Chapter 34 (Thirty-four) Defeat Maicheng

This is the end of a chivalrous hero.In the twenty-fourth year of Jian'an, Guan Yu was killed, and the Liu Bei Group not only lost a fierce general, but also lost Jingzhou forever.So, why did a powerful general who once shocked China suffer such a crushing defeat?On Liu Bei's side, who should be responsible for Guan Yu's death?Professor Yi Zhongtian of Xiamen University will give you a wonderful taste of the Three Kingdoms - Lost in Maicheng. In the last program, Mr. Yi Zhongtian mentioned that due to the secret collusion between Cao Cao and Sun Quan, Guan Yu was in a very difficult situation. Guan Yu had to retreat from the front line of Xiangfan and was defeated in Maicheng.It turned out to be about being captured, then killed.

Guan Yu's death left countless regrets for future generations.A hero who was once a first-class hero ended up like this in the end.So, in the Liu Bei Group, who should be responsible for Guan Yu's death?Were Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang responsible for Guan Yu's death?Professor Yi Zhongtian from Xiamen University is a guest on "Hundreds of Lectures", and will give you a wonderful taste of "Defeat in Maicheng" of the Three Kingdoms. We know that the reason why Jingzhou was lost and Guan Yu was killed was that Guan Yu attacked Xiangfan.If Guan Yu did not attack Xiangfan, then although Lu Meng and Sun Quan had already had the idea of ​​taking back Jingzhou and destroying Guan Yu, he would have no chance to implement it.Therefore, the first question we have to review is: Why did we launch the Xiangfan War?We have to figure this out first.

And this problem involves three small problems.The first question is, who decided to fight Xiangfan? On this issue, historians also have different opinions.Many historians, including Mr. Zhang Zuoyao, who I have mentioned repeatedly, believe that Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang decided or instructed it.According to Mr. Zhang, Guan Yu launched the Xiangfan War at the behest of Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang. After the war started, Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang neither cooperated nor provided supporting measures. A powerful auxiliary character, so much so that it led to the complete failure of this war.Therefore, Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang cannot escape the blame. This is a point of view.The second point of view is represented by Mr. He Ziquan.According to Mr. He, Guan Yu's attack on Xiangfan did not seem to have been discussed with Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang beforehand, which means that it was Guan Yu's own initiative.

I personally tend to agree with Mr. He's opinion, because we can't find any record in "Three Kingdoms" that Liu Bei or Zhuge Liang instructed, authorized or ordered Guan Yu to attack Xiangfan.For such a big matter, if it was Liu Bei's order, or Zhuge Liang's suggestion to Liu Bei, it should be recorded.So I tend to think that the launch of the Xiangfan War was Guan Yu's own initiative.However, Liu Bei let it go and did not object.Because if Liu Bei objected, there should be a record; or if Liu Bei did not agree at all and strongly opposed it, Guan Yu would not be able to fight this war.Therefore, it is estimated that Liu Bei's attitude is resignation, or acquiescence, or even approval, which can only be speculated.Therefore, Liu Bei should also be responsible for this.

So is Zhuge Liang responsible?No, Zhuge Liang has no responsibility.why?Because at this time Zhuge Liang was not the decision maker of Liu Bei Group's military operations.Although Zhuge Liang has now served as a military general, this military general is different from the military general we understand in later generations, or not exactly the same.The military strategist we understand in later generations is to shake a goose feather fan and make suggestions by the side.And when did Zhuge Liang's military division general become?After Liu Bei got Chengdu, he appointed him as a military division general, which was actually promoted to a higher level.Because after the Battle of Chibi, Zhuge Liang's position was the military adviser Zhonglang general, and now he has been promoted to military adviser general, and his task is to manage the affairs of the left general.Because Liu Bei's official position at this time is General Zuo, and General Zuo wants to open a mansion. He has a General Zuo's mansion, and the affairs in this mansion are governed by Premier Zhuge Liang.And when Liu Bei was away, "Liang often guarded Chengdu, with enough food and soldiers." When Liu Bei went to fight Hanzhong, Zhuge Liang took care of Liu Bei's house, guarded Chengdu, supplied food, grass, and reinforcements. This was his job and his duty.So he is not responsible.

