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Ban Chao was born in the eighth year of Jianwu during the reign of Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han Dynasty. His father was Ban Biao, the then magistrate of Xu County, and his elder brother was Ban Gu, who compiled the "Book of Han".

In the fifth year of Yongping in the Eastern Han Dynasty, Ban Gu was summoned to be a proofreader, so Ban Chao and his mother moved to Luoyang.

Due to his family's poverty, Ban Chao copied books for the government to support his mother.

Although the work was hard, Ban Chao had great ambitions and read widely, so he was appointed as the Lanting Lingshi, but was soon dismissed for his mistakes.

In the early days of his military service, Ban Chao followed the Imperial Chariot Commandant Dou Gu to attack the Xiongnu and was appointed as the acting Sima.

During the Battle of Pulehai, Ban Chao was appreciated for his outstanding military talent by the Imperial Guard Commandant Dou Gu, who appointed him and his attendant Guo Xun to go on a diplomatic mission to the Western Regions.

The first destination of Ban Chao and his party was Shanshan. The king of Shanshan treated them with great courtesy, but soon became indifferent.

"Ban Chao guessed that the Xiongnu envoys had also arrived here, which made the King of Shanshan hesitant."

"In order to prove his guess, Ban Chao pretended to know the whole situation and asked the servants of Shanshan whether the Xiongnu envoy was still there."

"The attendant was terrified and told all the circumstances."

"Ban Chao and his men analyzed the situation and led them to attack the Xiongnu camp that night. Ban Chao ordered ten men to hide behind the Xiongnu camp with war drums, while the rest of the men ambushed on both sides of the camp and launched a fire attack on the Xiongnu camp, eventually wiping out all the Xiongnu."

"The next day, Ban Chao reported the matter to Guo Xun and shared the credit of the operation with him."

"In addition, Ban Chao persuaded the King of Shanshan to submit to the Han Dynasty and even sent his own son to the Han Dynasty as a hostage."

"When Ban Chao and Guo Xun return to the Han Dynasty, they will report to Dou Gu the news that the King of Shanshan intends to submit to the Han Dynasty."

"Emperor Ming of Han admired Ban Chao's wisdom and courage, and told Dou Gu that he should be sent to the Western Regions again and appointed as the military commander."

"Ban Chao led more than 30 people all the way west. After arriving in Khotan, the Xiongnu also sent envoys to supervise them. However, Khotan King Guangde was cold to Ban Chao and his party."

"The sorcerer of Khotan wanted to dampen the Han people's spirit by pretending to be the gods, and ordered King Guangde to ask for Ban Chao's mount."

"After Ban Chao secretly investigated the incident, he killed the wizard to intimidate King Guangde. Out of fear of Ban Chao, King Guangde killed the Xiongnu envoy and surrendered to the Han Dynasty."

"In order to appease the Kingdom of Khotan, Ban Chao later rewarded King Guangde and his subordinates generously."

"After leaving Khotan, he went to Shule. At that time, Shule belonged to Qiuci, so Ban Chao first sent his subordinate Tian Lu to Tuocheng to persuade the Shule King Douti to surrender."

"When Tian Lu arrived at Tuocheng, he found that Dou Ti had no intention of surrendering, so he tied him up."

"After Ban Chao arrived, he gathered the officers and officials of Shule and informed them of the perverse actions of Qiuci, and supported Zhong, the son of the deceased Shule king's elder brother, as the new Shule king."

"In order to establish the prestige of the Han Dynasty, Ban Chao released Douti. But Shule and Qiuci became enemies from then on."

"After Emperor Ming of Han died, Yanqi State took the opportunity to rebel and killed the Protector General Chen Mu. Qiuci and other countries launched a war against Shule. At this time, Ban Chao was isolated and had no reinforcements to help him. He could only cooperate with Shule Wang Zhong. Under this circumstance, Ban Chao held on to Tuocheng for a year."

"In the first year of Emperor Zhangdi's Jianchu reign, after Emperor Zhangdi Liu Zhuang ascended the throne, he ordered Ban Chao to return to the court on the grounds that he was not strong enough to fight the enemy."

"When Ban Chao left, the people of Shule were worried that Shule would be in chaos again. Ban Chao could not bear it and returned to Shule halfway. At that time, two cities in Shule had surrendered to Qiuci."

"Ban Chao learned about this and arrested and killed the rebels, and restored peace in Shule."

"Two years later, Ban Chao led soldiers from Shule, Kangju and other countries to attack Gumo Stone City and killed more than 700 people."

"Ban Chao wanted to pursue the victory, so he wrote a letter to the Emperor of Han Zhang begging him to send more reinforcements."

"In the fifth year of Jianchu, Emperor Zhang of Han sent a total of 1,000 prisoners and volunteers to reinforce Ban Chao."

"Ban Chao attacked Shache with all his might and defeated Fan Chen, the rebel general of Shule."

"After his victory, Ban Chao wanted to continue attacking Qiuci. But he was troubled by the problem of manpower."

