303 or 304, Bing Province suffered a major famine

In 303 or 304, Bing Province suffered a major famine, and the Jie tribes were seriously affected. Shi Le's tribe spread out and became refugees. Shi and many other Jie and Xiongnu men were captured by Jin officials and sold as slaves. Eventually, he was sold to a man named Shi Huan (師懽), but Shi Huan freed him after becoming impressed with his talents. Eventually, he became a leader of bandits, and at one point he befriended one of Sima Ying the Prince of Chengdu's military commanders, Ji Sang (汲桑). Sima Ying was then stationed at Yecheng and was the most powerful of the Jin imperial princes.