Some historians have suggested that Zhuge Liang cannot escape the blame, why?Because Guan Yu's attack on Xiangfan was based on the strategic plan of Zhuge Liang's countermeasures, Zhuge Liang was also indirectly responsible.I don't think I agree with this opinion, why?First, Zhuge Liang's Longzhong strategy is a strategic plan, not an implementation plan, but an overall plan.Anyone who understands planning knows that there are general regulations, detailed regulations, and implementation plans.What's more, Zhuge Liang didn't directly issue an order to Guan Yu to attack Xiangfan, and Zhuge Liang didn't have the right to issue an order directly. What responsibility does he have?This is the first point.The second point, what did Zhuge Liang say about his Longzhong strategy?Zhuge Liang said: "If there is a change in the world, the general will lead the people of Jingzhou to Xiangwan and Luo, and the general will lead the people of Yizhou to come out of Qinchuan." This general here refers to Liu Bei. This passage is very clear.It includes two contents: the first is that the world has changed, so may I ask, did the world change when Guan Yu attacked Xiangfan?No.Second, Zhuge Liang's strategic plan also made it very clear: "Order the first general in Jingzhou to Xiang Wan and Luo." This general may be referring to Guan Yu in his mind. Leading the people of Yizhou out of Qinchuan" -- sending troops from two directions and attacking at the same time.So during the Xiangfan war, did the two sides send troops?nor.

So it cannot be said that Guan Yu's battle of Xiangfan was the implementation of Zhuge Liang's strategic plan; on the contrary, in my opinion, Guan Yu's actions destroyed Zhuge Liang's strategic plan.Guan Yu didn't understand Zhuge Liang's strategic thinking well, so he sent troops in a hurry.The results of it?Zhuge Liang's idea of ​​sending troops from Jingzhou and Yizhou to eliminate Cao Wei once the world changes will never be realized.Therefore, Zhuge Liang cannot be blamed for the failure of the Xiangfan War because Zhuge Liang had a "Longzhong strategy". This is very unfair to Zhuge Liang.Then there is another question here. In this case, why didn't Zhuge Liang stop Guan Yu from attacking Xiangfan?Let's leave this question in suspense for the time being, and talk about it later.

The second small question, why do you want to fight Xiangfan? There are two different opinions on this issue.Mr. Lu Simian's point of view is that this is to cooperate with Liu Bei's actions in Hanzhong.Mr. Lu said: "Soldiers chasing profit should also go out at the same time, head to tail. Therefore, Liu Bei's soldiers have not yet returned, and Guan Yu's division has already risen." Because Liu Bei was attacking Hanzhong, Guan Yu's side cooperated to attack Xiangfan and contain Cao Cao. .As for this statement, I have some doubts.So I am more inclined to agree with another point of view, that is to push an inch.Liu Bei won the victory in Hanzhong, became the king of Hanzhong, and Guan Yu became a former general. At this time, the Liu Bei Group felt that he was great, so let's do it again.You don't see much fighting in Hanzhong, so didn't Cao Cao just leave?Cao Cao is not that scary, nor is he that scary.Therefore, Guan Yu's making progress, we can say from a positive and affirmative point of view, it is called taking advantage of the victory and making persistent efforts;

So, should we take advantage of the victory to advance and make persistent efforts, or should we be greedy and overwhelmed?We have to answer the following small question, that is, should we fight Xiangfan?There are two opposing opinions on this issue. The first opinion is that it should be fought, which also includes two contents: the first content is called "must fight", how can it be called "must fight"?It's Xiangfan that the Liu Bei Group will attack sooner or later, because Xiangfan is the seat of Jingzhou's government, and only by taking Xiangfan can they completely occupy Jingzhou; now several important places in Jingzhou, Jiangling is already Liu Bei's. Xiangfan is still Cao Cao's, so it must be taken down, which is called must fight.The second is to be able to fight, why can you fight?First, the year before, an uprising against Cao Cao broke out in Nanyang area, indicating that Cao Cao's rule in northern Jingzhou was unstable. This is the first point; Wang, this is the second point; the third point is that Sun Quan is attacking Hefei in the east at this time, which can echo Sun Quan's military actions.This is called being able to fight.It is a school of opinion that must fight plus ability to fight equals to fight.

Another school of opinion is still represented by Mr. He Ziquan. Mr. He said that the Xiangfan War launched by Guan Yu was a military adventure at the wrong time.Why do you say that?There are the following reasons: First, Liu Bei has just won Hanzhong, and what he needs to do now is to stabilize the situation, recuperate, and consolidate the achievements. It is not appropriate to take any military action at this time, and we must stand firm. This is the first point.The second point is that Guan Yu's action does not conform to Zhuge Liang's strategic planning and strategic design of Longzhong's countermeasures. It is not because the world has changed, nor is it sending troops on two fronts.The third point is that Guan Yu's power seems to be powerful, but in fact it is limited, and it is not as powerful as people imagined.After flooding the Seventh Army, Guan Yu surrendered to Jin and killed Pang De, that's all, no further progress.Without the result of Sun Quan stabbing in the back, Mr. He estimated that Guan Yu would return to Jiangling. Jiangling could be kept and his head could be kept, but Xiangfan could not be taken.Therefore, Mr. He believes that this war should not be fought.

