Le Yi was a famous general of the Yan state, and he was on a par with Guan Zhong. He led the Five-Nation Alliance to attack Qi and almost destroyed the State of Qi. In the end, only the two cities of Ju and Jimo remained untaken. However, these two cities, Le Yi did not capture for three years. I think that Le Yi did not capture these two cities, not to be able to do it, but not for it.
During the Warring States period, the State of Yan was the weakest and smallest state, and it only brushed up its sense of existence when the State of Qi and the State of Zhao attacked. Moreover, during the reign of King Zhao of Zhou, King Xuan of Qi took advantage of the civil unrest in Yan to capture the State of Yan and kill the King of Yan and Zizhi. Although the Qi army was forced to withdraw under the resistance of the yan subjects, it brought great disaster and destruction to the yan state.
Therefore, when it came to the time of King Yan Zhao, he was determined to repay the shame of the State of Qi and Yan. He shared the hardships of the people, honored the corporals, and recruited talents. In the spirit of buying horse bones with thousands of dollars, he recruited a large number of military and political talents such as Le Yi, Ju Xin, and Su Qin, and revitalized the Yan kingdom. Among these talents, Le Yi is the best.
However, the strength of Yanqi state is very different. Therefore, Su Qin and King Yan Zhao set a strategy for breaking qin: let the state of Qi "work in the west to the Song, and the south to fatigue in the Chu, then the Qi army can be broken, and the river is preferable." In order to lure the State of Qi to destroy the Song, Su Qin personally sent an envoy to the State of Qi. Under Su Qin's clever words, the State of Qi decided to jointly attack Qin. He also took the opportunity to destroy the Song state in 286 BC.
When the State of Qi destroyed the Song Dynasty, it suddenly became the target of all countries. Although the State of Qi looked powerful for a while, it was extremely isolated at the time. The State of Yan seized the opportunity to unite all countries and attack together.
In the thirty-first year of the Zhou Dynasty, the five kingdoms of Yan, Qin, Zhao, Han, and Wei were formed, with Le Yi as the general and commanding the coalition army to attack Qi. In the Battle of Jixi, the Qi army was defeated. After eliminating the main force of the Qi army, Le Yi occupied Linzi, the capital of the State of Qi. Then the soldiers divided into five roads and swept through the whole country.
In just half a year, Le Yi captured more than seventy cities in the State of Qi, leaving only ju and Jimo. The State of Qi was on the verge of extinction.
However, history has taken a turn here. In the case of attacking the two cities, Le Yi adopted a strategy of attacking the heart. He withdrew nine miles, fortified each other, and ordered that residents should not be arrested if they left the city. This effectively abandons the strategy of attacking the city by force.
This has been the case for three years. Neither city surrendered. After the death of King Yan Zhao, King Hui, who had always been at odds with Le Yi, succeeded to the throne. Under Qi Guotiandan's counter-plan, he replaced Le Yi and invited him back to China. Le Yi knew that it was not good, so he ran away from Zhao Guo.
The Morale of the Yan army, which had lost Le Yi, was demoralized, and was defeated by Tian Dan of the State of Qi with a fire bull, and soon withdrew to his own country, destroying the great cause of Qi.
We can see that Le Yi did not attack the two cities, mainly because he wanted to use the strategy of attacking the heart to win the hearts and minds of the people of the State of Qi and prepare for the long-term annexation of the State of Qi by the State of Yan. If he wanted to capture the two cities of Qi, it was not impossible.
He led a victorious division that destroyed the main force of the Qi army, facing the isolated and helpless two cities, and had an absolute superiority in troop strength. And he attacked more than seventy cities in the State of Qi, and in terms of the strength and size of the cities, the two cities were definitely inferior to Linzi, the capital of the State of Qi. Therefore, if Le Yi wants to conquer these two cities, there is no reason why he cannot attack them. It's just a matter of how much to pay.
And Le Yi took it for granted that he would take the approach of attacking the heart. Naturally, the means of force were abandoned. It was the biggest mistake he had ever made in his life.
At that time, almost all the loyalists of the State of Qi were in these two cities, but the rulers and royal families of the State of Qi were not in these two cities. This makes Le Yi's offensive battle inevitably fail.
The rulers of the State of Qi were not in the two cities, and the subjects of the two cities had hope in their hearts. Only death can make them give up hope. Le Yi does not use force, they only need to have a day of vitality, they will not give up their loyalty. Le Yi had no way to seize the royal family of the State of Qi, so he could not sever the loyalty of the people of these two cities to the State of Qi. Therefore, his offensive battle is unlikely to succeed.
These two cities also became symbols of the restoration of the State of Qi. If the two cities were not captured, the State of Qi did not perish. The areas occupied by the State of Qi, which were all under the rule of the State of Yan, would not yield.
Therefore, Le Yi's best choice at that time was to capture two cities at all costs, completely eliminate the rebels, and cut off the hopes of those who were recalcitrant in the State of Qi.
However, Le Yi adopted a wrong strategy of attacking the heart, which made the State of Qi survive. After three years of stalemate, we still can't make up our minds. This kind of woman's benevolence eventually ruined his great cause of annihilation.