| NAME | |
|---|---|
| Chinese Name | 公孙脩, 公孫脩, Gōngsūn Xiū |
| Nickname | Crown Prince of Yan (燕太子); eldest son of Gongsun Yuan |
| Other name | Công Tôn Tu |
| INFORMATION | |
| Birth Place | Xiangping, Liaodong (辽东襄平; Liêu Đông Tương Bình) |
| Died | 238 AD |
| Death Reason | Beheaded by Wei pursuit cavalry at the Liang River (238 AD) |
| FAMILY | |
| Father | |
| Relatives | |
| CAREER | |
| Allegiance | Gongsun Yuan (Yan / Liaodong) |
| Battles |
|
Biography & Historical Record
Gongsun Xiu (公孙脩, Công Tôn Tu) was the eldest son and designated heir of Gongsun Yuan (公孙渊, Công Tôn Uyên), the warlord who ruled Liaodong and proclaimed himself King of Yan before Cao Wei’s final conquest. The Gongsun clan had held the northeast across four generations — from Gongsun Du (公孙度) through Gongsun Kang (公孙康) and Gongsun Gong (公孙恭) to Gongsun Yuan — maintaining semi-independent power on the Korean frontier.
In autumn 238 AD, Grand Commandant Sima Yi (司马懿, Tư Mã Ý) besieged Gongsun Yuan’s capital Xiangping (襄平) through a long starvation campaign. When the city fell, Gongsun Yuan and Gongsun Xiu led several hundred cavalry in a desperate breakout toward the Liang River (梁水, Lương Thủy). Wei pursuit cavalry overtook them on the riverbank; father and son were beheaded together, ending Gongsun rule in Liaodong. Chen Shou records the execution in Wei 28 and Pei Songzhi preserves detailed siege chronology.
Role in Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Chapter 106 (Sima Yi Occupies Liaodong; Gongsun Yuan Is Executed at Xiangping): The novel dramatizes Sima Yi’s Liaodong expedition — the long siege of Xiangping, Gongsun Yuan’s arrogance toward Wei envoys, and the final pursuit to the Liang River where Gongsun Yuan is slain. Gongsun Xiu is not always named separately in abridged retellings but belongs to the same flight-and-execution scene as his father in historical accounts incorporated into the chapter.
Gongsun Xiu (公孙脩) — Historical & Literary Timeline
c. 210s AD
Heir of Liaodong
Eldest son of Gongsun Yuan — raised as crown prince of the Yan kingdom in Xiangping.
237–238 AD
War with Wei
Gongsun Yuan rebels against Cao Wei; Sima Yi marches northeast with a massive expedition.
Autumn 238 AD
Fall of Xiangping
City starved into surrender after Sima Yi’s encirclement — Gongsun Xiu flees with his father.
238 AD
Death at Liang River
Overtaken by Wei cavalry on the Liang River bank; beheaded with Gongsun Yuan — end of four generations of Gongsun rule.
See Gongsun Yuan on Wikipedia and Sima Yi.
Key Relationships
Family
- Gongsun Yuan (公孙渊, Công Tôn Uyên): Father — self-proclaimed King of Yan; killed with Gongsun Xiu at the Liang River in 238 AD.
- Gongsun Kang (公孙康, Công Tôn Khang): Grandfather — earlier Liaodong warlord who controlled the Korean frontier.
- Gongsun Du (公孙度, Công Tôn Độ): Great-grandfather — founder of the Liaodong Gongsun line.
Friends
- Liaodong garrison commanders who remained loyal to the Gongsun house through the 238 AD siege — no individual names preserved in Sanguozhi.
Enemies
- Sima Yi (司马懿, Tư Mã Ý): Wei Grand Commandant who besieged Xiangping and ordered the pursuit that killed Gongsun Xiu.
- Cao Rui (曹叡, Tào Duệ): Wei emperor who authorized the Liaodong extermination campaign.
Other
- Cao Wei (曹魏, Tào Ngụy): Central state that ended semi-independent Yan rule in 238 AD.
- Xiangping (襄平) and Liang River (梁水) — sites of the siege and final execution in Wei 28.
In Novel
Chapter 106
- Gongsun Yuan (公孙渊, Công Tôn Uyên): Besieged at Xiangping by Sima Yi (司马懿, Tư Mã Ý); flees with his heir when the city falls — the flight to the Liang River where both are slain encompasses Gongsun Xiu (公孙脩, Công Tôn Tu) as crown prince in historical sources behind the chapter.
- Chapter 106: Sima Yi's starvation siege and the massacre policy after Xiangping's fall — Gongsun Xiu dies in the same pursuit scene as his father on the Liang River bank.
In History
Summary
- Gongsun Xiu (公孙脩, Công Tôn Tu), eldest son of Gongsun Yuan, fled the fall of Xiangping in 238 AD and was beheaded with his father at the Liang River.
Year: 238 AD
- Autumn: Sima Yi captures Xiangping after a long siege; Gongsun Yuan and Gongsun Xiu attempt escape by cavalry.
- Wei pursuit overtakes them at the Liang River; both executed — four generations of Gongsun Liaodong rule ended.
Historical Record
- Sanguozhi, Wei 28 (公孙渊传): Gongsun Yuan biography records the siege, flight, and execution at Liang River.
- Pei Songzhi annotations preserve siege chronology and Sima Yi's encirclement tactics.
- ROTK Chapter 106: literary dramatization of the same campaign.
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