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Yuan Shu, courtesy name Gonglu, was a native of Ruyang, Runan, during the late Eastern Han Dynasty. He was the grandson of Yuan Tang, the Minister of Works, the second son of Yuan Feng, the Minister of Public Works, and the younger brother of Yuan Ji and Yuan Shao. He was one of the warlords during the late Eastern Han Dynasty.

Yuan Shu was recommended for his filial piety and integrity in his youth, and successively served as Governor of Henan and General of the Tiger Guard. During Dong Zhuo's chaos, Yuan Shu served as General of the Rear and later as Governor of Nanyang.

In the first year of the Chuping era (190 AD), Yuan Shu joined his brother Yuan Shao in a campaign against Dong Zhuo. Yuan Shu was extravagant and dissolute, and levied heavy taxes, leaving the Jianghuai region devastated and many people starving to death.

In the fourth year of the Chuping era (193 AD), he led his soldiers to kill Chen Wen, the governor of Yangzhou, in Jiujiang, and took over as governor of Yangzhou, also known as the Earl of Xuzhou.

In 197 AD, Yuan Shu used a fabricated divination to declare himself emperor in Shouchun, establishing the Zhong dynasty, but this was not widely recognized.

However, due to the instability among Yuan Shu's subordinates and his defeats on the battlefield by Lü Bu and Cao Cao, he gave the title of emperor to Yuan Shao and went to join Yuan Shao's son, Yuan Tan.

In 199 AD, he failed to surrender to Yuan Tan and died of vomiting blood in Jiujiang. He was later buried in Caiwei Village, Gudui Hui Township, Xiejiaji District, Huainan City.

Yuan Shu once served as the governor of Yangzhou, seized control of the province, declared himself emperor, but ultimately failed in his struggle for supremacy, died in Jiujiang, and was buried in Huainan. He was later described as "brave but indecisive, lacking both virtue and strategy."

Yuan Shu came from the prominent Runan Yuan clan during the Eastern Han Dynasty. After his ancestor Yuan An served as Minister of Works in the Eastern Han Dynasty, his grandfather Yuan Tang, father Yuan Feng, and uncle Yuan Kui all held the position of one of the Three Dukes.

Yuan Shu and Yuan Shao were born to the same father, but because Yuan Shao was born out of wedlock and his mother was of low status, and was later adopted by Yuan Feng's brother Yuan Cheng, Yuan Shu and Yuan Shao were not close.

As a youth, Yuan Shu possessed a chivalrous spirit and often went hunting and playing with noble sons. Later, he was recommended as a filial and incorruptible official and appointed as the Governor of Henan.

Since the mid-Eastern Han Dynasty, the regime had been controlled by two forces: the imperial relatives and the eunuchs. After Emperor Ling's death, the competition between the two sides intensified. Eventually, Liu Bian, the son of Empress He, ascended the throne, and the imperial relative He Jin assisted the new emperor, winning over Yuan Shu and his brother Yuan Shao to his side.

After being given an important position, Yuan Shu actively participated in the struggle against the eunuchs. He secretly conspired with He Jin and Yuan Shao to kill Jian Shuo and seize command of Jian Shuo's new army.

Although He Jin executed Jian Shuo, he refused to completely eliminate the eunuchs. Yuan Shao was resentful and arrested the eunuchs' relatives, leaving the eunuchs with no way out.

In August of the sixth year of the Zhongping era of Emperor Ling of Han (189 AD), He Jin was beheaded by eunuchs in front of the Jiade Hall. Upon hearing this, Yuan Shu and Wu Kuang, a subordinate of He Jin, led troops to attack the palace, burning down the Nine Dragon Gate of the South Palace and the East and West Palaces, and killing the remaining eunuchs.

Later, Dong Zhuo rebelled and wanted to depose the emperor and install another one. After discussing with Yuan Shao, they broke off their alliance. Dong Zhuo then decided to dismantle Yuan Shao's armed forces and appoint Yuan Shu as General of the Rear.

If Yuan Shu were to assume the position of General of the Rear, he would lose his position as General of the Tiger Guard and relinquish his command of the Tiger Guard. However, failing to take up the post would give Dong Zhuo an excuse to launch a campaign against him.

Yuan Shu and his elder brother Yuan Shao, fearing they would be drawn into the chaos, fled to Nanyang and Ji Province, respectively.

In the first year of the reign of Emperor Xian of Han (190 AD), when Yuan Shu arrived in Nanyang Commandery, he found that Sun Jian, the governor of Changsha, had forced Wang Rui, the governor of Jingzhou, to commit suicide, and had also lured and killed Zhang Zi, the governor of Nanyang.

Although Sun Jian held a large army, his status and prestige were not high. He also killed Han officials, and his identity changed from a general who assisted the Han Dynasty to a traitor. Therefore, he urgently needed to seek new protection. So he led his army to surrender to Yuan Shu, and thus the Nanyang Commandery was under Yuan Shu's control.

