Chapter 22 Chapter 22 The Tragic Fate of the Three Unjust Generals of the Tang and Song Dynasties

In the chants of Chinese history, nothing can arouse the infinite sympathy of ordinary people like a famous general being wronged. On the stage and in TV dramas, Yue Fei and Yuan Chonghuan took turns filming.Because a famous general is wronged, it is a tragedy that every descendant cannot control his emotions when facing the history. In the two dynasties of Tang and Song Dynasties, the familiar dramas of famous generals being wronged, the story of storytelling Yue Fei familiar to the common people, and the plots of traitorous officials in the leadership of the Yang family and loyal officials being wronged, made the audience gnash their teeth time and time again.But what kind of tragedy is the real history?

If we talk about the three famous generals who were wronged the most during the Tang and Song dynasties, I believe they should be named: Wang Zhongsi, Di Qing, and Yue Fei. However, they came to the same destination by different routes and suffered similar fates. What is hidden behind the tragedy? [Wang Zhongsi (Tang Dynasty)] There is an old saying among the people: There is no medicine for regret in the world.Wang Zhongsi is the heaviest regret medicine of the Tang Dynasty. It is he who perceives the evil intention of An Lushan's rebellion with the keen eyes of an old military strategist, and it is also he who pushes the prosperous age of the Tang Dynasty to He reached the apex, and with a loyal heart, he disregarded personal honor and disgrace for the persistent ideal of protecting the country and the people, and finally offended Tang Xuanzong, who had always promoted and appreciated him, and paid the heaviest price for a loyal minister.If, just if, Wang Zhongsi's impeachment of An Lushan in the early years of Tianbao can be recognized by the Li Tang Dynasty, and if it was General Wang Zhongsi who led the troops to suppress the rebellion during the Yuyang beacon fire in 755 AD, then history will What will be the ending?Sadly, history never assumes.

The Anshi Rebellion that lasted for 8 years made history forever remember the names of Li Guangbi and others, and General Wang Zhongsi, who died young, was the most shining star in the peak era of the Tang Dynasty. The ups and downs of Wang Zhongsi's life are destined to be closely connected with the rise and fall of the prosperous Tang Dynasty. When he was 8 years old, his father died in the battle of Songzhou against Tubo. Tang Xuanzong, who deplored his beloved general, adopted Wang Zhongsi in the palace and grew up with the prince.That was the beginning of the prosperous era of Kaiyuan in the Tang Dynasty. At the age of 18, Wang Zhongsi fought the first battle in his life. He attacked Tubo with 300 cavalry in Hexi, beheading thousands of people.At that time, the Tang Dynasty, just like the general Wang who was proud of his horseshoe in the spring breeze, was full of youthful vitality.From the age of 37, Wang Zhongsi began to conquer the North and the South. He defeated the Khitan in the Battle of Mobei, and the Turks in the Battle of Sahe Neishan. Since then, the powerful Turkic Empire has completely become a historical concept.Tubo was defeated in the battle of Jishishan, and the Tang Dynasty mastered all the strategic locations in the Hexi area, forming the initiative in the military confrontation with Tubo.The illustrious martial arts in the golden age of the Tang Dynasty also reached its peak with victory after victory. At the age of 40, Wang Zhongsi served as the general seal of the four towns Jiedushi and held the 300,000 elite troops of the Tang Dynasty. He reached the pinnacle of power in his military career, and the conflict with Li Linfu and other powerful officials was getting closer. The spear and the dark arrow also pushed him into the vortex of life and death, just like the Tang Dynasty at this time, under the appearance of the prosperous age, there was already a deep crisis lurking.

