In fact, the real history is that Zhuge Liang is indeed a great man, well-managed, well-managed, and an absolute pillar, but he did not reach the level of "God". The Romance of the Three Kingdoms really mythologized Zhu Gekongming.
Sima Yi was not completely defeated by his men. In many cases, Sima Yi showed stronger military ability than Zhuge Liang and successfully curbed Zhuge Liang's many northern expeditions. It can even be boldly speculated that Zhuge Liang would have succeeded in the Northern Expedition if it hadn't been for Sima Yi vs Zhuge Liang, so The Romance of the Three Kingdoms was indeed "hacked" by Sima Zhong Da (Sima Yi's word Zhong Da).
However, whether it is romance or official history, one thing is the same, that is, Sima Yi vs Zhuge Liang is equally wonderful.
As we all know, during the Three Kingdoms period, Cao Wei in the north was the strongest and occupied the largest territory, while Shu Han in the southwest was the weakest and the smallest territory. Zhuge Liang insisted on the Northern Expedition knowing that his country's strength was far inferior to that of Cao Wei. Is there any suspicion of "overreaching"? This is a misunderstanding, just as the Romance of the Three Kingdoms misled everyone that Sima Yi was much weaker than Zhuge Liang. Why is this a misunderstanding?
One of the reasons is that we only consider the comparison between Shu and Wei. Don't forget that there is another kingdom of Wu in the southeast. When Shu and Wu unite against Cao Wei, this gap in strength will no longer exist. Moreover, the people of Wu are also very smart and fully understand that the lips are dead and the teeth are cold, so Shu and Wu hit it off.
From the aspect of Shu Han, the military strength of Shu Han is really not so weak. Without Jin Gangzuan, who would dare to stop such a big porcelain project? With Zhu Gekongming's IQ, my toes can understand that Soochow is engaged in soy sauce, which fully conforms to the principle of "scraping if it is cheap, and withdrawing if it is not cheap". Therefore, Zhuge Liang has no expectations for Dongwu at all, as long as Dongwu is on his side, it is enough. The actual situation is the same as that of Zhuge Liang.
After talking for a long time, what is the level of Shu Han? Readers, relax and read the following.
Our story begins with Zhuge Liang's third Northern Expedition. Why jump directly to the third expedition? Because the leading role of Cao Wei in the first two times was not Sima Yi, but Cao Fu Zhen. After successfully resisting Shu Han's two northern expeditions, Cao Zhen resolutely embarked on the journey of counterattacking Shu Han, and the result was not satisfactory. Cao Wei's army lost its way in the Qinling Mountains and was watered by continuous rain for more than a month. In desperation, he had to withdraw, but Cao Zhen was finally depressed because of this defeat.
So Sima Yi shouldered the banner of resisting Shu Han and became the new head coach of Cao Wei's Liang Yong Legion. The direct contest between Sima Yi and Zhuge Liang officially kicked off, and our story will start here.
As soon as Zhuge Liang appeared, he succeeded in making a diversion, pretending to attack Qishan, but actually attacking Shangyi. When the Shu army appeared at the gate of Shangguan, Fei Yao, the garrison commander of Shangguan, naively thought it was a small sneak attack force and went out to fight. When Zhuge Qijing was discovered, he was afraid and returned to the city in confusion. Zhuge Liang simply ignored the membership fee Yao and others and did not attack the city at all. Instead, he waved his feather fan and harvested wheat. Sima Yi heard that Zhuge Liang had turned to Shangguan, and immediately ordered the troops to lay down their trench and go into battle lightly to support Shangguan.
I have to say that there is so much wheat in Shangguan that the Shu army didn't finish harvesting it for two days. The arrival of Sima Yi's army made Zhuge Liang shine at the moment and ordered the army to prepare for the battle. It turned out that Zhuge Liang went to Yi not to fight, but to destroy Cao Wei's army. Sima Yi immediately realized that he had been cheated and ordered the army to stick to it. No matter how provocative and vociferous the Shu army is, Wei Jun just won't come out, because Sima Yi knows very well that the well-equipped Shu army can't be defeated without light soldiers. The Shu army is dominated by infantry, Zhuge Liang's arrangement is unpredictable, and the advantage of wilderness in wartime is obvious. I have to sigh that Zhuge Liang just met Sima Yi, and others may have been fooled.
