Just when Liu Bang and his father-in-law in Guanzhong received enthusiastic support for their three-part agreement, Xiang Yu was digging a hole in loneliness.
I'm so lonely, I'm so lonely.
After the Battle of Julu, Wang Li was captured and Zhang Han surrendered. Xiang Yu obtained more than 200,000 Qin troops, and brought with him more than 400,000 troops from various princes, known as one million, and marched to Hangu with great pride. Guan Jinfa. Only Xiang Yu dared to attack Hangu Pass, which could not be opened by anyone.
Among the coalition of princes led by Xiang Yu, many of them, from generals to soldiers, had suffered from labor and punishment in the Qin Dynasty, had been bullied by Qin officials and soldiers, or had seen the cruelty of these people. For example, Yingbu was tattooed and was also arrested for hard labor. Everyone hated the Qin Dynasty deeply, and of course they had no good impression of Qin's soldiers.
Xiang Yu sent the Qin army as the vanguard, but he had no good intentions. Xiang Yu didn't want to see the Qin army, so his men became even more unscrupulous. During the march, the coalition soldiers directly treated the Qin soldiers as slaves, commanding them at will and humiliating them at will. He couldn't bear it once or twice. It happened every day, and the Qin army couldn't stand it anymore. What people fear most is not belonging. These surrendered soldiers had betrayed the Qin Dynasty, and were not treated well by the coalition forces. Over time, they would naturally become resentful.
I have more people than you and I am afraid of you.
Privately, the Qin soldiers in Xiang Yu's army complained quietly, blaming Zhang Han for tricking them into coming to Xiang Yu, but their wives and children were all in Qin. Because of their betrayal, the court must kill their wives and children. Isn't this not worth the loss?
There are no airtight walls. The generals of the coalition of princes overheard the Qin army's private complaints and quickly reported it to Xiang Yu. This is no small matter! Could it be that there are signs of mutiny and rebellion in the army? If it is not handled well, the 200,000 Qin troops will attack each other together, and the entire coalition army may be annihilated.
Xiang Yu was shocked and angry, and immediately summoned General Yingbu and Pu to discuss countermeasures. After much discussion, Xiang Yu finally came to the conclusion that this kind of crisis that could break out at any time cannot be allowed to grow around him. Moreover, the army does not have enough food to feed so many people. Therefore, except for Zhang Han and a few other generals of the Qin army who can be retained, the rest of the Qin army must be killed and no harm will be left behind!
One day in November of the third year of Qin II (207 BC), the allied forces of the princes camped to rest in Xin'an (now Mianchi County, Henan). Before going to bed, the soldiers of the Qin army were suddenly taken away from their weapons and armor, which made people panic. That night, under Xiang Yu's command, the coalition forces suddenly raised their butcher's knives at the surprised Qin army's surrendered soldiers, and surrounded them on three sides in the south of Xin'an City, leaving only one exit. The soldiers of the Qin army surrendered and did not know what had happened. They only knew that the coalition forces wanted to kill them. In fear, they fled frantically along the gap intentionally left by Xiang Yu. Unexpectedly, during the crowding and pushing, they just escaped into the big hole that Xiang Yu had ordered to dig. The coalition forces that had been lying in wait for a long time rained down arrows that covered the sky, and rocks fell like hailstones. After a while, the soil flew up, the pit was gradually filled, and the last cry of the descending soldiers stopped abruptly. The more than 200,000 tigers and wolves who once dominated half of China have become the ghosts of injustice under the soil!
Of the more than 200,000 Qin troops, only three people survived: Zhang Han, Sima Xin and Dong Yi. Zhang Han was a famous general of his generation. He was of great use and had meritorious service in his surrender, so he did not kill him. Sima Xin once interceded with Cao Jiu when he was the jailer of Yueyang County and let the criminal Xiang Liang go. He was kind to the Xiang family. That's why he didn't kill him; Dong Yi did something good in persuading Zhang Han to surrender to Chu, so he didn't kill him.
