Author: Our special guest author Jinlingwu
"Dressed in a pale yellow light shirt, with a long sword hanging from his waist, he floated away, his face was handsome, and he was dashing and elegant." This is Jin Yong's description of Murong Fu's appearance in the Eight Parts of the Heavenly Dragon.
In Jin Yong's pen, Murong Fu enjoyed a high reputation, and on the outside he was a prince of the FengShen and a handsome man, a descendant of the Yan kingdom who always took the restoration of the country as his mission.
In the novel, Murong Fu is a descendant of Murong Xianbei and his appearance is inherited from his ancestors. Let's take a look at the appearance of Murong Fu's ancestors, "(Murong) was young and kui'an, beautiful and beautiful, eight feet long, and Xiongjie had generosity", "(Murong Hao) Longyan's teeth, seven feet and eight inches long", "(Murong Juan) was eight feet two inches long, and his posture was magnificent", "(Murong Ke) was eight feet and seven inches long, his appearance was Kuijie, and his majesty was serious", "(Murong Han) was male, multi-powerful, ape-arm shooting, and his strength was superior", "Murong De was eight feet and two inches long, and his posture was majestic", "(Murong) was eight feet long, and his belt was nine circumferences. Wonderful hair, plenty of room" In addition, there was Murong Chong, the phoenix of Western Yan, who was in the posture of Longyang, and Murong Chui, the lord of Later Yan xiong, who was broad and powerful.
The Murong family were all handsome men. Not only shuai, the Murong family had no shortage of male lords and capable people, and their descendants were heroic and heroic, such as Murong Juan and Murong Chui, who were all famous male lords, and the murong family played an extremely important role in the Five Hu and Sixteen Kingdoms, successively establishing the four states of Former Yan, Later Yan, Western Yan, and Southern Yan, and produced more than twenty emperors.
Among these Murong clan talents, Murong Ke was the most brilliant in the Five Hu and Sixteen Kingdoms, the one who was in and out of the picture, who was a model of famous generals, and the second of the Duke of Zhou.
1. For the general: Those who are good at war have no outstanding achievements.
At the time of the general, Murong Ke won hundreds of battles and did not taste defeat, and with his amazing achievements, some people in later generations praised him as "the first general of the Five Hu and Sixteen Kingdoms".
Murong Ke (慕容恪字玄恭), courtesy name Taiyuan (太原王), was the fourth son of the Civilized Emperor Murong Huan, the younger brother of Emperor Jingzhao murong Juan, and the uncle of Emperor You. Murong Ke began to command the army at the age of fifteen, and after that, the Battle of Thorn City, the Battle of Zhongshan, the Battle of Liantai, the Pingding Jizhou, the Siege of Guanggu, and many other battles became the classic battles of Murong Ke's life.
In 338, Murong Hao and the Later Zhao emperor Shi Hu agreed to attack the Xianbei Duan clan, and Shi Hu personally led hundreds of thousands of troops to meet him. As a result, Murong Hao was not kind, first defeating the Duan general Duan Lan, and then plundering more than 5,000 households and returning, without waiting for Shi Hu. Shi Hu was furious, this was not deliberately making me waste my money, and in anger, hundreds of thousands of troops attacked Murong Hao.
Shi Hu's army took Murong Hao's thirty-six cities and approached the Yan capital, Zhicheng, and Murong Hao even considered leaving the city to surrender. Fortunately, Murong Hao's ministers Feng Yi and Mu Yougen and others held the infant city and held out with the Later Zhao army for more than a month, and the Later Zhao army was unable to capture the thorn city. Shi Hu had no choice but to give up and prepare to return to his division.
Just as Shi Hu was preparing to return to his division, Murong Hao decided to give up his life and take the initiative to attack, so he sent the young Murong Ke to lead two thousand soldiers and horses to attack Shi Hu. Murong Ke placed suspicious troops at each gate of the city gate, and then attacked. Shi Hu thought that the Yan soldiers were attacking in a big way, so he fled with his men in a hurry, and Murong Ke pursued and killed more than 30,000 People in Zhao, defeating Shi Hu.
