Smoke and Rain Warring States No. 25: Tian Shan Fu Qi

In 284 BC, after King Qi Tang was tortured and killed by the Chu generals, the State of Qi fell into a "state of no master". At this time, only the two cities of Jucheng (莒城, in present-day Ju county, Shandong) and Jimo (southeast of present-day Pingdu, Shandong) were not occupied by the Yan army. The State of Qi reached the most dangerous moment since the "Tian Dynasty Qi", and a "superpower" that had replaced the State of Wei to dominate the world was in a state of flux.

1. Tian Dan Shoucheng

The vicissitudes of the sea show the true character of the hero, this is a big hero stepped forward to avoid the disaster of the fall of the Country of Qi. This great hero is Tian Dan, the savior of the State of Qi who came out of the city well.

Tian Dan, a native of Linzi, the capital of the State of Qi, was a distant relative of the King of Qi, who served as an industrial and commercial administrator (Shi Tuan) of the Linzi market in the State of Qi at that time. When Le Yi attacked Linzi City, Tian Dan fled with his people to Anping City (安平城, in present-day Southern Huangchengying Village, Huangcheng, Anzi District), and Le Yi's army quickly attacked Anping. In order to get rid of the Yanguo pursuit as soon as possible, Tian Dan taught the clan to truncate the excess part of the axle and wrap it up with iron sheets, and the improved car, light and strong, reached Jimo smoothly. Jimo was an important city in the State of Qi, and Jimo was well governed as early as the time of King Wei of Qi, so the local people were grateful to the Kindness of the State of Qi for not being willing to surrender to the State of Yan, and fought to the death under the leadership of Doctor Jimo.

"The house was destroyed by overnight rain", at this time, Jimo Doctor was killed in the battle with the Yan army, and Jimo was suddenly leaderless. Tian Dan and his clan escaped all the way from Linzi to Jimo's organizational ability and technical means to improve vehicles, so that the Jimo military and civilians saw Tian Dan's superior ability, so Tian Dan was quickly elected as the main general of Jimo Shoucheng.

Tian Dan knew that the task of serving as the main general of Jimo at this time was arduous, and the momentum of the Yan state was in full swing, and at this time, any initiative of the Qi army would inevitably encounter a head-on attack from the Yan army. What Tian Shan can do is to "wait for change" and wait for internal contradictions to appear in the Yan kingdom.

Le Yi led his army to attack Jimo and Jucheng, but repeatedly failed to attack, knowing that the hearts of the two places were towards the Qi state, and a simple military attack could not break the city. I think that when Zhi Boyao led the three combined forces of Zhi Wei and Han to besiege the city of Jinyang, where Zhao Xiangzi zhao Wuxian was stationed, it was also a delay in breaking the city. Therefore, Le Yi decided to "subdue people with virtue", so he adopted a policy of encircling Jucheng and Jimo without attacking, implementing tax reductions in the areas that had been conquered, abolishing harsh government, respecting local customs and habits, protecting the inherent culture of the State of Qi, giving preferential treatment to local celebrities and other policies that convinced the people's hearts, and wanted to fundamentally disintegrate the State of Qi.

Le Yi's change of offensive strategy also showed that the Yan army had entered the vast and densely populated State of Qi and had a serious shortage of troops. The State of Yan was originally a weak country at the bottom of the "Seven Heroes of the Warring States" like Korea, and after occupying the seventy cities of the State of Qi, it was necessary to leave a large number of troops stationed in various places to act as a "security army". Therefore, there are not many mobile forces that Le Yi can use to attack Jimo and Jucheng. The State of Qi has always been much stronger than the State of Yan, and even if the State of Yan was lucky enough to defeat the main force of the Qi army, it did not have such a big "appetite" to annex the State of Qi. If the State of Yan joined forces with the State of Zhao, the State of Wei, the Republic of Korea, the State of Chu, and even the State of Lu to divide the State of Qi, it would be a disaster for the State of Qi. Since the Yan state was insufficient in strength but wanted to "swallow" the state of Qi alone, it also left a way for the state of Qi to live.

