Mozi said in "Mozi·Feile Pian": "The people have three troubles: the hungry have no food, the cold have no clothes, and the tired have no rest. These three are the greatest troubles for the people." It is true that hungry people have no food. You can eat, but the cold people have no clothes to wear, and the workers are exploited and have no rest day and night. These are the things that scare people. But during the Warring States Period, the greatest fear did not come from these, but from war.
The number of participating troops and the final number of casualties on both sides of the war were many times greater than those in the Spring and Autumn Period. Taking Bai Qi as an example, after several wars, the enemy suffered 1.6 million casualties, which shows that the war brought great harm to people at that time. What a shadow.
In the Changping War alone, 500,000 Zhao soldiers were buried in the loess. The Zhao army experienced such a huge change that there were not many troops left to participate in the battle. In the subsequent Battle of Handan, the Zhao army only had 200,000 old, weak and remnant troops. It was only thanks to Lian Po's policy of fortifying the wall and clearing out the wild that they were able to gather together.
The Zhao army at that time could be divided into four parts. The first part was the defenders of Jinyang, the old capital of Zhao. They were mainly responsible for encircling the right wing of the Qin army. They had a total of 70,000 troops. If Zhao had the strength, they could attack through the Jinyang army. The flank of Qin State was also an important gateway to defend the northern part of Zhao State. The second part is the 30,000 defenders left by Zhao Kuotun in Zhongmu. This force can resist the invasion of Zhao's left flank by the powerful Qin army in Handan, and at the same time prevent Wei from taking advantage of the situation. The third part is to defend the Daijun garrison against the Xiongnu and Yan Kingdom. The standing army has about 50,000 troops. This army is very flexible and can be expanded to 100,000 troops in wartime. The fourth part of the army is naturally the top priority of the Zhao army. This army can also be specifically divided into the Wu'an garrison and the Wucheng garrison, with a total strength of up to 100,000 troops.
With 200,000 old and weak soldiers, Lian Po was able to withstand repeated attacks by the Qin army's 450,000 elite divisions. In addition to Lian Po's proper strategy, the desperate and united efforts of the Zhao people in Handan, and the support of Wei and Chu, Handan's own defense facilities Solidity and completeness are also very important factors. As we all know, Handan was one of the cities with the most frequent wars at that time. Its special geographical location and strategic position forced Zhao State to strengthen its defenses, making it one of the strongest cities at the time.
However, the Qin army was too powerful after all, and it came with the power of victory. It can be said that it is indomitable in terms of momentum. During this process, the State of Zhao also faced crises several times. Without the steady and step-by-step command of Lian Po and others, or without the sacrifice of life and death of the Zhao State, especially the Zhao army, this kind of crisis would not have been possible. It may be possible to resolve them one by one. In this war, the Zhao people also showed their unique humanistic temperament. They were happy when they were not fighting, but they were strong and unyielding when they had to fight. Their masculinity and high spirit were all reflected. come out.
The victory in the Battle of Handan was not so much the result of Lian Po's command; or it was the victory of the Zhao army and the alliance army, but rather the victory of the people of Zhao. It is understandable that the civilians of Zhao State sacrificed everything, including their lives, to defend Handan at that time. "Zhao killed hundreds of thousands, and Handan only escaped with the city." This shows the tragic and tragic nature of the Battle of Handan.
If it were not the general trend, and the Qin State was far ahead of the six eastern countries in terms of system, Zhao State, with its martial spirit and the strength of its people, would certainly be able to remain invincible for a long time, not to mention unifying the world. .
The Yan State at that time did not believe in this evil. After the Changping War, the King of Yan hurriedly ordered Prime Minister Li Fu to lead the army, hoping to take advantage of the situation. There are very few historical records about Lifu. It is only said that he saw the tragic situation of Zhao State that "all the strong men were in Changping, but they were not strong yet", so he launched a large-scale attack on Zhao in 251 BC.
