Campaign against Yuan Shu The campaign against Yuan Shu was a punitive expedition that took place between 197 and 199 in the late Eastern Han Dynasty . The campaign was initiated by the Han government against the Zhong Dynasty of Yuan Shu , after Yuan declared himself " Son of Heaven " , an act perceived as treason against Emperor Xian , the nominal Han ruler . The campaign concluded with the defeat of Yuan Shu and collapse of the Zhong regime . Background . The Imperial Seal , a symbol of the Emperor ' s authority , was lost in Luoyang when Dong Zhuo ravaged the city . Sun Jian , a member of the coalition against Dong Zhuo found the Imperial Seal by chance in the ruins of Luoyang and kept it for himself . Sun Jian was a general under Yuan Shu at this time , so when Yuan heard that Sun had acquired the Seal , he held Sun ' s wife hostage and forced Sun to pass the Seal to him . Around 196 , when Sun Jian ' s son and successor Sun Ce was attacking territories in Jiangdong , Yuan Shu perceived his control over southern China as secure . In early 197 , he hurriedly declared himself a " Son of Heaven " ( i . e . Emperor ) , starting a new Zhong ( 仲 ) dynasty in Huainan . Yuan Shu ' s action was viewed as treason against the Han emperor , causing Sun Ce to break ties with him which may have given other warlords a reason to attack his regime . The imperial court , which was under Cao Cao ' s control then , issued edicts to Sun Ce and Lü Bu , urging them to take aggressive action against Yuan Shu . The campaign . Upon receiving news that Yuan Shu had declared himself a " Son of Heaven " , Sun Ce sent letters to his uncle Wu Jing and cousin Sun Ben , who both served under Yuan Shu , as an administrator and general , respectively , asking them to sever relations with him . Both Wu Jing and Sun Ben responded to Sun Ce ' s call and defected to him . As a consequence , Yuan Shu lost Guangling and the territories conquered by Sun Ce in Jiangdong , dramatically reducing his influence in southern China . Meanwhile , Lü Bu defeated Yuan Shu ' s forces at the north of the Huai River and pillaged the area . In an effort to turn the tide , Yuan Shu sent an army to invade Chen , but was defeated by Han forces led by Cao Cao . Yuan Shu then relocated his base to south of the Huai River . When Yuan Shu ' s influence had been reduced to a minimal , internal conflict arose among the members of the alliance formed against him . Lü Bu , upon request from Yuan Shu , attacked Liu Bei , who received support from Cao Cao to fight back . The conflict led to the Battle of Xiapi in 198 , fought between the allied forces of Cao Cao and Liu Bei against Lü Bu . Facing a dire situation , Lü Bu turned to Yuan Shu for aid . Yuan Shu sent only about 1 , 000 cavalry to reinforce Lü Bu , but the force was defeated before it reached Xiapi . As Lü Bu ' s downfall seemed inevitable , Yuan Shu sent messengers to incite the Shanyue tribes and bandit leader Zu Lang to attack Sun Ce . Sun Ce defeated the enemy and continued to strengthen his influence in Jiangdong . On the other hand , Yuan Shu ' s was faring badly ; his treasury was empty and his military was too weak to resist an invasion or suppress a rebellion . As a result , Yuan Shu opted to incinerate his palace complexes and escape to the Qian hills , where two of his former followers , Lei Bo and Chen Lan , were currently hiding . However , Lei Bo and Chen Lan refused to accept Yuan Shu , so Yuan Shu wrote to his clansman Yuan Shao , promising to give Yuan Shao the Imperial Seal if the latter would help him . In response , Yuan Shao dispatched his son , Yuan Tan , to escort Yuan Shu to Qing Province ( covering present - day Shandong ) . Cao Cao sent Liu Bei and Zhu Ling to intercept Yuan Shu while Yuan was en route to Qing Province , so Yuan had no choice but to turn back to Huainan . Yuan Shu eventually died of illness on the way back to his capital Shouchun . Aftermath . Yuan Shu ' s family went to rely on Yuan Shu ' s former follower Liu Xun , while his other followers Yang Hong and Zhang Xun planned to surrender to Sun Ce , but Liu Xun had them captured and held in Lujiang . In 199 , Sun Ce defeated Liu Xun and conquered Lujiang , freeing Yuan Shu ' s family and men . Modern references . The campaign is featured in the sixth and seventh instalments of the video game series " Dynasty Warriors " produced by Koei .