On the fourth day of the first lunar month in 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang proclaimed himself emperor in Nanjing, and xu da was not in Nanjing at that time, so Zhu Yuanzhang sent people to Henan to tell Xu Da the news that he had made Xu Da the right chancellor and the prince and young fu. Soon after, Xu Da occupied all of Henan, and Zhu Yuanzhang was overjoyed and personally went to Kaifeng to see Xu Da, and Xu Da asked Zhu Yuanzhang: "If after I capture Beijing, the Yuan lord flees north, will I pursue it?" ”
Zhu Yuanzhang replied:
"Yuan's fortunes are decaying, and they are self-extinguishing, and they do not bother the poor soldiers." After the blockade, stick to the feudal territory to prevent it from invading Yikeye. (From Ming Shi Vol. 125)
Zhu Yuanzhang meant that "the general trend of the Yuan Dynasty has gone, and the poor Kou Mo is chasing, and after they are out of the blockade, we can stick to the frontier." ”
In fact, the fundamental reason why Zhu Yuanzhang set the tone of "poor and bitter and not chasing" for Xu Da was that at that time, northern China had not yet been pacified, and Zhu Yuanzhang did not have the courage to chase after the grassland. Later, after Xu Da successively recaptured Shandong, Beijing, Hebei, Shanxi, Shaanxi and Gansu, Zhu Yuanzhang finally ordered Xu Da to lead his troops out of the blockade and chase after the Northern Yuan. Xu Da went on 4 northern expeditions, forming a continuous attack on the Northern Yuan, so that the Mongols no longer dared to go south to herd horses.
Xu Da's contribution to the Ming Dynasty is self-evident. In fact, in China's military history, Xu Da also occupies a place. In the Great Unification Dynasty, the only people who could have Xu Da's achievements were MengTian of the Qin Dynasty, Wei Qing of the Han Dynasty, and Li Jing of the Tang Dynasty.
In this article, the author came to share Xu Da, hoping to interpret this excellent military expert in ancient China through detailed historical materials.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="9" >, close comrades-in-arms, brothers</h1>
Xu Da was the most famous founding hero of the Ming Dynasty, and there are many folk legends about Xu Da, for example, the famous historian Wu Han said in the "Biography of Zhu Yuanzhang" that Zhu Yuanzhang, Xu Da, Tang He, Zhou Dexing and other people were childhood playmates, and they also killed the landlord's cattle together when they were young. In fact, this statement has some folk literary overtones. In history, the relationship between Xu Da and Zhu Yuanzhang is not so legendary. "Ming Shi Xu Da Biography" Yun:
Xu Da, Zi Tiande, Hao Ren, Shiye Farmer. Da Shao has great ambitions, long height and cheeks, and is strong and courageous. Taizu zhi is Guo Zixing's handsome also, up to the age of twenty-two, to follow it, a word at first sight.
Xu Da is a native of Fengyang, and his ancestors have been farming for generations. Xu Daren is tall and tall, Kong Wu is powerful, and he has great ambitions when he is a teenager. In 1353, Zhu Yuanzhang was ordered by his father-in-law Guo Zixing to recruit troops in his hometown, and Xu Da was called into the army. At that time, Xu Da was already 22 years old, and he and Zhu Yuanzhang were very close, "at first sight", there was a sense of seeing each other and hating the night.
That is to say, Xu Da and Zhu Yuanzhang are Fellows of Fengyang, but when he knew Zhu Yuanzhang, he was already 22 years old. Because of his relationship with Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Yuanzhang regarded Xu Da as a confidant from then on.
As Zhu Yuanzhang's confidant, Xu Da participated in Zhu Yuanzhang's early entrepreneurial journey almost the whole time. At that time, Guo Zixing, the marshal of the Red Turban Army in Haozhou, married his righteous daughter Ma Shi (Empress Ma) to Zhu Yuanzhang, who made many contributions and gradually increased his power, and was jealous of Guo Zixing's son Guo Tianxu and others. Zhu Yuanzhang was forced to be helpless, and only took 24 of his henchmen to the south to set a long way, which was regarded as a self-reliant portal. These 24 people are known in history as the "Twenty-Four Generals of Huaixi". The "Ming Chronicle" records:
Taizu nai belonged to him with seven hundred people, and He alone was with Xu Da, Tang He, Wu Liang, Wu Zhen... Zhou Dexing and twenty-four others, slightly far away in the south.