Although the boundaries between the vassal states at that time were not very strict, and there were almost no major restrictions on people from one country going to other countries, during the war, the defense against spies was still relatively tight. Out of the importance the Yan State attached to the Zhao State, the Prime Minister Li Fu personally went to the Zhao State to find out the truth in the name of celebrating his birthday. When we arrived in Handan, we were convinced that in the Battle of Changping, almost all the young men of Zhao State were killed by Bai Qikeng. So Li Fu came to the conclusion: now is the best time to attack Zhao in a large scale. There are only orphans and widows left in the country. If Yan takes advantage of the opportunity, it will definitely win.
In this case, what the Yan State needs to do now is to select the most capable general and lead the elite troops of the Yan State to attack the Zhao State. If they do not fight, they will win.
King Yan thought of Lejian, the most capable general in the country. Lejian was the son of the famous general Leyi and the same clan as Lecheng. He was named the King of Changguo because of his father. He was a pure Yanguo native. His specific birth and death years are unknown.
When King Yan found him, Lejian directly rejected King Yan's request to make him a general. Lejian believed that although Zhao and Qin had been fighting for years, which had depleted the country and seriously injured the army and the people, it was understandable. This approach just made the ordinary people of Zhao State familiar with the military. As the saying goes, all the people are soldiers, which probably refers to the situation in Zhao State at this time. Therefore, Lejian was worried that if the Yan army sent troops to attack Zhao at this time, the morale of the Zhao army would be greatly damaged, and the soldiers and civilians of Zhao would be in mourning, and the mourning troops would win. The Yan army would be defeated, so Lejian He refused to accept King Yan's order to go on an expedition, and even opposed the decision of King Yan and the prime minister for a time. It's a pity that few people know how good the advice is but how good it is. Seeing that he had such a golden opportunity to make Yan a fisherman, how could he let it go?
In the end, King Yan did not listen to Lejian's opinion. Since Lejian refused to lead troops on the expedition, King Yan could only retreat and accept the prime minister as his general. The total number of Yan State troops on this expedition reached 600,000. Some people say that Yan State had a total of two armies and 2,000 chariots this time. General Li Fu personally led 400,000 troops to attack Zhao's Haocheng; the other 200,000 troops were led by deputy general Qing Qin, who was mainly responsible for attacking Dai City.
Not long after, the Yan army arrived at Songzi (now south of Jin County, Hebei), and would soon be approaching Handan. In order to turn passivity into initiative, Lian Po and Le Cheng then discussed with King Zhao to take the initiative and defeat them one by one. , when the Yan army marched towards Handan, Lian Po analyzed the situation between the Yan and Zhao armies to King Zhao. Lian Po believed that the Yan army coming to attack Zhao this time amounted to 600,000. It can be said that there is strength in numbers. However, the State of Zhao had just suffered a great war, and the country had lost many troops and generals. There were not many men and horses that could be used to fight against the Yan State's army head-on. But the remaining army of Zhao State, with a little training, will definitely become a large army that is willing to face death and be invincible. The army of Yan State believed that Zhao State was bound to be defeated. Under the proud military front, there were hidden causes of failure. In addition, the practice of adding insult to injury is despised, and morale will definitely be greatly affected. One is traveling a long distance, people are trapped and horses are exhausted; the other is waiting for work at leisure. Comparing this comparison, Zhao Guo can easily fight against Yan, and as long as the strategy of defeating each other is adopted, Yan's army will inevitably scatter in all directions.
At this moment, although King Zhao Xiaocheng did not understand Lian Po's strategy very well, he at least had one advantage, that is, he now trusted Lian Po very much. Since Lian Po said so, then he would do it.
Therefore, King Zhao Xiaocheng urgently dispatched Lian Po and Le Cheng to command an army of 250,000. Some people say it was an army of 130,000. There may be something wrong. First, the gap between the enemy and ourselves is too huge; second, all the people of Zhao are in the army, and in Handan There are 100,000 troops on the front line. At this time, Zhao's total military strength is still more than 400,000. He led the army to meet the Yan army on the way.
Of course, since the Yan army had two groups, the Zhao army was also divided into two groups. Lian Po led 200,000 troops to Hacheng to fight against the main force of the Yan army; the other 50,000 troops were led by Le Cheng , and stood firm in Daicheng to stop the Yan army from going south.