There is another important figure that is not recorded in the history books. This person is Wang Li, the general who succeeded Meng Tian in commanding the northern army. Wang Li was captured by the Chu army at the Battle of Julu and has not appeared in historical records since. So, what fate did Wang Li get?
Wang Li's grandfather was the famous general Wang Jian of the State of Qin, and Wang Jian's father was the general Wang Bi of the State of Qin. It can be said that they are a third-generation general! In Qin Shihuang's military campaign to destroy Chu, it was Wang Jian and his son Wang Ben who finally defeated the Chu army led by Chu general Xiang Yan. Xiang Yan died in this battle. It is unknown whether he was killed in defeat or committed suicide. Xiang Yan is Xiang Yu's grandfather. Chu State and Xiang Yan both died at the hands of the Wang family. It can be said that the Xiang family and the Wang family have a blood feud. With Xiang Yu's character, there is no way he could spare Wang Li. Therefore, there is only one ending for Wang Li: being killed by Xiang Yu himself. Of course, this is just speculation. Wang Li's ending has become an unsolved mystery.
However, after getting rid of the henchman's problem, Xiang Yu felt a stone fall from his heart and rushed straight to Hangu Pass.
When we arrived at Hangu Pass, we saw that the gate of Xiongguan was closed. Xiang Yu sent people to invite a battle, but found that Hangu Pass was Liu Bang's men. Although he was one of his own, when he saw Xiang Yu coming, the guards refused to open the door and let him pass.
It turned out that Liu Bang was stationed in Bashang, and his subordinates didn’t know who the counselor was. There was no name, no surname, and no record! He had nothing to do and came to Liu Bang to offer advice: "Pei Gong, this place in Guanzhong is so rich, it is ten times better than other places in the world, and the terrain is good, easy to defend and difficult to attack. According to the original agreement, this place is It should be yours. But I heard that Zhang Han surrendered to Xiang Yu a few days ago and was named King Yong. His fiefdom is Guanzhong. If they are allowed to go to Xianyang, I am afraid Xiang Yu will not give you this place. I suggest Pei Gong send someone quickly Go guard Hangu Pass and block Xiang Yu from entering. At the same time, you can recruit troops from Guanzhong to increase your strength and resist the princes. In this way, Guanzhong will be yours, Duke Pei!"
This guy had a bad idea. With Liu Bang's strength, it's not easy to stop Xiang Yu! But Liu Bang thought this suggestion was quite good and suited his own liking, so he immediately followed it without consulting Zhang Liang and others.
Xiang Yu heard in front of Hangu Pass that Liu Bang had captured Xianyang and sent troops to block him here. He was so angry that he almost vomited blood. He immediately sent an order and ordered General Yingbu to attack the pass immediately.
It is true that Hangu Pass is a famous pass through the ages; it is also true that it is easy to defend and difficult to attack. But no matter how difficult the level is, it still depends on who is going to defend it and who is going to attack it. The people who guard the pass are very important. The soldiers and generals sent by Liu Bang to guard the pass almost did not hinder Xiang Yu at all. Under the leadership of Yingbu and others, the coalition forces quickly broke through. Xiang Yu was full of murderous intent and came straight to Xianyang.
Blocking Hangu Pass can be said to be an unwise move by Liu Bang. Xiang Yu did not originally regard Liu Bang as a hostile opponent. He didn't think Liu Bang dared to compete with him, nor did he think Liu Bang had the strength. Xiang Yu considered himself to be the main force in destroying Qin. He contained the last large-scale resistance force of Qin and eliminated it. The princes were obedient to him, respected and afraid, and no one dared to say "no" to him. "Character. The rejection before Hangu Pass made Xiang Yu, who was extremely proud, possessive and dominating, particularly angry. This action prematurely exposed Liu Bang's ambitions, and made Liu Bang, who had few soldiers and weak strength, prematurely stand on the opposite side of Xiang Yu.