Note that among the 24 people taken away by Zhu Yuanzhang, Xu Da ranked first, which can also show Xu Da's status in Zhu Yuanzhang's mind.
When Zhu Yuanzhang attacked Dingyuan and Chuzhou, Hu Dahai, Feng Guoyong, Feng Guosheng (Feng Sheng), Li Shanchang, Chang Yuchun, Liao Yong'an and other founding fathers joined one by one, and Zhu Yuanzhang was surrounded by talents, but Zhu Yuanzhang trusted Xu Da the most.
During this period, a major event that Zhu Yuanzhang never forgot, the "History of Ming" Yun:
Zi xing commanded Sun Deya, the Deya army also held Taizu, Da stood up to the Deya army to ask for a substitute, Taizu was returned, and Da was also spared.
After Zhu Yuanzhang captured Chuzhou, his power became increasingly powerful. Zhu Yuanzhang's father-in-law Guo Zixing could not continue in Haozhou, and he took his own remnants of his army to defect to Zhu Yuanzhang in the future, while Guo Zixing's old rival Sun Deya chased all the way to Chuzhou, and the two sides fought, Zhu Yuanzhang was captured alive by Sun Deya in order to save his father-in-law. In the process of exchanging "prisoners of war" between the two sides, Xu Da requested that zhu Yuanzhang be replaced by himself, and Zhu Yuanzhang was released.
The author believes that through this matter, at least two points can be seen:
First, Xu Da's position in Zhu Yuanzhang's army should be very high, otherwise the enemy would not have allowed him to replace Zhu Yuanzhang.
Second, Zhu Yuanzhang had no shortage of civilian and military generals, and only Xu Da was willing to replace Zhu Yuanzhang, and after Zhu Yuanzhang was released, he was naturally very grateful to Xu Da. That is to say, Zhu Yuanzhang and Xu Da are not only comrades-in-arms, but also brothers who have passed away.
There is a sentence in the "Biography of Ming Shi Xu Da" that is of great significance:
Feasting and drinking, there are cloth brothers called.
This passage is to record that after the founding of the Ming Dynasty, zhu Yuanzhang called Xu Da his "cloth brother" every time he summoned Xu Da to the palace for a banquet.
In the History of Ming, there are only two Ming ministers whom Zhu Yuanzhang calls brothers, one is Xu Da and the other is Li Zhen (Li Wenzhong's father). Li Zhen was Zhu Yuanzhang's brother-in-law, and Zhu Yuanzhang called him a brother, according to the relationship between relatives. And Xu Da is the brother of suffering that Zhu Yuanzhang recognizes in his heart. This special treatment of Xu Da, even if Zhu Yuanzhang's love general Chang Yuchun and Zhu Yuanzhang's Fa Xiao Tang had never been.
In the last years of the Yuan Dynasty, Xu Da may not be the only general under Zhu Yuanzhang, but Xu Da was the first hero to enter Zhu Yuanzhang's heart. From a certain dimension, Xu Da's position in Zhu Yuanzhang's mind has never been replaced by others.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="9" > two, Chang Xu two, will be different</h1>
In 1355, Han Lin'er (King Xiaoming), the son of Han Shantong, the leader of the Red Turban Army, declared himself emperor and changed his era name to Longfeng, when Guo Zixing died, Zhu Yuanzhang was nominally under the rule of Han Lin'er, but in fact fought separately. Because Feng Guoyong and Li Shanchang and others suggested that Zhu Yuanzhang cross the river to capture Nanjing, Zhu Yuanzhang chose to cross the river in July of that year. At that time, zhu Yuanzhang's subordinates, except for a few water army generals such as Liao Yong'an, were almost all "dry ducks", and it was very difficult to break through the blockade of the Yuan Dynasty army and cross the Yangtze River. Zhu Yuanzhang left all his family members in Jiangbei, made a desperate bet, and finally crossed the river successfully. "Ming Shi Xu Da Biography" Yun:
From the crossing of the river, pulling out the quarry, taking the Taiping, (Xu Da) and Chang Yuchun are all military champions.
