Shen Pei
Cao Cao had the trophies of his victory against Yuan Shang shown to the defenders of Ye, which greatly lowered their morale, but Shen Pei was adamant. He rallied the troops based on the hope that Yuan Shang's second brother Yuan Xi would soon come to the rescue from You Province, thus they have no reason to worry about Yuan Shang's rout. When Cao Cao rode out to inspect the siege-works, Shen Pei had crossbowmen fire at him; the shots missed narrowly. A few nights later, on September 13 of the Julian calendar, Shen Pei's nephew Shen Rong (審榮) betrayed the city and opened the east gate at night to let in the enemy. As Cao Cao's men breached the city, Shen Pei executed the families of Xin Pi's brother Xin Ping, whom he considered traitorous and responsible for the downfall of the Yuan clan, then personally joined the defense at the gates. Shen Pei and the remaining defenders were pushed into the city proper, where fighting continued in the streets for a while. Two sources, the "Parallel Annals of the Duke of Shanyang" (山陽公載記) and the "Chronicle of Emperor Xian" (獻帝春秋), claim that Shen Pei hid in a well when all seemed lost, but the compiler Pei Songzhi rejects this account. Whatever the circumstance, Shen Pei was captured alive, and the siege finally ended after dragging on for more than half a year.