Chapter 34 8. Fight against Chu with all your strength, Wang Jian begs for rewards to dispel doubts

In the process of Qin destroying the six kingdoms, there were actually only two real opponents, Zhao and Chu.The state of Zhao is good at fighting, and it is tough; the state of Chu is vast, and it is large.After destroying Yan and Wei, Qin Wang Yingzheng turned his attention to the vast land and abundant resources of Chu.After the state of Chu was defeated by Bai Qi in 278 BC and defeated Yan and Ying, it moved its capital to Huaiyang and withdrew its troops to protect itself.Later, although the national power was restored for a time, it was still big and weak.In 253 BC, the joint attack on Qin by the five countries failed, and King Chu Kaolie hurriedly moved his capital to Shouchun in an attempt to avoid Qin's military might.When Qin State defeated Han, Wei, Yan, and Zhao, Chu State was still a big country in the south, still occupying the southeast and south of Henan Province, southeast Shandong Province, eastern Hubei Province, Jiangsu, Anhui, Jiangxi, and Zhejiang provinces.However, since the ruling group of the Chu State has been completely corrupt, it cannot escape the fate of destruction.

To gnaw away this big bone and eliminate the biggest obstacle to Qin's unification of China, of course it is by no means an easy task. On a certain day in 225 BC, in the Xianyang Palace, the 35-year-old Qin Wang Yingzheng was full of ambition and piercing eyes.He is studying with the young general Li Xin and the old general Wang Jian the military plan to conquer Chu. Qin Wang Yingzheng asked Li Xin: "General estimate, how many troops will be needed to crusade against Chu?" His words already meant to belittle Chu. Li Xin replied confidently: "Back to your majesty, two hundred thousand is enough!"

Qin Wang Yingzheng asked Wang Jian the same question. Wang Jian replied: "Your Majesty, 600,000 troops are necessary to destroy Chu! Li Xin will surely fail to attack Chu with 200,000 troops." Qin Wang Yingzheng smiled and said: "General Wang is old and too timid! It is still General Li who is mighty!" Therefore, Yingzheng appointed Li Xin as the general and Meng Wu as the deputy general, and led 200,000 troops to attack Chu. Seeing that his opinion was not adopted, Wang Jian reported illness and returned to his hometown of Pinyang to recuperate. Before Li Xin attacked Chu, Wang Ben led his troops to attack Chu in 226 BC.Ended the 50-year history of the state of Chu not being attacked, captured more than ten cities of the state of Chu, and kicked off the prelude to the destruction of Chu, which shows that the state of Chu is indeed weak and has few generals.However, Li Xin still underestimated the power of Chu.

In 225 BC, Li Xin led 200,000 Qin troops to attack Chu.In the early days of the war, Li Xin and Meng Wu fought very smoothly, and news of success came back to Xianyang from time to time.Li Xin attacked Pingyu (now north of Pingyu County, Henan), and Mengwu attacked Chu (now southeast of Shenqiu, Henan), both of which defeated the Chu army.After Li Xin captured Pingyu, he led his troops to advance rapidly, and soon captured Shencheng, and Yue Mengwu met Chengfu (now west of Xiangcheng, Henan).When the King of Chu heard that Qin was attacking his country, he worshiped Xiang Yan as a general, and led 200,000 troops to meet the enemy. The Chu army advanced by land and water.Xiang Yan found out that Li Xin's army was coming from Shencheng.So it was decided to concentrate the main force to meet the enemy at Juyang, north of Shouchun and on the north bank of the Huaihe River, and ordered the deputy general Qu Ding to ambush seven troops in Lutai Mountain.

Relying on the high morale of the Qin army, Li Xin hurried all the way, and happened to meet the main force of Xiang Yan's army. The two armies fought fiercely, and it was hard to tell the winner.Then Qu Ding's seven ambush soldiers rushed out together, and the Qin army led by Li Xin couldn't resist, seven captains were killed, and the Qin army was defeated and fled.Xiang Yan led the Chu army in hot pursuit for three days and three nights. The Qin army suffered numerous casualties, and all the Chu lands robbed by Li Xin were recovered. When Meng Wu heard that Li Xin had been defeated and fled, he hurriedly withdrew his troops and returned to the original territory of Zhao State.Li Xin's attack on Chu ended in failure.

When Qin Wang Yingzheng heard of Li Xin's defeat, he was so angry that he cut off Li Xin's title and fiefdom.However, not long after, Qin Wang Yingzheng sent Li Xin and Wang Ben to attack Yan, and the next year Li Xin and Wang Ben attacked together, and Li Xin, who had made great military achievements, was named Longxi Marquis.The reason why Li Xin was reused was because Qin Wang Yingzheng realized through reflection that even if Li Xin was at fault for the failure of Chu Chu, he could not be blamed entirely on him, and he was also responsible, because he did not listen to Wang Jian's advice at the beginning.

