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Shao Xu (died ),
courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China China, officially the People's R ...
Sizu, was a military general and warlord of the
Jin dynasty (266–420) The Jin dynasty (; ) or the Jin Empire, sometimes distinguished as the (司馬晉) or the (兩晉), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed from 266 to 420. It was founded by Sima Yan (Emperor Wu), eldest son of Sima Zhao, who had p ...
. Shao Xu was an official under the
Youzhou You Prefecture or You Province, also known by its Chinese name Youzhou, was a prefecture ('' zhou'') in northern China during its imperial era. "You Province" was cited in some ancient sources as one of the nine or twelve original provinces o ...
warlord, Wang Jun but after Wang was killed in 314, he submitted to
Han Zhao The Han Zhao (; 304–329 AD), or Former Zhao (), was a dynastic state of China ruled by the Xiongnu people during the Sixteen Kingdoms period of Chinese history. In Chinese historiography, it was given two conditional state titles, the Northern ...
. In 315, Shao Xu declared his allegiance to Sima Rui in the south and revolted against Han. Shao Xu served as a loyal Jin vassal in Jizhou where he allied himself with the Duan chieftain,
Duan Pidi Duan Pidi ( 312–321) was a Duan-Xianbei chieftain during the Jin dynasty (266–420) and Sixteen Kingdoms period. He was the brother of chieftain, Duan Jilujuan, and served as his general in Jin's war with the Han Zhao state. After Jilujuan m ...
before he was eventually captured by
Shi Le Shi Le (274–17 August 333), courtesy name Shilong, formally Emperor Ming of (Later) Zhao, was the founding emperor of the Jie-led Later Zhao dynasty of China. At a young age he was sold as a slave by Jin officials, but he later helped start a ...
in 320. Shi Le respected Shao Xu's loyalty and initially treated him as a guest. However, Shi Le became worried that he would rebel, and in 321, had him executed along with Duan Pidi.


Life


Career under Sima Ying, Gou Xi and Wang Jun

Shao Xu was born in
Anyang County Anyang County () is a county in the north of Henan province, China. It is under the administration of Anyang Anyang (; ) is a prefecture-level city in Henan province, China. The northernmost city in Henan, Anyang borders Puyang to the east, Heb ...
in
Wei Commandery Wei Commandery ( zh, 魏郡) was a historical commandery of China, located in modern southern Hebei and northern Henan. The commandery was created during Emperor Gaozu of Han's reign, with its seat at Ye. In late Western Han, it administered 1 ...
. He was a simple man but was ambitious and keen on reading a wide range of history texts and astronomy. He was appointed into office by the Prince of Chengdu,
Sima Ying Sima Ying (司馬穎) (279 – December 306), courtesy name Zhangdu (章度), was a Jin Dynasty (266–420) imperial prince who served briefly as his brother Emperor Hui's regent and crown prince. He was the sixth of eight princes commonly asso ...
. In 303, Sima Ying waged war against his brother, the Prince of Changsha,
Sima Ai Sima Ai or Sima Yi (司馬乂) (277 – 19/20 March 304), courtesy name Shidu (士度), formally Prince Li of Changsha (長沙厲王), was a Jin Dynasty (266–420) imperial prince who briefly served as regent for his brother Emperor Hui. He wa ...
. Shao Xu was put off by this and advised Sima Ying to stop, but he was ignored. Shao Xu later joined Gou Xi's army, and where he was ordered to defend
Qinshui County Qinshui County () is a county in the southeast of Shanxi province, China. It is under the administration of Jincheng City, and is both its northernmost and westernmost county-level division The administrative divisions of China have consiste ...
. As conflict in the north intensifies, Shao Xu decided to quit his position and return to his hometown. There, he befriended many renegades and amassed himself a huge following under his wing. The Youzhou warlord, Wang Jun acknowledged his presence and appointed him General of Pacification and Collection and Prefect of Leling. Shao Xu based himself in Yanci (厭次, around present-day
Dezhou Dezhou () is a prefecture-level city in northwestern Shandong province, People's Republic of China. It borders the provincial capital of Jinan to the southeast, Liaocheng to the southwest, Binzhou to the northeast, and the province of Hebei ...
, Shandong), where he personally made his son, Shao Ai (邵乂) as Protector. Shao Xu would welcome refugees displaced by the ongoing war into his territory, making him rather popular among his people. Wang Jun was defeated by the Han Zhao general Shi Le in 314. After hearing his defeat, Shao Xu surrendered to Shi Le, and the Han general took Shao Ai to make him his own Protector as a result. Later that year, Wang Jun's Administrator of
Bohai Bohai may refer to: * Bohai Sea, or Bo Hai, the innermost gulf of the Yellow Sea * Balhae, known as Bohai in Chinese, a former mixed Mohe-Goguryeo empire which existed from 698 to 926 in Manchuria Locations or areas in China * Bohai Bay, one of t ...
, Liu Yin (劉胤, not to be confused with th Han Zhao prince, Liu Yin), fled to Shao Xu. During his stay with him, Liu Yin asked him to revolt against Shi Le. Not long after, the Duan Xianbei chieftain in Youzhou, Duan Pidi, who had aligned himself with
Sima Rui Emperor Yuan of Jin (; 276 – 3 January 323), personal name Sima Rui (司馬睿), courtesy name Jingwen (景文), was an emperor of the Jin dynasty and the first emperor of the Eastern Jin. His reign saw the steady gradual loss of Jin territor ...
in
Jiankang Jiankang (), or Jianye (), as it was originally called, was capital city of the Eastern Wu (229–265 and 266–280 CE), the Jin dynasty (317–420 CE) and the Southern Dynasties (420–552), including the Chen dynasty (557–589 CE). Its wall ...
, invited Shao Xu to re-pledge his allegiance to Jin. Shao Xu thus agreed to revolt against Shi Le. However, those under him quickly reminded him of Shao Ai's safety. Shao Xu wept and said, "How can I remain a traitor just to save my son?" Those who tried to stop him were killed by Shao Xu. After Shi Le heard of Shao Xu's betrayal, he had Shao Ai killed. Shao Xu sent Liu Yin to meet with Sima Rui and declare himself a vassal of Jin. Sima Rui agreed and appointed Shao Xu Administrator of Pingyuan. Shi Le besieged Shao Xu but reinforcements from Duan Pidi forced him to break the siege.


