Duan Xiushi Duan Xiushi ( 段秀實 ) ( 719 – November 6 , 783 ) , courtesy name Chenggong ( 成公 ) , formally Prince Zhonglie of Zhangye ( 張掖忠烈王 ) , was a general of the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty . He was known for his strict military discipline . In 783 , after Emperor Dezong fled the capital Chang ' an in the midst of a revolt at Chang ' an led by the general Zhu Ci , Duan made a desperate attempt to assassinate Zhu and was killed in the attempt . During Emperor Xuanzong ' s reign . Duan Xiushi was born in 719 , during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong . His family was from Long Prefecture ( 隴州 , roughly modern Qingyang , Gansu ) , as the family settled there after his great - grandfather Duan Shijun ( 段師濬 ) served as the prefect of Long Prefecture . Both his grandfather Duan Da ( 段達 ) and father Duan Xingchen ( 段行琛 ) served as military officers . It was said that Duan Xiushi was filially pious in his childhood , and when he was five , when his mother fell ill , he was so distressed that he could not eat or drink for seven days ; only after his mother got better did he resume eating and drinking . After he grew , he was said to be silent and decisive . His friends wanted to recommend him for the imperial examinations — specifically , for the " Mingjing " ( 明經 ) examinations , which required study of one of the Five Classics . Duan responded , " Looking through the book and memorizing sentences is not a great achievement , " and he refused to sit for the examination . Duan later came to serve under the military governor ( " Jiedushi " ) of Anxi Circuit ( 安西 , headquartered in modern Aksu Prefecture , Xinjiang ) , Fumeng Lingcha ( 夫蒙靈詧 ) , and after he distinguished himself in a Fumeng - commanded campaign against Humi ( 護蜜 , centered around modern Faizabad , Uttar Pradesh ) in 745 , he was made a key officer in the Anxi army . After Gao Xianzhi replaced Fumeng in 748 , Duan continued to serve under Gao . He participated in Gao ' s campaign to the west in 751 that culminated in the Battle of Talas against Abbasid forces , which saw Gao ' s forces defeated by Abbasid forces . In the aftermaths of the defeat , Gao ' s deputy Li Siye suggested full retreat by Gao — abandoning some of the soldiers who had become lost after the battle . Duan rebuked Li Siye , stating , " Fleeing in light of your fear of the enemy is no bravery , and sparing yourself to allow others to be trapped is no kindness . " Li Siye was embarrassed , and he and Duan subsequently made an attempt to gather the scattered troops to organize them into an orderly retreat . After the army returned to Anxi , Li Siye recommended Duan to Gao to serve as the circuit ' s secretary . In 753 , when Gao ' s successor Feng Changqing attacked Greater Bolü ( 大勃律 , centering modern Gilgit , Pakistan ) , after the initial successes , Feng was set to pursue the Greater Bolü king , when Duan pointed out that the king ' s flight might be a trap — and at Duan ' s suggestion , Feng made a thorough search in the area of the battle , finding many Greater Bolü soldiers who had hidden themselves , ready for a surprise attack . This allowed Feng to finish the victory over Greater Bolü . Duan was thereafter promoted in rank . During Emperor Suzong ' s reign . In 755 , the general An Lushan rebelled at Fanyang ( 范陽 , in modern Beijing ) and established a new state of Yan . In 756 , his forces approached the Tang capital Chang ' an , forcing Emperor Xuanzong to flee to Chengdu . Emperor Xuanzong ' s son and crown prince Li Heng did not follow him to Chengdu , but instead fled to Lingwu , where he was declared emperor ( as Emperor Suzong ) , an act that Emperor Xuanzong later recognized . Emperor Suzong ordered that the key military circuits send armies to aid him . When his order reached Anxi , the military governor Liang Zai ( 梁宰 ) , after consulting with Li Siye , initially decided not to act on the order and to wait for further development . Duan Xiushi rebuked Li Siye : Li Siye was embarrassed , and he subsequently met with Liang and persuaded Liang to commission an army , with Li Siye himself in command and Duan as deputy , to join Emperor Suzong at Lingwu . Soon thereafter , Duan ' s father died , and he spent time in morning . As Li Siye felt that Duan ' s service was indispensable , he requested that Duan be recalled into active service . In 757 , a joint Tang - Huige army recaptured Chang ' an and then the eastern capital Luoyang , forcing An Lushan ' s son and successor An Qingxu to flee to Yecheng . Tang forces put Yecheng under siege , and Li Siye , one of the Tang commanders at the siege , made Duan the prefect of Huai Prefecture ( 懷州 , in modern Jiaozuo , Henan ) to be responsible for logistics — the shipping of food supplies from the area to the army at Yecheng . In spring 759 , Li Siye died in battle during the siege . The Anxi army supported Li Siye ' s subordinate Lifei Yuanli ( 荔非元禮 ) to take over the command , and Emperor Suzong agreed . Duan remained as Lifei ' s deputy . Subsequently , at Duan ' s request , Li Siye ' s casket was sent to Hezhong ( 河中 , in modern Yuncheng , Shanxi ) , where it was buried in grand ceremony at Duan ' s expense . This touched Lifei greatly , and he recommended Duan for a promotion in rank . In 762 , while a number of armies were at Hezhong , including the Anxi army , Lifei was killed in an army mutiny , along with many other officers , but the soldiers respected Duan and did not dare to harm him . Subsequently , Bai Xiaode ( 白孝德 ) was put in command of the Anxi army , and Duan remained as Bai ' s deputy . This continued after Bai was made the military governor of Fufang Circuit ( 鄜坊 , headquartered in modern Yan ' an , Shaanxi ) . During Emperor Daizong ' s reign . Also in 762 , Emperor Suzong died and was succeeded by his son Emperor Daizong . In 763 , when Tufan forces launched a surprise attack against Chang ' an and forced Emperor Daizong to flee to Shan Prefecture ( 陝州 , in modern Sanmenxia , Henan ) , Duan Xiushi persuaded Bai Xiaode to join the forces of the other circuits in aiding the emperor . Subsequently , Bai was made the military governor of Binning Circuit ( 邠寧 , headquartered in modern Xianyang , Shaanxi ) , and Duan continued to serve as his deputy . At one time , when the circuit lacked food , Bai temporarily moved his army to Fengtian ( 奉天 , also in modern Xianyang ) . However , Fengtian was then in a state of confusion as the local government had collapsed , and the soldiers , in response , were pillaging the area . Duan requested to be serve as discipline officer as well , and subsequently , Duan imposed strict discipline on the army and stopped the pillaging . Upon the army ' s return to Binning ' s capital Bin Prefecture , Duan was created the Prince of Zhangye . Later in the year , there was a Tufan incursion , and an army commanded by Guo Ziyi , the deputy supreme commander of the armed forces ( in effect , the supreme commander , as Emperor Daizong ' s son Li Kuo the Crown Prince was the nominal supreme commander ) helped to defend Bin Prefecture against Tufan forces . After the Tufan threat subsided , Guo returned to Chang ' an , but his forces , under the command of his son Guo Xi ( 郭晞 ) , remained at Bin Prefecture . Guo Xi ' s soldiers lacked proper discipline and became a major problem for the people of Bin Prefecture , and Bai was troubled but unsure what to do because Guo Xi was Guo Ziyi ' s son . Duan volunteered to again be discipline officer , and after one month , there was an incident when 17 of Guo Xi ' s soldiers , in a dispute with a wine seller , killed him and destroyed the winemaking equipment . Duan arrested them and beheaded them . Guo Xi ' s soldiers were incensed , armed themselves , and got ready to attack Bai ' s headquarters . Duan went to Guo Xi ' s headquarters with only one old man attending him . When he arrived there , the soldiers were surprised that he arrived effectively alone . Duan stated , " Why wear your armor for this old soldier ? I brought my head with me . " He then spoke to them : When Guo Xi came out of his tent to meet Duan , Duan rebuked him : Guo Xi was embarrassed and rebuked his soldiers , ordering them to stand down . That night , Duan stayed at Guo Xi ' s tent , and Guo Xi was up all night to protect him . The next day , Guo Xi , accompanied by Duan , visited Bai to apologize . Thereafter , the pillaging of Bin Prefecture ended . In 766 , Ma Lin ( 馬璘 ) replaced Bai as the military governor of Binning . Duan continued to serve as his deputy . It was said that whenever