In the second year of Chuping (191), Yuan Shao ceded Bohai County to Gongsun Zhan. On the surface, this incident is a loss of land and bending the knee to seek peace; in fact, it is a murder with a knife and a hidden evil intention.
The Book of Wei states that the reason for Yuan Shao's cession of land was to compensate Gongsun Zhan for his losses.
According to records, Gongsun Yue's cousin Gongsun Yue was killed in a campaign against Zhou Ang on behalf of Yuan Shu, and Zhou Ang belonged to Yuan Shao's clique. According to this relationship, Yuan Shao should indeed be responsible for the death of Gongsun Zhan's relatives.
(Yuan) Shu dispatched (Gongsun) Yue and (Sun) to attack (Zhou) Ang, and (Gongsun) yue was killed by Liu Ya. (Gongsun) was furious: "The death of Brother Yu caused the disaster to (Yuan) Shao. "--The Book of Wei and the Biography of Gongsun Zhan"
However, the value of Bohai County is unusual. Yuan Shao was originally the Taishou of Bohai and had quite a foundation here. Logically, he also did not have the reason to cede the Bohai Sea. It can be seen that there is another hidden plot behind the scenes of the land cut incident.
(Dong) Zhuo thought so, but sent (Yuan) Shao Bohai Taishou ... In the first year of Chuping, Shao Sui raised an army with Bohai. --The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, The Biography of Yuan Shao
Note: The scholar Fang Shiming also believes that Yuan Shao's motives for ceding the Bohai Sea are not pure. See the article "Yuan Shao and zhang Yan, the black mountain thief".
Combined with the records of various books, it can be seen that Yuan Shao ceded the Bohai Sea, ostensibly to apologize to Gongsun Zhan, but secretly harbored evil intentions.
From the historical background, the second year of Chuping (191) coincided with the peak of the turmoil and migration of Qing and Xuhuangjiao; from the perspective of geographical environment, Bohai County was located at the intersection of You, Ji and Qingzhou.
In other words, Yuan Shao actually used the special location of Bohai County to induce Gongsun Zhan of Youzhou to go south to Jizhou and act as a pawn against Qing and Xu Huangjiao.
The development of history is indeed as Yuan Shao expected.
After Gongsun Zhan occupied bohai (191), he consumed a large number of troops in the war with the Yellow Turban, and finally lost to Yuan Shao at the Battle of Jieqiao in the spring of the following year (192) and was forced to give up the land of Jizhou.
In short, Yuan Shao used the Bohai Sea as bait, while weakening the strength of the Yellow Turban Army and Gongsun Zhan. It can be said that killing people with a knife kills people with one stone.
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<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="16" > the historical background of Yuan Shao's cession of the Bohai Sea</h1>
The opening chapter first clarifies the historical background of Yuan Shao's cession of the Bohai Sea, which involves the logical deduction of a series of subsequent events.
The reasons for Yuan Shao's ceding of the Bohai Sea are recorded differently in the Book of Wei and the Book of Later Han.
The Book of Wei states that Gongsun Yue died in battle first, and Yuan Shao cut off the land later.
(Yuan) sent Sun Jiantun to resist (Dong) Zhuo, and (Yuan) Shao made Zhou Ang seize his place. (Yuan) Shu dispatched (Gongsun) Yue and (Sun) to attack (Zhou) Ang. --The Book of Wei and the Biography of Gongsun Zhan
After Gongsun Yue's death, Yuan Shao ceded Bohai in order to seek peace, and another cousin of Gongsun Zan, Gongsun Fan, served as the Taishou of Bohai.
(Gongsun Zan) then sent out the army tun pan river, and will repay (Yuan) Shao. Shao Was afraid, and was given the title of (Gongsun) From his brother (Gongsun) Fan. --The Book of Wei and the Biography of Gongsun Zhan
Yuan Shao conferred bohai taishou yinshou and Gongsun Zhan as a brother
The Book of the Later Han Dynasty records the opposite.
