????????That night, the group of troops led by Wang Zhengqin arrived at the foot of Shouchun City. By this time, Huang Zhong and Wei Yan had already set up camp, and the entire army immediately moved in.
?????????The autumn is deep and cold, and the recent thick clouds are pushing forward and backward, like undulating dark clouds. Tonight, they have completely covered the stars and the moon, leaving no trace of light exposed, making the wilderness pitch black.
one slice.
????????The wind that was getting stronger seemed to be tightly trapped by the darkness, struggling left and right, unable to break out. The evening wind also became more and more humid, carrying the smell of land and woods, and it seemed that it was always
People are reminded all the time that thunderstorms are coming.
?????????And in this dim Jiangdong land, Shouchun City, with torches on every battlement, became the only bright torch point, illuminating the surrounding areas.
inside the square circle.
Of course, no matter how huge this single shining torch is, it can only illuminate a radius of several miles around.
The endless darkness around it surrounds it and forces it. If a god looks down from the clouds, he will feel that this candlelight is standing in the wind, and it seems that it may be blown out at any time.
At this time, Wang Zheng didn't have time to rest, so he took Qiao Wan and others, quietly left the camp, and took a closer look at Shouchun's situation.
????????The group of people climbed up to a high ground near the city quietly without lighting torches. They were in the dark, and the enemy was in the open. Everyone was in good health and had excellent eyesight. The situation on the top of the city
Can see clearly.
?????????Gan Ning is not very old, but he has experienced many battles. The defense arrangements on the city are well organized, including trebuchets, trebuchets, wood, tiles, boiling oil and other defensive equipment.
In their positions, various types of arms such as sword and axemen, spearmen, crossbowmen, and handguns were well matched. From time to time, officers like Dub would patrol the city with bright helmets, shouting loudly.
Be careful and alert while swaggering past.
Seeing this, Qiao Wan's eyes showed worry, and she slowly moved to Wang Zheng's face, and said softly: "The morale in the city seems to be pretty good?"
?????????"Yang Hong is a wise man, Gan Ning is a good general, and Xiong Hu is a general. They are fighting at home. If morale is already low before the war, there is no need to fight this battle."
Wang Zheng, however, didn't take it seriously. He just kept looking at the top of the city and said, "We'll see how his morale is after the war starts tomorrow."
Huang Zhong and Wei Yan also came next to them. The two of them had been here two days earlier. Compared with Wang Zheng, they had a better understanding of Shouchun's city defense. Wei Yan took the initiative to step forward and give pointers.
, and reminded Wang Zheng of some of the things he saw during the day that needed attention.
Shouchun was first established in the Warring States Period. In the 22nd year of Chu Kao, the Chu people were forced to move their capital from Chen (Huaiyang, Henan) to Shouchun in order to avoid the Western Qin Yingzheng's eastward advance.
, but this important town really shined during the two periods of conflict between the north and the south at the end of the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms and the Eastern Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties.
????????In the original history, Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor in Shouchun, and was immediately defeated by the whole world. This place was later acquired by Cao Wei. Cao Cao turned Shouchun into an important town in the southeast. In order to protect Shouchun, he
They moved the defense line southward, built and expanded Hefei County on the banks of the Fei River, and even sent generals to guard it. As a result, Soochow was unable to make any progress in a hundred years.
During the Jin and Jin Dynasties, the strategic significance of Shouchun was truly brought to its extreme. According to historical statistics, during the two hundred and eighty years of the Southern Dynasties, the northern regime used large-scale troops against the south nineteen times.
Among them, troops were used in the direction of Shouchun twelve times, accounting for 70% of the total!
????????This is because the defense system of the southern regime relies on the Jianghuai water system. If the north wants to go south, there are basically four routes:
????????1. From Pengcheng in Xuzhou to Xiapi and then to Guangling, and finally land at Jingkou of Jiangnan (Zhenjiang). This is where the Si River enters the Huai River, and then crosses the Yangtze River via the Zhongdu River (ancient Hangou).
.
Second, from Peiguo in Yuzhou to Shouchun and then to Hefei, this is from the Heluo area in the center of the north along Honggou to Yingshui, Huaishui, and then from Feishui to the Yangtze River, landing for quarrying
Iso.
