Wei Qing Wei Qing ( , died 106 BC ) , born Zheng Qing ( 鄭青 ) in Linfen , Shanxi , was a famous general during Han Dynasty of China , whose campaigns against the Xiongnu earned him great acclaim . He was the younger half - brother of Empress Wei Zifu and later the husband of Princess Pingyang , making him and Emperor Wu of Han really brothers - in - law to each other . He was also the uncle of the equally distinguished Han military tactician Huo Qubing . Family background and early career . Wei Qing was born from humble means as an illegitimate child from an adulterous relationship . His father Zheng Ji ( 鄭季 ) was a low - level official for Pingyang County ( 平陽縣 , in modern Linfen , Shanxi ) and was commissioned to serve at the estate of Cao Shou ( 曹壽 ) , the Marquess of Pingyang ( 平陽侯 ) , and his wife Princess Pingyang ( 平陽公主 , Emperor Wu ' s older sister ) . There , he met and had an extramarital affair with a female servant named Wei , and their relationship produced a son named Zheng Qing . The child was initially sent to live in his father ' s household as his serf mother could not afford to raise him in poverty . However due to the illegitimacy of his birth , the young boy was detested and mistreat ed by his stepmother , father and half - siblings , and was made to live as a lowly sheepherder . Unable to tolerate the abuse , Zheng Qing eventually ran away back to his mother ' s side during his early teenage years , and served as a stableboy in the marquess ' s estate of Pingyang . He then severed his paternal bond by adopting the surname Wei from his mother ' s family . Legend says that Wei Qing once followed his master on a visit to Ganquan Palace ( 甘泉宮 ) and encountered a cangue d prisoner , who foretold that it would be Wei Qing ' s fate to achieve nobility and marquisate , a prediction Wei Qing simply dismissed as a joke , citing that not getting caned would be fortunate enough for someone living the life of a serf . After Princess Pingyang offered the singer - dancer Wei Zifu to Emperor Wu as a concubine circa 139 BC , Wei Qing followed as an accompanying gift and served as a horseman Jianzhang Camp ( 建章營 , Emperor Wu ' s royal guard s ) . However , as his sister gained the Emperor ' s love and fell pregnant , near - disaster would befall Wei Qing . The powerful Eldest Princess Guantao ( 館陶長公主 ) Liu Piao ( 劉嫖 ) , the mother of Empress Che n , angry that Wei Zifu had siphoned off the imperial favor from her daughter , kidnapped Wei Qing and wanted to kill him privately as retaliation . However , Wei was rescued at the last moment by his friends , a group of fellow palace guards led by Gongsun Ao ( 公孫敖 ) . In response to the incident and as a sign of annoyance towards Empress Chen and her mother , Emperor Wu appointed Wei Qing the triple role of Chief of Jianzhang Camp ( 建章監 ) , Chief of Staff ( 侍中 ) and Chief Councillor ( 太中大夫 ) , effectively making him one of Emperor Wu ' s closest lieutenant s . He also publicly made Wei Zifu a consort ( 夫人 ) , a concubine position lower only to the Empress ) , and awards other members of the Wei family . Career as general . Great wealth would not be all Wei Qing would have . Emperor Wu saw qualities in him — brilliant horsemanship , archery , bravery , outstanding tactical intuition as well as excellent leadership skills . Over the next several years , Wei Qing would be entrusted as Emperor Wu ' s closest consul , as his sister also monopolized the Emperor ' s love . In 129 BC , Xiongnu attacked the Shanggu Commandery ( 上谷郡 , roughly modern - day Zhangjiakou , Hebei ) . Emperor Wu promoted Wei Qing as the General of Chariots and Cavalry ( 車騎將軍 ) and dispatched him with Gongsun Ao , Gongsun He ( 公孫賀 ) and Li Guang in four separate columns against Xiongnu , each leading 10 , 000 cavalries . Li Guang and Gongsun Ao suffered major losses at Xiongnu ' s hands , while Gongsun He failed to encounter and engage the enemy . Wei Qing , however , distinguished himself by raiding Xiongnu ' s holy site Longcheng ( 龍城 ) , killing over 700 Xiongnu soldiers in the process . As a reward for the victory ( the first proper victory against Xiongnu in Han history ) , Wei was promoted to a higher command and created an acting Marquess of Guannei ( 關內侯 ) , with a march of several hundred households . In 128 BC , Consort Wei Zifu gave birth to Emperor Wu ' s first son , Liu Ju , and was created Empress soon after . Later that year , Wei Qing , who was now officially a trusted member of Emperor ' s extended family , led 30 , 000 cavalries from Yanmen Commandery ( 雁門郡 , modern - day Youyu County , Shanxi ) , killing thousands of Xiongnu soldiers . In 127 BC , Wei Qing led a 40 , 000 - strong cavalry from Yunzhong Commandery ( 雲中郡 , modern - day Togtoh County , Inner Mongolia ) , then maneuver to Gaoque ( 高闕 , modern - day Urad Rear Banner ) to Longxi region ( modern - day Gansu ) , and totally outflanking and surrounding the forces of Xiongnu ' s Princes of Loufan ( 樓煩王 ) and Baiyang ( 白羊王 ) , killing 2 , 300 and capturing 3 , 017 Xiongnu soldiers as