At this time, Qin Wang Yingzheng, who deeply regretted not listening to Wang Jian's words, came to Wang Jian's home in Pinyang (now northeast of Fuping County, Shaanxi Province) in person, and begged the retired old general to come out of the mountain again. Qin Wang Yingzheng said directly to Wang Jian: "I was confused for a while and didn't listen to the general's good advice. Li Xin's 200,000 troops were defeated by the Chu general Xiang Yan. Now the Chu soldiers are attacking Qin in the west. I beg the general Wang to accept the saddle horse again." In the face of suffering, lead the troops to fight against the Chu army, and revive our Great Qin State!"

Wang Jian declined and said: "The old minister is old, weak and sick, he is powerless! Your Majesty, you should choose other generals who are more talented!" Qin Wang Yingzheng hurriedly said: "This time the conquest of Chu State must be led by the general, so don't refuse! If you have any demands from the old general, just speak up, and I will obey." Wang Jian didn't refuse anymore, so he had to agree: "If the king wants to use the veteran, then the veteran must have 600,000 troops, otherwise the veteran will not be able to break through Chu." Qin Wang Yingzheng listened and said with a smile: "I once heard that in ancient times, there were only three armies in big countries, two armies in medium-sized countries, and one army in small countries. When leaving the army, not all of them were dispatched to avoid the shortage of troops in the country. Wangba's power surpassed that of princes. In fact, the army only has a thousand chariots, seventy-five soldiers in one chariot, and it has never reached 100,000. Now the general must use 600,000 soldiers, which is unprecedented!"

Wang Jian replied: "In ancient times, in wars, a date was agreed, and battle formations were set up. The two sides fought in formation, and the pace had certain rules. Fighting with war would not cause serious injuries, condemning crimes but not annexing land. Although resorting to force, it still contains the meaning of comity. Therefore, the number of soldiers used by the emperor does not need to be very large. Nowadays, the princes are fighting with each other, bullying the weak, killing everyone they meet, occupying the ground when they see it, and tens of thousands of troops. No way. Chu State owns the southeast, and with one command, a million soldiers can be prepared. If the minister leads 600,000 troops, he may not be able to defeat the enemy. No matter what, there must be no less."

Qin Wang Yingzheng sighed and said: "The old general has been fighting for many years, and he has analyzed problems thoroughly. The widow will rely on the general. Six hundred thousand is six hundred thousand. This is my all-powerful soldier!" On that day, Qin Wang Yingzheng carried Wang Jian into the court, worshiped him as a general, poured all the troops of the whole country, formed an army of 600,000, and handed it over to Wang Jian, still using Meng Wu as his deputy.On the day of departure, King Qin Yingzheng went to Bashang to see him off. Wang Jian toasted to Qin Wang Yingzheng and said: "Your Majesty, please drink this cup. I have a request for you."