????????3. Cross the Ru River from Runan to Shangcai, and then proceed by land.
????????4. From Nanyang County, go southward along the Ninghe River, enter the Han River at Xiangyang, and then enter the Yangtze River through the Han River.
?????????Among these four routes, the first crossing the river is closest to Jiankang (i.e. Nanjing, called Moling at this time, which belongs to Danyang County), the center of political power in the south in the past dynasties, but it will face the heavy defense of the south.
, and the key point is that this route must pass through Guangling, and the river in the Guangling section is wide and often windy, making crossing the river difficult and more likely to be intercepted by the defending navy.
The third route can only reach Jiangxia, while the fourth route is too far from Jiankang, so these two routes often go astray.
?????????In comparison, the second route passing through Shouchun has the greatest advantage, so it is naturally the first choice.
????????First of all, the starting point of this line is Pengcheng, which is in the hinterland of the Central Plains. It is convenient for gathering troops, horses and food. At the same time, the landing location is not far or near from Jiankang. More importantly, this road is located in various places.
The middle path of the route is suitable for multi-pronged support operations.
???????And the most important thing is
?????????Once Shouchun is occupied, this stronghold can control the four major waterways of Wu, Ying, Huai, and Fei at the same time, especially the two Huais. It is said that to defend the river, you must defend the Huai, so to attack the river, you must also capture the Huai first.
Therefore, Shouchun is almost the "hub city, a must-win" in the true sense of the struggle between the north and the south, and there is not even one!
The strategic significance of Shouchun is so important to the northern regime, and the same is true for the southern regime, whether it is a defense or a counterattack going north.
?????????If the southern government wants to defend the north, almost all dynasties will heavily fortify the three strongholds of Guangling, Shouchun and Jiangxia to form an isosceles triangle with mutual angles. Shouchun is a triangle.
At the highest point, no matter whether the northern regime sets out from the east or west, if it does not have enough troops to surround or capture Shouchun, it may suffer counterattacks and attacks from the southern regime from Shouchun, cutting off the army's retreat.
????????If the southern regime were to launch a Northern Expedition, they would choose the reverse route of invading the north and the south in the first and second directions.
The purpose of choosing the first option is to capture Pengcheng and then continue northward to seize the Shandong region where the northern forces have weak defenses.
For example, Zhu Yuanzhang, Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, was an unprecedented commoner emperor in the history of the Chinese dynasty and the only founding monarch to successfully unify the country through an expedition from the south to the north. The strategy he chose for the Northern Expedition was to "take Shandong first, remove its shield; and then turn his troops around."
Cut off its wings in Henan; pull out Tongguan and defend it. According to its threshold, the situation of the world will be under my control. Then I will attack Yuandu. Then the enemy will have no support and cannot be conquered without fighting. After conquering its capital, march westward.
In the clouds, Jiuyuan and Guanlong can be swept down."
????????If we choose the reverse version of the second Shouchun Line, it will be heading towards Henan, the core area of the northern power. This can almost be said to be a Northern Expedition launched with the ambition to destroy the country.
For example, in the two Northern Expeditions of Emperor Wu of the Song Dynasty Liu Yu, the first time to destroy Southern Yan was to capture Shandong, and the second time to destroy the Later Qin Dynasty was to directly attack Yuzhou, and then march westward from Yuzhou to capture
Guanzhong.
????????So it can be said that until the Southern and Northern Dynasties, once the southern regime of the Celestial Dynasty embarked on the Northern Expedition, there was almost only one choice for important towns and command centers, which was Shouchun.
????????However, after the Northern and Southern Dynasties, with the construction of the Grand Canal, Yang Guang, the prince of the Sui Dynasty at that time, guarded Jiangdu (Yangzhou) for ten years, which further intensified the eastward shift of the economic center of the Celestial Dynasty, and what followed
What is more important is the formation and growth of the Maritime Silk Road. While Yangzhou became the trade center in the south of the Yangtze River, it also made the eastern waterway closer to the sea the best choice for water transportation.
After the Grand Canal entered the Huaihe River, it directly caused the Suzhou Tongji Canal east of Shouchun to turn north, and the status of the central waterway guarded by Shouchun declined, and a series of chain reactions followed.
