Chapter 247: Welcoming the Han Army with Food and Drink, the Advantage is in Our Hands
The sudden attack by the King of Han frightened the King of Yong, and he asked his attendants, "Did the King of Han's army fall from the sky?
How did they march hundreds of miles to attack me without food and fodder?"
“Your Majesty, the King of Han must have had evil intentions long ago and had already made preparations in Guanzhong before the Emperor’s enfeoffment, so he could catch us off guard.
The most urgent task now is to contact the King of Qin to resist the King of Han, and the Overlord to go east to attack Qi. If Liu Bang leaves, we will have to fight on two fronts. "
King Yong woke up as if from a dream and immediately ordered troops to send out.
Han Xin was leading the Han army to capture cities one after another and was heading straight for Xianyang. He was no match for the enemy. Adhering to the idea of attacking the enemy's strategy, he sent lobbyists to the city.
“My fellow village elders, since the King of Qin and the King of Yong were enthroned, the people of Qin have treated the two kings with respect, but the two kings have treated the people of Qin tyrannically.
King Su said that if the king treats his subjects as grass and abuses them at will, the subjects will treat the king as a thief and enemy. Is there anyone in this world who bears deep hatred but does not seek revenge?
I believe that such people are not worthy of being human beings.
The King of Han was the first to enter Guanzhong and treated the people of Qin well, because according to the agreement among the princes, the King of Han should have been the King of Guanzhong. Now the King of Han raised an army to become the King of Guanzhong again. He had heard about the tyranny of the King of Qin and the King of Yong, and was willing to abolish those that were not beneficial to the people of Qin and exempt them from those heavy corvee labor.
The two kings of Qin and Yong were tyrants like the First Emperor and the Second Emperor, while the King of Han was a benevolent monarch like Fusu.
Even a moth or butterfly knows how to fly towards the light, even at the cost of its life. The people should love those benevolent monarchs and support those wise monarchs.
Open and close the city, this is all you can do for yourself."
Han Xin's lobbying and letters detonated the resentment and dissatisfaction accumulated in the hearts of the Qin people. There was constant civil unrest in the city. Many people killed the Chu nobles and defected to the Han State. The few who failed were quickly defeated by Han Xin's army.
Han Xin achieved excellent results by attacking people's hearts with one hand and using force with the other.
Han Xin ordered his generals to go to various places to cut off the Qin army's food supply. With the cooperation of the Qin people, this task became much smoother.
The two kings of Qin and Yong led an army of 150,000 and entered Han Xin's encirclement. In this area of hundreds of miles, Han Xin set up countless traps.
Although Luo Cai was not particularly proficient in military affairs, he could still see that Han Xin attached great importance to it, but the deployment of troops was a little insufficient. He could not help but ask curiously: "My dear, your deployment seems..."
Luo Cai was a little speechless, so Han Xin smiled and explained, "This is an attempt by Xin. After going east, we will definitely face King Xiang. This is a strategy Xin has come up with to deal with King Xiang. We will use ambushes and battle lines to wear down King Xiang's strength and army, and finally surround and kill him. Now let's try it with the two kings Qin and Yong first."
Luo Cai frowned slightly upon hearing this and said, “My elder brother once said that King Xiang was a natural born military leader, invincible on the battlefield, and he has indeed never had an enemy since his debut.
He could kill more than a hundred people every time, and even the tightest defense line would be broken in one attack. Killing generals and seizing flags was as easy for him as drinking water and eating. The enemies were often afraid of having their camps blown up, and even the elite Qin troops were no exception.
You are trying to use the two kings of Qin and Yong to try out tactics, but the difference in strength between them and King Xiang is unimaginable, and this is something you need to take into consideration."
Han Xin smiled and said, "Cai Niang, according to legend, great rivers flow from the Kunlun Mountain of Queen Mother of the West, surging and rushing, and no force in the world can stop it.
You have seen how terrifying the water of the river is among the mountain streams of Bashu.
But as it gradually flowed eastward into the sea, it no longer had the power to destroy the world.
Why is this?
Could it be that the water level of the river changed when Kunlun flowed towards the East China Sea?
No, it is because along its thousands of miles long journey, countless tributaries and flat lands weaken the power of the river.
If this is the case with rivers, what about people?
No matter how strong Xiang Yu is, he can only defeat a few hundred people. Can he defeat ten thousand people?
Sometimes human power is exhausted!
As long as the strategy is correct, 100,000 people are no match for us, then 300,000, 500,000, or even 1 million."
Han Xin's voice was full of excitement: "I am an ordinary man. The only thing I am good at is leading troops. There is no limit to the number of troops. The more the better. If I have a million troops, even if they are as brave as the Overlord, I dare say I can defeat him."
On the battlefield, the two kings of Qin and Yong soon realized that the situation was not good. The food supply was insufficient, and no matter which direction they tried to break through, they would be surrounded by countless Han troops.
The King of Qin shouted in disbelief: "Where did the Han army get so many people?"
Han Xin calculated the time and personally led 50,000 troops to attract the two kings of Qin and Yong in the front. The soldiers were arranged in layers. The two kings of Qin and Yong were brothers of King Xiang. They personally led the troops to attack. Thanks to the elite combat effectiveness of the Chu State, they directly broke through one or two layers of defense.
The bodies of the Han and Chu soldiers fell to the ground twisted, swords, spears, and halberds were broken and scattered on the ground. Han Xin calmly gathered the defeated soldiers whose defense line was breached, and then rows of soldiers led the way.
The central army retreated slightly, the left and right armies dispersed and separated, and began to infiltrate behind the Chu army. Under the command of Han Xin, the Han army was always in a situation of defeat but not collapse.