The Battle of Crossing the River was the key battle for Zhu Yuanzhang to achieve his imperial cause, and the reason why this battle could be won was that Xu Da and Chang Yuchun were indispensable. After that, although Zhu Yuanzhang's generals were like clouds, whenever there was an important battle, the first people Zhu Yuanzhang thought of were Xu Da and Chang Yuchun.
Xu Da and Chang Yuchun are the most famous founding heroes of the Ming Dynasty, and the History of Ming merges the two into one biography, and posterity also likes to compare the two with each other. In fact, in Zhu Yuanzhang's mind, there is still an essential difference between the two, for example, in 1367 (the year before Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne), Zhu Yuanzhang sent Xu Da to lead a 250,000-strong army in the Northern Expedition, and Chang Yuchun was the deputy commander, Zhu Yuanzhang said:
However, those who can maintain heavy discipline and overcome the attack, and have to be the body of the general, are not as good as the great generals. When millions of people bravely ascend first, destroy the front, and are invincible, it is not as good as the deputy general Yu Chun. (From the End of the Chronicle of the Ming Dynasty, Volume VIII)
This is the true thought in Zhu Yuanzhang's heart, and Zhu Yuanzhang believes that Xu Da, as the commander-in-chief, is strict and resourceful in his management of the army, and is the most secure handsome man. And Chang Yuchun is brave and invincible, invincible, and is the vanguard of the destruction of the front.
Xu Da is a handsome talent, Chang Yuchun is a general, Xu Da and Chang Yuchun have no advantages or disadvantages, but they have their own strengths.
If Zhu Yuanzhang personally took command, he needed someone like Chang Yuchun to attack the city. If Zhu Yuanzhang sat in the capital and could not personally come to the battlefield, he needed Xu Da to act alone. For example, after Zhu Yuanzhang captured Nanjing, he stayed in Nanjing and gave Xu Da the task of attacking the city. "Ming Shi Xu Da Biography" Yun:
In Xiajiqing (Nanjing), Taizu was in a defensive position, and Mingda was made a general, and the commanders of the various armies attacked Zhenjiang in the east and pulled it out.
In the days when Zhu Yuanzhang stayed in Nanjing, Xu Da led a large army to conquer Zhenjiang continuously, and the next year he captured Changzhou, "entering Changzhou and conquering it next year", and then Xu Da led Zhao Desheng to attack Yixing. Subtlely, when Zhu Yuanzhang personally went out on the horse, Xu Da retreated behind. The Biography of Ming Shi Xu Da records:
Taizu zi attacked Wuzhou and ordered Da to stay behind to guard Yingtian.
This means that after Xu Da captured Yixing, Zhu Yuanzhang summoned Xu Da back to Nanjing to guard the old nest, and he himself led his troops to personally attack Wuzhou. The "Biography of Ming Shi Chang Yu Chun" records:
From Wuzhou, transferred to the Privy Council affairs of Tongyou, Shouwu.
That is to say, when Zhu Yuanzhang attacked Wuzhou, he did not take Xu Da, but brought Chang Yuchun.
This further confirms the author's point of view, in Zhu Yuanzhang's mind, Xu Da is a handsome talent who can be equated with himself, and Chang Yuchun is only a pioneer in attacking the city for himself.
There is also an essential difference between Xu Da and Chang Yuchun, "History of Ming", in the Battle of Chizhou, Xu Da led Chang Yuchun and others to ambush Chen Youyu at the foot of Jiuhua Mountain, Chen Youyu fled into the wilderness, and Xu Da and others captured more than 3,000 prisoners of war. As for how to deal with these prisoners of war, Xu Da and Chang Yuchun clashed.
Yu Chunyue: "This strong brigade also does not kill for the future." "If you can't reach it, you can hear it." And Yu Chun first pit more than half of his people at night, and Taizu was not shy, and he sent the rest of the people.
What Chang Yuchun meant was that Chen Youyu's men were all arrogant and fierce generals, and they should kill all three thousand of them to avoid any trouble. After Xu Da heard this, he even said that he could not, but Chang Yuchun insisted on killing the prisoners, and Xu Da had to quickly inform Zhu Yuanzhang, and when Zhu Yuanzhang's orders came, Chang Yuchun had already killed more than half of them, and Zhu Yuanzhang was very unhappy, and ordered Chang Yuchun to let the rest of the people go.
