Editing Later Yan (section)

=== War with Northern Wei ===
Previously in 386, to counter Western Yan, Later Yan allied themselves with the [[Tuoba]]-Xianbei state of [[Northern Wei]]. Initially, Wei relied on Later Yan's assistance against their rival tribes, but an incident in 391 led to relations breaking down. Wei aligned themselves with Western Yan, and hostilities continued even after Western Yan fell. In 395, to further elevate his Crown Prince, he sent Murong Bao to lead a force of around 90,000 strong on a punitive expedition against Wei, but the campaign ended in disaster as the Yan was heavily routed at the [[Battle of Canhe Slope]], with Bao barely escaping with his life. In 396, Murong Chui personally led a campaign against Wei, but despite early success, became extremely ill and was forced to withdraw. He soon died and was succeeded by Murong Bao.

Bao's rule was immediately troubled by conflict between him and his family members, along with his sudden and unpopular attempt at rectifying the state's household registry. Shortly after Bao's ascension, the Wei ruler, [[Tuoba Gui]] invaded Yan. Bao concentrated his forces to Zhongshan and other major cities, believing that Wei would besiege them and withdraw once their supply ran out. Instead, Wei forces quickly overran the [[Zhongyuan|Central Plains]] and consolidated their rule over captured territory. When a rebellion broke out near the Wei capital, Gui negotiated peace, but Bao refused to accept it. He attacked the Wei army as they prepare to retreat, but the Yan army was severely defeated at the [[Battle of Baisi]].

After the loss at Baisi, Bao's brother, [[Murong Lin]] started a coup in Zhongshan but failed and escaped the city. Worried that Lin may occupy the key city of [[Longcheng District|Longcheng]], Bao decided to abandon Zhongshan for Longcheng. Hereafter, more infighting ensued; at Longcheng, Bao survived rebellions by his son, [[Murong Hui (Later Yan)|Murong Hui]] and his general Duan Sugu (段速骨). Meanwhile, at Zhongshan, a cousin, [[Murong Xiang]] held out against Wei and declared himself emperor, but was soon killed and replaced by Murong Lin. However, Zhongshan then fell to Wei, and Lin fled to Ye, where he convinced his uncle, [[Murong De]] to abandon the city for Huatai. There, De declared himself the Prince of Yan in 398, founding the [[Southern Yan]] and splitting the state into two.