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During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty, Geng Yan's ancestors served as officials of the rank of 2,000 stones.

According to the system at that time, they moved their families from Julu to Maoling.

Geng Yan's father was Geng Kuang, also known by his courtesy name Xiayou. He was well versed in Confucian classics and served as a palace official.

Together with Wang Mang's cousin Wang Ji, he studied Laozi from Mr. Anqiu. Later, Geng Kuang was appointed as the commander of Shuo Tiao County.

Since he was young, Geng Yan has been very interested in reading and is proficient in "Laozi" like his father.

Since Geng Yan often witnessed the county commander organizing examinations for knights, arranging battle formations and flags and drums, and conducting horse riding and archery exercises, he gradually developed a strong interest in military affairs.

"In the first year of Gengshi, Wang Mang was killed and Liu Xuan established the Gengshi regime."

"Rebel leaders from all over the country attacked cities and seized territory, and many generals abused their power."

"Geng Kuang was deeply concerned about the arbitrary replacement of prefects and county magistrates because he was an official appointed by Wang Mang."

"At that time, Geng Yan, who was only 21 years old, left his father and went to Chang'an with gifts to meet Emperor Gengshi in order to consolidate his father's position."

"When they reached Songzi County, the sorcerer Wang Lang in Handan claimed to be Liu Ziyu, the son of Emperor Cheng of Han, and raised an army."

"Geng Yan's followers Sun Cang and Wei Bao believed it to be true, so they defected to Wang Lang."

"Soon after, Geng Yan learned that Emperor Gengshi's acting Grand Marshal Liu Xiu was in Lunu County."

"So he hurried north to pay homage to Liu Xiu, and was subsequently appointed as an official by Liu Xiu."

"Geng Yan requested through the military guard Zhu You to return to Shanggu County, mobilize the army, and quell the rebellion in Handan."

"This move made Liu Xiu think that he had great ambitions and he summoned him many times to comfort him."

"Geng Yan also wrote to Geng Kuang, praising Liu Xiu's broad-mindedness and wisdom, and suggested that he meet with Liu Xiu as soon as possible."

"In the first month of the second year of Gengshi, Geng Yan followed Liu Xiu northward and arrived in Ji County."

"At this time, Liu Xiu heard that Wang Lang of Handan had sent troops to Ji, so he planned to retreat southward and summoned his officials for discussion."

"Geng Yan proposed to mobilize tens of thousands of troops from Yuyang and Shanggu to resist, but other generals disagreed."

"At the same time, Liu Jie, the son of Guangyang King Liu Jia, launched an uprising in Ji County, causing chaos in the city."

"Liu Xiu fled south, while Geng Yan fled north alone to Changping County and took refuge with his father Geng Kuang."

"I also urged my father to assign Gong Cao Kou Xun to contact Yuyang County Governor Peng Chong, and each of them mobilize 2,000 cavalry and 1,000 infantry."

"Geng Yan joined forces with Shanggu Chief Clerk Jing Dan, Gong Cao Kou Xun, and the Yuyang County army led by Wu Han and marched south, attacking and killing Wang Lang's generals, nine ministers, and school lieutenants along the way."

"More than 400 people in total pacified 22 counties including Zhuo County, Zhongshan County, and Julu County."

"When the troops of the two counties caught up with Liu Xiu in Guang'a County, Geng Yan and others went to pay a visit to him. Liu Xiu was very pleased and appointed Geng Yan as a lieutenant general."

"Afterwards, Geng Yan and others continued to lead their troops and followed Liu Xiu to capture Handan in May of the same year and kill Wang Lang."

"Emperor Gengshi saw that Liu Xiu's reputation was growing day by day, so he named Liu Xiu the King of Xiao and ordered Liu Xiu to withdraw his troops and return to Chang'an with his subordinates."

"However, in the Handan Palace, Geng Yan advised Liu Xiu not to withdraw his troops and requested to return to Youzhou to recruit elite troops to realize his grand plan."

"Liu Xiu readily agreed, appointed Geng Yan as the general, and went north with Wu Han to recruit troops from the ten counties of Youzhou."