Judging from Zhu Yuanzhang's handling results, he was obviously supportive of Xu Da. Since ancient times, the killing and descending are unknown, and although the spring is brave, it is murderous. In contrast, Xu Da is much more secure.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="9" > third, holding a sharp blade and not liking to kill</h1>
In 1363, the famous Poyang Lake Water War broke out between Zhu Yuanzhang and Chen Youyi, which was the largest water war in ancient Chinese history, and this war was the most important battle in Zhu Yuanzhang's domination of the Yangtze River Valley, and Zhu Yuanzhang also knew the importance of this battle. The Biography of Ming Shi Xu Da records:
Kou Nanchang, a Han Chinese, summoned Taizu from Luzhou to meet the master, and met at Poyang Lake. The friendly army is very strong, and the generals who have reached the front will fight and defeat their forwards...
This record has two meanings, first, before the Battle of Poyang Lake, Xu Da was attacking Luzhou (Hefei), and Zhu Yuanzhang specifically summoned Xu Da to Poyang Lake. Zhu Yuanzhang's move was not to let Xu Dalai add icing on the cake, because Zhu Yuanzhang knew the key to this battle, and he summoned Xu Da to come, because he needed Xu Da's ability to help him win.
Second, there were many brilliant generals in the Battle of Poyang Lake, and Chang Yuchun, Yu Tonghai, Liao Yongzhong, Guo Ying and others all made great contributions. After Xu Da and Zhu Yuanzhang converged, what role did they play? The "History of Ming" says that Xu Da "fought with all the generals before him", and compared all the other generals with six words.
After this battle, Chen Youyu was killed by an arrow, and then, Zhu Yuanzhang once again played cards according to the old routine:
Taizu knew that the enemy could be broken, and he was worried about Shi Cheng's internal offense, that is, the night dispatch was still guarding the heavens.
After Zhu Yuanzhang won the Battle of Poyang Lake, Chen Youyu's son Chen Li and his old subordinate Zhang Dingbian fled to Wuchang, and Zhu Yuanzhang believed that the biggest obstacle (Chen Youyu) had been removed, and Xu Da had more important things to do. As a result, Zhu Yuanzhang himself continued to stay in Jiangxi, and Xu Da was sent to respond to the Tian (Nanjing) town guard to prevent Zhang Shicheng from sneaking in from the east.
Nanjing is Zhu Yuanzhang's old lair, and on the one hand, Zhu Yuanzhang personally cleaned up Chen Youyu's Yu Party, and on the other hand, he sent Xu Da to guard Nanjing, which can be seen as Xu Da's strategic role in Zhu Yuanzhang's mind. In fact, at that time, Chang Yuchun, Feng Sheng, and Deng Yu were all in Jiangxi, and even Zhu Yuanzhang's nephew Zhu Wenzheng and nephew Li Wenzhong were also there, but Zhu Yuanzhang trusted Xu Da the most.
Sure enough, after Xu Da returned to Nanjing, Zhang Shicheng was already ready to move, and Xu Da commanded Geng Bingwen, Wu Liang, and other generals who were good at defense, blocking Zhang Shicheng's attack and providing conditions for Zhu Yuanzhang to destroy the "Chen Han regime".
In 1364, Zhu Yuanzhang called himself King wu and appointed Xu Da as the Left Xiangguo and Li Shanchang as the Right Xiangguo, with Xu Da above Li Shanchang. In this year, Zhu Yuanzhang once again guarded Nanjing, and Xu Da helped Zhu Yuanzhang to open up territory, and the History of Ming records that Xu Da first "led troops to besiege Luzhou and Keqi City", and then pacified Lake, Xiang and other places. After a short recuperation, Xu Da led Chang Yuchun and others to seize Zhang Shicheng's territory and beat Lu Zhen, the first fierce general under Zhang Shicheng, to the point of being a rat. In the same year, the Yuan Dynasty army went south, and Xu Da met the enemy in Xuzhou, "breaking it and taking ten thousand prisoners".
