The Qin Dynasty started with war
In the more than six hundred years from the founding of the Qin State to the unification of the Qin Dynasty, famous generals emerged in large numbers and killed countless people. Although he was caught off guard by Chen Sheng and Wu Guang's uprising, once he regained his breath, Da Qin's blade was still as sharp.
During the reign of Emperor Qin II, the most powerful general in the Qin State was none other than Zhang Han.
Zhang Han, who was ordered to do so at the critical moment, led an army composed mostly of prisoners, like a hungry tiger rushing down from the mountain, unstoppable. After annihilating Zhang Chu, Zhang Han did not pay attention to the heroes in the south of the Yangtze River. He only sent a few teams to encircle and suppress, while he aimed his main target at Wei.
After the restoration of the country, the Wei State was at a strategic strategic point, which was a bottleneck for the Qin Army to attack from the east and the north. By capturing Wei, the Qin army can advance, attack, retreat or defend, which will reverse the unfavorable situation in one fell swoop.
In the second year of Qin II (208 BC), not long after Xiang Liang launched the puppet Queen Huai of Chu, Zhang Han surrounded the Wei capital Linji (today's east of Fengqiu County, Henan).
King Ji Jiu of Wei was originally the queen of King Wen of the Western Zhou Dynasty. However, his footing was not stable at this time and he no longer had the legacy of his ancestors. As early as when he heard that the Qin army was about to attack, Ji Jiu was already panic-stricken and went to the city to discuss the matter. The opinion of the loyal old Zhou Dynasty is: ask Qi and Chu for help, and the three countries will join forces to resist resolutely. Ji Jiu had no other choice but to write two letters asking for help with tears in his eyes, and sent people to break out of the siege and deliver them to Qi and Chu.
Everyone understands the truth behind dying lips and cold teeth. After receiving the letter asking for help, Qi King Tian Dan was the first to respond and personally led troops to the rescue together with his younger brother Tian Rong. Tian Dan sent troops partly because of a shared relationship and partly because he wanted to repay the favor of the surrounding market. When Chen Sheng occupied Chen County and became king, he sent Zhou Shi to lead his army north. Zhou Shi fought repeatedly in the lower reaches of the Yellow River, creating opportunities for Tian Dan. Tian Dan made a prompt decision and killed the local magistrate with his younger brothers Tian Rong and Tian Heng, proclaimed himself king of Qi, and restored the original Qi territory. Tian Dan is what it is today, thanks to Zhou Market. In return, Tian Dan came with his men and horses.
Compared with King Qi's lead, Chu's response was not enthusiastic. Xiang Liang only sent his nephew Xiang Ta from a distant clan to come to help with a team of troops. The Qi and Chu armies and the Wei army joined forces at the foot of Linji City. For a time, there were cars like a tide, horses like dragons, swords and guns standing in great numbers, and waves of people rising and falling, which was quite spectacular. Ji Jiu and Zhou Shi cried with joy: The reinforcements arrived just in time, now we are saved!
In Linji City, the Allied Forces of the Three Kingdoms deployed their defenses urgently and were very busy. Outside Linji City, Zhang Han's army was calm, calm and unhurried. Zhang Han didn't care how many troops he faced. Linji was right in front of him, and he believed he was going to win.
When the allied forces of Wei, Qi and Chu were exhausted after a busy day, Zhang Han, who was stationed outside the city, ordered the Qin soldiers to rein in their horses and silently launch a sudden attack on Linji. The Qi and Chu armies were stationed at the foot of Linji City, forming a strong human barrier. Unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, the Qin army, which was as powerful as the wind, came to their camp like a ghost, and with a tacit understanding of their spears, they rushed into the Qi and Chu army camps like a thunderous blow.
Zhang Han's army, which used sneak attack tactics, was like a tiger breaking into a flock of sheep, killing the Qi and Chu armies by surprise. In this silent night, the shouts and screams that broke the silence did not last long before the silence returned. But the strong smell of blood stimulated the Wei army in Linji City to vomit.
The rising sun rises at the same position, regardless of the joys and sorrows of the world, and radiates dazzling light. Linji City has become a cemetery for the dead. At dawn, the Qin army has surrounded Linji. Zhou Shi, the mainstay of the Wei state, and Tian Dan, the king of Qi, have been killed in the melee last night. Wei has become an isolated island.
After Ji Jiu got the report, he let out a long sigh. Now that things have come to this, what can we do? God gave him the blood of an emperor and nobles, God gave him an ambition that was not willing to rise and fall, God gave him a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but God did not give him the strength to guide the country. At this time, Ji Jiu knew that his death was not far away, so he was able to take things for granted. He sent a message to Zhang Han, expressing his willingness to give up resistance and surrender to the city. He only asked the Qin army not to massacre the city and spare the people in the city. Zhang Han answered simply: OK! With a thousand pieces of gold and a promise, Ji Jiu ordered Kaicheng to surrender. Just as the Qin army entered the city in mighty force, Ji Jiu set himself on fire.
