In 209 BC, Chen Sheng and Wu Guang shouted "The prince will have a kind of Xiangning" in Daze Township, setting off a vigorous peasant uprising. For a time, the world's responders came like a tide, and the rebel army was invincible and approached Xianyang. However, just when Chen Shengbing was under Xianyang City, an accident happened. Wu Guang had been killed in battle not long ago, and Chen Sheng was subsequently murdered. At this critical juncture, a young general, Liu Bang, came into view. Later history has witnessed Liu Bang's achievements, but how did he rise after the martyrdom of Chen Sheng and Wu Guang at that time? What caused Chen Sheng's fall? If Chen Sheng did not die, how could Liu Bang become emperor?
The emergence of Chen Sheng in the early days of the uprising
Chen Sheng started in a poor family, and when he was young, he lived by working as a hired laborer and a farmer. During the Qin Dynasty, the peasants lived a hard life, and the labor and forced labor were extremely heavy. In 209 BC, Chen Sheng was appointed as the commander of the tun and led more than 900 poor peasants to Yuyang to defend it. When they arrived at Daze Township, Qi County, the team encountered heavy rain and was forced to stay. Seeing that he could not arrive as scheduled, Chen Sheng was faced with the desperate situation of "dying now, and dying if he made a big plan", so he shouted with Wu Guang and others, "The prince will be a kind of Xiangning", killed the escort officers, and launched a peasant uprising that shocked the Qin Dynasty.
In the early days, the rebel army grew rapidly, growing to hundreds of thousands in March alone, capturing Chen County, only 100 miles away from Xianyang. After the capture of Chen County, Chen Sheng was persuaded by the local three elders to disregard the opposition of his subordinates and couldn't wait to establish himself as king. This decision laid the foundation for the future.
Chen Sheng was called the queen, and anti-Qin forces from all over the country responded, and the world's responders came like a tide. Zhang Er, Chen Yu and other old nobles in exile, Confucius's descendants Kong Kun, and even Wei Qi and other six royal families also joined the Chen army. For a time, the rebel army was huge and unstoppable, and the east of Hangu Pass was owned by non-Qin people.
However, at this time, Chen Sheng's personal style changed dramatically. He no longer personally led his troops into battle, but simply gave orders. Chen Sheng, who shared weal and woe with the soldiers, no longer existed, and was replaced by a tyrannical king who indulged in singing, dancing, and pleasure, and was arrogant and lascivious. He even killed his old friend, who was also a poor farmer, because he mentioned Chen Sheng's humble background.
What's more serious is that Chen Sheng executed the loyal general Ge Ying, which chilled the other heroes. At that time, Ge Ying was ordered to conquer Jiujiang in the south, but he did not know that Chen Sheng had established himself as the king, and supported the descendants of the nobles of the Chu State as the king. After learning about it in time, Ge Ying quickly remedied, killed the king of Chu and returned to Chen Sheng. However, Chen Sheng still could not tolerate his momentary negligence and sentenced Ge Ying to death.
At the same time, the generals sent by Chen Sheng, Wu Chen, Han Guang and others also set themselves up as kings in other places and divided one side. The anti-Qin forces, which were supposed to be united, began to fall apart under Chen Sheng's various wrong decisions. The territory controlled by the rebels is getting bigger and bigger, but Chen Sheng's own strength is constantly being weakened and becoming more and more isolated.
Chen Sheng called the queen's hidden dangers
After Chen Sheng captured Chen County, he was persuaded by the three local elders, and despite the opposition of his subordinates, he couldn't wait to establish himself as king. This decision laid the foundation for the future, causing Chen Sheng to fall into various hidden dangers after becoming queen.
First of all, Chen Sheng became king too early, exposing his selfishness in the uprising. Originally, the purpose of Chen Sheng's uprising was to "cut down the unjustified and punish the tyrannical Qin", in order to overthrow the tyrannical Qin rule and relieve the suffering of the Li people. However, after the capture of Chen County, Chen Sheng established himself as king and was eager to establish his own dynasty, which was already contrary to the original purpose. Wei generals Zhang Er and Chen Yu once strongly advised Chen Sheng to "not be a king, and urgently lead troops to the west", but Chen Sheng turned a deaf ear and insisted on his own approach. This undoubtedly exposed Chen Sheng's selfishness in the uprising, which caused him to lose the support of many supporters.
