Battle of Xiapi The Battle of Xiapi was fought between the forces of Lü Bu against the allied armies of Cao Cao and Liu Bei in the winter of 198 , towards the end of the Han Dynasty . The battle concluded with victory for Cao Cao and Liu Bei . Background . In 194 , while Cao Cao was away attacking Tao Qian in Xu Province , his subordinates Chen Gong and Zhang Miao rebelled against him and aided Lü Bu in taking over his base in Yan Province . Cao Cao abandoned his invasion of Xu Province and turned back to attack Lü Bu , culminating in the Battle of Yan Province which lasted more than 100 days . By 195 , Cao Cao had retaken all his cities in Yan Province and defeated Lü Bu at Juye . Lü Bu and his men fled east to join Liu Bei , who had succeeded Tao Qian as Governor ( 州牧 ) of Xu Province . In 196 , Cao Cao found Emperor Xian in the ruins of Luoyang and brought him to Xuchang , where the new capital and imperial court would be based . In the same year , Lü Bu took advantage of the conflict between Liu Bei and Yuan Shu to capture Xiapi ( present - day Pizhou , Jiangsu ) , capital of Xu Province , effectively seizing control of the province from Liu Bei . Liu Bei was forced to surrender his governorship of Xu Province to Lü Bu and settle in the nearby city of Xiaopei . Not long later , Lü Bu felt threatened by Liu Bei ' s presence and led his troops to attack Liu . Liu Bei was defeated by Lü Bu and had no choice but to join Cao Cao . Cao Cao provided Liu Bei with supplies and sent him to garrison at Xiaopei . Around 197 , Yuan Shao was in control of the three provinces of Ji , Qing and Bing north of the Yellow River , so he wrote a letter to Cao Cao in an arrogant tone . Around the same time , Cao Cao had just been defeated by Zhang Xiu at the Battle of Wancheng and the letter angered him . Cao Cao felt threatened by Yuan Shao ' s growing influence in northern China and wanted to attack Yuan , but felt that his forces were not strong enough . Cao Cao ' s strategists Guo Jia and Xun Yu assessed the situation , listing out the various advantages Cao Cao had over Yuan Shao . They also advised him to use the opportunity to eliminate Lü Bu when Yuan Shao was at war with Gongsun Zan , because it was possible that Yuan Shao might ally with Lü Bu to attack him . Cao Cao then made preparations for a campaign against Lü Bu . The battle . Conflict between Lü Bu and Yuan Shu . In 197 , Yuan Shu declared himself emperor and sent his official Han Yin to meet Lü Bu , proposing a marriage between his son and Lü Bu ' s daughter , so as to foster a stronger alliance between him and Lü Bu . Lü Bu initially agreed to the proposal and sent his daughter to follow Han Yin back . However , Lü Bu still bore a grudge against Yuan Shu for attacking him five years ago , so he changed his mind after listening to Chen Gui . Lü Bu pursued the convoy and retrieved his daughter , captured Han Yin and sent him to Xuchang , where Han was executed on Cao Cao ' s order . Cao Cao appointed Lü Bu as General of the Left ( 左將軍 ) and personally wrote him a letter to console him . Lü Bu sent Chen Deng to meet Cao Cao and thank Cao on his behalf . When Chen Deng met Cao Cao , he said that Lü Bu was bold but not very astute , and was untrustworthy , so he should to be eliminated as soon as possible . Cao Cao agreed with Chen Deng ' s view . Chen Deng was appointed Administrator of Guangling and secretly implanted by Cao Cao as a spy in Lü Bu ' s forces . On the other hand , Yuan Shu was angered by Lü Bu ' s betrayal , so he sent his generals Zhang Xun , Qiao Rui to lead an army to attack Xiapi from seven directions in collaboration with the White Wave Bandits led by Han Xian and Yang Feng . Lü Bu was in an disadvantageous situation , with only 3 , 000 men and 400 warhorses . He was afraid that he might not be able to resist Yuan Shu so he blamed Chen Gui for giving him poor counsel . Chen Gui , however , thought that Han Xian and Yang Feng were not genuinely loyal to Yuan Shu , so he advised Lü Bu to persuade them to break their alliance with Yuan Shu . When Lü Bu attacked Yuan Shu ' s forces , Han Xian and Yang Feng defected to his side . Yuan Shu ' s troops were defeated and Lü Bu pursued them until he reached south of the Huai River . Siege of Xiapi . In 198 , Lü Bu made peace with Yuan Shu again , and sent his general Gao Shun to attack