The grand ambitions and hegemony came to nothing in the blink of an eye, and the remains of the great ambitions were left in the cold wind. After all, Ji Jiu was a descendant of King Wen, and he did not bring shame to his ancestors.
In the last days of the Qin Dynasty, under Zhang Han's north-south fighting, he launched a desperate counterattack and set off a huge wave. Who can stop the Qin army? Who can pile the last handful of soil on the tomb of the Qin Dynasty?
Ji Jiu is dead, but his brother Ji Bao is still alive. Under the leadership of Xiang Qi who escaped, Ji Bao successfully escaped to Chu State. In front of King Mi Xiongxin, the Queen of Chu, Ji Bao cried bitterly and begged the Chu State to help him for the sake of the dead King Wei and give him an army to avenge the country. Chu State needs such a comrade-in-arms, but it cannot use too many troops to take advantage of him. Under Xiang Liang's instruction, Xiong Xin took Ji Bao's hand, comforted him with kind words, and gave him thousands of troops to give Ji Bao revenge.
Thousands of people and horses are not too small. Ji Bao immediately knelt down to thank the King of Chu, and took these few troops to kill the Wei State.
After Zhang Han destroyed Wei in one fell swoop, Tian Rong led the remaining Qi soldiers to retreat to Dong'a (now Acheng Town, northeast of Yanggu County, Shandong). Zhang Han happened to plan to attack Qi next, so he came immediately. Tian Rong was preparing to boost morale and organize troops to resist, when unfortunate news came from the rear: the people left behind in Qi learned that Tian Dan had died in the battle, and immediately took the opportunity to proclaim Tian Jie, the younger brother of the former Qi king Tian Jian, as king, and worship Tian Jiao as the prime minister. Tian Jiao's younger brother Tian Jian became the general.
This could kill Tian Rong all of a sudden. There is a tiger and wolf division of the Qin Army in front, but there is a fire in the backyard, and there is no support. How can we still fight this battle? Tian Rong quickly asked Chu for help. At this time, Xiang Liang was leading Xiang Yu and Liu Bang to attack Kang Fu (south of Jining City, Shandong today). When he learned that Tian Rong was in trouble, based on strategic considerations, he immediately abandoned Kang Fu and rushed to Dong'a, where he and Tian Rong's army were sandwiched one behind the other. He captured Zhang Hanjun. Chu's army was brave, Tian Rong's army fought tooth and nail, and Zhang Han's army was attacked from both sides and was exhausted. Zhang Han made a prompt decision and commanded the army to jump out of the encirclement and retreat toward Puyang (now Puyang City, Henan).
One of the purposes of Xiang Liang's reinforcements this time is to eat up Zhang Han's army and eliminate the strongest combat power of the Qin Dynasty. Zhang Han retreated, and Xiang Liang immediately led his army to pursue him.
The Chu army surrounded Zhang Han's army, and Xiang Liang was very proud. As long as Zhang Han's army is eliminated, there will be no obstacles worth mentioning on the road to Xianyang.
Until Qin Shihuang, almost every Qin king was a promising king. Under their rule, Qin Guo's good generals emerged in large numbers and led the Qin army to continuous victories. When Qin II came to power, the Qin army suddenly became weak and easy to bully. Except for the prisoner army led by Zhang Han, there was no Qin army that could match the bloodthirsty courage of the past. So, where did the Qin army that wiped out the six kingdoms and swallowed up the mountains and rivers in the past?
The transformation of the Qin army's combat effectiveness first lies in the King of Qin himself.
Before Qin Shihuang wiped out the six kingdoms, conquered the Baiyue in the south, and rejected the Xiongnu in the north, the Qin State was located in a corner of Qinchuan. The Qin State was founded late, and was only truly established after the fall of the Western Zhou Dynasty. It was not as strong as other vassal states with a strong foundation. Because the Qin people used to live in the northwest grasslands and mixed with Rong, Di, and Qiang, they were also discriminated against by the princes of the Central Plains in terms of blood. Remote location, weak strength, and lack of respect were certainly disadvantages of the Qin State, but they also inspired the ambitions of successive Qin kings. In order to obtain at least an equal status with other princes and survive in the cracks, in terms of military affairs, almost all the Qin kings in the past dynasties have been heavily armed and keen on opening up territories. Especially after Qin Xiaogong implemented Shang Yang's reforms, Qin's national power rose rapidly. Later, the King of Qin found that he had the conditions to unify the world, and took it as his own duty to wipe out the other six countries, and sent troops unremittingly to conquer them.
