The 'Defector General' who betrayed every major power in China

Countries & Cities · Published 12 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Shi Yousan was a military commander whose career was defined by a singular, recurring habit: switching sides. Known as the 'Slave of Six Surnames,' he defected from and then betrayed nearly every major faction in 20th-century China, including the CCP and various powerful warlords.

Born into poverty in 1891, Shi Yousan rose through the ranks of Chinese military forces by leveraging a strategic mindset and hand-to-hand combat skills. Despite his short stature—which earned him the nickname 'eight inches' from his commander Feng Yuxiang—Shi became a trusted lieutenant general. However, his career was marked by extreme volatility. He is famously remembered as the 'Defector General' for his repeated betrayals of leaders like Wu Peifu, Feng Yuxiang, and Chiang Kai-shek.

His maneuvers were often high-stakes gambles involving bribery and secret pacts. In 1926, he brokered a non-aggression pact with Yan Xishan behind Feng's back, leading to a staged retreat that forced Feng into exile. Later, in 1929, Shi defected to Chiang Kai-shek after being promised the chairmanship of Anhui province. The alliance was short-lived; by December 1929, Shi launched an artillery barrage on Nanjing and declared "Old Man Chiang is nothing," before returning to his former allies.

Shi's ruthlessness was as notable as his fickleness. To punish a superior for dismissing him, he had a chief of staff abducted and buried alive. His ultimate fate came in 1940; while attempting to defect to the Japanese forces, he was kidnapped and buried alive by his own sworn brother and subordinate, Gao Shuxun. This violent end mirrored the life of a man who spent decades navigating the treacherous waters of warlord politics, ultimately becoming a victim of the very system of betrayal he helped create.

The historical record views Shi as a quintessential opportunist. His actions contributed to the instability of the Republic of China era, where shifting loyalties and 'death squads' were common tools of survival. His legacy remains a study in the mechanics of military defection and the precarious nature of power in a fractured state.

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