Upon arriving in Jingzhou, Liu Biao, the governor of Jingzhou, feigned weakness towards Yuan Shu and, taking advantage of the situation, submitted a memorial recommending Yuan Shu for the position of governor of Nanyang. Yuan Shu, wanting to ally with Sun Jian, then recommended Sun Jian to the emperor for the position of governor of Yuzhou.

As a result, Yu Province was occupied by Yuan Shu, who used it as his base. When Yuan Shu occupied Nanyang, Nanyang had a million households.

However, Yuan Shu never paid attention to upholding the law, indulging in extravagance and debauchery, and plundering the people's savings, which the people deeply resented.

In the first year of the Chuping era of Emperor Xian of Han (190 AD), Yuan Shu, who was then the General of the Rear, along with his brother Yuan Shao, Han Fu, the Governor of Ji Province, Kong Zhou, the Governor of Yu Province, Liu Dai, the Governor of Yan Province, Wang Kuang, the Prefect of Henei, Zhang Miao, the Prefect of Chenliu, Qiao Mao, the Prefect of Dongjun, Yuan Yi, the Prefect of Shanyang, and Bao Xin, the Chancellor of Jibei, raised an army in Guandong. The group elected Yuan Shao as their leader and led tens of thousands of people to jointly attack Dong Zhuo.

In February of the second year of the Chuping era (191 AD), Dong Zhuo seized the emperor and moved the capital to Chang'an. However, the Guandong coalition led by Yuan Shao did not pursue him. Instead, they merged with each other, and only Yuan Shu's forces continued to fight against Dong Zhuo.

In the same year, Yuan Shu sent Sun Jian, the governor of Changsha, to gather his scattered troops and station them in the Yangren area of ​​Liang County. Dong Zhuo dispatched Hu Zhen and Lü Bu to fight against them.

However, Lü Bu and Hu Zhen were at odds, and their troops scattered and fled. Yuan Shu ordered his men to continue the pursuit, and Hu Zhen and Lü Bu suffered a major defeat. Dong Zhuo then sent General Li Jue to negotiate peace with Yuan Shu, but Yuan Shu refused to accept it.

Then Yuan Shu advanced to Dagu, which was ninety li from Luoyang. Dong Zhuo then personally led his troops to fight Yuan Shu's army in the imperial mausoleum area, but was defeated and retreated to Mianchi.

Then Yuan Shu sent troops to Hangu Pass, reaching the area between Xin'an and Xingchi, cutting off Dong Zhuo's retreat. Yuan's army once again drove Dong Zhuo away and returned to Luyang.

In the third year of the Chuping era (192 AD), Yuan Shu was dissatisfied with only occupying Nanyang County and Yuzhou in Jingzhou. In order to seize the entire Jingzhou, he sent Sun Jian to Xiangyang to attack Liu Biao. As a result, Sun Jian was shot and killed by Huang Zu, a subordinate of Liu Biao.

When Yuan Shu was in Nanyang, he plundered the people and lived a life of extravagance, which had already caused discontent among the people. Now that he had suffered a defeat, he could no longer stay in Nanyang, so he retreated.

Previously, Dong Zhuo had forced the emperor to flee west to Chang'an, and the young emperor's fate was unknown. Yuan Shao and Han Fu wanted to recommend Liu Yu, a member of the imperial clan with high prestige at the time, as emperor.

However, Yuan Shu was naturally unrestrained and did not want to appoint an older person as emperor. In addition, he also harbored ambitions for the throne, so he rejected the proposal. These issues combined to create a rift between the two brothers.

Because of the deep-seated animosity between Yuan Shu and Yuan Shao, and their enmity with Liu Biao, the governor of Jingzhou, Yuan Shu decided to join forces with Gongsun Zan of Youzhou and Tao Qian, the governor of Xuzhou.

Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan had a long-standing feud, so Yuan Shao decided to cooperate with Liu Biao to jointly resist Yuan Shu and Gongsun Zan. At that time, Yuan Shao was the leader of the coalition against Dong Zhuo in Guandong, and heroes from all over the land supported him.

Yuan Shu was dissatisfied with this, feeling that the people of the world did not obey him, but instead submitted to his servants. In a letter to Gongsun Zan, he cursed Yuan Shao, saying that Yuan Shao was not a member of the Yuan family. Yuan Shao was furious when he heard this.

In April of the third year of the Chuping era (192 AD), Gongsun Zan, Liu Bei, and Yuan Shu conspired to attack Yuan Shao, but Yuan Shao joined forces with Cao Cao and defeated Yuan Shu's faction.

