Xu Huang

Early life and service under Yang Feng

Xu Huang was from Yang County (楊縣), Hedong Commandery (河東郡), which is located southeast of present-day Hongtong County, Shanxi. He served as a minor official in the commandery office in his youth. Later, he became a subordinate of Yang Feng from the White Wave Bandits – originally a sect of Yellow Turban rebels that rose up in Xu Huang's hometown in Shanxi – after the bandits raided Hedong and Taiyuan (太原) commanderies in 188. Over the years, the leaders of the White Wave Bandits had been holding different attitudes toward the Han central government. Yang Feng submitted to Dong Zhuo, a warlord who controlled the central government in the early 190s. Xu Huang later followed Yang Feng to quell some remnants of the Yellow Turban rebels, and was appointed as a Cavalry Commandant (騎都尉) by the Han imperial court.

After Dong Zhuo was assassinated in 192, his subordinates Li Jue and Guo Si seized control of the central government and held Emperor Xian, the figurehead Han ruler, hostage in the imperial capital, Chang'an. In 195, internal conflict broke out between Li Jue and Guo Si, whose respective factions started warring with each other in the streets of Chang'an. Yang Feng and Xu Huang were Li Jue's subordinates at the time. In the same year, Xu Huang convinced Yang Feng to escort Emperor Xian from Chang'an back to the old imperial capital Luoyang, which laid in ruins after Dong Zhuo burnt it down years ago while moving the capital to Chang'an. In Luoyang, when conflict broke out between Yang Feng and Dong Cheng, the latter summoned the warlord Cao Cao to help him deal with his rival. In early 196, Cao Cao arrived in Luoyang and fetched Emperor Xian to his base in Xu (許; present-day Xuchang, Henan), which was designated as the new imperial capital. When Xu Huang urged Yang Feng to join Cao Cao's forces, Yang wanted to heed his advice but ultimately refused. In late 196, Cao Cao attacked and defeated Yang Feng. Xu Huang then switched his allegiance to Cao Cao.

Cao Cao's campaigns in central and northern China

Cao Cao sent Xu Huang with an army to attack rebels at Juan (卷) and Yuanwu (原武) counties. Xu Huang defeated them and was promoted to Major-General (裨將軍). During the battles between Cao Cao and Lü Bu in Xu in 198, Xu Huang attacked and defeated Lü Bu's subordinates Zhao Shu (趙庶) and Li Zou (李鄒) in battle. With aid from Shi Huan (史渙), he also defeated and killed Sui Gu at Henei (河內; in present-day Henan).

In 200, during the Battle of Guandu between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao, Xu Huang participated in the early skirmishes at Boma (白馬; near Hua County, Henan) and Yan Ford (延津; present-day Yanjin County, Henan), where he defeated the warlord Liu Bei – who had joined Yuan Shao after losing Xu Province – and Yuan Shao's generals Yan Liang and Wen Chou. He was promoted to Lieutenant-General (偏將軍) for his achievements, and later joined Cao Hong in eliminating rebels led by Zhu Bi (祝臂) at Yinjiang (氵隱 疆; southwest of present-day Xuchang, Henan).

Yuan Shao had stored his supplies at a depot in Gushi (故市; southwest of present-day Yanjin County, Henan). Cao Cao sent Xu Huang and Shi Huan to attack this position. They defeated the defenders at Gushi and burnt down Yuan Shao's grain carts, forcing Yuan to call for relief supplies in response to this raid. Xu Huang received the title of a Marquis of a Chief Village (都亭侯) for his contributions.

A few years later, Xu Huang joined the follow-up operation against the heirs of Yuan Shao, who died in 202. In 203, the defender of Yiyang (易阳), Han Fan (韓範), feigned surrender and strengthened his defences. Xu Huang then wrote a letter of persuasion and had it fired into the city on an arrow. The defender was won over and Xu Huang conquered the city without bloodshed. Before the city fell, Xu Huang went to see Cao Cao and asked him to refrain from massacring the residents of Yiyang only after Han Fan surrendered. The rationale of their final decision was entirely based on tactical consideration, which was to induce other enemy cities into voluntarily surrendering by setting an example. Cao Cao approved Xu Huang's suggestion.

Xu Huang later set up an ambush and routed the Yuans' forces at Maocheng (毛城), defeated Yuan Tan at the Battle of Nanpi, and suppressed a revolt in Pingyuan Commandery (平原郡; around present-day Dezhou, Shandong). He also participated in Cao Cao's campaign against Yuan Shang, Yuan Xi and the Wuhuan tribes which led to the Battle of White Wolf Mountain in 207. Xu Huang was further promoted to General Who Sweeps Across the Wilderness (橫野將軍) for his contributions in battle.