Fan Ye claimed that Gongsun Zhan and Gongsun Fan came out of the town of Bohai first, and Gongsun Yue died in the Battle of Yangcheng later. Invert the effect as a cause.
300,000 people from Qing and Xu Huangjiao entered the Bohai (bohai) boundary and wanted to join the Black Mountains. (Gongsun) led 20,000 people on foot and counterattacked at Dongguang South... (Gongsun Zan) made his brother (Gongsun) Yue (公孙) yue (公孙) the more than a thousand horsemen (Yuan) self-knotted, the more shu dispatched with his general Sun Jian, the more Yuan Shao general Zhou Xin, (Gongsun) Yue was killed by liuya. --The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, The Biography of Gongsun Zhan
The two families have their own opinions, and they are inconsistent.
In fact, the process of the event is easy to clarify. Since Yuan Shao was the Taishou of Bohai, the Gongsun family wanted to infect the Bohai Sea, and they could not do without Yuan Shao's permission. Recognizing this, we can grasp the causal relationship of the event.
Obviously, the death of Gongsun Yue was the reason for Yuan Shao's land cession; Gongsun Zhan and Gongsun Fan's departure from the town of Bohai was the result of Yuan Shao's cession of land.
Chen Shou's narrative logic is obviously more reasonable than Fan Ye's. At the same time, compared with the Book of later Han, which was written in Liu Song, the Book of Wei, which was written in the Western Jin Dynasty, is closer to the end of the Han Dynasty. Historians of all generations have also accepted the records of the Book of Wei.
Combined with the records of the Wei Shu Wu Ji, the Later Han Shu Xiandi Ji, and the Yuan Shao Biography, the historical events of the second year of Chuping (191) are as follows in order:
In April of the second year of Chuping (191), Dong Zhuo entered Chang'an. In July, Yuan Shao defeated Han Fu and captured Wei Commandery (魏郡) in Jizhou.
In the summer of April of the second year, (Dong) Zhuo returned to Chang'an. In the autumn of July, Yuan Shao threatened Han Fu and took Jizhou. --Book of Wei, Chronicle of Emperor Wu
At the same time, a civil war broke out between Yuan Shao and Yuan Shu, and Gongsun Yue, a cousin of Gongsun Yue, attacked Yuan Shao's general Zhou Ang on Yuan Shu's behalf and was killed in battle.
(Yuan) sent Sun Jiantun to resist (Dong) Zhuo, (Yuan) Shao made Zhou Ang seize his place... (Gongsun) was killed by the flow of arrows. --The Book of Wei and the Biography of Gongsun Zhan
Yuan Shao ceded Bohai in order to appease Gongsun Zhan. In November of the same year (191), Gongsun Zhan broke the Yellow Turban in Dongguang County, Bohai, known in history as the Battle of Dongguang.
(2) November... The Yellow Turban turned to Kou Bohai, and Gongsun Zhan fought with Dongguang and broke it again. --Book of the Later Han Dynasty
Gongsun Zhan and the Yellow Turban fought in Dongguang and broke it
In the spring of the third year of Chuping (192), Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zhan fought at Jieqiao, and Gongsun Zhan lost and was forced to flee to Youzhou.
In the first month of the spring of the third year, Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zhan fought at Jieqiao, and the Zhan army was defeated. --Book of the Later Han Dynasty
Regarding the specific time of the Battle of the Boundary Bridge, there are slight discrepancies in the records of the various books.
The Zizhi Tongjian and the Biography of Gongsun Zhan state that the battle was held in the spring of the third year (192), while the Biography of Yuan Shao states that the battle was held in the winter of the second year (191). However, all books refer to the Battle of Jieqiao, which occurred after the Battle of Toko.