Secondly, Chen Sheng was called the queen, and her personal style was arrogant, and she gradually left the masses. Before becoming king, Chen Sheng was still able to share weal and sorrow with the soldiers and take the lead. But after establishing himself as the king, he no longer led his troops into battle himself, but lived in a simple way and gave orders. Chen Sheng, who ate and lived with the soldiers, no longer existed, and was replaced by a tyrannical king who indulged in singing, dancing, and pleasure, and was arrogant and lascivious. He even killed his old friend, who was also a poor farmer, because he mentioned Chen Sheng's humble background. This style of arrogance, lasciviousness, and tyranny caused Chen Sheng to drift away from the masses and lose the most solid mass foundation.
In addition, Chen Sheng killed loyal generals, causing other heroes to flee. At that time, Chen Sheng sent the general Ge Ying to the south to conquer Jiujiang, but Ge Ying did not know that Chen Sheng had established himself as the king and supported the descendants of the nobles of the Chu State as the king. After learning about it in time, Ge Ying quickly remedied, killed the king of Chu and returned to Chen Sheng. However, Chen Sheng still could not tolerate his momentary negligence and sentenced Ge Ying to death. Ge Ying was extremely loyal to Chen Sheng, and the slightest mistake would result in death, which inevitably chilled the hearts of other heroes. Sure enough, a large number of generals and henchmen who followed Chen Sheng's uprising fled from Chen County, and Chen Sheng suddenly became a "lonely man".
The most serious thing is that the generals sent by Chen Sheng divided one side and each became the king. After Wuchen became the queen in Zhaodi, he ordered Han Guang to attack and plunder Yandi, and soon Han Guang proclaimed himself King of Yan in Yandi. Although Zhou Shi, who attacked Wei, did not claim the title of king, he put Wei Zong's Wei clan on the throne of Wei and became the prime minister of Wei. Wu Chen, Han Guang, and Zhou Shi were all generals sent by Chen Sheng himself, and they were still divided into one side, which shows that Chen Sheng's control over his generals has disappeared. Some other anti-Qin forces that were originally not directly related to Chen Sheng naturally also "each king and its own king" and took care of themselves. Therefore, on the surface, the east of Hangu Pass was not owned by Qin, and the original six countries except for Korea, the other five countries established their own states, but they all went their own way and did not cooperate with Chen Sheng's war against Qin. The territory controlled by the rebels is getting bigger and bigger, but Chen Sheng's own strength is constantly being weakened and becoming more and more isolated.
Liu Bang's opportunity to emerge
At the beginning of the peasant uprising launched by Chen Sheng and Wu Guang, Liu Bang, a little-known person, also joined this team to resist the tyrannical Qin. Liu Bang's addition paved the way for him to become the founding monarch in the future.
Liu Bang's real name is Liu Ji and he was born in a poor peasant family. He lost his father at a young age, his family was poor, and he lived by working as a hired laborer. In 208 BC, after Chen Sheng and Wu Guang launched an uprising in Daze Township, Liu Bang immediately joined the rebel army when he heard the news.
At first, Liu Bang was just a pawn, holding a small position in the rebel army. But he was brave and good at fighting, and repeatedly performed miraculous feats, and was soon valued by Chen Shengqi, worshiped as a captain, and became a close general.
In 209 BC, Chen Sheng sent the general Wu Guangxi to conquer Xianyang, and Liu Bang accompanied him. In an encounter on the way, Wu Guang's troops were in a difficult situation, and Liu Bang stepped forward and personally charged into battle, defeating the Qin army. This exploit made Liu Bang famously in Wu Guangbu.