The active military actions of successive Qin kings undoubtedly promoted the improvement of the Qin army's combat effectiveness. After Qin Shihuang unified the world, Qin no longer had any enemies of equal magnitude. Qin Shihuang and his successor Hu Hai lost their enterprising spirit, and most of the Qin army's combat readiness was gradually neglected. The Qin army was dispersed to various places for security work, and its combat effectiveness declined rapidly.
The second important reason for the rapid transformation of the Qin army was Meng Tian's unjust death.
Three generations of the Meng family were extremely loyal to King Qin. Meng Tian was the first general in the Qin army after Qin destroyed the six kingdoms. Meng Tian's army had extremely strong centripetal force and combat effectiveness, and was extremely loyal to King Qin. Therefore, Mengtian's army at that time was the most effective team in the Qin army. If Meng Tian was still alive and commanding his troops south, Qin would have great confidence in quickly putting down the uprising by relying solely on the strength of Meng Tian's army. Moreover, Meng Tian's reputation and ability are enough to mobilize and command the Qin army across the country, so as not to cause a situation where the generals have their own thoughts and fight on their own.
However, in the minds of Hu Hai and Zhao Gao, the Meng family belonged to the faction of the eldest son Fusu and was a threat to Hu Hai's accession to the throne; while minister Li Si was keen on power and was afraid that he would be relegated if Fusu made Meng Tian his prime minister. Therefore, the three people hit it off immediately, and after conspiring to confer death on Fusu, they also killed Meng Tian. As soon as the news of Meng Tian's death came out, the entire army was filled with grief, anger and tears. Their morale was low and their combat effectiveness was greatly reduced. Qin also lost its most outstanding general at the time. This is undoubtedly a huge loss.
The third important factor in the rapid transformation of the Qin army is the problem of the three major legions at the end of Qin Dynasty. When people from all walks of life launched a vigorous war to overthrow Qin, Qin still had three main armies.
One is the Southwest Corps.
After Qin Shihuang unified the country, with Tu Sui as the chief general and Zhao Tuo as the deputy general, he raised an army of 500,000 troops to attack Lingnan. Tu Sui was killed by locals for indiscriminate killing of innocent people, and Qin Shihuang appointed Ren Xiao as his successor. After four years of hard work, this team completed the great cause of pacifying Lingnan. Qin Shihuang established three counties in Lingnan: Nanhai County, Guilin County, and Xiang County, and appointed Ren Xiao as Nanhai County Lieutenant. Nanhai County consists of four counties: Boluo, Longchuan, Panyu and Jieyang. Zhao Tuo was appointed as the magistrate of Longchuan County.
After the Chen Sheng and Wu Guang uprising broke out, Liu Bang and Xiang Yu rose up one after another, and the Central Plains was in chaos. If Ren Xiao and Zhao Tuo could bring an army of 500,000 people back from Guangxi in time at this time, they would be fully capable of relieving Qin's crisis. However, Ren Xiao was determined to be independent. Not only did he stand still, but he also ordered all the passages between the north and the south to be blocked. He had no intention of going north to fight. The commander of the Southwest Army had different intentions, which directly caused the 500,000 Qin troops to lose the opportunity to fulfill their obligations and safeguard the honor of the Qin army. It is a pity that the ambitious Ren Xiao did not live long and did not live until that time. After Ren Xiao died of illness, his position was taken over by his subordinate Zhao Tuo.
Another powerful one is the original Meng Tian Legion. Although Meng Tian was killed, the army was still there and still fulfilling its mission of guarding against the Huns. The new commander-in-chief of this army, Wang Li, is the son of the famous general Wang Ben.
Wang Li's army originally had 300,000 troops. After the Chen Sheng and Wu Guang uprising broke out, some troops were gradually transferred. Later, uprisings broke out in various places, and Wang Lijun was ordered to go south to quell the rebellion. However, because the beloved general Meng Tian was unjustly killed, the main force was continuously transferred. The morale of this team was low and the combat effectiveness was not high. Although Wang Li was born as a general, he lacked the experience of commanding an army alone and could not give full play to the advantages of this skilled team. Various factors reduced this originally first-rate team to a third-rate team.
The third legion of Qin was the Zhang Han legion. This legion did not originally exist. It was temporarily formed by Hu Hai's conscription of hundreds of thousands of prisoners from Lishan. Under the leadership of Zhang Han, this team of desperadoes exploded with great fighting power in the face of the temptation of freedom and wealth, and became the only team that the Qin Dynasty could rely on at that time.
Therefore, it can be said that as long as Zhang Han's army is eliminated, the Qin Dynasty will be equivalent to a lamb waiting to be slaughtered on the chopping board, with no power to resist. How could Xiang Liang, who had already besieged Zhang Han in Puyang, be dissatisfied?
Therefore, the storm is about to come, and a fierce battle concerning the fate of Qin and Chu is about to begin.
This battle had a great impact.
In this battle, an important leader will die.