????????Because the east-line waterways become more developed and prosperous, the middle-line waterways in Shouchun become more and more declining. The declining waterways naturally lack operation and maintenance, which in turn leads to Feishui's Chaofei Canal in Jiangjunling, Hefei due to siltation.
It is no longer open to navigation, which has dealt another fatal blow to Shouchun's strategic position.
?????????However, although the famous city has begun to decline, it is still an important barrier in the southeast. In the late Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties period, Shouchun was called Shouzhou, and it was still an important military town in the southeast. In the Southern Tang Dynasty, Liu Renzhan returned half of the land in Huainan
In the case of the later Zhou Dynasty, the lone army defended Shouzhou for three years, trying to ensure that Shouchun was not lost.
????????Because Shouzhou was not lost, the Zhou army was still unable to fully occupy the two Huaihe Rivers and then cross the river. The Southern Tang Dynasty lingered on for more than ten years.
????????The real decline of Shouchun occurred in the Southern Song Dynasty. After the Jingkang Incident, the Southern Song Dynasty settled on the left side of the Yangtze River. The nomadic forces in the north did not cultivate water conservancy, which caused the Bian River to dry up and make it impassable for boats. The northern section of the Shouchun Waterway was
The voyage was discontinued.
The waterways in the north and south are cut off. After occupying Shouchun, we can only guard the Huai River. The strategic position of the "important place in the south" has finally been completely lost.
After the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, the Huaihe River was not repaired, floods and droughts occurred frequently, and the Shouchun generation declined more and more. And the canal ran through it, connecting the north and the south, so Shouchun was no longer an important place.
????????However, in the blueprint for hegemony drawn up by Guo Jia for Wang Zheng at this time, Shouchun is extremely important and even irreplaceable!
There are many low hills around Shouchun, which are easy to defend and difficult to attack. Fortunately, Wang Zheng sent Huang Zhong and Wei Yan's vanguard troops to arrive first. They arrived quickly and did not give Gan Ning and Yang Hong the chance to attack.
When we had the opportunity to set up a position outside the city, we had first seized the nearby hills, highlands, rivers and streams.
?????????Compared with Huang Zhong who was appointed by Wang Zheng, Wei Yan's position as deputy general was snatched from Wang Xiong, Zhou Tai and others in every possible way. After all, since joining Wang Zheng, in addition to strangling Sun Ce,
Wei Yan had almost no merit, but no matter how important Sun Ce was, he was at the end of his rope at that time, and his decapitation was insignificant.
????????So at this time, Wei Yan was very eager to achieve meritorious service. Soldiers could only rely on fighting to achieve meritorious service. Among military achievements, whether killing generals or ascending first, the opportunity of a pioneer officer was naturally the greatest.
?????????But Wei Yan never expected that he finally took over the vanguard's lieutenants, but Yang Hong and Gan Ning refused to fight and refused to meet him at all. This was very embarrassing.
????????So at this time, Wei Yan was actively suggesting to Wang Zheng: "Zhou Mu, the moon is dark and the wind is high at this time, it is time for a sneak attack. The general thought that we don't have to wait until tomorrow, why not do it tonight at the third or fourth update?" When the time comes, send a group of men and horses to try to attack at night? The last general is willing to be the vanguard!"
Hearing this, before Wang Zheng could answer, Qiao Wan on the side frowned and said: "You and General Huang have been here for a few days. The enemy has been prepared for a surprise attack. What's the use? The moon is dark and the wind is high, so it's not suitable for fighting."
Hearing this, Wei Yan glanced at Qiao Wan dissatisfied and snorted. Because he knew the other party's skills, he just cursed "woman's opinion" in his heart, but said: "That's right. Since we have been stationed for several days, the defenders naturally thought that we would not choose to attack by surprise, which is called going the opposite direction. Attacking at this time will definitely have miraculous results!"
Qiao Wan was about to retort, but Wang Zheng waved his hand and said with a smile: "Haha, Commander, why should you be impatient? I know you are eager to make contributions, but there are more than 100 counties in Yangzhou, so you are afraid that you will not be able to do it without any merit. ?”
?????????"As long as Shouchun is captured, our army can do whatever it takes, but Shouchun City is the first to outwit and the second to attack by force."
