Liu Heita eventually followed Dou Jiande the Prince of Xia.
24 Facts About Liu Heita
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Liu Heita was then defeated by the Tang general Li Shimin and then Li Shimin's brother Li Jiancheng, the Crown Prince.
3.
In 623, Liu Heita was captured by his one-time subordinate Zhuge Dewei and executed.
4.
Liu Heita became friendly with Dou, and whenever he lacked money, Dou would support him.
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Liu Heita eventually joined agrarian rebels rising against Sui dynasty rule, and he initially followed Hao Xiaode, and then after Hao joined Li Mi's forces, served under Li.
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In 619, Liu Heita was serving in the army of Wang's newly established state of Zheng, defending Xinxiang, when he was captured by Li Shiji, a Tang dynasty general who had been forced to submit to and serve Dou's state of Xia.
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Liu Heita often had Liu command guerilla forces to make surprise attacks, and sometimes covertly entering enemy territory for intelligence purposes.
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Liu Heita therefore launched his army, seeking to save Zheng's capital Luoyang.
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The former Xia soldiers gradually came out of retirement and joined him, and Liu Heita offered sacrifices to Dou's spirit, declaring that the Xia forces had risen to avenge him.
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Liu Heita's uprising was echoed by another agrarian leader, Xu Yuanlang, who had submitted to Tang but by now was nominally submitting to him.
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Liu Heita then defeated Li Yi as well, and Liu Heita's fame spread through the region.
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Liu Heita entered into an alliance with another agrarian leader, Gao Kaidao the Prince of Yan, as well as the Eastern Turks.
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Emperor Gaozu, now realizing that Liu Heita was a major threat, decided to send Li Shimin and another son, Li Yuanji the Prince of Qi, to attack Liu Heita.
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Meanwhile, in spring 622, Liu Heita claimed the title of Prince of Handong.
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Liu Heita organized his government in the same manner Dou did, retaining most of former Xia officials and generals.
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Liu Heita set his capital at Mingzhou, the same location as Dou's capital.
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Li Shimin arrived from the south as Liu Heita was besieging Quzhou.
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Liu Heita was able to capture Luo Shixin and, when Luo refused to join the rebels, had him executed.
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When Liu Heita attacked, Li Shimin had the dam destroyed, and much of the Handong army was drowned.
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Liu Heita was able to flee with his general Wang Xiaohu, but Handong defenses otherwise collapsed.
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Liu Heita fled to the Eastern Turks, and Handong territory fell into Tang hands.
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However, Liu Heita's army won battle after battle, and in winter 622, Liu Heita engaged Li Daoxuan at Xiabo, defeating and killing Li Daoxuan.
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Meanwhile, Liu Heita's forces became bogged down while sieging Tang's Wei Prefecture, and when Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji arrived, Liu Heita's forces ran out of food supplies and collapsed.
24.
Liu Heita was able to flee, but in spring 623, as his flight, with only about 100 guards, took him to Rao Prefecture, his prefect of Rao Prefecture, Zhuge Dewei, welcomed him into the city and held a feast for him.