荀彘 / Xun Zhi (Western Han)

Overview

荀彘 / Xun Zhi is the Western Han left general whose stalled river advance, failed surrender protocol, and conflict with 楼船将军杨仆 fragment the campaign against 卫氏朝鲜 before he receives the combined army and completes the conquest.

Current Profile

Hanji 366-1 begins with Xun Zhi unable to break the Joseon force west of the Pei River. He joins 卫山 in demanding that the surrendering crown prince’s armed following disarm; the prince instead turns back. After Wudi executes Wei Shan, Xun Zhi interprets the punishment as a signal to advance, breaks the river defense, and surrounds 王险城 from the northwest.

At the city, Xun Zhi favors assault while Yang Pu, weakened by prior defeat, favors surrender. Xun Zhi argues that Yang Pu repeatedly fails to meet agreed attack dates and may create a larger danger through his separate dealings with Joseon, but the first episode says he lacks evidence for betrayal. Hanji 366-2 then shows 公孙遂 accepting the accusation, arresting Yang Pu, and giving Xun Zhi unified control. Intensified attack contributes to elite defections, Ugeo’s death, and the final fall of resistance, but victory does not erase the command dispute: Wudi later executes Xun Zhi for rivalry over merit and conflicting plans.

Key Characteristics

• Left general commanding the land-force branch of the Joseon campaign.
• Commander whose stalled river advance turns into attack after Wei Shan’s execution.
• Rival commander who repeatedly seeks coordinated attack dates with Yang Pu.
• Accuser whose unsupported betrayal suspicion helps drive Yang Pu’s arrest and army merger.
• Beneficiary of unified command during the campaign’s final phase.

Evidence

• Surrender protocol and renewed advance: Hanji 366-1 places Xun Zhi in the disarmament demand, the failed crossing, and the attack that follows Wei Shan’s execution.
• Divergent siege strategy: Hanji 366-1 contrasts his assault preference with Yang Pu’s surrender channel and labels his betrayal suspicion unsupported.
• Command dispute: Hanji 366-2 says Xun Zhi blames Yang Pu’s missed coordination and suspects his separate dealings.
• Unified assault: Hanji 366-2 says the combined army attacks more urgently and the Joseon ruling group fractures.
• Postwar punishment: Hanji 366-2 says Han Wudi publicly executes Xun Zhi for rivalry over merit and incompatible planning.

Qualifications

The sources support a serious command conflict but do not make Xun Zhi’s accusation self-validating. Yang Pu’s missed coordination, caution, prior defeat, and surrender channel can coexist with Xun Zhi’s own status interest and aggressive command style. Wei Shan’s execution supports Xun Zhi’s reading that Wudi demanded progress, but does not prove that every later aggressive choice was specifically ordered. The exact legal wording and full record of the postwar judgment remain outside the supplied episodes.

What Changed

• Added the stalled river attack, failed disarmament protocol, imperial punishment signal, and unsupported betrayal suspicion that precede the forced command merger.

Relationships

• 杨仆 - rival commander whose force is absorbed into Xun Zhi’s army.
• 公孙遂 - imperial investigator who accepts Xun Zhi’s accusation.
• 卫右渠 - opposing king whose regime collapses during the intensified assault.
• 军令同步失灵 - concept explaining the incompatible attack and surrender channels.
• 汉武帝 - ruler who ultimately executes Xun Zhi despite victory.
• 卫山 - envoy whose failed surrender and execution change Xun Zhi’s operational posture.