Gongsun Chan once had three fierce generals under his command, all of whom were brave champions of the three armies and loyal. Later, Gongsun Zhan was defeated by Yuan Shao and died by self-immolation, and his subordinates had to flee in all directions, each looking for a way out. Two of the fierce generals defected to Cao Cao and Liu Bei respectively, and achieved a career that went down in history. However, in the end, no one could surrender to the fierce general, who would rather die than give in, who was he? Why was he so loyal and unyielding, and regarded death as home?
The rise and fall of Gongsun Zhan
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, heroes rose together, and heroes emerged. In this era of fierce competition, there is a figure who has to be mentioned, he is Gongsun Zhan. Gongsun Zhan was born in a famous family and was the grandson of Gongsun Gong, a famous general in the Eastern Han Dynasty. Gongsun Chan was bright and studious since childhood, especially obsessed with the art of war, and dreamed of one day being able to establish a great career.
In 184 AD, the Yellow Turban Rebellion broke out, and Gongsun Zhan enlisted in the army and followed the imperial army to conquer the Yellow Turban Army. He was brave and good at fighting, and he made many military exploits, and soon won the appreciation of Taishou Lu Zhi. Lu Zhi saw that Gongsun Chan was talented, so he married his daughter to him and made him his fast son-in-law. Since then, Gongsun Chan has been on the rise, and he has become a general, and has been appointed as the Taishou of Yuyang.
After Gongsun Chan took office, he judged the situation and actively prepared for war. He knew that the Xiongnu, Xianbei and other nomadic peoples in the north were eyeing each other and might invade the south at any time, so he vigorously trained the army and waited for it. Gongsun Chan also formed a brave and warlike light cavalry unit, which was skilled in horsemanship, good at surprise attacks and rapid attacks, and became Gongsun Chan's trump card army.
In 190 AD, Dong Zhuo was autocratic, deposed the young emperor, and moved the capital to Chang'an, which caused dissatisfaction among the princes everywhere. Gongsun Zhan also joined the coalition against Dong Zhuo, and he led the light cavalry to cut off Dong Zhuo's back route and cut off his grain route in the area of Bishui Pass, forcing Dong Zhuo to retreat in a hurry. Gongsun Zhan took advantage of the victory to pursue again, broke Dong Zhuo's army, and killed more than 10,000 enemy soldiers, which was a great shock for a while.
Since then, Gongsun Chan has repeatedly repelled the invasion of northern nomads and defended the safety of Youzhou. His military prowess was widely recognized, and he became a vassal of the northern side. Gongsun Chan was ambitious, and he wanted to establish his own regime in the north with his military might.
However, the heavens did not grant the wish. In 193 AD, Yuan Shao took advantage of Gongsun Zhan's northern expedition to Wuhuan to raid Gongsun Zhan's base camp Yijing and capture Gongsun Zhan's family alive. Gongsun Zhan rushed back when he heard the news, but was defeated by Yuan Shao and besieged in Yijing City.
In the besieged city, food and grass are becoming scarce day by day, and morale is becoming more and more low. Gongsun Chan knew that the general trend was gone, and he gathered his staff to discuss the way out. The staff said that it was better to pretend to surrender and wait for an opportunity to make a comeback. Gongsun Chan shook his head and said, "I'd rather die in battle than survive!"
Gongsun Chan reorganized the army and prepared to fight against the water. However, the city wall of Yijing City was breached by Yuan Shaojun, and Gongsun Zhan was outnumbered by the enemy. Seeing that the general trend had gone, Gongsun Chan sighed, drew his sword and killed himself.
In this way, this once powerful northern prince fell in the troubled times. Although he failed to establish his own political power, his courageous and unyielding spirit will always be worthy of the admiration of future generations. The story of Gongsun Chan has also become a good story in that turbulent era.
Zhao Yun: A loyal and victorious general
In 191 AD, Zhao Yun was recommended by Changshan County and led the righteous servants to defect to Gongsun Zhan. At that time, Gongsun Chan was competing with Yuan Shao, and the situation was tense, and Zhao Yun's arrival undoubtedly surprised Gongsun Chan. Gongsun Chan asked Zhao Yun why he didn't defect to the more powerful Yuan Shao, and Zhao Yun confessed that he was following a benevolent person, not specifically coming to Gongsun Chan. Gongsun Zhan appreciated Zhao Yun's integrity and courage very much, and appointed him as a cavalry lieutenant, becoming a fierce general under his command.
Under the account of Gongsun Zhan, Zhao Yun got acquainted with Liu Bei, who was also working here at that time. Liu Bei is benevolent and lenient, and Zhao Yun admires him very much. The two hit it off at first sight, were like siblings, often slept in the same bed, and talked about their ideals in life. However, the good times did not last long, Zhao Yun's brother unfortunately died, and Zhao Yun had to say goodbye to Gongsun Zan and Liu Bei and return home to mourn.
