The videos I watched became popular in ancient times

Xiahou Xuan's ancestor was Xiahou Ying, a founding hero of the Western Han Dynasty. His clan grandfather, Xiahou Dun, was a general and was granted the title of Marquis of Gao'an Township.

My great-uncle Xiahou Yuan served as General Zhengxi and was granted the title of Marquis of Bochangting.

His father, Xiahou Shang, served as General of the Southern Expedition and Governor of Jingzhou, and was granted the title of Marquis of Changling Township.

After Xiahou Shang died in 225 AD, Xiahou Xuan inherited the title.

Xiahou Xuan was famous when he was young. He was appointed as the Minister of the Imperial Guard at the age of 230. In the fourth year of Taihe ( AD), he was rated as one of the four wise and eight talented people.

Once, Xiahou Xuan went to the palace to meet Emperor Ming of Wei. He felt ashamed to sit with Mao Zeng, the younger brother of Empress Cao Rui of Emperor Ming of Wei, and showed displeasure on his face. Emperor Ming of Wei was jealous of him and demoted him to the position of Yulin Supervisor.

"In the third year of Jingchu (239 AD), Emperor Ming of Wei died, and Emperor Cao Fang ascended the throne. General Cao Shuang and Grand Commandant Sima Yi assisted in the administration of the government."

"Because Xiahou Xuan was the son of Cao Shuang's aunt, he was promoted repeatedly, all the way to the position of Palace Attendant and Central Guard General."

"When Xiahou Xuan was the Central Guardian, he selected and appointed military officers who were all outstanding people of the time. Most of them later became high-ranking officials such as governors of provinces and prefects. Xiahou Xuan's standards for selecting talents also became a model for later generations to emulate."

"Once, Sima Yi asked Xiahou Xuan about current affairs, and Xiahou Xuan replied with three suggestions: First, limit the authority of the "Zhongzheng" to interfere in the government's employment and give full play to the role of the Ministry of Personnel."

"In this way, each department and official at all levels will fulfill their respective responsibilities and overcome the malpractices in the official selection process."

“Second, change the three-level administrative structure of state, county and prefecture to two levels of state and county to save government expenditure and improve efficiency.”

"Third, reform the extravagant clothing system. Sima Yi thought these suggestions were good, but he did not implement them because they were old habits and it was not appropriate to change them all at once, and he had to wait for wise people to solve them."

"Xiahou Xuan wrote another letter to Sima Yi, saying that it was hard to understand why he did not implement reforms after seeing these drawbacks."

"In the fifth year of Zhengshi (244 AD), Xiahou Xuan was appointed General of the Western Expedition and was granted the imperial seal to command the military forces in Yongzhou, Liangzhou and other places."

"Xiahou Xuan summoned Li Sheng to serve as the Chief Clerk. Li Sheng and Shangshu Deng Yang persuaded Cao Shuang to attack Shu in order to establish his reputation throughout the world."

"Sima Yi tried to dissuade them, but failed. In March of the same year, Cao Shuang traveled west to Chang'an, sent 100,000 troops, and together with Xiahou Xuan, attacked Hanzhong from Luogu."

"The garrison in Hanzhong was less than 30,000. The generals were all terrified and planned to hold their ground and wait for reinforcements from Fu County."

“Only Wang Ping said that Fu County is nearly a thousand miles away from Hanzhong. If we hold on, the city will fall before reinforcements arrive.”

"We should first send the guard general Liu Min to lead the army to occupy Xingshi (today's north of Yangxian County, Shaanxi Province), and then we will lead the army to resist the enemy in the rear."

"If the Wei army divides its forces to attack Huangjin Valley (east of Xingshi), I will personally fight against them."

"The best strategy is to waste time dealing with the Wei army and wait for reinforcements from Fu County."

"Liu Min followed this advice and led his troops to occupy Xingshi, and planted battle flags all over the mountains and plains, stretching for more than a hundred miles."

"In the intercalary third month, Liu Chan, the last ruler of Shu Han, sent troops to rescue. After Cao Shuang and Xiahou Xuan led their troops to Xingshi, they were unable to capture it after a long siege."

"At this time, the logistics supply could not keep up, and the reinforcements from the Shu army arrived, so Yang Wei, a military officer, advised Cao Shuang to withdraw his troops, and had a dispute with Li Sheng and Deng Yang."