Now we can draw the following conclusions on the first big question: First, the Xiangfan War was initiated by Guan Yu on his own initiative, and Liu Bei did not instruct or authorize it, but at the same time he did not object.Second, the reason why Guan Yu launched the Xiangfan War was that he was dazzled by victory and miscalculated the situation.The third point is that Guan Yu launched this war at the wrong time and insufficient preparation.In the final analysis, it was because of him, who was self-willed, complacent, and overjoyed. The Battle of Xiangfan is an eternal regret for Guan Yu.Mr. Yi Zhongtian believed that Guan Yu himself had an unshirkable responsibility for launching the Xiangfan Campaign. The war he launched on his own initiative was a miscalculation of the situation. Coupled with Guan Yu's own self-willed character, the war failed. lost.But at the same time, a problem surfaced again. Jingzhou is a must-fight for Cao, Sun, and Liu. Why is Liu Bei so careless in such an important place and only sent Guan Yu to guard it?What is Liu Bei's intention? At that time, Liu Bei asked Guan Yu to supervise Jingzhou. Did he use the wrong person?This question is also difficult to answer, why do you say it this way?Let's talk about the side first.Liu Bei adopted Pang Tong's suggestion and sent troops to capture Yizhou, leaving only one person to guard Jingzhou. At that time, there were many people left, including Zhuge Liang, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun.Later, when Liu Bei attacked Yizhou, his troops were insufficient, so he transferred Zhuge Liang, Zhang Fei, and Zhao Yun to the front line, leaving Guan Yu in the end.So this person was left, right?At least it is safe to say that the circumstances were right.Why is it right?Because Guan Yu, as a candidate to stay in Jingzhou, has three advantages: the first is loyalty, this need not be argued, this is recognized by everyone, Guan Yu is absolutely loyal to Liu Bei; the second is ability, Guan Yu has always been unique Ability, when we read "Three Kingdoms", we can find that Liu Bei doesn't divide his troops. Once he wants to divide his troops, he leads an army by himself, and Guan Yu leads an army. Guan Yu has always been alone;To defend Jingzhou, one must be able to lead the navy. The Liu Bei Group is a military group from the north, and it has always been very difficult to select candidates for the navy generals.But Guan Yu has this ability. Although he is from the north, he was able to train and lead the water army as soon as he arrived in the south, which shows that Guan Yu is indeed capable.When Liu Bei was defeated and left Dangyang, it was Guan Yu who led the navy to meet him. Later, during the Battle of Chibi, Liu Bei's troops were also Guan Yu's 10,000 sailors and Liu Qi's 10,000 horses.There is nothing more suitable for such a person to be the governor of Jingzhou. However, Guan Yu Guan Yu's problem, where is the problem?In his character, he is arrogant and has a high hat.In the nineteenth year of Jian'an, when Liu Bei attacked Chengdu, Ma Chao came to join Liu Bei.Because Guan Yu was not familiar with Ma Chao, he wrote a letter to Zhuge Liang, asking the military adviser what kind of person is Ma Chao?As soon as Zhuge Liang read the letter, he understood that Guan Yu wanted to PK with Ma Chao, and he could only win but not lose.Zhuge Liang immediately replied with a letter saying, Ma Chao is very remarkable, a rare talent, he can be said to be a master of his life, the most outstanding person of this era; Yiqun.Guan Yu was very happy after reading the letter, and then he showed the letter to everyone. Look, Ma Chao is a master of his life, ah, Guan... Some people also have opinions on this matter, saying why Zhuge Liang is so slippery.In fact, Zhuge Liang was wronged. This is not called slippery, this is called the talent of the prime minister.Zhuge Liang is not yet the prime minister, but he has already shown his talent as a prime minister.What is the talent of the prime minister?Coordinating yin and yang, that is to say, the relationship between monarch and minister, colleagues, superiors and subordinates, the relationship between the next door and the left and right within the group or within the court should be adjusted and balanced, so that everyone can unite to do things. This is what the prime minister has to do, the prime minister things to do.So the prime minister can hold a boat in his belly, he must accommodate people from all walks of life, unite him, and coordinate the relationship well.Zhuge Liang has this talent, the talent of the prime minister. But at the same time, there is a side effect, which is to spoil Guan Yu.But this