At this time, Xu Da was like Zhu Yuanzhang's sharpest battle knife, as long as Zhu Yuanzhang's battle flag pointed, Xu Da attacked invincible.
In 1366, Zhu Yuanzhang formally crusaded against Zhang Shicheng, at the beginning of the war, the Right Xiangguo Li Shanchang believed that Zhang Shicheng's army was strong and strong, and now was not the time to crusade against Zhang Shicheng. Zhu Yuanzhang then asked Zuo Xiangguo Xu Da's opinion, but Xu Da said:
"Zhang Shi was harsh and harsh, and the general Li Bosheng had his children in vain, and it was easy to be with his ears. The users, Huang, Cai, and Ye San, joined the army, and the students did not know the big plan. Subjects serve the Lord on the Weide, with a large army, the three Wu can be counted as a day. ”
Xu Da's meaning is that Zhang Shicheng is golden and jade, and in the midst of defeat, the people under his command are all rice buckets, and there is no need to be afraid at all. Facts have proved that Xu Da's understanding of Zhang Shicheng is much deeper than that of Li Shanchang.
After Zhu Yuanzhang heard Xu Da's analysis, he was overjoyed, worshiped Xu Da as a general, and Chang Yuchun as a deputy general, and led an army of 200,000 to attack Zhang Shicheng.
At that time, Zhang Shicheng was firmly defending Pingjiang (Suzhou), and Xu Dabing divided into three roads, first cutting off the wings of Huzhou, Hangzhou, jiaxing and other wings around Suzhou, and then besieging Pingjiang with a large army. At that time, Zhu Yuanzhang had something to summon Xu Da back to Nanjing, and Xu Da asked Chang Yuchun to lead an army to attack the city, but when Xu Da returned to Suzhou, he found that Chang Yuchun still had not breached the city gate. "The End of the Ming Chronicle" Yun:
"The army surrounded Gu Su for a long time."
Because the walls of Suzhou were strong, Zhang Shicheng had plenty of food in the city and the defense was impenetrable. Even though Chang Yuchun was a fierce man who attacked the city, he still could not break through the city in a short time. In the end, Xu Da thought of a good way to build a three-story high platform with wood outside the city, which was higher than the Suzhou city wall, so that Xu Da's soldiers could stand on the high platform and accurately attack the soldiers in the city, and within a month, the losses in Suzhou City were heavy, and Zhang Shicheng was defeated.
At the moment when the city gate was about to be breached, Chang Yuchun, Tang He, Guo Xing, Wang Bi and others were all excited and planned to enter the city and kill the four sides. Unexpectedly, Xu Da suddenly issued three orders:
Those who plunder the people's wealth die, those who destroy their houses die, and those who are twenty miles away from the camp die.
Therefore, although Zhang Shicheng died, the city and people of Suzhou were completely preserved. The reason why Xu Da is great is not that he helped Zhu Yuanzhang fight the world, but that he held the power of life and death, but he did not like to kill.
In the process of destroying Chen Youyu, Xu Da was an important participant, and in the process of destroying Zhang Shicheng, Xu Da was the commander. Chen Youyi and Zhang Shicheng were the biggest stumbling blocks to Zhu Yuanzhang's domination of the Central Plains, but Xu Da cleaned them all up.
Therefore, Cai Dongfan commented on Xu Da:
"The place where the King of the Zhu clan was created, or the place where Xu Da's first merit was built."
The author thinks it is very reasonable.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="9" >4, from south to north, a thousand autumns</h1>
In 1367, Xu Da followed Zhu Yuanzhang for the 15th year, and Zhu Yuanzhang finally wanted to go north to the Yuan Dynasty after completing the unification of the south. Zhu Yuanzhang made Xu Da a general and Chang Yuchun his deputy general, and led a 250,000-strong army in the Northern Expedition with the slogan of "expelling the Tartars and restoring China". Xu Da and Chang Yuchun's large army swept through the caves like ploughs, breaking through Henan and Shandong. The following year, Zhu Yuanzhang declared himself emperor in Nanjing, and Xu Da and others were still fighting in the north. On July 27, 1368, in the first year of Hongwu(1368), Xu Da conquered Tongzhou, the gates of Beijing were wide opened, and Emperor Yuanshun, seeing that the general trend had gone, fled to Saiwai with his crown prince and concubine. The Biography of Xu Da in the Ming Dynasty records the situation after Xu Da captured Beijing:
Not a single person. Fengfu Treasury, with books and treasures, ordered Zhang Sheng to guard the palace gate with thousands of soldiers, so that the eunuchs would protect the palace people, concubines, and lords, and forbidden soldiers to be invaded. Officials live in peace, and the city is not easy to wanton.
