Chapter 52 3. What kind of people do what kind of things

If it is said that infernal affairs and anti-scheming are still methods on the battlefield, which can be forgiven and understood, it is because conquest by force and conquest by resourcefulness are just common methods in war, and there is no distinction between good and bad.Then it is not so easy for people to understand without faith.Because even in war, there must be certain rules and a certain moral bottom line. Liu Bang was ordered by King Huai of Chu to go west to Guanzhong. Although he stumbled all the way, it went smoothly overall.It's just that at the Xiaoshan pass, there was a lot of resistance from the Qin army.Xiaoshan and Hangu Pass have always been the gateways to enter Guanzhong. If these two passes are taken, Qinchuan will be on the ground for eight hundred miles.Of course Qin Ziying understood this truth, so he sent heavy troops to guard Xiaoshan.Liu Bang wanted to pass the pass, but was dissuaded by Zhang Liang, who said mysteriously and without pain or itching: This pass cannot be fought recklessly, but can only be achieved by outsmarting.This is the role of counselors. If they are all hard-working, how can they show their role.

To say that Liu Bang has Zhang Liang to help him is really a blessing from his previous life.This is the second time Zhang Liang followed Liu Bang.After defecting to Xiang Liang with Liu Bang, Zhang Liang asked Xiang Liang to rebuild South Korea and went to protect Han Wangcheng. As a result, the Qin army counterattacked, and South Korea quickly lost its city and land and became stragglers.This time Liu Bang went west to Guanzhong, passed by Han, and helped Han Wangcheng regain the city. In order to express his gratitude and let his old friends catch up, Han Wangcheng stayed alone and let Zhang Liang enter the pass with Liu Bang.Just following is nothing, the key is that there is a tacit understanding between Liu Bang and Zhang Liang, which is very important.According to the records in "Historical Records: The Family of Liuhou", when Zhang Liang was young, he met a mysterious old man by chance, and he was awarded the book "The Art of War of the Grand Duke". He studied it every day, and learned the essentials.When he followed Liu Bang for the first time, he "counted the art of war of Tai Gong and said Pei Gong", and often gave advice to Liu Bang according to the gourd painting, and Liu Bang "be good at it, and often use his strategy", the two often hit it off, in terms of thinking and thinking. Quite right.So Liu Bang relied on Zhang Liang very much.

This time Zhang Liang gave Liu Bang a good idea, simply put it in one sentence: the temptation of a lot of money + the threat of force.Only by knowing yourself and the enemy can you prescribe the right medicine.Zhang Liang learned that the father of the guard general of the Qin army used to be a butcher, who bought and sold people and made huge profits.So he asked Li Shiqi, an eloquent talent who can bring the dead back to life, to "hold the treasure and eat the Qin general", and bring a lot of money and gifts to be a lobbyist, bribe them, let them surrender, and say that there will be more benefits in the future. .At the same time, Zhang Liang sent an advance force to prepare food for 50,000 people, disperse it to the nearby mountains, plant military flags everywhere, and create a big momentum, giving the Qin army guards the illusion of a large army pressing down on the border.With both approaches, Qin Jun was indeed hit.The group of people here are not easy to mess with, and they seem to be numerous, so they may not be able to win in a real fight. It's better to be a favor and get some benefits.So the general guard of the Qin army hung a white flag on the top of the city, saying that "he wants to attack Xianyang from the west together with Heju", surrendered and turned against him, and prepared to enter the pass with Liu Bang.

Originally, this matter should have come to a successful conclusion here, and Zhang Liang's goal had been achieved, but unexpectedly, this was just the beginning.As soon as Liu Bang saw the effect, he hurriedly wanted to accept the surrender and expand the team.As a result, Zhang Liang dissuaded him again, saying: "This is the only general who wants to betray his ears, and I am afraid that the soldiers will not follow. If you don't follow, you will be in danger. It is better to fight because of it." We can't be too optimistic. The current situation is just their defense. Will want to surrender, the soldiers below may not necessarily be convinced.If that is the case, our future team will not be monolithic, and there will be many unstable factors. It is better to take the opportunity to eliminate them to relieve future worries.

