Zhang Liao,courtesy name Wenyuan,was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He served briefly in the state of Cao Wei,founded by Cao Cao's successor Cao Pi,in the early Three Kingdoms period before his death. Formerly a subordinate of other warlords such as Ding Yuan,Dong Zhuo and LüBu,Zhang Liao joined Cao Cao around 198 after LüBu's downfall at the Battle of Xiapi. Since then,he participated in many of Cao Cao's military campaigns,including those against Yuan Shao's heirs and the Wuhuan tribes from 201 to 207. He is best known for his pivotal role in the Battle of Xiaoyao Ford in 214–215,in which he successfully defended Hefei from the forces of the warlord Sun Quan.
Liu Bei,courtesy name Xuande (玄德),was a Chinese warlord in the late Eastern Han dynasty who later became the founding emperor of Shu Han,one of the Three Kingdoms of China.
Zhao Yun,courtesy name Zilong (子龍),was a military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. Originally a subordinate of the northern warlord Gongsun Zan,Zhao Yun later came to serve another warlord,Liu Bei,and had since accompanied him on most of his military exploits,from the Battle of Changban (208) to the Hanzhong Campaign (217–219). He continued serving in the state of Shu Han –founded by Liu Bei in 221 –in the Three Kingdoms period and participated in the first of the Northern Expeditions until his death in 229. While many facts about Zhao Yun's life remain unclear due to limited information in historical sources,some aspects and activities in his life have been dramatised or exaggerated in folklore and fiction. In the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms,he was lauded as a member of the Five Tiger Generals under Liu Bei.
Zhang He,courtesy name Junyi,was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He continued serving in the state of Cao Wei under its first two rulers,Cao Pi and Cao Rui,during the Three Kingdoms period until his death.
Xu Huang,courtesy name Gongming,was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He later served in the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period under the first two rulers,Cao Pi and Cao Rui,before his death at the start of Cao Rui's reign. Xu Huang is best noted for breaking the siege at the Battle of Fancheng in 219 by routing the enemy commander Guan Yu on the field.
Huang Zhong,courtesy name Hansheng,was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He is best known for his victory at the Battle of Mount Dingjun in 219,in which his force routed that of an enemy general,Xiahou Yuan,who was killed in action during the raid.
Xiahou Yuan,courtesy name Miaocai,was a Chinese military general and politician serving under the warlord Cao Cao in the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He is known for his exploits in western China in the 210s,during which he defeated Cao Cao's rivals Ma Chao and Han Sui in Liang Province and the surrounding areas,and forced several Di and Qiang tribal peoples into submission. He was killed in action at the Battle of Mount Dingjun while defending Hanzhong Commandery from attacks by a rival warlord Liu Bei. Xiahou Yuan's death was highly dramatised in the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms,in which he was slain by Liu Bei's general Huang Zhong during a surprise raid.
Xiahou Ba,courtesy name Zhongquan,was a Chinese military general of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the second son of Xiahou Yuan,a prominent general who served under Cao Cao,the warlord who laid the foundation for the state of Cao Wei. Around 249,Xiahou Ba defected to Wei's rival state,Shu Han,after the regent Sima Yi seized power in a coup d'état. He died sometime between 255 and 259.
Fa Zheng (176–220),courtesy name Xiaozhi,was a key adviser to the warlord Liu Bei in the late Eastern Han dynasty. Born in a family of high social status and of noble descent,Fa Zheng travelled to Yi Province in the late 190s and became a subordinate of Liu Zhang,the provincial governor. However,his feelings of alienation and perception of Liu Zhang as an incompetent governor eventually led him to betray Liu Zhang and defect to Liu Bei in 211. Between 211 and 214,Fa Zheng assisted Liu Bei in overcoming Liu Zhang and seizing control of Yi Province,and became one of Liu Bei's most trusted advisers. In 217,he urged Liu Bei to launch the Hanzhong Campaign to capture the strategic Hanzhong Commandery from a rival warlord,Cao Cao,but died a year after Liu emerged victorious in the campaign.