As a Jin vassal

In 316, Sima Rui further promoted Shao Xu to Inspector of Jizhou. Shao Xu's son-in-law, Liu Xia helped Shao Xu to expand his numbers by gathering people in the regions between the Ji and
Yellow River The Yellow River or Huang He (Chinese: , Mandarin: ''Huáng hé'' ) is the second-longest river in China, after the Yangtze River, and the sixth-longest river system in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan ...
. The following year in 317, Shao Xu was one of the many warlords who tried to get Sima Rui to declare himself emperor, but this was met with rejection. In 319, Duan Pidi was greatly defeated by Shi Le's forces. With nowhere left to run, he resorted to fleeing to Shao Xu and Shao welcomed him. The following year, Duan Pidi's forces were routed by his cousin Duan Mopei, who had allied himself with Shi Le. Duan Pidi pleaded to Shao Xu to help him defeat Mopei and Shao Xu agreed. The two men led their armies and defeated Pidi's cousin, forcing him to retreat. Duan Pidi followed up his victory by trying to reclaim his former capital of Jicheng. Upon hearing this, Shi Le knew that Shao Xu was now left vulnerable. Shi Le sent his generals
Shi Hu Shi Hu (; 295–349), courtesy name Jilong (季龍), formally Emperor Wu of (Later) Zhao ((後)趙武帝), was an emperor of the Jie-led Chinese Later Zhao dynasty. He was the founding emperor Shi Le's distant nephew, who took power in a coup ...
and Kong Chang to attack Shao Xu at Yanci. Shi Hu besieged Shao Xu while Kong Chang took eleven of his camps. Shao Xu decided to personally lead his army against Shi Hu, but Shi Hu was prepared and had laid an ambush by hiding his cavalries. When the time was ripe, his cavalries appeared and attacked Shao Xu, capturing him during the battle. Shi Hu sent Shao Xu to order his city to surrender. Instead, Shao Xu shouted to his nephew, Shao Zhu (邵竺), to remain loyal to Jin and continue resisting. Meanwhile, Duan Pidi rushed back in attempt to save Yanci. Pidi's brother, Duan Wenyang (段文鴦) managed to break through Shi Hu army to allow him and Pidi to man the defence. Joining them were Shao Xu's son, Shao Ji (邵緝) and Xu's nephews, Shao Cun (邵存) and Shao Mi. Liu Yin, who was still in the south, upon hearing that Shao Xu was under attack, begged Sima Rui to send reinforcements and save him. Sima Rui refused and instead only passed Shao Xu's office over to his son, Shao Ji.


Captivity and execution

Shao Xu was sent to Shi Le's capital in Xiangguo. Shi Le respected Shao Xu's loyalty, so he freed him from captivity and appointed him Attendant Officer of the Household Gentlemen. Shi Le also issued a policy to his generals to always present him a captured official that they deemed worthy because of Shao Xu's defiance. Shao Xu continued to impress Shi Le as during his capture, Shao Xu would grow his own vegetables and sell them in the market. Because of this, Shi Le rewarded Shao Xu with clothes and grains. Often times, he would sigh and try to set Shao Xu as an example in the court. Duan Pidi and Shao Xu's family were finally defeated in 321. Despite Shi Le's respect for Shao Xu, Pidi's insolence made Shi Le worried that Shao Xu and Pidi would revolt in the future. Not long after, Shi Le ordered for Shao Xu and Pidi to be executed.(續被獲之後,存及竺、緝等與匹磾嬰城距寇,而帝又假存揚武將軍、武邑太守。勒屢遣季龍攻之,戰守疲苦,不能自立。久之,匹磾及其弟文鴦與竺、緝等悉見獲,惟存得潰圍南奔,在道為賊所殺。續竟亦遇害。) Book of Jin, Volume 63


References

* Fang, Xuanling (ed.) (648). ''
Book of Jin The ''Book of Jin'' is an official Chinese historical text covering the history of the Jin dynasty from 266 to 420. It was compiled in 648 by a number of officials commissioned by the imperial court of the Tang dynasty, with chancellor Fang X ...
'' (''Jin Shu''). * Sima, Guang (1084). ''
Zizhi Tongjian ''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynas ...
''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Shao, Xu Jin dynasty (266–420) generals 321 deaths