"Geng Yan returned to Shanggu and arrested and executed Wei Shun, the Shanggu governor appointed by Emperor Gengshi, and Cai Chong, the Yuyang governor. Wu Han also executed Miao Zeng, the Youzhou governor."

"The two mobilized all the troops of Youzhou to march south, and together with Liu Xiu, they defeated the enemy armies including Tongma, Gaohu, Chimei, and Qingniu."

"In the spring of the first year of Jianwu, Geng Yan followed Liu Xiu in the pursuit of the Youlai, Daqiang, and Wufan armies, and made many military achievements."

"After Liu Xiu returned to Ji County, Geng Yan, Wu Han, Chen Jun and 13 other generals continued to pursue the remnants of the enemy army, winning successive victories in Ludong and Pinggu, beheading more than 13,000 people."

"Finally, Geng Yan and his men pursued the enemy to Wuzhong County, Tuyin County, and Junmi County in Youbeiping County and returned victoriously."

"In June of the first year of Jianwu, Liu Xiu ascended the throne and proclaimed himself emperor. The next month, he appointed Geng Yan as the General of Jianwei."

"At that time, Liu Mao, a member of the Liu Han clan, gathered troops between Jing County and Mi County and named himself General Yanxin."

"Geng Yan, General of the Cavalry Jing Dan, and General of the Crossbows Chen Jun attacked them in Ao Cang, and Liu Mao eventually surrendered."

"In the second year of Jianwu, Liu Xiu conferred the title of Marquis of Haozhi on Geng Yan, granting him the fief of Haozhi and Meiyang counties."

"In June of the third year of Jianwu, Yan Cen led his troops from Wuguan to attack Nanyang and captured many cities."

"Geng Yan led his army to fight a great battle with Yan Cen in Rang County and won, killing more than 3,000 people, capturing more than 5,000 people, and seizing 300 seals and ribbons."

"In October of the third year of Jianwu, when Geng Yan followed Liu Xiu to Chongling County, he requested to go north first to recruit soldiers from Shanggu to suppress the rebellion of Peng Chong, the governor of Yuyang County, and Zhang Feng, the governor of Zhuo County."

"Then he subdued the peasant uprisings in Fuping and Huosuo, and then marched east to Zhangbu to pacify Qi."

"Liu Xiu recognized Geng Yan's suggestion and approved the request."

"The following year, Geng Yan, along with General Conquering the Enemy, Ji Zun, General Building Righteousness, Zhu Hu, and General Cavalry, Liu Xi, were ordered to attack Zhang Feng of Zhuo County. Ji Zun arrived first and defeated Zhang Feng."

"Then Liu Xiu ordered Geng Yan to attack Yuyang. Geng Yan was worried that Yuyang prefect Peng Chong had the same achievements as his father, Shanggu prefect Geng Kuang."

"I don't have any relatives in Luoyang, so I don't dare to lead the army alone."

"Therefore, he wrote a letter requesting to return to Luoyang first. Liu Xiu issued an edict to appease him and ordered him to station troops in Zhuo County with General Wang Chang, the loyal general of Han."

Li Bai: Although Liu Xiu's regime was established and he became emperor, the Eastern Han Dynasty at that time was not able to be completely unified.

The territory under Liu Xiu's jurisdiction was less than half of what it was at that time, which means that a lot of territory was still in the hands of other rebel forces.

These forces all urgently needed to be pacified by Liu Xiu. At that time, Zhang Bu was the strongest force entrenched in Qi.

Geng Yan received an order to march to attack him, but the army he led was very small, only a few tens of thousands.

Zhang Bu had hundreds of thousands of troops under his command. He knew very well that Liu Xiu would attack him, so he had already arranged two very solid lines of defense.

Although his defenses were very thorough and solid, they were not able to deceive Geng Yan.

After analyzing the current situation, Geng Yan believed that now was not the time to attack.

Although he already had the advantage on the surface, his military strength at that time could not be compared with that of the enemy's army.

If you lead your troops to engage in a decisive battle with the enemy, there will be no possibility of defeating the enemy army.

It would also put his team in danger. Therefore, he knew that if he wanted to win this battle, he must use a good strategy.