2. Yan Guo will change generals

In 279 BC, King Zhao of Yan died of illness, and the crown prince succeeded him as King Hui of Yan.

When King Hui of Yan was crown prince, he had a conflict with Le Yi, and Le Yi did not end the Yanqi War during the reign of King Yan Zhao, which also reserved the hidden danger of the loss of peace between the monarchs and subjects of the Yan state for this war.

When Tian Shan learned of the contradiction between King Hui of Yan and Le Yi, he carried out a counter-plot against the State of Yan, spreading rumors that there were only two cities left in the State of Qi that had not been captured, so they did not attack as soon as possible, and it was heard that there was some discord between Le Yi and the newly enthroned monarch of the State of Yan. Le Yi intermittently used troops to deliberately delay time and stay in the State of Qi, in preparation for the kingship of the State of Qi. What the State of Qi feared was that the generals of the Yan State faction would come.

The State of Yan not only had to prevent the Hu people from invading you in the north, but also to be vigilant against the invasion of the State of Zhao in the west, and Le Yi stayed in the State of Qi with the main force of the Yan army for a long time, and it was helpless for King Hui of Yan to end this war as soon as possible. It's just that King Hui of Yan should know that Le Yi destroyed the main force of the Qi army and indirectly led to the murder of King Qi, Le Yi and the State of Qi were already a feud between heaven and heaven, and le Yi had a reason to establish himself as king in the State of Qi? Moreover, no one in the famous generals of the Yan Kingdom could compare with Le Yi, could King Hui of Yan still send someone who was better at using soldiers than Le Yi?

At this time, the "best strategy" of King Hui of Yan should be to personally go to Le Yi's army and use Feng Le Yi as the king of Qi to inspire Le Yi to quickly attack Jimo. If Le Yi said that he could not break the city, then the "middle strategy" of The King of Yanhui should support the Qi Tang Royal Family as the King of Qi, cut off part of the city and withdraw his army. The main force of the Yan state taking the initiative to withdraw its troops was intact, and the state of Qi did not dare to follow up and pursue, who can guarantee that the withdrawal of the Yan state is not to lure the enemy?

However, King Hui of Yan took the "next strategy", that is, to send his henchmen to replace Le Yi as the commander of the Yan army, and recalled the original commander Le Yi. After all, Le Yi had drifted to zero many times in the Kingdom of Wei, the State of Zhao, and the State of Yan, and was too familiar with the sinister of the official field. He immediately surrendered his military power and fled to the Zhao kingdom. With the outstanding military achievements of leading the weak Yan state to defeat the powerful State of Qi and invade its capital and capture its seventy cities, which princely state would not treat Le Yi as a guest?

3. Jimo Victory

King Hui of Yan forced away Le Yi, one of the "Ten Philosophers of the Martial Temple", and replaced him with a knight robber with no military experience, and Le was ruined, that is, he was able to keep the general Tian Dan. Tian Shan's plan removed the strong enemy Le Yi, and then he could free up his hands to boost people's morale and morale.

Tian Dan first announced to the residents of Jimo City that he had dreamed that the gods had told me that the State of Qi was about to be revived and that the State of Yan was about to be destroyed; soon a god and man would come down as our military division to help us repel the Yan army. One of the creeps jokingly said, can I be a military master? After saying that he turned around and left, Tian Dan immediately caught up with him, respectfully invited him to sit down, and bowed to him. The little soldier said with trepidation: I am just joking, please don't take it seriously. Tian Shan comforted him and said, It doesn't matter, as long as you don't say it, I have my own magic use. So he publicly announced to the people that the gods had descended on Jimo and worshipped him as a military master. From then on, every time Tian Shan gave orders, he said that it was the instructions of the gods and men. The soldiers and civilians in the city also believed it, so their confidence in the restoration of the country was strengthened, and their morale was greatly boosted.

Tian Dan issued another order, stipulating that the residents of Jimo City should first place food in the courtyard to worship their ancestors before eating. As a result, many birds flew into the city to feed, and when Yan Jun saw this situation, he was greatly surprised, and when he listened, he knew that there were gods and men in Jimo City to help.