Ma made wrong decisions , Duan would argue with him about it and would not leave until Ma changed his mind . On one occasion , Ma became angry and threatened to kill Duan when Duan insisted , but Duan did not fear the threats , stating , " Why get angry about executing me if I deserve execution ? If , on the other hand , I do not deserve execution , then you are unjust . " Ma stormed out , but subsequently invited Duan to a feast to apologize . It was said that because of Duan ' s counsel , Ma received excellent reputation while governing Binning . Around the new year 769 , at the suggestion of the chancellor Yuan Zai , the three prefectures belonging to Binning Circuit were merged into Guo Ziyi ' s command . Ma , along with his army , was moved to Jingyuan Circuit ( 涇原 , headquartered in modern Pingliang , Gansu ) . Ma took part of the army to the capital of Jingyuan Circuit , Jing Prefecture , first , to rebuild the walls , while briefly having Duan remain at Bin Prefecture to oversee the troop movements . The soldiers under Ma ' s command were still largely soldiers who had come from Anxi in 756 to fight the Yan rebels and who had since been moved multiple locations . They were displeased about being moved once again , and the officer Wang Tongzhi ( 王童之 ) subsequently organized a plot to rise in mutiny . Duan found out about the plot and prepared to counteract ; once Wang ' s plot exposed itself , he executed Wang and eight other coconspirators , and the rest of the army did not dare to resist the subsequent move to Jing Prefecture . In 773 , during a Tufan incursion , Ma suffered a battle loss at the hands of Tufan forces and was trapped outside the city , unable to enter . His subordinate Jiao Lingchen ( 焦令諶 ) fled back into the city and suggested that Duan close the city gates to get ready for the Tufan assault . Duan responded , " The Governor has not returned . We need to use all of our strength to fight the barbarians . How can we just seek to spare ourselves ? " He then told Jiao , " According to military laws , the penalty for losing your commander is death . Have you forgotten that ? " Jiao became fearful , and Duan sent him back out to fight Tufan forces , forcing them to withdraw and allowing Ma to return to the city . In 776 , Ma grew deathly ill , and he made Duan acting military governor before dying . With the soldiers gathering to mourn Ma , Duan was apprehensive that some soldiers would use this opportunity to mutiny . He therefore took careful precautions while arranging Ma ' s mourning , ordering that Ma ' s family , officers , soldiers , and commoners be segregated in their mourning and arresting anyone who disobeyed the orders . When he received reports that the officers Shi Tinggan ( 史廷幹 ) , Cui Zhen ( 崔珍 ) , and Zhang Jinghua ( 張景華 ) were plotting mutiny and planning to rise at Ma ' s funeral , he defused the situation by sending Shi to Chang ' an to serve in the imperial guards and sending Cui and Zhang out of the headquarters to other posts . He was thus able to preserve the peace at the circuit without killing anyone . In 777 , Emperor Daizong made Duan the military governor . It was said that while Duan was strict , he was also gracious and governed simply . He did not gather wealth , and he did not have concubines . Except for official gatherings , he did not feast . In 778 , when there was another Tufan incursion , Emperor Daizong sent Duan , along with Guo Ziyi and Zhu Ci , to defend against the incursion . During Emperor Dezong ' s reign . Emperor Daizong died in 779 and was succeeded by Li Kuo ( as Emperor Dezong ) . By 780 , the chancellor Yang Yan had become very powerful and , having been a close associate of Yuan Zai ' s , was intent on reviving Yuan ' s proposals with regard to Tufan , which were abandoned after Yuan ' s fall from grace in 777 . These proposals included rebuilding Yuan Prefecture ( 原州 , in modern Guyuan , Ningxia ) , at that time in no - man ' s land between Tang and Tufan , to use as a forward advance position ; and restoring Lingyang Canal ( 陵陽渠 , flowing through Bayan Nur , Inner Mongolia ) , to allow the soldiers stationed in the area to farm . When Emperor Dezong sent an eunuch to Jingyuan to request Duan Xiushi ' s opinion , Duan opposed on the basis that Tang did not then