Battle of Jiangling

In 208, Xu Huang followed Cao Cao to pacify Jing Province (covering present-day Hubei and Hunan), and participated in the Battle of Red Cliffs in the same year. When Cao Cao retreated north after his defeat at Red Cliffs, Xu Huang was ordered to stay behind with Cao Ren in Jiangling (江陵; present-day Jiangling County, Hubei) to resist Sun Quan's counteroffensive. In one occasion, the enemy commander Zhou Yu left the defence of his main camp to his subordinate, Ling Tong, and led most of the troops to rescue another general, Gan Ning, who was surrounded by Cao Ren's cavalry at Yiling (夷陵; present-day Yichang, Hubei). Ling Tong was left with only a wee fraction of the army to guard the camp. Xu Huang and Cao Ren were unable to defeat Ling Tong and the enemy camp remained intact. As a result, a yearlong vigorous fighting followed and the casualty count on Cao Cao's side became enormous, so Xu Huang and Cao Ren finally abandoned Jiangling and retreated north.

Cao Cao's northwestern campaigns

After suppressing a rebellion by Shang Yao (商曜) in Taiyuan (太原; in present-day Shanxi) in 210, Xu Huang joined Cao Cao in his campaigns in northwestern China, around the Liang Province region. In 211, Cao Cao engaged a coalition of northwestern warlords led by Ma Chao and Han Sui at the Battle of Tong Pass. After discovering that Han Sui did not leave any troops to guard Puban Ford (浦阪津), Xu Huang suggested to Cao Cao to send him north and cross the Yellow River via Puban Ford to circumvent Tong Pass from the west of the river. Cao Cao assented to Xu Huang's plan, and sent Zhu Ling to go with him. They crossed Puban and started pitching camps, but before the defence fortification was completed, one of the coalition members, Liang Xing, scouted them. Instead of asking his allies for reinforcement, Liang Xing attacked right away, but was routed in the end. Xu Huang and Zhu Ling then impelled the pace to complete the defence, and waited for the arrival of the main forces. However, the discovery of Xu Huang's presence had alerted the coalition forces and created a serious crisis for Cao Cao's crossing of the river.

After Cao Cao's victory at Tong Pass, he sent Xu Huang and Xiahou Yuan to pacify the various Di tribes in Yumi (隃麋) and the Qian River (汧) areas. Xu Huang and Xiahou Yuan later rendezvoused with Cao Cao's main army at Anding Commandery (安定郡; covering parts of present-day Gansu and Ningxia). After Cao Cao had returned to Ye (in present-day Handan, Hebei), he sent Xu Huang and Xiahou Yuan again to suppress revolts in Fu (鄜) and Xiayang (夏陽) counties, where they defeated Liang Xing and forced some 3,000 households into surrender.

When Cao Cao embarked on another campaign in western China to attack the warlord Zhang Lu in Hanzhong, he sent Xu Huang with a separate force to pacify the Di tribes around Du (櫝) and Chouyi (仇夷) counties. Xu Huang succeeded and was promoted to General Who Suppresses Rebels (平寇將軍). He also lifted the siege by rebel forces on a general Zhang Shun (張順) and defeated the rebel leader Chen Fu (陳福).

Hanzhong Campaign

In 215, Xu Huang was tasked with defending Hanzhong Commandery's communication line, Mamingge (馬鳴閣). He served under the command of Xiahou Yuan to halt the advances of Liu Bei's army. When Liu Bei sent Chen Shi to cut off Xiahou Yuan's supply routes, Xu Huang led troops to strike the enemy head-on. Due to Xu Huang's ferocious attack, many enemy soldiers jumped off the cliff, and the casualty rate was high enough to keep Hanzhong secure for the time being.

Cao Cao was delighted when he heard of the victory and he gave orders to Xu Huang, "This pass is a crucial gateway into Hanzhong. Liu Bei intends to isolate the pass and then move on to conquer Hanzhong. You've done well in foiling the enemy's attempt."

Battle of Fancheng

Xu Huang's most glorious moment in his military career came at the Battle of Fancheng in 219. When Fan (樊; also called Fancheng, in present-day Fancheng District, Xiangfan, Hubei) and Xiangyang were besieged by Liu Bei's general Guan Yu, Cao Cao first sent Yu Jin to lead a relief force to lift the siege but Yu Jin's seven armies were destroyed by a flood. Cao Cao then ordered Xu Huang to lead a second relief force to lift the siege. Cao Ren, the general defending Fan, and Lü Chang (呂常), who defended Xiangyang, were both trapped in their fortresses by Guan Yu's forces for months.

Knowing that most of his soldiers were composed of new recruits without training, Xu Huang did not go straight into battle but camped behind the enemy to impose a deterrent effect. In the meantime, he instructed his subordinates Xu Shang (徐商) and Lü Jian (呂建) to oversee the digging of trenches around the nearby enemy stronghold of Yancheng (偃城) to deceive the enemy into thinking that they were trying to cut off supplies into Yancheng. The enemy fell for the ruse and abandoned their position, yielding Xu Huang a foothold on the battlefield. By this time, a total of 12 camps had gathered under Xu Huang's flag. With his strengthened army, Xu Huang unleashed an attack on Guan Yu. The enemy encirclement consisted of five camps, so Xu Huang spread news that he was planning to attack the main camp, while he secretly attacked the other four side camps instead. When Guan Yu saw that the four side camps had been destroyed, he personally led 5,000 horsemen to counter the attackers, but was eventually outmatched. Many of his soldiers were forced into the nearby Han River, where they drowned. The siege on Fancheng was thus lifted. When Cao Cao heard of the victory, he praised Xu Huang, "The enemy formation was very thick but yet you managed to achieve victory and destroyed their camps and killed so many of their men. I've participated in battles for over 30 years, but I've never heard of any person in history who attempted to break a siege by launching a direct attack on the enemy's encirclement. The situation at Fan and Xiangyang was much worse than that at Ju and Jimo. Your achievements are comparable to those of Sun Wu and Rangju."