(Gongsun) Fan Sui assisted (Gongsun) With bohai troops, Broke Qing and Xu Huangjian (referring to the Battle of Dongguang), bing Yisheng, and marched into Jieqiao. --The Book of Wei and the Biography of Gongsun Zhan
Obviously, there is a direct causal relationship between the "defeat of the boundary bridge" and the "victory of the Eastern Light". During Gongsun Zhan's departure from the town of Bohai, he was swept into the mud of the Yellow Turban, and his military strength was greatly depleted, so he was defeated at the boundary bridge.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="137" > the analysis of the reasons for Yuan Shao's ceding of the Bohai Sea</h1>
Bohai County was the base camp of Yuan Shao's army (189). In Xun Chen's mouth, "Although Bohai is a county, it is actually a prefecture", and Yuan Shao also relied on the strength of the county to fight against Jizhou Muhan Fu.
(Xun) Chen: "Although Bohai is a county, in fact, the state is also." Now that the general (referring to Han Fu) is inferior to the situation, he has been on it for a long time, and Yuan Shi's momentary master will not be a general. --The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, The Biography of Yuan Shao
Since Bohai occupied such an important position, Yuan Shao could not easily cut love; let alone give it to his old enemy Gongsun Zhan.
Yuan Shao ceded the Bohai Sea for two main purposes. The first was to use Gongsun Zhan to resist the Qingxu Yellow Turban, and the other was to guard against the confluence of the Qingxu Yellow Turban with the Black Mountain Army in Jizhou.
(1) Resist the green and yellow turban
Bohai County's geographical location is excellent. It is bordered by Hejian State (part of Jizhou) to the west, Bohai Bay to the east, Youzhou to the north, and Qingzhou to the south.
Location map of Bohai County
Youzhou is the old lair of Gongsun Zhan and is well known to everyone. Qingzhou was the hardest hit area of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, which was depicted in the Lingdi Ji.
In the winter of October ( Zhongping 5 ) , Qing and Xu Huang turbans revived , Kou County. --Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Chronicle of the Ling Emperor
The Qingxu Yellow Turban is not only brave in battle, but also numerous, once reaching "a million people". Cao Cao's elite "Qingzhou Soldiers" were formerly known as the Qingxu Yellow Turban.
(Qingxu) The yellow turban is a thief for a long time, and the number of victories is multiplied, and the soldiers are all fierce. --Wang Shen, Book of Wei
The Yellow Turbans of Qingzhou entered Yanzhou, killed Zheng Sui, the minister of ren, and transferred to Dongping... (Cao Cao) was demoted to more than 300,000 men and women, and received his elite, and was called qingzhou soldier. --Book of Wei, Chronicle of Emperor Wu
Bohai County, bordering Qingzhou to the south, is naturally threatened by the Qingxu Yellow Turban. In July of the second year of Chuping (191), Yuan Shao had just defeated Han Fu and was in need of recuperation and unable to fight the Yellow Turban, so he needed to rely on the strength of Gongsun Zan.
At this time, Gongsun Yue's accidental death gave Yuan Shao a reason to "cede the Bohai Sea". Gongsun Zhan did not know the plan, entered the Tun Bohai Sea, and as a result, he was involved in the war against the Yellow Turban and fell into Yuan Shao's trap.
(2) Guard against the confluence of the Yellow Turban and Montenegro
Another purpose of Yuan Shao's ceding of the Bohai Sea was to prevent the Qingxu Yellow Turban from merging with the Black Mountain Army in the Jizhou region.
The nature of qingxu yellow turban is relatively strong, and it is not limited to Qing and Xu Erzhou, and has tried to go north many times.
The first time was in the winter of the second year of Chuping (191), when Qingxu Huangjiao tried to enter Jizhou and Yanzhou. As a result, he was defeated by Ying Shao and Gongsun Zhan.