In the ensuing battle, Wu Guang's troops fell into a desperate situation again, and Liu Bang once again bravely killed the enemy and saved the soldiers. Wu Guang praised Liu Bang's bravery and promoted him to be the Sima of other departments and in charge of military affairs. Since then, Liu Bang's reputation in Wu Guangbu has grown.
However, at this time, Wu Guang was betrayed by Tian Zang and others and was killed. Liu Bang was deeply shocked to witness this tragedy, but he also realized the cruelty of the power struggle. He began to act cautiously to avoid repeating Wu Guang's mistakes.
After Wu Guang's death, Liu Bang continued his westward expedition with Tian Zang and others. However, Tian Zang's command was rusty and was soon routed by the Qin army. Liu Bang was not chaotic in the face of danger, and commanded the remnants to fight bravely out of the encirclement and avoid the annihilation of the whole army.
After that, Liu Bang was attached to Chen Sheng's command and continued to fight for the anti-Qin cause. In one battle, Liu Bang led his troops deep behind enemy lines alone, inflicting heavy losses on the Qin army. Chen Sheng praised his bravery and wisdom and bravery, and worshiped him as Zuo Fengyi.
However, at this time, Chen Sheng was betrayed by the coachman Zhuang Jia and was assassinated. Chen Sheng's death caused the rebel army to fall into a trough, and the generals from all walks of life were divided and did not belong to each other.
In the face of this crisis, Liu Bang took decisive action to boost the remnants of the rebel army and call on all generals to unite and fight against the tyrannical Qin. His bravery and foresight soon made him a leading figure in the rebels.
The key reason for Chen Sheng's death
Although Chen Sheng's uprising was very powerful in the early days, due to various problems in his personal style, the rebel army was divided and its strength weakened day by day. In the end, Chen Sheng was forced to retreat to the city father after defeating Chen County. Just as he was regaining his strength, he was struck a fatal blow.
At that time, Chen Sheng's chauffeur Zhuang Jia secretly accepted the bribes of Zhang Han, the general of the Qin army, and assassinated Chen Sheng at the city father. The direct cause of Chen Sheng's death was betrayal by his cronies. But fundamentally, the reason why Chen Sheng suffered this fate was due to his lack of reserve strength to deal with setbacks.
At the beginning of the uprising, Chen Sheng had already made serious mistakes. After capturing Chen County, despite the opposition of his subordinates, he couldn't wait to establish himself as king. This not only exposed his selfishness, but also laid the foundation for the future.
Chen Sheng was called the queen, and anti-Qin forces from all over the country responded, and the world's responders came like a tide. However, at this time, Chen Sheng's personal style changed dramatically. He no longer personally led his troops into battle, but simply gave orders, and gradually drifted away from the masses.
What's more serious is that Chen Sheng killed the loyal general Ge Ying, which chilled the hearts of other heroes. At that time, Ge Ying was ordered to conquer Jiujiang in the south, but he did not know that Chen Sheng had established himself as the king, and supported the descendants of the nobles of the Chu State as the king. After learning about it in time, Ge Ying quickly remedied, killed the king of Chu and returned to Chen Sheng. However, Chen Sheng still could not tolerate his momentary negligence and sentenced Ge Ying to death.
At the same time, the generals sent by Chen Sheng, Wu Chen, Han Guang and others also set themselves up as kings in other places and divided one side. The anti-Qin forces, which were supposed to be united, began to fall apart under Chen Sheng's various wrong decisions. The territory controlled by the rebels is getting bigger and bigger, but Chen Sheng's own strength is constantly being weakened and becoming more and more isolated.
As the saying goes, "the more chaotic it is, the more chaotic it is", after Chen Sheng lost the hearts of the people, in order to strengthen the control of the generals, he also appointed Zhu Fang, Hu Wu and other cool officials, with "strict inspection as loyalty", so that the generals were estranged from him. As a result, Chen Sheng became more and more isolated.
Fortunately, Chen Sheng still has two trump cards in his hand, that is, Wu Guang and Zhou Wen of the Western Expedition to Xianyang. However, after the troops were dispatched, the generals went their own way, and Chen Sheng did not manage his own territory and develop his own reserve forces.
