To eliminate the threat posed by Liu Bei and Lü Bu’s control of Xuzhou, Cao Cao adopted a step-by-step strategy proposed by Xun Yu. First, he used the “Feeding Two Tigers to Fight” stratagem, petitioning the court to appoint Liu Bei as Governor of Xuzhou while secretly ordering him to execute Lü Bu. This…
The “Feeding two tigers to fight”, “Two tigers competing food” or “Two tigers fight for food” was a stratagem devised by Xun Yu for Cao Cao during the late Eastern Han Dynasty, originating from Chapter 14 of Romance of the Three Kingdoms. It refers to creating conflict between two rival parties, instigating them to…
In February 195 AD, during a high-level meeting in Chang’an, Li Jue ordered the assassination of his fellow warlord Fan Chou, who had grown increasingly influential and independent. The killing, carried out by Li Jue’s nephew Li Li, shattered the fragile alliance among the warlords controlling the Han court. From this point on, mutual…
In early 194 AD, Cao Cao launched his second punitive expedition against Xuzhou, targeting Tao Qian, whom he blamed for the murder of his father, Cao Song. His forces advanced deep into Xuzhou, capturing cities and inflicting heavy casualties.
While Cao Cao and Lü Bu waged a brutal war for control of Yanzhou, Tao Qian, the aging Governor of Xuzhou, passed away in 194 AD at the age of 63.
In the summer of 194 AD, Cao Cao assembled a massive army to launch his second invasion of Xu Province, this time under the banner of filial vengeance. His father, Cao Song, had been murdered by soldiers of Tao Qian.
Historically, Cao Cao carried out two large-scale massacres in Xuzhou. The first occurred in 193. According to According to Romance of the Three Kingdoms, when his father was killed by a general under the command of Tao Qian, the governor of Xuzhou, Cao Cao led his army to attack Tao Qian, capturing over ten…
At the end of the Eastern Han dynasty, the empire was thrown into chaos. Rebellions erupted across the land, warlords vied for power, and former bandits sometimes rose to positions of authority—only to be crushed just as quickly. Among these turbulent figures was Yang Feng, a man whose shifting allegiances and fleeting ambitions exemplify…