Preface
Why did he drop three times and return twice?
In the turbulent and eventful Southern Song Dynasty, why did a border general who was born in the Suwei Nine Clans surrender to the Western Xia after the meeting, and then returned to the Song Dynasty twice? What was his outstanding point about being able to perform miraculous feats and defeat the Jin soldiers several times? What kind of belief supported him to be full of bones and martyrdom?
This person is Li Xianzhong.
First, the young heroes are beginning to show their edge
Li Xianzhong, formerly known as Li Shifu, was born in a family of military generals. His father, Li Yongqi, was born in the forbidden army of the Song Dynasty, and later devoted himself to local regimental training and made great achievements. Li Shifu followed his father in and out of the military camp since he was a child, and at the age of seventeen, he was already able to gallop on the battlefield, both civil and military.
In 1126, the Northern Song Dynasty fell, and the Jin soldiers moved south to occupy the Central Plains. The Li family father and son followed Song Qinzong to the south and continued to be loyal to the Southern Song Dynasty in Jiangnan. At the beginning of the southern crossing, Li Yongqi was displaced and displaced. After finally settling down, he led Li Shifu to Xi martial arts in the countryside, and at the same time hired a Confucian to teach Li Shifu's sons a hundred schools.
Li Shifu devoted himself to studying the book of war and swordsmanship, and practiced a good martial arts. He was a good horseman, able to rush into the enemy's formation at high speed, accurate bows and arrows, piercing through the Yang in a hundred steps, and fierce swordsmanship, invincible. These martial arts laid the foundation for his future achievements.
Li Yongqi was later recruited by the Southern Song Dynasty and served in the Shaanxi regimental training, responsible for resisting the invasion of the Western Xia and Jin Kingdoms. In 1137, the Jin soldiers invaded Yan'an, Shaanxi, and Li Shifu personally led more than a dozen horsemen to go deep behind the enemy to capture the Jin soldiers alive, and became famous in the first battle. He took the lead and broke into the siege non-stop.
Under the outnumbered enemy, Li Shifu was still extremely brave and invincible, successfully capturing 17 Jin soldiers and killing more than 20 people. In one fell swoop, this battle crushed the offensive posture of the Jin soldiers, so that they did not dare to act rashly. Li Shifu's bold and enterprising and outstanding combat skills made great contributions to the Song army, and his reputation spread far and wide for a while.
The following year, Yan'an fell, and the Li family father and son were unfortunately captured. The Jin people deliberately encircled and wanted to recruit the Li family father and son of An Gaowu to weaken the strength of the Song Dynasty. So the Jin people arranged for Li Yongqi to be appointed as the governor of Yanzhou, and Li Shifu led his troops to be sent to Tokyo to serve Liu Yu's puppet Qi regime.
Before leaving, Li Yongqi repeatedly told his son: "When you go to Tokyo, you must save your life." As soon as you find an opportunity, you will immediately return to the Great Song Dynasty! Don't look back at me, let alone worry about my safety! As a Song minister, I should repay the country and sacrifice my life. If you can return to the Great Song Dynasty and be loyal to the country, I will die without regret because of this, and your fame will last forever!"
"The father's teaching, the son must remember. I will definitely find an opportunity to return to Song as soon as possible and avenge your hatred. Please take care of your father's body and hope that Kangtai will be able to do so as soon as possible!" Li Shifu knelt down and promised.
Second, the enemy map reported that the gold would be lowered first and then the summer
In the winter of 1139, Li Shifu was ordered to escort Jin Shuai Sariho through Tongzhou. This is a rare opportunity. He was determined to show his loyalty by capturing Sariho alive, and then "crossed Luo and Wei, and returned from Shang and Yu to the court." Li Shifu quietly laid a net of heaven and earth, and all the troops that could fight under the halfway ambush.
However, Jin Bing is not an idle person, and he has long been prepared. As soon as Li Shifu made his move, he was intercepted by the ambush of the Jin soldiers. The two armies fought to the death in the cold wind. Li Shifu took the lead, with a knife in his hand, invincible. However, our army was outnumbered and gradually weakened. Li Shifu was worried about his father's safety in Dunzhou, so he could only temporarily change his mind and force Sarihao to swear not to harm the people of Tongzhou, and then pushed him off the cliff.
Li Shifu took advantage of the chaos to fight a bloody way, but only 26 people survived. He looked south with tears in his eyes, and the direction of the Song Dynasty was infinitely far away...... This time, the dream of returning to the south was shattered!
"If I could have saved Saliho at the beginning, I would have been able to return to the Song Dynasty in triumph now......" Li Shifu couldn't help but sigh. However, time cannot be turned back, and he can only temporarily endure the humiliation and lead these dead soldiers to continue to survive.
After careful consideration, Li Shifu decided to defect to the Western Xia Kingdom. He must not give up easily, and must avenge these martyrs!
The king of Western Xia personally received Li Shifu, and he told the tragic situation of the destruction of his family, and his words were full of grief and indignation. In the end, he implored the king of Western Xia to send 200,000 troops to assist him in conquering the land of Shaanxi, and promised to return the land occupied by Western Xia to the five roads.
The king of Western Xia was moved by Li Shifu's sincerity, and without saying a word, he sent an army of 30,000 to follow Li Shifu to take revenge. At this time, Li Shifu's reputation rose, and the Western Xia soldiers respected and feared him. Li Shifu rectified military discipline, strictly enforced military law, and ensured that the army would not torture, kill, and plunder the people. He always admonished his officers and soldiers to be benevolent and virtuous, and not to do many evils.