???????Now that Wang Zheng had spoken, Wei Yan naturally did not dare to say more, so he could only ask: "How do you think Zhou Mu can outwit him?"
?????????Wang Zheng didn't answer him for the time being. He drove his horse around to take a look at Shouchun City. He probably had an idea in his mind. He turned around and asked Wang Xiong, "Are you ready?"
?????????"Ready."
"It's the second watch now. Wait for another hour and mobilize a thousand archers to attack together. Han Sheng and Wen Chang just said it well. The focus of Shouchun City's defense is on the east gate, while the west gate is relatively weak." Let’s put all the things we have prepared into the West City Gate.”
?????????Wang Xiong received the order solemnly: "Here!"
What did Wang Zheng prepare? It was just thousands of letters urging surrender.
Wang Zheng and Guo Jia agreed that there were two key points in capturing Shouchun. The first was internal support and the second was alienation, and the two complemented each other.
???????? Taking advantage of the fact that Yuan Shu was not in the city at this time, he pretended to write a letter to the Shouchun generals he knew in the tone of Wang Xiong, Zhou Tai and others. It is not important whether the recruitment and rebellion can be successful or not. What is important is It was this letter of surrender that could be read by Yang Hong and Gan Ning.
????????As long as they have a little bit of suspicion, things will be easier to handle.
????????As long as the alienation tactic is used properly, you will be able to obtain results that are beneficial to your own side, because the main purpose of this tactic is not to make the enemy believe it, but to arouse the enemy's suspicion!
What the siege side fears most is that the defenders are united. Once the defenders are suspicious of each other and there is a gap in trust, the attacker can take advantage of it. As long as it is used properly, it will be beneficial. own results.
????????Another point is that this can muddy the waters and make Gan Ning and Yang Hong divert their attention from those real "undercovers".
After watching the enemy city for a long time, the king turned his horse back. Not far away, he heard a sudden noise at the top of the city. He turned around and saw about ten people suddenly appeared on the top of the city. Everyone else was
They were neatly dressed, but only one person stood out, wearing a green turban and a white robe with wide sleeves and a strategizing, calm and distinguished figure. It was Yang Hong.
When Qiao Wan saw this person, she had a look of disgust on her face and couldn't help but spit: "How dare this guy with a deer head and rat eyes dare to imitate Yu Shengqing?"
?????????Yu Shengqing is Yu Xu.
During the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Xiongnu completely surrendered, but the Western Qiang rose again. During the reign of Emperor Han'an, he attacked and plundered the frontiers many times, and the generals were incompetent. The Qiang bandits became more and more powerful, and the Han Dynasty wanted to abandon Liangzhou, and then Yu Xu
He came out of nowhere, wearing a turban and robe, and used the strategy of increasing the number of stoves to defeat the Qiang army, crush the barbarians, and stabilize the military capital. He can be called the first Confucian general of the Eastern Han Dynasty!
???????Wang Zheng smiled slightly when he heard this. Yu Xu's history records that he was handsome and handsome, but Yang Hong's appearance was actually not too bad. In terms of the situation, Yuan Shu's regime was in a precarious state at this time, which was quite different from that of the Eastern Han Dynasty at that time.
What they have in common is what Yang Hong is thinking about at this moment.
?????????Is it like Yu Xu who "turns the tide before it falls and helps the building before it collapses"?
????????such a pity.
?????????"The virtuous man in art," Wang Zheng raised his head and looked towards the city, nodded at Yang Hong in the distance, his eyes suddenly awakened, and he suddenly sighed: "My enemy is also the one."
????????Perhaps his gaze was too hot and bright, Yang Hong seemed to feel it, and he also raised his eyes to look at it.
Under the clouds, on top of the city, in the firelight, in the deathly silence, the two people's eyes collided silently.
????????The next moment, suddenly the scorching thunder rolled past and the roar continued.
?????????Lightning suddenly cut through the night, completely brightening the whole world!
????????The light came so suddenly, which was beyond the expectations of Wang Zheng and others, as well as the expectations of Yang Hong and Gan Ning. In an instant, shouts and noises rang out at the same time.
?????????"Where is Wang Zheng!"
????????This paragraph contains too many words for popular science. It’s not about hydrology.
?????????Do you think it is necessary to introduce the importance of Shouchun at that time?