Ma Chao was one of the Five Tiger Generals under Liu Bei during the Three Kingdoms period.
Ma Chao and Han Sui, the governor of Liangzhou, once controlled the Xiliang region together. Though they outwardly submitted to Cao Cao, they secretly gathered forces to oppose him.
Cao Cao recognized this as well. In 211 AD, he launched a campaign against the western Liang region under the pretext of subduing Zhang Lu in Hanzhong. Ma Chao and Han Sui saw through his scheme and led a hundred-thousand-strong army to confront him.
At the time, Cao's army was stationed at Puban (west of modern Yongji, Shanxi Province). Ma Chao, aware of their supply difficulties, proposed intercepting them north of the Wei River, saying, "If we cut off their grain, they'll be forced to retreat within days." But Han Sui rejected the plan.
After learning of Ma Chao's plan, Cao Cao sighed, "If that Ma Chao doesn't die, I won't even have a place to bury myself."
Cao Cao then followed a strategist's plan to sow discord: he pretended to seek peace, arranged separate talks with Han Sui and Ma Chao, and spoke privately with Han Sui, making Ma Chao suspicious. When Ma Chao confronted Han Sui, Cao Cao seized the moment to attack, crushing their forces in a chaotic defeat.
After his victory, Cao Cao pressed his advantage and pursued Ma Chao relentlessly
Zhuge Liang greatly admired Ma Chao's talents, once praising him as a man of both literary and martial prowess, unmatched in bravery, and truly a hero of his generation.
Later, the idiom "in a sorry plight" came to describe a situation of extreme embarrassment or difficulty.
Source: *Records of the Three Kingdoms*, "Biography of Ma Chao"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "狼狈不堪" came to describe a situation of extreme embarrassment or difficulty.