The two sides were deadlocked for nearly a month, and Zhuge Liang always sent people to collect wheat, which would lead to a sudden attack by Wei Jun cavalry. Zhuge Liang knew that there would be no more wheat, Sima Yi would not be taken in again, and Wei Jun's trench was in place. In desperation, Zhuge Liang chose to retreat. Sima Yi stood on a high place and watched the Shu army retreat. He is in perfect order, and he can't help admiring Zhuge Liang's neat military appearance and good management.
Originally, the soldiers of the Shu army thought they could pack their things and go home, but Wei Jun came after them, which made Zhuge Liang excited, and the Shu army had a chance to display itself. Zhuge Liang led Wu Ban, Gao Xiang, and the Wudang Flying Army, a fierce Na army, to fully demonstrate the combat effectiveness of the Shu army in the wilderness, and beat Cao He's army out of the water in a few rounds; Another route led by Wei Yan, Wei Jun fled. The Shu army won a great victory in this battle and won countless trophies.
Then the question is, why did Sima Yi pursue Zhuge Liang? Is Sima Yi "confused"?
If Sima Yi is "confused" at this time, is it still Sima Yi? The reason is that Sima Yi needs such a failure to establish his prestige! He wants the generals to know that Sima Yi's strategic policy is correct, so it is necessary for him to fail this time.
Sima Yi's initiative made Zhuge Liang give up his retreat, and Zhuge Liang hoped that Wei Jun would fight against himself again. Unexpectedly, Sima Yi shrank again. Because of the last failure, no one dared to question Sima Yi this time. Sima Yi's "tortoise" style really made Zhuge Liang helpless and annoyed, but what annoyed Zhuge Liang even more was the food problem.
In fact, the inland of Shu Han is not as written in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Everyone is closely United around Zhuge Liang, and Li Yan, who is also the trustee, is not willing to obey Zhuge Liang's orders completely. The reason is nothing but power.
Zhuge Liang is in charge of the northern expedition ahead, and Li Yan is in charge of the rear supply. The two men have their own division of labor, but the discerning person can see at a glance that if the Northern Expedition is successful, Zhuge Liang must be the first to start work, so Li Yan is naturally unhappy. Of course, Li Yan will not and will not slack off because of his unhappiness. It's just that the heavy rain has added a lot of difficulty to the work of transporting grain. Originally, the nature of this problem was not so serious, but Li Yan forged an imperial edict to recall Zhuge Liang's army, which made the problem "qualitatively changed". In this way, Zhuge Liang withdrew his troops and returned to Shu. After returning to Shu, Li Yan was investigated and then exiled to Shu Ren.
Sima Yi made a more "incredible" decision and sent veteran Zhang Heling to chase Zhuge Liang. Countless actual combat experience tells us that there will be no "good fruit to eat" in the pursuit of Zhuge Liang, and almost all Wei Junbing knows this "iron law".
Zhang He was hesitating when Sima Yi calmly said, "Does General Zhang dare to disobey military orders?" The old general who would rather die than "dare" disobey military orders embarked on a road of no return. Wang Ping, who was lying in ambush with the mentality of "grabbing grass and beating rabbits", had a flash of light at this moment-was it Zhang He? ! I didn't expect "a big fish" to come. With a whoosh, Wang Ping hit Zhang He's thigh artery with an arrow, and Zhang He fell off his horse, and a generation of famous soldiers died in battle. Zhuge Liang's crossbow was so powerful that the ownerless Wei Jun was wiped out in an instant. This should be regarded as the greatest victory of Zhuge Liang's third Northern Expedition.
Zhang He must have been killed by Sima Yi. Sima yi did this, of course, to expel dissidents. Why can't Zhang He "wear a pair of pants" with Sima Yi? This is because Zhang He is a professional soldier, with only victories on the battlefield in his mind, while Sima Yi is a politician, with more victories in power and personnel in his mind. If Tao is different, how can we work for each other?