It was also strange that the army sent by King Hui of Yan to succeed Le Yi in command of Qi Di did not immediately launch an attack on Jimo but followed Le Yi's siege policy. This also seems to show that riding to the front line also knows that Jimo is easy to break through, and Le Yi's siege tactics are not wrong. However, the robber did not tell King Hui of Yan that it was wise for Leyi not to rush to attack Jimo, after all, the robber also wanted to "pick peaches".

In order to arouse the qi army's fighting spirit with the enemy, Tian Dan sent spies to the Yan army camp to spread rumors that the Qi people were most afraid of their noses being cut off and the graves of their ancestors being dug up. If the Yan army threatened with these two punishments, the soldiers and civilians in Jimo City would definitely have no fighting spirit and Kaesong would surrender. When the Yan army heard this news, it immediately ordered that all the qi people's noses that surrendered should be cut off and pushed to the forefront, and the ancestral graves of the Qi people outside the city were dug up one by one, and the bones of the corpses were exposed everywhere. The atrocities of the Yan army not only could not produce a deterrent effect, but on the contrary aroused the revenge psychology of the Jimo soldiers and civilians, and the will to kill the enemy boiled to the extreme.

By this time, Tian Dan knew that both the military and the people had the determination to fight to the death and could launch an offensive. On the one hand, the warriors wearing armor were deliberately ambushed in the city, and only the old and weak women and children were sent to the city to defend to relax the guard of the Yan army; on the other hand, they collected gold and silver jewels in Jimo City and sent people to give them to the Yan army, indicating that they were about to surrender the city. The Yan army thought that victory was in sight and was very happy, so it held a celebration banquet, reveled in bitter drinks, and for several days in a row, the military's heart gradually relaxed.

No matter how many "conspiracies" and "miracles" there are, in the end, it still needs solid achievements. Of course, Tian Dan knew that pretending to be a ghost could only confuse the Yan army that it could not defeat the Yan army, so he secretly collected more than a thousand cattle, with sharp blades tied to the horns, colored cloth on the cattle, and straw tied to the hairy tail, and a lot of grease. At the same time, five thousand brave men were selected, and their bodies were also painted with oil paint, like ghosts.

On a dark and windy night in the month, Tian Dan issued an attack order. More than a thousand armed cattle, frightened by the straw on their tails, were frightened by the pain and ran towards the Camp of the Yan Army without a life. At this time, Yan Jun was in his sleep, awakened by these sudden monsters, frightened and did not know how to be good, and they hugged their heads and scurried around. The fire bull rampaged, and those who were hit, the dead and the wounded, and the fire on the tail of the ox burned to the tent, causing a sea of fire, and the five thousand strong men who followed the cattle took advantage of the victory to pursue, and the one who was invincible. In the blink of an eye, the Yan army was all defeated, and the horse robbers were killed.

4. Tian Dan restored the country

The Great Victory of Jimo became a turning point in the Yanqi War, and the commander of the Yan army was killed on horseback, which also led to the collapse of the morale of the Yan army. The Yan army was originally undermanned, and the occupation of the seventy cities of the Yan state was also sustained by Le Yi's outstanding military achievements. At this time, Le Yi fled, the robbery was killed, the mobile troops of the Yan army under Jimo City suffered heavy losses, and the soldiers and civilians of the Seventy Cities of the State of Qi, hearing that Tian Dan had won the victory, expelled the Yan army "anyway". Tian Dan's army soon recaptured the Qi capital Linzi, and the situation in the great cause of qi was very good.

At this time, there were two roads in front of Tian Dan. The first path was the wish of Tian Dan's clan and Jimo generals to support Tian Dan's self-reliance as the King of Qi. After all, Tian Dan was the savior of the State of Qi, and the disaster of the State of Qi was caused by the king of Qi, Tian Di, and the son of king Qi Tang was even more unsuccessful in the "Patriotic War" to restore the State of Qi, and Tian Dan's "rebuilding of the State of Qi" was embraced as the impeccable King of Qi. The second way was the idea of some qi ministers, who were originally "forced" to surrender to the Yan army, but that was the "curve to save the country" to preserve the vitality of the Qi state. King Qi Tang was also the king of the State of Qi, and if king Qi Tang died unyieldingly, he should support his son as the King of Qi.

