Preface
The grievances between the Yuan Dynasty and the Southern Song Dynasty are an eternal topic in Chinese history, and one of them's clever plan is considered to be the key to the complete demise of the Southern Song Dynasty.
Due to the cruelty of history, it was difficult for the Yuan Dynasty to conquer the Southern Song Dynasty until this figure offered a brilliant plan to Kublai Khan. What kind of clever plan could make the Southern Song Dynasty completely destroyed?
Where is this character sacred? What kind of background can create such a key person? What kind of stories and ups and downs are hidden in it?
Difficult years of the Song Dynasty
Among the countless glorious dynasties in Chinese history, the Song Dynasty is one of them. But at the same time, the Song Dynasty was also one of the most difficult dynasties. Since its founding, the Song Dynasty had to face powerful foreign invasions from all directions.
These foreign enemies included the Liao State, the Western Xia State, the Jin State, the Tubo State, and so on, and they coveted the fertile Central Plains of the Song Dynasty, and launched aggression and attacks against the Song Dynasty one after another. Almost every year of the Song Dynasty was spent in an environment full of war.
For every emperor of the Song Dynasty, they had to face these powerful enemies from the north, and had to invest a lot of manpower and material resources in a hard struggle. And this desperate struggle, which lasted for 300 years, eventually led to the division of the Song Dynasty.
The tragic experience of the Northern Song Dynasty
In this 300-year-long struggle, the Northern Song Dynasty can be said to have suffered the most brutal catastrophe. At the beginning of the establishment of the Northern Song Dynasty, it had to deal with internal and external troubles at the same time.
On the one hand, they had to fight against the powerful Liao State; On the other hand, it is necessary to suppress internal rebellions and divisions. Under this double pressure, the two emperors of the Northern Song Dynasty, Zhao Kuangyin and Zhao Guangyi, suffered painful defeats one after another.
In particular, the "Jingkang Disaster" that was later captured by the Jin State led to the final destruction of the Northern Song Dynasty. This largest-ever imperial capture dealt a fatal blow to the rule of the Northern Song Dynasty. In such an environment, the foundation of the Northern Song Dynasty eventually collapsed completely.
The stubborn resistance of the Southern Song Dynasty
With the fall of the Northern Song Dynasty, the ruling center of the Song Dynasty shifted to the south, forming a pattern of two Song dynasties, the north and the south. At this time, the Southern Song Dynasty had to face a huge threat to the rise of the Yuan Dynasty.
Compared to the Northern Song Dynasty, the Southern Song Dynasty may have fared a little better, since they were able to fight in a more favorable geographical environment. But at the same time, they also faced the pressure of iron cavalry from the Yuan Dynasty.
In 1251, Möngke succeeded to the throne of the Great Khan, beginning his reign and conquest. He was determined to realize the great cause of his grandfather, Genghis Khan, and unify the whole of China. In 1258, Möngke personally led an army to attack the Southern Song Dynasty and began a desperate struggle that lasted for decades.
In the Battle of Diaoyu City, Meng Ge even died on the battlefield because of the stubborn resistance of the Song army. The Mongol army, whose influence spread throughout Eurasia, suffered such heavy losses here. It can be seen how strong the resistance of the military and civilians of the Southern Song Dynasty was.
This stubborn resistance thwarted the Yuan emperors' ambitions of conquest again and again, making it difficult for them to conquer the Southern Song Dynasty, which had been beaten by the Jin State and begged for peace everywhere. It was not until later, with the crucial help of a rebel general, that the Southern Song Dynasty finally fell.
The birth of Liu Quan
In the desperate game between the Southern Song Dynasty and the Yuan Dynasty, which lasted for nearly half a century, it was a Southern Song Dynasty general named Liu Quan who finally changed the direction of the situation.
Liu Cheng was originally an outstanding general in the Southern Song Dynasty army, and he had made great achievements on the battlefield. He was brave and resourceful, and was deeply admired by his colleagues in the DPRK and China.
But at the same time, his proud and conceited character is also destined for him to be unable to escape the suspicion and suppression of his colleagues. In particular, his direct boss Lu Wende has always had a grudge against Liu Quan.
Lu Wende often denied Liu Cheng's suggestions and strategies, and deliberately arranged for Yu Xing, who could best confront Liu Cheng, to suppress him. This unfair treatment finally made Liu Cheng feel desperate and angry.
The decision to take refuge in the Yuan Dynasty
It was in this environment that Liu Quan's heart began to brew a great rebellious thought - collusion with the Yuan Dynasty and betrayal of the Southern Song Dynasty.
In 1262 AD, when Liu Chuan served as the deputy envoy of the pacification of Tongchuan Fulu and the governor of Luzhou, he had already begun to secretly establish contact with the Mongols. In this year, he led 300,000 households in the fifteen counties of Luzhou to surrender to Kublai Khan, the ancestor of the Yuan dynasty, and the city of Shenjian was captured for the first time.