Xiang Yu's army traveled all the way and soon arrived at Xinshui in mid-December and camped on the spot at Xinfeng Hongmen (today's Hongmenbao Village in the northeast of Xi'an, Shaanxi Province). To the west of Xiang Yu's army is Liu Bang's army stationed in Bashang. The two armies were only about forty miles apart.
Xiang Yu was just angry at this time, and had no intention of doing anything to Liu Bang. Who knows that if you are not afraid of not doing good things, you are afraid that there are not good people. There was a man named Cao Wushang under Liu Bang, who was Zuo Sima in Liu Bang's army. He was responsible for the military affairs. He was naturally inclined to follow the crowd, keen on fame and wealth, and loved to climb high. When Cao Wushang learned about Xiang Yu's rage at Hanguguan, he rolled his eyes and felt bad in his stomach. He immediately wrote a letter to Xiang Yu:
General Xiang, I took up the post of Zuo Sima in Pei Gong's army and discovered something. I found that Pei Gong wanted to be the king of Guanzhong. He made the decision on his own without consulting you, made Prince Qin Ying the prime minister, and took all the gold and silver treasures of Xianyang into his own pocket. I think Pei Gong is wrong to do this. Out of pure loyalty, I report to you.
This letter from Cao Wushang is basically a false accusation. Liu Bang really wanted to be the king of Guanzhong, but there is no historical data to prove that Liu Bang made Ziying the prime minister, and he had no reason to do so. Moreover, according to the records in "Historical Records", Liu Bang did not dare to touch the property in Xianyang Palace at all. The reason why Cao Wushang made the false accusation was because he wanted to climb Xiang Yu's high branch and get a reward.
After Xiang Yu read the letter, he was furious. How could he investigate whether the content in the letter was true? Moreover, his father Fan Zeng had long seen that Liu Bang was not a man who had been under others for a long time, and regarded Liu Bang as Xiang Yu's enemy. He immediately took the opportunity to say to Xiang Yu: "I once knew that Liu Ji is a notoriously greedy and lustful person. , I heard that when I was the director of a pavilion in my hometown, I clearly had a wife and a mistress. I also had two other women who opened a tavern. I don’t know how. I still owed wine bills and couldn’t pay them back. He is such a scoundrel ever since he entered Guanzhong. Later, I heard that he seemed to be a different person, not greedy for money and lust. Isn't this strange? It can be seen that Liu Ji was deliberately showing off and his ambition was not small. I once asked someone to watch the sky at night and found that Liu Bang had a head on his head. He has the colorful spirit of dragon and tiger that only the emperor possesses. The general should get rid of Liu Ji as soon as possible to avoid the danger of raising tigers!"
In order to make Xiang Yu determined to kill Liu Bang, Fan Zeng did not hesitate to talk nonsense. He actually asked Xiang Yu to kill Liu Bang in the name of Liu Bang's emperor aura. Xiang Yu became even more anxious after hearing this - Liu Bang was the emperor, where would Xiang Yu go? So, Xiang Yu issued a military order: Let's have a good meal tonight, and follow him to destroy Liu Bang early tomorrow morning!
Xiang Yu issued a military order to attack Liu Bang.
At that time, Xiang Yu had an allied army of 400,000 men, and Liu Bang saved his troops and managed to accumulate 100,000 men. Xiang Yu's army is an elite in hundreds of battles. In comparison, Liu Bang's army can only be said to be a rabble. No matter how you look at 400,000 elites against 100,000 rabble, Liu Bang is bound to die.
Maybe Liu Bang's life should not be terminated. Xiang Yu wanted to fight Liu Bang, but another person did not allow him. This person was Xiang Bo.
Xiang Bo is Xiang Yu's youngest uncle. When Xiang Liang caused trouble and fled everywhere, Xiang Bo also killed people and fled.
