Chapter 55 54 Xiao He Chases Han Xin

Xiang Yu entered Xianyang, killed Qin Prince Ying and more than 800 nobles of the Qin State, and ordered the Afang Palace to be burned.Of the more than half a million soldiers who followed Xiang Yu into the pass, who has not been oppressed by the Qin Dynasty?When they saw the luxurious Efang Palace, thinking of their sufferings in the past, the flames of revenge ignited in their hearts.As soon as Xiang Yu gave an order, everyone set fire to it. The fire lasted for three months and reduced the Afang Palace to a heap of rubble. Xiang Yu was originally an aristocrat of the Chu State. Taking advantage of the opportunity of the peasant uprising, he participated in the anti-Qin war.After the Qin Dynasty was destroyed, it was impossible for him to think about the peasants.He decided to re-divide the fiefdoms and split the unified China into pieces.

At that time, the nominal leader was King Huai of Chu.Xiang Yu renamed him Yidi, acknowledging that he was emperor on the surface, but in fact he only gave Yidi a false name, and he had to listen to his opinions on all matters of enfeoffment.He named eighteen kings in total of the old nobles and meritorious generals of the six countries, and called himself the Overlord of Western Chu.Isn't there an overlord in the Spring and Autumn Period?Xiang Yu's self-proclaimed overlord is tantamount to declaring that he has the right to command other princes, and all princes have to be under his command.In the second year, Xiang Yu simply killed the nominal Emperor Yi.

After the feudal lords were divided, the princes of all countries took their troops back to their feudal states, and Xiang Yu also returned to his feudal state, Pengcheng (now Xuzhou City, Jiangsu Province), the capital of Western Chu. Among the eighteen princes, Xiang Yu is most jealous of Liu Bang.He enfeoffed Liu Bang in the remote Bashu and Hanzhong, and called him the King of Han; he also enfeoffed the Guanzhong area to three generals of the Qin State, Zhang Han and others, and asked them to block Liu Bang and prevent Liu Bang from coming out. Han Wang Liu Bang was very dissatisfied with his fiefdom, but his army was too weak to compete with Xiang Yu, so he had to take his troops to Nanzheng (now Handong, Shaanxi), the capital of the feudal state.

When the king of Han arrived in Nanzheng, he worshiped Xiao He as his prime minister, and Cao Can, Fan Kui, and Zhou Bo as his generals.But all the soldiers under his command wanted to go back to their hometown, and almost every day some deserted and escaped, so anxious that the King of Han couldn't even eat. One day, someone suddenly came to report: "The prime minister has escaped." The king of Han was very anxious, as sad as if his left and right hands were suddenly cut off. It was not until the third morning that Xiao He came back.When the king of Han saw him, he was angry and happy, and asked Xiao He, "Why did you escape?"

Xiao He said, "How could I run away? I'm chasing the runaway." The king of Han asked him again: "Who are you chasing?" Xiao He said, "Han Xin." The Han Xin Xiao He mentioned was originally from Huaiyin.After Xiang Liang raised his troops, he passed by Huaiyin, and Han Xin went to join him and served as a soldier in the Chu camp.After Xiang Liang died, he followed Xiang Yu again. Xiang Yu saw that he was better than ordinary soldiers, so he made him a small officer. Han Xin offered advice to Xiang Yu several times, but Xiang Yu didn't adopt it.Han Xin was very disappointed.When Han Wang Liu Bang went to Nanzheng, Han Xin defected to Han Wang.

When Han Xin arrived in Nanzheng, the King of Han only made him a minor official.Once, Han Xin broke the law and was arrested, almost beheaded.Fortunately, Xia Houying, a general under the King of Han, passed by. Han Xin called out to him for help, saying, "Don't you think the King of Han wants to conquer the world? Why do you want to cut down the strong soil?" Seeing Han Xin's appearance, Xia Houying was really a good man, so he let him go and recommended him to the King of Han.The king of Han appointed Han Xin to be an official in charge of grain. Later, Prime Minister Xiao He met Han Xin and talked with him. He thought that Han Xin was capable and valued him very much. He also tried to persuade the King of Han to use him again and again, but the King of Han never listened.

Han Xin knew that the King of Han was not willing to reuse him, so he took a chance to leave when the soldiers deserted one after another. When Xiao He heard the news of Han Xin's escape, he stomped his feet anxiously, and immediately rode on a fast horse to catch up with him. After chasing for two days, he finally found Han Xin. When the King of Han heard that Xiao He was chasing Han Xin, he scolded Xiao He angrily and said, "There are about a dozen generals who have escaped. I don't know who you have chased. What's the point of chasing Han Xin?" Xiao He said: "There are many generals. Talents like Han Xin are unparalleled in the world. If the king is going to stay in Hanzhong for the rest of his life, he will not need Han Xin; if he is going to conquer the world, he must be used. What is the king going to do?" Sample?"

The king of Han said, "Of course I want to go back to the east. How can I stay here forever?" Xiao He said: "Your Majesty must fight for the world, so he must use Han Xin again; if he is not reused, Han Xin will leave sooner or later." The King of Han said, "Okay, I will follow your will and make him a general." Xiao He said: "If you call him a general, you still can't keep him." The king of Han said: "Then worship him as a general!" Xiao He said happily: "This is the wisdom of your majesty." The king of Han asked Xiao He to find Han Xin, and wanted to worship him as a general immediately.Xiao He said bluntly: "Your Majesty usually doesn't pay much attention to manners. Worshiping a General is a big event. You can't just ask him to come here just like playing with a child. Your Majesty is determined to worship him as a General. To choose a good day, you have to be grand. It would be better to hold the ceremony of worshiping the general."

The king of Han said, "Okay, I will follow you." News came out of the Han camp that the King of Han was going to choose a day to pay homage to the general.Several generals who had followed the King of Han for many years were all so excited that they couldn't sleep, thinking that this time they would definitely become generals. When it came to the day of worshiping the general, everyone knew that the general they were paying homage to was actually Han Xin, whom they usually looked down upon, and they were stunned. After the ceremony of worshiping the general, the king of Han received Han Xin again and said: "The prime minister has recommended the general many times. The general must have a good plan. Please advise the general."

Han Xin thanked the King of Han, and analyzed the conditions of Chu (Xiang Yu) and Han in detail to the King of Han, and believed that the King of Han would surely defeat Xiang Yu when he sent troops to the east.The King of Han became happier the more he heard it, and only regretted not discovering this talent sooner. After that, Han Xin commanded the soldiers and drilled the soldiers and horses, and the conditions for the Eastern Expedition to Xiang Yu gradually matured.