"So Ban Chao suggested to the emperor to send envoys to pacify Wusun, hoping to cooperate with them to annihilate Qiuci in one fell swoop."

"In the fifth year of Jianchu, Emperor Zhang of the Han Dynasty appointed Ban Chao as the Chief of Staff and Xu Gan as the Military Secretary, and sent Li Yi, Marquis of Wei, to escort the Wusun envoys."

Li Bai: We are not unfamiliar with the name Ban Chao. He is the youngest son of the famous historian Ban Biao. Perhaps it is this identity that makes Ban Chao deeply loved by his family.

Fortunately, Ban Chao did not lose his way because of his family's doting. He always maintained a diligent and hardworking attitude towards study and a filial and rigorous attitude towards life.

He never dared to be careless about any problems in his studies and had a deep interest in historical books and classics.

It is through the foundation of these classics that Ban Chao not only possesses extraordinary writing skills, but also has extraordinary eloquence.

What is more worth mentioning is that Ban Chao not only made achievements in academics, but also behaved reasonably and appropriately in managing the family, keeping everything in the home in order.

Although in that era, household chores were generally handled by women in the family, Ban Chao did not feel the slightest bit of shame. He always maintained his original style and state of doing things and solved problems for his family.

It was not until the fifth year of Yongping that Ban Chao's elder brother Ban Gu was appreciated for his talent and was summoned to the capital to serve as a proofreader. Ban Chao and his mother followed his brother Ban Gu to move to Luoyang.

After arriving in Luoyang, as his family's livelihood was difficult to maintain, Ban Chao could only help the government copy books to earn money to supplement the family income.

The days of copying books for the government were undoubtedly boring. He was forced to sit at his desk and copy government documents day after day.

In this way, the term "throwing pen to join the army" appeared in history, and this term is often used by later generations to mean that scholars join the army. Of course, Ban Chao never failed his inner ideals and put his inner thoughts into practice.

In the 16th year of Yongping, Fengche Duwei Dou Gu and others led a large army to attack the Northern Huns.

The reason for launching an attack on the Huns was very simple, because at that time the vassal states in the Western Regions were unable to establish contact with the central dynasty for various reasons.

Under such circumstances, most of the vassal states in the Western Regions were controlled by the Northern Huns. Under such circumstances, the Northern Huns' talents, material resources and financial resources developed by leaps and bounds. After laying these material foundations, the Northern Huns began to invade the border territories, and the people in these areas suffered even more.

"But Li Yi was afraid of the power of Qiuci and did not dare to move forward, so he wrote a letter to the emperor to slander Ban Chao. Emperor Zhang of Han therefore severely reprimanded Li Yi and let Ban Chao decide whether he should stay or go."

"In order to show that he had a clear conscience and did not care about the slander of others, Ban Chao sent Li Yi to continue escorting the Wusun servant back to the capital." "A year later, the court sent Sima Hegong to lead 800 people to reinforce Ban Chao."

"Ban Chao joined forces with the armies of Shule and Yutian to attack Shache. The King of Shache offered great benefits to induce the King of Shule, Zhong, to betray Ban Chao."

"Ban Chao replaced Cheng Da, the chancellor of Shule Prefecture, with the position of King of Shule, and mobilized soldiers to attack Zhong."

"Half a year later, Zhong sought the protection of Kangju. Ban Chao attacked the country in vain, so he sent envoys to the Yuezhi to seek help. Kangju did withdraw its troops, arrested Zhong and sent him back to Shule, and Wuji City surrendered immediately."

"Later, Zhong borrowed troops and gathered them in Sunzhong, and conspired with Qiuci to pretend to surrender to Ban Chao."

"Ban Chao invited him to the banquet, but he actually ambushed soldiers and killed Zhong at the banquet."

"Ban Chao and his entourage took advantage of the victory to attack Zhong's army, killing more than 700 people. The southern route from the Han Dynasty to the Western Regions was then opened up."

"After that, Ban Chao attacked Shache again. The King of Qiuci sent General Zuo to lead Wensu, Gumo and other countries to support Shache."

"Ban Chao pretended to be outnumbered, and after the enemy was fooled, Ban Chao secretly summoned troops from all over the country to attack the Shache camp."

"In the end, Shache surrendered to Ban Chao, and Qiuci and other countries were also defeated and dispersed. Since then, Ban Chao's fame has spread throughout the Western Regions."

“In the second year of the reign of Emperor He of the Han Dynasty, Xie, the deputy king of Yuezhi, led 70,000 soldiers to attack Ban Chao.”

"Ban Chao asserted that as long as they held their ground, the enemy would surrender due to lack of food."

"Later, as Ban Chao had predicted, Xie ran out of food and grass after a long siege and went to Qiuci for help."

"Ban Chao ordered his men to intercept the army that was seeking help. From then on, the Yuezhi paid tribute to the Han Dynasty every year."

"After the surrender of the three kingdoms of Qiuci, Gumo and Wensu, the imperial court appointed Ban Chao as the Protector General of the Western Regions."

"Ban Chao was stationed in Taqian City in Qiuci. At this time, only Yanqi, Weixu and Yuli were left in the Western Regions, and the rest of the Western Regions had been pacified."

