Historic stories
Tian Dan's fire bulls
In 284 BC, Yue Yi, a general of the Yan State, conquered 70 cities of the Qi State on a winning streak. Tian Dan, a general of the Qi State, was making an unremitting effort to defend Jimo City (located in today's southeast Pingdu). In 279 BC. Tian Dan pretended to surrender to the Yan troops, which made the latter let down their guard. At night, Tian Dan secretly assembled more than 1,000 bulls, put cloths with colorful dragon patterns on them, and tied sharp weapons to their horns. Then he bound reeds that had been soaked in oil with the tails of the bulls, and lit them on fire. The bulls, startled by the fire, charged towards the campsite of the Yan troops. The 5,000 Qi soldiers followed the bulls to fight against their enemies. The Yan troops were totally defeated. Tian Dan recovered all the lost land of the Qi State. Tian Dan succeeded because he caught the enemy off guard by launching an unexpected ambush at night with fire bulls. This is a famous case of the weak defeating the strong in the Chinese military history.
The 500 warriors of Tian Heng
According to the Historical Records, after Liu Bang, Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty brought the whole country under his rule, Tian Heng, a descendant of the former Qi State, and his 500 soldiers were stranded on an isolated island. Liu Bang wanted to make Tian Heng surrender. He announced that if Tian Heng came to surrender, he would be given a prominent position; otherwise, his group would be besieged and wiped out. To save his 500 men, Tian Heng decided to meet Liu Bang. He killed himself on his way to Luoyang and left a note ordering his two subordinates to chop off his head and take it to Liu Bang. Liu Bang held a grand funeral for Tian Heng and offered the position of Duwei (a title of a high-level military offcer under the general) to his two subordinates. But both men chose to kill themselves. Liu Bang then tried to convince the 500 people on the island to surrender. Unwilling to yield, all the 500 men committed suicide. The island was later named Tian Heng Island ( in today's Jimo District).