In November of the second year, Qingshan Taishan (which belonged to Yanzhou) was broken by Taishan Taishou .e. The Yellow Turban turned to Kou Bohai (which belonged to Jizhou), and Gongsun Zhan fought with Dongguang and restored the Great Destruction. --Book of the Later Han Dynasty
The second time was in the third year of Chuping (192), when Qingxu Yellow Turban entered Yanzhou in the west and broke through the RenchengGuo, DongpingGuo, and Jibei Kingdom. Ren Chengxiang Zheng Sui, Yanzhou Assassin Liu Dai, and Jibei Xiang Baoxin were defeated successively. Cao Cao fought with the Yellow Turban until the winter of the same year (192), and the victory ended.
Qingzhou Yellow Turban killed Yanzhou Assassin Liu Dai yu Dongping. Dongjun Taishou Cao Cao broke the Yellow Turban in Shou Zhang and surrendered it. --Book of the Later Han Dynasty
(Cao Cao) chased the Yellow Turban to Jibei. (Yellow Turban) begging. In winter, more than 300,000 people were demoted. --Book of Wei, Chronicle of Emperor Wu
The reason why Qingxu Yellow Turban tried to go north many times, in addition to survival, was also to contact another Yellow Turban force in Hebei, that is, the Black Mountain Army led by Zhang Yan.
The Montenegrin Army belongs to the Yellow Turban Branch, and the two are of similar nature. Guo Daxian ("Great Sage") in the Black Turban Army has a Yellow Turban background; in the Yellow Turban Army, there are also Black Mountain, Bull Horn, and Feiyan departments.
(Montenegro) there are also Zuo Colonel, Guo Daxian, and Zuo Jiezhang Eighty-Three Ministries. --Zhang Bian,"Han Dynasty"
Zhang Jiao's opposite, Black Mountain, Bai Bo, Huang Long, Zuo Colonel, Bull Horn (referring to Zhang Horn), Wulu... Lei Gong, Fu Yun, Fei Yan (referring to Chu Fei Yan), Bai Jue, Yang Feng, Yu Poison and so on each raised troops, the large ones were 20,000 or 30,000, and the small ones were not reduced by thousands. --"Spring and Autumn in Kyushu"
Among them, "horn" refers to Zhang Niu's horn, and "flying swallow" refers to Chu Feiyan, who are all black mountain chiefs. Chu Feiyan later united with Zhang Niujiao and inherited the Montenegrin forces and changed his name to Zhang Yan.
Boling Zhang Niujiao also rose up in the crowd, calling himself a general and engaging in it, and (flying) Yan. (Fly) Swallow pushes the horn for handsome... The horn of the cow died, and the people bong (flying) Yan, so they changed their surname to Zhang. --The Book of Wei and the Biography of Zhang Yan
The Montenegrin army violently attacked Jizhou and made enemies of Yuan Shao
The relationship between Yuan Shao and the Montenegrin Army was very tense, and the two sides had many armed conflicts in Jizhou, and the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and the Heroes chronicled this a lot.
(Yuan Shao) Fang and the guest generals met together, heard the Rebellion of Wei County, and together with the Black Mountain Thieves Yu Poison, overthrew the city of Yecheng, and killed Taishou Licheng. --Heroes
(Lü Bu) Yuan Shao, Shao and Bu attacked Zhang Yan at Changshan. --The Biography of Lü Bu of Wei
At that time, Zhang Yan was attached to the Chang'an court and was an enemy of Yuan Shao. The Biography of Zang Hong states that "the genus of FeiYan has been ordered by the king". The Chang'an imperial court was under the control of Dong Zhuo's clique, and the relationship between the Black Mountain Army and Yuan Shao could be imagined.
Jia Feiyan (i.e., Zhang Yan) was ordered by the king. --The Biography of Zang Hong, Book of Wei
Although the Montenegrin army occupied Jizhou, it was also "in communication with the thieves in the valleys of Zhongshan, Changshan, Zhao County, Shangdang, and Hanoi" and was very restless.
