Liu Biao
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- This is a Chinese name; the family name is Liu (劉).
Liú Biǎo (劉表, ? - 208) was the governor of the Jing province in China towards the end of the Han Dynasty. He was of the same extended family as the Han emperors.
Once the Han Dynasty became consumed with war after the Yellow Turban Rebellion, he fought a war with Sun Jian, a minor warlord during that time. One of Liú Biǎo's brilliant strategists, Kuai Liang, devised a plan to eliminate Sun by crushing him with logs as he rode towards the main camp of Liú Biǎo, and succeeded. Later, Sun Jian's two elder sons, Sun Ce and Sun Quan, caused Liu no end of trouble as they sought to avenge their father’s death. However, they did not cause Liu's demise. Whilst Cao Cao, in the north, was gaining strength, Liú Biǎo chose to neither help nor hinder his conquests.
Later, during Cao Cao’s battle against Yuan Shao (203- 207 AD), Liu remained neutral, despite being one of the only other warlords in a position to oppose the two powers. However, Liú Biǎo eventually decided to shelter Liu Bei, an enemy of Cao Cao. This made him a target of Cao Cao’s wrath. Later, after Cao Cao conquered the North, a large army was sent south to conquer the Jing Province. Allied with Liu Bei, Liu Biao's forces took several early victories. However, after impressing the remnants of Yuan Shao's forces into his already grand army, Cao Cao's superior numbers eventually took toll on Liu Biao's defences. With a decline in relations between Liu Biao and Liu Bei, as a result of the meddling of Cai Mao's family, Liu Biao's people were faced with difficulty to say the least.
To make matters even worse, shortly after Cao Cao's main army began its offensive, Liu Biao, himself, died of sickness. According to the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, long before his death, sensing his own deteriorating condition, he had discussed with Liu Bei which of his two sons should succeed him. The traditional choice would be his elder son, Liu Qi, yet he predicted (correctly) that his wife would favour Liu Cong, his second son. Ultimately, he followed Liu Bei's advice and chose Liu Qi to succeed him. However, after Liu's death, his wife altered his will, leaving Liu Cong with possession of much of the Jing Province. The weak Liu Cong immediately surrendered to Cao Cao and his elder brother, who had still retained control of one city. Due to its strategic positioning between all three warring factions during the Three Kingdoms era, many battles were fought and lives lost in the Jing territory over the course of the various campaigns and battles fought between Shu Han, Sun Wu and Cao Wei.