Defeating hundreds of thousands of troops with 2,000 men and beheading more than 30,000 people was the first battle of Murong Ke's career and became famous in the first battle. You must know that Murong Ke was only seventeen or eighteen years old at this time; it should be known that the opponent he faced in the Battle of Thorn City was the cruel and cruel Shi Hu, and Shi Hu had no shortage of generals such as Yao Yizhong, ZhiXiong, and TaoBao.
Coincidentally, at the same time that Murong Ke became famous in the first battle, there was a person opposite him who also began to show his sharp edge. The Battle of Thorn City ended with the defeat of Shi Hu, but one of his men, who had no losses, was named Ran Min, who later became Murong Ke's strongest opponent.
After defeating Shi Hu at the Battle of Thorn City, Murong Ke set up an ambush at Miyun Mountain, defeating Shi Hu's general Ma Qiu and taking him prisoner of Zhao Chongchen Yang Yu, who was spared only by himself.
For more than ten years, Murong Ke defended Liaodong and cared for the displaced people, defeating Goguryeo in the east, the Xianbei Yuwen clan in the north, and Buyeo in the northeast, and no one dared to covet Liaodong anymore. Murong Ke even invaded the capital of Goguryeo, and ancient historians paid little attention to Murong Ke's town of Liaodong and attacking Goguryeo, but the Koreans, who had always been proud, were in awe of Murong Ke.
In 351, Murong Ke, Mu Yougen, and others captured Youzhou and Jizhou, preparing to conquer the Central Plains. At this time, Shi Hu was dead, the Later Zhao Empire was still surviving, and Ran Min had already claimed the title of emperor and established the State of Wei. In the face of Murong Shi's invasion, the first to bear the brunt was the rising Ran Min regime, and the two sides inevitably fought.
Ran Min, a Han Chinese, whose father was originally a beggar and was later adopted by Shi Hu, ran Min naturally became Shi Hu's adopted grandson. In later legends, Ran Min is the reincarnation of the Overlord. Both belong to the enemy of ten thousand people, Xiang Yu has a black horse, Ran Min has a dragon BMW, Xiang Yu has a long halberd, Ran Min has a double-edged spear in his left hand and a hook in his right hand, Xiang Yu is called the King of Western Chu by posterity, Ran Min is known as the King of Wu Mourning, the two are equally tyrannical and cruel, like to pit and kill soldiers, both belong to the typical example of courage and unscrupulousness, and die extremely tragically.
In 352 AD, after Ran Min conquered Xiangguo City, he surrendered the beggar army and opened a warehouse to release grain, at that time the Central Plains was in turmoil for more than half a century, and the people had long been deprived of food and clothing, and even Ran Min's army could not eat enough, and Ran Min could only take the army to travel and eat in Changshan County and Zhongshan County.
Ran Min's army and Murong Ke's iron horse met in this way. The number of troops on both sides is not clearly recorded in the history books, but it is certain that Murong Ke's men were mostly cavalry, and Ran Min's men were mostly infantry, and the strength of the troops was at an absolute disadvantage. It is reasonable to say that murong Ke had a great advantage in this battle, and should have defeated Ran Min with the power of destruction and decay.
As the reincarnation of the overlord and the strongest opponent Murong Ke encountered in this life, Ran Min was brave and invincible, from Anxi County to Changshan, Zhongshan to Liantai, Ran Min fought and walked, "ten battles were lost". This was the first and only time in Murong Ke's life that he fought against him.
Although Ran Min fought ten battles and ten victories, after all, his troops were limited and his grain and grass were insufficient, which could only create trouble for Murong Ke and could not affect the entire war situation. In the end, Ran Min decided to go into the dense forest to play to the advantage of his infantry. After Murong Ke was frustrated, he boosted his morale and decided to take the advice of his adviser Gao Kai and lead Ran Min to the plains before he entered the dense forest.
Ran Min is a ten-thousand enemy, and has already made ten decisions. In the face of Murong Ke's army of enticing enemies, Ran Min thought that he would be defeated as before.