The thief Changshan man Zhang Yan, light and courageous, so the army number is Feiyan. It is more in communication with the valleys of Zhongshan, Changshan, Cho County, Shangdang, and Hanoi. --The Book of the Later Han Dynasty
Among them, Changshan, Zhao County, and Zhongshan are in Jizhou, Shangdang is in Hezhou, and Hanoi is in the Lieutenant Department of Sili. It can be seen that while Zhang Yan is running Jizhou, he is also actively colluding with the Yellow Turban Branch In other places.
In this context, once the Qingxu Yellow Turban entered Jizhou, it was bound to join forces with the Black Mountain Army, posing a greater threat to Yuan Shao. The Biography of Gongsun Zhan is also known as "Qingxu Yellow Turban entered the Bohai Sea and wanted to merge with the Black Mountain".
In the second year of Chuping, 300,000 people from Qing and Xu Huangjian entered the Bohai Realm and wanted to join the Black Mountain. --The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, The Biography of Gongsun Zhan
It can be seen from this that Yuan Shao's ceding of the Bohai Sea to Gongsun Zhan actually contained a variety of considerations.
On the one hand, it can take advantage of the dangerous location of the Bohai Sea (located at the intersection of the three states of Hebei, Qing, and Youzhou) to block the communication channels between the Qingxu Yellow Turban and the Black Mountain Army in Jizhou; on the other hand, it can drive away the tiger and swallow the wolf, and at the same time weaken the military strength of the yellow turban, montenegro, and Gongsun Zhan, and reap the profits.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="155" > the subsequent impact of Yuan Shao's cession of the Bohai Sea</h1>
Yuan Shao ceded the Bohai Sea, which indeed achieved its strategic purpose. After Gongsun Zhan entered the Bohai Sea, he was forced to get involved in the battle with the Qingxu Yellow Turban, which greatly depleted his military strength.
In November of the second year of Chuping (191), the Qingxu Yellow Turban went north, and the number reached 300,000. Gongsun Zhan led 20,000 infantry and cavalry to attack, "beheading 30,000 ranks, and taking 70,000 prisoners." Known in history as the Battle of Toko.
Three hundred thousand people from Qing and Xu Huangjiao entered the Bohai Realm and wanted to join the Black Mountains. (Gongsun) led 20,000 people on foot, counterattacked in Dongguangnan, broke it, and beheaded more than 30,000 people... More than 70,000 people were harvested, and the car armor and property were invincible, and the prestige was greatly shaken. --The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, The Biography of Gongsun Zhan
The "Biography of Guoyuan" records that "the document of breaking thieves used to be one for ten", which shows that the number of soldiers on both sides may have water; but Gongsun Zhan was at an absolute disadvantage in this battle, and there should be no doubt.
The thief's document used to be one for ten, and the first level of the (country) abyss, such as the actual number. --The Tale of Wei Shu Guoyuan
In other words, behind Gongsun Zhan's "great shock of prestige" is actually the large consumption of war materials and the sharp loss of living forces.
In the Battle of Jieqiao in the first month of the third year of Chuping (192), Yuan Shao defeated Gongsun Zhan's "White Horse Yicong" with "strong crossbows" and "Euphorbia", creating a military miracle of infantry victory over cavalry, which was inevitably related to Gongsun Zhan's previous strength consumption.
More than 20,000 (Gongsun) infantry were in a phalanx, riding on two wings, with more than 5,000 horses on the left and right, and the white horse Yicong was the backbone. --Heroes
(Yuan) Shao Ling Yi took eight hundred soldiers as the first to ascend, and the crossbow was thousands of zhang to inherit it... There were dozens of crossbows under the tent, and more than a hundred Euphorbia soldiers followed them. --Heroes
Yuan Shao broke Gongsun Zhan at the boundary bridge
History is so paradoxical.
If Gongsun Zhan had not annexed the Bohai Sea, he would have been able to preserve his own living power better; but if Gongsun Zhan had annexed the Bohai Sea, he would inevitably be involved in the war against the Qingxu Yellow Turban. In the end, Gongsun Zhan picked up sesame seeds (Bohai) and lost watermelon (Jizhou), which was not worth the loss.
