In the ninth lunar month of 208 BC, at the Battle of Dingtao, the Qin general Zhang Han defeated a force from the insurgent Chu state led by Xiang Liang.

Song Yi's army reached Anyang, some distance away from Julu (in present-day Pingxiang County, Xingtai, Hebei), where Zhao Xie's forces had retreated to.

Xiang Yu sent Ying Bu and Zhongli Mo to lead 20,000 men to cross the Yellow River and reinforce Julu, and they won a few skirmishes.

In the twelfth month of 208 BC, Xiang Yu personally led an army across the river to meet up with Ying Bu and Zhongli Mo.

By the time he arrived on the battlefield, Zhao forces in Julu had been nearly starved under a prolonged siege by Zhang Han's deputy Wang Li.

Xiang Yu ordered his men to carry only three days worth of supplies and destroy the rest, along with their cauldrons and cooking utensils, and sink the boats they used to cross the river.

Xiang Yu's troops fought very fiercely, to the extent of "every Chu soldier taking on ten foes", and eventually defeated Qin forces in nine consecutive engagements.

Before Xiang Yu launched the assault, forces from other insurgent principalities had arrived at Julu to reinforce the Zhao state, but they did not dare to advance for fear of the large Qin army and only garrisoned outside of the battle area.

In dire straits, Zhang Han, along with his deputies Sima Xin and Dong Yi and his 200,000 men, eventually surrendered to Xiang Yu in the summer of 207 BC.

In the 11th month of 207 BC, Xiang Yu led his army to the city of Xin'an (新安; in present-day Yima, Henan)[2] and made camp.

Although Xiang Yu had the 200,000 surrendered Qin soldiers buried alive, he spared the three generals Zhang Han, Sima Xin and Dong Yi.

[4] In 1912, workers constructing the Longhai Railway unearthed large amounts of human remains at Yima, Henan, the site where Xiang Yu had the 200,000 surrendered Qin soldiers buried alive.