But this time in the vast plains, waiting for Ran Min was Murong Ke's chain of horses. Murong Ke selected 5,000 cavalry as a series of horses, gave full play to his cavalry superiority, and fought hard against Ran Min and strangled Ran Wei's army. The ending can be imagined, although Ran Min beheaded more than three hundred people in a row, but in the end, the dragon was exhausted, and Ran Min was captured alive.
In Murong Ke's eyes, "Ran Min was brave and unscrupulous, and a husband and wife were enemies." In fact, whether Ran Min had a plan or not, it was the end of the strong crossbow, the defeat was decided, and he chose to confront Murong Ke head-on when his own foundation was unstable and the country was difficult, which was unwise, and the Battle of Liantai became Ran Min's last glory.
In the Battle of Liantai, Murong Ke gave full play to his cavalry superiority, created a series of horses, and destroyed Ran Min, the most courageous and invincible god of war in the Five Hu and Sixteen Kingdoms.
After defeating the powerful enemy Ran Min, in 356, Murong Ke led an army across the Yellow River and attacked Duan Gong in Qingzhou. Duan Gong was the son of Duan Lan, and took advantage of the fall of Later Zhao and the instability of Ran Min's regime to occupy the city of Guanggu in Qingzhou. After Murong Ke defeated Ran Min, the next thing to destroy was Duan Gong. The two sides fought a great battle at Zishui, Duan Gong was defeated, and his younger brother Duan Qin was captured alive.
Duan Gong fled back to Guanggu City, and Baby City was firmly defended. Guanggu City was founded by the former Zhao general Cao Ling, "surrounded by streams, deep water", Cao Ling has been operating here for more than ten years, and it is a typical city that is easy to defend and difficult to attack. Murong Ke, well aware that the attack on Guanggu City would not be a day's work, tried his best to defy the public opinion and establish a long siege outside Guanggu City to fight a protracted battle with Duan Gong. Murong Ke was well versed in the use of soldiers, and said the following words under Guanggu City:
"In the use of troops, there are those who should be slowed down, and those who are in a hurry, and we must not fail to observe." If the enemy is strong and there is strong reinforcements from outside, and there is a fear of suffering from the abdomen, it is imperative to attack. If I am strong and weak, and have no help from the outside, and those who are strong enough to control them, let them be guarded and wait for their death. The art of war ' ten sieges and five attacks' is exactly what it is called."
Finally, after nearly ten months of besieging Guanggu City, the city ran out of food, and Duan Gong could not break through, so he could only face out and surrender. Murong Ke was a soldier who surrendered without fighting, and the later Wang Yangming praised him as "Ke Ke is not the zhengzheng of Yizhong".
With Murong Ke's efforts, the Former Yan army was invincible and invincible. The Battle of Thorn City first showed its sharp edge, using the strategy of doubtful soldiers; the Battle of Liantai used a series of horses to capture Ran Min alive; and the Siege of Guanggu was well versed in the use of troops, and the soldiers who surrendered without fighting were subdued. Later, Murong Ke and his fifth brother Murong Chui attacked Luoyang and pushed straight for Former Qin, frightening Jian Jian to personally go to the front line to lay out a defense.
Murong Ke advocated tolerance and led the army to be lenient, which was quite similar to the flying general Li Guang. Therefore, Murong Ke was deeply loved by his generals and never lost.
Good warriors have no meritorious deeds. Throughout his lifetime, Murong Ke defeated the goguryeo and Buyeo states, destroyed Ran Wei and the Duan clan, and enabled Murong Xian's former Yan to develop to the peak. Although there were no shocking achievements such as Bai Qi and Huo Qi, and there were no large-scale battles with the powerful former Qin and Eastern Jin Dynasties at that time, Murong Ke's ability to fight wars was definitely the first in history.
Second, for the phase: Willing to be the Duke of Zhou
The Five Hu and Sixteen Kingdoms were a period of great cultural collision, such as Liu Yuan, Shi Le and other Hu people were deeply Sinicized, and the Xianbei Murong clan was no exception. After Murong Xi followed Sima Yi in his crusade against Gongsun Yuan and was made the Prince of Zhiyi, Murong Shi began to gradually Sinicize, and by the time of Murong Ke, he had already become deeply Sinicized.