Among the many generals in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, Wang Zhongsi was a genius who was good at making full use of concentrated mobile forces to fight annihilation wars. His first principle of war was not to capture cities and territories, but to destroy the enemy's vital forces to the maximum extent.His cavalry regiment was the most violent tornado on the battlefield in the 8th century AD. Whether it was the Turks, the Khitans, or the Tibetans, they all had a deep experience of his stormy attack style.For the sparsely populated nomads, the battle with Wang Zhongsi was an out-and-out nightmare.However, as a famous general, Wang Zhongsi was not warlike. He did not seek the glory of rewarding meritorious service by killing the enemy. As a feudal official, he was more of a builder than a destroyer. Both have established a complete set of military selection system and frontier construction system, turning the border of the Tang Dynasty into an indestructible iron wall.When generals of the same rank as him were scrambling to attack at the border, and even actively provoked the enemy to seek military exploits, he was keenly aware of the dangers of militarism to the country.He used careful and patient management to build border defenses, and never took the initiative to provoke wars.He warned his generals: The duty of soldiers is to guard the country, not to provoke wars for no reason.What he cares about is not a personal military medal, but a century-old plan for national defense construction.This is paving the way for his future tragedies.When the overjoyed Tang Xuanzong forced Wang Zhongsi to launch the Battle of Shibao City, Wang Zhongsi, who has always been known for obeying orders, chose to refuse. When Li Guangbi was worried about his future, he told everyone frankly: The country's border security is meaningless, it will only increase the casualties of soldiers and cause unnecessary sacrifices, and my Wang Zhongsi will never use the blood of soldiers to stain his official robe red.Through this shocking dialogue through the ages, what we see is a man who transcends the concept of history and class, not only because of his illustrious military achievements and long-term strategic vision, but also because of his selfless respect for the value of life.

The tragedy finally came. After the Shibaocheng incident, Wang Zhongsi was imprisoned because of Li Linfu's framing. It was his subordinate brother Shu Han who held Tang Xuanzong's leg and pleaded so hard that he saved his life.In 749 A.D., this outstanding Tang Dynasty marshal died of illness in Hanyang, Hubei at the age of 43.In the same year, the Tang Empire seized Shibao City at a huge price, but finally gave up because it could not be defended. As Wang Zhongsi expected, this was a senseless war in which tens of thousands of soldiers died in vain. Six years later, An Lushan, who had always been trusted by Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, rebelled. The eight-year Anshi Rebellion completely ruined the golden age of the Tang Dynasty.When Tang Xuanzong, who fled in embarrassment, looked back at the beacon fires that filled the sky in Chang'an, would he think of Wang Zhongsi?

In 2003, there was a line in Zhang Yimou's movie, which was scolded by fans: "The highest state of a sword is to have no sword in your hand and no sword in your heart. That is not to kill, and that is peace." No one knows, this The deep desire contained in this boring line is a dream that a general named Wang Zhongsi pursued at the cost of his life more than 1,000 years ago. [Di Qing (Northern Song Dynasty)] In the land of Yanzhao, there are so many generous and elegiac people.In the Northern Song Dynasty, where culture was more important than military affairs, and the whole country was singing and dancing, Di Qing from Shanxi was the most tragic war song in the Northern Song Dynasty.The Northern Song Dynasty claimed to "govern the world with the scholar-bureaucrats". The promotion of the status of the literati not only prospered the culture, but also brought about the decline of the staunch folk customs of the Chinese nation and the decline of the morality of the Chinese cultural and intellectual class.Military generals were the most tragic profession in the Northern Song Dynasty. Official positions were suppressed by civil servants, commanders were constrained everywhere, and they were taboo when they made great achievements. It was really "they come to fight and they take the blame."Even ordinary people are ashamed of practicing martial arts as soldiers.In that era of powerful enemies, the Northern Song Dynasty, with a highly prosperous cultural economy and extremely weak folk customs, was the most delicious dish in the bloodshot eyes of nomads.

Fortunately, the Northern Song Dynasty had Di Qing, this untimely and loyal patron saint of the country. In the golden age of highly developed economy and culture in the Northern Song Dynasty, the long border of the empire was supported by this group of humble but uncomplaining soldiers. .In the battle between Song and Xia, Xixia Dangxiang cavalry galloped thousands of miles across the land of Qinchuan. The weak army of the Northern Song Dynasty was exhausted under the continuous attack of Dangxiang cavalry. From Haoshuichuan to Sanchuankou, they almost lost the last ounce of belief in victory.It was the arrival of Di Qing that stabilized the battle situation in the Northern Song Dynasty. His troops were the few in the Northern Song Dynasty who dared to fight head-on with the Xixia army and won the victory. His cavalry charge frightened the elite cavalry of Xixia. But he never moves blindly. On the contrary, he is good at strategy and often chooses to launch the deadliest blow at the most accurate moment.During his military career in the Northwest, he went through 25 battles without losing a single battle.

