SuaveG – The Gentle Path

Chinese mythology, folktales, and literature

Peng Yue

  • From Slave to Emperor: Shi Le [Jin & Southern-Northern Dynasties]

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    Juan

    From Nameless Slave to Warlord At the end of the Western Jin dynasty, chaos engulfed China. Borderland peoples – Xiongnu, Xianbei, Jie, Di, and Qiang – rose in rebellion, carving out kingdoms across the north. This era, later called the Sixteen Kingdoms, saw over twenty states emerge, many founded not only by non-Han groups…

  • From Court Chaos to the Lü Clan Purge in Early Han [Western Han]

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    Juan

    Chaos in the Imperial Court After founding the Han dynasty, Emperor Gaozu (Liu Bang) faced a new kind of disorder – not from enemies, but from his own comrades. His earliest followers from Pei and Feng counties were rough soldiers, not courtiers. At banquets in the palace, they boasted of wartime exploits, argued loudly,…

  • The Song of the Vanquished: The Last Stand of Xiang Yu [Western Han]

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    Juan

    The Noose Tightens at Gaixia By winter of 203 BCE, Liu Bang had finally united his coalition. Han Xin, Peng Yue, and Ying Bu – now fully committed with promised lands – joined forces with the main Han army. Together, they pursued Xiang Yu relentlessly, capturing Pengcheng and cutting off his retreat.

  • The Line at Honggou – Chu-Han territorial division [Western Han]

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    Juan

    The Eastern Campaign and the Fall of Pengcheng In the spring of 205 BCE, Xiang Yu (the “Hegemon-King”) led his main army east to crush Tian Rong, King of Qi. After repeated defeats, Tian Rong fled to Pingyuan, where he brutally extorted grain from locals. Enraged, the people rose up and killed him.

  • The Deception of Chencang [Western Han]

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    Juan

    Forging an Army, Crafting a Plan After his dramatic appointment as Grand General, Han Xin swiftly transformed Liu Bang’s ragged forces into a disciplined army. Through rigorous drills, clear commands, and fair discipline, he earned the loyalty even of skeptical veterans like Fan Kuai and Zhou Bo. Working closely with Liu Bang and Xiao…

  • Ashes of the Palace, Seeds of Rebellion [Western Han]

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    Juan

    The Execution of Ziying and the Sack of Xianyang Days after the Hongmen Banquet, Xiang Yu marched into Xianyang city at the head of a coalition of feudal lords, with Liu Bang following cautiously behind. The first order of business was the fate of Ziying, the last ruler of Qin, who had reigned for…

  • Zhang Liang

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    Ana

    Zhang Liang (?–189 BCE) was a prominent statesman in the early Western Han dynasty. His courtesy name was Zifang, and he was from Chengfu, Yingchuan (in present-day southwestern Xiangcheng, Henan). His ancestors were nobles of the former state of Han, with five generations serving as Han ministers. Seeking revenge for the Qin conquest of…

  • The guerrilla tactics of Peng Yue [Three Kingdoms]

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    Juan

    Li Jue was originally a general under Dong Zhuo. After Dong Zhuo was killed by Wang Yun and Lü Bu, he declared independence and, following the strategy of his advisor Jia Xu, attacked the capital city of Chang’an. Today, let’s discuss how Li Jue defeated Lü Bu and successfully captured Chang’an.