After the end of the crusade against Dong Zhuo, the local warlords ignored the Eastern Han Emperor's regime and turned to develop their own forces.

Zhang Ji, the former subordinate of Dong Zhuo, was due to a lack of food in the army, plundered through Nanyang, Jingzhou, and was killed in battle during the attack on the city.

After his army was inherited by his nephew Zhang Xiu, he was placed in Wancheng by Jingzhou Mu Liu Biao to join forces to resist Cao Cao.

Sun Jian was killed in battle during the attack on Xiangyang, which was owned by Liu Biao, and his son Sun Ce defected to Yuan and borrowed troops from him to lead Sun Jian's old army to fight in Jiangdong from 196 to 199.

In the end, Sun Ce led Jiangdong alone, confronted Liu Biao, and waited for the opportunity to go north to the Central Plains. In 197, Yuan Shu was proclaimed emperor in Shouchun, and the country was called

"Cheng", and was finally defeated by Cao Cao and Liu Bei. In 194, Yizhou Mu Liu Yan died of illness, and his son Liu Zhang took over, breaking with Zhang Lu in Hanzhong, and the two sides confronted each other.

Ma Teng, Han Sui and others developed their own forces in Liangzhou and Yongzhou. After Gongsun Zhan defeated Liu Yu, he dominated Youzhou, and was finally destroyed by Yuan Shao.

Lü Bu, who moved eastward, first captured Cao Cao's Yanzhou, was defeated and attached to Liu Bei, and then his territory Xuzhou, and was finally captured and executed by Cao Cao in Xiapi.

Liu Bei succeeded Tao Qian, who died of illness, as the pastor of Xuzhou, but lost Xuzhou to Lü Bu and Cao Cao, and had to rely on Yuan Shao in Hebei, and later fled to Runan to try to establish power.

In this period, the most outstanding achievements of the various forces were Yuan Shao and Cao Cao, Yuan Shao first used a plan to occupy Han Fu's Jizhou, and then defeated Tian Kai, Zang Hong, Gongsun Zan and others, mastered the four states of Qing, Hebei, You, and dominated, and the momentum was strong.

Cao Cao went on a campaign everywhere, incorporated about 100,000 men, women and children from the rest of the Yellow Turban Army, and selected its elite to form the famous

The "Qingzhou Army", after several turns, took control of Yanzhou. After Cao Cao set up the emperor who fled eastward to Xuchang, he used the name of the imperial court to crusade against the heroes of various places; He successively broke Yuan Shu, destroyed Lu Bu, lowered Zhang Xiu, and chased Liu Bei.

The influence developed into Yan, Henan, Xu Sanzhou, part of Sili, Yongzhou and other Central Plains regions. As the power of Yuan and Cao continued to grow, a decisive battle finally took place.

In 200 AD, Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao through the Battle of Guandu, and in a few years, he eliminated the forces of Yuan Shao's three sons, Yuan Tan, Yuan Xi, and Yuan Shang.

Through his northern expedition to Karasuma and the pacification of Gongsun Kang in Liaodong, Cao Cao essentially unified the north. In the 208th year of the establishment of the Three Kingdoms, after Cao Cao unified the north, he took the opportunity of Liu Biao's illness and death to lead the army south, and his son Liu Cong surrendered to Cao Cao, Liu Bei left Xinye and went south to Jiangling, but was chased and defeated by Cao's army on the way and fled to Xiakou.

At this time, Lu Su went to the reserve to inquire about the situation, and Liu Bei also sent Zhuge Liang to Jiangdong, and the two sides formed an alliance to resist Cao's army.

The combined forces of Sun and Liu defeated Cao's army at Chibi and forced Cao's army to retreat to the Central Plains. Scholars have different views on the time that led to the beginning of the Three Kingdoms period.

Sun Quan and Liu Bei also began to compete for Jingzhou separately. Liu Bei successfully forced the surrender of the four counties of Jingnan; And Zhou Yu, the general of Sun Quan's department, also sent troops to the southern county of Jingzhou, and successfully took the northwest area as a territory.