanted to send Han Yin to Xuchang to be trailed, but Lü Bu hesitated when he heard that Liu Bei was rounding up soldiers. Song Xian and Wei Xu reported that after they bought 300 horses in the Huashang Mountains, rogues on the border of Xiaopei territory attacked them and stole half of their horses. Lü Bu was furious and immediately assembled his army near Xiaopei and waited for Liu Bei to appear. Lü Bu told Liu Bei of Zhang Fei's act and immediately Zhang Fei came to challenge Lü Bu. Lü Bu rode forth and the two warriors engaged in a reckless battle. They fought for a hundred bouts, without any advantage to either side. Liu Bei recalled Zhang Fei from battle and offered Lü Bu to have all the horses returned in exchange for peace. Lü Bu was ready to accept when Chen Gong interfered.

Liu Bei's army retired and by the fourth watch, his whole forces left Xiaopei through the north gate. Song Xian and Wei Xu pursued but were driven off by Zhang Fei. Zhang Liao tried as well, but was deterred by Guan Yu. Lü Bu made no effort to chase Liu Bei and entered Xiaopei.

Lü Bu learned that Liu Bei and Cao Cao were scheming to bring him down. Lü Bu was alarmed, he planned his counter moves. Zhang Liao and Gao Shun went to attack Liu Bei in Xiaopei. Song Xian and Wei Xu went to take Runan and Yingchuan. Lü Bu took charge of a large body of soldiers, ready to aid when needed.

The attack on Xiaopei was slow; Liu Bei and his brothers defended the gates and kept Zhang Liao and Gao Shun out of the city. In the meanwhile, Liu Bei sent a messenger to Cao Cao for help. Soon news reached Gao Shun about Cao Cao's reinforcements. He sent messengers to Lü Bu, who sent 200 cavalrymen along with Hou Cheng, Cao Xing, and Hao Meng to assist in the attack.

Gao Shun retreated from attacking Xiaopei as Cao Cao's reinforcements approached. Xiahou Dun was the first one to arrive. He set out his spear and challenged Gao Shun. The two fought for 30 bouts, and Gao Shun became tired and turned back. Xiahou Dun immediately chased him, however from Lü Bu's troops, Cao Xing shot an arrow full into Xiahou Dun's left eye. He pulled out his eye and swallowed it. Wasting no time, Xiahou Dun charged towards Cao Xing and mortally wounded him. Both sides stared in amazement. Having slain the man who injured him, Xiahou Dun turned back. Gao Shun immediately pressed the attack, and Xiahou Yuan defended his brother while they fled. Having scored a victory, Gao Shun returned to attack Liu Bei with Lü Bu and Zhang Liao.

Zhang Fei and Guan Yu came out to defend their city, Liu Bei stayed behind as a backup force. Zhang Liao and Gao Shun engaged the two brothers, and Lü Bu attacked their rear, forcing them to flee. Liu Bei and score of cavalrymen went back to Xiaopei, and Lü Bu rushed to catch up with him. The drawbridge was lowered but the archers on the gates were afraid to shoot their arrows because Liu Bei was so close to Lü Bu. The gate guards were unable to stop Lü Bu from coming in, and were scattered in all directions. Lü Bu led his forces into the city. Liu Bei saw no chance of reaching his family, so instead he fled through the west gate. Lü Bu arrived at Liu Bei's residence where he met with Mi Zhu, their guardian. Lü Bu promised not to harm Liu Bei's family and sent them to Xu Province with Mi Zhu. Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei fled to Xuchang.

Cao Cao's army camped at Jibei where the sick Xiahou Dun recovered from his wound. Cao Ren was sent to recapture Xiaopei with 3,000 soldiers, while he himself would attack Lü Bu. Cao Cao encountered the Taishan Mountain bandits that Lü Bu hired. Xu Chu went out to battle and easily drove them off. When they scout told Lü Bu, he left Xu Province in the care of Chen Gui and took off with Chen Deng.

On Chen Deng's advice, Lü Bu sent his family to Xiapi along with many carts of grain as a precaution. While Chen Gong was holding off Cao Cao at Xiao Pass, Chen Deng advised Lü Bu to make a night raid on their forces before they would break through. So it was arranged that when the flares were lit, Lü Bu would make a charge at night. Chen Deng also went to Chen Gong and advised him to retreat and use a flare to alert Lü Bu and go back to Xiapi. When Lü Bu saw the flare he moved in to attack, he met Chen Gong's force who was retreating but with no lights, Lü Bu could not distinguish his ally from his enemy. While the battle went on, Cao Cao vanquished the Taishan bandits. When morning came, the plot was discovered and Lü Bu joined with Chen Gong to go back to Xu Province. However, as they reached Xu Province the gates would not open as Chen Gui and Mi Zhu had taken over the city from inside.

