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Lady Xian
Li chieftainess of Gaoliang who kept the far south loyal through the Liang, Chen and Sui dynasties and was made Lady of Qiao by Emperor Wen of Sui
At dusk on a hilltop, a large tent stands open with a table holding a map marked with small stones inside, a saddled horse tethered outside, and fire stands burning; campfires dot the river plain below, and one tiny sentry stands on the slope.
Also known as Xian Ying
- Roles
- Commanders
Lady Xian came from Gaoliang, of a family that had long led the Li people of the south, with more than a hundred thousand households under them. Early in the Datong era of the Liang she married Feng Bao, governor of Gaoliang, and she helped enforce his rule among the Li chiefs. During Hou Jing's rebellion she saw through the plot of the Gaozhou governor Li Qianshi, routed him, and joined forces with Chen Baxian. In 569, when the Guangzhou governor Ouyang He rebelled and tried to draw in her son Feng Pu, she held the frontier for the Chen court. After the Sui conquered the Chen she brought the southern prefectures over, sent her grandson Feng Ang to crush Wang Zhongxuan's revolt, and rode in armour beside the Sui envoy Pei Ju through more than twenty prefectures. Emperor Wen made her Lady of Qiao, and on her death early in the Renshou era she was named Lady Chengjing.
Life and times
Dates c. 512 CE–c. 602 CE