Chapter 30 Tactics

In the battle of Pengcheng, Liu Ji, the king of Han, lost completely.

However, even in such a difficult situation, when he almost lost everything and couldn't turn over, Liu Ji, the king of Han, still did not give up on himself and did not give up his dream - he finally had a dream when he was over half a hundred years old. Liu Ji quickly walked out of the shadow of failure and found his own light. Failure is not terrible, but it is filmed that you can never stand up again after failure. Throughout the ages, those who have achieved great things have always had a tenacity, always learned from failures, and always summed up experience, and then continued to move forward bravely and fearlessly - and Liu Ji, the king of Han, is such a person.

【Liu Ji】

This battle taught Liu Ji, the king of Han, a hard lesson. Liu Ji, the king of Han, summed up at least the following experiences: First, in terms of military tactics, he is really inferior to the overlord Xiang Yu. Although many people had said such things to him before, such as the young man Han Xin, after all, he had never fought the overlord Xiang Yu head-on, so he still had a trace of doubt in his heart. After experiencing this painful defeat, Liu Ji, the king of Han, deeply realized the courage and horror of the overlord Xiang Yu's use of soldiers, and also deeply understood the gap between his military ability and that of the overlord Xiang Yu.

Second, you don't have to go to war yourself, and you don't have to take the lead every time. He was not a good general, but he was a good monarch. Although in terms of military ability, he is not as good as Xiang Yu; But in terms of political work, Xiang Yu is far inferior to himself, and he must know how to use his strengths and avoid his weaknesses.

Thirdly, in these war years, no one will follow you to the death, unless you are strong. Because since the defeat of Pengcheng, the princes of all walks of life who originally followed the Han king Liu Ji and Chu have defected and returned to Western Chu, they are afraid of the powerful overlord Xiang Yu, and they are afraid of the powerful Western Chu Kingdom - they are all masters who see the wind and make the rudder. Of course, this is understandable, people always have to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages, and those who know the times are handsome. When you are strong enough, the world will cling to you.

Fourth, what belongs to you today may not necessarily belong to you tomorrow. Xianyang and Pengcheng, who had come from hard work, turned around and were taken away by Xiang Yu. Just like those precious treasures lying in the palace of Western Chu, they originally belonged to the royal family of the Qin Empire, but they were later seized by Liu Ji, but they were soon all included in the bag of the overlord Xiang Yu; After Pengcheng was breached, he briefly returned to Liu Ji's arms, but now he was recaptured by Xiang Yu. Going around and around, those treasures are still those treasures, nothing has changed, just a change of owner. In this case, then why care about the gains and losses of one city and one pool? My purpose is the world, my opponent is Xiang Yu, so as long as I defeat Xiang Yu, there is no need to fight for the city.

Fifth, since the goal is the world, we should look at the current situation from the perspective of the master of the world. This is not a war between Liu Ji and Xiang Yu, but a war between the people of the world. Since it is a war of the people of the world, it should mobilize everyone's forces to deal with the main target together, just like when they dealt with the tyrannical Qin Empire together.

Liu Ji, the king of Han, thought for a long time. In countless sleepless nights, he thought about these questions, his future direction, and the direction of the Hanguo Group. If he can't turn the situation around as soon as possible, then the other soldiers will probably defect as they did in Bashu. He made a difficult decision to try to break the current stalemate, that is, to take all the places east of Hangu Pass as a reward, as long as he could annihilate the overlord Xiang Yu. (I want to donate to the east of Guan and abandon it, who can do it with those who share it?) "Historical Records - The Family of the Marquis")

To the east of Hangu Pass, which is equivalent to most of the Chinese Empire, it sounds like a big tone. Because the so-called east of Hangu Pass is equivalent to donating all the places outside the homeland of Qin, and Liu Ji, the king of Han, only retains Qin's land. Since this is the case, then it doesn't matter whether this battle is fought or not, because in the end, Liu Jidu is just stuck in Qindi. What's more, the effectiveness of this kind of verbal covenant is extremely fragile, and there is no definition of where is east of Hangu Pass, nor is there a map to sign or something, and it is unknown whether Liu Jizun, the king of the Han Dynasty, will abide by this covenant in the future, and the right of interpretation is always in the hands of those with real power - tearing up the covenant is the usual means of "politicians", and Liu Ji is precisely such a "politician". The lessons learned from the past have not yet dispersed, and it was precisely because the overlord Xiang Yu tore up the covenant of the righteous emperor Xiong Xin that this bad incident was caused. Besides, the territory east of Hangu Pass is not entirely your Han King Liu Ji's, although some cities have just been cracked, it does not mean that they have firmly grasped the control, just like Peng Cheng said to lose it.

