Yang Ye Yang Ye ( 楊業 ) or Yang Jiye ( 楊繼業 ) ( died 986 ) was a military general in imperial China . Originally serving the short - lived Northern Han Kingdom during the later years of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period , he pledged allegiance to Song Dynasty in 979 and in the following years fought against the Khitan - ruled Liao Dynasty on Song ' s northern border . Nicknamed " Invincible Yang " ( 楊無敵 ) , he was instrumental in Song ' s major victory at Yanmenguan in 980 . His eventual defeat by Liao and death - a direct result of persecutions by other Song generals - formed the basis of the " Generals of the Yang Family " legends . After his death , one of his 7 sons Yang Yanzhao also became an important Song Dynasty general . Career under Northern Han . Born Yang Chonggui ( 楊重貴 ) in a military family , Yang Ye was a very good horse archer and hunter in his youth , always bringing back several times more game than others . He used dogs and falcons to hunt and saw it as a way to prepare for a career commanding soldiers as a military general . In his 20s , he joined warlord Liu Chong , quickly becoming a commanding commissioner of defense ( 保衛指揮使 ) after Liu Chong ( who changed his name to Liu Min ) established the Northern Han Kingdom in Taiyuan in 951 . Yang showed enough gallantry in battles , some against the neighboring Khitan - ruled Liao Dynasty , for the new ruler to bestow the youngster the name Liu Jiye ( 劉繼業 ) so that they share the same surname . In 968 , Northern Han was attacked by Song Dynasty forces , and its 4th ruler Liu Jiyuan sought help from Liao Dynasty , but Liu Jiye suggested attacking Liao ' s unsuspecting reinforcement to capture their horses : " The Khitans are greedy and untrustworthy , they will definitely invade our country one day . " Liu Jiyuan refused the proposal , and eventually the Song forces withdrew . Liu Jiye was already a military commissioner when the Song forces invaded again in 979 . With Emperor Taizong of Song personally leading the troops , Song forces quickly reached the Northern Han | capital ] ] of Taiyuan . Liu Jiyuan came out to surrender , but Liu Jiye continued fighting and defending the city . Impressed by his bravery , Emperor Taizong ordered Liu Jiyuan to persuade him to surrender . Having received Liu Jiyuan ' s message , Liu Jiye cried and bowed to the north , then took off his armor to surrender . A pleased Emperor Taizong rewarded him very well , and he changed his name to Yang Ye . Career under Song . Knowing Yang Ye ' s experience in defending the same area from the Liao Dynasty , Emperor Taizong of Song named Yang the director of armed forces ( 兵馬部署 ) of Daizhou on the frontier and an adjacent military base . Previously Yang was also named the defense commissioner ( 防禦使 ) of Zhengzhou . Yang was illiterate but knew military strategies well . He would join his soldiers in military exercise s , enduring the same hardship as his inferiors . Winters were very frigid in the area , but Yang never asked anyone to start a fire for him as he handled military matters outdoors . His soldiers were very loyal to him . In 980 , the Liao invasion started with roughly 100 , 000 Liao soldiers arriving before Yanmenguan , a pass on the Great Wall in Daizhou and a strategic choke point . After the arrival of Song army commander Pan Mei in Daizhou , Yang and a few hundred cavalry men took a difficult route on the west , and arrived at the north and back of the enemy . As Pan and Yang attacked from both directions , the Liao army suffered a catastrophic defeat : Liao general Li Chonghui ( 李重誨 ) was captured ; while Emperor Jingzong of Liao ' s brother - in - law and military commissioner Xiao Duoli ( 蕭咄李 ) was killed . Song forces acquired countless horses , saddle s and armor . Following this battle , the Liao army would " retreat immediately whenever they saw ( Yang ) Ye ' s flag " , according to " History of Song " . Not even 2 years after his surrender , Yang was promoted to the nominal post of surveillance commissioner ( 觀察使 ) of Yunzhou ( 雲州 , today ' s Datong , then still under Liao control ) , while retaining his appointments in Zhengzhou and Daizhou . Several Song generals at the borders became jealous . Some sent letters to Emperor Taizong listing Yang ' s shortcomings . Emperor Taizong allegedly forwarded the letters to Yang to show his trust . Death . In 986 , the Song armies embarked on a large - scale northern campaign to take the Sixteen Prefectures from Liao . One of the three forces was led by military commissioner Pan Mei , assisted by Yang Ye , along with military supervisors Wang Shen ( 王侁 ) and Liu Wenyu ( 劉文裕 ) . In a little over a month , this force had already conquered 4 of the 16 prefectures , namely Huanzhou ( 寰州 , part of today ' s Shuozhou ) , Shuozhou , Yingzhou and Yunzhou , killing thousands of Liao soldiers . Yang Ye ' s son Yang Yanzhao ( then still called Yang Yanlang ) was the vanguard general in the attacks of Shuozhou and Yingzhou . Elsewhere , Gao Hua ( 高化 ) , a capable subordinate general whom Yang Ye valued and promoted , captured Liao general Dapengyi ( 大鵬翼 ) . However , another Song force on the east led by Cao Bin was destroyed by a Liao force led by Yelü Xiuge , and tens of thousands of Song soldiers perished . As the Liao force with over 100 , 000 soldiers marched westward , Pan and Yang Ye were in Daizhou and received orders to help the civilians of the four conquered prefectures retreat back to Song territory . When Huanzhou fell to the Liao army , Yang told Pan , " Liao forces are strong and we must not fight them . " He proposed a detailed plan to maximize the safety of the civilians from the 3 remaining prefectures . Per this plan , the Yunzhou civilians would leave first . The main Song force would advance from