The lack of reserves meant that the rebels had no strength to fight setbacks. Sure enough, under the fierce counterattack of the Qin army, Wu Guang and Zhou Wen died one after another, and Chen Sheng's army was defeated by Chen County and was forced to retreat to the city father.
Just as Chen Sheng was regaining his strength, his chauffeur Zhuang Jia secretly accepted the bribe of Zhang Han, the general of the Qin army, and assassinated Chen Sheng in the city father. The reason why Zhuang Jia was able to betray Chen Sheng so easily was precisely because Chen Sheng had lost everyone's hearts.
It can be said that the fundamental reason why Chen Sheng suffered this fate was that he lacked the reserve strength to deal with setbacks. If he had not been prematurely crowned king and had not exposed his selfish intentions, if he had not been arrogant and lascivious and had stayed away from the masses, if he had not killed loyal generals and caused other heroes to flee, if he had not appointed cool officials, he would have caused estrangement among the generals...... Then, even when Chen County was defeated, he would not be so isolated, and he would not be easily betrayed.
The process of Liu Bang's rise by taking the opportunity
After Chen Sheng's death, the rebel army fell into a trough and fell apart. At this critical juncture, a young general, Liu Bang, came into view, and he invigorated the remnants of the rebel army and called on all the generals to unite and fight against the tyrannical Qin.
Liu Bang was originally just a pawn of Chen Sheng's subordinates, but he was brave and good at fighting, and was soon valued by Chen Sheng and worshiped as a close general. When Chen Shengxi went to Xianyang, Liu Bang went with him, and he made many miraculous feats and became more and more famous. After Wu Guang was executed, Liu Bang joined Chen Sheng and continued to fight for the anti-Qin cause.
After Chen Sheng's death, Liu Bang was in danger and commanded the remnants to fight bravely out of the encirclement and avoid the annihilation of the whole army. He took decisive action to rejuvenate the remnants of the rebel army and call on all generals to unite against the tyrannical Qin. With his bravery and foresight, Liu Bang soon became a leading figure in the rebel army.
After that, Liu Bang joined forces with Xiang Yu and others to gradually seize the advantage. In 208 BC, Liu Bang met Xiang Yu in Pengcheng, and the two became brothers and fought against Qin together. Later, they united with Han Xin, Peng Yue and others to defeat the Qin army in the Battle of Julu.
After the Battle of Julu, Liu Xiang and the two went hand in hand, and each captured Guanzhong, Sanchuan and other important towns of the Qin Dynasty. In 206 BC, they completely defeated the remnants of the Qin army in the Battle of Hushi and ended the tyrannical Qin rule.
After the battle of the mutual market, the world was divided, and the princes from all walks of life divided one side and quarreled endlessly. Liu Bang and Xiang Yu also broke up because of their disagreements about the division of the world in the future.
In 206 BC, the two fought a decisive battle at the mouth of the water, and Xiang Yu defeated Liu Bang. Liu Bang retreated to the bottom and was almost in a desperate situation. But he did not mess up in the face of danger, cheered up, regrouped, and finally won successive battles in Huaiyin, Pengcheng and other places, turning the tide of the war.
In 202 BC, Liu Bang under the plan of the elder Gao, the army pressed the border, and Xiang Yu retreated. Subsequently, Xiang Yu committed suicide under the wall. Liu Bang ruled the world and established the Han Dynasty for the "prosperity of Guangwu".
Liu Bang was able to finally defeat Xiang Yu and seize the world, largely thanks to his decisive actions after Chen Sheng's death. He invigorated the remnants of the rebel army, united the generals of all stripes, and laid the foundation for the eventual victory.
More importantly, Chen Sheng's death prevented Liu Bang from confronting him head-on, leaving him with a lifetime of infamy. On the contrary, Chen Sheng's death paved the way for Liu Bang to create the Han Dynasty and establish the country. As Liu Bang said: "If he doesn't die, how can I be emperor?"