Yi Zhongtian locked in the battle of Yiling in the Three Kingdoms

The third part of the text The three pillars The thirty-fifth lecture on the battle of Yiling

Liu Bei occupied Jingzhou, but was finally recaptured by Sun Quan, and also took the life of Guan Yu, his right-hand man. This is undoubtedly a heavy blow to Liu Bei, who intends to make great achievements. Liu Bei refused to let go, so he launched the battle of Yiling and regained Jingzhou. So how did Liu Bei command this war? How did Sun Quan of Soochow respond to Liu Bei? The battle of Yiling, one of the three kingdoms, is being broadcast, so please pay attention.

After Battle of Red Cliffs in 208 A.D., Jingzhou, the strategic place governing the eight counties in the north and south of the Yangtze River, was divided up by Cao Cao, Liu Bei and Sun Quan. Jingzhou is an important strategic base for Liu Bei. From Jingzhou to the north, Xuchang can be attacked by Xiangyang, and from Jingzhou to the east, it can reach the hinterland of Wu, making it in a favorable position to attack and retreat. However, Sun Quan always worried that Liu Bei could not return Jingzhou, and finally found a fighter plane in AD 2 19, recaptured Jingzhou and killed Guan Yu, Liu Bei's right-hand man. Liu Bei, who has lost both Jingzhou and his beloved general, will certainly not leave it at that. In July 22 1 2000, he personally led tens of thousands of Shu and Han troops and launched a large-scale war against Wu.

So, how did Liu Bei command this war? How did Sun Quan of Soochow respond to Liu Bei? Professor Yi Zhongtian from Xiamen University will tell you about Yi Zhongtian's "Yiling War" in the Three Kingdoms.

Yi Zhongtian:

In December of the 24th year of Jian 'an, Guan Yu defeated Maicheng, and Liu Bei lost Jingzhou forever. This is a great loss for Liu Bei, and he will never let it go. After Jingzhou fell and Guan Yu was killed, it stands to reason that Liu Bei should settle down and sum up his experience, recuperate and prepare his troops, so as to avenge himself. But he didn't. What did he do? Hastily proclaimed himself emperor. In April of 22 1 year, Liu Bei proclaimed himself emperor in Wudang Mountain, Shuangliu County, Chengdu. In June, the soldiers began to be transferred, and in July, they used their relatives to fight for Sun Quan.

At this time, Liu Bei ordered Zhang Fei to rush to Jiangzhou, which is now Chongqing, to meet him. Who knows that Zhang Fei himself was killed by his men before Zhang Fei's army set out, and his head was given to Sun Quan. Zhang Fei's death is another great loss for Liu Bei. What do we know about Liu Bei now? Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Huang Zhong are all dead. Huang Zhong died of illness. Pang Tong, his important adviser, is long gone, and Fazheng is dead. There are Ma Chao, Zhao Yun and Wei Yan on the general side, and Zhuge Liang is the only adviser here. Wei Yan and Ma Chao should guard against Cao Cao's attack, in the north. Zhao Yun is not trusted. Why is Zhao Yun not trusted? Because Zhao Yun disapproved of Liu Bei's beating Sun Quan, Zhao Yun came out to dissuade Liu Bei and said that the traitor was Cao Cao, so he had to beat Cao Wei first, not Sun Wu first; And once Cao Wei was laid, Sun Wu was also a cinch. Now once you go to war with Sun Wu, it will be out of control. Liu Bei didn't listen, didn't trust him and wouldn't let him accompany him. Therefore, when Liu Bei went with him to fight Sun Quan, there were no decent figures on both sides, so Liu Bei's war was called "an unfavorable start and the general was short of people."

Zhaoyun can't accompany him, and Zhuge Liang has to guard Chengdu and can't get away. So why did Liu Bei insist on fighting this war under such circumstances? Traditionally, it is revenge for Guan Yu, and the elder brothers are loyal. But I'm worried that this kind of partnership loyalty is the words of novelists, not the real thoughts of politicians, and Mr. Lv Simian has already raised an objection. In fact, in my opinion, Liu Bei launched this war with an element of revenge for Guan Yu, and it cannot be said that he did not. Ye Liu, consultant of Cao Wei Group, pointed out this point. Ye Liu said, Liu Bei and Guan Yu are your subjects, and you are father and son. It is unreasonable that Guan Yu was killed without revenge. But I don't want the main reason. What is the main reason? Ye Liu believes that the main reason is that the whole strategy of Liu Bei Group is to attack and defend, that is, he must fight, and he must fight to show his strength. And why didn't he hit Cao Wei, but Sun Wu? Mr. Lv Simian thinks that this is the same as Lv Meng's opinion that Xuzhou should not be beaten to Jingzhou. To put it bluntly, Cao Wei is not easy to deal with, while Sun and Liu both think each other is easy to deal with, so Sun Quan doesn't fight Xuzhou to Jingzhou, and Liu Bei doesn't accept Zhao Yun's suggestion and doesn't fight Cao Wei to fight Sun Wu. This is the second reason. What is the third reason? I think there is another important point. Jingzhou must be taken back. After all, Jingzhou is a strategic place. Then, for these three reasons, Liu Bei insisted on launching this war.

