Ran Min
Virtually nothing is known about Shi Zhi's career during his father Shi Hu's reign, including when he was created prince, who his mother was, or what role, if any, he had in his father's government. It is known that, by his father's death, he was the Prince of Xinxing. By 349, when his brother Shi Jian the emperor was effectively the puppet of their powerful, ethnically Han adoptive nephew Shi Min in the capital Yecheng, Shi Zhi rose at his defense post at the old capital Xiangguo (襄國, in modern Xintai, Hebei), in alliance with the Qiang chief Yao Yizhong (姚弋仲) and the Di chief Pu Hong (蒲洪). They had some initial success in getting the non-Han people of the empire to join them against Shi Min, but soon the Han coalesced around Shi Min, who changed his family name back to his father's original Ran (冉). In early 350, Ran Min killed Shi Jian and established his own state named Wei (魏). Shi Zhi then declared himself emperor, and he engaged in indecisive battles against Ran Min. Meanwhile, local generals throughout the empire were waiting to watch who would be the victor of the war, while neighboring states Jin and Former Yan began to encroach on Later Zhao's territory. Former Yan, in particular, seized modern Beijing, Tianjin, and northern Hebei and continued to march south.