Han Xin nodded with satisfaction. He did not use all his strength to attack the two kings of Qin and Yong, but he was still able to achieve the current situation of being defeated without being crushed. This was the success of the tactics. Facts proved that according to his deployment, he could withstand extremely strong attacks.
"All generals, listen up! Move forward with all your troops!"
Having reached this conclusion, Han Xin decided to fully demonstrate the strength of the Han army and defeat the coalition forces of the two kings Qin and Yong. As soon as the manpower that had not been deployed to the battlefield before entered the battlefield, the entire situation completely slipped towards the victory of the Han army.
According to Han Xin's deployment, the cavalry completely tore through the weak points in the Chu army. The 150,000-strong army was divided and unable to help each other, and was strangled by Han Xin in sections.
Both the Qin and Yong kings noticed that the situation had suddenly deteriorated. The Yong king's face changed drastically, and he was a little confused for a moment. The Qin king was not so flustered and said directly: "Brother.
The leader of the Han army must be Han Xin. We are no match for him. I will stay behind to cover our retreat while you lead the main force to break out.
There are still several important towns to the east of Xianyang that can be defended. You must defend Guanzhong. The king is attacking Qi, so you must quickly spread the news of the King of Han's betrayal.
This is the great cause of the Chu State and the long-cherished wish of the Xiang family. We must not let it go to waste!"
The King of Qin's eyes were full of anger. What Xiang Yu was doing was the long-cherished wish of the people of Chu. In the more than a year since he became the emperor, both the nobles and the common people of Chu had experienced an unprecedentedly comfortable period.
Xiang Yu had no ability to govern, but the Xiang family had fine traditions. He simply spread those traditions and completely grasped the hearts of the people in Chu.
Upon hearing this, tears welled up in the eyes of the King of Yong, and he gritted his teeth and said, "The King of Han rose from a commoner to the noble King of Han, but he actually betrayed the King. How despicable! When the King defeats Qi, I will definitely kill him to relieve my hatred."
The Chu army's deployment naturally could not be hidden from Han Xin, "General, the Chu army wants to break through, should we push all the reserve troops forward?"
Contrary to everyone's expectations, Han Xin actually shook his head and laughed loudly, "No need, let them go and hurry up to annihilate the remaining Chu troops.
Break out? Escape?
Can you walk?
If it is so easy to escape from Xin's ambush, how can we gain the trust of the king and the respect of the Luo family?"
King Yong led a large group of troops to break out to the east, and then King Qin suddenly felt the pressure on himself increasing. His face turned pale in an instant, and he realized that he had miscalculated.
What do you mean by "staying behind"? I am not qualified to be the last one to leave!
Especially since King Yong took away the elite troops of the Chu army, he could not even suppress the Qin troops in his army. As the Han army pressed forward, the Qin troops, who had lost the suppression of the Chu troops, instantly collapsed and even turned around to fight with the Chu troops.
"It's over!"
The King of Qin sat on the ground in despair. He looked at the King of Yong from afar and murmured, "Brother, you must escape quickly."
Liu Bang and Luo Yi arrived outside Xianyang City. Han Xin strode towards Liu Bang with his head held high. He had a proud look on his face, but when he remembered what Luo Cai had taught him, he instantly changed his expression to a humble one. He clasped his fists and said, "My king, relying on your prestige in Guanzhong, the Qin army collapsed without a fight. Under the bravery of the generals, the main force of the Chu army was defeated before I could even show my strength.
If you lead the army yourself, I'm afraid this war wouldn't have to be fought at all, and the Qin people would naturally welcome you to Xianyang as king with food and drink."
Liu Bang said excitedly: "Zi Mu, you are too modest. You are my right-hand man. The elite troops of the two kings of Qin and Yong have been lost. According to the current trend, I am afraid that within half a year, Guanzhong will be completely pacified. We will completely occupy the old land of the former Qin State. This is your contribution. I will reward you with the title of Marquis and several thousand households of food and fiefdom."
Han Xin smiled slightly. The title of Marquis was a must. His goal was to become a king and wear the seal of prime minister, as well as the seal of general. Only the princes could be worthy of Cai Niang.
No one knew what he was thinking. A group of people accompanied Liu Bang towards Xianyang. Then everyone saw a surprising scene. The elders of Xianyang actually welcomed Liu Bang with food and drink as Han Xin had said.
Everyone couldn't help but look at Han Xin. Luo Cai kicked Han Xin silently. Han Xin shuddered and bowed down, saying, "My king, is there anyone who doesn't know your reputation for kindness in Qin?
What I said before was not false at all. When the Qin people heard the reputation of the Han army, they collapsed without fighting. I have only seen in history books that when King Wu of Zhou attacked King Zhou, the slaves in Muye turned against him. Your reputation can be seen from this."
This time, Liu Bang finally laughed out loud from the bottom of his heart. Everyone laughed, and the air was filled with a happy atmosphere.
————
The war between the Three Qins was the first confrontation between Chu and Han. In fact, it was a war in which Chu was bound to lose. The root of everything was Xiang Yu's wrong policy towards Qin. Throughout ancient and modern times, both at home and abroad, high-pressure and harsh policies did not conform to post-war reality.
The Qin people were full of resentment towards the upper nobles of the Chu State. The Chu homeland was too far away from the Qin State to effectively project power. Even without Liu Bang's group, the Qin people would have risen up.
Liu Bang's existence greatly accelerated the collapse of Chu's ruling order in Qin. In fact, except for Chu, which had gained a lot of benefits in the war to destroy Qin, Xiang Yu failed to get the support of nobles and civilians in almost every piece of land. This was the root cause of his failure.
Liu Bang satisfied the needs of the vast majority of people through his superb political means, and eventually the Han Dynasty replaced the Chu Dynasty and became the second unified dynasty. ——History of the Rise and Fall of the Han Dynasty
(End of this chapter)
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