But even so, in our opinion, you can fight this war. Can you relax? At that time, there was an important person with Liu Bei named Huang Quan. Yellow suggested that Liu Bei said that Wu Jun has always been very brave and good at fighting, and Wu Jun is not so easy to deal with; And our army went down the river, and it was easier to advance than to retreat. It's easy for me to go downstream, but it's hard for me to go back. Huang Quan said, "Please allow me to be a pioneer and explore the truth on this shore. Please command the rear." . This should be said to be a good suggestion, but Liu Bei didn't listen. Not only did he not listen, but he also gave up Huang Quan and sent Huang Quan to other places. Therefore, at this point, Liu Bei's mood at this time is two words-impetuous.

* In 2 19 AD, Soochow Group recaptured Jingzhou, which was a temporary success. However, this time, the mistake is really big. Sun Quan knows that killing Guan Yu, Liu Bei's right-hand man, must be a bloody feud with Liu Bei. This disastrous exchange of fire between Sun and Liu is inevitable after all, and it is only a matter of time. Therefore, Liu Bei was desperate to launch a war against Sun Wu, even if the generals were short of people. This desperate gesture made Sun Quan of Soochow feel a little ashamed. Therefore, it was long expected that Liu Bei would attack Guan Yu's Sun Quan at the moment when he decided to stab Guan Yu in the back. After taking Jingzhou, he took precautions and actively prepared for war politically and militarily. So how did Sun Quan cope with the crisis of the coming rain, so as to avoid risks to the maximum extent?

After Guan Yu was killed, Sun Quan gave Guan Yu's head to Cao Cao. The meaning is obvious. I just want Cao Caolai to take this responsibility and announce to the world that my Sun Quan was killed by Cao Caolai. Cao Cao knew that Sun Quan was unkind, so Cao Cao buried Guan Yu according to the vassal etiquette, and he also denied it. But in any case, Sun Quan offended Liu Bei at home this time, and the alliance between Sun and Liu was completely broken. Sun Quan knows this very well, and he also knows that it is problematic to beat Liu Bei on his own. Therefore, after the war, Sun Quan simply turned openly to Cao Wei and turned against Liu Bei.

What did he do? He announced that he would not recognize Liu Bei as a shepherd in Yizhou. Didn't Liu Bei take Yizhou from Liu Zhang? Sun Quan announced that he would not admit it, saying Yizhou or Liu Zhang. Cao Cao also immediately declared Jingzhou as Sun Quan. Originally, at this time, Liu Bei was a shepherd in two states, Jingzhou and Yizhou. Now a family has declared Yizhou Garden or Liu Zhang, and a family has declared Jingzhou Garden as Sun Quan. What is Liu Bei? This is one aspect.

On the other hand, in 220 AD, that is, in the 25th year of Jian 'an, Cao Cao died and Cao Pi inherited the title of Wang Wei. In the same year, he forced Emperor Liu Xian to meditate and became emperor himself. This is Wei Wendi. After this incident, Liu Bei Group denounced Cao Pi as a Han thief and usurped the Han Dynasty. Sun Quan is taciturn; In August of 22 1 year, Sun Quan became a vassal, and he simply became a vassal. 1 1 month, he accepted the title of King Wu awarded to him by Cao Pi. Then this matter is not easy for Sun Quan, which means two things: first, it means that he admits that Cao Pi's usurpation of the Han Dynasty is legal, and he listens to Cao Pi's words; Secondly, it means that Sun Quan admits that the relationship between Cao Pi and him is that of monarch and minister. Therefore, it was not easy for him to take this step, and at that time, some subordinates clearly expressed their opposition. Sun Quan said, it doesn't matter. Didn't our high emperor also accept the title of Xiang Yu and become Hanwang? In other words, Sun Quan's meaning is clear. He admitted that it was expedient for Cao Pi to proclaim himself emperor. What is this for? In order to unite Cao Wei against Liu Bei, this is Sun Quan's political preparation.