At this time, Tian Fazhang, the son of King Qi Tang, changed his name and surname to work as a servant in the family of Taishi Sui of Jucheng. Tai Shi's daughter felt that Tian Fazhang was very good-looking and thought that he was not an ordinary person, so she liked him very much, was very kind to him, and often stole food and clothing for him. Later, Tian Fazhang told her his true identity, and she had an affair with Tian Fazhang. A fairy tale of a people's daughter saving the chaotic prince, it seems that the fallen prince is still shining.

After The Tooth was killed, the people of Jucheng and the fleeing ministers of the State of Qi joined forces to find the son of King Qi Tang and wanted to establish him as king. Tian Fazhang was afraid that they would kill him, and it was a long time before he dared to declare that he was the son of King Qi Tang. Therefore, the Ju people jointly embraced Li Tian Fa Zhang as the king, and was the king of Qi Xiang. King Xiang of Qi defended Jucheng and announced to all parts of the State of Qi that the King of Qi had succeeded to the throne at Jucheng.

The historical records recorded by Sima Qian in the above paragraph are somewhat surprising. Since King Xiang of Qi succeeded to the throne in Jucheng, why did the Commander of the Yan Army, Le Yi, and the Cavalry Raider concentrate the main forces on Jimo instead of going straight to Jucheng? Tian Dan defended the city well, but such a clumsy disciple as King Xiang of Qi was of average ability, the Yan army could completely learn from Sun Bing's "encircling Wei to save Zhao" to attack Jucheng, Tian Shan could rescue him halfway through the road to wait for Labor to be killed, tian Shan could sit idly by and kill the King of Qi Xiang first to make the Qi people afraid. If Sima Qian's account is true, it can only be said that Le Yi and Riding Robbery both appeared "path dependent", believing that Jimo must be captured in order to capture Jucheng. Such a "rookie" can make such a mistake, and a "big boss" like Le Yi cannot use soldiers like this, right? It may be that after riding a robbery to replace Le Yi, King Xiang of Qi succeeded to the throne in Jucheng.

Tian Dan chose the second path, sent people to Jucheng to greet the King of Qi Xiang and the capital Linzi, and gave the "peach" of the restored Qi state to the King of Qi Xiang. King Xiang of Qi returned to the capital Linzi with the civilian generals who had been watching Tian Dan and the Yan army desperately in the "Great Patriotic War". Tian Danguang was credited with restoring the State of Qi, was given the title of An Pingjun, and continued to command the Qi army to recover the lost territory.

Although the State of Qi successfully restored the country under the leadership of Tian Dan, it was seriously injured and withdrew from the ranks of "superpowers". King Qi Xiang hated the Yan state, the "Three Jins" and the Chu state to the outside world, and from then on he no longer participated in the "joint resistance to Qin", and sat by and watched the Qin state gradually encroach on the princes of Kwantung. Did King Xiang of Qi forget that the "Five Kingdoms Attack on Qi" also had the participation of the State of Qin? Couldn't King Xiang of Qi understand that the Qin state could not let the other five countries go by annexing the other five kingdoms? King Xiang of Qi was jealous of Tian Dan, who had made great achievements in battle, and even forced Tian Dan to flee to the Zhao kingdom to avoid disaster.

Tian Shan did not establish himself as the King of Qi, but welcomed back King Xiang of Qi and himself to retire to the position of a subject, which was a blessing for the King of Qi, but a blessing or a curse for the State of Qi? Later, if Liu Xiu welcomed back the descendants of the emperor of the Han Dynasty and retired to the position of human subject, would there still be "Guangwu Zhongxing"? Perhaps it was Tian Dan's love of feathers that handed over the State of Qi to the cowardly and incompetent Father and Son of King Xiang of Qi, which led to the eventual demise of the State of Qi.