Probably no one would take this covenant of the Han king Liu Ji seriously, except for his own subordinates. Among them, there is a young man who takes it seriously, and that is Han Xin, who has just been appointed as a general.

【Zhang Liang】

When Liu Ji, the king of Han, decided to use the territory as a reward in exchange for victory in the war, Zhang Liang, a staff officer who participated in the high-level meeting, gave three names - Di Bu, Peng Yue, and Han Xin.

Jiujiang King Duo Bu is the most courageous subordinate of the overlord Xiang Yu, but since he became the king, he has become indecisive and has been unwilling to send troops to assist Xiang Yu in capturing Qidi, and his once close comrades-in-arms have become estranged. Soon after, the king of Jiujiang, Huang Bu, was persuaded by Sui He, a lobbyist sent by Liu Ji, the king of Han, to defect to the camp of Liu Ji, the king of Han. After returning to Shun, Duo Bu became extremely diligent, not only personally leading troops to fight and capture many cities, but also pulling other old subordinates into the Han camp, becoming a key force in the fall of Chu.

Peng Yue is an old comrade-in-arms of Liu Ji, the king of the Han Dynasty, who once fought against the tyrannical Qin together, and is also an old revolutionary comrade. However, the overlord Xiang Yu forgot about him when he divided the seal. It should be said that it is not that the overlord Xiang Yu forgot him, but that the overlord Xiang Yu thinks that Peng Yue has no merit at all and is not worthy of the seal. Therefore, when Tian Rong, who also did not receive the seal, found him, he promised Tian Rong to fight against the overlord Xiang Yu together. It can be said that Peng Yue himself is the enemy of the overlord Xiang Yu. The enemy of the enemy is a friend, and after that, Peng Yue continued to harass the overlord Xiang Yu in the rear of the Chu army, and from time to time he fought a guerrilla war to attack the Chu army. The grain and grass of the Chu army's backup were often cut off by them, which made the overlord Xiang Yu very headache. It was precisely because Peng Yue contained the power of the overlord Xiang Yu in the rear that the Han king Liu Ji had leisure time to rectify the army.

Although there are these two outstanding generals blocking the progress of the overlord Xiang Yu, this is only a defensive move after all, and the most critical frontal battlefield must be borne by his own people. And the person Zhang Liang proposed was Han Xin, a young general who had just been appointed as a general. Even Zhang Liang has recognized Han Xin's talent, and the strength of this young man is really not to be underestimated.

Zhang Liang, a staff officer, proposed to Liu Ji, the king of Han, that if the king of Han really wanted to take out the territory east of Hangu Pass as a reward, then reward these three generals. As long as you make full use of the strength and ability of these three generals, you will definitely be able to defeat the overlord Xiang Yu. (Jiujiang Wang Duobu, Chu Xiaojiang, and Xiang Wang Youxuan; Peng Yue and Qi Wang Tian Rong reversed Liang Di: These two people can be urgent. And Han Xin, the general of the Han King, can be a big deal, and he will be on the side. That is, if you want to donate it, donate these three people, and Chu Ke can break it. "Historical Records - The Family of the Marquis")

Zhang Liang's vision is really vicious, and the three generals he proposed finally made the most important contribution to the annihilation of the Western Chu Kingdom, and later generations called the three of them "the three heroes of exterminating Chu".

【Hanshin】

The great general Han Xin followed the Han king Liu Ji to fight all the way to the Western Chu kingdom and witnessed these important historical moments with his own eyes. He was already in charge of the Han army, but he didn't really have the power of the army, because he was still in the probationary period - Liu Ji, the king of the Han Dynasty, had not yet completely relieved himself to let the general Han Xin take power, and Han Xin was only responsible for some work such as recovering stragglers and rectifying military discipline.

But at this time, Liu Ji, the king of Han, had to entrust the heavy responsibility to the general Han Xin. Because Wei Wangbao, who had said that he was going to oppose Chu together, he temporarily changed his hexagram, announced his rebellion against Han and Chu, and turned his gun and pointed at Liu Ji, the king of Han. Liu Ji, the king of Han, had to send Han Xin, a young general recommended by everyone, to recover Wei. During this time, the young general Han Xin constantly made a number of military suggestions to Liu Ji, the king of Han, and he tried his best to show his ability. Although not all the suggestions were adopted, Liu Ji, the king of Han, finally saw that this young man still had some level. And the young general Han Xin also saw the military ability of Liu Ji, the king of Han, from the contact during this period of time - the level is really average.

