Xiao Mohe Xiao Mohe ( 蕭摩訶 ) ( 532 – 604 ) , courtesy name Yuanyin ( 元胤 ) , was a general of the Chinese dynasties Chen Dynasty and Sui Dynasty . He initially served in the military in the late Liang Dynasty , and gradually grew in stature and fame during the reigns of each of the emperors of Chen . When Sui forces attacked Chen in 589 , Xiao resisted , and his defeat and capture sealed Chen ' s fate , allowing Sui to destroy Chen and unify China . He later served under Emperor Wen of Sui ' s son Yang Liang the Prince of Han , and became a major proponent of Yang Liang ' s rebellion against his brother Emperor Yang of Sui after Emperor Wen ' s death in 604 . He was unable to stand against the attack of Emperor Yang ' s general Yang Su , however , and was captured and executed . During Liang Dynasty . Xiao Mohe was born in 532 , during the reign of Emperor Wu of Liang . When he was less than 10 years old , his father Xiao Liang ( 蕭諒 ) was made a commandery official at Shixing Commandery ( 始興 , roughly modern Shaoguan , Guangdong ) , and Xiao Mohe accompanied his father to the commandery . His father died while in service there , and at that time , Cai Luyang ( 蔡路養 ) , who was had married either his sister or his aunt , was a member of the local gentry at nearby Nankang Commandery ( 南康 , roughly modern Ganzhou , Jiangxi ) , and Cai took him and raised him . As Xiao Mohe grew in age , he became known for being resolute and strong . In 548 , the rebel general Hou Jing rose against Emperor Wu and by 549 had captured the capital Jiankang , taking Emperor Wu and his crown prince Xiao Gang ( the eventual Emperor Jianwen ) hostage . In winter 549 , the ambitious general Chen Baxian raised an army at Guang Province ( 廣州 , roughly modern Guangdong ) and planned to march north , eventually to head to Jiankang to attack Hou . His path , however , was blocked by Cai , who then controlled Nankang as a local warlord . Xiao served in Cai ' s forces and fought so fiercely that none of Chen ' s soldiers was a match for him , but eventually Cai was defeated , and Xiao surrendered . Xiao became a subordinate of Chen ' s commander Hou Andu . He was part of Chen ' s campaign , as Chen joined with Wang Sengbian , the chief general of Xiao Yi the Prince of Xiangdong ( the eventual Emperor Yuan ) , to destroy Hou Jing . By 556 , Chen was the regent over Emperor Jing , Emperor Yuan ' s son and the chief among the claimants for the Liang throne after Emperor Yuan ' s capture and execution by Western Wei in 555 , after Chen ambushed and killed Wang Sengbian and deposed Xiao Yuanming , the candidate favored by Emperor Wenxuan of Northern Qi who was declared emperor by Wang . Wang ' s subordinates Ren Yue ( 任約 ) and Xu Sihui ( 徐嗣徽 ) sought Northern Qi aid in resisting Chen , and Northern Qi forces soon arrived in Jiankang ' s vicinity . Chen sent Hou Andu to engage Northern Qi forces . Before battle , Hou commented to Xiao , " You are famed for your ferocity in battle , but seeing is better than hearing . " Xiao responded , " I will let you see today . " During the battle , when Hou fell off his horse and was nearly captured , Xiao was the one who fought hard to save Hou from Northern Qi soldiers . Eventually , Hou was able to repel Northern Qi forces , and for his accomplishments was created a duke . It is not clear whether and how Xiao was awarded , although it was said that Xiao was one of the few subordinates that Hou treated with respect and honor . During Chen Dynasty . In 557 , Chen Baxian seized the throne from Emperor Jing , establishing Chen Dynasty as its Emperor Wu . Xiao Mohe ' s superior , Hou Andu , served as a major general under Emperor Wu , and became particularly prominent after Emperor Wu died in 559 and was succeeded by his nephew Emperor Wen . However , Hou came under Emperor Wen ' s suspicions in 563 , and Emperor Wen forced him to commit suicide . The impact of Hou ' s death on Xiao ' s career is unclear , but prior to Hou ' s death he participated with distinction in the campaigns against the warlords Liu Yi ( 留異 ) ( 561 - 562 , a campaign commanded by Hou ) and Ouyang Ge ( 歐陽紇 ) ( 569 - 570 ) , and for those accomplishments he was eventually promoted to the post of governor of Bashan Commandery ( 巴山 , roughly modern Ji ' an , Jiangxi ) . It was as the governor of Bashan Commandery that Xiao served under the major general Wu Mingche in 573 as Wu , commissioned by Emperor Wen ' s brother Emperor Xuan , led a campaign against Northern Qi , seeking to capture the region between the Yangtze River and the Huai River . The Chen forces under Wu were intimidated by the presence in the Northern Qi army , commanded by the generals Wei Pohu ( 尉破胡 ) and Zhangsun Honglüe ( 長孫洪略 ) , of a sharpshooting bowsman from Xiyu and a team of soldiers with great physical strength . Wu informed Xiao of this , while praising him as having fortitude equivalent to Guan Yu . In response , Xiao sought out the bowsman and killed him with a dart , and then also killed the soldiers with great strength , leading to the Northern Qi forces ' losing morale and collapsing . Wei fled , while Zhangsun was killed in battle . Wu was eventually able to capture all of the region between the Yangtze and the Huai later that