In 200 AD, Zhao Yun went out of the mountain again and went straight to Liu Bei. At this time, Liu Bei had already left Gongsun Zan and was recruiting troops in Xuzhou, preparing to establish his own power. Zhao Yun's arrival made Liu Bei very happy, and the two met again and felt very cordial. Liu Bei said to Zhao Yun: "In the past, I slept in the same bed with Zilong, and hated to see each other late, but today I have Zilong, like a fish in water, how fortunate I am!" Zhao Yun fell to the ground, expressing his willingness to smear Liu Bei's liver and brain, and do his best.
Since then, Zhao Yun has become Liu Bei's personal guard and confidant. Zhao Yun is strong in martial arts, brave and good at fighting, and has made great achievements under Liu Bei. In 208 AD, Liu Bei led his army to attack Liu Zhang, and Zhao Yun took the lead in attacking the city and conquering the village, invincible. In the battle of Dingjun Mountain, Zhao Yun single-handedly challenged the enemy general Yan Yan, and killed Yan Yan under the horse with one enemy and one hundred, shocking the Quartet.
However, Zhao Yun is most praised for the story of saving Adou in Changbanpo. In 208 AD, Cao Cao's army pressed the border, and Liu Bei was defeated, so he had to flee with his family. In the process of fleeing, Liu Bei's wife and son Adou accidentally fell into the hands of Cao Jun. In desperation, Zhao Yun risked his life and rushed into Cao's camp, rescued Adou, and escorted him to Liu Bei's side safely. Afterwards, someone said to Zhao Yun: "The general is wearing heavy armor, holding a big sword, and rushing into the midst of thousands of troops and horses, and the officers and men of our army are all shocked, thinking that a divine soldier has descended from the sky!" Zhao Yun said humbly: "This is just my duty, why worry about it." ＂
After that, Zhao Yun accompanied Liu Bei to fight in the world, conquered cities, and established the Shu Han regime. He successively pacified Yizhou, conquered Hanzhong, and made great contributions to Liu Bei's expansion of territory. Liu Bei trusted him very much, listed him as one of the five tiger generals, and praised him for "all the courage and the courage of ten thousand people".
Zhao Yun has been handsome all his life, and he has done his best for Shu Han, and he has died. He is not only excellent in martial arts, but also loyal, and is the mainstay of Shu Han. His deeds have become a model for later generations to praise loyalty, and his spirit will always inspire future generations to be loyal to the monarch and serve the country.
Tian Yu: Cao Wei's northern iron wall
Tian Yu, the word Guorang, Pei Guo Qian County. He followed Gongsun Chan when he was young and was a fierce general under Gongsun Chan's account. At that time, Liu Bei was also working with Gongsun Zhan, Tian Yu saw that Liu Bei was benevolent and admired him very much, so he took the initiative to join Liu Bei, hoping to follow Liu Bei to make contributions. However, Tian Yu's mother suddenly became seriously ill, and he had to say goodbye to Liu Bei and return home to mourn.
After Tian Yu returned home, his mother's condition improved, and he returned to Gongsun Zhan's tent and was appointed as the county magistrate. Soon, Gongsun Zhan's subordinate Wang Kuang rebelled and defected to Yuan Shao and led his troops to attack Gongsun Zhan. The soldiers defending the city were panicked, but only Tian Yu was not afraid of danger and led the army to resist bravely. He took the lead, charged into battle, and killed countless enemy generals. Seeing this, Wang Kuang couldn't help but retreat, and finally withdrew his troops. Tian Yu's bravery and loyalty won Gongsun Chan precious time.
However, Gongsun Chan was ultimately defeated by Yuan Shao, besieged in Yijing, and finally killed himself. Tian Yu was also captured by Yuan Shao, but he was not discouraged by this. He knew that Cao Cao was the real genius and the one who could dominate the world. So, he tried his best to persuade Yuan Shao to let him go, and expressed his willingness to serve Cao Cao. Yuan Shao saw that Tian Yu was earnest, so he released him.
After Tian Yu came to Cao Cao's account, he was quickly appreciated by Cao Cao. Cao Cao saw that he was talented, so he appointed him as the county magistrate of Yingyin and Liangling. After Tian Yu took office, he was an upright official, sympathetic to the people's feelings, and won the support of the people. He also vigorously built water conservancy and dug canals, which greatly improved local agricultural production. Cao Cao was overjoyed when he heard the news, and promoted him to Yiyang Taishou.
In 218 AD, Tian Yu accompanied Cao Cao's son Cao Zhang on an expedition to quell the Wuhuan rebellion in the north. Tian Yu made a plan, first sent people to spread rumors, provoked contradictions within Wuhuan, and made it more than infighting. Then, he led the army to attack the Wuhuan military camp, and the Wuhuan army was caught off guard and was defeated. This battle pacified the Daijun region in one fell swoop and cleared the northern obstacles for Cao Wei.
