Famous for his courage and generosity, Zhang Ni made his name known while rescuing a magistrate's wife from bandits and leading her to safety.

Feeling he was growing weak and old, Zhang Ni gave a stirring speech asking to give him a chance to repay his lord's largesse or die trying.

His death was mourned such that none among the Han or foreign clan of Yuexi did not weep with grief, and a temple established for him was brought offerings even in times of famine and hardship.

Liu Shan, emperor of the Shu Han dynasty at the time of his service, compared him to the great heroes of antiquity, while Chen Shou in his appraisal of Zhang also referenced this comparison.

Zhang Ni could not force them to come out to fight him so he pretended to offer to extend a heqin policy to the bandit chiefs and then managed to coax them into attending a banquet to celebrate the peace.

After the unsuspecting bandit chiefs got drunk, Zhang Ni ordered his men to kill all of them and then sent his troops to hunt down and eliminate the rest.

Zhang Ni judged that an assault on the gate would be complicated and so he sent an interpreter to inform them:[8] "All of you, the tribes of Wen Mountain have rebelled and done harm to the innocents: hence Heaven's Son ordered us at once to quell and destroy the evil.

However if you bow your heads and permit the army to pass giving provisions and supplies then you may enjoy good fortune and eternal prosperity and will be repaid a hundredfold.

At around 236, one of the Di tribes' most famous leaders Fu Jian (苻健) offered to submit to Shu Han so General-in-Chief Jiang Wan sent a general, Zhang Wei (張尉) to receive them.

Zhang Ni was at Chengdu at this time and tried to appease Jiang Wan's worries by saying:[13] "Fu Jian's request to join us was sincere and certainly his mind has not changed.

Moreover, the foreign Di tribes have trouble working together, so there has likely been changes and unusual circumstances that have delayed Zhang Wei and forced him to remain longer to accomplish his task.

The commandery had belonged to Shu Han since the forceful subjugation of Gāo Dìng in 225 by Li Yan but the State had problems asserting its authority over it.

When he arrived, Zhang Ni led those he commanded in Yuexi and enticed the tribes with favor and generous treatment hence the foreigners all started to return to submission.

Zhang Ni captured their leader Wei Lang (魏狼) alive but released him as a show of mercy to win over the trust of his kind.

After this, Zhang Ni turned his attention to the Duqi (都耆) leader Li Qiucheng (李求承), who previously had personally killed the former Administrator Gong Lu.

These counties formed a large part of Yuexi's revenue since they produced valuable commodities like salt, iron, and lacquer but were on the western border and seized by foreign tribes for themselves.

The chieftain's leader, Hao Langcen (豪狼岑), the Panmu King's maternal uncle who was greatly trusted by the foreign tribes hated Zhang Ni for his incursion and would not go meet him.

Then, Zhang Ni sent the body back to the tribes along with generous rewards describing Hao Langcen's evil crimes and also saying:[22] "Do not rush mindlessly into action.

Rather than face them, Zhang Ni observed the situation and in response sent one of his own relatives to Lang Li with presents such as oxen and wine as gifts of appreciation.

Additionally, Lang Li's elder sister had been under Zhang Ni's care since her husband's execution (Dong Feng) so he sent her back to her family to show his good intentions.

So Lang Lu led his brothers, wives and children to all go to Zhang Ni, swear an oath of alliance and commit to reopening the old road.

Zhang Ni thus sent a letter to admonish him that said: "In the past Cen Peng was a great commander wielding the Staff of Authority but was killed by an assassin.

Because your kinsman[c] has the talent of the Duke of Zhou, there must also be those [in his court] like Guan and Cai spreading rumors that he intends to usurp the throne,[d] and when Huo Guang received his appointment there were high officials like Yan and Ge planning to resist and rebel, and he had to rely on the wisdom of Cheng and Zhao in order to avoid disaster.

In the past, I always heard the Eastern Ruler[e] never gave the authority to kill or bestow rewards or punishments to his subordinates, yet now because of his death he has entrusted all future affairs to the Grand Tutor; that is truly worrisome.

The lands of Wu and Shu are vulnerable, and in the past this has been noted, yet the Grand Tutor has left the young ruler and walks instead to face the enemy in his stronghold.

According to the Sanguozhi, both people of Han Chinese descent and other ethnic tribes were all deeply attached to Zhang Ni and grabbed the wheels of his carriage, wept and sobbed as they learned of his departure.

He followed Zhang Ni to the border of the Shu Han prefecture of Yuexi and sent an escort of 100 warriors to present tribute to Chengdu with him.

Many officials expressed worries that it might be a ruse but Zhang Ni believed that Li Jian was sincere and managed to convince Liu Shan to agree.

[40] The Sanguozhi recorded that his death was mourned such that none among the Han or foreign clan of Yuexi did not weep with grief and a temple established for him was brought offerings even in times of famine and hardship.

Along with Huang Quan, Li Hui, Lü Kai, Ma Zhong, Wang Ping, It was thanks to their qualities that they were all well known through the empire and because they seized the opportunity given to them that they left strong legacies.