Battle of Shiting
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Shiting was fought between the contending states of Cao Wei
and Eastern Wu
in 228 during the Three Kingdoms
period of Chinese history
. The battle concluded with victory of Wu over Wei.
ordered Zhou Fang
to lay a trap for Cao Xiu
, the commander-in-chief
of Wei, by pretending to defect. Cao Xiu was deceived into leading his troops straight into Wan. Then, Sun Quan appointed Lu Xun
as Grand Chief Commander, commanding him to lead an attack against Cao Xiu. On the way to the camping area, Cao Xiu was ambushed as planned. Cao Xiu was unable to gain the upper hand in battle, and thus retreated to make camp at Shiting. However, the camp was disturbed in the middle of night, and the soldiers ran away in disarray. Many sets of armor and carts of supplies were abandoned. Cao Xiu sent in a memorial acknowledging his fault. Many of his men were killed. When he looked around for Zhou Fang, Zhou was nowhere to be found. He then knew he had been duped. When Cao Xiu realized that he was tricked, he was too ashamed to turn back; so, thinking that he had more troops and supplies, he chose to engage Lu Xun's army. Lu Xun personally led the central force and ordered Zhu Huan
(朱桓) and Quan Cong
to take the left and right flanks. The three armies advanced simultaneously, and decisively took on Cao Xiu's ambushing troops. Following that, the Wu troops pursued hard on the fleeing Cao army until they reached Jiashi, where they annihilated some 10,000 men and won over 10,000 spoils of war; in addition, All of the Wei army's equipment and weaponry were looted. Lu Xun regrouped his men; and when he passed by Wuchang, Sun Quan instructed his attendants to shield Lu Xun with his own canopy when entering and leaving the palace doors.
Sun Quan bestowed upon Lu Xun as reward were imperial items, precious items of the finest grade. The honor Lu Xun received was matched by no one in that era.
Cao Xiu barely escaped the battlefield with his life. Indeed, he died a few months later of an ulcer on his back, even after having been pardoned by the Emperor
of Wei, Cao Rui
.
According to legend, Cao Xiu did not believe Zhou Fang at first. Zhou Fang cut off his famous locks of hair to prove his "loyalty". In any case, Zhou Fang knew the territory, so he started to lead Cao Xiu into a clearing, where Cao could set up camp. However, before they left, Cao Xiu was advised not to trust Zhou Fang by one of his advisers, Jia Kui
. Cao Xiu did not heed his words; however, and not only went on with Zhou Fang's ploy, but removed Jia Kui from the campaign and decided to march with 70,000 troops.
Jia Kui, who had come along with Cao Xiu, helped Cao retreat from the ambush. For this, Jia Kui was highly praised by the emperor Cao Rui himself, and given many promotions. He lived the last years of his life in happiness.
. It is called the "Battle of You Ting" in Dynasty Warriors 3
.
Cao Wei
Cao Wei was one of the states that competed for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period. With the capital at Luoyang, the state was established by Cao Pi in 220, based upon the foundations that his father Cao Cao laid...
and Eastern Wu
Eastern Wu
Eastern Wu, also known as Sun Wu, was one the three states competing for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period after the fall of the Han Dynasty. It was based in the Jiangnan region of China...
in 228 during the Three Kingdoms
Three Kingdoms
The Three Kingdoms period was a period in Chinese history, part of an era of disunity called the "Six Dynasties" following immediately the loss of de facto power of the Han Dynasty rulers. In a strict academic sense it refers to the period between the foundation of the state of Wei in 220 and the...
period of Chinese history
History of China
Chinese civilization originated in various regional centers along both the Yellow River and the Yangtze River valleys in the Neolithic era, but the Yellow River is said to be the Cradle of Chinese Civilization. With thousands of years of continuous history, China is one of the world's oldest...
. The battle concluded with victory of Wu over Wei.
The battle
Sun QuanSun Quan
Sun Quan , son of Sun Jian, formally Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He ruled from 222 to 229 as King of Wu and from 229 to 252 as Emperor of Wu....
ordered Zhou Fang
Zhou Fang (Three Kingdoms)
Zhou Fang, style name Ziyu , was a military general of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. In 228, he was a main figure in a confrontation between Eastern Wu and Cao Wei, when he pretended to surrender to Cao Wei to induce the enemy general Cao Xiu into a trap, and...
to lay a trap for Cao Xiu
Cao Xiu
Cao Xiu was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He served the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period. A distant nephew of Cao Cao, Cao Xiu was given special attention by the former, who once asserted him befitting...