Murong Ke was influenced by Han culture from an early age, and at the age of fifteen he dabbled in the hundred families of his sons, and when he talked, he could always quote the scriptures and involve the affairs of the jinglun world, and his father Murong Jiaozhi let him command the army and exert his talents.
In 360, Murong Juan became seriously ill and summoned Murong Ketuo to be orphaned on his deathbed. In the same way that Liu Beituo isolated Zhuge Liang's nature of "if the heir can be supplemented, supplemented; if he is not talented, the king can take it upon himself", Murong Juan was also testing Murong Ke. Murong Ke's answer was the same as Zhuge Liang's, "Exhaust the strength of the humerus, be loyal to the Festival of Zhen, and then die."
In the face of such a temptation to be alone, the textbook answer is to weep and show loyalty.
After Murong Juan's death, the young lord Murong Wei succeeded to the throne, and Murong Ke was made a dazai, recording the imperial government. Murong Ke was highly regarded at the time, and many people advised him to establish himself as emperor, including the Taishi Mu Yougen. Murong Chui and Emperor Fuzhen persuaded Murong Ke to kill Mu Yougen, and Murong Ke fully demonstrated his position as chancellor at this time, of course, choosing to forgive him.
As an auxiliary chancellor, Mu Yougen advised Murong Ke to establish himself as emperor, which was not kind, but after Murong Ke refused, he actually ran to the young lord Murong Wei to complain, saying that Murong Ke wanted to rebel. Fortunately, at this time, Murong Wei still had a gap in his understanding and did not listen to the rumors. However, Mu Yougen did not stop and prepared to let Murong Wei withdraw from the Central Plains and return to his hometown of Changli.
Murong Ke, as Zaifu, could not let Mu Yougen continue to make such a fool of himself. After consulting with Murong Jue and others, he played Murong Wei and killed Mu Yougen.
Murong Juan had just died, and he killed the chancellor Mu Yougen, and for a while the people of yan were panicked and feared that a coup would take place. Murong Ke, on the other hand, was very calm, looking as usual, and went out with only one retinue, as if nothing had happened. People were frightened and fearful, and Murong Ke, as Zaifu, led by example and was calm, which calmed people's minds.
During Murong Wei's reign, Murong Kegan was the Duke of Zhou, and when things came to him, he would always consult with another auxiliary chancellor, Murong Jue, even if this Murong Wei was greedy for money, he could only be mediocre. Murong was strict with himself, lenient with others, humble in his heart, knowledge of people and good responsibilities, and truly obeyed people with virtue.
After Murong Juan's death, the Eastern Jin Dynasty originally wanted to take advantage of the chaos and humiliation, and took the opportunity to attack Former Yan, and the eastern Jin dynasty minister at the time, Huan Wen, said that "Murong Ke still exists, and the worry side is big ear.". As long as Murong Ke was there, neither Former Qin Jianjian nor Eastern Jin Huan Wen dared to lightly provoke the border.
On the occasion of Murong Ke's death, he also warned Murong Wei to reuse his fifth brother Murong Chui. Murong Chui was the founding monarch of Later Yan, and his fame was not under Murong Ke, but unfortunately, he lived in Murong Ke's shadow for the first half of his life, and in the second half of his life, he first defected to Former Qin and sent people to the fence, and then he did his best to establish the Later Yan regime. If Murong Wei could listen to Murong Ke's words and reuse Murong Chui, Former Yan would not be destroyed by Murong Jian, and Murong Wei would not become the king of the subjugated country.
Most of the murong family members were junyan people, but the people of the Murong family were equally jealous, and Murong Hao was jealous of his brother Murong Han and forced him to defect to the Xianbei Duan clan; Murong Juan was jealous of his younger brother Murong Chui and forced him to surrender to Former Qin. Perhaps only Murong Ke, who was solemn and respectful and humble, could return to the hopes of all and start well and end well.
It can be said that Murong Ke's death was a watershed moment for Former Yan to turn from strong to weak. Murong Ke brought Former Yan to the peak, and after his death, Former Yan quickly weakened, and died at the hands of Murong Wei.
In the long river of Chinese history, there are very few people who can really go in and out, and Murong Xuangong, the king of Taiyuan, is one of them.