have adequate number of troops on the border and these acts would provoke a Tufan attack . Yang was displeased , and he had Duan removed from his military governor position and recalled to Chang ' an to serve in the relatively unimportant post of minister of agriculture ( 司農卿 , " Si ' nong Qing " ) . As the way back to Chang ' an goes through Fengxiang ( 鳳翔 , in modern Baoji , Shaanxi ) , which was then under Zhu Ci ' s command , he cautioned his family members that , when they were also to return to Chang ' an , Zhu would surely try to give him a substantial gift and that they should not accept it on his behalf . Once they were at Fengxiang , Zhu did give a substantial amount of silk as a gift ; Duan ' s family members tried to decline , but accepted it after Zhu insisted . Once they arrived at Chang ' an , Duan was angered that they received the gift and refused to take the gift inside his mansion ; instead , he took the silk to the ministry of agriculture and stored it above the roof support . ( After Duan ' s departure from Jingyuan , his subordinate Liu Wenxi ( 劉文喜 ) used his removal as an excuse to occupy Jingyuan and rebel ; the other officers then turned against him and killed him . ) While serving as minister of agriculture , Duan observed that the imperial guard soldiers were few and weak , and he suggested recruiting more soldiers for the imperial guards ; Emperor Dezong ignored his suggestion . In late 783 , Jingyuan soldiers , who had been summoned to Chang ' an in anticipation of being sent east to battle warlords Zhu Tao ( Zhu Ci ' s brother ) , Li Na , Wang Wujun , and Tian Yue , who had declared themselves princes , were at Chang ' an , when they were angered by the lack of rewards given by Emperor Dezong . On November 2 , 783 , they rose in mutiny and , with the imperial guard soldiers inadequate to resist them , Emperor Dezong fled to Fengtian . The Jingyuan soldiers supported Zhu Tao — who had been removed from his command on account of Zhu Tao ' s rebellion — as their leader . Zhu Tao initially pretended to be interested in calming the situation at Chang ' an and then welcome Emperor Dezong back to Chang ' an , but was secretly planning on taking over as emperor . He gathered a group of disaffected officials , including the chancellor Li Zhongchen , Zhang Guangsheng ( 張光晟 ) , Yao Xiu ( 姚休 ) , and Yao Lingyan ( 姚令言 ) , and involved them in his plans . Believing that Duan was similarly disaffected , he sent soldiers to summon Duan as well . Duan initially refused , but was forced by the soldiers to meet Zhu . Once he did , Zhu tried to dissuade him from his plot and to welcome the emperor back to Chang ' an . Zhu did not listen to him , but as he admired Duan , tried to continue to deal with Duan cordially . Duan , however , secretly plotted with his subordinates Liu Haibin ( 劉海賓 ) , He Mingli ( 何明禮 ) , and Qi Lingyue ( 岐靈岳 ) , to assassinate Zhu and welcome Emperor Dezong back . Meanwhile , Zhu had sent Yao ' s subordinate Han Min ( 韓旻 ) with 3 , 000 men toward Fengtian — claiming to be welcoming Emperor Dezong home but instead planning on attacking Emperor Dezong . Duan found out about this , he had Qi forge an order from Yao to return to Chang ' an . Once Han received the forged orders , he changed directions and returned to Chang ' an . Duan , believing that once Han returned to Chang ' an his plot would be exposed , then planned for an immediate assassination of Zhu . On November 6 , Zhu convened a meeting with Li , Yuan , Yao , and Duan , to discuss the matters of declaring himself emperor . During the meeting , Duan leaped up , grabbed Yuan ' s writing board , and began to batter Zhu with it . Zhu ' s guards were caught by surprise and did not know what to do . Liu , who was then supposed to enter with soldiers , froze with fear and fled instead . With Li ' s help , Zhu escaped further attack by Duan , who was then killed by Zhu ' s guards — despite Zhu ' s yelling , " He is a righteous man . Do not kill him ! " After Duan ' s death , Zhu mourned greatly and buried him with honors . When Emperor Dezong heard the news , he also mourned Duan greatly . After Zhu Ci ' s rebellion was put down in 784 , he gave high offices to Duan ' s sons and erected a monument for Duan , personally writing the title for the monument .