Liu Bei at Xiaopei . Cao Cao sent Xiahou Dun with an army to reinforce Liu Bei , but they were still defeated by Gao Shun . Xiaopei fell to Lü Bu ' s forces in the ninth lunar month and Liu Bei escaped but his wives were captured . Following that , Cao Cao officially launched his military campaign against Lü Bu . When Cao Cao ' s army reached Pengcheng ( present - day Xuzhou , Jiangsu ) , Chen Gong urged Lü Bu to attack Cao Cao because Cao Cao ' s troops were weary from their long march from Xuchang . Lü Bu , however , insisted on staying in Xiapi and wait for Cao Cao to arrive before attacking . A month later , Cao Cao conquered Pengcheng . At the same time , Chen Deng defected to Cao Cao ' s side and led his men from Guangling to Xiapi . Lü Bu personally lead his troops out to engage the enemy but was defeated and forced to retreat . Lü Bu returned to Xiapi and defended the city firmly without advancing . Cao Cao wrote a letter to Lü Bu , explaining the perilous situation the latter was in . Lü Bu became afraid and had the intention of surrendering , but Chen Gong felt that Cao Cao ' s army had travelled a long distance and would not be able to fight a prolonged battle . Chen Gong advised Lü Bu to garrison part of his forces outside the city , while the rest would remain with him inside , so that they can support each other if either side came under attack . Chen also said the best time to engage Cao Cao ' s forces would be months later , when Cao ' s supplies run out . Lü Bu agreed with the plan and wanted to leave Chen Gong and Gao Shun behind to defend Xiapi while he was stationed outside the city . However , Lü Bu ' s wife claimed that Chen Gong and Gao Shun could not get along with each other , so that would be a problem if Lü Bu was not around . She also felt that Cao Cao treated Chen Gong better ( before the latter ' s defection to Lü Bu ) than how Lü Bu was treating Chen now , so Chen might betray Lü Bu . Lü Bu thus aborted Chen Gong ' s plan . Lü Bu sent Wang Kai and Xu Si ( 許汜 ) to request reinforcements from Yuan Shu , but Yuan rejected when he recalled how Lü Bu reneged on the marriage proposal earlier . Wang Kai and Xu Si attempted to persuade Yuan Shu to send aid , claiming that Yuan Shu would be isolated if Lü Bu was eliminated . Yuan Shu considered sending relief forces , but did not do so immediately . In the meantime , Lü Bu thought that Yuan Shu was unwilling to help him because of the marriage proposal incident , so he personally escorted his daughter out of Xiapi and attempted to send her to Yuan Shu ' s territory . However , Lü Bu encountered Cao Cao ' s troops outside the city and was unable to break out of the siege so he had to turn back . Cao Cao ' s troops began to become tired and weary after failing to capture Xiapi despite besieging it for a long time . Cao Cao had the intention of withdrawing , but his strategists Xun You and Guo Jia thought that Lü Bu ' s army was already low on morale after having suffered so many defeats , so they advised Cao Cao to press on the siege . Cao Cao then ordered his soldiers to direct the waters of the Yi and Si rivers to flood Xiapi . The beleaguered Lü Bu prepared to surrender after Xiapi was flooded for over a month , but Chen Gong stopped him . Lü Bu ' s surrender . Lü Bu ' s general Hou Cheng found a man to help him take charge of 15 horses but the man escaped with the horses , planning to present them to Liu Bei . Hou Cheng personally pursued the man and retrieved the horses . The other generals congratulated Hou Cheng on his achievement and Hou prepared food and wine and presented to Lü Bu . Lü Bu was furious and said , " I ordered a ban on alcohol , and now you prepare wine . Are you planning to make me drunk and then turn against me ? " Hou Cheng was unhappy and afraid , so in the 12th lunar month of 198 , he plotted with Song Xian and Wei Xu to capture Chen Gong and Gao Shun before surrendering to Cao Cao . When Lü Bu heard about Hou Cheng ' s defection , he led his remaining men to White Gate Tower , where he saw that Cao Cao ' s troops were closing in on him . He asked his men to kill him and bring his head to Cao Cao , but they refused . Lü Bu then surrendered . Aftermath . Lü Bu and his followers were tied up and brought before Cao Cao and Liu Bei . Cao Cao ordered Gao Shun to be executed after Gao did not reply when