, the commander-in-chief
Commander-in-Chief
A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function. As a practical term it refers to the military...
of Wei, by pretending to defect. Cao Xiu was deceived into leading his troops straight into Wan. Then, Sun Quan appointed Lu Xun
Lu Xun (Three Kingdoms)
Lu Xun was a military general and politician of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He is best known for defeating Liu Bei's forces at the Battle of Xiaoting in 222.-Early life:...
as Grand Chief Commander, commanding him to lead an attack against Cao Xiu. On the way to the camping area, Cao Xiu was ambushed as planned. Cao Xiu was unable to gain the upper hand in battle, and thus retreated to make camp at Shiting. However, the camp was disturbed in the middle of night, and the soldiers ran away in disarray. Many sets of armor and carts of supplies were abandoned. Cao Xiu sent in a memorial acknowledging his fault. Many of his men were killed. When he looked around for Zhou Fang, Zhou was nowhere to be found. He then knew he had been duped. When Cao Xiu realized that he was tricked, he was too ashamed to turn back; so, thinking that he had more troops and supplies, he chose to engage Lu Xun's army. Lu Xun personally led the central force and ordered Zhu Huan
Zhu Huan
Zhu Huan was a military general of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. Although joining the southern warlord, Sun Quan, early on, Zhu Huan was not assigned important tasks until Sun had solidified his influence after the Battle of Jiangling in 209. Henceforth, Zhu Huan was...
(朱桓) and Quan Cong
Quan Cong
Quan Cong , style name Zihuang , was a military general of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He married Sun Quan's oldest daughter Sun Luban. During the subjugation of the Shanyue, Quan achieved great success. Quan afterwards marched with Lu Xun to attack the Cao Wei...
to take the left and right flanks. The three armies advanced simultaneously, and decisively took on Cao Xiu's ambushing troops. Following that, the Wu troops pursued hard on the fleeing Cao army until they reached Jiashi, where they annihilated some 10,000 men and won over 10,000 spoils of war; in addition, All of the Wei army's equipment and weaponry were looted. Lu Xun regrouped his men; and when he passed by Wuchang, Sun Quan instructed his attendants to shield Lu Xun with his own canopy when entering and leaving the palace doors.
Sun Quan bestowed upon Lu Xun as reward were imperial items, precious items of the finest grade. The honor Lu Xun received was matched by no one in that era.
Cao Xiu barely escaped the battlefield with his life. Indeed, he died a few months later of an ulcer on his back, even after having been pardoned by the Emperor
Emperor of China
The Emperor of China refers to any sovereign of Imperial China reigning between the founding of Qin Dynasty of China, united by the King of Qin in 221 BCE, and the fall of Yuan Shikai's Empire of China in 1916. When referred to as the Son of Heaven , a title that predates the Qin unification, the...
of Wei, Cao Rui
Cao Rui
Cao Rui , formally known as Emperor Ming of Wei, was the second emperor of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. He was a son of Cao Wei's first emperor Cao Pi according to Liu Song dynasty historian, Pei Songzhi, but was a son of Yuan Xi according to modern...
.
According to legend, Cao Xiu did not believe Zhou Fang at first. Zhou Fang cut off his famous locks of hair to prove his "loyalty". In any case, Zhou Fang knew the territory, so he started to lead Cao Xiu into a clearing, where Cao could set up camp. However, before they left, Cao Xiu was advised not to trust Zhou Fang by one of his advisers, Jia Kui
Jia Kui
Jia Kui, , style name Liangdao , was a military general and bureaucrat during the Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He became a subject of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period.-Biography:...
. Cao Xiu did not heed his words; however, and not only went on with Zhou Fang's ploy, but removed Jia Kui from the campaign and decided to march with 70,000 troops.
Jia Kui, who had come along with Cao Xiu, helped Cao retreat from the ambush. For this, Jia Kui was highly praised by the emperor Cao Rui himself, and given many promotions. He lived the last years of his life in happiness.
Modern references
The Battle of Shiting is featured as a playable stage in Koei's video game series Dynasty WarriorsDynasty Warriors
is a series of tactical action video games created by Omega Force and Koei. The award-winning series is a spin-off of Koei's turn-based strategy Romance of the Three Kingdoms series, based loosely around the Chinese classical novel of the same name. The first game titled Dynasty Warriors,...
. It is called the "Battle of You Ting" in Dynasty Warriors 3
Dynasty Warriors 3
is a hack and slash video game developed by Omega Force and published by Koei. It is third in the Dynasty Warriors series in North America and the second in the Shin Sangokumusou series in Japan. It is a spin-off from the video game Romance of the Three Kingdoms and based around a series of books...
.