At that time, Geng Yan told Liu Xiu that he would definitely use the tens of thousands of troops in his hands.

Liu Xiu did not believe that Zhang Bu's 200,000-strong army was defeated and his head was taken in ten days.

However, Liu Xiu also recognized his abilities. Although he might not win all the battles, he would definitely not lose.

Liu Xiu originally planned to go north to help him clean up the situation, but he didn't expect his general to be so powerful. Geng Yan used his strategy to let Zhang Bu attack them first, and when the enemy entered the Han army camp, he led his army out of the tent.

The team was divided into two teams, cutting off the enemy's front and rear.

The front part of Zhang Bu's team had been surrounded by the Han army and there was no way they could escape.

At this time Geng Yan sent people to attack his army from other locations. Although Zhang Bu had a great advantage in numbers, he was unable to successfully resist their attack.

"Geng Kuang felt uneasy when he learned of Geng Yan's request, so he sent Geng Yan's brother Geng Guo to Luoyang."

"Liu Xiu approved the request and conferred the title of Marquis of Yumi on Geng Kuang. He also ordered Geng Yan, Zhu You, the General of Jianyi, Wang Chang, the General of Hanzhong, and others to attack Wangdu County and Gu'an County."

"In the end, more than a dozen camps of peasant uprising troops were all annihilated."

"In the fifth year of Jianwu, Peng Chong was killed."

"Soon after, Geng Yan and Grand Marshal Wu Han were ordered to attack the peasant uprisings in Fuping and Huosuo, and they were victorious, with more than 40,000 people surrendering."

"In the fifth year of Jianwu, Liu Xiu ordered Geng Yan to continue the campaign against Zhang Bu."

"Geng Yan organized the surrendered soldiers and led the Cavalry Commandant Liu Xin and Taishan County Governor Chen Jun to advance eastward."

"After hearing this, Zhang Bu sent General Fei Yi to station troops in Lixia. He also sent troops to station troops in Zhu'a. He also set up dozens of military camps in Zhongcheng, Taishan County, in preparation for the attack on Geng Yan."

"Geng Yan crossed the Ji River and successively captured Zhu'a and Zhongcheng, and then headed straight for Juli County, which was guarded by Fei Yi's younger brother Fei Gan."

"He announced that he would attack Juli County in three days to lure Feiyi to bring troops to support him."

"After Fei Yi came to rescue, Geng Yan took command from a height and killed Fei Yi, and displayed his head to the defenders in Juli City."

"The defenders in the city were panicked, and Fei Gan led everyone out of the city and joined Zhang Bu."

"Afterwards, Geng Yan seized military supplies, and sent his troops in pursuit, pacifying Jinan County."

"At that time, Zhang Bu established his capital in Ju County and divided his troops to garrison Xi'an and Linzi."

"After Geng Yan reached the city in the painting between the two cities, he thought that although Xi'an was small, it was strong and difficult to attack, while although Linzi was large, it was easy to attack."

"So they adopted a strategy of feinting to the east and attacking in the west, claiming to attack Xi'an, but five days later, they captured Linzi City."

"Soon, Zhang Bu led his army to the east of Linzi City. Geng Yan deliberately appeared weak to lure the enemy deeper into his territory."

"Zhang Bu then attacked Geng Yan's camp directly and engaged in a fierce battle with Liu Xin and others."

"Geng Yan then led his elite troops to attack from the side, defeated Zhang Bu's army, and won again the next day."

"Geng Yan judged that Zhang Bu was trapped and was about to retreat, so he set up ambushes on the left and right wings in advance, waiting for Zhang Bu to withdraw his troops."

"The ambushes on both wings launched a sudden attack and chased Zhang Bu's army to the bank of the Jumei River."

"Zhang Bu's army suffered heavy casualties and retreated to Ju County. Geng Yan seized more than 2,000 baggage wagons."

"Soon after, Liu Xiu personally went to Linzi to comfort the troops. When all the ministers gathered, Liu Xiu compared Geng Yan to Han Xin, praising him for his ability to accomplish his goals."