He came from a humble background, and even though he became a prime minister because of his military exploits, he still had the mark of being a soldier on his face. He refused to get rid of this shameful mark, and told the emperor that this would encourage future generations to work hard.In fact, during his military career, he seemed to be a burning iron, heating up all the people around him, tempering the exhausted army of the Northern Song Dynasty into an elite journey of fighting to the death and unyielding.In the subsequent battle of Nongzhigao, he used infantry troops to lure the enemy's main force to concentrate at Kunlun Pass, and then personally led the cavalry troops to make a lightning strategic detour, launching a blitz from the side, completely eradicating the arrogant Nongzhigao tribe. Compared with Genghis Khan's proud cavalry strategy and roundabout tactics, Di Qing's similar pioneering work was hundreds of years earlier.

On the battlefield, Di Qing is a victorious tiger, but in officialdom, Di Qing is a sheep at the mercy of others.His background as a general was the cause of his official tragedy. From the first day he made contributions, he lived under the suspicious eyes of the Northern Song dynasty. From Wen Yanbo to Jia An to Li Dui, these civil servants were either loyal or treacherous, but formed an amazing alliance on the issue of dealing with Di Qing.When Di Qingnan made great contributions and was appointed as a privy envoy, this collective framing activity reached its climax, and the narrowness and treachery of the Chinese intellectual class were fully exposed in this process.On the surface, these people have noble rhetoric, such as "military generals arrogate to power, not the blessing of the country".The real reason is that the civil servants and scholar-bureaucrats who occupied the mainstream in the political class of the Northern Song Dynasty did not allow military generals to have any chance to stand out, because this would threaten the mainstream political status they had finally obtained.Under such circumstances, general Di Qing became the heaviest victim. He could defeat the strong with the weak many times on the battlefield, but his background determined that the officialdom was a war he could never win.What's more funny is that Ouyang Xiu's impeachment memorial to Di Qing was written so absurdly that he actually said that Di Qing's promotion was in conflict with the Yin-Yang and Five Elements, so he must be demoted. Compared with Qin Hui's "unnecessary" rhetoric when he framed Yue Fei, this man has always been evaluated as a famous minister The Great Confucianists of the Northern Song Dynasty can be described as shameless 10 times.

So Di Qing, who had only been a privy envoy for four years, was sadly released. He tried every means to avoid the tragedy. He was modest and low-key. He did not have the arrogance of a general.He acts justly, rewards and punishments are clearly defined, and he is an honest and honest official, but the more he does everything perfectly, the more the tragedy will be accelerated.This is a special tragedy in the era of civil officials ruling the country in the Northern Song Dynasty.Even after Chenzhou was demoted, those civil servants still refused to let go of Di Qing, who was already a hairless phoenix. Under the surveillance of the imperial secret agents and the slander of rumors, Di Qing, who had been away from Beijing for less than half a year, died of depression, and made every effort to get rid of him. After losing his Northern Song civil official group, he can finally breathe a sigh of relief.