Cao asked him if he had anything to say . Lü Bu complained that he was too tightly bound but Cao Cao said , " A tiger should be tightly tied up . " Lü Bu then attempted to persuade Cao Cao to spare him and promised to serve Cao . As Cao Cao was pondering , Liu Bei said , " Haven ' t you seen what happened to Ding Yuan and Dong Zhuo ? " Cao Cao rubbed his jaw . Lü Bu scolded Liu Bei , " You ' re the most untrustworthy person . " The " Yingxiong Ji " ( 英雄記 ; " Records of Heroes " ) stated that Cao Cao initially wanted to spare Lü Bu ' s life after Lü pledged to serve him . However , Wang Bi ( 王必 ) , Cao Cao ' s registrar , immediately stopped Cao Cao and said , " Lü Bu is a formidable prisoner - of - war . His subordinates are nearby , he cannot be spared . " Cao Cao then said to Lü Bu , " I wanted to spare you , but my registrar refuses . So , what should I do ? " When Cao Cao asked Chen Gong what would happen to his family members , Chen hinted that Cao should spare them . Cao Cao spared Chen Gong ' s family and treated them well . Chen Gong then accepted his fate and walked to the execution ground without looking back . Cao Cao was deeply grieved by Chen Gong ' s death . Cao Cao then had Lü Bu executed by hanging . He ordered the dead bodies of Lü Bu and his followers to be decapitated and their heads sent to Xuchang and then later buried . Cao Cao accepted Zhang Liao , Chen Qun and others who previously served Lü Bu , and appointed them as generals or officials under him . Other minor warlords such as Zang Ba , Sun Guan ( 孫觀 ) , Wu Dun ( 吳敦 ) , Yin Li , and Chang Xi ( 昌豨 ) who used to side with Lü Bu also surrendered to Cao Cao , and he put them in charge of various commanderies along the coastline . With the end of the Battle of Xiapi , Cao Cao completely eliminated the threat posed by Lü Bu . The following year , Liu Bei broke ties with Cao Cao and seized control of Xu Province after killing Che Zhou ( 車冑 ) , but Cao Cao quickly defeated Liu and regained control of the province . With Xu Province now firmly in his control , Cao Cao no longer had any impending threats on his home base in Yan and Yu provinces . This became an advantage to Cao Cao in the subsequent Battle of Guandu in 200 against Yuan Shao . In fiction . The battle was romanticised in chapters 18 and 19 of the historical novel " Romance of the Three Kingdoms " by Luo Guanzhong - some fictional events were added , while actual ones were modified to large extents for dramatic effect . In the novel , the battle took place in two stages : the first took place near Xiaopei ( 小沛 ; present - day Pei County , Jiangsu ) while the second was at Xiapi ( 下邳 ; present - day Pizhou , Jiangsu ) itself . Some notable events in the novel ' s account of the battle are as follows : Xiahou Dun losing his left eye . Cao Cao sent Xiahou Dun to lead reinforcements to help Liu Bei , who was under attack by Lü Bu at Xiaopei . When Xiahou Dun arrived , he encountered Lü Bu ' s army led by Gao Shun , and he engaged Gao in a one - on - one fight . Both of them duelled for about 40 - 50 rounds . Gao Shun could not hold on any longer so he retreated , with Xiahou Dun in pursuit . Lü Bu ' s subordinate Cao Xing spotted Xiahou Dun on the battlefield , and he fired an arrow which hit Xiahou in his left eye . Xiahou Dun cried out and pulled out the arrow together with his eyeball . He exclaimed , " ( This is ) the essence of my father and the blood of my mother , ( I ) cannot waste it ! " He then swallowed his eyeball and charged towards Cao Xing . Cao Xing was caught off guard and was killed by Xiahou Dun , who speared him in the face . The soldiers from both sides were shocked by the scene before them . Historicity . Xiahou Dun ' s biography in the " Sanguozhi " mentioned briefly when Xiahou Dun participated in a battle against Lü Bu ' s forces , he was hit by a stray arrow and was injured in his left eye . No further details were provided . The " Weilue " stated that after the incident , the soldiers nicknamed Xiahou Dun " Blind Xiahou " . Xiahou Dun hated that nickname and when he saw his reflection in the mirror , he would smash the mirror by throwing it to the ground . The only record of Cao Xing in history exists in the " Yingxiong Ji " ( 英雄記 ; " Records of Heroes " ) , which stated that when Hao Meng rebelled against Lü Bu in 196 , Hao ' s subordinate