Looking at the situation of Yan and Zhao at that time, from the perspective of Yan, the relationship between Yan and Zhao has always been good. Zhao also cooperated with Yan in the military before, and the generals were able to help each other. To fend off the enemy, this time they rashly attacked Zhao. Many soldiers in the Yan army could not understand this approach and became slack. At the same time, the prime minister of Yan, Li Fu, did not use his troops well. When the army came, what Zhao feared most was the 600,000-strong army. They are monolithic, so the Zhao army can neither attack directly nor defeat them one by one. However, Li Fu divided the army into several places, hoping to attack at the same time and comprehensively attack the Zhao State. However, in the end, the Zhao army concentrated its superior forces and defeated each one. There is another important reason: the leading general of the Zhao State was one of the famous generals of the Warring States Period. Yi's Lian Po had almost never suffered a defeat in his life, while the leader of the Yan Kingdom was Li Fu, so his commanding ability was naturally difficult to match Lian Po's. Le Jian's analysis is also very reasonable. The soldiers of Yan State are not very powerful, and many of them are not even as good as the ordinary civilians of Zhao State. In this way, the Yan army is likely to fail.
From the perspective of Zhao State, famous generals such as Lian Po all came from the war between Zhao State and Qin State. The Battle of Handan was a good testimony to the strength of Zhao State's military power and the talent of its commanding generals. The Yan State Both in terms of military strength and generals, it is difficult to match it; all the people of Zhao State are in arms and the whole country mourns, so naturally the mourning soldiers will win; there is also an objective reason. At that time, in order to prevent the Qin army from marching in, Zhao State set up a military base in Handan A new force was organized on the front line, with rigorous training and strong military strength. Its martial national ethos was well utilized. In this way, Zhao Jun's victory was destined.
Sure enough, just when the Yan army was stationed in Bicheng and prepared for a large-scale attack, Lian Po led the army to attack quickly. This time the Zhao army shared the same hatred with the enemy, and everyone rushed to kill them bravely. In addition, Lian Po's command was good, and the Zhao army quickly defeated the Yan army. He was defeated and his leader, Li Fu, was also beheaded. On the Daidi side, the 200,000-strong army led by deputy general Qing Qin was immediately in chaos when they heard that their main general had been killed by the Zhao army. Le Cheng also took it seriously. Seeing this opportunity, he immediately ordered the entire army to attack with all strength. As if it had been rehearsed in advance, the Yan army was defeated with little suspense, and its leader, Qing Qin, was captured.
The defeat of the two armies of Yan State had a huge impact on Zhao State. On the premise of victory, the Zhao army fully expanded its results. Lian Po even led the army to pursue the enemy for 500 miles, and even once besieged Ji, the capital of Yan State (southwest of today's Beijing). The King of Yan could only cede five cities to the Zhao army for peace. The Zhao army considered that five out of ten would be attacked. Zhao's current strength was not suitable for attacking Yan's capital, so he agreed to Yan's peace move. .
This battle contains two opportunities. First of all, the Yan army suffered heavy losses, which greatly reduced the power of the six eastern countries to resist the powerful Qin and accelerated the Qin army's pace of unifying the six countries.
Secondly, it gave Zhao a chance to breathe amid internal and external difficulties. Since the Changping War, the status of Zhao State has plummeted. All countries want to get a share of the pie in this process. After this battle, Zhao State's army made other countries recognize Zhao State again - a skinny camel is bigger than a horse. Therefore, other countries with evil intentions should also think twice before acting. Originally, the Zhao army, which had experienced the Changping War, had regarded war as a nightmare, but this victory restored their self-confidence to a certain extent. In addition, through this battle, a large number of outstanding generals in Zhao State were able to stand out, such as Li Mu, Le Cheng, Pang Nuan, etc., so that Zhao State would not have any gaps in its military. To sum up, it can be seen that the revitalization of Zhao State is not without hope.
Moreover, after the incident, the King of Zhao also trusted Lian Po particularly and named him Lord Xinping, serving as the Prime Minister of Zhao State. In the next six or seven years, under the leadership of Lian Po, Zhao State repelled attacks from various countries many times, and captured Fanyang of Wei State (now northwest of Neihuang, Henan) in 245 BC. Zhao State's national power Got some resurgence. Zhao State finally emerged from internal and external difficulties and withstood the greatest challenge in Zhao State's history.