But in any case, the general Han Xin finally had the real power to lead the troops to fight for the first time. He did not disappoint everyone, and soon swallowed the state of Wei and subdued Wei Wangbao, capturing Wei's mother, wife, and children. Among them, Bo Ji, the beautiful wife of Wei Wangbao, was also dedicated to Liu Ji, the king of Han, and was included in the harem of the king of Han. In just two months, the general Han Xin swallowed up the Wei state, which was the first victory of the Han army since the defeat at the Battle of Pengcheng, a crucial victory.

The general Han Xin was obviously still not satisfied.

This is just a small test, the territory of Wei Di is too small, and the general Han Xin wants to win a greater victory, and he has a more ambitious goal in his heart. The general Han Xin's vision is not limited to one city and one pool, the real battlefield is not only in Chu and Wei, but in the entire land of China - he wants to open up a new battlefield in the north!

Han Xin, a general who was fighting in Wei, presented a battle plan to Liu Ji, the king of Han, asking him to lead his troops north to Yanzhao and surround Chu from the flank, which was a difficult task. (May benefit 30,000 soldiers, please raise Yan and Zhao in the north, attack Qi in the east, cut off the grain road of Chu in the south, and meet the king in Xingyang in the west.) "Book of Han - Volume 34 Han Peng Ying Lu Wu Biography")

Soon, Han Xin received a military order from Liu Ji, the king of Han, approving the general Han Xin to lead his troops north.

It's time to show off your true skills!

August 204 BC. The general Han Xin led his troops to Zhao Di and prepared for a battle with Zhao Wangxie. Han Xin spent a lot of effort to prepare for the pre-war work, such as spying on the military situation, surveying the terrain, and so on. He also deliberately went out of his way to find out who the leader of the army was, knowing that he knew that the other side could win a hundred battles, which was particularly emphasized in the book of war, and it was also the information that a general must master.

The great general Han Shin had a clear understanding of the enemy's situation. He knew that his real opponent was not Zhao Wangxie, but his subordinate Li Zuoche.

【Li Zuoche】

Li Zuoche, born in a military family of Zhao State, is the grandson of Zhao Mu, a famous general of Zhao State. His military literacy is very high, very similar to the Qin general Wang Li and the overlord Xiang Yu, and he has also been cultivated in the military atmosphere since childhood. If Wang Li is the third generation of the army of the Qin State and Xiang Yu is the third generation of the army of the Chu State, then Li Zuoche is the third generation of the army of the Zhao State. At this time, he was serving in the Zhao State after the restoration of the country, and gave advice to Zhao Wangxie. Because of his outstanding military exploits, he was named Guangwu Jun.

After obtaining the fief, he did not choose to be comfortable and happy, but always paid attention to the development of the situation and was always worried about the future and fate of Zhao State. Knowing that Han Xin, the general of the Han Kingdom, was approaching Zhao Di with his troops, Li Zuoche of Guangwujun looked worried. Because he knew that this young man should not be underestimated, he had swallowed the Wei State in just two months, and he was menacing and should not be taken lightly. (Wen Han will Han Xin wade into the West River, capture the King of Wei, Yu Xia said, the new blood and the current is supplemented by Zhang Er, the discussion wants to go down Zhao, this victory and go to the country to fight, its edge can not be.) "Historical Records - The Biography of the Marquis of Huaiyin")

Li Zuoche, who is well versed in tactics, knows the importance of fighter planes, and he also knows very well the military situation on the front line - the Han army has traveled thousands of miles to Zhaodi, and the most important thing is to ensure the safety of military rations, because this is related to the food and clothing of all soldiers. Therefore, Li Zuoche, the king of Guangwu, ignored his old body, and dared to ask Zhao Wang Xie to ask for troops to fight, and led 30,000 elite soldiers to detour through the rear of the Han army and cut off their grain and grass. Then trap them for a few days, and the Han soldiers will be forced to starve to death. Guangwujun Li Zuoche also advised Zhao Wangxie that no matter how the Han army provoked and called for war, he should not fight head-on. He also gave an accurate date, which must be able to survive the death of the Han army, that is-ten days. (There were 30,000 fake ministers and strange soldiers under the original foot, and they were never burdened from the middle; The foot is deep and the ditch is high, and the camp is not to fight. He can't fight in front of him, he can't retreat, and my strange soldiers will not be behind, so that the field will not be plundered, not for ten days, and the heads of the two generals can lead to the play. "Historical Records - The Biography of the Marquis of Huaiyin")