Daizhou to Yingzhou , drawing the main Liao force , thus allowing the Shuozhou civilians to leave and move to a valley called Shijiegu ( 石碣谷 ) , which could be defended by a thousand soldiers with arrow s . Finally a cavalry reinforcement would help the main Song force retrieve the Yingzhou civilians . The generals defending Shuozhou and Yunzhou would be notified of the plan to coordinate activities . Wang Shen refuted his suggestion , jeering , " Such cowardice despite having tens of thousands of strong soldiers ! " With the support of Liu Wenyu , he insisted that Yang immediately take his troops to take the enemy head - on . Yang reiterated his belief that such a move would bring defeat , which was met by Wang ' s rebuttal of " You sir have been called ' invincible ' , but today you are so hesitant in face of the enemy and reluctant to fight . Is your loyalty elsewhere ? " Yang had no choice but to reply , " I am not evading death , but this is a bad situation which would make soldiers die and injure in vain . However , since you accuse me for fearing death , I will be the first ( to die ) before you all . " He pointed at the end of a valley called Chenjiagu ( 陳家谷 , in today ' s Shuozhou ) : " Gentlemen , please put infantry men with arrows on both sides of that place , so that they could attack from both directions and provide assistance in case I retreat there . Otherwise , the situation could be dire . " Pan and Wang agreed , and led their men to the place . Liao general Yelü Xiezhen heard of Yang ' s arrival and set up an ambush . Yang engaged the Liao force in a bloody battle and fought from noon to dusk until he indeed retreated to the end of Chenjiagu , but no Song soldier was there , as Pan and Wang had already left . As the enemy closed in , Yang Ye ' s son Yang Yanyu ( 楊延玉 ) was killed , as was a 72 - year - old subordinate Wang Gui ( 王貴 ) who continued fighting with his fists after exhausting all arrow s . Seeing only around a hundred soldiers around him , Yang Ye told them , " You all have fathers , mothers , wives and children , no point in dying together with me . Return home and serve the emperor later . " His men all cried , but nobody left . Liao soldiers were instructed to capture Yang alive . Even with several dozen wounds on him , Yang fought on , killing about a hundred enemy soldiers by himself . He was captured when his horse was gravely wounded by an arrow from Liao general Yelü Xidi . Yelü Xiezhen yelled , " You have been fighting with our country for over 30 years . What do you have to say today ! " To which Yang replied , " I deserve the death sentence . " He allegedly sighed and said , " The emperor has treated me so kindly , expecting me to conquer the enemy and defend the borders in return . However , due to persecutions from treacherous officials , the royal troops have been defeated . How can I live on ? " He starved himself and died 3 days later of infections . As expected Yunzhou , Yingzhou and other prefectures were recaptured by the Liao army , but according to " History of Liao " , it was because Song generals " abandoned the cities and fled when they heard of ( Yang ) Jiye ' s death " . Aftermath . Yang Ye ' s severed head was presented to the young Emperor Shengzong of Liao and his mother Xiao Chuo . This was such a great victory for the Liao Dynasty , where Buddhism is the state religion , that Kailong Temple ( 開龍寺 ) in the | capital ] ] Shangjing ( 上京 , in today ' s Baarin Left Banner ) conducted religious activities for a month and provided food for over 10 , 000 monks . In the Song Dynasty , the Yang family was initially compensated only 100 rolls of silk , 100 rolls of textile and 10 stones of rice for Yang Ye ' s death . In comparison , the family of a lesser general He Huaipu ( 賀懷浦 ) who also died in the same battle was compensated 100 rolls of silk , 100 strings of coins , 20 bottles of wine , and 15 sheep . What exactly happened afterwards is unclear , but a few months later Emperor Taizong of Song proclaimed the following edict : Yang Ye ' s 6 surviving sons were also given official appointments . Invincible Yang Temple . Liao Dynasty had built an " Invincible Yang Temple " in Gubeikou shortly after his death . Its earliest mention was a 1055 poem " Passing Gubeikou ' s Invincible Yang Temple " ( 過古北口楊無敵廟 ) by Song politician Liu Chang ( 劉敞 ) , who went to Liao on a mission that year . In a 1089 poem , " Gubeikou ' s Invincible Yang Temple " ( 古北口楊無敵廟 ) , Su Zhe who was also visiting Liao , compared Yang to the Jin Dynasty ( 265 – 420 ) general Zhou Chu who was similarly persecuted by his superior . This temple is still at the location today in Gubeikou , Miyun County , Beijing . In fiction . In the popular " Generals of the Yang Family " legends , Yang Ye married She Saihua , a woman skilled in martial arts and archery . In most versions , his weapon is a poled golden sword . The older Yang Ye is usually called Yang Linggong ( 楊令公 , literally " Commander Lord Yang " ) . During the battle of Mount Twin Wolves , he was surrounded by enemies . His eldest three sons had already died and his fourth and fifth sons were missing . His sixth son Yang Yanzhao asked the seventh son to seek aid while he tried to fight a way out for the father . Hopeless , Yang Ye saw in a distance a headstone on the ground . The name on it was Li Ling , a famous Han Dynasty general who in 99BC was forced to lead an army of 5 , 000 to attack the 80 , 000 - men strong Xiongnu army from the north . Fighting valiantly for over 10 days and killing over 10 , 000 Xiongnu soldiers , Li received no reinforcement and defected to his enemy in the end , resulting in the execution of his entire family back home . Refusing to become another Li Ling , Yang Ye decided to commit suicide by ramming his head on the stele .