In Disney’s 1998 animated film Mulan, Li Shang is a captain when he first trains the recruits.
Li Shang is introduced as the son of a high-ranking military commander and the officer responsible for training the new conscripts. He initially sees Mulan, who is using the name Ping, as an especially weak and undisciplined recruit. The training montage follows Shang’s effort to turn the group into soldiers.
Shang’s authority is separate from the Emperor’s and from that of his father, who is a general. The distinction matters because the film shows Shang receiving orders, commanding a unit, and later leading soldiers in combat rather than ruling the entire army.
The character’s rank is sometimes confused with his later title or family background. At the start of the training sequence, the canonical description is Captain Li Shang.