"Ban Chao led eight kingdoms including Qiuci and Shanshan to attack Yanqi. When the army reached the border of Yuli, Ban Chao sent people to persuade the three kingdoms of Yanqi to surrender. Wang Guang refused and demolished a reed bridge that was the only way to enter the kingdom. Ban Chao and his men had no choice but to walk into Yanqi through the water."

"After arriving near the capital of Yanqi, Ban Chao used the excuse of a banquet to accuse Yanqi King Guang of a crime, arrested him and Fan, and chopped off their heads in Chenmu Old City and sent them to the capital."

"After that, the remaining fifty-odd countries in the Western Regions all paid hostages and expressed their willingness to become territories of the Han Dynasty."

"In order to reward Ban Chao for his contribution to the country, Emperor He of Han, Liu Zhao, conferred the title of Marquis of Dingyuan on Ban Chao."

"In the 12th year of Yongyuan, Ban Chao wrote to the imperial court, hoping to return to his homeland."

"Ban Chao's sister, Ban Zhao, the wife of Cao Shou from the same county, also wrote to the court, requesting that Ban Chao be recalled to the court. Her words were so moving that the emperor was moved and recalled Ban Chao to the court."

"Ban Chao returned to Luoyang in August of the 14th year of the Yongyuan reign and was appointed as the commander of the Archery Commandery."

"Ban Chao was already ill, and his condition worsened after he returned home."

"Emperor He sent Zhong Huangmen to inquire about his condition and rewarded him with medicine for treatment."

"Ban Chao died in Luoyang in September of the 14th year of Yongyuan at the age of 71 and was buried in Mangshan, Luoyang."

Su Shi: While accompanying Dou Gu on his diplomatic mission to the Western Regions, Ban Chao's performance was outstanding and he was deeply appreciated and loved by Dou Gu.

In order to unite the various vassal states in the Western Regions, Ban Chao was specially sent to the Western Regions as an envoy. This time, Ban Chao successfully completed the mission of the Western Regions and made the King of Shanshan submit to the Han Dynasty.

After Ban Chao returned home after completing his mission, his mentor Dou Gu was very happy and reported Ban Chao's achievements to the court.

After hearing this, the emperor was very happy and admired Ban Chao's talent. He thought Ban Chao was a man who could be cultivated, so he sent him to the Western Regions again, and this time his goal was to recapture Khotan.

This place is located to the west of Shanshan State and is a powerful country.

After Ban Chao arrived in Yutian, the local leaders were very disrespectful to him and even tried their best to make things difficult for him. Of course, facing their difficulties, Ban Chao did not choose to compromise easily.

After hearing what the wizard said, Yutian immediately sent the prime minister to ask Ban Chao for the so-called good horse.

But who would have thought that when the wizard saw Ban Chao, Ban Chao would not give him any chance, but killed him directly, and took off his head and sent it to Yutian.

After seeing the wizard's head, Yutian was completely panicked. After all, he had heard of Ban Chao's heroic performance before.
Under such circumstances, he decisively chose to sever relations with the Northern Huns. In order to show his determination to reconcile with the Central Plains dynasty, he even spared no effort to kill the envoys of the Northern Huns.

In this way, the country of Khotan returned to the imperial court, and Ban Chao was deeply pleased with the wise choice of the King of Khotan and rewarded them.

After successfully regaining the territory, Ban Chao did not stop moving forward and recovered the Shule area.

This place is the Taklamakan Desert, which we now call the "Sea of ​​Death". The geographical location of this area is very important. It is located between the north-south passages. If the Han Dynasty and some countries in the eastern part of the Western Regions want to advance westward, they must pass through this place. In this case, this place has become a very important military strategic location.

Therefore, after considering the special location of the place, Ban Chao decided not to attack Kaisha first, but to attack Shule first.

In the 17th year of Yongping, all preparations were ready, and Ban Chao led his men to take a shortcut to the State of Shule.

Through his extraordinary wisdom, he successfully restored the relationship between Shule and the Han Dynasty and made an indelible contribution to the development of the Han Dynasty.

Of course, Ban Chao was not only able to successfully restore the relationship between the Western Regions and the Han Dynasty, but he was also supported and loved by the local people.

In 76 AD, not long after Emperor Zhang of Han ascended the throne, all the civil and military officials in the court believed that under the circumstances at the time, Ban Chao did not need to guard the border alone, so Emperor Zhang of Han specifically ordered Ban Chao to return home.

After this order was issued, it soon caused a sensation in Shule, Yutian and other areas.

In addition, when many people in Khotan heard that Ban Chao was about to leave, they all came to try to keep him. Some even held Ban Chao's horse legs and hoped that he would not leave. Seeing the people's regretful expressions, Ban Chao could not bear it, so he decided to stay here and fulfill his grand ambitions.

So, Ban Chao, who was planning to leave, returned to Shule, but who knew that the two cities of Shule had already been occupied by Qiuci, who were even planning a rebellion. (End of this chapter)