year . For Xiao ' s contributions , he was created the Count of Lianping and soon promoted to the rank of marquess . During the subsequent minor campaigns against Northern Qi over the next several years , Xiao also contributed . After Northern Zhou destroyed Northern Qi in 577 , Emperor Xuan wished to contend for the Xu Province ( 徐州 , roughly modern Xuzhou , Jiangsu ) region , and he sent Wu to attack the region in winter 577 . Xiao served under Wu . Initially , Wu defeated the Northern Zhou governor of Xu Province Liang Shiyan , forcing Liang to withdraw inside Pengcheng ( 彭城 , the capital of Xu Province ) and defend it . Wu put Pengcheng under siege . In spring 578 , the Northern Zhou general Wang Gui arrived with a force to lift the siege , and he , as his first step , cut off Wu ' s supply route ( and escape path ) . Xiao Mohe advised Wu to attack Wang as quick as he could to prevent the supply route from being cut off , but Wu did not follow Xiao ' s suggestion . Soon , the Chen forces were trapped . Wu subordinates suggested destroying the levee near Pengcheng so that the area would flood , allowing them to escape by ships . Wu agreed , but believing that he , as the commanding general , should withdraw last , did so , sending Xiao with the cavalry first . The cavalry was therefore able to escape , but most of the foot soldiers — 30 , 000 — and Wu himself were captured by Wang and taken to the Northern Zhou capital Chang ' an . Xiao was able to return to Jiankang and continued to serve as a general under Emperor Xuan . In 580 , after Northern Zhou captured the region between the Yangtze and Huai from Chen , Emperor Xuan made an attempt to recapture the territory , and Xiao served in the campaign along with Emperor Xuan ' s nephew Chen Huiji ( 陳慧紀 ) , but after he was unable to capture Guangling ( 廣陵 , in modern Huaiyin , Jiangsu ) , he withdrew . Another campaign waged by Xiao and Zhou Luohou ( 周羅睺 ) in 581 also ended in failure . In 582 , Emperor Xuan died , and his son Chen Shuling ( 陳叔陵 ) tried to assassinate the crown prince Chen Shubao , but only managed to wound , not kill , Chen Shubao . Chen Shuling fled back to his mansion and mobilized troops under his command , and he made overtures to Xiao Mohe , asking Xiao to join his coup attempt . Xiao initially pretended to agree , and when Chen Shuling sent his associates Dai Wen ( 戴溫 ) and Tan Qi ( 譚騏 ) to confer with Xiao , Xiao beheaded them and hang their heads on the city walls . Chen Shuling ' s troops lost morale and collapsed , and he was killed . For Xiao ' s contribution , Chen Shubao , who soon took the throne , created Xiao the Duke of Suijian and awarded Chen Shuling ' s considerable wealth to Xiao . He also selected Xiao ' s daughter to be the wife and crown princess of his son and crown prince Chen Yin . He also granted Xiao several honors normally reserved for the highest - ranked officials . He subsequently made Xiao the governor of Southern Xu Province ( 南徐州 , roughly modern Zhenjiang , Jiangsu ) , to defend against potential attacks by Northern Zhou ' s successor state Sui Dynasty from Guangling . In spring 589 , when Xiao was at Jiankang , the Sui general Heruo Bi ( 賀若弼 ) took the chance to cross the Yangtze ( as part of the overall campaign by Emperor Wen of Sui to destroy Chen ) and captured Jingkou ( 京口 , the capital of Southern Xu Province ) . Soon , Heruo arrived at Zhongshan ( now Purple Mountain ) , near Jiankang , and Xiao volunteered to engage Heruo . Chen Shubao agreed , despite warnings by another major general , Ren Zhong ( 任忠 ) , not to engage Heruo . Xiao ' s own motivation level was said to be low , however , due to an affair that Chen Shubao was having with Xiao ' s wife . Heruo defeated him and captured him . Heruo threatened him with beheading , and yet Xiao would not prostrate himself . Heruo was impressed and spared Xiao . Subsequently , Heruo captured Chen Shubao as well , and Xiao obtained permission to cook and serve Chen Shubao one final meal from the Chen imperial kitchen as well as to make a tearful farewell — acts that greatly impressed Sui ' s Emperor Wen . During Sui Dynasty . Emperor Wen made Xiao Mohe a general , but unlike the situation with Zhou Luohou , did not give him great responsibilities . However , when Xiao Mohe ' s son Xiao Shilüe ( 蕭世略 ) participated in resistance campaigns by former Chen subjects against Sui rule , Emperor Wen pardoned Xiao Mohe from any punishments that he would otherwise have suffered based on Xiao Shilüe ' s rebellion , on the basis that Emperor Wen believed that Xiao Shilüe was forced to participate . In 604 , when Emperor Wen died and was succeeded by Emperor Yang , Xiao was serving under Emperor Yang ' s brother Yang Liang the Prince of Han , who was the commandant at Bing Province ( 并州 , roughly modern Taiyuan , Shanxi ) . Yang Liang , not willing to yield to Emperor Yang , rebelled , a rebellion encouraged by Xiao and Wang Kui ( 王頍 , Wang Sengbian ' s son ) . However , when Xiao engaged Emperor Yang ' s general Yang Su , Yang Su defeated and captured him , and then had him executed . His sons were not killed but were seized as imperial servants , and his subordinate Chen Zhishen ( 陳智深 ) took his body and gave it a proper burial .