Tian Yu's military talent was highly appreciated by Cao Cao, who praised him as "a pillar of the country with the talent of Wang Zuo". Since then, Tian Yu has been even more handsome, and has made great achievements for Cao Wei's Northern Expedition and Southern Expedition.
In 220 AD, Cao Pi inherited Cao Cao's legacy, officially proclaimed himself emperor, and established the Cao Wei regime. At this time, the Xianbei, Fuyu and other tribes in the north were ready to move again, intending to invade the south. Tian Yu stepped forward and set out to the north again. He first sent people to spread rumors, saying that Cao Wei had learned of their plot and was preparing to send troops to fight them. The Xianbei, Fuyu and other tribes were shocked when they heard the news, and they sued for peace one after another, and offered a large amount of treasure to show their submission.
Tian Yu is not only outstanding in military talent, but also strategic. He knew the truth of "distant friendship and close attack", so he tried his best to promote the alliance of Xianbei, Fuyu and other tribes to contain the strong enemy Wuhuan in the north. At the same time, he skillfully used divisive tactics to provoke the contradiction between Wuhuan and Xianbei, causing them to attack each other, thus weakening Wuhuan's strength.
Under Tian Yu's strategy, Cao Wei's northern border was stabilized, like an iron wall, so that the nomadic tribes in the north did not dare to act rashly. Tian Yu made indelible contributions to the stability of Cao Wei's northern Xinjiang, and his strategy and talent also became a topic of conversation among later generations of military strategists.
Yan Gang: The history of Jizhou thorns who would rather die than yield
Yan Gang, the word is polite, and he is a native of Peiguo County. He followed Gongsun Chan in his early years and was a fierce general under Gongsun Chan's account. Gongsun Zan saw that he was brave and good at fighting and loyal, so he appointed him as the assassin of Jizhou and was in charge of the military and political power of Jizhou.
After Yan Gang took office, he was an upright official, sympathetic to the people's feelings, and won the support of the people. He knew that the situation in the north was critical and that there might be an invasion of foreign enemies at any time, so he vigorously trained his army and prepared for it. He also personally trained an elite cavalry unit, which was brave and good at fighting, and was Gongsun Zhan's descendant army, and also an important reliance of Gongsun Chan against Yuan Shao.
In 191 AD, a large-scale conflict broke out between Gongsun Chan and Yuan Shao. Yuan Shao sent the general Yan Liang to lead the army to attack Gongsun Zhan, and Gongsun Zhan sent Yan Gang to lead a cavalry force to meet the battle. The two sides fought fiercely at the boundary bridge, and Yan Gang took the lead, charging into battle, killing countless enemy generals. However, Gongsun Chan advanced lightly, fell into Yuan Shao's ambush, and was surrounded by Yuan Shao's army. In desperation, Gongsun Zhan had to abandon the city and flee, but Yan Gang was captured by Yuan Shao's army.
Yuan Shao saw that Yan Gang was brave and good at fighting, so he wanted to recruit him and make him submit to him. However, is Yan Gang the kind of person who sees the wind and steers the rudder? He would rather die than give in, and resolutely refuse to surrender. Yuan Shao coerced and lured again, promising to be a high-ranking official, but Yan Gang said: "I would rather die on the battlefield than be Yuan Shao's lackey!"
Yuan Shao saw that Yan Gang was so strong and knew that it was impossible to convince him, so he put him in prison and kept him under strict guard. Life in prison was very difficult, but Yan Gang never gave in. He held his head high, and in the face of prison, he remained steadfast and unyielding.
One day, Yuan Shao's guards came to the prison and said to Yan Gang: "The lord asked me to ask you, are you willing to submit? If you are willing, the lord is willing to reuse you, put you in charge of the army, and make you a general." ＂
Yan Gang sneered and said, "How can I, Yan Gang, be the kind of person who is greedy for life and afraid of death? I would rather die on the battlefield than be Yuan Shao's lackey! If you go back and tell Yuan Shao, just say that I, Yan Gang, will never give in to him!"
Seeing this, the guards had no choice but to leave. Soon, Yuan Shao ordered Yan Gang to be beheaded for public display as an example. On the day of the execution, Yan Gang walked to the execution ground with his head held high and smiled. He shouted: "Although I, Yan Gang, are dead, but the integrity of the Han will never die!"
In this way, this once powerful Jizhou assassin died heroically on the execution ground. Although he failed to establish his own power, his integrity of preferring to die and treating death as his home will always be worthy of the admiration of future generations.
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Yan Gang's deeds were said to be a beautiful talk at the time. His story has also inspired countless future generations to understand that even in the face of adversity, they must stick to their integrity and persevere. The spirit of Yan Gang has become a monument of that turbulent era, shining brightly and immortal.