Sun Ru Encamps at Lishui, 891 CE

Background

At the end of the Tang dynasty the region between the Huai and the Yangtze was divided among military commands. Sun Ru attacked Xuanzhou and quartered his troops at Lishui; Yang Xingmi was then in command of the Ningguo army and opposed him.

Time and place

The gazetteer records:

二年辛亥，孙孺攻宣州，军屯溧水。时杨行密领宁国军，遣将李福拒之，夜袭孺军，胜之。

Translated: In the second year, a xinhai year, Sun Ru attacked Xuanzhou and encamped his troops at Lishui. Yang Xingmi, then in command of the Ningguo army, sent his general Li Fu to oppose him, and attacked Sun Ru's troops by night, defeating them.

The entry is dated to the second year of the Dashun era, a xinhai year, which is 891 CE. One side encamped at Lishui. In the preceding entry the gazetteer records that in the first year of Dashun (890 CE) Shengzhou was restored and Lishui placed under it.

What happened

Sun Ru's troops encamped at Lishui; Yang Xingmi sent his general Li Fu to oppose them, and Li Fu attacked the camp by night.

Consequences

The night attack succeeded and Sun Ru's troops were defeated. The gazetteer records nothing of what followed, nor of the state of Lishui itself.

Uncertainties

The record is brief: it gives neither the size of Sun Ru's forces, nor the exact place of the encampment, nor the course of the fighting, and this entry adds none of these. Where Sun Ru's troops went after the night raid is likewise unrecorded. The confidence level is set to medium.