well as over a million cattle . According to record from " Shiji " and " Hanshu " , the battle was so swift and one - sided that the Han forces " returned with all warriors intact " ( 全甲兵而還 ) , implying a near - zero casualty rate . This earned Wei Qing a further promotion to the Marquess of Changping ( 長平侯 ) , with a march of 3 , 800 households . His subordinates Su Jian ( 蘇建 , father of the great Han patriot Su Wu ) and Zhang Cigong ( 張次公 ) were also created marquesses . The Han recapture of this territory forced the two Xiongnu tribes to withdraw from the fertile Hetao region ( the Ordos steppe ) , and dealt devastating blow to their economy . The city of Shuofang ( 朔方城 ) was built , and later became a key stronghold for offensive and defensive campaigns against Xiongnu . In 124 BC , Wei Qing would be the vital part of the greatest Han victory over Xiongnu to date . When Xiongnu ' s Worthy Prince of the Right ( 右賢王 ) made harassing raids against Shuofang , Wei Qing launched a crushing long - distance night assault from Gaoque with 30 , 000 men , completely surprising and surrounding the Worthy Prince ' s main camp . Not only did the Han forces send the Worthy Prince running for his life from his drunken slumber ( with only his own concubine following ) , they also took about 15 , 000 captives including a dozen Xiongnu nobles , and millions of cattle . For this victory , Wei Qing was made the Generalissimo ( 大將軍 ) of All Armed Forces , and his march was enlarged by 8 , 700 households . His three young sons Wei Kang ( 衛伉 ) , Wei Buyi ( 衛不疑 ) , and Wei Deng ( 衛登 ) were also made marquesses ( an offer later refused by Wei Qing ) , as well as seven generals under his command . In 123 BC , Wei Qing set off from Dingxiang ( 定襄 ) and returned with several thousand enemy kills . A month later , Wei Qing again launched from Dingxiang , but would fight a relatively inconclusive battle . Although he was able to kill or capture more than 10 , 000 Xiongnu soldiers , part of his vanguard forces , a 3 , 000 - strong regiment commanded by generals Su Jian and Zhao Xin , encountered a Xiongnu force led by Chanyu Yizhixie ( 伊稚斜單于 ) , and was outnumbered and annihilated . Zhao Xin defected on the field with his 800 ethnic Xiongnu subordinates , while Su Jian escaped after losing all his men in the desperate fighting . Showing compassion on Su , Wei Qing spared him even though some advocates advised him to execute Su on the spot after court martial to enforce his commanding authority . Due to the loss of Su ' s detachment , Wei Qing troops did not earn any promotion , even though they scored more gains than losses . At this campaign , his nephew Huo Qubing distinguished himself in battle and was given his own command . The Battle of Mobei and the Li Gan incident . In 119 BC , Wei Qing , as the Grand Commander of the armed forces , would be involved in a battle controversially leading to the death of another famous general , Li Guang . In this engagement , Emperor Wu broke the normal pattern of reaction against Xiongnu attacks by making a major excursion against Xiongnu ' s headquarters in the north of the Gobi Desert . This is known to history as the Mobei Campaign ( " campaign of the desert ' s north " ) . Wei and Huo were in command of the two main armies . Under Wei Qing ' s command were four other generals Li , Gongsun He , Zhao Yiji ( 趙食其 ) and Cao Xiang ( 曹襄 ) . Contrary to the arrangements promised to Li Guang by Emperor Wu , where he would command the advance division , Emperor Wu secretly told Wei Qing not to assign Li to vanguard missions due to Li ' s history of " bad lucks " . Wei Qing , after the army had already departed , merged Li ' s forces with Zhao ' s and ordered them to take an eastern flanking route through a barren region . According to the historian Sima Qian , Wei Qing had done this to give his old friend Gongsun Ao , who had recently been stripped of his title , a chance to win a major battle and be re - promoted . However , it should be noted that sending Generals of Front ( 前將軍 , namely Li ) and Right ( 右將軍 , namely Zhao ) on flanking routes was Wei ' s typical tactical arrangement . This was evidenced by his previous deployment of Zhao Xin and Su Jian , who were Generals of Front and Right respectively , during the less successful 123 BC campaign . Wei ' s army unexpectedly encountered Chanyu Yizhixie ' s main forces , who was waiting in anticipation of ambushing the Han army . Despite being significantly outnumbered and fatigued after the long journey , Wei was able to counter Xiongnu ' s cavalry charge with archery defence created by heavy - armored chariots arranged in ring formations , which was reinforced with cavalry counteroffensives . ( This defence would be evaluated as one of the most effective against cavalry by many Chinese tacticians later , including Yue Fei . ) Late into the battle , seizing the moment of a sandstorm ( with poor visibility ) , Wei broke the stalemate and launched bilateral flanking attacks with his cavalries . This decisive move