The city of Beijing was the capital of the Yuan Dynasty, and there were countless treasures in the palace, Xu Da did not kill a single person, blocked books and treasure houses, and protected all the yuan dynasty concubines who had been captured and handed over to Zhu Yuanzhang to deal with.
Zhu Yuanzhang trusted Xu Da, and what Xu Da handed over to Zhu Yuanzhang was also a satisfactory answer.
Xu Da, on zhu Yuanzhang's orders, did not pursue Emperor Yuanshun, he left Sun Xingzu to defend Beijing, and then turned around and headed west to attack Hebei and Shanxi. At that time, Wang Baobao (Expanding Timur), known as the "last famous general of the Yuan Dynasty", had 100,000 troops and waited in a strict position, Tang and Wang Baobao encountered the first, and as a result, they were almost beaten into a sieve by Wang Baobao, fortunately, Tang He ran fast and only then did he retrieve a life.
After Xu Da heard about it, he adopted the tactic of "criticizing the chaos and making up the false" and took advantage of Wang Baobao to set up an ambush in the process of the rapid march, resulting in:
Stomping a foot, Yu came out from behind the tent, got a horse, and rode away from the eighteenth. (From the End of the Ming Chronicle, Volume IX)
This means that Wang Baobao was beaten very badly by Xu Da, and in a hurry, he only wore one boot, snatched a horse, and fled with only 18 people. The 100,000-strong army was thus defeated at the hands of Xu Da, and it was a fiasco.
Wang Baobao's army was defeated and retreated to Lanzhou, except for the Shaanxi-Gansu region, the entire of northern China had been retaken by Xu Da. In the second year of Hongwu, Chang Yuchun died of illness, Xu Da led Feng Sheng, Li Wenzhong and others to attack the northwest, recruited Li Siqi and other tyrants, and defeated Wang Baobao again, Wang Baobao held a piece of wood before he luckily crossed the Yellow River and escaped, and the northwest was flat.
In Chinese history, Zhu Yuanzhang was the first founding emperor to unify China from south to north, but Zhu Yuanzhang himself did not really participate in all wars, and the person who really unified China from south to north was Xu Da.
Since the end of the Tang Dynasty, after Shi Jingyao sacrificed Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures to the Khitans, the Han Dynasty has not been able to recover this land for more than 400 years. Zhu Yuanzhang claimed to be the empress, and the Ming dynasty's army finally recovered Yanyun after more than 400 years, and the main general who recovered Yanyun Sixteen Prefectures was Xu Da.
Throughout the annals of history, there are many founding heroes, Han Xin of the Han Dynasty and Li Jing of the Tang Dynasty are all great heroes of the Tang Dynasty, but their participation in the founding of the country and the merits they have made are not as comprehensive as Xu Da. That's why the History of Ming commented on Xu Da:
"Since ancient times, there is no place to go."
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="9" >5, brothers 15 years, 18 years of monarchy</h1>
The "History of the Yue King's Gou Jian Family" once recorded that after Gou Jian destroyed Wu, the hero Fan Li chose to go rafting in the Five Lakes, and advised Wen Zhong:
The Yue king is a long-necked bird with a beak, and can share suffering with him, but not with pleasure.
Since ancient times, it has been easy to suffer the same hardships and hardships, and the same wealth and nobility. Zhu Yuanzhang was a suspicious emperor, and Xu Da was a hero of high merit. Before Zhu Yuanzhang became emperor, Xu Da and he were brothers for 15 years, Zhu Yuanzhang was called empress, but Xu Da served as a monarch with him for 18 years and died well. Xu Da was able to spend the rest of his life in peace, not only with small wisdom, but also with great wisdom.