Cao Xing refused to join him in the rebellion . Hao Meng and Cao Xing fought , and Cao was injured by Hao but he managed to slice off Hao ' s arm . Hao Meng was later killed by Gao Shun . Lü Bu later praised Cao Xing for remaining loyal to him . Hou Cheng ' s defection . This incident took place when Lü Bu was besieged by Cao Cao ' s forces in Xiapi for months . His subordinate Hou Cheng seized back 15 horses stolen from them and Lü Bu ' s men wanted to celebrate . Hou Cheng feared that Lü Bu might be angry because the latter had already banned his men from consuming alcohol , so Hou presented five bottles of wine to his lord . However , Lü Bu was furious and he wanted to have Hou Cheng executed , but Song Xian , Wei Xu and others pleaded with Lü Bu to spare Hou . Lü Bu agreed and had Hou Cheng flogged 50 times before releasing him . Lü Bu ' s men were all upset by the incident . Hou Cheng later plotted with Song Xian and Wei Xu to betray Lü Bu . That night , Hou Cheng stole Lü Bu ' s steed , the Red Hare , and fled to Cao Cao ' s camp . He told Cao Cao about their plan . Historicity . The " Sanguozhi " stated that Lü Bu ' s followers were starting to become disunited after Lü Bu had been besieged in Xiapi by Cao Cao ' s forces for about three months . His generals Hou Cheng , Song Xian and Wei Xu captured Chen Gong and brought their men to surrender to Cao Cao . The " Jiuzhou Chunqiu " gave a similar account of the story in " Romance of the Three Kingdoms " , except that Lü Bu did not have Hou Cheng flogged when the latter presented wine to him . Instead , Hou Cheng became afraid after Lü Bu scolded him and threatened to execute him , so he discarded the wine and returned to join the other generals . He later became suspicious of Lü Bu and eventually led his men to surrender to Cao Cao . Lü Bu ' s biography in the " Houhanshu " combined the original text in the " Sanguozhi " and the " Jiuzhou Chunqiu " account , stating that Hou Cheng and others captured Chen Gong and Gao Shun and surrendered to Cao Cao . Lü Bu ' s final moments . Lü Bu was resting when his subordinates Song Xian and Wei Xu captured him and tied him up . They threw his " ji " down the walls and opened the gates for Cao Cao ' s forces to enter . Lü Bu was brought before Cao Cao and he complained that he was too tightly bound , but Cao Cao said , " A tiger must be tied up securely . " Lü Bu then said to Hou Cheng , Wei Xu and Song Xian , " I treated all of you well , why do you betray me ? " Song Xian replied , " ( You ) listen to your wives and concubines and ignore our advice . You call this ' treating us well ' ? " Lü Bu remained silent . Cao Cao then had Gao Shun executed . He wanted to spare Chen Gong but the latter insisted on accepting his fate and was executed as well . Lü Bu attempted to persuade Cao Cao to spare him , saying that he was willing to serve under Cao Cao and help him conquer the empire . When Cao Cao asked Liu Bei for his opinion , Liu replied , " Haven ' t you seen what happened to Ding Yuan and Dong Zhuo ? " Lü Bu glared at Liu Bei and said , " You ' re the most untrustworthy person ! " As he was being dragged away , Lü Bu turned back and shouted at Liu Bei , " Big eared fellow ! Have you forgotten the incident when I fired an arrow through the " ji " ? " Cao Cao then had Lü Bu executed by hanging and his dead body decapitated . Historicity . The " Sanguozhi " stated that Lü Bu surrendered when he saw that he had been surrounded , instead of him being captured by his own subordinates who had betrayed him . His final words , said to Cao Cao and Liu Bei moments before his death , were similar to those mentioned in the " Romance of the Three Kingdoms " . Cao Cao then had Lü Bu hanged . He ordered Lü Bu ' s dead body to be decapitated and the head sent to the capital Xuchang and later had it buried . Lü Bu ' s biography in the " Houhanshu " mentioned that Lü Bu asked his subordinates to take his head and surrender to Cao Cao when he saw that he had been surrounded by Cao ' s forces . However , his subordinates were unwilling to do so , hence they surrendered together . The rest of the account is similar to that in the " Sanguozhi " and its annotations . Modern references . The Battle of Xiapi is featured in Koei ' s video game series " Dynasty Warriors " as a playable stage from the fourth instalment onwards .