Xiahou Ba Xiahou Ba ( died 255 - 259 ) , Zhongquan ( 仲權 ) , was a military general of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history . As the second son of Xiahou Yuan , he was from one of the leading military families at the time , but defected to the rival state of Shu Han ( which is the regime responsible for his father ' s death ) due to political instability at the capital Luoyang . Biography . Service under Cao Wei . Early career . Xiahou Ba ' s parents were important figures in Cao Wei ; his father , Xiahou Yuan , had fought alongside his distant cousin and founder of Wei , Cao Cao , since the start of the civil war , and was one of the most trusted of Cao ' s generals , while Xiahou Ba ' s mother was a sister - in - law of Cao Cao . After Xiahou Yuan was killed at Battle of Mount Dingjun in AD 219 at the hands of Shu general , Huang Zhong , most of his troops were placed under the command of Zhang He upon advice from Guo Huai , while his private militia and guards were succeeded by his five sons . Xiahou Ba since then displayed great hatred against Shu , and vowed to revenge for his father . In AD 220 , Xiahou Yuan ' s eldest son Xiahou Heng was given his own fiefdom and honorific title , so Xiahou Ba succeeded to his father ' s hereditary title with a stipend of tax revenues from eight hundred households . In AD 230 , when the Minister of Defense , Cao Zhen proposed a shift from defensive to offensive stance against Shu - Han , Lieutenant - General ( 偏将军 ) Xiahou Ba was named as the vanguard . He then led a force towards Hanzhong taking a route though the 330 km Ziwu Trail ( 子午道 ) , and camped in a crooked gorge , near the Xingshi camp set up earlier by Shu general , Wei Yan . There , Xiahou was identified by the local residents , who reported his presence to the Shu forces , and was under heavy attack . As the main army of Cao Zhen had not caught up with the van , Xiahou was threw into a grave situation , where he was forced to rely on personal martial skill to fight his enemies between barricades until Cao Zhen arrived . The two forces reached a stalemate and the standoff lasted for a few months , but the development favored Shu - Han side as continuous rainfall over a month had rendered narrow valleys impassable , resulting in Wei army ' s logistical difficulty . In addition to the disadvantageous weather , Wei Yan had penetrated to Wei army ' s rear and successfully incited some non - Han tribes to oppose Cao - Wei , so Cao Zhen and Xiahou begrudgingly consented on the decision to retreat . Since then , Xiahou Ba was made General - of - the - Right , and stationed in Longxi to train troops ; he treated both his militia and common soldiers well , and gained their support . As a trusted aide of Cao Shuang . In the 240s Xiahou Ba became the Marquis of Bochangting and a known associate of Cao Shuang , who was the son of the deceased Cao Zhen and leader of the dominant faction in Wei politics . When Wei regent , Cao Shuang , decided to wage war against Shu to enhance his personal influence and reputation , Xiahou Ba was made Protector - of - the - Army and came under command of Xiahou Xuan , who was the marquis ' s son in the clan . For the ensuing campaign , however , the honor of leading the van fell into the hands of Guo Huai , whom Xiahou Ba disliked . This time , Wei forces chose the shorter Tangluo Trail into Shu territory , but again experienced logistic problem as a long section of the trail had no water source . As a result , the Wei forces had no choice but to retreat , and many soldiers merely died of thirst along the way back . After the war , Guo Huai , due to his timely withdrawal of troops , was granted a higher military authority over Xiahou Ba . From AD 244 to 249 , Xiahou Ba would play into the hands of Guo Huai , who wielded power to temporarily command the marquis when a military crisis arose . In AD 247 , when the leaders of Qiang tribe and Hu tribe rebelled against Wei , the Marquis of Bochangting was guarding Weixi . There , Xiahou Ba was under attack from Shu commander , Jiang Wei , who came to support the rebellion . Together with Guo Huai , the marquis repelled Jiang ' s attack , and counter - struck the Qiang rebels , forcing many to succumb . However , E Zhesai ( 蛾遮塞 ) of Qiang , and Zhi Wudai ( 治无戴 ) of Hu still persevered , so the war was fragmented into battles that dragged on to AD 248 , wherein Jiang Wei again led Shu forces to the aid of the rebels . At this point , it is clear that Guo Huai , instead of Xiahou Xuan , was the actual commander on the field to give out orders . For instance , when Guo Huai decided to attack Jiang Wei ' s subordinate , Liao Hua , Xiahou Ba was ordered directly by the decision maker to tail Jiang ' s main troop to the west . Upon knowing Liao Hua was under attack , Jiang Wei harshly returned to his aide ' s assistance just as Guo Huai predicted , isolating the rebels from Shu reinforcement . As the Shu commander was worn out from the travel , so was Xiahou Ba , but the glory and merit of subjugating the rebellion went to Guo Huai , who was made a Xianghou ( Marquis of a village ) . On the contrary , Xiahou Ba virtually received nothing for his effort in the campaign . Service