"Afterwards, Geng Yan continued to pursue Zhang Bu, and Zhang Bu eventually fled to Pingshou County, took off his shirt, carried an axe on his back, and stood outside the military gate to surrender."

"Geng Yan sent him to Liu Xiu, and he himself led his troops into the city, seized more than 7,000 baggage carts, and sent the surrendered soldiers back to their hometowns."

"After that, Geng Yan led his army to Chengyang County, where he made the remaining members of the Five Schools surrender one after another, and pacified the entire Qi territory."

"In the sixth year of Jianwu, Geng Yan, Tiger Tooth General Gai Yan and seven other generals were ordered to pass through Longxi and attack Gongsun Shu from Longdao."

"Kui Xiang started a rebellion, and the generals fought against him. After they were defeated, Geng Yan stationed troops in Qi County to guard against Kui Xiang."

"Two years later, Zhonglang General Lai Xi launched a surprise attack and captured Lueyang, but was besieged by Wei Xiang's army."

"Liu Xiu personally led an expedition to rescue, Geng Yan participated in the expedition and was ordered to join forces with Gai Yan to besiege Shanggui."

"In the ninth year of Jianwu, Geng Yan and General Feng Yi of the Western Expedition, General Gai Yan of the Tiger Teeth, General Ma Cheng of the Yangwu Army, and General Liu Shang of the Wuwei Army."

"Commander Lai Xie went to Tianshui to attack Wei Chun, the son of Wei Xiao, and captured the camps and forts in Anding and Beidi."

"The following year, Geng Yan, Lai She, Gai Yan and others attacked Luomen, Wei Chun surrendered, and Longxi was pacified."

"In the 13th year of Jianwu, Liu Xiu increased Geng Yan's fief and gave him the seal of a great general."

"Soon after, Geng Yan resigned from the position of general and enjoyed the courtesy of being invited to court as a marquis."

"Whenever there was a military incident, Geng Yan was summoned to the palace to ask for advice on countermeasures."

"In the first year of Emperor Ming of Han's Yongping reign, Geng Yan died at the age of 56. He was posthumously named Marquis Min, and his son Geng Zhong inherited the title."

Du Fu: The Han army had the upper hand in the war, but Geng Yan was shot by an arrow. He had to retreat to the camp to deal with it.

The situation was very critical at that time, but he did not consider his own safety and insisted on continuing to fight the enemy.

Zhang Bu's army had suffered a defeat yesterday, and the morale of the team was very weak today. Soon his army was defeated, and he could only retreat to Ju County.

The reason why Zhang Bu retreated back to this place was to preserve his strength.

But his thoughts still could not be hidden from Geng Yan, who had understood Zhang Bu's intentions and plans early on.

So he prepared troops and horses on both sides of the road where Zhang Bu would escape, so that they could capture Zhang Bu as soon as he arrived.

At this time, the rest of the troops left in the city were all preparing, waiting for the final battle with the enemy.

The rest of Zhang Bu's troops retreated to Ju County, but most of them were injured and could not participate in the battle at all.

They realized at this time that the city could not be defended, so they dispersed and Zhang Bu's army was defeated.

A few days later, when Liu Xiu led his army here, the war had already been over, and he realized that he no longer needed to fight.

At this time, Liu Xiucai was very impressed and recognized the ability of Geng Yan, a general in his twenties.

It really took only ten days to wipe out hundreds of thousands of enemy troops. Such strength and ability can be compared with many famous generals.

With just this one battle, his reputation will live on forever and future generations will surely remember him.

At this time, Liu Xiu decided to gather everyone and prepare to reward the generals and soldiers who participated in this war. At the banquet, he praised Geng Yan very much.

He was praised for his ability being no less than Han Xin at the time. We have no way of knowing who was more capable between him and Han Xin, but Liu Xiu's praise of him was true.

Geng Yan fought for Liu Xiu all his life and demonstrated his abilities on the battlefield.

Not only that, his descendants were also very outstanding, and many powerful generals appeared before and after them. This was a real military family.

Geng Yan, the military genius, destroyed hundreds of thousands of enemy troops in just ten days and was praised by Liu Xiu. (End of this chapter)