Sun Quan's military preparation is to move the capital to Wuchang. Sun Quan ruled the land before he became the king of Wu. His headquarters is called Zhisuo, and his place of governance is Jianye, which is now Nanjing. But in order to fight against Liu Bei, Sun Quan moved his headquarters to Wuchang, which is now Ezhou City, Hubei Province-not Wuchang District, Wuhan City, Hubei Province, but Ezhou, and Sun Quan changed his name to Wuchang. This matter is also very difficult. At that time, these people who lived in Jianye were reluctant to go to Wuchang. There is a famous folk song called "drinking Jianye water rather than eating Wuchang fish", which is a sentence at this time. But Sun Quan said that we must move to Wuchang because we should be prepared for danger in times of peace. Looking at the map, we can see that his action was to prepare for Liu Bei militarily, so Sun Quan came prepared.

* After killing Guan Yu, Sun Quan began to actively avoid the risk of war. Politically, he did not hesitate to submit to humiliation and kowtow to Cao Wei Group in exchange for its support. At the same time, in order to meet the needs of military defense, the headquarters was moved to Wuchang regardless of the opposition of the Chinese people. A year and a half after Guan Yu was killed, Liu Bei led tens of thousands of Shu soldiers to attack Soochow on all fronts, invincible all the way. Then, when the national disaster strikes, who in Wu Dong Group can turn the tide and deal with this stormy disaster?

In July of 22 1 year, Liu Bei launched a war to conquer Sun Quan in the east. This war took place in Yiling and Xiaoting, so it is called the battle between Yiling and Xiaoting in history, also known as the battle between Yiling and Xiaoting. The Battle of Xiaoting in Yiling is one of the three major battles in the history of the Three Kingdoms, namely, the Battle of Guandu, the Battle of Battle of Red Cliffs and Yiling.

As we know, in Liu Sun's Yiling War or Xiaoting War, Wu Jun's frontline commander was Lu Xun, who succeeded Lu Meng. Lv Meng died after the battle of Jingzhou and before the celebration. Let's see how Lu Xun commanded the war. According to historical records, in the first month of AD 222, Liu Bei's vanguard troops arrived in Yiling, and in February, Liu Bei arrived in Xiaoting. At this time, Lu Xun's army also arrived in Xiaoting, and the two armies confronted each other. At this time, Lu Xun's men immediately stepped forward to meet Liu Bei. Because the troops from both sides have come and have arrived at the kiosk, we will fight him. Lu Xun said no, let's not move. Why? Lu Xun said such a passage, he said that Liu Bei "marched eastward, and his spirit began to flourish, taking the risk of Gao Shou, so it was difficult to attack. Under attack, it is still difficult; If it is unfavorable, it will damage my general trend. " What do you mean? It is said that Liu Bei was in high spirits when he was under the river. Moreover, with the natural barrier of the Yangtze River and the surrounding mountains, it is impossible for us to capture him at once. Even if you can win the battle, you can't win it all; On the contrary, if we get off to a bad start, it will ruin the whole situation. So, what should we do now? We should stay where we are.

Lu Xun said, where do you think Liu Bei's army is now? In the mountains, in the mountains. This kind of terrain, if we delay him for a period of time, he will be tired, then we will find a way. Wu Jun's generals, however, were unconvinced. Alas, they say this is a scholar and timid, because in everyone's mind, Lu Xun is a scholar, never fought a war and timid. Each has his own resentment, but he has no choice but to accept the order. At this time, Lu Xun ordered a retreat and strode back, giving Liu Bei a mountain hundreds of miles away.

Liu Bei also pushed forward. After advancing, he camped, and when Lu Xun didn't come out to fight, he ordered the next general to build barracks on the flat ground. At this time, General Wu Jun said that when Liu Bei was in the mountains, the guard said that he could not fight; Now that Liu Bei is on the flat ground, you can always hit him, right? Lu Xun said that he couldn't fight, and there must be fraud. Sure enough, because Wu Jun didn't come out to fight, Liu Bei lost his temper, and 8,000 ambushes fought out of the valley. Now, the generals in Wu Jun are beginning to take this Lu Xun as an example, saying that this guard is really well informed.