under Shu . Journey to the west . In AD 249 , after a coup d ' état by Sima Yi against Cao Shuang , a lot of the latter ' s affiliates were also put to death ; being a close friend and associate of the condemned Cao Shuang , Xiahou Ba was sensitive to the political development and grew suspicious of the Sima faction . Soon , Xiahou Xuan , who had the staff of authority to command troops over Liang and Yong provinces , was called back to the capital in name of a promotion . Fraught with dread , Xiahou Ba discussed the issue with Xiahou Xuan , and persuaded the latter to flee with him to Shu - Han . But Xiahou Xuan refused and said " I won ' t live as a guest in a kingdom of barbarians ! ( 吾岂苟存自客於寇虏乎 ) " What further perturbed Xiahou Ba was the person who succeeded Xiahou Xuan ' s former position was none other than Guo Huai , whom Xiahou Ba had a personal feud with . Therefore , Xiahou Ba embarked on his lone journey into Shu . On his way to Shu , Xiahou Ba lost his way and went into a dead end in a valley , where he ran out of food and resorted to kill his horse , taking the carcass as a last supper . He kept walking until his legs were crippled , then he laid beneath a shadow projected from a large rock , and asked travelers for direction , but his geometry still could not figure out how to get out from the dead end . When the locals reported the presence of a lame beggar who looked alike to the great general Xiahou Ba who attacked them years ago , the Shu emperor , Liu Shan , hurriedly sent a rescue team to escort his brother - in - law to his capital of Chengdu . Years ago , one of Xiahou Ba ' s sisters was abducted by Liu Bei ' s military general , Zhang Fei , and was " made " the wife of the latter . As a consequence , the Liu clan and Xiahou clan were linked together though Liu Shan ' s marriage with Zhang ' s daughter . That was why Liu Shan called his son " Nephew of Xiahou Family " . Whether it was a political reason or a family issue , the handicapped Xiahou Ba was promoted to General of Chariots and Cavalry , wherein general Xiahou no longer could ride a chariot nor a horse well . Later life in Shu . Nevertheless , Jiang Wei apparently befriended this old countryman of his , and the duo went on several campaigns against their mother - country , and nearly failed all of them . The imperial court of Cao Wei , thus , pardoned Xiahou Ba ' s sons on account of Xiahou Yuan ' s role in the founding of the empire . Instead they were exiled to Lelang in present day North Korea . At the time Xiahou Ba was already a sexagenarian , if not a septuagenarian , he was still active in social life . A story about that was recorded in " Folklore of Yi Regions , " which says an eager Xiahou Ba once wanted to befriend Zhang Ni , who was famous for subjugating the southern barbarians and was one of the most celebrated generals of Shu - Han back then . When the sexagenarian first met Zhang Ni , he told the latter , " Although I ' m not close to you , I have already entrusted wholly to you for a long time , I hope you would understand this . " Zhang Ni responded : " I don ' t know you , and you don ' t know me . The rationale is on the other end , how can you say you rely on me ? I hope you save your words and continue this talk three years later . " This incident was circulated within Shu , and knowledgeable persons and scholars agreed on Zhang ' s reply and took Xiahou as a joke . As a newcomer from Wei , Xiahou Ba must have had faced discrimination and distrust from his colleagues , but due to his complicated background , he was trusted by Liu Shan , and highly valued by another defector of Wei , Jiang Wei . Once , Jiang asked Xiahou if Sima Yi , who gained control of Wei court , would attack Shu , Xiahou replied : " they just recently established hegemony , so they will not indulge in foreign affairs . However , there is a young Zhong Hui , who will be a threat to both kingdoms of Wu and Shu . " Believing Xiahou ' s views that Sima would not handle border issues for some time , Jiang Wei revived Zhuge Liang ' s strategy on constantly waging wars against Wei , and brought Xiahou Ba with him on his expeditions . The crippled general distinguished himself in Jiang Wei ' s only big victory in his campaigns , which was the Battle of Didao , after that battle , Xiahou Ba was not mentioned again in historic records . According to " Records of Three Kingdoms " , Xiahou Ba succeeded Deng Zhi as the General of Chariots and Cavalry after his death in 251 , and " Zizhi Tongjian " noted the predecessor was alive in 255 . " Records of Three Kingdoms " noted Xiahou Ba was not alive in 259 , when Liao Hua and Zhang Yi were described as his successors to the position , so Xiahou Ba must have had died between 255 to 259 . In fiction . In Luo Guanzhong ' s historical novel " Romance of the Three Kingdoms " , Xiahou Ba ' s death was altered . When the invasion of Shu occurred in 262 , Xiahou Ba defended Shu . At the Battle of Taoyang , he was killed by the arrows and stones that were thrown by the Wei forces laying in wait on the cliffs . Modern references . Xiahou Ba is first introduced as a playable character in the seventh installment of Koei ' s " Dynasty Warriors " video game series .