The four generals of the four expeditions include the generals of Zhengdong, Zhengxi, Zhengnan, and North. During the Han Dynasty, the generals of the Four Expeditions belonged to the range of miscellaneous generals, that is, their status was not too high at the beginning. However, after Cao Cao established Cao Wei, he promoted the status of the general of the Four Expeditions, making him second only to the ranks of general, general of the Hun Horse, and general of the Horse Rider. Among them, as far as Cao Wei's general Zhengxi was concerned, he took charge of the soldiers and horses in the western front and undertook the heavy responsibility of defending Shu Han. In the history of Cao Wei, there were a total of eight generals who conquered the west.
The first general to conquer the west was Xiahou Yuan
As early as the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Xiahou Yuan followed Cao Cao to raise an army. In the early years of Jian'an (196), he moved to Chen Liu Taishou and later to Yingchuan Taishou. In August of the fifth year of Jian'an (200), Cao Cao and Yuan Shao fought at Guandu and took xiahou Yuanxing as a lieutenant of the military academy. In October, Yuan Shao was defeated, and Xiahou Yuan supervised the transportation of military food from Yanzhou, Yuzhou, and Xuzhou, and at that time, there was a shortage of food in the army, and Xiahou Yuan transported supplies in time, and the military was revived.
In the first month of the seventeenth year of Jian'an (212), Cao Cao returned to Yecheng. Xiahou Yuanxing served as a general of the escort army, supervising Zhu Ling and Lu Zhao, stationed in Chang'an, breaking the Thousands of Nanshan thieves Liu Xiong (also known as Liu Xiongming), who had gathered thousands of people to rebel at the Wuguan Pass, and surrendering his troops, Liu Xiong fled to Hanzhong. In 215, Cao Cao conquered Zhang Lu and captured the land of Hanzhong. Of course, Cao Cao could not have stayed in Hanzhong all the time. Therefore, he crowned Xiahou Yuan as a general of Zhenxi, and thus guarded Hanzhong and Guanzhong.
As we all know, Hanzhong is the gateway and throat of Yizhou, which prompts Liu Bei not to give up the battle for Hanzhong. In 217, Liu Bei officially launched the Battle of Hanzhong. In the twenty-third year of Jian'an (218), Liu Bei marched to Yangping Pass, and Xiahou Yuan led Zhang Guo and Xu Huang to resist him, with Xu Huang breaking the Chen style and Zhang Gao stationed in Guangshi, Liu Bei attacked but did not conquer, and the two sides held each other until the following year. In 219, Xiahou Yuan was beheaded by Huang Zhong. In the same year, Liu Bei won the Battle of Hanzhong.
The second general of The Expedition to the West was Zhang Gao
Zhang Gao was from the land of Jizhou and was originally a subordinate of Mu Hanfu of Jizhou. In 191, after Yuan Shao captured Jizhou, Zhang Guo began to follow Yuan Shao. However, in 200 AD, after the Outbreak of the Battle of Guandu, Zhang Gao defected and surrendered to Cao Cao. In the twentieth year of Jian'an (215), Cao Cao marched west to Zhang Lu, arrived at Chencang, and prepared to enter the Qi tribe from Wudu County; the Qi people blocked the road, and Cao Cao sent Zhang Gao to lead a large army to attack Liang Xing and the tribe of Dou Mao, the leader of the Qi tribe. Soon after entering Hanzhong from Sanguan, Zhang Gao was sent to lead 5,000 infantry to open the road in front of him, all the way to Yangping. In November of the same year, Zhang Lu surrendered and Hanzhong was pacified.
In 228 AD, when Zhuge Liang, the chancellor of the Shu Han Dynasty, went on a northern expedition to the Central Plains, Zhang Gao followed Cao Zhen to meet the enemy. At the Battle of Jieting, Zhang Gao defeated Ma Mo, forcing Zhuge Liang to return without success. As a result, the Wei Ming Emperor Cao Rui made Zhang Guo a general on the Western Che Dynasty. However, in 231, Sima Yi asked Zhang Gao to pursue the Shu Han army, but because he was ambushed, Zhang Gao lost his life.
The third general of the Expedition to the West was Zhao Yu
Zhao Yu was born during the Jianning period of the Eastern Han Ling Emperor. Since childhood, he has been familiar with the history of the Bible, and has developed a keen observation and analysis ability and a shrewd and trained personality. The weak crown of the year is called the township. Together with Yang Zhai Xinbi, Xuchang Chen Qun, and Dingling Du Raid, he was called the four famous men of Yingchuan. In 197 (the second year of Jian'an), when Zhao Yu was twenty-seven years old, he took his family to Cao Cao, and Cao Cao made Emperor Xian of Han and appointed Zhao Yu as the county commander of Langling (in present-day Qishannan, Henan).
In 208 (the thirteenth year of Jian'an), Cao Cao conquered Jingzhou, sent Zhao Yu to serve as the Taishou of Zhangling, and promoted him to the post of Governor of the Capital, supervising the seven roads of Yu Ban, Zhang Liao, Zhang Gao, Zhu Ling, Li Dian, Lu Zhao, and Feng Kai. Later, he served as the chief bookkeeper of the chancellor and was transferred to Fufeng Taishou. In 219, during Guan Yu's Northern Expedition to Xiangfan, Zhao Yu assisted Cao Ren in resisting Guan Yu. In 240, Zhao Yu was made a general of the Western Expedition and commanded Cao Wei's soldiers and horses in the Yongliang region. In 245 AD, Zhao Yu died.