"At this time, Sima Yi wrote a letter to Xiahou Xuan, analyzing the situation, explaining how serious it was, and urging him to withdraw his troops as soon as possible."

"After consulting with Cao Shuang, Xiahou Xuan led the Wei army to retreat in May. However, because the Shu army occupied a favorable terrain, the Wei army was able to withdraw after a hard battle."

"Not only did the attack on Shu fail, but it also wasted a large number of soldiers and supplies."

"After that, Xiahou Xuan and Cao Shuang were often ridiculed by the public for this."

"In the first month of the tenth year of Zhengshi (249 AD), Sima Yi launched the Gaopingling Incident, and Cao Shuang was dismissed from his post."

"He was arrested and imprisoned, and soon Cao Shuang and his entire clan were exterminated. After Cao Shuang was executed, Xiahou Ba wanted Xiahou Xuan to join him in surrendering to Shu Han, but Xiahou Xuan refused, saying that he would not surrender to the enemy just to survive."

"Afterwards, Yongzhou Governor Guo Huai took over the post of General of the Western Expedition, and Xiahou Xuan was recalled to the capital by Sima Yi to serve as Grand Herald, and was promoted to Minister of Rites a few years later."

Li Bai: Xiahou Xuan was the son of Xiahou Shang, the cousin of Xiahou Yuan. During the reign of Cao Rui, Xiahou Xuan was not valued and only served as the Yellow Gate Minister and the Imperial Guard Supervisor.

After Cao Rui's death, Xiahou Xuan's cousin Cao Shuang came to power. Xiahou Xuan began to be valued and served as the Central Guard General, responsible for the selection and supervision of military generals, which was an important responsibility.

During the Zhengshi period, Xiahou Xuan served as the General of the Western Expedition, with the power of General Jie, and the commander-in-chief of the military affairs of Yongzhou and Liangzhou. He was equivalent to the commander of the Western Military Region of Cao Wei, and controlled the Wei army in the entire Guanzhong, Yongzhou and Liangzhou areas.

Since the time of Cao Cao, the three major military sub-districts in the south of Cao Wei have been the most powerful and prestigious, namely: Jingzhou Military Sub-district, Hefei and Huainan Military Sub-district, and Yongliang Military Sub-district.

During the Cao Cao era, Xiahou Yuan was the General of the Western Expedition, with the title of General, and the Commander-in-Chief of the military forces in Yongzhou and Liangzhou. During the Cao Pi era,
Cao Zhen held this position. During the reign of Cao Rui, when Zhuge Liang was on the Northern Expedition, Cao Zhen died and Sima Yi was transferred to take up this position.

During the Cao Fang era, Cao Shuang came to power, and Xiahou Xuan became the head of the military sub-district in the Yongliang area, with tens of thousands of troops under his command.

It is estimated that there were only about 10 to people, probably less than . When Cao Shuang and Xiahou Xuan launched the Battle of Xingshi, there were only about to people.

If there is a war, the imperial court may send more troops. If there is no war, the border defense force controlled by Xiahou Xuan is estimated to be 10 to people. It is impossible for Cao Wei to send troops to guard against Shu Han. You must know that the entire Cao Wei has only to troops.

During the Gaopingling coup, Xiahou Xuan, Cao Shuang's cousin, actually kept his troops in place. Soon afterwards, Sima Yi transferred Xiahou Xuan to the court to serve as the Grand Herald, and later changed him to the Minister of Rites, which was a complete demotion in disguise.

Xiahou Xuan and Cao Shuang had a special relationship. They were cousins. Xiahou Xuan was able to serve as the General of the Western Expedition because of Cao Shuang's arrangement, not because Xiahou Xuan was really capable. Sima Yi was afraid of Xiahou Xuan's relationship with Cao Shuang, so he transferred him to the court. This move was very powerful and there was no way to break it.
If Xiahou Xuan was unwilling to go, he could only rebel, and Sima Yi would have a legitimate reason to go to war. If Xiahou Xuan went, he would have no military power and would be at the mercy of Sima Yi.

