Duan Xiushi  Duan Xiushi () (719 – November 6, 783), courtesy name Chenggong (), formally Prince Zhonglie of Zhangye (), was a general of the Chinese dynasty Tang Dynasty. He was known for his strict military discipline. In 783, after Emperor Dezong fled the capital Chang'an in the midst of a revolt at Chang'an led by the general Zhu Ci, Duan made a desperate attempt to assassinate Zhu and was killed in the attempt. Duan Xiushi was born in 719, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong. His family was from Long Prefecture (隴州, roughly modern Qingyang, Gansu), as the family settled there after his great-grandfather Duan Shijun () served as the prefect of Long Prefecture. Both his grandfather Duan Da () and father Duan Xingchen () served as military officers. It was said that Duan Xiushi was filially pious in his childhood, and when he was five, when his mother fell ill, he was so distressed that he could not eat or drink for seven days; only after his mother got better did he resume eating and drinking. After he grew, he was said to be silent and decisive. His friends wanted to recommend him for the imperial examinations—specifically, for the "Mingjing" () examinations, which required study of one of the Five Classics. Duan responded, "Looking through the book and memorizing sentences is not a great achievement," and he refused to sit for the examination. Duan later came to serve under the military governor ("Jiedushi") of Anxi Circuit (安西, headquartered in modern Aksu Prefecture, Xinjiang), Fumeng Lingcha (), and after he distinguished himself in a Fumeng-commanded campaign against Humi (護蜜, centered on modern Faizabad, Uttar Pradesh) in 745, he was made a key officer in the Anxi army. After Gao Xianzhi replaced Fumeng in 748, Duan continued to serve under Gao. He participated in Gao's campaign to the west in 751 that culminated in the Battle of Talas against Abbasid forces, which saw Gao's forces defeated by Abbasid forces. In the aftermaths of the defeat, Gao's deputy Li Siye suggested full retreat by Gao—abandoning some of the soldiers who had become lost after the battle.