If you have good talent, you need good work; if you have brave generals, you need a wise leader; if you have counselors, you need a wise leader.
Where there is a need, there is a need, and where there is a need there is a demand.
Originally, King Xin of Han was trapped in a tight siege and wanted to use a delaying strategy, but he finally surrendered as a last resort. Liu Bang also lost his city and territory due to the surrender of King Xin of Han, and almost lost his own life in Baideng. What was right and wrong?
Lou Jing insisted on his opinion and was imprisoned by Liu Bang. He almost lost his life!
When Liu Bang comes back from trouble, how will he treat Lou Jing?
These three questions will be revealed below.
This Han Xin is not that Han Xin!
Han Xin (? - 196 BC), also known as Han Wangxin, with an unknown name, was born in Yangzhai, Yingchuan (now Yuzhou City, Henan Province). The founding hero of the Western Han Dynasty, a prince with a different surname, and the concubine and grandson of King Jicang of Hanxiang.
After South Korea was destroyed, he followed Zhang Liang into the Pass and served as a general. He was awarded the title of Taiwei of South Korea, led troops to capture the homeland of South Korea, and was granted the title of King of South Korea. During the Chu-Han War, he supported Han King Liu Bang to defeat Xiang Yu and bring peace to the world. After the establishment of the Western Han Dynasty, he was jealous of Emperor Gao of the Han Dynasty and guarded the area north of Taiyuan. He sued for peace with the Xiongnu, raised troops to rebel, and induced Chen Xi, the prime minister, to rebel.
In the eleventh year of Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (196 BC), he led troops to attack Hanzhi and was beheaded by General Chai Wu.
King Xin of Han was a general of the Han Dynasty. He was extremely brave and made many contributions to the Han Dynasty. After Liu Bang ascended the throne, he entrusted Han Wangxin with a strong military base, Taiyuan, and allowed Han Wangxin to supervise Jinyang City to prevent the Huns from invading. After Han Wangxin arrived in Jinyang, he wrote a letter saying that the Huns repeatedly invaded the border and Jinyang was too far away from the border. He requested to deploy troops in Mayi, and Liu Bang agreed. However, just in the autumn, Mao Dun came down in force, and an army of 300,000 people surrounded Han Wangxin. Han Wangxin sent people to sue Mao Dun for peace, and at the same time sent a letter to Liu Bang to express his concern.
The Han Dynasty also sent troops to relieve the emergency, but suspected that King Han Xin had evil intentions. Liu Bang wrote a letter to King Han, reproaching him saying that if you are greedy for life and afraid of death, you are not brave and you will not be qualified for the position of general. How can the Huns besiege you? After receiving the letter, King Xin of Han thought about the causes and consequences, and was afraid of being executed. He made an appointment with Maodun to attack Liu Bang and give Ma Yi to the Xiongnu. The two armies joined forces to attack Taiyuan and invaded Jinyang City.
In the winter of the seventh year of Emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (200 BC), when Shusun Tong had finished rehearsing the court rituals, Liu Bang enjoyed the privilege of being the emperor and went on a personal expedition. In the battle of Tongtan (south of today's Qin County, Shanxi), he won the first battle and killed Wang Xi, the general of King Xin of Han. Tongtan is the pass leading to Jinyang City. Once Tongtan was broken, the Han army surged in. King Xin of Han knew that Jinyang was difficult to defend, so he immediately fled to the Huns.
Just when Liu Bang was pursuing victory, a military horse suddenly came out, and the flag of the military horse was King Zhao. It turned out that King Xin of Han was defeated. His subordinates Manqiuchen and Wang Huang gathered the defeated generals of King Xin of Han and supported Zhao Li, a descendant of Zhao, as King of Zhao. They united with the Xiongnu and King Xin of Han to fight back against Liu Bang. One wave after another, Liu Bang had to die from exhaustion in order to protect the mountains and rivers of the Han Dynasty.
It's winter now, the weather is getting colder and colder, the wind and snow are falling early in the north, and the sky and the earth are vast. The defeated army collapsed, and Liu Bang made a vigorous effort to drive his troops and horses, chasing him north, until they reached Loufan (now Ningwu, Shanxi). It was extremely cold at this time, and two or three soldiers from the Central Plains lost their fingers due to the cold. It was extremely severe. Although it was freezing cold, Liu Bang captured Jinyang in one go as there were no generals to defend it. Liu Bang was very angry when he heard that King Xin of Han had fled to the Xiongnu. He sent more than ten envoys to the Xiongnu to find out the truth. The envoys all reported that the Huns were weak, the Huns army was weak, and the Huns' sheep and horses were thin, so it was not difficult to defeat the Huns.
But Liu Bang was cautious and sent Lou Jing to investigate the Xiongnu. The wind and snow were all over the sky, and the road was blocked by accumulated knowledge, making it extremely difficult to travel. Liu Bang waited for a long time for Lou Jing, but when there was no news, he ordered the march. Lou Jing braved the wind and snow and ran back quickly. He met Liu Bang's advancing army halfway. Liu Bang asked the Huns how their military strength was. What Lou Jing saw was the same as what the other messengers saw, but he said different things. Lou Jing said: "When two armies meet, each side always wants to let the other side see its own strengths. When I went to the Xiongnu, I saw only weak people, tired troops, and thin horses. Maodun must have done this because he wanted us to think that the Xiongnu If he is weak, he may have already ambushed his elite troops. I think we should not use troops against the Huns easily."
However, at this time Liu Bang had already sent troops, and more than 300,000 troops were on the road. After hearing Lou Jing's discouraging words, Liu Bang lost his temper and yelled at him, then drove his army forward and imprisoned Lou Jing in Guangwu. (southwest of today's Dai County, Shanxi Province), which is at the foot of Juzhu Mountain.
