Tao Qian's three trips to Xuzhou is a story in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which is widely circulated among the people in China. Tao Qian, whose real name is Gong Zu, was originally the prefect of Xuzhou, and he was loyal. He wants to make friends with Cao Cao, but there is no reason. Cao Cao recruited talented people in Yanzhou, and his strength became stronger and stronger, becoming an important town in Shandong. He sent someone to Yanzhou to pick up his reclusive father. More than forty people from the Cao family came with him. Passing through Xuzhou, Tao Qian greeted him to leave the country and held a big banquet for two days. Before he left, he also sent a department to escort Zhang Wei. I just know that Zhang Lu and others killed dozens of Cao family members for money, took their belongings and ran to the mountains to become an outlaw. Hearing this, Cao Cao fell to the ground crying, gnashing his teeth and swearing: "Tao Qian killed my father, and this revenge will not be repaid! I'm going to lead an army, bloodbath Xuzhou and avenge myself! " I came to Xuzhou with the soldiers. Tao Qian is weak, where is Cao Cao's opponent? When he saw Cao Cao's army killing people and digging graves everywhere, he cried in the sky and decided to tie himself to Cao Ying and let him cut it down to save the lives of Xuzhou people. Counselor Mi Zhu tried to dissuade him and put forward suggestions to Kong Rong, the magistrate of Beihai. When Kong Rong saw Mi Zhu, he knew his purpose, so he called Liu Bei's three brothers to Xuzhou for rescue. Liu Bei and Zhang Fei led the troops to Xuzhou at the gates, dispersed Cao Bing and rushed into the city to meet Tao Qian. Tao Qian was overjoyed to see Liu Bei's majestic posture and open-minded language, and ordered Mi Zhu to give Liu Bei the seal of Xuzhou. Liu Bei was startled when he saw this scene. Tao Qian said, "Now the world is in chaos, and Wang Gang is very depressed. The man is a relative of the Han family, so it is proper to help the country. I am old and incompetent, and I am willing to give up Xuzhou. Don't refuse. " Liu Bei got up and said, "I came to Xuzhou out of loyalty. Do you doubt that I have the heart to annex? " Tao Qian said: "This is the truth of the old lady." Liu Bei will not accept repeated concessions. Mi Zhu stepped forward and said, "Now, Enemy at the Gates, let's discuss the strategy of withdrawing troops. We'll talk about Xuzhou later. " Liu Bei wrote a letter to persuade Cao Cao to withdraw.

Just then, Lu Bu captured Yanzhou, Cao Cao's lair in the north. When Cao Cao was about to save, he sold his personal feelings to Liu Bei and withdrew on the same day. Cao Bing retreated. Tao Qian hosted a banquet in the city for the generals who came to the rescue. He sat Liu Bei on the table, then handed him over to everyone and said, "The old lady is old, and my second son is incompetent and can't bear the heavy responsibility. Liu Bei, a descendant of the royal family, can take Xuzhou as his seat. I am willing to rest and recuperate. " Liu Bei quickly got up and said, "I really dare not take responsibility! In doing so, the world will regard Liu Bei as an unjust person. " Everyone advised Liu Bei to accept it, but Liu Bei refused. Tao Qian sobbed, "If you leave me, I will die unsatisfied!" Tao Qian repeatedly made concessions, but Liu Beijian refused to accept it. Tao Qian had no choice but to say, "There is a small town near here, which is big enough to station troops. Please station troops here temporarily to protect Xuzhou. " Everyone advised. Liu Bei did not have a fixed site at that time, so he agreed to come down.

Soon, Tao Qian was seriously ill and invited Liu Bei to Xuzhou for consultation. When Liu Bei came in to pay his respects, Tao Qian said, "Please come here. The old lady is critically ill, and it is difficult to protect her day and night. I hope that the Ming Dynasty will pay more attention to Seoul and the people and receive the seal from Xuzhou, so that the old lady can rest in peace. " No sooner had Liu Bei dodged than Tao Qian died in his heart. After Tao Qian's death, the officials, soldiers and people in Xuzhou crowded in front of the mansion with big seals and cried and said, "If Liu Shijun doesn't lead this county, we can't have peace!" Liu Bei accepted the seal of Xuzhou satrap.