At this time, Yan'an had been recovered by the Song army. General Li Shifu made his plan clear, and made his true intention clear to the prison army before the army was launched, and he wanted to lead the army back to the Great Song Dynasty. He caught the two with ease. All the officers and men of the army praised Commander Li for his political skills and wisdom.
Western Xia was furious when they heard the news, and sent large armies to crusade many times. But they were all captured and interrogated alive by Li Shifu. Through these captives, Li Shifu gradually figured out the reality of the Western Xia army. In the Battle of Bainiu Mountain on December 7, Li Shifu personally stood at the forefront. He charged into battle, killing the sky, and broke the main force of the Iron Harrier Army. This great victory completely shocked the Western Xia Kingdom. From then on, Western Xia did not dare to try to put Song to death again.
3. Retired twice to the Song room
After Li Shifu returned to the Song Dynasty in triumph, he was highly appreciated by Song Gaozong. Emperor Gaozong ordered the name to be changed to "Li Xianzhong" as a reward. and recommended him as a high-ranking official at the time to command the forbidden army.
In the battlefield for more than ten years, Li Xianzhong made great contributions. He has faced the Jin soldiers many times and has performed miraculous feats repeatedly. Especially in the Battle of Quarry Rock in 1161, Li Xianzhong became the backbone of the Song army. He bravely took the lead, sacrificed his life and martyred his country, and broke into the encirclement single-handedly several times, breaking his head and bleeding to defeat the enemy's formation.
It was under his leadership that the Song army defended the quarry rock and completely smashed the Jin soldiers' attempt to cross the river. This victory inspired the people of the Southern Song Dynasty and raised their morale unprecedentedly. Li Xianzhong also became famous and famous in one fell swoop. Song Xiaozong personally issued an edict and praised General Li's miraculous deeds.
In 1162, Song Xiaozong launched a large-scale northern expedition with the aim of recovering the Central Plains. He was stiff in the face of illness, and personally issued his fate, asking the three famous people to recruit him personally. Li Xianzhong joined forces with Shao Hongyuan in this battle. He was ordered to be the commander of the Left Route Army, and led the army from Huaixi, aiming directly at Bianjing.
However, the battle was doomed. Shao Hongyuan was jealous of Li Xianzhong's dangerous exploits, and repeatedly hindered and made things difficult. Li Xianzhong struggled to support the overall situation, killed more than 10,000 Jin soldiers on the battlefield, and led the army to defeat the Jin soldiers several times. However, being outnumbered, coupled with the exhaustion of ammunition and food for the army, was still defeated on the entire line in the area of the Fuli Yellow River. Shao Hongyuan took the opportunity to frame Li Xianzhong from the front line and demoted him to an idle official, and there was no chance to be a general after that.
At the age of 69, Li Xianzhong died of illness in Jiangnan. The two successful returns to the south in his life are inseparable from the loyal and patriotic heart inherited by the Li family. It is this kind of patriotism that has made him a righteous deed that has been celebrated for thousands of years.
Fourth, resolute and resolute, a hundred battles are too late
Li Xianzhong inherited the fine tradition of Li Jiazhong's courage and good fighting. He was resolute and resolute, and never hesitated to pour his heart and soul into it. In the face of the disparity in troops, he was still able to sacrifice his life and forget his death and bravely kill the enemy. His men were impressed by his martial prowess and courage.
Li Xianzhong treats people with kindness and softens people's hearts with benevolent government. After every time he broke the golden army, he would strictly order the army not to burn, kill and loot. Instead, the quartermaster condoled with the soldiers, distributed military rations, and forbade private distribution. This made the people who were devastated by the war very grateful and came to join them. It is precisely because of Li Xianzhong's benevolence and favor that many enemies will take the initiative to vote. It saved a lot of energy for the Song army.
Li Xianzhong paid attention to military discipline and severely punished those who carried public affairs and private affairs. He believed that discipline was essential to the military, and that the slightest slackness could lead to failure. Therefore, he demanded that his officers and men train hard, reward and punish strictly, and never discount. Once, Li Xianzhong's old subordinates privately left a treasure knife for their own use in the capture of prisoners, and were severely punished by Li Xianzhong and beheaded. Since then, military discipline has been strict, and everyone is in danger.
Li Xianzhong was diligent in government and loved the people, and influenced the people with generosity and benevolence. Whenever he broke the gold soldiers, he always took the lead in kneeling down to appease the people, so that they did not need to panic. He also opened a warehouse for disaster relief and relief for the poor, and was deeply loved by the people at the border gates. The local people are still praising General Li's benevolent and benevolent deeds in his life.
epilogue
In Chinese history, many people with lofty ideals sacrificed their lives to protect their family and country. Li Xianzhong is also one of them. He was trapped in the enemy formation, and he regarded death as home, just for the Song family to survive. It is this kind of loyalty that has won the support and followers of countless people.
Li Xianzhong used his life to interpret the most basic truth of being a man - the rise and fall of the country is the responsibility of the husband. He surrendered to Western Xia after lowering his gold, and returned to the Song Dynasty twice. Never forget Song Eun and keep in mind the heart of loyalty. This spirit of loyalty to the monarch and patriotism is the most precious spiritual wealth of the Chinese nation since ancient times.
The most beautiful thing in life is to be ordered in danger and swear to serve the country. Li Xianzhong and his ancestors, as well as countless Song Confucian and Song generals, used their blood to warn and inspire future generations - this nation will be prosperous and strong, and China will be rejuvenated.