At the end of the Three Kingdoms period, Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition to the Central Plains was the most famous, and since the deaths of Liu Bei and Cao Cao, the number one key figures who formed the Three Kingdoms have changed hands. The State of Wei had Sima Yi, and the State of Shu had Zhuge Liang.
And Zhuge Liang, as the most prestigious military division and leader of the Shu army, had a lifelong ambition to unify the Central Plains, Kuang Fu Han Room, during his lifetime, he had launched five Northern Expeditions, but three times he was forced to withdraw his army because of the shortage of grain and grass, so why did Zhuge Liang not use his wisdom to solve the problem of food shortage once and for all?
Zhuge Liang is known as the most powerful wise man in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and in addition to his resourceful use of military skills, he also launched 5 Northern Expeditions. Liu Bei, the first monarch of the Shu State, handed over power to Zhuge Liang when the White Emperor Was dying, hoping that he would support the later lord Liu Chan to stabilize the foundation of the Shu state, and let him continue to fight with the Wei army to restore the Han Dynasty.
Therefore, even if Zhuge Liang knew that he was old and sick, he did not forget the explanation of his ancestors, and after settling the Shu kingdom well, he began to send troops to the north to fight with the Wei army. It is said that Zhuge Kongming launched the Northern Expedition five times in succession, but all of them were the result of failure, and more than half of the reasons were that the road was too far, the road was rough and difficult to travel, the poor mountains and rivers were poor, and the army could not climb through, but the grain and grass heavy troops in the back could not keep up, resulting in the front generals not receiving food and grass, and over time the soldiers could not eat enough, and the horses could not eat grass, so they could not advance again, so they were forced to retreat.
After the failure of the first three Northern Expeditions, Zhuge Liang was well aware that the grain and grass problem was a key problem affecting the overall situation of victory and defeat, so he regarded Dingjun Mountain as an important military fortress, accumulated grain extensively, and stabilized the first front, but to continue to advance into the territory of the Wei state, the subsequent grain and grass supply was still unable to keep up.
Afterwards, Zhuge Liang, a wise man, came up with a clever plan, deceived Sima Yi, and sent people from the east to the west to attack Maicheng, harvesting a large amount of wheat there as food, and Shan could only solve the urgent need. Therefore, Zhuge Liang at that time was also well aware of the powerful points, and even if he understood it in his heart, he could not solve these problems.
Although there are basins in Sichuan and Shu, but during the period the mountain road is extremely rugged and difficult to travel, most of the areas are desolate due to undeveloped, and mosquitoes, tigers and leopards are strange, the environment is harsh, and even many times there is no road ahead, can only send the vanguard team to open the way first, and order the army to advance, so it can be seen that the Northern Expedition of the Shu Army does have many difficulties and obstacles.
The Northern Expedition also led to a decrease in grain harvest in the Shu kingdom, not because of the drought and no rain, when Zhuge Liang recruited a large number of young people from Sichuan to participate in the Northern Expedition, most of them were old and young women and children staying at home, so there was no young and strong strength to cultivate the fields, and after the autumn, rice, wheat, corn and other harvest achievements were much less. Over time, the Shu state experienced a shortage of grain and grass, which was added to the difficulty of transportation and the reason that the supply could not keep up, resulting in the Shu army on the front line having no reliable support.
Later, Zhuge Liang racked his brains and adopted many strategies to solve the grain and grass problem, but he could not do so. Even Cao Cao's "division of troops in Tun Tian" was implemented by Zhuge Kongming, ordering soldiers to unload their armor and return to the field, join the labor with the local villagers, and cultivate rice fields in large quantities, although this method can increase grain production during the autumn harvest, but it is necessary to send a large number of troops to farm, so they cannot gather together to march on the Wei state.
Therefore, some people say that all the reasons for the failure of the Northern Expedition of the Shu Army cannot be blamed on Zhuge Kongming, after all, he wrote the "Table of Departures" with tears and took the initiative to lead the troops out on the expedition, which shows his loyalty. Later, after experiencing three fatal reasons in a row because of the inability to keep up with the supply of grain and grass, he had to order a return to Shudi.
And Shudi is located in the southwest region of China, the capital Chengdu has been known as the country of Tianfu since ancient times, and the terrain is superior, the soil is fertile, and the annual grain output is one of the few in the country, making many military strategists want to occupy it, even Shi Dakai, a general of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom during the Qing Dynasty, wanted to take the remaining troops to stay in Chengdu when he was cornered, so as to occupy the map of Sichuan.
So why was there a frequent shortage of grain at the end of the Three Kingdoms, such a good piece of feng shui treasure land? In addition to a large number of young men recruited by Zhuge Liang to fight, there were also some reasons for the influence of corruption by the officials and ministers in power.
Zhuge Liang led the Northern Expedition, and what remained was Liu Chan, who was more unasserted. Although he was the lord of the Shu Kingdom, he belonged to the Mabao type of man since he was a child, and everything depended on the ministers or elders around him, and Zhuge Liang was his teacher and assistant minister at that time, teaching him to sit everywhere and help him to make plans and suggestions to govern the Shu Kingdom.
As soon as Zhuge Liang left, Liu Chan could only listen to the opinions of the eunuchs and officials around him, but most of these subordinates were treacherous villains, and when they saw Zhuge Xiang in normal times, they did not dare to say anything, let alone act recklessly.
As a result, the Shu state, which had lost zhuge Liang's administration, became worse and worse under the rule of a group of incompetent officials. The common people could not get the assistance of the government, which led to a reduction in grain harvests, chaos in domestic affairs, and injustice, and the logistical support given to the Northern Expedition Shu Army was even more magnificent.
In the end, Zhuge Liang was worried inside and outside, he could not attack the territory of the Wei state for a long time in other places, and he was worried about the Shu kingdom day and night, under this double work, even if Zhuge Liang was clever and calculating, his body could not survive and fell ill.
The so-called defeat of the army is like a mountain, the illness is like a silk, Zhuge Liang's illness, almost the spiritual symbol of the Shu army fell, the military heart gradually began to be unstable, the upper and lower generals are waiting for Zhuge Chengxiang's next instructions, but zhuge Liang even though he has a good plan to deal with the Wei army, but due to the grain and grass problem, he still cannot implement them one by one.
In the end, on the way back and forth during the five Northern Expeditions, Zhuge Kongming still could not bear the fatigue and died of illness on the way. After his death, he ordered people to carry his coffin randomly on Dingjun Mountain, until the rope was broken and buried on the spot. For this reason, Zhuge Liang's body was not transported back to Chengdu, and the problem of grain and grass left behind was not solved.
Zhuge Liang is known as the wisdom tank of the Shu Kingdom, such a figure, the ending is bleak, so that posterity can not help but sigh, although Zhuge Liang died of illness, but left many wonderful historical deeds, handed down is still a topic of people's talk.