In the fourth year of the Chuping era (193 AD), Liu Biao, the governor of Jingzhou, cut off Yuan Shu's supply lines. In order to escape his predicament, Yuan Shu prepared to march north to attack Yanzhou. He then led his troops into Chenliu and stationed them in Fengqiu, where they were attacked by the allied forces of Yuan Shao and Cao Cao.

The remaining Black Mountain Army and the Xiongnu Yufuluo and others assisted Yuan Shu in fighting against the Yuan-Cao allied forces at Kuangting, but were defeated. Yuan Shu had no choice but to lead the remaining troops to retreat to Yongqiu to garrison.

Cao Cao continued his pursuit, and Yuan Shu led his troops to Jiujiang Commandery. To seize Yangzhou, Yuan Shu killed Chen Wen, the governor of Yangzhou, and took over as governor himself, concurrently holding the title of Earl of Xuzhou, thus annexing Yangzhou for himself. He then appointed his subordinates Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui as Grand Generals. Later, Li Jue, a subordinate of Dong Zhuo, sought to bribe Yuan Shu to become his ally, so he appointed Yuan Shu as General of the Left, enfeoffed him as Marquis of Yangdi, and granted him an imperial insignia.

Li Jue then sent his Grand Tutor Ma Ridi to various places to hold investiture ceremonies for the newly enfeoffed generals and marquises. However, Yuan Shu, under the pretext of watching the ceremony, seized Ma Ridi's insignia and imprisoned him, refusing to let him return.

Ma Ridi said to Yuan Shu, "The Yuan family has been high-ranking officials for generations, yet they have resorted to such thievery." He then asked Yuan Shu to let him go back, but Yuan Shu refused. Later, Ma Ridi died of grief and indignation because of his loss of integrity and the injustice he suffered.

In the first year of Xingping (194), Tao Qian, the governor of Xuzhou, passed away. Before his death, he entrusted Xuzhou to Liu Bei. With the support of Yuan Shao, Liu Bei became the governor of Xuzhou.

Yuan Shu had long coveted Xuzhou, and upon hearing this, he was furious: "In all my years, I have never heard of Liu Bei in the world."

So he led his troops to prepare to attack Xuzhou, but lacked military provisions. He asked Lu Kang, the governor of Lujiang, for 30,000 bushels of rice, but Lu Kang refused. Yuan Shu then sent Sun Ce to lead troops to attack Lu Kang.

However, because Lu Kang was popular, many generals spontaneously returned to the city to help Lu Kang defend it. It took two years for Sun Ce to finally capture Lujiang.

Afterwards, Yuan Shu and Liu Bei engaged in a battle for Xuzhou, initially confronting each other in places like Xuyi and Huaiyin.

Taking advantage of the stalemate between the two sides, Lü Bu attacked Xiapi. Yuan Shu, taking advantage of Liu Bei's failed attempt to reinforce Xiapi, defeated Liu Bei at Guangling and occupied Guangling and Xiapi in Xuzhou.

Yuan Shu's ambition to establish himself as emperor had been long-standing. As early as when the Han Dynasty was still in existence, Yuan Shu had already secretly declared himself emperor in Jiujiang, established the distinction between ruler and subject, renamed the palace gate to Jianhao Gate, sewed clothes and bedding according to the system for the emperor, and established an empress, etc.

However, Yuan Shu's process of declaring himself emperor was not smooth. In the third year of Chuping (192), Sun Jian died in battle, and his son Sun Ce succeeded Sun Jian's subordinates and pledged allegiance to Yuan Shu.

Later, Yuan Shu sent Sun Ce to attack Liu Yao, the governor of Yangzhou. Sun Ce defeated him and occupied Jiangdong. At this time, Sun Ce heard that Yuan Shu was preparing to declare himself emperor and wrote a letter to dissuade him.

However, Yuan Shu refused to heed Sun Ce's advice, so Sun Ce and Yuan Shu ceased all contact.

Chen Gui, the nephew of the late Grand Commandant Chen Qiu, was serving as the Chancellor of Pei State at the time and had close ties with Yuan Shu.

Chen Gui's son, Chen Ying, was also in Xiapi at the time. Yuan Shu detained Chen Ying as a hostage and wrote to Chen Gui explaining his desire to become emperor, hoping that Chen Gui could help him.

After reading Yuan Shu's letter, Chen Gui rejected him, stating that he and his son would rather die than cooperate with him.

In the winter of the second year of Xingping (195 AD), Li Jue and Guo Si, subordinates of Dong Zhuo, pursued and killed the emperor and his officials in the Caoyangjian area of ​​Hongnong County. At that time, Yang Feng, who was protecting Emperor Xian, was defeated by the rebel army, and Emperor Xian fled alone to the north of the Yellow River.

Yuan Shu felt that the time was right, so he consulted with his subordinates and believed that the various warlords in the country were fighting for power and the Liu Dynasty was declining. Meanwhile, the Yuan family of Runan had many followers and high prestige and status. It was the right time to follow the will of Heaven and the people and declare himself emperor.