Anyway, Shu Han quit. As a result, Cao Wei's Liang Yong Corps once again successfully resisted Zhuge Liang's "crazy" aggression. Wei Junbing raised his glass, and even Sima Yi was greedy for several cups. Sima Yi, blushing, obviously knew that Zhuge Liang would make a comeback. Moreover, Sima Yi assumed that Zhuge Liang would not choose to conquer the fortress (Zhuge Liang did not conquer any fortress in the previous two northern expeditions), but he would definitely adopt the strategy of decisive battle in the wilderness, so the main attack direction must be the Guanzhong area thousands of miles away from Woye. It will take Zhuge Liang at least three years to store grain well. In other words, Sima Yi has predicted the route and time of Zhuge Liang's next Northern Expedition.
As expected, we should start preparing. Sima Yi mainly has the following actions:
1, wasteland reclamation.
Guanzhong is rich in wheat, so Sima Yi encourages farmers to farm. In order to improve the agricultural level, Sima Yi specially invited wheat planting experts from Luoyang to guide production. As the saying goes, "it is better to teach people to fish than to teach them to fish." Food is the foundation of a protracted war.
2. Build equipment.
Sima Yi established two arsenals, building weapons and armor day and night. The quality and quantity of equipment are the key to victory or defeat in the battlefield.
Zhuge Liang's preparations in Shu Han are also in full swing. As Sima Yi expected, Zhuge Liang is going to fight a protracted war this time. Not only did he actively cultivate land and grow grain, but he even reclaimed the Qinling Mountains. Moreover, Zhuge Liang continued to carry out the policy of "rejuvenating the country through science and technology", and invented the "Liu Ma" after "a wooden ox flowing a horse", which greatly improved the grain transportation efficiency of Shu Han and improved the logistics supply problem. In weapons manufacturing, Shu Han has an artist who can cast knives. His name is Puyuan. It is said that the knife he made can split a bamboo tube full of iron beads, which is definitely a magic knife.
So you see, although the national strength of Shu Han is not as good as that of Cao Wei, there is not such a big gap in military hard power. Liu Ma, Jing Lan and Liancrossbow Excalibur are all "Jin Gangzuan" that Zhuge Liang dared to explore the north actively.
Only three years later, in February, 234, Zhuge Liang sent troops to slant the ancient road and made another northern expedition. This is Zhuge Liang's fifth northern expedition, the most well-prepared and the last one.
After learning the news that Shu Han sent troops again, Sima Yi immediately held a meeting to discuss the strategy of defending the enemy. Sima Yi decisively judged Zhuge Liang's strategic intention. The Shu army is going to cross the Weihe River through Wudu and take Chang 'an to the east. Therefore, Sima Yi boldly decided to "give up" the natural barrier of Weihe River and station troops behind it. By the time the Shu army crossed the Qinling Mountains, Wei Jun had already stationed troops, and it was getting earlier and earlier.
Moreover, Sima Yi pointed out that if Zhuge Liang leads the army to take Chang 'an directly to the east, the form is not optimistic. If Zhuge Liang chooses to go west to Wuzhangyuan, then our victory is just around the corner.
The Shu army, which had just crossed the Qinling Mountains, had to stop, not because it was too tired, but because it was in trouble. Sima Yi succeeded in "guessing" his own operational intentions, which really gave Zhuge Aliang a headache. Zhuge Liang inwardly sighed: "I didn't expect Sima Yi to make such rapid progress." Of course, Zhuge Liang only had a "headache" for a short time, and then resolutely went straight to Wuzhangyuan in the west!
Wei Jun was very happy to see the Shu army marching westward, and Sima Yi suppressed his excitement. Suddenly, someone made a different sound. This man is Guo Huai. He pointed out: "The Shu army must cross the Mianshui River to the west and attack Beiyuan. The fall of Beiyuan will sever our ties with the Qiang people, and the Qiang people are likely to surrender to the Shu army for their use. "
Sima Yi realized the importance of Kitahara and ordered Guo Huai to station troops. Sure enough, Guo Huai successfully stopped Zhuge Liang. Zhuge Liang once again countered with a diversion, marching westward, but in fact it was a counterattack against Yang Sui. I didn't expect to be caught by Guo Huai again, and successfully smashed all Zhuge Liang's surprise plans.