Bohai County's geographical location is very special, located at the intersection of three states, and in the chaotic situation at that time, anyone who controls the Bohai Sea will fall into a similar predicament.
Yuan Shao went out of the town of Bohai for many years (189-191), and naturally understood the festival. He ceded the Bohai Sea to Gongsun Zhan on the grounds of "atonement", drove the tiger and swallowed the wolf, skillfully weakened the strength of many powerful enemies, and created a war advantage for himself.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="162" > summary</h1>
Yuan Shao's land-cutting incident, at the same time, also has many schemes such as "taking advantage of the situation", "borrowing strength to fight", "driving the tiger and swallowing the wolf", etc., which fully reflects Yuan Shao's power and wisdom.
Theoretically, the accidental death of Gongsun Yue in the second year of Chuping (191) could have led to gongsun zan and Yuan Shao clique going to war in advance; but under Yuan Shao's skillful operation, he not only successfully defused the war crisis, but also in turn took advantage of the opportunity of "ceding the Bohai Sea" to put Gongsun Zhan at risk.
According to the background of the time when "Gongsun Zhan ti Yan was a pawn, sharp and unstoppable", once the war started in advance, Yuan Shao would be in danger. Because Yuan Shao had only just captured Jizhou in July of the same year (191), the foundation was not yet solid.
(Xun) Chen Yue: "Gongsun (瓒) TiYan and Dai Zhi pawn, his sharp edge is not to be taken." "--Book of Wei, Biography of Yuan Shao"
Moreover, Yuan Shao seized mainly the Wei County (i.e., Yi County) from Han Fu, and the rest of the counties in Jizhou still had many dependents on Gongsun Zhan. In this context, Yuan Shao urgently needed to fight for time to recuperate.
Gongsun Zhan took advantage of the victory to come to the south, and the counties responded. --The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, The Biography of Yuan Shao
Gongsun Zhan broke the yellow scarf, and also tun yu river, Wei Zhen Hebei, Jizhou Zhucheng all looked forward to the wind response. --The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, The Biography of Yuan Shao
Yuan Shao's plan soon succeeded.
In November of the second year of Chuping (191), Gongsun Zhan fought against 300,000 Qingxu Yellow Turbans with 20,000 soldiers in Dongguang County, Bohai, and although he won the victory, the loss was bound to be not light.
For Yuan Shao, Gongsun Zhan at this time was in a weak state and no longer had the courage he had been. Therefore, in the first month of the following year (192), Yuan Shao dared to go to war with Gongsun Zhan at Jieqiao.
As Yuan Shao expected, Gongsun Zhan, who had experienced a crushing victory in the Bohai Sea, eventually lost the Battle of Jieqiao and was forced to flee Youzhou and spit out the jizhou counties and counties that had been occupied before.
(Gongsun Zhan) and (Yuan) Shao fought at Jieqiao. (Gongsun) The Army was defeated and returned to Ji. --The Book of the Later Han Dynasty, The Biography of Gongsun Zhan
In the struggle between Heshuo and The Two Heroes, Gongsun Zhan was brave and brave, and Yuan Shao was flexible. He not only knows how to be humble and patient, but also knows how to guide people according to the situation, and he knows how to kill people with a knife, using a mere Bohai County, and weakening the strength of many strong enemies at the same time.
In the pen of Chen Shou and Fan Ye, Yuan Shao "won the crowd with heroic heroes, and the map of huai xiong hegemony" and finally "Eagle Yang Heshuo", which can be called a temporary tyrant. The cession of the Bohai Sea can also be seen as a high degree of condensation of its political wisdom.
I am Fat Mi, the original author of the history of the headline number. Talk about historical anecdotes and focus on the history of the Three Kingdoms. From the clues in Shi Hai's sinking hook and the Yoshimitsu katayu, to analyze the hidden meaning behind the unfolding.
Thanks for reading.