At the beginning of Zhu Yuanzhang's founding of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang's heroic generals were innumerable, but if it comes to the comprehensive strength of individual combat and single-handedly fighting against a large number of enemy armies, the best of these generals can only be Chang Yuchun.
But what Chang Yuchun did in his life is also very controversial now. He laid a large amount of land and people for Zhu Yuanzhang, but because of the rumors that he liked to slaughter the city, he was discussed by posterity.
Killing is ominous
Since ancient times, there have been constant wars. The change of any dynasty is the result of victory in war. All the sufferings of war are borne by all the common people, and whether the war is won or lost, the people will be displaced under the chaos of war, and even bear high taxes when the country is prosperous.
But it is better to impose taxes than to be displaced and loved ones killed. Therefore, after Chang Yuchun attacked the city, the people welcomed the army into the city and welcomed it on both sides of the road.
In the eyes of ordinary people, this is a manifestation of the people's support for the army.
But Chang Yuchun's temper is very strange.
In his eyes, the people welcomed him in a pinch, just trying to please him and get a chance to survive. Such an act of support is nothing more than a disguised flattery.
Therefore, Chang Yuchun felt that this was also a very big humiliation. Therefore, Chang Yuchun ordered that the people in the city should be killed, and for a time the blood in the city flowed like a river. Of course, the statement that Chang Yu Chun Slaughter City was just a rumor, and no one knew what happened at that time. So, what kind of experience did such a general who was rumored to be murderous, but laid the foundation for the king, have?
Introduction to Chang Yu Chun
Chang Yuchun (1330-1369) was born in Huaiyuan County, Fengyang Province, Nanzhi (present-day Huaiyuan County, Bengbu City, Anhui Province). He was an outstanding general of the Red Turban Army at the end of the Yuan Dynasty and a famous general of the enlightened era.
Chang Yuchun was born in an extremely poor peasant family in his early years, and in his adolescence, Chang Yuchun was unwilling to spend his life in endless farming, so he constantly practiced martial arts with others. Later, he learned a lot and was very good at the use of various weapons.
Chang Yuchun's youth coincided with the last year of the Yuan Dynasty. Class contradictions are very serious
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There were bandits and rebels everywhere.
Chang Yuchun was dissatisfied with the status quo of life when he was young, and could not bear the torture of hunger, so he went to find the bandit Liu Ju and became a bandit.
For a long time, he found that Liu Ju did not have any lofty ambitions, did not want to bring happiness to the people at all, and only blindly pursued his own selfish interests, so Chang Yuchun immediately turned around and defected to Zhu Yuanzhang.
After defecting to Zhu Yuanzhang, Chang Yuchun offered himself and volunteered to fight the enemy as a vanguard.
Moreover, he often said in the army that he could fight with one hundred thousand, so later he was called "Chang Hundred Thousand" in the army.
Chang Yuchun fought heroically under Zhu Yuanzhang and laid down many cities for Zhu Yuanzhang, but such a general who was very loyal to the king and made great achievements in battle always ordered the enemy troops and people in the city to be killed after being surrendered.
He died of a violent illness in his later years
Chang Yuchun was appointed Duke of Hubei in Zhongshu, but died violently in the army in the second year of Hongwu, when Chang Yuchun was only forty years old.
As for the reason for Chang Yuchun's early death, there are many speculations from the outside world. But the main guesses are roughly divided into three types.
The first is to speculate that Chang Yuchun was killed by Zhu Yuanzhang's design because of his high achievements.
This speculation can be said to be completely unreasonable. The relationship between Chang Yuchun and Zhu Yuanzhang has always been very close.
One of Zhu Yuanzhang's favorite sons even married Chang Yuchun's eldest daughter as a crown princess. This marriage also shows to a certain extent that the relationship between Zhu Yuanzhang and Chang Yuchun has not had too much of a problem. Therefore, Zhu Yuanzhang had no reason to frame Chang Yuchun, and there was no need to kill him.
The second guess is that he was infected with the plague and died of a violent illness in the army.
We have no way of verifying this statement, but if it is a plague, the casualties in the army will also be very large, not only in the spring when a person is infected with the plague and dies.
However, Chang Yuchun has been fighting in the army all year round, in a state of no fixed food and no time, and it is inevitable that there will be some root causes of illness in the body, and it may also die due to overwork and illness.
The third guess is that Chang Yu Chun was too angry and killed too much, so he accepted the punishment of heaven.
According to some historical records, the first thing he had to do every time he attacked a city was to kill the four sides and kill the people in the city in a frenzy. Even in dreams, the people insult themselves, and in the dream they will angrily shout, "The people here are killed."
The soldiers around him heard this dream, so they began to slaughter the city. When Chang Yuchun woke up from the dream, his soldiers had slaughtered the city for more than 20 miles, and the corpses were all over the field.
Of course, this statement is very superstitious, and we have no way to further examine whether Chang Yuchun likes to slaughter the city or not.
epilogue:
How Chang Yuchun died, we still can't verify. But if Chang Yuchun really likes to slaughter the city as much as the rumors say, and kills all four parties, his death may also be really deserved.