Zhuge Liang's surprise attack failed, and the two sides entered a stalemate stage. A month later, due to the surge of the Weihe River in the rainy season, the flood "isolated" the Meng Yan department of the Shu army from the big troops.
Sima Yi found the fighter plane and ordered the cavalry to raid. He thought it was "duck in hand" Who knows Meng Congbu is a flying army with strong combat effectiveness, and the army of Shu Han has not been idle. The strongest engineers in the three countries immediately "appeared"-bridging, and it didn't take long for the bridge to be built.
Then, the soldiers boarded the bridge and fired arrows, and Zhuge Liang repeatedly fired crossbows, which caused heavy casualties to Wei Jun. Sima Yi saw that the genial smile was that he quickly sounded the golden bell and quit, and never came out.
Wei Jun just can't keep up with the Shu army's daily challenge to "curse street". In order to anger Sima Yi, Zhuge Liang gave Sima Yi a beautiful dress. At that time, it was a great insult to a man, no less than wearing a cuckold husband. It should be said that Zhuge Liang's move really hurts people. How can those northwest men in Cao Wei's barracks carry this? They demanded to fight to the death with the Shu army. At that time, the situation was very critical, and there was no doubt that Wei Jun would be defeated by the recruits. If there were no war, the generals would be very irritable and there would probably be a mutiny.
Only in times of crisis can a wise man show his manners. Sima Yi immediately called a meeting of all generals. At the meeting, Sima Yi strongly condemned Zhuge Liang's shameful behavior and emphasized that "a scholar can endure what he cannot endure". However, (this is Sima Yi's original intention) before sending troops, your majesty repeatedly asked you to insist, so you must get your permission to send troops, so Sima Yi wrote an invitation in public and sent it to Beijing. Cao Cao accepted the challenge and smiled knowingly. As the saying goes, his absence will not affect his life. Zhongda is in trouble. Cao Cao immediately approved "no troops"! And ordered Xin Pi to rush to the front to stop sending troops. Sima Yi, who received the imperial edict, immediately told the whole army: "Your Majesty is not allowed to send troops, and there is nothing I can do." In this way, the crisis is solved.
We have to admire Sima Yi's wisdom and forbearance. Many times, patience is not cowardice, but a tenacious wisdom.
But on the surface, the crisis was subtly turned into invisibility by Sima Yi. In fact, Sima Yi hated Zhuge Liang in his heart, because he had "told" the emperor that my ability was still poor at the critical moment, which really made Sima Yi feel a dull pain in his heart.
When Jiang Wei told Zhuge Liang the news, he immediately understood Sima Yi's strategy of "borrowing", and he also knew that it was almost impossible to beat Wei Jun in the wilderness. However, to Zhuge Liang's despair, his health was deteriorating. Sure enough, in August of the same year, Zhuge Liang, who worked hard for Shu Han all his life, died in Wuzhangyuan at the age of 54 after explaining everything behind him.
Every time I read this history, I can't restrain my inner excitement. Looking back on Zhuge Liang's life from complacency to unfulfilled ambition, how can future generations not sigh and lament for him? "But before he conquered, he was already dead, and the heroes kept crying on their coats." Du Fu's "book fragrance" expressed the wishes of future generations.
According to Zhuge Liang's deployment before his death, the news of his death was blocked and the Shu army retreated in an orderly manner. The local people provided information that Zhuge Liang was dead, but the Shu army was so uniform that Sima Yi hesitated. Finally, in order to be on the safe side, Sima Yi missed the opportunity to destroy the Shu army. Therefore, later generations have a saying that "the death of Zhuge scared Zhong Da away". Sima Yi quipped: "This is because I am good at predicting the living, but not at predicting people's life and death." The next day, Sima Yi came to Zhuge Liang's camp and praised Zhuge Liang as "a genius in the world"