In order to ensure the success of his rebellion, Liu Quan first killed all the officials who opposed the surrender with his own hands. Then, he resolutely opened the city to welcome the Mongol army into the city, and became the right-hand man of the Yuan Dynasty in the southwest.
Liu Quan was appointed by the Yuan Dynasty as the governor of Kuilu Province and the pacification envoy, and led the Mongol army to capture most of Sichuan, making many meritorious contributions to the Yuan Dynasty's westward expedition. This general, who was once loyal to the Southern Song Dynasty, has now completely surrendered to the Yuan Dynasty.
This decision undoubtedly fundamentally changed the fate of the Southern Song Dynasty. Liu Quan's participation not only cleared the way for the Yuan Dynasty to smoothly enter the hinterland of Sichuan, but also put forward key strategic suggestions for the Yuan Dynasty by virtue of his understanding of the military situation in the Southern Song Dynasty.
Eight-Character Conversion Dynasty
Just when the Yuan army repeatedly attacked the Southern Song Dynasty but did not achieve a decisive victory, Liu Cheng presented a "eight-character" strategy to Kublai Khan, the ancestor of the Yuan dynasty:
"Take Xiangyang first and train the sailors."
These eight words are simple but enough to change the entire battle situation. Liu Quan pointed out that if the Yuan army could first conquer Xiangyang, a key point in the Southern Song Dynasty, it would be able to cut off the connection between the north and south of the Southern Song Dynasty and collapse its entire defense system.
At the same time, he also suggested that the Yuan army should focus on training the strength of the naval army. This was aimed at the greatest military advantage of the Southern Song Dynasty - a powerful naval army. Only by grasping the initiative in water warfare could the Yuan army completely defeat the Southern Song Dynasty.
Kublai Khan immediately adopted Liu Quan's advice. In 1267, the Yuan army launched the six-year-long Battle of Xiangyang. Finally, in 1273, this important town of the Southern Song Dynasty finally fell, and the Southern Song defense line collapsed with it.
With Liu Quan's key help, the Yuan Dynasty found a breakthrough to break through the Southern Song Dynasty. This general, who was once loyal to the Southern Song Dynasty, changed the fate of two dynasties because of a thought.
Liu Quan's tragic ending
Although Liu Quan's betrayal of the Southern Song Dynasty ultimately helped the Yuan Dynasty to victory, he himself did not benefit from it. After successfully conquering Xiangyang, Liu Cheng once again pursued his ambition and status. But this time, he was strongly obstructed by Boyan, the chief general of the Yuan army.
Boyan was unwilling to let Liu Chuan share his military merits and merits, so he used the military orders of the Yuan Dynasty as an excuse to stop Liu Quan's plan to cross the river and attack. As a result, the two sides clashed violently, and finally Liu Cheng was forced to retreat to Jiangbei.
At this time, Liu Cheng learned that Boyan had led the main force of the middle road to capture Ezhou and opened the gate to Jiangnan. Liu Quan sighed with resentment: "The first commander stops me, and I will succeed for future generations, and good authors don't have to be good." "
On this night, Liu Quan, who was sixty-three years old, died in panic. Although he made great contributions to the destruction of the Yuan Dynasty and the Southern Song Dynasty, he did not get the trust and reuse he deserved after all. This general, who once shocked the Southern Song Dynasty, could not escape a tragic end.
The moment of the demise of the Southern Song Dynasty
In 1279, in the great contribution of Liu Cheng for the Yuan Dynasty, the Southern Song Dynasty finally came to an end. This once glorious dynasty, under the offensive of the Yuan army, was completely defeated in the Battle of Yashan.
Lu Xiufu, the emperor of the Song Dynasty, who was carrying the young prince Zhao Yu, finally chose to commit suicide by throwing himself into the sea. This scene also announced the final end of the Southern Song Dynasty.
For 300 years, the Song Dynasty fought bitterly against foreign enemies all the way. In this battle of the destruction of the Southern Song Dynasty, which lasted for nearly half a century, this unfortunate dynasty could not escape the fate of destruction after all.
Liu Quan's betrayal and military advice undoubtedly became the last straw that crushed the Southern Song Dynasty. With his ingenuity and determination, he promoted the fate of two dynasties, and in the end, even he himself could not escape the tragic end.
In the face of this historical torrent that has swept the continent, the fate of individuals does seem insignificant. But it is precisely because such individuals make crucial choices at special moments that the course of history has changed.
The wheel of history is rolling in, I don't know when the next "Liu Quan" will appear? When the crisis is imminent, what kind of characters will emerge to reshape the course of history? These are all questions worth pondering.
epilogue
Every era has its key figures and events, and Liu Cheng and his eight-character plan to change the fate of the Southern Song Dynasty are undoubtedly the most intriguing of them.
Perhaps, it is precisely because of these unpredictable factors that history is always turbulent and ever-changing. The history we read today will also be an important page for future generations.