Qin Wang Yingzheng gulped it down and said: "The general has any request, just say it, as long as it is something I can do, I will never refuse." Wang Jian took out a slip from his sleeve, which listed several residences in Xianyang's fertile fields, and begged King Qin Yingzheng: "I beg the king to grant it to me as a minister." Qin Wang Yingzheng looked at it and said with a smile: "The general came back successfully, and the widow will share the wealth with the general. Are you still afraid of poverty?" Wang Jian said: "I'm old. Even if your majesty grants me a great reward, it's just a candle in the wind. How long can it shine? Why don't you reward me with good land and beautiful houses as the foundation for my descendants when I'm alive, so that my generations to come Now you can enjoy the kindness of the king." Qin Wang Yingzheng smiled knowingly after hearing this, and agreed to Wang Jian's request without hesitation. When Wang Jian's army marched outside the pass, he sent envoys back to Xianyang to ask Qin Wang Yingzheng for several gardens.Seeing this, Meng Wu couldn't help asking: "Isn't the old general's request too much?" Wang Jian stroked his long beard with his hands, and with a smile on his face, he told Meng Wu privately, "The king of Qin has a strong character and a mighty majesty, but he is hesitant and suspicious, and he doesn't trust others. Now that I have an army of 600,000, I will inevitably be worried. At this time, if someone Slandering me in front of the King of Qin would have unimaginable consequences. How many excellent generals in history have failed because of the king’s suspicion, and were even killed innocently? Le Yi, Lian Po, Li Mu, Lord Xinling...there are too many, I don’t want to follow them Follow the footsteps. Besides, it will take a long time to go to war with Chu. So I have to show to King Qin that I am a trustworthy person and a general without political ambition. I ask for more fields, houses and gardens, and pretend to be descendants Thinking about it is actually to comfort King Qin's heart. If not, wouldn't King Qin doubt my loyalty?" After Meng Wu heard it, he was convinced and sighed: "The old general has a good opinion, Meng Wu is not as good as himself!" Xiang Yan heard that Wang Jian led an army of 600,000 to attack Chu, and sent an envoy to report to the king of Chu.The Chu State conscripted another 200,000 troops led by General Jing Qi to assist Xiang Yan in resisting the Qin army. In 224 BC, Wang Jian's army marched out of the Central Plains and conquered Chen (now Huaiyang, Henan), the area south of Chen, and Pingyu Yidai Chu City in one fell swoop.Then, they ran for more than ten miles, built fortifications, and stood firm. Xiang Yan sent people to challenge every day, but Qin Jun couldn't hold out.Xiang Yan thought Wang Jian was old and timid. Wang Jian asked the soldiers to rest and take a bath, slaughtered cattle every day to reward the soldiers, and shared food with the soldiers.The generals were grateful, willing to serve, and asked for battle many times.Wang Jian always advised them to drink more wine and recharge their batteries, which lasted for several months. Soldiers have nothing to do every day, so they play with throwing stones and over-distance.Wang Jian sent people to register the victory and defeat of the soldiers every day to understand the strength of the soldiers. Wang Jian ordered that the soldiers were not allowed to go to the Chu-occupied area to cut wood. The Chu people strayed into the camp, entertained them with wine and food, and released them, fully showing a resolute self-defense attitude.The two armies faced each other for a long time, but Xiang Yan couldn't find a chance to fight, and repeatedly attacked, but it was always difficult to overcome.Xiang Yan thought that Wang Jian was attacking Chu State in name, but in fact he was supporting troops to protect himself, so he relaxed his guard.Soon, winter came and the weather was freezing. Chu soldiers were very afraid of the cold because they were all southerners. As a last resort, Xiang Yan planned to return east and fight again next year.In comparison, Qin Bing was very cold-resistant. Suddenly one day, Wang Jian gave a banquet to the soldiers and said: "Today we drink this bowl of wine, and then we will defeat the enemy together!" The soldiers were all gearing up, scrambling to be the first.Wang Jian selected 20,000 soldiers who were masters of throwing stones over long distances and brave soldiers, called "strong men", and set up another army as the vanguard; then divided the remaining army into several teams to attack Chu from different routes, and Order: The Chu army is defeated, immediately occupy the land and establish a base. The Chu army was preparing to retreat eastward for the winter, but the Qin army did not expect a surprise attack at all.Facing the Qin army coming like a huge wave, they had to fight in haste.The 20,000 warriors of the Qin army had been accumulating strength for a long time, and they all wanted to show their skills, shouting and rushing straight into the enemy's line, all of them defeated a hundred with one.The Chu army was defeated, and the lieutenant general Qu Ding died in battle.Xiang Yan and Jing Qi led the defeated troops to march eastward, and were attacked by the Qin army along the way, and Wang Jian's main force took advantage of the victory to pursue them. The Chu army retreated to Qinan (now south of Su County, Anhui), and the Qin army caught up. The two armies fought fiercely, and Xiang Yan died in battle.The Chu army had no commander, and the army was defeated like a mountain. There was no way to go to the sky, and there was no way to enter the earth.The Qin army was as powerful as a broken bamboo, and soon captured Shouchun, the capital of Chu State.The state of Chu perished and was established as the county of Chu by Qin. Wang Jian attacked the state of Chu, and it took two years to pacify Chu and Baiyue.When the teacher returned to Xianyang, Qin Wang Yingzheng went out of the city for 30 miles to meet him personally, and personally helped the car into the city, rewarding him with a thousand pieces of gold. However, for these gifts from King Qin Yingzheng, Wang Jian not only refused to accept them, but also returned all the fertile fields, beautiful ponds and pavilions he asked for when he left the army, and begged King Qin to return to his hometown and take care of himself for the rest of his life. To be able to destroy the most difficult bone of Chu, Qin Wang Yingzheng knew his mistakes and corrected it on the one hand: After Li Xinbing was defeated, Qin Wang Yingzheng realized that Wang Jian was the most suitable candidate to destroy Chu, so he sent Qin's all-powerful soldiers Give it all to Wang Jian.Of course, the more important thing is Wang Jian's contribution. Wang Jian learned from the lesson of Lianpo's replacement in the Battle of Changping, which led to the tragic death of more than 400,000 soldiers in Zhao State, that he understood the danger of fire in the backyard. The accurate grasp of his character enabled him to show his loyalty to Qin Wang Yingzheng by asking for rewards from the beginning, so as to dispel Qin Wang Yingzheng's doubts.It is really rare for Wang Jian to be able to use power without loving it or exceeding it.