The fourth general of the Expedition to the West was Xiahou Xuan
Xiahou Xuan (209–254), courtesy name Taichu (Romance of the Three Kingdoms, etc.), was a native of Peiguo County (present-day Bozhou, Anhui). During the Three Kingdoms period, Cao Wei was a chancellor and writer, the son of xiahou Shang, the general of Zhengnan, and the cousin of the great general Cao Shuang. Xiahou had little fame and outstanding appearance, and was sometimes called "Lang Lang like the sun and the moon". In the sixth year of the Huang Dynasty (225), Emperor Wen of Wei attacked the Marquis of Changling Township. During the reign of Emperor Ming of Wei, he successively served as a waiter at the Yellow Gate and a yulin supervisor. In 239 AD, after Cao Fang succeeded to the throne, he was relieved of the official positions of Chang Shi (常侍) and Zhonghu (中護軍).
Later, the general Cao Shuang appointed Xiahou Xuan as the general of The Western Expedition, thus helping him control the soldiers and horses of the western front of Cao Wei. In 244, Xiahou Xuan and Cao Shuang attacked the Shu Han dynasty of Hanzhong together, only to suffer a defeat that undermined their prestige among Cao Wei's generals. In 249, Sima Yi launched the Gaopingling Rebellion, killing Cao Shuang and his henchmen. It is worth noting that Xiahou Xuan, who had a heavy army in hand, did not fight back against Sima Yi, but returned to Luoyang. In 254, Sima Shi eliminated Xiahou Xuan.
The fifth general of the Zhenxi Dynasty was Guo Huai
In 220 AD, after Cao Pi ascended the throne, Guo Huai was crowned as the Assassin of Yongzhou. After Xiahou Xuan was transferred away in 249, Guo Huai succeeded him as the general of Zhengxi. In 250 AD, Guo Huai was promoted to the rank of Cheqi general. In 255 AD, Guo Huai died. For Guo Huai, he had long guarded the western front area of Cao Wei and fought with Zhuge Liang and Jiang Wei many times. Moreover, Guo Huai can be said to be Sima Yi's confidant, which is one of the reasons why Xiahou Xuan was unable to raise an army against Sima Yi after the outbreak of the Gaopingling Rebellion.
The sixth general of the Zhenxi Dynasty was Chen Tai
Chen Tai (200–260), courtesy name Xuanbo, was a native of Xuchang, Yingchuan (present-day Xuchang, Henan). During the Three Kingdoms period, he was a famous general of the State of Wei and the son of Sikong Chen Qun. After the change of Gao Pingling, in order to avoid the internal struggle of the imperial court, Chen Tai took the initiative to ask to go out to take office. He was transferred to Yongzhou (雍州, in present-day Guanzhong, Shaanxi and eastern Gansu) to replace the original assassin Guo Huai and add the general Fenwu to the front line of the campaign against Shu.
In 255, after Guo Huai's death, Chen Tai was made a general of The Expeditionary West and took charge of Cao Wei's soldiers and horses in the Yongliang region. In 256, Chen Tai returned to Luoyang and held official positions such as Shangshu's Right Servant. In 260, because Sima Zhao killed emperor Cao Xian, Chen Tai was very sad and died of illness shortly after. After Chen Tai's death, he was attacked by his son Chen Ke . Chen Ke was childless, and after his death, he was attacked by his younger brother Chen Wen.
The seventh general of the Expedition to the West was Deng Ai
In the later period of Cao Wei, Deng Ai repeatedly resisted Jiang Wei's attacks. In 257, Deng Ai was promoted to general of Zhenxi. In 263, Sima Zhao mobilized an army of 180,000 and officially launched the Battle of Wei and Shu. In this battle, although the main force led by Zhong Hui was blocked by Jiang Wei. However, Deng Ai smuggled into Yinping and besieged Chengdu, forcing the later lord Liu Chan to give up resistance. In 264 AD, because of his pride in his own achievements, coupled with the false accusations of Zhong Hui and others, Deng Ai was unjustly killed.
The eighth general of the Expedition to the West was Sima Wang
In the end, Sima Wang was originally Sima Fu's son, but later passed on to his uncle Sima Lang. In the third year of Jiaping (251), Sima Wang followed Sima Yi in his conquest of Wang Ling. After this battle, Sima Wang was given the title of Marquis of Yong'an Ting. After Cao Huan ascended the throne, Sima Wang came to the Yongliang region and held official positions such as the general of Zhengxi. In the first year of Xianxi (264), Sima Wang was promoted to the rank of general of the Hussars. In August of the same year, Sima Wang succeeded He Zeng as Situ. In December of the following year, Sima Yan replaced Cao Wei and established the Western Jin Dynasty, and Sima Wang was made the Prince of Yiyang, with 10,000 households and 2,000 soldiers.
In the fourth year of the Tai Dynasty (268), Wu attacked Jiangxia Commandery with Shi Ji, and the imperial court ordered Sima Wang to command a total of 20,000 infantry and cavalry, out of Tun Longpi, and granted him a false festival. Soon, Jingzhou stabbed Shi Hulie to break Shi Ji, and Sima Wang returned to the dynasty. In the same year, the Wu general Ding Feng and others attacked Qianpi again, and Sima Wang led his armies to attack, and before Sima Wang arrived, Sima Jun repelled Ding Feng. Soon, Sima Wang was worshipped as the Grand Sima (大司馬). On The 17th day of May 271 ( 17 June 271 ) , Sima Wang died at the age of sixty-seven. The imperial court gave many treasures and goods, and gave them the title of "Cheng".