Since the pattern of the three kingdoms at the end of the Han Dynasty was basically formed, the strength and weakness of each country were also determined due to geographical environment factors. Cao Wei occupied the northern, central and northwestern regions, as well as the northernmost region of Jingzhou, with the largest territory and the strongest strength. Followed by Sun Wu, who owned most of Jiangdong and Jingzhou, and later also obtained Jiaozhou, second only to Cao Wei in strength. At the bottom of the list was the Shu Han, which owned Yizhou and Hanzhong.
Although the territory of Eastern Wu is not small, it is always stretched in terms of military strength, and the reason is that the population of Eastern Wu is small. Although the territory of Eastern Wu is large, there are many domestic water flows and lakes, and the geographical environment is fragmented, making it difficult to support more people. If the population does not go up, the comprehensive national strength will inevitably be dragged down, after all, if the society wants to develop, agriculture and other industries want to revitalize, and the market economy wants to prosper, it must rely on sufficient domestic labor force and consumer population.
For Sun Quan, the monarch of Eastern Wu, how to go north to Cao Wei and obtain more land was a big thing, and how to get more population was also a matter of great sorrow for him. If you want to multiply and thrive, it is not suitable to fight a war, but without a war, it is difficult to realize your magnificent imperial cause. So is it possible to solve the problem by going to other places to find more people to return to China?
Sun Quan's idea is very good, but it is not easy to realize. In 230 AD, Sun Quan drew inspiration from ancient texts, believing that if he could find the mysterious lands in the eastern seas, Yizhou and Qizhou, and get the population above, then the population of the Wu state could be sufficient, the society could develop more rapidly, and the army could get more soldiers to fight.
So Sun Quan sent his general Wei Wen and Zhuge Zhi to lead tens of thousands of soldiers to the sea to search. Although the two generals finally completed their mission, they were considered by Sun Quan to be useless in their betrayal of the edict and were eventually executed. Why did Sun Quan do this? In the author's opinion, there are the following reasons.
It is a disappointment that no more people can be obtained
Sun Quan sent Wei Wen and Zhuge Zhi to the sea in search of Yizhou and Qizhou in order to capture the population above and enrich the state of Wu. Wei Wen and Zhuge Went straight to sea for a year before they finally found Yizhou, which is now Taiwan. Although Yizhou is recorded in ancient books, the development of human society in Yizhou is far from keeping up with the mainland, and the social productivity there is low, so it is difficult to prosper and develop, so the population is not large.
Wei Wen and Zhuge Faced these people of the barbaric era (the mountain people at that time), their hearts must have been bitter. Later, after communication, the people on Yizhou knew about the mainland in the western sea and the empire Wu on the southeast coast. Some Yizhou people longed for the development of the State of Wu, so they decided to follow Wei Wen and Zhuge Zhi back, but these people were only a few thousand.
Therefore, when Wei Wen and Zhuge Zhi returned to China and described to Sun Quan the situation in Yizhou and that he had only brought back a few thousand people, Sun Quan was of course disappointed, which was too far from his expectations. Moreover, the people who brought them back were not as good as the people they brought out in the first place.
The sergeant lost as much as 80 percent, and his shame turned into anger
Eastern Wu is a coastal country, and even the inland areas are full of lakes and rivers, so the shipbuilding and navigation industries are developed, otherwise Sun Quan would not have the confidence to let the army take a boat to go on a long voyage to search. This trip was full of Sun Quan's expectations, and in order to promote the national prestige of Eastern Wu, Sun Quan sent tens of thousands of soldiers.
The population of Eastern Wu is not large, the number of soldiers is also limited, and this search actually sent tens of thousands of soldiers, which is definitely a big deal. However, Sun Quan made a loss-making transaction this time. Long voyages were not easy, and even more difficult in those days. This time out to sea, because there is no accurate geographical location of Yizhou and Qizhou, it is slowly explored in the vast sea.
Along the way, many soldiers contracted diseases, and the limited number of medicines carried on the ships could not meet the demand, and there was no place to replenish medicines when they went to sea. As a result, with the medical level at that time, these soldiers eventually fell ill and died more than 80%. In the end, only more than a thousand Wu soldiers returned to China.
The precious troops were actually lost by as much as 80%, and the number of people brought back was less than the number of people lost, which made Sun Quan angry and ashamed. What makes Sun Quan even more unable to hang on to his face is that this voyage was opposed by the domestic ministers, but the results were not satisfactory.
Despite the objections of the Korean and Chinese ministers, his face was dull
When Sun Quan made up his mind to visit Yizhou and Qizhou, domestic ministers such as Lu Xun and Quan Chun were opposed. After all, Yizhou and Qizhou are both records in ancient books, and no one has found them before, and no people from Yizhou and Qizhou have come to the mainland. They can't help but think that these two places are illusory, they can't find them at all, and going out to sea to search is nothing more than labor and money.
I have to say that Wu Guochenzi was sober-minded, but Sun Quan had already been blinded by his own whimsical ideas, and resolutely went to the sea to search for him despite opposition. He was so desperate that the operation could not fail, only succeed. However, the task of going out to sea to search can only be said to be completed, but it cannot be said to be successful.
Only Yizhou was found, and Qizhou was not found. However, this is not the point, the point is that Yizhou is not a place with developed society, the population is not large, and it is not easy to communicate. Earlier, it was said that it was to capture the population above to enrich the country, but only a few thousand people were brought back, which was somewhat far from the expected value.
This result will undoubtedly make Sun Quan feel a great sense of light on his face when facing the domestic heavy ministers. The king's face cannot be lost, and if he wants to lose it, he can only lose his courtiers, and if the face of a courtier cannot be lost, he can only lose his life. For the results of this voyage, which did not hurt the people and did not have much gain, it was natural for someone to carry the pot, and Sun Quan could not carry it because of his identity aura, so he could only let the two generals who had worked hard to sail back.
brief summary:
To sum up, although the two generals Wei Wen and Zhuge Zhi completed the task of going to the sea to search, the result did not satisfy Sun Quan, losing soldiers, failing to bring a large number of people, and losing face to the king, which is why they were eventually executed.
Confined to the times, people at that time, including Sun Quan, could not see how significant the result of this voyage was: it found the exact location of Taiwan, incorporated it into the territory of China, and promoted exchanges and development between Taiwan and the mainland.
Although Wei Wen and Zhuge Zhi died unjustly, their achievements are worthy of Chinese are remembered by the whole world. As the earliest person to reach Taiwan in china's canonical history, Wei Wen and Zhuge Zhi have been recognized in later generations, and have been recorded and inscribed.
The Taiwan compatriots should thank these two generals even more, because they brought the advanced production technology and culture to Taiwan at that time, promoted the development of local society, and also promoted the integration of the Taiwanese alpine people and the Han people, laying the foundation for the later Taiwanese social culture, so that Taiwan became an inseparable part of our country!
Reference: Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Book of Wu, Biography of Wu
The picture comes from the network, if there is infringement, contact to delete!