During the chaos at the end of the Qin Dynasty, Han Xin first sought refuge with Xiang Yu but was never given any important role; he then turned to Liu Bang, who recognized his talent and appointed him as Grand General.
After leading the Han army to conquer Qi, Han Xin crushed Xiang Yu's 200,000 Chu reinforcements and occupied the territory. To secure his loyalty, Liu Bang appointed Han Xin as the King of Qi.
Xiang Yu, recognizing Han Xin's exceptional talent and the threat he posed, sent an envoy to persuade him to abandon Liu Bang and declare himself king. However, Han Xin replied, "I once served under you, King Xiang, but was only given a minor post, and my strategies were ignored. That is why I turned to King Liu Bang. He trusts me, values my counsel, and follows my every plan—that is how I have risen to where I am today. With such treatment, even death could not make me betray him!"
Seeing that General Han Xin commanded a mighty army with vast military power, the strategist Kuai Tong urged him to break away and carve out a third kingdom between Chu and Han. Kuai Tong argued, "When the chaos first erupted, heroes rose to destroy the brutal Qin dynasty. But now the struggle between Chu and Han has plunged the world into misery, with countless dead and wounded. Only a sage can end this catastrophe. The fate of both Liu Bang and Xiang Yu now rests in your hands—serve Han and Han wins, serve Chu and Chu triumphs. Why not remain neutral and divide the empire into three? Heed the people's wishes, speak for the common folk, stop the war between Liu and Xiang, and end years of bloodshed. The world will rally to you swiftly. Restrain both sides, force them to cede territory for new feudal states, treat those lords with virtue and courtesy, and all under heaven will bow to Qi. The people will obey you and credit you for their peace. This is a gift from heaven—if you refuse it, you will instead invite disaster."
Han Xin could not bear to betray Liu Bang, saying, "Liu Bang has treated me with deep kindness—giving me a carriage to ride, clothes to wear, and food to eat. How could I forget loyalty for personal gain?" He rejected Kuai Tong's advice and went on to render great service in pacifying the realm and establishing the Han dynasty.
After becoming emperor, Liu Bang no longer trusted Han Xin, so he stripped him of military command and demoted him to Marquis of Huaiyin. Feeling wronged and suspecting betrayal, Han Xin secretly conspired with Chen Xi to rebel against Liu Bang. Chen Xi raised his army first, and Liu Bang personally led the campaign to suppress the revolt. But Han Xin was lured into the palace by Liu Bang's wife, Empress Lu Zhi, and executed there.
Han Xin sighed before his death, "I truly regret not following Kuai Tong's plan, now I die at the hands of a woman." Later, the idiom "Pleading for the People" came to describe speaking up for the common folk.
Source: *Records of the Grand Historian*, "Biography of the Marquis of Huaiyin"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "为民请命" came to describe how speaking up for the common folk.