When they couldn't detect Chen Deng, they made their way to Xiaopei. Zhang Liao and Gao Shun met with them halfway and told them Chen Deng had sent them away to help Lü Bu. Chen Deng plotted this and Lü Bu immediately headed for Xiaopei.

Chen Gong advised Lü Bu to attack Cao Cao, but Lü Bu would not listen after so many defeats, and thus he waited for Cao Cao to reach the city. Lü Bu awaited Cao Cao at the top of the gate and proposed peace if Cao Cao would withdraw immediately. However, Chen Gong railed at Cao Cao and shot an arrow in his helmet. Therefore, the attack on Xiapi began.

Xiapi

For three days, Lü Bu did nothing. Next came news that supplies for Cao Cao were on the way from Xuchang. Chen Gong proposed that Lü Bu intercept the supplies and leave the city to his generals. Lü Bu stayed in his private quarters, drinking away his sorrows with his women.

Zhang Fei and Guan Yu barred the road and Lü Bu was forced to take a side road. Even though he was strong, Lü Bu could not take any risk with the girl on his back. Both parties attacked him and he had no choice but to go back to Xiapi. He was broken hearted as he reached his residence, and the besiegers celebrated their victory. Lü Bu found consolation in a cup of wine.

The siege had gone on for two months, and the city was still standing. News reached Lü Bu that Zhang Yang, Governor of Henei, was inclined to come to the aid of Lü Bu. However, one of his subordinates, Yang Chou, assassinated Zhang Yang and was going to offer his head to Cao Cao. Then, Sui Gu, a colleague of Zhang Yang, killed Yang Chou and led his force to Daicheng.

Hearing this, with Xun Yu's advice, utilizing two nearby rivers, Cao Cao devised a new plan to take Xiapi by drowning the city. When Lü Bu was told of this plan, he dismissed any danger and went back to drinking more wine with his wife and concubine. The result of drinking so much wine became visible as Lü Bu looked into his mirror one day, only to see a shadow of his former self. Saddened by this, Lü Bu gave out a new order, saying that anyone who would drink wine would be executed without consideration.

Cao Cao built a floodgate to overcome his reach to capture the city. He let the city flood and Lü Bu's troop morales drastically lowered. With it, many officers and soldiers started to defect. As a result of the flood, Lü Bu's behavior became erratic, and he started drinking, but swore off it. A servant offer Lu Bu a drink, and was severely punished, thus the relationship with his men was tense. Lü Bu's men rebelled against him by giving Lü Bu's steed Red Hare to Cao Cao, in addition to opening the gates and leading Cao Cao to Lü Bu, the drunken Lü Bu was caught off guard and was captured. Brought before Cao Cao, he was executed.

Now one of his generals, Hou Cheng, lost some horses. He found out that his servant Hou Cao stole them and wanted to sell them to Liu Bei. Hou Cheng recovered the horses and killed Hou Cao. To celebrate this occasion, Hou Cheng ordered fine wine to be made. Lü Bu ordered Hou Cheng to be executed; however, Song Xian and Wei Xu persuaded Lü Bu to spare his life. Instead, Hou Cheng received 50 lashes of the whip.

The next day, Hou Cheng had stolen his Red Hare and given it to Cao Cao. Lü Bu with his trident grew angry with Wei Xu for letting Hou Cheng go, but before anything could be done, a while flag was raised and another attack on Xiapi began. Lü Bu concentrated on the attack and the siege last until noon.

Lü Bu was very fatigued and went to sleep in his tower. Wei Xu and Song Xian stole his weapon, and before Lü Bu could wake up, they threw him to the ground and bound him with ropes. Lü Bu called for his guards but other traitors slew them. A while flag was raised, the gates flung open, and the enemy entered the city. Zhang Liao, Gao Shun, and Chen Gong tried to escape the city, however they were cut off by the water and were captured by Cao Cao's generals. The rivers were put in their normal course and the siege had ended.

Gao Shun was brought in, but he had no words for Cao Cao and was taken outside to be executed. Next, Chen Gong was brought in and Cao Cao questioned him. Chen Gong had no remorse over his choices, and chose death over the dishonor of defection. Cao Cao promised to take care of Chen Gong's family, and had him executed along with Gao Shun.

Liu Bei had no intention to let Lü Bu live. Cao Cao ordered Lü Bu to be strangled. Lü Bu was led away by the guards to be executed.

Modern references

The Battle of Xiapi is featured in Koei's video game series Dynasty Warriors as a playable stage from the fourth installment onwards.

References

• Chen Shou. Records of Three Kingdoms, Volume 1, Biography of Cao Cao.
• Chen Shou. Records of Three Kingdoms, Volume 7, Biography of Lü Bu.
• Fan Ye. Book of the Later Han, Volume 75, Biography of Lü Bu.
• Sima Guang. Zizhi Tongjian, Volumes 62-63.
• Luo Guanzhong. Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Chapters 22-23.