Ying Bu facts for kids

Ying Bu (died in 196 BC) was a powerful military general and leader in ancient China. He lived during the time when the Qin dynasty was falling apart and the Han dynasty was just beginning. He was from a place called Lu County, which is now Lu'an in Anhui province.

When he was young, under the Qin dynasty, Ying Bu faced a special punishment that involved tattooing his face. Because of this, he was also known as Qing Bu, which means "Tattooed Bu". He was sent to work hard building the tomb of Qin Shi Huang on Mount Li. But he managed to escape with some friends and became the leader of a group of bandits.

Ying Bu joined the rebellion against the Qin dynasty after the Dazexiang Uprising started in 209 BC. He helped Xiang Yu overthrow the Qin dynasty. After Qin fell, he first fought alongside Xiang Yu in the Chu–Han Contention (206–202 BC). This was a big power struggle between Xiang Yu and Liu Bang to decide who would rule China. However, Ying Bu later switched sides and joined Liu Bang. He helped Liu Bang defeat Xiang Yu and become the first emperor of the Han dynasty.

During this time, Ying Bu was known as the "King of Jiujiang". Around August 203 BC, Liu Bang made Ying Bu a vassal king and gave him the title "King of Huainan". But in 196 BC, Ying Bu rebelled against the Han dynasty. He was defeated and killed.

Who Was Ying Bu?

His Early Life

Ying Bu grew up in an ordinary family. When he was a child, a fortune teller told him that he would first become a prisoner and then a king. Later, when he committed a crime, he was given a special punishment called qing. This meant his face was tattooed as a mark of his crime. But Ying Bu just laughed and said, "A fortune teller told me I'd be a prisoner before becoming a king. Isn't this it?" Other people made fun of him for saying this.

Ying Bu was then sent to Mount Li to do hard labor, helping to build the tomb for Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor. There, he made friends with many other prisoners. Eventually, he escaped with them and became the leader of a group of bandits.

Fighting the Qin Dynasty

Joining the Rebellion

In 209 BC, two men named Chen Sheng and Wu Guang started the Dazexiang Uprising to overthrow the Qin dynasty. Ying Bu joined another rebel leader, Wu Rui, who was his father-in-law. Together, they gathered thousands of men.

After the Qin general Zhang Han crushed the uprising, Ying Bu led his followers north. They attacked Qin forces and won a battle at Qingbo. Then, Ying Bu heard that Xiang Liang had gathered a large rebel army in Kuaiji. Ying Bu decided to join Xiang Liang's forces.

Ying Bu was a very brave fighter. He helped Xiang Liang defeat other rebel leaders. In the summer of 208 BC, Xiang Liang placed a new king, King Huai II, on the throne of the Chu state. This king was mostly a puppet, used by Xiang Liang to gain more support for the rebellion. King Huai II gave Ying Bu the title "Lord Dangyang".

The Battle of Julu

In the winter of 208 BC, Xiang Liang was killed in a battle against Qin forces. King Huai II then moved his capital to Pengcheng (which is now Xuzhou, Jiangsu). Ying Bu and other Chu generals were stationed there.

At that time, Qin forces were attacking another rebel state called Zhao. The Zhao king asked Chu for help. King Huai II sent Song Yi, Xiang Yu (Xiang Liang's nephew), and Fan Zeng to lead an army to rescue Zhao. Xiang Yu accused Song Yi of being a traitor, killed him, and took control of the army. Ying Bu, who was under Song Yi, then became Xiang Yu's subordinate.

In 207 BC, Xiang Yu, Ying Bu, and other Chu forces defeated a much larger Qin army led by Zhang Han at the Battle of Julu. After this big victory, Xiang Yu ordered Ying Bu to oversee the death of 200,000 surrendered Qin soldiers.

Becoming a King

After his victory at Julu, Xiang Yu led his army towards Guanzhong, the main area of the Qin dynasty. In the winter of 207 BC, the last Qin emperor, Ziying, surrendered to Liu Bang in Xianyang, the Qin capital. This marked the end of the Qin dynasty.

Xiang Yu later took over Xianyang and divided the former Qin Empire into the Eighteen Kingdoms. Each kingdom was ruled by a vassal king. Ying Bu was named the "King of Jiujiang".