Xiahou Xuan finally chose to obey the arrangements, gave up his military power, and went to the court to serve as the Grand Herald and Minister of Rites, both of which had no real power. So the question is, since Xiahou Xuan was the head of the Yongliang Military Sub-district, why didn't he rise up against Sima Yi?
Many people believe that since Sima Yi’s Gaopingling coup was successful, then other coups may also be successful. This is not necessarily true.

If one wants to raise an army to resist, one must first have one's own personal soldiers and private power. Xiahou Xuan was the General of the Western Expedition, and the soldiers under his command were not his, Xiahou Xuan's, but Cao Wei's. His soldiers had families and all lived in the capital of Cao Wei.

"Xiahou Xuan was very prestigious at the time, but he was ostracized because he was implicated by Cao Shuang in the Gaopingling Incident, and he felt frustrated."

"At that time, the queen's father, Guanglu Dafu Zhang Ji, was also dismissed from his post as county governor and lived in seclusion at home, feeling equally frustrated."

"After Sima Yi died, Xu Yun thought Xiahou Xuan didn't have to worry about him anymore, but Xiahou Xuan thought Sima Yi could still treat me as a close junior, but Sima Shi and Sima Zhao would definitely not tolerate me."

"Li Feng, the Minister of the Central Secretariat, has always been valued by the great general Sima Shi, but he is on Xiahou Xuan's side in his heart, so he made friends with Zhang Ji and planned to let Xiahou Xuan assist in government affairs."

"Li Feng holds great power in the court, and his son Li Tao married Princess Qi, the daughter of Emperor Ming of Wei, Cao Rui. Zhang Ji and I are from the same hometown of Fengyi, so Zhang Ji trusts him very much."

"Li Feng secretly asked his younger brother, Li Yi, the governor of Yanzhou, to request to go to the court to meet Cao Fang, intending to let him lead troops into the capital to join forces in the uprising."

"But Li Yi's request was not approved by the court. In February of the sixth year of Jiaping, a ceremony to confer the title of noble will be held."

"Li Feng and his men planned to kill Sima Shi when Emperor Cao Fang was personally on the platform in front of the palace and soldiers were guarding the gates of each palace. They would replace him with Xiahou Xuan as the general and Zhang Ji as the general of the cavalry."

"Li Feng secretly told the matter to Huangmen Supervisor Su Shao, Yongning Office Commander Le Dun, Rongcong Pushe Liu Xian and others, saying that they had done many illegal things, and Sima Shi repeatedly said that he would punish them."

"Su Shuo and others agreed to assist Li Feng. Li Feng then informed Zhang Ji of the matter, and Zhang Ji sent his son Zhang Miao to start a rebellion with Li Feng."

"Li Feng asked his son Li Tao to inform Xiahou Xuan about this matter. Xiahou Xuan only said that he knew about it but did not report them."

"Sima Shi secretly learned of the conspiracy of Li Feng and others, tricked Li Feng into coming to see him, and then hammered Li Feng to death with the iron ring on the handle of his knife."

"The body was handed over to the court judge Zhong Yu, and Xiahou Xuan, Li Tao, Zhang Ji and others were arrested and sent to the court judge for trial."

"After being imprisoned, Xiahou Xuan refused to confess, so Zhong Yu personally tried him."

"Xiahou Xuan firmly claimed his innocence and said that if he was to be convicted, Zhong Yu should write it himself."

"Zhong Yu believed that Xiahou Xuan was a famous scholar with high moral integrity and should not be subdued, but the case had to be closed, so he wrote a confession for him overnight, making it consistent with the facts he had investigated, and then showed it to Xiahou Xuan with tears in his eyes;"

"After reading it, Xiahou Xuan just nodded slightly. The confession stated that Li Feng and others conspired to kill Sima Shi during the enthronement ceremony and to hold the emperor hostage."

"They also conspired to appoint Xiahou Xuan as the general and Zhang Ji as the general of cavalry. Both Xiahou Xuan and Zhang Ji knew about this conspiracy."

"On February 22, the sixth year of Jiaping, Emperor Cao Fang issued an edict pardoning the death penalty for the three sons of Princess Qi Chang, while the rest, including Xiahou Xuan, Li Feng, and Zhang Ji, were exterminated."

"Xiahou Xuan was magnanimous and remained calm until the moment of execution. He accepted the death calmly and died at the age of 46."