Mao Dun saw that the Han army was so powerful that it was difficult to resist for a while, so he led his troops to retreat. When the Han army saw that Maodun's troops had withdrawn, they pursued them vigorously, like a horse racing on the plains, and were very happy. The Han army pursued all the way, but encountered only the old, weak, sick and disabled, and their fear disappeared. Liu Bang ordered more than 300,000 troops to pursue them with all their strength. Although the army of more than 300,000 people faced wind and snow, there was no obstacle. It was as if they were entering an uninhabited country, marching forward without warning. Liu Bang led the accompanying troops to Pingcheng (today's Datong City, Shanxi Province) easily before the infantry. Liu Bang had just arrived in Pingcheng and led his troops to inspect Baideng. He was immediately besieged by the elite cavalry sent by Moton in Baideng (today's northeast of Datong City, Shanxi). For seven days and nights, he was unable to sustain food and clothing.
When Liu Bang was trapped in Baideng, he saw the Huns in all directions. The Huns cavalry are very powerful. The western team is all white-clad and white horses, very majestic; the eastern team is all green-clothed green horses, awe-inspiring; the northern team is all black-clothed and black horses, extremely majestic; the southern team is all black horses. It's a red horse with its head held high. Liu Bang felt secretly regretful, unspeakably dejected, and eager to find a way to escape.
"Chen Ping, our army is trapped and the army has not yet arrived. Force will not work. You usually have the most tricks. Tell me what to do?" Chen Ping was a counselor of the Han family, and Liu Bang relied on his strategies.
"I also knew that the Xiongnu was powerful, but I never expected it to be so powerful, plus the unjust King of Han. This is the only way to go. Although this move is a dangerous move, there is no other way. Otherwise, if we are trapped for a few more days, we will starve to death even if we are not beaten to death."
What clever plan Chen Ping told Liu Bang was not recorded by Sima Qian and Ban Gu, and it is even less known to future generations. According to historical records, Chen Ping also used a stratagem to alienate Mao Dun and sent a eloquent envoy to persuade Maodun's wife, the Yan family, with generous courtesy and humble words. The Yan family immediately said to Mao Dun:
"You are a virtuous master who started from scratch; so is Liu Bang, who even suffered more hardships than you when he started. Since we are both virtuous masters, why should we embarrass each other? Heroes should cherish heroes, and heroes should love heroes! Besides, in my opinion, even if You occupy the land of the Han people and you can't hold it. Haven't you noticed King Han Xin? He has great ambitions. These days, I see Baishan Mountain with clouds and mist all day long, as if he has a fairy spirit. I'm afraid that Liu Bang is The son of a god. If he is really a god, we Huns cannot afford to offend him!"
In the past few days, Baishan Mountain was densely fogged and the visibility was extremely low. As a result, Mao Dun could not figure out Liu Bang's reality and did not dare to attack rashly. When Yan said this, Mao Dun was really a little suspicious. Mao Dun had already made an agreement with Wang Huang and others. Mao Dun used his weak troops to lure Liu Bang into an ambush. When Mao Dun trapped Liu Bang, Wang Huang and others immediately sent troops to attack Liu Bang. However, a few days after the news of Maodun was sent out, the appointment date had passed and Wang Huang and others were still nowhere to be seen. Maodun became suspicious and feared that Wang Huang and others would betray the agreement and surrender to the Han Dynasty, and he would be harmed instead. So he made a quick decision and ordered the soldiers to step aside to see Liu Bang's true and false situation.
It's midwinter and the fog is thick and lingering for a long time. As soon as the small corner of Maodun moved, Chen Ping hurriedly ordered his soldiers to bend their bows and arrows, and closely surrounded Liu Bang to escape. The archers were in front, back, left and right, their bows fully drawn, each with an extra arrow in their hands, their minds so focused that they didn't even dare to take one more breath. As soon as Liu Bang escaped from Maodun's siege, he ordered Xia Houying to drive away immediately. He escaped from Baideng safely in a moment and hid safely in Pingcheng.
History books do not record what Chen Ping's plan was, so later generations have no way of knowing whether Wang Huang and others missed the appointment at Maodun because of Chen Ping. However, since Chen Ping was a counselor of the Han family, how could he only use a single plan when his master was about life or death? Many historians believe that Chen Ping's plan was full of tricks.
Liu Bang entered Pingcheng, and more than 300,000 Han infantry troops gathered at the city gates. Mao Dun saw that the Han army was powerful and that his painstaking strategy had failed. If he fought hard, the casualties would be heavy, so he led his army to retreat. When Liu Bang was surrounded by Bai Deng, he was still frightened. He knew that Mao Dun was definitely not a good person, so he also ordered his troops to return to the court. Liu Bang was trapped in Baideng, leaving a humiliation for the Han Dynasty. The Huns gradually became arrogant and did not take the Han army in their eyes.
Liu Bang withdrew his troops, crossed Guangwu, let Lou Jing go, and said with a sigh: "I didn't listen to you, so I was trapped in Pingcheng and almost lost my life. I have killed those who said that 'the Huns can be attacked.' "Liu Bang granted Lou Jing the title of Marquis of Guannei of Two Thousand Households, and gave him the title Jianxin Lord.
Chen Ping had meritorious service in rescuing the enemy, so he was granted the title of Marquis of Qu Ni and enjoyed Qu Ni's taxes. Quni was an excellent place with tall and magnificent houses. Liu Bang said that he had traveled all over the world, but only Luoyang and Quni were the most beautiful.
