Career
Yang Ye was a very good horse archer and hunter in his youth. In his 20s, he joined warlord Liu Chong, quickly becoming a commanding commissioner of defense after Liu Chong (who changed his name to Liu Min) established the Northern Han Kingdom in Taiyuan in 951. Emperor Taizong of Song thought highly of Yang Ye and appointed him a general. After Taizong had exterminated the Nothern Han Dynasty, he declared war on Liao in order to restore the lost lands. The Song army suffered a devastating defeat. After that, the Liao army launched several attacks the Song borders. Taizong was very worried, made Yang Ye the inspector of Daizhou and ordered him defend the Yanmen Gate. In 980 Yang fought back the Khitan army so bravely, that later whenever the enemy saw "Yang" flag, they retreted without fighting.
In 986, the Song armies embarked on a large-scale northern campaign to take the Sixteen Prefectures from Liao. It began successful, but the Song Dynasty was betrayed by military commissioner Pan Mei and defeated by Liao army. Captured by the Khitans, Yang Ye starved himself to death