In the third year of Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang sent Xu Da to the Northern Expedition to Mongolia, Xu Da was the commander of the Chinese army, Li Wenzhong was the deputy commander, and in Dingxi, Xu Da once again confronted Wang Baobao, and the two sides "fought each other in a ditch and the number of days intersected", and they held each other for a long time. One day, Wang Baobao selected a death squad to kill from the mountain stream, and Zuo Cheng Hu Deji, one of Xu Da's army, panicked, pulled out his leg and ran, and the army's heart was in chaos. At the critical moment, fortunately, Xu Da led the troops to arrive and repelled the enemy army. Xu Da's army was very strict, and according to the custom, Hu Deji fled in fear of war and wanted to be dealt with by military law. But Xu Da did not do so. The Biography of Ming Shi Xu Da records:
Deji, Dahaizi also, Da, with his meritorious son, the capital of the weapon, and beheaded his subordinate commander and several other people to win.
It turned out that Hu Deji was Hu Dahai's son. Hu Dahai was one of the most important generals in Zhu Yuanzhang's early days of entrepreneurship, and he was both literate and martial, but unfortunately he was killed by traitors in the end. Zhu Yuanzhang proclaimed himself empress dowager and posthumously made Hu Dahai the Duke of Yue.
Hu Dahai is dead, and Hu Deji is the only male member of the Hu Dahai family. Xu Da knew that Zhu Yuanzhang and Hu Dahai had a deep relationship, so he did not kill Hu Deji. He escorted Hu Deji to the capital and disposed of him by Zhu Yuanzhang. However, in order to rectify the military law, Xu Da killed several of Hu Deji's commanders.
From this incident, we can see Xu Da's cleverness, and it is reasonable to say that since Zhu Yuanzhang appointed Xu Da as a great general and led the troops outside, he had the right to kill. However, Xu Da, without affecting the military's heart, handed over the decision-making power to Zhu Yuanzhang, which made Zhu Yuanzhang feel very comfortable. Finally, Zhu Yuanzhang said to Xu Da:
"The general served Wei Qing and did not behead Su Jian'er, and did not see Zhuang Jiahu alone?" The general cursed it, then it is already. Now that the court is deliberating, I will recite his Xinzhou and Zhuji gong, and I will not bear to be punished. From now on, the general has not been appeased. ”
Zhu Yuanzhang's sentence is very interesting, he gave two examples, one is that Wei Qing did not kill Su Jian, who was lost in the march, and the other is that Tian Hoang Tho killed Zhuang Jia, the favorite minister of Qi Jinggong, in order to strictly enforce military discipline, which are diametrically opposed. Zhu Yuanzhang meant to say: "Since I have appointed you as a great general, if you encounter this kind of thing in the future, kill or not kill, you will decide for yourself, you don't need to ask me!" ”
Interestingly, Zhu Yuanzhang did not kill Hu Deji in the end. It shows that Zhu Yuanzhang still values Hu Dahai's feelings at that time.
Just imagine, if Xu Da did not say a word, first killed Hu Deji, and then reported to Zhu Yuanzhang, although Zhu Yuanzhang understood Xu Da's approach, he would inevitably feel uncomfortable.
Although Xu Da was a general leading the troops, he still understood the emperor's thoughts. In front of Zhu Yuanzhang, Xu Da regarded himself as an executor, not a decision-maker.
Zhu Yuanzhang claimed the title of empress, Xu Da successively went on the Northern Expedition four times, each time in the spring, only to return in the winter, every time Xu Da returned, Zhu Yuanzhang would always feast on Xu Da in the palace. The Ming Shi Yun "and Da Yue is cautious", which means that the more Zhu Yuanzhang treats Xu Da with courtesy, the more respectful and cautious Xu Da is, and there is nothing wrong with it.
Once, Zhu Yuanzhang said that Xu Da's mansion was too small and planned to give the Wu King's Mansion to Xu Da. Zhu Yuanzhang once established himself as the King of Wu, and the Wu Palace was the former residence of Zhu Yuanzhang before he became emperor.
The Wu King's Mansion was the former residence of Tianzi, where the bed was where Zhu Yuanzhang had slept, and the chair there was also where Zhu Yuanzhang had sat, how dare Xu Da live there. Therefore, Zhu Yuanzhang rewarded it several times, but Xu Da refused each time.