This should be said to be a very common and very vicious tactic, and it is often mentioned in military books, because the troops transporting military rations are often the weakest, even if General Han Xin can anticipate this tactic, but he cannot completely avoid a sneak attack. Because it is impossible for General Han Shin to concentrate all his forces on military rations, they are here to fight, not to eat. If all the energy is focused on military rations, then they will not be able to start a frontal battle. If the Zhao army hid in the city again, then the Han army would have no way to break through the Zhao state.

However, Zhao Wangxie did not take the advice of Li Zuoche, the emperor of Guangwu, nor did he approve his request for war. Zhao Wang Xie even thought that this was a cowardly tactic and would be ridiculed by other military experts. The most important thing is that in terms of military strength, Han Xin's troops are only a few thousand, while Zhao's army is ten times that of Han. On the frontal battlefield, the Zhao army has an absolute advantage, and if it avoids and does not fight, it will undoubtedly delay the fighter - this is also the emphasis in the military book that "ten will encircle, five will attack, multiple will divide, and the enemy will be able to fight". (I heard that the art of war is surrounded by ten rules, and the doubling is fighting.) Today, Han Xinbing has tens of thousands, but in fact it is only thousands. can attack me for thousands of miles, and it has stopped. Now so avoid and not hit, there is a big one later, how can you add it! Then the princes said that I was cowardly, and they came lightly to attack me. "Historical Records - The Biography of the Marquis of Huaiyin")

The Zhao army was not ready for battle, and they did not take the Han army of thousands of men into account.

【Hanshin】

Zhao Wangxie's intelligence work was very rough, and he didn't even know the actual strength of the Han army, and the Han army had more than a few thousand, at least tens of thousands.

Relatively speaking, Han Xin's intelligence work was very meticulous, and he even inquired about the content of the high-level meeting of Zhao State. Han Xin knew that Zhao Wangxie did not take Li Zuoche's suggestion, and the stone hanging high in his heart landed safely.

That night, the Han army that had come from afar finally had a place to rest, that is, by the river thirty miles away from the Zhao military camp. The place where the general Han Xin chose to camp is a little strange, not far in front is the military camp of Zhao State, Zhao Jun is looking at this place with a tiger's eye, and the rear is a river with no way out, and he can't escape if he wants to. There are clouds in the book of war, the right side of the mountain mausoleum, and the front and left water. This kind of formation is obviously forbidden by the military book, and I don't know if the general has read the military book.

At dawn the next day, the Han army began to distribute military flags in the barracks, as if they were ready to start fighting, and the general Han Xin ordered them to beat the war drums extremely loudly.

The deafening sound of drums, accompanied by the morning sun, reached the military camp of Zhao State, waking up Zhao Wangxie, who was sleeping soundly. Zhao Wangxi was not frightened when he saw Han Xin's posture, but seemed extremely excited, and couldn't help laughing. Because this tactic of the Han army is definitely a dead end, Han Xin is really a guy who doesn't know the art of war.

Zhao Wang Xie ordered Zhao Jun to open the city gate and go out to face the battle, he wanted to defeat Han Xin in one fell swoop!

Sure enough, it didn't take long for the Han army to be defeated. The Han army was defeated and retreated, and even the military flags and war drums were thrown aside and scattered all over the place, and they could no longer beat a loud battle sound. And the soldiers of the Zhao army all showed victorious smiles, and they all rushed to pick up the flags and war drums scattered by the Han army, because this was a certificate of their meritorious service.

The so-called Han army is nothing more than that, Han Xin is still too young! All the soldiers of the Zhao army thought that they had won this victory, including Zhao Wang Xie.

However, when the Zhao army was preparing to return to the city, they found that there were far more Han flags in the city than they were holding—almost all around were already full of Han flags, probably almost 2,000. Could it be that the Han army has already broken through the city? Could it be that the Han army has already achieved a final victory?

It turned out that when the whole army of Zhao State was dispatched, the two thousand Han cavalry who had already been ambushed around attacked the military camp of Zhao State, pulled down the banner of Zhao State, and replaced all of them with the banner of Han State. And these are the military orders of the young general Han Shin!