shattered the Chanyu ' s line , nearly capturing him and completely overrunning his forces , killing over 10 , 000 Xiongnu soldiers in the process . The Han army pursued all the way to the modern Ulan Bator region , destroying the Xiongnu stronghold Zhao Xin Castle ( 趙信城 ) before returning in triumph with a total of about 19 , 000 enemy kills . Chanyu Yizhixie was forced to escape with very few men , lost communication with his tribe for days , and did not return until his clan presumed his death and installed a new Chanyu . This was a narrow but critically significant victory for the Han empire . Xiongnu was greatly weakened to the point that they would huddle up into the barren northern Gobi desert ( leading to decline of their population ) , and unable to raid south for the next few decades . The next major Xiongnu invasion did not occur until after the Han dynasty collapsed , some 400 years later during the Jin Dynasty . Meanwhile , Li and Zhao got lost in the desert and failed to arrive in time for battle , despite meeting little Xiongnu resistance . As the battle ended , Li and Zhao were both summoned for court martial on the charge of failure to accomplish orders . Feeling humiliated over the charges against him and frustrated over missing his final chance at martial glory , Li committed suicide rather than to face the court . Many people blamed Wei for causing Li ' s death , including historian Sima Qian as well as Li ' s youngest son Li Gan ( 李敢 ) , who was a subordinate of Huo Qubing at the time . Li Gan later went to Wei ' s home and assaulted him . Wei Qing decided to cool the heat and let the matter slide , but Huo Qubing was greatly angered that his subordinate had the temerity to insult his uncle and personally shot dead Li Gan during a hunting trip . Late career and death . After the 119 BC campaign , Wei Qing would see little combat action himself , largely remaining in the capital Chang ' an to advise on military and sometimes political matters as the dual - role of Chief Defense Minister / Generalissimo ( 大司馬大將軍 ) . He also assisted his nephew , Crown Prince - regent Liu Ju , when Emperor Wu was away on official tours . Despite his great honor and power , Wei remained humble in many ways . Because of the great favor Emperor Wu showed him , all of the other officials at court flattered him , except for Ji An ( 汲黯 ) , who treated him as an equal . Wei was impressed by Ji ' s integrity in face of pressure and respected Ji greatly , often requesting Ji ' s opinion on important matters . Throughout his career , he refused to hire scholars to praise him and create favorable public opinions , and tried to maintain a relatively low profile . Despite his humble way of life , Wei ' s status in the Han army made him a distinguished figure in the country , attracting admiration , jealousy and hostility alike . Emperor Wu ' s uncle , the Prince of Huainan Liu An , who had been conspiring a military coup for a long time , saw Wei as his prime political obstacle that must be removed . Wei Qing died in 106 BC and was buried in a large tomb built to the model of Mount Lu ( 盧山 , a mountain previously in Xiongnu - occupied territory ) . The tomb was connected to that of his nephew Huo Qubing , who had died in 117 BC , and the future tomb for Emperor Wu . Wei would not live to see the destruction of his clan — nobody survived except his youngest son Wei Deng ( 衛登 ) and his great grandnephew Liu Bingyi , as well as the tragic fate of his sister Empress Wei and nephew Liu Ju , during the political turmoil in 91 BC . Legacy . Though not as glorified as his nephew Huo Qubing when it came to body count s , Wei Qing made the most contribution to Han Dynasty ' s strategic supremacy against Xiongnu . The cavalry doctrine and the wagon fort system he developed had profoundly influenced the Han army . The economic impacts of his campaign successes upon the Xiongnu were also instrumental in weakening the nomads , making it easier for later commanders ( including Huo Qubing ) to achieve dominance over their adversary . For this reason , Sima Qian dedicated the word " Generalissimo " specifically to Wei Qing in " Shiji " , even though many had held that position in the past . The Eastern Han Dynasty historian Ban Gu , in his " Book of Han " praised Wei Qing ' s achievements with a poem : Along with his nephew , Wei Qing was regarded among the most decorated military commanders in Chinese history , especially when it referred to foreign conflicts . The famous Tang Dynasty general Li Jing once ranked " Sun , Wu , Bai , Han , Po , Mu , Wei , Huo " as the top military tactician s before his time ( 自古論兵 ， 孫吳白韓為首 ， 頗牧衛霍次之 ) . Many later - day military generals such as Cao Zheng , Zong Ze , Yue Fei and Qi Jiguang saw Wei Qing as the role model strategist to follow , particularly the innovative tactics he deployed during the Battle of Mobei . Prominent scholars and politicians , such as Zhu Yuanzhang , Zeng Guofan and even Mao Zedong , had all described Wei Qing as a symbol of military excellence .