When Liu Bang heard it, he felt reasonable.So while the Qin army was beating gongs and drums and wearing red and hanging colors to warmly welcome their relatives, Liu Bang led his army into Xiaoguan in one go, killed the Qin army who was dreaming of peaceful liberation, and was chased all the way to Lantian the area.The Qin army was defeated like a mountain. Liu Bang and Zhang Liang handled this matter very dishonestly. They didn't even say they were deceived, and they even bit back.Of course, false surrenders and tricks on the battlefield are commonplace, such as when Zhou Yu beat Huang Gai.But it was carried out during the confrontation between the two armies and the swords were at war, but Liu Bang and the others were not. Qin Jun expressed his surrender and was going to fight the former master with Liu Bang, but Liu Bang came to beat him up.Such treachery, disregarding morality, is a bit careless.

Xiang Yu actually had similar behaviors, such as killing 200,000 soldiers of the Qin army on the way west to Guanzhong.For another example, Xiang Yu did not fulfill the promise of King Huai of Chu in the end, and did not let Liu Bang become the king of Guanzhong as he wished.This is also a breach of trust.However, it is also a breach of trust, but there are several essential differences compared with Liu Bang: First of all, Liu Bang behaved more calmly than Xiang Yu.When Zhang Liang gave Liu Bang an idea, Liu Bang readily agreed.He didn't think there was anything wrong with doing that, or he simply agreed in his heart.Before Xiang Yu killed Qin Zu, he did some ideological struggle.He discussed with Ying Bu and General Pu, explaining that he was hesitant to do this matter or not.According to Xiang Yu's domineering personality, he would not discuss ordinary things with others.

Second, there is a difference in time.Xiang Yu didn't want to kill the surrendered Qin army at the beginning, but reorganized them and became part of his team. After a long time, he was killed on the way to Guanzhong.Moreover, there is still a prerequisite for the murder, because these people had friction with the original army of the coalition of princes. In order not to cause a catastrophe, Xiang Yu decided to do it. Liu Bang was not the case. He didn't give the opponent a chance to surrender at all, but took advantage of the opponent's intention to surrender and became paralyzed.This nature is different.The reason Zhang Liang gave for doing so was: the guards surrendered, but the soldiers were not necessarily willing to surrender.This is bullshit.Aren't those soldiers listening to the general's orders?According to this theory, when Qin Ziying surrendered later, Liu Bang should also kill all the soldiers under Ziying. How dare you guarantee that they all have one heart with Ziying?To put it bluntly, I still have bad intentions. When I find a lover, I suspect that my wife is stealing a man, that's all, there is no need to be so delicate.

Third, what Liu Bang denied was himself, and what Xiang Yu denied was others.This difference in the object of negation is actually the most essential difference.Liu Bang did not keep his word, and he denied what he had promised. This is a matter of character and morality.Xiang Yu did not fulfill the promise of King Huai of Chu, and what he was denying was King Huai of Chu, not a certain promise he had made before.What's more, Xiang Yu already had objections to Xiong Xin's false proposition. Fourth, Liu Bang is facing the subordinates, and Xiang Yu is facing the superiors.The reason why Liu Bang was seldom condemned after he broke his trust was that his targets were people at the next level, people who were much lower than him in terms of position and grade.Using the current standard of measurement, these people should belong to the vulnerable group in front of Liu Bang.If they surrendered, they would be Liu Bang's subordinates, so Liu Bang naturally could not treat them as human beings.Before they became subordinates, they were still Liu Bang's enemies and the targets of Liu Bang's revolution.Therefore, Liu Bang's behavior can also be understood as a kind of resourcefulness against the enemy.

Taking a step back, even if Liu Bang deals with people who have already recognized their mistakes and intend to actively correct them, it is no big deal, because according to the axiom of "the superior is always right", it will still not cause much disturbance in people's hearts.But Xiang Yu can't do it. He denied the covenant of King Huai, which violated the will of his superiors.In today's terms, it means resisting the leadership, not acting according to the leadership's intentions, and a prominent manifestation of not paying attention to politics.If it is also inferred from the axiom that "the superior is always right", Xiang Yu's behavior is a big mistake.Not only is it wrong, it is simply unreasonable and contemptible.Therefore, Xiang Yu's mistakes will always be talked about by people and become the target of attacks, and they will also be recorded in historical files as a negative teaching material to warn future generations.