Yang Shihou

Yang Shihou (楊師厚) (died April 23, 915), formally the Prince of Ye (鄴王), was a major general of the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period state Later Liang, serving as the main obstacle to the expansion of Later Liang's archenemy Jin during latter parts of the reign of Emperor Taizu (Zhu Quanzhong) and the early parts of the reign of Emperor Taizu's son Zhu Zhen.

It is not known when Yang Shihou was born, but it is known that he was from Jingou (斤溝, in modern Fuyang, Anhui). In his youth, he served as a soldier under Li Hanzhi, who was then the military governor (Jiedushi) of Heyang Circuit (河陽, headquartered in modern Jiaozuo, Henan). After Li Hanzhi lost his own territory and became a subordinate of Li Keyong the military governor of Hedong Circuit (河東, headquartered in modern Taiyuan, Shanxi) in 888, Li Hanzhi gave, as a tribute to Li Keyong, about 100 elite soldiers, and Yang was one of the soldiers thus sent to join the Hedong army. However, Yang did not distinguish himself while serving under Li Keyong. Later, after he was accused of crimes, he fled to Li Keyong's archenemy Zhu Quanzhong the military governor of Xuanwu Circuit (宣武, headquartered in modern Kaifeng, Henan). Zhu made him an officer in the Xuanwu army and the prefect of Cao Prefecture (曹州, in modern Heze, Shandong).

The first campaign that Yang Shihou was recorded to have clearly participated in was against Zhu Quanzhong's erstwhile vassal Wang Shifan the military governor of Pinglu Circuit (平盧, headquartered in modern Weifang, Shandong), who rose against Zhu in 903 and subsequently received aid from Yang Xingmi the military governor of Huainan Circuit (淮南, headquartered in modern Yangzhou, Jiangsu) in the form of an army commanded by the general Wang Maozhang. Subsequently, though, Wang Maozhang realized that the Huainan/Pinglu joint army was badly outnumbered by the main Xuanwu army, commanded by Zhu himself, and therefore retreated with the Huainan army. Zhu sent Yang Shihou to give chase, and while Yang was able to defeat and kill Wang Maozhang's rearguard commander Li Qianyu (李虔裕), Wang Maozhang's main strength was able to withdraw. Subsequently, Zhu left Yang in charge of sieging Pinglu's capital Qing Prefecture while he himself returned to Xuanwu's capital Daliang. Yang pitched his camp at Linqu (臨朐, in modern Weifang) while claiming that he was heading for Mi Prefecture and leaving the supplies at Linqu; when Wang Shifan, believing that Yang had left for Mi, attacked, he fell into Yang's trap and suffered heavy casualties, with his brother Wang Shike (王師克) captured by Yang; when the army from Pinglu's Lai Prefecture, Yang also defeated them and almost completely slaughtered them, and thereafter maintained a chokehold on Qing Prefecture. Wang Shifan thereafter sent an emissary to offer to surrender to Yang, and Zhu accepted the surrender. For this victory, Yang was made the military governor of Wuning Circuit (武寧, headquartered in modern Xuzhou, Jiangsu).

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