So this stalemate reached the year of leap June, and Lu Xun decided to attack Liu Bei. At this time, General Wu Jun didn't understand again, saying that Liu Beigang should fight when he came. Didn't he come in a hurry and haven't gained a foothold yet? Now that we have been here for so long, Liu Bei has occupied so many places and has gained a firm foothold. I'm afraid I can't call at this time. Lu Xun was wrong. Lu Xun said, why didn't I call at first? Because Bei is cunning, this guy Liu Bei is cunning. He is well informed. He has fought all his life and is experienced. When he came, he was full of momentum and creativity. We'll hit him at this time, but we can't beat him. Now that several months have passed, Liu Bei himself, I don't think he can think of any idea. His soldiers are exhausted, the weather is getting hotter and hotter, supplies are getting less and less, and morale is getting lower and lower. This is the best time to attack.

Those of us who have read the Cao Gui debate know that "it takes courage to fight". Make a fuss, then decline, and then vent. "Liu Bei attacked again and again, but Lu Xun ignored him and his morale was low. Therefore, Lu Xun said that this time is the best time to fight back. But even so, Lu Xun had to hold his breath. He said that we should try first, and then we sent troops to attack a camp of Liu Bei, and the result was defeated. His generals began to stir again. Listen, listen, listen, we said no fighting. You died in vain. Lu Xun said that I didn't die in vain, and I already knew how to deal with him.

* Liu Bei led the army to March eastward to Sun Wu, which can be said to be menacing and unstoppable. War is like a cat-and-mouse game. It turns out that Liu Bei is a cat and intends to treat Wu Dong as a delicious mouse. But at the end of Wu, the mouse Lu Xun just stayed put, making Liu Beijun unable to make him strong. After a long time, Liu Beijun became impatient. Lu Xun, a precocious teenager, tried his best to avoid a decisive battle with Liu Beijun, and adopted the strategy of throwing caution to the wind to defend himself, without falling into the trap of Liu Bei luring the enemy deeper. At this time, Liu Bei, who was in a hurry, was like a mouse running around; Lu Xun has turned into a cat sitting firmly in the chancellorsville, looking for the enemy's flaw. In this way, the two armies confronted each other for four months, and Liu Bei also took this opportunity to take root in the State of Wu and calmly arrange his troops. So what flaw did Lu Xun find in Liu Beijun?

Where is the flaw? This is the 700-mile company camp. Because at that time, Liu Bei's front was very long, 700 miles, and dozens of military camps were connected all the way. At that time, when his disposal method reached Cao Pi, Cao Pi said that Liu Bei could not fight. How can he have such a right to dispose of it? How does a 700-mile company repel the enemy? He said that I think the good news of Sun Quan is coming soon. Lu Xun also saw this problem. Lu Xun also saw what mistakes Liu Bei made. It was he who moved all the water forces to the shore. Lu Xun wrote to Sun Quan at that time, saying that what I was most afraid of was that Liu Bei went hand in hand with land and water, and that was what I was most afraid of. Now I see that his water army has given up, and all of them have become the army, with a battalion of 700 Li. Lu Xun said, there is a way. All your soldiers each have a thatch in their hands. If you want to fight, you should attack a battalion first and then set it on fire.

Lu Xun's soldiers attacked in this way, and when they attacked, they succeeded and burned a battalion. Lu Xun immediately ordered everyone to come together and the military orders were issued. Wu Jun gathered in Xiaoting, everyone killed the enemy, each battalion set fire to it, and even pulled out forty battalions of Liu Bei. Liu Bei was caught off guard and didn't have the strength to fight back at all, so he had to turn around and run to Maanshan. After running to Maanshan, Lu Xun ordered the troops to advance and surrounded Maanshan. The situation at this time is recorded in the history books. Liu Bei's side is called "divided, and tens of thousands of people died." Liu Bei had to flee Ma 'anshan overnight with several followers, fled back to Wuxian, and later fled to Yong 'an County, which was originally called Yufu County, but Liu Bei changed it to Yong 'an County and fled into Baidicheng. At this time, Liu Bei sighed and said, I didn't expect to be humiliated by Lu Xun. It seems that Liu Bei underestimated Lu Xun. Both Liu Bei and Guan Yu think that Lu Xun is a scholar. They don't know that Lu Xun is not a scholar but a Confucian general. Liu Bei sighed and said, I was defeated by Lu Xun. I'm afraid it's God's will.

Tens of thousands of Shu troops were basically killed and injured in this war and suffered heavy losses. Liu Bei managed to escape into Bai Di City by relying on the death insurance of all generals. After this disastrous blow, Shu basically lost its ability to compete with Wei and Wu for the world. Liu Bei, who fought all his life, lost to Lu Xun, a young man who was less than 40 years old at the age of 60, and Liu Bei's reputation for life was gone. Lu Xun, on the other hand, is famous for burning 700 Li. So, where did Lu Xun win in this war that decided the fate of Shu?