is not the responsibility of Zhuge Liang alone. From Liu Bei to Zhuge Liang to the others in the Liu Bei Group, they all give way to Guan Yu and are used to Guan Yu.In the twenty-fourth year of Jian'an, Liu Bei became the king of Hanzhong, and then named four generals: the former general Guan Yu, the right general Zhang Fei, the left general Ma Chao, the rear general Huang Zhong, and no Zhao Yun. ——Therefore, there have never been five tiger generals in official history, only four tiger generals, and Zhao Yun has always been a miscellaneous general.Zhao Yun was very wronged, indeed very wronged. ——As soon as this decision was made, Zhuge Liang immediately realized that Guan Yu would not do it, and Guan Yu would definitely not do it.Liu Bei said that I know about this, and I have my own way.What can Liu Bei do?Liu Bei sent a person named Fei Shi to deliver the letter of appointment.As soon as this Fei Shi arrived, Guan Yu really jumped up: What?I am the current general, and Huang Zhong is the future general?How can my husband stand with a veteran?Fei Shi said yes, Fei Shi said: Fei Shi's understanding is this, the king employs people without sticking to one pattern, the reason why the king of Han wants to reward and promote Huang Hansheng (Huang Zhong) so much is because Huang Hansheng has just made a great contribution. .In the heart of King Han, how can Huang Hansheng be compared with you, Jun Hou?Junhou who are you?You and the King of Han are now Liu Bei. You are two people in name, but you are actually one person. The honor and disgrace of the King of Han are your honor and disgrace.Anyway, I, Fei Shi, am just a messenger on an errand, I sent this letter to Junhou, but Junhou didn't accept it, so Fei Shi just went back, I just hope Junhou won't regret it.Guan Yu thought, well, come back, I accept, accept. Well, this Fei Shi is a person who dares to speak in the Liu Bei Group, and he dared to touch a tiger's ass when treating Guan Yu in the Liu Bei Group, and he dared to fight back in person.But please pay attention, it is also touching along the hair, Guan Yu is very comfortable to touch.So Guan Yu is a spoiled child in the Liu Bei Group.What are the characteristics of a spoiled child?Two characteristics, the first characteristic is called willfulness, and the second characteristic is called naivety.Because he was spoiled, he will be self-willed, and because he is a child, he is innocent.Because of his willfulness, he launched the Xiangfan War; because of his naivety, he was fooled by Sun Quan, Lu Meng, and Lu Xun, and was fooled by them.And because he is self-willed and naive, he can't handle many relationships well, such as the relationship between friends and enemies, Guan Yu can't handle it well. According to the "Three Kingdoms • Biography of Guan Yu", Sun Quan had proposed to Guan Yu before, and wanted Guan Yu's daughter to marry his son.How about Guan Yu? "Insulting her envoys, marriage is not allowed." "Three Kingdoms" only has such a few simple words. It is a romance to say that I, a tiger daughter, married a dog, but the text of "Three Kingdoms" has the word "swearing".Then this is wrong. Everyone knows that this kind of marriage is a political marriage, a marriage for the benefit of a political group.Sun Quan can marry his younger sister to Liu Bei, why can't you Guan Yu marry his daughter to Sun Quan's son?After Sun Quan married his younger sister, he snatched her back. If you lose your face in the future, you can also snatch your daughter back.Even if you don't agree, you can disagree, you can look down on Sun Quan, you can hate Sun Quan, you can also refuse to agree to this marriage, you don't want to swear, just swear.And it’s the same with his subordinates. I mentioned in the last episode that as soon as Lu Meng’s army arrived in Nanjun, the two guards guarding the police and guarding Jiangling surrendered. Why did they surrender?It's because Guan Yu always scolded them.Moreover, when Guan Yu went to fight Xiangfan, he asked these two people to provide food and grass. These two people may not be very effective in handling affairs, not to mention that Guan Yu has always looked down on them, and if a person with Guan Yu's character looks down on others, that kind of contempt must be clearly written in the On his face, he won't hide it, anyone can feel it.As a result, the supply of these two people was not enough, Guan Yu cursed, saying that I will come back to deal with you, and see how I deal with you after I take Xiangfan.When these two people thought about it, it is not certain whether Guan Yu will be able to take down Xiangfan. So you see, what kind of person is Guan Yu?The first is virtuous, and he must be