The Chu-Han War

In 206 BC, the rulers of the Eighteen Kingdoms went back to their own lands. Xiang Yu gave King Huai II of Chu a more honored title, "Emperor Yi of Chu", but he moved him far away to Changsha, effectively sending him into exile. Xiang Yu then secretly ordered Ying Bu to kill Emperor Yi. Ying Bu stopped the emperor at Chen County and carried out the order.

Switching Sides

In 205 BC, a rebellion started in Qi, so Xiang Yu led his army to attack it. Xiang Yu asked Ying Bu for help, but Ying Bu claimed he was sick. He only sent a few thousand soldiers with his subordinates to help Xiang Yu.

At the same time, Liu Bang (King of Han) formed an alliance with five other kings. They took advantage of Xiang Yu's absence to attack and capture his capital, Pengcheng. When Xiang Yu asked for Ying Bu's help again, Ying Bu again claimed he was sick and refused. Xiang Yu was unhappy but didn't attack Ying Bu because he was busy fighting in Qi and Zhao, and also dealing with Liu Bang in the west. He also thought Ying Bu was a talented general he wanted on his side.

Later in 205 BC, Xiang Yu defeated Liu Bang at the Battle of Pengcheng. Liu Bang had to retreat. Liu Bang's advisor, Sui He, offered to go to Huainan and convince Ying Bu to betray Chu. Sui He went to Huainan and eventually met Ying Bu.

Sui He told Ying Bu that Liu Bang wanted to form an alliance. He pointed out that Ying Bu was supposed to be a loyal subordinate to Xiang Yu, but he hadn't sent enough troops to help when Xiang Yu needed them. Sui He argued that Xiang Yu had lost the trust of the people, especially after killing Emperor Yi. He said that while Chu seemed strong, it was actually in trouble, and Han had a better chance of winning the empire. Sui He promised Ying Bu a larger territory if he joined Liu Bang. Ying Bu agreed to consider it.

At that moment, a messenger from Xiang Yu arrived, asking Ying Bu for more troops. Sui He boldly told the messenger that Ying Bu had already joined Han. Ying Bu was surprised but followed Sui He's advice to kill the Chu messenger and officially ally with Han.

When Xiang Yu found out that Ying Bu had turned against him, he sent his generals to attack Huainan. Ying Bu was defeated and had to flee to Han territory.

Joining Liu Bang

When Ying Bu arrived in Han, he wanted to meet Liu Bang. Liu Bang was casually washing his feet when Ying Bu came in, which made Ying Bu very angry. He felt disrespected and regretted joining Han, even thinking about taking his own life. However, when Ying Bu was shown to his living quarters, he was surprised to see that they were as grand as Liu Bang's own rooms. This made him happy.

Ying Bu then sent his men back to Jiujiang. They found out that Xiang Yu's uncle had taken control of Ying Bu's former troops and killed his family. Ying Bu's men also found some of his old followers and brought them back to Han. Liu Bang then put Ying Bu in charge of some troops.

In 203 BC, Liu Bang made Ying Bu the "King of Huainan". Later that year, Ying Bu led an army to attack Jiujiang and captured many cities. He joined forces with Liu Gu and convinced Zhou Yin to switch from Chu to Han. Ying Bu and Zhou Yin then led their armies to help Liu Bang attack Xiang Yu. They eventually defeated Xiang Yu at the Battle of Gaixia in 202 BC. Xiang Yu took his own life, and the rest of Chu surrendered to Han.

After his victory, Liu Bang became the first emperor of the Han dynasty, known as Emperor Gaozu of Han. Ying Bu remained a vassal king of the Han dynasty, keeping his title as King of Huainan. His capital was at Lu, and he controlled several commanderies, including Jiujiang and Hengshan.

Rebellion Against Han

Why Ying Bu Rebelled

In early 196 BC, two important generals, Han Xin and Peng Yue, who had helped Liu Bang establish the Han dynasty, were executed. Ying Bu became very worried when he heard about this. He feared that he would be next, so he started gathering his forces and watching events in nearby areas very closely.

One day, one of Ying Bu's favorite concubines became sick and went to a doctor. The doctor's neighbor was a palace official named Ben He. Ben He used this chance to get close to the concubine, giving her gifts and having drinks with her. When the concubine returned home, she praised Ben He to Ying Bu, saying he was a kind man. Ying Bu asked how she knew Ben He, and she told him everything. Ying Bu began to suspect that Ben He and his concubine were romantically involved.