When Xiang Bo was on the run, he went to Xiapi to seek refuge with Zhang Liang and received Zhang Liang's care. For this reason, Xiang Bo was very grateful to Zhang Liang. He had long heard that Zhang Liang was following Liu Bang. At this time, he heard Xiang Yu's order to raise troops to attack Liu Bang the next day. He thought: Once the army comes out, Liu Bang's army will be vulnerable, and my benefactor Zhang Liang may be in trouble! No, I have to save him!
Thinking of this, Xiang Bo couldn't sit still. Taking advantage of the night, he quietly led a fast horse out. When he met the patrolling sentry, Xiang Bo asked him to go out and relax. How dare the sentries stop the coach's uncle? He was let go without asking any more questions. Xiang Bo slipped out of the barracks, got on his horse, and galloped to Bashang. He told Zhang Liang what had happened. He dragged Zhang Liang out and said, "Hurry up and follow me, or you will die!"
Zhang Liang decided to follow Liu Bang, so how could he ignore it. He hurriedly grabbed Xiang Bo and said he wanted to say goodbye to Liu Bang. After stabilizing Xiang Bo, Zhang Liang hurriedly came to see Liu Bang and learned what Xiang Bo said. Liu Bang was shocked and asked repeatedly what to do. Zhang Liang felt angry and asked, "Who gave you the idea of sealing the Gu Pass? Why don't you discuss it with me? Now that Xiang Yu is coming, do you think you can stop Xiang Yu with just a few troops?" "
Liu Bang thought for a while and said, "I can't stop it! What can I do? Please help me think of a way!"
Zhang Liang was confident: "Don't worry, what's the use of worrying now? This matter has to fall on Uncle Xiang. Please explain to Uncle Xiang quickly and let him talk to you. After all, he is also Xiang Yu's uncle."
He had no choice but to do this at the moment. Liu Bang quickly learned about their friendship with Zhang Liang and learned that Zhang Liang had saved Xiang Bo's life. He also learned about Xiang Bo's age and immediately asked Zhang Liang to invite Xiang Bo in. Treat him like an older brother.
Pei Gong said: "You call in for me, I have a brother to take care of you." Zhang Liang came out and asked for Xiang Bo. Xiang Bo immediately went to see Pei Gong. The Duke of Pei offered wine as a blessing to his longevity and made a marriage agreement. He said: "When I entered the pass, Qiu Hao did not dare to approach me. He was a civil servant and sealed the treasury, waiting for the general. Therefore, he sent generals to guard the pass to prepare for thieves to come in and out. It's very unusual. I watch the general arriving day and night, how dare I do the opposite! Yuan Bo Gu said that his ministers would not dare to be more virtuous." --- "Historical Records"
In order to survive, Liu Bang naturally tried his best to please. He first offered a toast, and the more he talked, the more enthusiastic he became. He talked about Xiang Bo without knowing why, and even betrothed his daughter to Xiang Bo's son.
Look at Liu Bang, he relies on his mouth! His communication skills are too strong.
After just one drink, he betrothed his daughter to Xiang Bo's son. In this way, the two became in-laws, and their relationship was so close. Then Liu Bang began to get down to business, explaining repeatedly that he had no second thoughts and begging Xiang Bo to intercede in front of Xiang Yu.
They have become in-laws, how can Uncle Xiang watch Liu Bang die? He immediately patted his chest and promised to intercede for Liu Bang, and told Liu Bang: "I will tell Xiang Yu as soon as I get back. You will go to Hongmen early tomorrow morning to plead guilty. You must listen to me and come. Only in this way can I keep you." .”
With the help of Xiang Bo, Liu Bang finally escaped this difficulty.
Therefore, Xiang Bo also stabilized after the founding of Dahan.
Liu Bang granted Xiang Bo the title of Marquis of Sheyang.
