Poetry of the Three Kingdoms (Yang Jian)
The two Han Dynasties and four hundred years were divided into Wei Shu Wu.
Cao Cao was the first to live in Yi, and Liu Bei was in Chengdu.
Sun Quan was in Jinling, and Dingzu was drawing on each other.
The Battle of Guandu, which took place in the fifth year of Jian'an (i.e. 200 AD), was a large-scale battle between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao. Although the "Battle of Guandu" did not completely defeat Yuan Shao's forces, it did curb Yuan Shao's expansion momentum, and in a sense, it was also a battle that decided the hegemony of the north. In fact, before the "Battle of Guandu", Cao Cao and Yuan Shao had clearly realized that there would inevitably be war between the two sides, and there was also a lot of friction. The following small editor will talk about the "Battle of Shooting Dogs" that occurred in the fourth year of Jian'an (199 AD), which is considered to be the outpost battle of the "Battle of Guandu".
The historical background of the "Battle of the Shooting Dog": Cao Cao seized the initiative in the war
Yuan Shao and Cao Cao were both relatively powerful warlords in the north, and the spheres of influence of the two sides were in contact with each other, and sooner or later there would be a decisive battle. Both men knew the matter. But both men also put the matter after cutting off the other warlords around them. At that time, Yuan Shao was attacking Gongsun Zhan, who was entrenched in Youzhou, and Cao Cao also set his sights on Xuzhou. If the two sides each destroy Gongsun Zhan and Lü Bu and eliminate the constraints of the rear or flanks, it will inevitably completely tear their faces and a decisive battle will occur with the aim of completely eliminating each other.
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Wei Shu, and Guo Jia's biography quotes Fu Zi: "ShaoFang attacked Gongsun Wan in the north, but because of his expedition, he took Lü Bu in the east. ”
As a result, Cao Cao first elevated Xuzhou, eliminated Lü Bu, and reached a bonded relationship with the powerful Zang Ba and others who were entrenched in Xuzhou, which was considered to have initial control of Xuzhou. At this time, although Yuan Shao completely suppressed Gongsun Zhan, he did not completely eliminate Gongsun Zhan. Cao Cao had a certain head start at this time. Then he could choose to start a war in advance, go north to attack Yuan Shao, contain Yuan Shao's troops, and rescue Gongsun Zhan. Once Gongsun Zhan eased up, Yuan Shao became a sandwich between Gongsun Zhan and Cao Cao, and fell into a situation where the enemy was on his stomach and back.
Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms, Book of Wei, And Emperor Wu: "In September (the third year of Jian'an), the Gongdong Expedition ... The city fell, the raw poultry cloth, the palace, all killed... Bu was defeated, gained hegemony, etc., and the public was generously treated, so he cut Qing and Xu Erzhou and attached themselves to the sea to be entrusted. ”
The Book of later Han and the biography of Yuan Shao: "In the spring of the fourth year, gongsun zan was struck, and the youtu was fixed." ”
Necessity of the "Battle of the Shooting Dogs": Cao Cao attacked Yuan Shao, and Hanoi County became a threat
The location of the shooting dog is in Hanoi County, north of the Yellow River. In fact, the purpose of the "Battle of the Shooting Dogs" was that Cao Cao and Yuan Shao competed for control of Hanoi County. According to Yuan Shao's campaign against Cao Cao (i.e., Chen Lin's "For Yuan Shao Yu Zhou Wen") and the "Spring and Autumn of the Emperor Xian" quoted in the Book of Later Han, Cao Cao took advantage of Yuan Shao's siege of Gongsun Zhan to help Yuan Shao attack Gongsun Zhan, in fact, with the purpose of attacking the city of Yicheng in Wei County, Jizhou.
"For Yuan Shao Yu Zhou Wen": "Because it is not broken, the yin handed over the book order, and wanted to help Wang Shi to see the cover." ”
The Later Han Shu Yuan Shao Biography quotes the "Spring and Autumn of the Emperor Xian": "Cao Led the army to build a river, entrusted words to help Shao, and really tried to attack Yi, thinking that it was a reinforcement." ”
Although the "Yuzhou Wen for Yuan Shao" is equivalent to the war declaration of the two sides fighting, it is inevitable to carry a little subjectivity, but the editor believes that judging from the situation in the north at that time and Cao Cao's act of launching the "War of Shooting Dogs" in the fourth year of Jian'an, the content in "Yuzhou Wen for Yuan Shao" is credible. Cao Cao hoped to prevent and delay the fall of Gongsun Zhan by attacking Yecheng. Hanoi County is just southwest of YeCheng. If Cao Cao had driven straight north to attack Yecheng, Hanoi Commandery would have been to the left of Cao Cao's army. At this time, Hanoi County was a solid force attached to Yuan Shao.