Ben He became scared when he heard that Ying Bu suspected him, so he pretended to be sick and stayed home. Ying Bu grew angrier and wanted to arrest Ben He. In desperation, Ben He accused Ying Bu of planning a rebellion and fled to the capital, Chang'an. Ying Bu sent his men to catch Ben He, but they couldn't.

When Ben He reached Chang'an, he told the Han court that Ying Bu was planning a rebellion and urged them to attack him first. Emperor Gaozu discussed this with his chancellor, Xiao He. Xiao He said, "Ying Bu wouldn't do this. I think his enemies are trying to frame him. Please hold Ben He first and send people to investigate Ying Bu."

However, when Ying Bu saw that Ben He had escaped and accused him, he suspected that Ben He had already revealed his secret plans. Also, the Han court had sent people to investigate him. So, Ying Bu decided to go ahead with his rebellion. He killed Ben He's family and started his revolt in August or September 196 BC. When news of Ying Bu's rebellion reached Chang'an, Emperor Gaozu pardoned Ben He and made him a general.

The Emperor Fights Back

Emperor Gaozu gathered his officials to discuss how to deal with Ying Bu. They all urged the emperor to send an army to defeat Ying Bu. A general named Xiahou Ying spoke with Xue Gong, a former official from Chu. Xiahou Ying asked, "The emperor gave him a kingdom and a title, allowing him to live in luxury and rule thousands. Why would he still rebel?" Xue Gong replied, "Peng Yue and Han Xin were executed recently. These three men helped a lot in starting the dynasty and were almost equally important. Ying Bu feared he would suffer the same fate, so he rebelled."

Xiahou Ying then recommended Xue Gong to Emperor Gaozu. Xue Gong explained to the emperor that Ying Bu would likely try to attack Wu, Xiacai, and then retreat to Yue and Changsha. Xue Gong believed Ying Bu would choose this path because Ying Bu had risen from being a prisoner to a king through his own efforts, and he mostly cared about his own gain, not the people or his family's future. Gaozu put Xue Gong in charge of 1,000 households and made his son, Liu Chang, the "Prince of Huainan" to replace Ying Bu. Gaozu then personally led an army to stop Ying Bu's rebellion.

Before he rebelled, Ying Bu told his men, "The emperor is old and doesn't like war. He definitely won't come himself. Even if he sends his generals, only Han Xin and Peng Yue were dangerous, but they are both dead, so there's nothing to fear."

Ying Bu moved east and attacked Jing, where he defeated and killed Liu Gu, the Prince of Jing. He then crossed the Huai River to attack Chu. Chu sent its forces to stop Ying Bu. Someone warned the Chu commanders that Ying Bu was a skilled fighter and that their forces, divided into three armies, could easily be defeated one by one. The warning was ignored. Ying Bu did defeat one Chu army, and the other two quickly scattered.

Ying Bu then moved west and met the Han army led by Emperor Gaozu in Qixi. They fought a battle at Zhui. Ying Bu's army was very well-trained, forcing Gaozu to retreat. From a distance, Gaozu saw that Ying Bu's forces were arranged like Xiang Yu's, which made him angry. Gaozu asked Ying Bu, "Why do you want to rebel?" Ying Bu replied, "I want to be the emperor." Gaozu was furious, scolded Ying Bu, and launched a strong attack. Ying Bu was defeated and retreated back across the Huai River. He tried to fight back a few times but failed. Ying Bu was eventually left with only about 100 men and fled south of the Yangtze River.

Ying Bu was the son-in-law of Wu Rui. Wu Chen (Wu Rui's son) sent a messenger to Ying Bu, pretending he would help Ying Bu escape to Nanyue. Ying Bu believed Wu Chen and followed the messenger to Poyang. There, he was killed by local villagers in Zi Village.

Legacy

Ying Bu is sometimes honored as a door god in Chinese and Taoist temples, often alongside Peng Yue, another Han general. He is also one of the 32 historical figures who appear as special characters in the video game Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI by Koei. He is also featured as "Qing Bu" in the action role-playing game Prince of Qin.