Chapters: 509 Births, 509 Deaths, Emperor Kimmei, Wei Xiaokuan, Eochaid Mac Muiredaig Muinderg, List of State Leaders in 509, Sigobert the Lame, Chlodoric the Parricide. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 30. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Wei Xiaokuan () (509-580), formal personal name Wei Shuyu () (but went by the courtesy name of Xiaokuan), known by the Xianbei name Yuwen Xiaokuan () during late Western Wei and Northern Zhou, formally Duke Xiang of Xun (), was a general of the Chinese/Xianbei states Western Wei and Northern Zhou. He first became a prominent general during Western Wei as he defended the fortress of Yubi (, in modern Yuncheng, Shanxi) against a vastly larger army commanded by rival Eastern Wei's paramount general Gao Huan, and he eventually contributed greatly to the destruction of Eastern Wei's successor state Northern Qi by Northern Zhou. His final campaign, in 580, saw him siding with the regent Yan Jian against the general Yuchi Jiong in Northern Zhou's civil war, allowing Yang to defeat Yuchi and (after Wei's death) take over the throne as Sui Dynasty's Emperor Wen. More so than other prominent generals at the time, Wei was known for using atypical strategies in both offense and defense, including extensive use of espionage and forgeries to undermine the morale of opposing forces. Wei Xiaokuan was born in 509, during Western Wei's predecessor Northern Wei (which Western Wei and its rival Eastern Wei were divided from) -- specifically, during the reign of Emperor Xuanwu. His clan was a prominent one in the Sanfu (, greater Chang'an) region, and both his grandfather Wei Zhishan () and Wei Xu () were commandery governors during Northern Wei. Wei Xiaokuan's given name was actually Wei Xiaoyu, but for reasons lost to history, he became known to others largely by ...More: http: //booksllc.net/?id=888342