Cao Zhen,courtesy name Zidan,was a military general of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was an adopted son of Cao Cao,a warlord who rose to power in the late Eastern Han dynasty and laid the foundation for Wei. After Cao Cao's death and the end of the Eastern Han dynasty,Cao Zhen served under Cao Pi and Cao Rui,the first two emperors of Wei. He is best known for leading a successful defence of Wei from the first two of a series of invasions by Wei's rival state,Shu Han,between 228 and 229.
Xiahou Shang,courtesy name Boren,was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was a distant younger relative of Xiahou Yuan and a close friend of Cao Pi,the first emperor of the Cao Wei state.
Wang Ping,courtesy name Zijun,was a military general of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period of China. Originally a military officer serving under the warlord Cao Cao. In 219,he defected to Cao Cao's rival Liu Bei during the Hanzhong Campaign. Although he was a talented orator,Wang Ping never learned to read because he joined the army at a young age. However,he did not let this disadvantage stop him and had his clerk help him with his reports. Known for his self discipline,he steadily rose through the ranks to become a senior general. During his career,he defeated Zhang He,quelled Wei Yan's alleged rebellion and was the leading commander of the Shu forces during the Battle of Xingshi. The highest position he reached was Senior General Who Guards the North (鎮北大將軍).
Huang Quan,courtesy name Gongheng,was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under the warlords Liu Zhang and Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty and in the state of Shu Han during the early Three Kingdoms period before defecting to Cao Wei. Liu Bei relied heavily on Huang Quan for counsel in both domestic and foreign policy. Under the Wei government,however,Huang Quan was restricted to only internal affairs because even though the Wei emperor Cao Pi appreciated him for his talent,he doubted Huang Quan's allegiance and believed he was still secretly loyal to Liu Bei.
The Empty Fort Strategy involves using reverse psychology to deceive the enemy into thinking that an empty location is full of traps and ambushes,and therefore induce the enemy to retreat. It is listed as the 32nd of the Thirty-Six Stratagems. Some examples are listed in the following sections.
Chen Shi was a military officer of the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under the warlord Liu Bei in the late Eastern Han dynasty. His name is sometimes recorded as Chen Jie.
Mount Dingjun is a mountain in the Mian County of Hanzhong,Shaanxi,China. It is situated across Tiandang Mountain,separated by the Han River,and is near the old Yangping Pass.
The Battle of Han River was fought between the warlords Liu Bei and Cao Cao in April 219 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. The battle was the last major engagement in the Hanzhong Campaign,in which Liu Bei emerged victorious and subsequently declared himself King of Hanzhong.
The Battle of Ba was fought between the warlords Liu Bei and Cao Cao between December 215 and April 216 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period. Following his victory over Zhang Lu at Yangping,Cao Cao appointed Pu Hu (朴胡),Ren Yue (任約) and Du Huo (杜濩) as Administrator of the three Ba commanderies but they were defeated by Huang Quan. Zhang He would later try to relocate citizens from Ba to Hanzhong but was also defeated by Zhang Fei.
The Hanzhong Campaign was a military campaign launched by the warlord Liu Bei to seize control of Hanzhong Commandery from his rival,Cao Cao. The campaign took place between December 217 and August 219 during the prelude to the Three Kingdoms period. Although Cao Cao's forces had settled in Hanzhong Commandery two years prior after the Battle of Yangping,they were worn out by an overall Fabian strategy employed by Liu Bei's forces,who used targeted attacks to capture strategic locations from the enemy. One of these attacks resulted in the death of Xiahou Yuan,one of Cao Cao's top generals,delivering a huge blow to the morale of Cao Cao's forces. Due to logistical and other issues,Cao Cao was eventually forced to abandon Hanzhong Commandery and order a retreat in June 219. Liu Bei emerged victorious in the campaign and occupied Hanzhong Commandery,after which he declared himself "King of Hanzhong" in August of that year.
Zhao Ang,courtesy name Weizhang,was a Chinese politician who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty and was aligned with the faction that would later become the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period. He is best known for resisting the warlord Ma Chao in Liang Province in the 210s. His wife,Wang Yi,is famous for supporting her husband throughout their conflict with Ma Chao.