"During the Zhengyuan period, Cao Mao, the Duke of Gaogui in Wei, issued an edict to posthumously confer titles on the descendants of meritorious officials. He conferred the title of Marquis of Changlingting on Xiahou Shang's great-grandson, Xiahou Ben, with a fief of 300 households as the continuation of Xiahou Shang's descendants."

Su Shi: Such an arrangement has existed since the time of Cao Cao. The families of soldiers going out to fight all live in Luoyang. This also prevents soldiers from surrendering at will during the war. At least with a family member to restrain them, the soldiers will not easily betray the country.

The mission of the General who Conquers the West was to guard against enemies in Yongzhou and Liangzhou. If Xiahou Xuan ordered his soldiers to attack Shu Han or local enemies, the soldiers would definitely obey the order, but if Xiahou Xuan asked his soldiers to attack Sima Yi who was in Luoyang, not many soldiers would be willing to do so.

Unless Xiahou Xuan cultivated his own confidants and placed many trusted generals in the army to control the army, or secretly raised three thousand death warriors like Sima Yi, he might be able to rise up in rebellion, otherwise he would most likely fail.

Just look at the Three Rebellions in Huainan and Zhong Hui's Rebellion and you will know that it is impossible to succeed if you use Cao Wei's soldiers to rebel against the Cao Wei court. Unless you use your own loyal soldiers to launch a coup like Sima Yi did, then there may be a chance.

But it is obvious that Xiahou Xuan did not have the ambition and ability like Sima Yi. It was impossible for him to secretly raise three thousand death warriors, and of course he could not raise an army.

After reading the entire biography of Xiahou Xuan, you can't find any talents of Xiahou Xuan. He never won any battles, almost none. The only Battle of Xingshi was commanded by Xiahou Xuan and Cao Shuang, and almost the entire army was wiped out.

Xiahou Xuan had no military talent. The reason he was able to become the General of the Western Expedition was because he was Cao Shuang's cousin. Xiahou Xuan's surname was Xiahou, so he was considered a member of the Cao Wei clan.

During the reign of Cao Rui, Xiahou Xuan was not given important positions. Cao Rui was capable and knew how to identify and employ people. Cao Rui did not like to employ boastful people. People like He Yan, Deng Yang, Li Sheng, and Ding Mi were not given important positions during the reign of Cao Rui. Once Cao Shuang came to power, these people all turned around. This shows that Xiahou Xuan was probably a bit boastful.

Xiahou Xuan served as the General of the Western Expedition for nearly ten years, but no battle was recorded in history books. The only Battle of Xingshi was even ridiculed by people at that time. Xiahou Xuan was actually incompetent.

Xiahou Xuan certainly knew his own limitations. He did not have the ability to raise an army, let alone the courage to confront Sima Yi. With no hope of success, he could only go back and wait for death.

During the Gaopingling coup, Sima Yi swore an oath by pointing at the Luo River and lured Cao Shuang to surrender. As soon as Cao Shuang surrendered, Sima Yi found someone to frame Cao Shuang for treason, and then his three clans were killed.

If Cao Shuang had not died and had followed Huan Fan's advice, taking the emperor to Xudu and calling on the troops of the world to come to the defense of the country, Xiahou Xuan might have had the chance and probability to raise an army. Cao Shuang himself had surrendered.

Then he was killed again. When Xiahou Xuan started to raise an army again, he had already lost the best opportunity and didn't even have any chance of success.

Sima Yi had already controlled the military and political power after the Gaopingling coup. With Cao Shuang's surrender, he also controlled the emperor. With so many advantageous tools in hand, and Sima Yi's ability to crush Xiahou Xuan, how could Xiahou Xuan dare to raise an army?

But he had a choice. He could choose to surrender to Shu Han like Xiahou Ba did, but Xiahou Xuan was unwilling to do so because he did not have the same relationship with Shu Han as Xiahou Ba.
Although Xiahou Xuan knew that going back would mean death, he had no choice. He did not dare to resist, nor was he willing to escape, so he could only go back and wait to die.

However, Sima Yi never killed Xiahou Xuan. After Sima Yi's death, Xiahou Xuan was involved in a rebellion case involving Li Feng, the Minister of the Central Secretariat, and Zhang Ji, the father of the Queen. It was probably framed by Sima Shi. Xiahou Xuan probably didn't have the guts to rebel. (End of this chapter)