The soldier Zhao who was trapped in the middle suddenly lost his way and was extremely panicked, not only did he not want the Han flag, but he also didn't want his own Zhao Qi. The formation of the Zhao army began to become scattered, and the Han army, which had just fled for its life, began to turn back and fight back to the battlefield - it seemed that it had completely changed its appearance. And these are the tactics of the young general Han Xin, which is also what the military book says, "put it to death and live later". (Fall into the place of death and then live, put it in the place of death and survive.) "Historical Records - The Biography of the Marquis of Huaiyin")

This tactic seems familiar, yes, the overlord Xiang Yu used it in the Battle of Julu. It can be said that this is a very thrilling tactic, and only young people like Xiang Yu and Han Xin who are not afraid of death dare to use it, and it is unlikely that a stable old general like Wang Jian will use it. They also became famous because of this battle, Xiang Yu's ruined boat and Han Xin's last battle have always been classic cases that soldiers are happy to talk about.

In the end, the entire army of Zhao was annihilated, and Zhao Wang Xie and Guangwujun Li Zuoche were captured.

【Li Zuoche】

Li Zuoche was tied up in the shape of a zongzi and escorted to the tent of the general Han Xin. As a generation of famous generals, he is not afraid of death, and he has long looked down on honor and disgrace. He had already expected this kind of scene of the death of the country. It's just that he still has illusions about the country in his heart, and he feels a little unwilling.

The moment the general Han Xin stepped into the tent, Li Zuoche expected to donate his body to the country and die. However, to his surprise, the general Han Xin did not humiliate him, but personally untied the rope for him and invited him to a seat very politely. Han Xin also bowed deeply to him and asked him for advice as a disciple, as if he was Han Xin's teacher.

Li Zuoche felt a little ashamed, and felt that as a general of a defeated army and a minister of the fallen country, he really did not deserve such treatment. The general Han Xin saw the worry and guilt in his heart, and Han Xin felt that Li Zuoche was not incapable, but that Zhao Wangxi did not reuse him, and the problem was not with him. The general Han Xin unloaded the psychological baggage for the prisoner in front of him.

Li Zuoche's gratitude and admiration arose, and he even felt that the young man in front of him was his confidant and understood his hardships, and even Zhao Wangxi didn't understand him so much.

They all know the art of war inside out. Li Zuoche's words, Han Xin understood as soon as he heard it, and he didn't have to spend too much tongue at all, this kind of communication between professionals was really rare. And it is difficult for Han Xin to find such a general of the same level who can analyze the situation with him without reservation.

The general Han Xin asked him for advice on how to destroy Yan Poqi. Li Zuoche's method is very simple, that is, to give in without a fight, and he can surrender Yan Qi without spending a single soldier. Because Li Zuoche carefully analyzed the military strength comparison between Han, Yan, and Qi, as long as the Han army rested well, Yan Qi was definitely not the opponent of the Han army. When the time comes, send an envoy to intimidate the Yan State, and the Yan State will definitely surrender; If Yan surrenders and then sends envoys to intimidate Qi, Qi will also definitely surrender. This is also what the book of war says, a soldier who surrenders without a fight, and a good person who is good. (Fang Jin is a general's plan, such as the case A truce, the town of Zhao Fu Qi Lonely, within a hundred miles, Niu Jiu Zhi, to the feast of the doctor and the soldiers, the north of the Yan Road, and then send the defender to serve the book at hand, violent its strength in Yan, Yan will not dare not disobey.) Yan has followed, so that the speaker of the east to tell Qi, Qi will obey the wind, although there are wise people, but also do not know for Qi. If so, then everything in the world can be done. The soldier is the first to speak and then the truth, this is also said. "Historical Records - The Biography of the Marquis of Huaiyin")

Li Zuoche's suggestion is really good, and the most important thing is that you don't have to spend a single soldier. Even if it doesn't work out in the end, there won't be much to lose and not much to lose. Resting the army is also a necessary measure after a long period of war, and Han Shin is well aware of this.

Surprisingly, this trick worked! After receiving a threatening letter from the Han army, Yan completely gave up the confrontation.

At this point, the three kingdoms of Wei, Zhao, and Yan have all been annihilated by the Han army, and there is a small country that has been destroyed by the way, and now there is only the Qi State left! And the prestige of the great general Han Xin has also reached an unprecedented height, and there is no one in the land of China who does not know this young general. He has also become a new generation of young generals who have risen since the overlord Xiang Yu, and no one can match him.

Han Shin, this name made all the generals feel admiration and horror.