The Shu Ji (蜀記) recorded an incident about Xu Huang meeting Guan Yu on the battlefield. Xu Huang had a close personal friendship with Guan Yu. They often chatted about other things apart from military affairs. When they met again at Fancheng, Xu Huang gave an order to his men, "Whoever manages to take Guan Yunchang's head will be rewarded with 1,000 jin of gold." Guan Yu was shocked and he asked Xu Huang, "Brother, what are you talking about?" Xu Huang replied, "This is an affair of the state."

Upon Xu Huang's return, Cao Cao went seven li out of Xuchang to greet him, giving him full credit for securing Fan and Xiangyang. Throughout the field reception, the soldiers of other commanders shifted about in order to get a better view of Cao Cao, but Xu Huang's men stood stationary in neat files. Seeing this, Cao Cao lauded, "General Xu has truly inherited the style of Zhou Yafu."

Service under Cao Pi and Cao Rui

Cao Cao died in 220 and his vassal king title, "King of Wei", was inherited by his son Cao Pi. Xu Huang continued to be heavily trusted by Cao Pi, and he was appointed General of the Right (右將軍) and received the title "Marquis of Lu District" (逯鄉侯). Later that year, Cao Pi forced Emperor Xian to abdicate the throne to him, becoming emperor and establishing the state of Cao Wei. Cao Pi conferred the title "Marquis of Yang" (楊侯) on Xu Huang, and sent him and Xiahou Shang to lead an army to attack Shangyong Commandery (上庸郡), where they achieved success. Xu Huang was later ordered to garrison at Yangping (陽平), so his marquis title was changed to "Marquis of Yangping" (陽平侯).

Cao Pi died in 226 and was succeeded by his son Cao Rui. During that time, Xu Huang successfully repelled an invasion on Xiangyang by the Eastern Wu general Zhuge Jin. For his contributions, he was awarded another 200 taxable households in his marquisate, bringing the total number to 3,100. When Xu Huang became seriously ill later, he gave instructions that he was to be given a simple burial after his death. Xu Huang died in 227 and was granted the posthumous title "Marquis Zhuang" (壯侯), which literally means "robust marquis".

Xu Huang's titles were inherited by his son, Xu Gai (徐蓋) after his death. When Xu Gai died, the titles were inherited by his son, Xu Ba (徐霸). Cao Rui granted the titles of marquises to Xu Gai and Xu Ba and placed some households under their control.

Appraisal

Chen Shou concluded Xu Huang's biography in the Records of the Three Kingdoms with a brief appraisal:

Xu Huang led a humble and simple life and he was very self-disciplined. When he went into battle and realised he could not win, he would still encourage his men to fight on in pursuit of glory and they did not rest or have meals until they had won. He often sighed, "The people in the past complained that they did not have a chance to meet and serve a wise lord. Now, I'm privileged to have encountered one, so I should do my best to serve him instead of seeking to increase my personal fame!" He did not maintain a wide social network throughout his life.

In Romance of the Three Kingdoms

In the 14th-century historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Xu Huang made his first appearance in chapter 13, where he served under Yang Feng. Xu Huang and Yang Feng escorted Emperor Xian back to Luoyang after the death of Dong Zhuo, who had been holding the emperor hostage.

When Cao Cao came to Luoyang to fetch the emperor to his base in Xu, Yang Feng sent Xu Huang to stop him. Cao Cao knew on first sight that Xu Huang was an extraordinary man so he sent Xu Chu to duel with Xu Huang. Neither side could gain an advantage over each other after 50 bouts, and by then, Cao Cao was very impressed by Xu Huang's skill. Not wanting either of the two men to get hurt, Cao Cao then called for Xu Chu to retreat. Knowing his lord intended to recruit Xu Huang, Man Chong, a subject of Cao Cao and a fellow townsman of Xu Huang, volunteered to persuade Xu to defect. That very night, Man Chong disguised himself as a common soldier, sneaked into Xu Huang's tent and successfully persuaded him to join Cao Cao. Man Chong then suggested slaying Yang Feng as a gesture of defection but Xu Huang refused to kill his former superior.

In the novel, Xu Huang met his end during the Xincheng Rebellion when he was struck by an arrow in the forehead fired by the rebel leader Meng Da. His men immediately took him back to camp, where the physician removed the arrow and tried to heal him, but Xu Huang eventually died later that night. The novel claimed that he was 59 years old, but this figure is not supported by any evidence from historical records.

In popular culture

Xu Huang is featured as a playable character in Koei's Dynasty Warriors and Warriors Orochi video game series. He also appears in all instalments of Koei's Romance of the Three Kingdoms strategy game series.