Zhu Yuanzhang saw that Xu Da did not want it, so he thought of a way, and the "Biography of Xu Da" recorded:
One day, the emperor and the residence of Da, drunk and drunk, and the quilt of the blind, lying down and sleeping. Wake up, panic down the stairs, prostrate and cry out for the death penalty. Emperor Qiaozhi, Da Yue.
One day, Zhu Yuanzhang and Xu Da drank wine and forced Xu Da intoxicated. Then he ordered Xu Da to be draped in a quilt and placed on the bed of the Wu king's mansion. Zhu Yuanzhang secretly hid behind to observe Xu Da's every move. As a result, Xu Da woke up, saw where he was, panicked, and quickly got out of bed and knelt down to shout the death penalty, and Zhu Yuanzhang was overjoyed.
Later, Zhu Yuanzhang sent people to build a new mansion in front of the old house for Xu Da to live in, and named it "Dagong". Nanjing's "Great Gongfang" is derived from this. In fact, in the whole life of Xu Da, he did not live in the "Great Gongfang", he would rather three generations of grandchildren crowded in his old house.
At that time, the prime minister Hu Weiyong was powerful and wanted to make friends with Xu Da, but Xu Da was unwilling to associate with Hu Weiyong. Because Xu Da knew that he was a military general with outstanding merit, if he made good friends with the prime minister, Zhu Yuanzhang would definitely not be able to sleep steadily.
The Tao Te Ching says: Those who know themselves are clear, and those who are victorious are strong. Xu Da was a vassal in the Hongwu Dynasty for 18 years, gui was "self-aware", he knew his situation, he knew what Zhu Yuanzhang was afraid of, so he was cautious and cautious, and never overstepped his bounds. Therefore, Zhu Yuanzhang praised Xu Da:
"The loyalty of the general, I am very good!"
Xu Da not only had to be a true loyal minister, but also let Zhu Yuanzhang feel that he was a pure loyalist, a loyal servant who reassured him, which was the reason for Xu Da's good death.
In the seventeenth year of Hongwu, Xu Da was ruling the army in Beijing, and he had gangrene on his back, and Zhu Yuanzhang heard that Xu Da was ill in Nanjing, and he was very concerned and sent Xu Da's eldest son Xu Huizu to Beijing to comfort him. In February of the following year (the eighteenth year of Hongwu), Xu Da was seriously ill, and when the news reached Nanjing, Xu Da had already died.
When Xu Da died, Zhu Yuanzhang, you were very sad, "Ming Shi Xu Da Biography" Yun:
He was posthumously awarded the title of King of Zhongshan, Emperor Wuning, and was given the title of King of the Third Dynasty. The Yin of The Funeral Bell Mountain, the Imperial Shinto Inscription. Worthy of the Taimiao Temple, portrait of the Hero Temple, the first place.
Zhu Yuanzhang ordered him to quit the dynasty, posthumously made Xu Da the King of Zhongshan, and gave him three generations of princes (this was not realized due to the Battle of Jingnan). In all the meritorious heroes of Zhu Yuanzhang, Xu Da ranked first.
During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, the great poet Zhao Yi wrote a story in the "Twenty-second Historical Record", saying that Xu Da "was most afraid of goose and gave steamed goose", which means that Xu Dasheng had back gangrene and was most taboo to eat goose meat. After Zhu Yuanzhang heard about it, he sent someone to send a steamed goose to Xu Da and indirectly killed Xu Da.
You know, when Zhao Yi was born, Xu Da had been dead for more than three hundred years. To this day, people have not found a medical basis for "the most taboo goose for gangrene". Therefore, this story is a fabrication.
Finally, I end with a sentence from Zhu Yuanzhang's evaluation of Xu Da:
"In order not to kill people in vain, it is only for the benefit of the country, and the descendants of Er will be blessed."
Xu Da, the founding hero of the Ming Dynasty, did not kill in vain, the weight was respectful and prudent, fifteen years of brotherhood, eighteen years of kings and subjects, such a person is worthy of consideration, learning, and appreciation by future generations.
This article refers to the "History of Ming", "The End of the Chronicle of the Ming Dynasty", "Records of Ming Taizu"