But behind Di Qing, in the sinister smiles of Ouyang Xiu and others celebrating each other, the Northern Song Dynasty is already full of wind and rain.In the name of national stability, this dynasty, which wantonly destroyed the Chinese nation's stamina and martial spirit, staged the old story of self-destruction of the Great Wall time and time again, and finally tasted the painful fruit of forgetting the battle and dying in the war of Jingkang's shame. [Yue Fei (Southern Song Dynasty)] The Wumu Temple was demolished by the Qing Dynasty, and "Manjianghong" is still sung in the hearts of passionate young people. The rigid history textbooks may erase his status as a "national hero", but they can never replace the proof that history gave him, just like a song The song sang: "There are steelyards between heaven and earth, and the weights are ordinary people." Under the background of bloody battles between Song and Jin Dynasties, Yue Fei might have become the fixed star. The story of the great victory in Zhuxian Town has been turned into the storybook of the storyteller, and it has been circulated among the people for hundreds of years, so that ignorant people doubt the authenticity of Yue Jiajun.The weak Song Dynasty was able to have such an invincible army of kings, and in the era of broken mountains and rivers, there was such a grand scene of chasing stubborn enemies from the north.But this is a historical fact.Both "History of Jin" and "History of Song" have truly recorded the brilliant martial arts of Yue Fei's army sweeping the iron pagoda of the state of Jin.The arrogant Jurchen once proudly declared that Jurchen was "invincible".The silent Yue Family Army smashed this meaningless lie with sabers and back-wei cavalry.From Yancheng to Yingchang, the battle flags of the Yue Family Army fluttered on both sides of the Yellow River, and the Southern Song Dynasty once ushered in the best situation of the Song-Jin War. There are many famous generals who fought against the Jin Dynasty in the Southern Song Dynasty.Han Shizhong is good at naval warfare, Liu Qi is good at city defense warfare, but Yue Fei is a general who is good at cavalry warfare.The weakness of the cavalry in the Song Dynasty was the worst in the history of Chinese feudal dynasties.On the one hand, the fall of the Sixteen States of Youyun caused the Song Dynasty to lose its sufficient supply of horses; compatible with the political system.Yue Fei's success lies in breaking this rigid balance. Compared with the prominent family background of the Southern Song Dynasty generals, Yue Fei is a civilian hero who really came from the grassroots. In addition to Yue Fei's upright and outspoken character, his Yue family army came from refugees fleeing north and civilian regiments training armed forces, which is a real "children's army" of the people.They have the strictest training system and combat discipline of the ancient Chinese army, with clear rewards and punishments, strict discipline, no crime against the common people, and fierceness against the enemy like tigers and wolves.Before becoming a regular army, they went through a long and painful period of tempering. Just like the People's Liberation Army, they also went from being poor to becoming stronger step by step.Most of the horses in this army came from the trophies captured in the battle with the Jin soldiers. In countless failures and collisions, they accumulated experience in defeating the Jin cavalry.The Beiwei cavalry is the most powerful cavalry unit in Yue Fei's army, far superior to the Jurchen's most powerful heavy cavalry army.What is more different from the similar army in the Song Dynasty is that the Yue Family Army is an army full of faith. They were born to restore the mountains and rivers, not to sacrifice their lives for personal interests.Against the background of weak field combat capabilities in the entire Song Dynasty, Yue Fei's appearance was so unusual and out of date, but he really saved the fate of a nation. In the battle against Yancheng, the king's cavalry troop Tiefutu was broken; in the battle against Yingchang, the Jurchen's 130,000 troops were defeated, and the troops were approaching the old capital Bianliang.The tragedy of giving death to Fengbo Pavilion caused the Song Dynasty to lose the last handsome talent who rewrote the fate of the empire, and this tragedy was doomed from the day the Yue Family Army was built.Those who hated Yue Fei were not only the emperors and treacherous officials of the Song Dynasty, but also the "elite class" who dominated the ruling mainstream of the Song Dynasty at that time.They couldn't tolerate a general who was born as a commoner gaining an equal status with them, and their open-minded character stabbed their narrow-mindedness even more.Yue Fei expects that "civilian officials don't love money, and military commanders don't hesitate to die", which is the good wish of the common people, but the intellectual class that occupies the mainstream of society, the soil has long been salinized.From Di Qing's innocent exile to Yue Fei's unjust death, the scholar-bureaucrat class in the Song Dynasty went to moral decline through despicable frame-ups.Later generations always regard Yue Fei's political proposition of "returning the two emperors" as the reason for his killing. However, the deeper reason is: the Yue family army's army building method and military system, even if it can create an invincible tiger division However, his brilliance was placed under the centralized military system of the entire Song Dynasty, but he was like an inappropriate freak. This tragedy was doomed from the first day of the establishment of the Yue Family Army.The wood is beautiful in the forest, and the wind will destroy it. Yue Fei's death is definitely not a trick that Qin Hui and other youngsters can plan. The four sinners kneeling by the West Lake are just poor scapegoats.Framed Yue Fei and put Yue Fei to death was the collective action of the monarchs, ministers and generals of the Song Dynasty. For the rulers, Yue Fei was a dagger that threatened the throne of the emperor. For the enemy Jin Guo, Yue Fei was Damocles hanging over their heads. For Zhang Jun, Wang Gui and other generals, Yue Fei seemed to be a shining star, which had already blocked their light and shrouded them forever behind the halo.Therefore, Yue Fei had to die in this court that was partial to peace and did not think about making progress.If Yue Fei is really guilty, his crime is not unfounded. His crime is that he is too good. sin. During the Anti-Japanese War, there was a bold statement that inspired millions of Chinese people to fight against the enemy and serve the country: We will create a Yue Wumu of the Chinese nation with countless unknown Yue Wumu!We vow to live and die with our country, no matter how difficult the environment is, we will never waver in our determination to serve the country loyally.