But "no one dared to oppose him," meaning his subordinates disagreed but dared not voice their opinions. Only the chief clerk, Yan Xiang, advised Yuan Shu, arguing that he should not declare himself emperor.
Yuan Shu was dissatisfied, so he sent someone with gifts to invite Zhang Liang's son, Zhang Fan, to come and discuss the matter. However, Zhang Fan declined to come, citing illness, and sent his younger brother, Zhang Cheng, to deal with the matter instead.

Yuan Shu, feeling that his territory was vast and his population large, asked Zhang Cheng about his thoughts on becoming emperor. Zhang Cheng believed that becoming emperor depended on virtue and the hearts of the people, not on the number of people one had.

To overstep one's bounds, defy the times, and declare oneself emperor will not garner any support. Yuan Shu was displeased upon hearing this. Later, when Cao Cao campaigned against Ji Province, Yuan Shu told Zhang Cheng that Cao Cao's attempt to resist their 100,000-strong army with only a few thousand soldiers was utterly overestimating his own strength.

Zhang Cheng, however, believed that although the Han Dynasty was in decline, the Mandate of Heaven had not changed. He argued that Cao Cao now held Emperor Xian of Han in his hands, using the emperor to command the other warlords, and could win even against a million soldiers. This further fueled Yuan Shu's discontent.

All these events made Yuan Shu realize that it would be extremely difficult to usurp the Han throne and establish himself as emperor. Therefore, Yuan Shu began searching for a legitimate reason to publicly declare himself emperor.

In the spring of Jian'an 2 (197 AD), Yuan Shu declared himself emperor in Shouchun, Huainan, calling himself "Zhongshi". He appointed the governor of Jiujiang as the governor of Huainan, set up a number of officials, and offered sacrifices to Heaven and Earth.

After Yuan Shu declared himself emperor, he lived an even more extravagant life, with hundreds of wives and concubines in his harem, all dressed in fine silks and satins, and enjoying all kinds of delicious food and wine.

After Yuan Shu declared himself emperor, he sent an envoy to inform Lü Bu of this matter and requested that Lü Bu's daughter marry his son. However, Lü Bu refused and had Yuan Shu's envoy arrested and sent to Xuchang, where Cao Cao was located.

Enraged, Yuan Shu dispatched his subordinates Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui to attack Lü Bu, but they suffered a crushing defeat. Lacking provisions, Yuan Shu led his troops to Chen to borrow grain, but Chen refused.

Yuan Shu then led his troops to attack the State of Chen, killing King Liu Chong and Chancellor Luo Jun. Upon hearing this, Cao Cao personally led his army to attack Yuan Shu. Yuan Shu, realizing this, hastily crossed the Huai River to flee, leaving only Zhang Xun and Qiao Rui in Qiyang to defend against Cao Cao. Cao Cao defeated their forces, killing Qiao Rui, and Zhang Xun retreated.

After Yuan Shu was defeated by Lü Bu and Cao Cao in succession, his army was exhausted and his soldiers were few. His commander was also killed in battle, and the morale of the army was unstable.

At the same time, a severe drought struck, and the people suffered from a complete crop failure. Both soldiers and civilians were starving and freezing. People along the Yangtze and Huai Rivers were destitute, and in some places, cannibalism occurred.

At this time, Shu Zhongying served as the Chancellor of Pei State under Yuan Shu. Yuan Shu gave him 100,000 bushels of rice to use as military rations, but Shu Zhongying saw that the people were hungry and poor, so he distributed all the grain to the people.

Yuan Shu was furious when he learned of this and prepared to lead his troops to kill Shu Zhongying. Shu Zhongying replied to Yuan Shu, "I knew I would die, which is why I did this. It is worth sacrificing my life to save the lives of many starving and freezing people."

Yuan Shu did not want to bear the reputation of killing virtuous and capable people, so he let Shu Zhongying go.

Although Yuan Shu cherished his reputation, he was arrogant by nature, and his debauchery and extravagance worsened, eventually leading to an empty treasury in his army.

The departure of Sun Ce and his cousin Sun Ben caused Yuan Shu to lose large territories such as Jiangdong and Guangling. In addition, Yuan Shu suffered successive defeats and could no longer establish a foothold.

Yuan Shu could only give the hard-earned title of emperor to his elder brother Yuan Shao, with whom he had a long-standing rift, and then travel north through Xiapi in Xuzhou to seek refuge with his nephew Yuan Tan in Qingzhou.

Cao Cao dispatched Liu Bei, Zhu Ling, Lu Zhao, and others to intercept Yuan Shu. Unable to reach him, Yuan Shu had no choice but to return to Shouchun. In June, he arrived at Jiangting, eighty li from Shouchun. (End of Chapter)