Originally one of the Thieves of the Black Mountains, Xiao Gu was expelled from Dong Commandery by Cao Cao in the third year of Chuping (i.e., 192 AD), and did not know how, he became a general of Sima Zhang Yang. Zhang Yang also has a ministry called Yang Ugly. Zhang Yang, Yang Ugly, and Xiao Gu are three people very interesting. Zhang Yang and Xiao Gu were opposed to Cao Cao and favored Yuan Shao, while Yang Ugly was the opposite, leaning toward Cao Cao. As a result, Yang Ugly killed Zhang Yang, and Xiao Gu killed Yang Ugly in turn, inheriting Zhang Yang's power and uniting with Yuan Shao. Therefore, when Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zhan were in a standoff, Cao Cao chose to attack Xiaogu first and cut off this threat.
"Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Book of Wei, Biography of Zhang Yang": "He will kill Yang Ugly and kill Yang yiying Taizu." Yang will kill the ugly and bring his people to join Yuan Shao in the north. ”
The process of the "Battle of the Shooting Dogs"
In February of the fourth year of Jian'an, Xiao Gu replaced Zhang Yang and tun bing at a juyi in Yewang County, Hanoi County, called Shooting Dog, ten kilometers southwest of present-day Xiuwu County, Henan Province. In April of the same year, Cao Cao led an army to approach the Yellow River and sent Shi Zhuo, Cao Ren, Le Jin, Yu Ban, Xu Huang and others across the Yellow River to attack Xiaogu.
Knowing that he could not resist Cao Cao's army on his own, He Gu asked the former Sima Commander Shi Xuehong and Hanoi Taishou Miao Shang to stay behind to shoot dogs, and he himself led his troops to ask Yuan Shao's support (perhaps the purpose was to directly get out of Hanoi County). However, Xiao Gu moved a little slower, and he and Cao Cao's army met at DogCheng (犬城, in present-day Wuzhi County, Henan Province). The two sides engaged in an encounter, and unsurprisingly, Cao Cao's army was victorious and Xiao Gu was killed in this battle.
Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms, Book of Wei, Emperor Wu of Wu: "Meet Inuyasha with Zhuo and Ren. Fighting, breaking, and cutting. ”
Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Wei Shu, Lejin Biography: "(Lejin) strikes are fixed in shooting dogs. ”
"Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Book of Wei, And Forbidden Biography": "(Yu Forbidden) Don't attack Shi Zhuo and Cao Ren to shoot dogs, and break it." ”
The Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms, Wei Shu, Xu Huang Biography: "(Xu Huang) and Shi Zhuo were entrenched in Hanoi. ”
After defeating Xiao Gu's forces, Cao Cao's main force also crossed the Yellow River and entered Hanoi County, besieging the shooting dogs. Xiao Gu took away some of his troops, and the defenses within the shooting dog were insufficient; in addition, Xiao Gu had just ascended to the throne, and Xue Hong and Miao Shang might not be very loyal to him. Cao Cao did not choose to attack the dog hard, but sent Dong Zhao into the city to persuade him to surrender, and Xue Hong and Miao Shang simply surrendered. As a result, Cao Cao once controlled Hanoi County, captured Wei Zong, who betrayed Cao Cao during the "Yanzhou Rebellion", and made Wei Zong the Taishou of Hanoi.
"Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Wei Shu, Dong Zhao's Biography": "Taizu ordered Zhao to enter the city alone, told Yu Hong, Shang, and so on, and marched down on the same day. ”
There is a more interesting digression, the word 眭固白兔, so there is a Witch Zhu advising Xiao Gu not to shoot dogs, after all, the dog in the food chain is at the top of the rabbit. Gu Gu did not listen, so much so that he failed. Of course, this statement has no basis and can only be used as a talking point. After all, Xiao Gu's defeat was due to a lack of preparation and a gap in combat effectiveness with Cao Cao's army.
The Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms, Wei Shu, and Zhang Yang's biography quotes the Canon: "From time to time, there is a wu admonition: 'The general character rabbit and this yi name dog, the rabbit sees the dog, it is bound to be frightened, it is advisable to move away urgently. ’”
Follow-up to "Battle of the Dogs"
Cao Cao took advantage of Yuan Shao's lack of distraction to take the initiative to attack Hebei and take control of Hanoi County, so the next step should be to continue to go deeper into Hebei and attack Yecheng. However, the opportunity was fleeting, and Yuan Shao completely defeated Gongsun Zhan in the spring of the fourth year of Jian'an, probably at the time of the "Battle of the Shooting Dog". Gongsun Zhan's destruction shattered Cao Cao's plans, and Cao Cao retreated to Ao Cang, north of the Yellow River.
After Yuan Shao eliminated Gongsun Zhan, he ensured a relatively stable rear and was bound to launch a war against Cao Cao. And the "Battle of the Shooting Dogs" can be used as one of the slogans of Yuan Shao's attack on Cao Cao, putting himself on the side of justice. Therefore, the "Battle of shooting dogs" can be regarded as the outpost and fuse of the "Battle of Guandu".
References: Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Book of the Later Han Dynasty