virtuous, with high morals; the second is talented, and it is indeed extraordinary ability; the third is seniority, and from these three points, he is the right person to guard Jingzhou.But he has a problem, no political mind, no strategic vision.So in my opinion, Guan Yu is a hero, not a commander in chief.It is admirable for him to be a lone ranger in the arena, and he is also very cute.To be honest, as a person, when I read "Three Kingdoms: The Biography of Guan Yu", I liked him a lot, including that he showed Zhuge Liang's letters everywhere. program, send me a text message, and I will forward it.Pretty cute, can't learn, cute can't learn. So, is it wrong for Liu Bei to appoint Guan Yu to supervise Jingzhou?I don't think so either.Why?First, there is no one to choose at the moment. If you don't want to keep Guan Yu, who will you keep?No one left, indeed no one left.The second, more important thing is that Liu Bei's career is developing too fast and his organization is not well prepared. He didn't expect that he won Yizhou so easily. Once he won Yizhou, he went to fight Hanzhong and Cao Cao ran away again. At this time he There was absolutely no time for any such preparations.Think about it at this time, even if he immediately sent someone to Jingzhou to replace Guan Yu, it would be too late.What's more, at this time, the Liu Bei Group was intoxicated with the victory of capturing Yizhou, and it was also unexpected that Guan Yu, a general who had won all battles, would be defeated.Therefore, whether it is a person or a group, it is not a good thing to become popular too quickly. On the issue of who is the governor of Jingzhou, Mr. Yi Zhongtian believes that there is indeed no one in the Liu Bei Group, and Guan Yu is the right person to take on the job.Therefore, Liu Bei does not have much responsibility on this issue, and there is absolutely no problem in guarding Jingzhou with Guan Yu's ability.But Guan Yu still carelessly lost Jingzhou. On this issue, some people also put forward different views. If Liu Bei sent reinforcements to support, perhaps Guan Yu would not have such a defeat.So, when Guan Yu was surrounded by Cao Cao and Sun Quan, why didn't Liu Bei send troops to rescue him?If there were reinforcements, would Guan Yu still have such a miserable end?What is Mr. Yi Zhongtian's view on this? When Guan Yu was surrounded by Cao Cao and Sun Quan, why didn't Liu Bei rescue him?My answer is six words: unexpected, too late.Mr. Lu Simian's "History of the Qin and Han Dynasties" mentioned such a point of view, that the result of this war was not only unexpected by Cao Cao, but also unexpected by Sun Quan. At least neither Cao Cao nor Sun Quan expected the situation of the war to change so much quick.Cao Cao couldn't think of it, Sun Quan couldn't think of it, so Liu Bei should have thought of it?Liu Bei couldn't think of it either.Some doubters said that the war had been fought for seven months, and there was no time to send reinforcements.This time was miscalculated. During the first half of these seven months, Guan Yu was in a state of victory. He surrounded Fancheng and was about to take it down. Are reinforcements justified?Until Cao Cao shot Sun Quan's letter of loyalty into Fancheng and Guan Yu's barracks, after Guan Yu received the letter, he still didn't feel that he was going to fail. He didn't withdraw his troops, he was still going to deal with Sun Quan after taking down Fancheng. .Moreover, Liu Bei and Guan Yu never imagined that Sun Quan, an old friend, good friend, ally, and the person who fought Cao Cao together in the past, would collude with Cao Cao. I can't even think of copying his retreat.By the time Guan Yu was defeated and left Maicheng, it was too late, and the letter might not be delivered, so what if it was sent?Liu Bei can't send airborne troops to Maicheng, can he?Only a helicopter can save us at this time. There is one point in this, and I would like to say that it is fair to say that there is one point that they should have thought of, that is, once you win Yizhou, the pressure on Jingzhou will become unprecedented.Because when Liu Bei had Nanjun, or when he had the four counties in the south of the Yangtze River, his strength was still very weak, and Sun Quan could not be nervous.You took Shu County and Hanzhong, and the entire upper reaches of the Yangtze River belonged to Liu Bei. Sun Quan must be nervous.This point, the Liu Bei Group people should have expected, but did not expect.When Guan Yu lost his life and Jingzhou, Liu Bei felt nervous.Jingzhou cannot be lost. The Jingzhou that was taken by Sun Quan must be taken back, so what will Liu Bei do?Please see the next episode - the battle of Yiling.