Liu Yao (warlord)
Liu Yao, courtesy name Zhengli, was a provincial governor and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was a descendant of Liu Fei, the eldest son of the Han dynasty's founding emperor, Liu Bang. When he was 18, he became famous after rescuing a relative who was being held hostage by bandits. He started his career in the Han civil service after being nominated as a xiaolian, and was known for his incorruptibility. In 194, although he was appointed by the Han imperial court as the governor of Yang Province, he barely managed to gain a foothold over his jurisdiction because the warlord Yuan Shu controlled a large part of the territories around the Huai River region in Yang Province. In 195, conflict broke out between Liu Yao and Yuan Shu, who sent his ally Sun Ce to attack Liu Yao. Sun Ce defeated Liu Yao and forced him to retreat south into present-day Jiangxi, where Liu Yao defeated a minor warlord Ze Rong and died of illness shortly later. His elder brother was Liu Dai, another prominent warlord.
Family background
Liu Yao was from Muping County, Donglai Commandery, which is in present-day Muping District, Yantai, Shandong. He was of noble descent. His ancestor, Liu Xie, who held the title "Marquis of Muping", was a son of Liu Jianglü. Liu Jianglü was a son of Liu Fei, the eldest son of the Han dynasty's founder, Liu Bang.Liu Yao's grandfather, Liu Ben, was an eminent Confucian scholar. Liu Yao's father, Liu Yu, served as the Administrator of Shanyang Commandery. Liu Yao's uncle, Liu Chong, served as the Grand Commandant in the Han imperial court.
Liu Yao's elder brother, Liu Dai, was a Palace Attendant and later the Inspector of Yan Province.
Early life and career
When Liu Yao was 18 years old, his relative Liu Wei was taken hostage by a gang of bandits. Liu Yao managed to rescue Liu Wei and bring him back safely. He became famous for his courageous act.Shortly after, Liu Yao was nominated as a xiaolian to join the Han civil service. He was subsequently appointed as a Gentleman and then the Chief of Xiayi County. He resigned later after refusing to misuse his powers by helping influential elites in the commandery.
Liu Yao was later recalled to serve as an official in Jinan State. The Chancellor of Jinan was the son of an influential official in the central government. When Liu Yao caught him engaging in corrupt practices, he wrote a memorial to the imperial court to complain, resulting in the chancellor's dismissal.
Tao Qiuhong, an official from Pingyuan Commandery, proposed to the Inspector of Qing Province to nominate Liu Yao as a maocai for outstanding performance. The Inspector asked, "We already nominated Gongshan last year. Why should we nominate Zhengli this year?" Tao Qiuhong replied, "If you nominate Gongshan first, and then Zhengli, you'll be doing exactly what people call 'riding two dragons on a long journey' and 'letting two fine steeds run freely'. Why shouldn't you do this?" Liu Yao then received an offer to serve as an Assistant to the Minister of Works and an Imperial Censor, but he declined.
Governorship of Yang Province
When chaos broke out in central and northern China in the 180s and 190s, Liu Yao fled south to the Huainan region. In 194, the imperial court appointed him as the Inspector of Yang Province. Around the time, the warlord Yuan Shu controlled much of the territories in the Huainan region. Liu Yao feared Yuan Shu and did not dare to assume his appointment because much of his jurisdiction was under Yuan Shu's control. He headed further south, crossed the Yangtze River, and met Wu Jing and Sun Ben in Qu'e County. They helped him establish a base for his governorship of Yang Province in Qu'e County.In 195, Yuan Shu, who had the intention of usurping the Han throne and declaring himself emperor, ordered his forces to start conquering nearby commanderies and counties. Liu Yao sent his subordinates Fan Neng and Zhang Ying to station troops near the riverbank to guard against Yuan Shu's advances. As Wu Jing and Sun Ben previously had served under Yuan Shu, Liu Yao distrusted them and forced them to leave. Yuan Shu appointed himself as the Inspector of Yang Province, and allied with Wu Jing and Sun Ben to attack Liu Yao. Fan Neng and Zhang Ying managed to hold their positions against enemy attacks for several days.
In 195, the Han imperial court promoted Liu Yao to Governor of Yang Province and concurrently appointed him as "General Who Inspires Martial Might". Liu Yao managed to rally thousands of troops to defend his territories. In the same year, the warlord Sun Ce led his forces across the Yangtze River and defeated Fan Neng and Zhang Ying. Liu Yao fled south to Dantu County.
Battle of Yuzhang and death
At Dantu County, Liu Yao contemplated moving to Kuaiji Commandery to take shelter. However, Xu Shao advised him to go to Yuzhang Commandery instead. He explained that Kuaiji Commandery had an abundance of resources so it would come under attack by Sun Ce very soon. Yuzhang Commandery, however, shared borders with Yu Province to the north and Jing Province to the west, so it would be more convenient for them to form alliances with other warlords such as Cao Cao and Liu Biao to counter the threat of Yuan Shu. Liu Yao heeded Xu Shao's suggestion and travelled to Yuzhang Commandery.Liu Yao and his forces reached Pengze County and garrisoned there. At the time, Zhou Shu, the previous Administrator of Yuzhang Commandery, had died of illness so his office was vacant. Liu Biao, the Governor of Jing Province, supported Zhuge Xuan to be the new Administrator, but that became a problem because the Han imperial court had appointed Zhu Hao to succeed Zhou Shu. Liu Yao sent a subordinate, Ze Rong, to lead troops to attack Zhuge Xuan and help Zhu Hao. Xu Shao cautioned Liu Yao, "Ze Rong doesn't care about how others see him. Zhu Wenming is too trusting of people. You should warn him to be wary." After driving Zhuge Xuan away, as Xu Shao foresaw, Ze Rong killed Zhu Hao and took control of Yuzhang Commandery.
Liu Yao led his forces to attack Ze Rong but was driven back. He then started recruiting more troops from the surrounding counties and eventually defeated Ze Rong, who fled into the hills and was killed by the Shanyue tribes. Liu Yao died of illness in 198 at the age of 42.
Post-mortem events
In 199, when Sun Ce was on his way to attack Jiangxia Commandery, he passed by Yuzhang Commandery, where he collected Liu Yao's remains, arranged a proper memorial service for Liu Yao, and treated Liu Yao's family kindly.Wang Lang wrote to Sun Ce, explaining how Liu Yao and Sun Ce's family used to get along well before the conflict broke out between him and Yuan Shu – the conflict turned Liu Yao and Sun Ce against each other because the latter was Yuan Shu's ally at the time. He told Sun Ce that Liu Yao died in regret because he wanted, but never had a chance to, reestablish friendly ties with Sun Ce after settling down in Yuzhang Commandery. He also praised Sun Ce for his kind gesture in arranging a proper funeral for Liu Yao and advised Sun Ce to treat Liu Yao's eldest son well.
Descendants
Liu Yao's eldest son, Liu Ji, came to serve under Sun Quan, Sun Ce's younger brother and the founding emperor of the state of Eastern Wu in the Three Kingdoms period. Sun Quan highly respected and favoured Liu Ji. After he became emperor, Sun Quan appointed Liu Ji as Minister of the Household. One of Sun Quan's sons, Sun Ba, married Liu Ji's daughter.Liu Yao had two other sons, Liu Shuo and Liu Shang, who both served as Cavalry Commandants under Sun Quan.