Lu Xun's victory was not an act of god, but a plan of man. In my opinion, Lu Xun can win for at least several reasons:

The first is to attach great importance to it and be determined to win. On the front line of Xiaoting, Lu Xun wrote a letter to Sun Quan. At the beginning of the letter, he said that Yiling and Xiaoting are the throat of the country and the gateway to Wu Dong. This place cannot be lost; Losing these two places is not only a county, but also the safety of Jingzhou. Therefore, this war can only be won, and it is not allowed to lose. This is the first point.

Second, know yourself and yourself. In his letter to Sun Quan, Lu Xun analyzed three reasons why Liu Bei was bound to fail. The first point is that Liu Bei went to war and came to fight in China far from his base camp. This is the first point. The second point, he said, is that, throughout Liu Bei's life, although he has experienced many wars, on the whole, he won less and lost more, so he is not a man who can fight. Third, Liu Bei made a fatal mistake and abandoned the ship. Originally, his best way was to go hand in hand with the land, but he gave up. So Lu Xun said to Sun Quan, I am sure to defeat Liu Bei, which is the second reason.

The third is to calmly fight and pre-empt. I think in the battle between Yiling and Xiaoting, psychological warfare accounted for a large proportion, and one of the most important reasons was that Liu Bei was impetuous and Lu Xun was calm. After Liu Bei's victory in the first battle, he sent troops to surround General Sun Huan in the post road. Who's Sun Huan? He is the nephew of Sun Quan's relatives. This Sun Huan turned to Lu Xun for help, but Lu Xun said no, there was no need to go. Why? First of all, Lieutenant General Anton has a high prestige and all his soldiers support him. Second, with one knife, the land of Jincheng and Tang Chi can be held, and there is no need to save it. When my plan succeeds here, you can't save yourself by taking his side. Sure enough, as soon as Lu Xun set fire here, the encirclement over there was solved with a knife. Afterwards, Sun Huan also specially told Lu Xun that the general didn't come to save me, and I really complained. Now I feel that the guards are really in command. So it is risky for Lu Xun to make such a decision. What if Sun Quan's nephew is lost? Are you kidding? He is really cool, so this is the third reason.

The fourth and most important reason is to bear the burden of humiliation and serve the public wholeheartedly. I'm just saying that it's risky for Lu Xun to make such a decision. He can do it because he has confidence. Lu Xun himself, as we said in the last episode, is far from famous, not a very famous person, not an old hand. The people he leads are all old generals with meritorious military service, or they are closely related to you. At first, these people didn't listen to his command and told them not to move. Tracing the cause once held a meeting, gathered all the generals, put their swords in their hands, stood up and said, Attention, everyone, Liu Bei is a fierce man in the world and not an easy man to deal with. Since the master has given us such an important task, each of us should unite and boost our morale to deal with this fierce and cunning enemy. Please be careful when you speak in the army, but this handsome guy has a pre-announced. After some harsh words, these personnel began to listen to him. Sun Quan once asked Lu Xun that your generals didn't listen to your command, why didn't they report to me? Lu Xun said: "These generals are the pillars of our country and the people your master will rely on in the future." . Lu Xun himself really has no skill, only one advantage, that is, to bear the burden of humiliation. Besides, although Lu Xun is plain, he has also heard the story of Lin Xiangru. I know the big picture is important, comrades.

So this is why Lu Xun won the battle between Yiling and Xiaoting and Liu Bei lost. Then the reversal of the war situation can be said to be a blink of an eye. Liu Bei fled from Xiaoting to Maanshan, from Maanshan to Wuxian, and finally from Wuxian to Yufu County. He renamed Yufu County Yong 'an, which is now Fengjie in Chongqing. After arriving here, Liu Bei, who suffered a heavy blow, was exhausted and could not afford to get sick. Liu Bei knows very well that his heroic life will soon come to an end, he will soon die, and the Shu-Han regime he initiated must continue. He knew very well that his eldest son, Liu Chan, would succeed to the throne, while Liu Chan was only seventeen years old and a minor. He must find someone capable to help him. The question is, can this talented person live up to expectations? How should he repent to ensure that Liu Chan can get the best aid and the Shu-Han regime can continue? Please watch the next episode-Yong 'an Tuogu.