Before reading the article, please click "Follow" to facilitate discussion and sharing, in order to repay your support, I will update high-quality content every day
Text/History of the Stars
Editor/History of the Stars
In the long river of history, Zhuge Liang has always been known as the embodiment of wisdom. His unfathomable resourcefulness and ability to strategize have led him to repeatedly perform miracles in the battle between the straw boat and the battle of the upper valley: the secrets and limitations behind Zhuge Liang's wisdom.
However, among the many battles, the Battle of the Upper Valley became a controversial topic. Why was Zhuge Liang able to accurately predict the fog in the grass boat borrowing arrows, but failed to calculate that there would be heavy rain in the battle of the upper valley?
During the Three Kingdoms period, Zhuge Liang was undoubtedly an invincible wise man. He is proficient in the art of war, meteorology, and is good at taking advantage of the right time, place and people.
Among them, the story of the straw boat borrowing arrows is even more well-known. In this battle, Zhuge Liang relied on his accurate prediction of the weather and skillfully used the fog as a cover to successfully deceive Cao Cao's arrows.
This strategy not only strengthened the strength of Shu Han's naval army, but also laid the foundation for the later Battle of Chibi.
However, in the battle of the Upper Valley, Zhuge Liang's wisdom seems to be facing an unprecedented challenge. The battle took place during the Northern Expedition against Cao Wei, and Zhuge Liang carefully laid out the plan to use the terrain and fire attack to ambush the enemy.
However, just as the fire was raging, a sudden heavy rain extinguished Zhuge Liang's hopes. This heavy rain not only frustrated the fire attack plan, but also made the situation of the entire campaign take a sharp turn for the worse.
As for the heavy rain in the battle of the upper valley, some people believe that it was the will of heaven and that God did not want Zhuge Liang to succeed, while others think that it was Zhuge Liang's miscalculation, and his wisdom was not fully reflected in this battle. However, in my opinion, this is not explained by mere "providence" or "miscalculation".
First of all, we need to recognize the difficulty of weather forecasting in ancient times. Even today, with such modern technology, there are still errors in weather forecasting.
During the Three Kingdoms period, there were no satellite cloud images, no weather radars, and no accurate meteorological data for analysis.
Zhuge Liang relied only on experience and observation to predict the weather, and its difficulty can be imagined. Moreover, the weather is so fast-changing that even the most clever predictions are difficult to be completely accurate.
Secondly, although Zhuge Liang's wisdom is high, he is a human being and not a god after all. He can't be in full control of all the variables and unknowns.
The heavy rain in the battle of the upper valley can be said to be the result of the combined effect of the right time, place and people. Although Zhuge Liang had made predictions and tactical arrangements, he still could not fully control the unpredictable forces of nature.
In addition, we need to understand the artistic processing of historical records and literary creations. Historical events are often precipitated by time and processed by later generations, and there may be some exaggeration or exaggeration.
Therefore, we cannot evaluate historical figures solely on the basis of historical records. Zhuge Liang's image has been processed and reshaped many times in historical documents. This also affects our perception and understanding of him.
To sum up, the failure to predict rainfall during the Battle of the Upper Valley does not indicate that Zhuge Liang's wisdom and strategy were flawed. We need to look at this historical event and the image of the person objectively.
As an outstanding politician and military strategist, Zhuge Liang's wisdom and strategy are beyond doubt. However, the course of history is not entirely determined by the wisdom of individuals, but by the combined action of various complex factors.
When evaluating historical figures, we need to respect historical facts, while also maintaining a rational and objective attitude.
In addition, we can think about this from another angle. Even though Zhuge Liang failed to predict the rain in the Battle of the Upper Valley, his overall layout and strategic planning in this battle still showed his superb wisdom.
He is able to make appropriate deployments according to the terrain, enemy situation and other factors, and formulate feasible tactical plans. The wisdom and strategy in these aspects are also worthy of our Xi and study.
In short, Zhuge Liang's wisdom and strategy are one of our precious cultural heritages. We should look at his achievements and contributions objectively and draw wisdom and inspiration from them.
At the same time, we should also maintain a rational and objective attitude, and not blindly worship or belittle historical figures. Only in this way can we better understand history and better face the future.
In addition, the Battle of the Upper Valley reminds us that in real life, we are also exposed to all kinds of unpredictable risks and variables.
Both individuals and countries need to have a sense of crisis and the ability to respond to various emergencies and challenges.
In the future, we should also pay attention to the accumulation of technology and knowledge, and constantly improve our ability to predict and respond, so as to prepare for future challenges.
Finally, let's reconsider the original question: why was Zhuge Liang able to accurately predict the fog in the straw boat borrowing arrows, but failed to calculate the heavy rain in the battle of the upper valley? Perhaps, this is the charm of history.
It is full of unknowns and uncertainties, making anything possible. And it is this kind of unknown and variable that pushes human beings to move forward, explore and progress.