[2] Li besieged the city of Erh-shih (probably near Samarkand) to obtain certain fine horses of the Ferghana that had been demanded by the Han Empire but refused.
[3] He diverted the river that supplied the inner city with water, and "received three thousand horses in tribute.
"[4] In 90 BC, when Li was campaigning in the north against the Xiongnu Empire, his wife was imprisoned in the capital after being involved in a political scandal involving their in-law Liu Qumao (one of Liu's sons had married one of the Lis' daughters).
Li sought a quick victory, hoping to win his wife's release.
However, about a year later, he was executed, becoming a human sacrifice,[5] after having a conflict with Wei Lü (衛律), another Han defector who was favoured by the Chanyu.