God of War through the ages: Han Xin

Chapter 34 The Betrayed Li Shiqi

Li Shiqi was very happy when he was appreciated by the King of Han, but he was very drunk.

It is not Li Shiqi's responsibility to plan the world and strategize, but recently Li Shiqi has always stretched out his hands to grab Zhang Liang and Han Xin's jobs.What is the reason?In fact, it is easy to understand. At this time, Li Shiqi is over sixty years old, and his life is about to enter the twilight.If he is only a debater and driven by others, his contribution will be far inferior to that of Zhang Liang, Han Xin, especially Han Xin.

Li Shiqi was very proud in his bones. Seeing Han Xin's continuous meritorious service, he was "envious, jealous and hateful", which made Li Shiqi very dissatisfied.In particular, Han Xin defeated Zhao in Jingxing, his power shook the world, and he was about to mobilize his troops to conquer Qi, which was a great stimulus to Li Shiqi.

If Li Shiqi wanted to make great achievements in the field of strategy and break Han Xin's monopoly on credit, there was only one way to go: to get ahead of Han Xin and talk about surrendering to Qi.Liu Bang praised Li Shiqi's plan and applauded him. He didn't expect this old drunkard to have such a beautiful strategy.Li Shiqi's strategy of talking about Qi was adopted by the King of Han, and the next step is to send debaters into Qi to lobby Qi.Of course, it is most suitable for Li Shiqi to complete the task of spitting out lotus flowers. It is also Liu Bang's compliment to Li Shiqi for following him for many years.

Judging from the historical records, Han Xin, the general who stayed in Zhao State, didn't know about Li Shiqi's lobbying for Qi State, and he was still training soldiers foolishly, preparing to fight to the death with the tough Tian Heng.However, when going from Henan to Linzi, the capital of Qi, one must pass through the state of Zhao. Li Shiqi's secrecy of Han Xin's work to such an extent can only show that he deliberately competes with Han Xin. Take Qi State in front.

After arriving in Linzi, Li Shiqi called on Qi Wang Tian Guang and Qi Prime Minister Tian Heng as an envoy of the Han Dynasty.Tian Guang was the son of Tian Rong, the former king of Qi, and the nephew of Tian Heng. He was supported by Tian Heng as the king of Qi.Tian Guang is the king of Qi in name, but the military and political power of Qi is in the hands of Tian Heng. It is said in history that "the government is dictatorial, and the government is determined by the prime minister", similar to Chen Yu's position in Zhao.

After exchanging pleasantries, let's get down to business. Li Shiqi began to paint the old face of Han Wang Liu Bang.In Li Shiqi's mouth, the illustrious military exploits of leaving Chencang, Ding Sanqin, crossing the Yellow River, Pinghedong, and going down to Jingxing to defeat Zhao were all credited to Liu Bang. Han Xin was directly ignored, and Liu Bang was defeated in Pengcheng and fled to Chenggao. "Glorious History" was also blocked by Li Shiqi.

Li Shiqi's strategy of talking about Qi can be summed up in two points:
[-]. Starting from politics, it shows that the king of Han has won the hearts of the world, and Xiang Yu has promised to be the king who enters Guanzhong first, and then kills Emperor Yi, and burns, kills and loots everywhere. Who in the world does not hate Xiang Yu?Xiang Yu is selfish and mean. The generals of the Chu army have made countless contributions, but they are not awarded rewards.Another point is that Xiang Yu likes to remember people's faults, but he doesn't like to remember people's achievements. Qi Guotian brothers and Xiang Yu fought endlessly. With Xiang Yu's narrow mind, he will never forget Qi Guo's disrespect to him. Whenever he has the opportunity, Xiang Yu Will Qi be spared?

Second, starting from the military, exaggerating Liu Bang's military capabilities, and pointing out that the Han State has already occupied a geographical advantage in the war with the Chu State.The Han State occupied the millet of Ao Cang, blocked the danger of Chenggao, guarded the Jin of Baima, and the bank of Du Taihang, and was far from the mouth of Feihu.Chu occupied the land of the four wars in the plain, and Chu was able to defend it, and Han was also able to attack it.

Li Shiqi's analysis was really clear and organized, and he had a two-pronged approach, and he had a very thorough understanding of the situation of the Chu-Han dispute, leaving Tian Heng speechless.In fact, there is another point. Although Li Shiqi did not mention Han Xin in his conversation, Tian Heng knew about Han Xin's preparations to go east in Zhao State.Han Xin's prestige invisibly increased Li Shiqi's confidence. Without Han Xin, with Liu Bang's stinky military ability, Tian Heng would never have taken Li Shiqi as a dish.

Judging from the current situation, Han and Chu are evenly matched, but Han has a geographical advantage.The world is either Chu or Han, and under the circumstances that it is impossible for Qi to unite with Chu, Tian Heng can only choose to stand on Liu Bang's side, and he has no choice.Although Qi and Han didn't have many contacts, they never had any enmity, which also laid the foundation for Qi and Han's cooperation.

Furthermore, there is also the factor of Han Xin.Tian Heng had already made military preparations to face Han Xin, and deployed a large number of troops in Lixia (now Jinan, Shandong), so that generals Hua Wushang and Tian Jieju would stick to the south bank of Tishui.Tian Heng knew how Han Xin flew across the Yellow River when the Wei State's heavy troops gathered in Puban. He couldn't even predict where the Han army would cross the river. Tian Heng had no confidence in defeating Han Xin.

Under Tian Heng's instruction, Qi Wang Tianguang accepted the rhetoric of Han lobbyist Li Shiqi, and expressed his willingness to become a strategic ally of Han to fight against Chu.They also sent people to lobby that Zang Tu, the king of Yan, would submit to Han, while Qi was Han's ally and equal in status. This was Han's respect for Qi, which made Tian Heng very useful.

Now that Han and Qi have become allies, Tian Heng has to make a gesture to express his sincerity.The stubborn Prime Minister of Qi State ordered that the Qi army stationed in Lixia stop guarding against the Han army.On the border between Han and Qi, there will be no soldiers and no fire.The envoy of Qi State set out from Linzi to Henan, and reached a cooperation agreement with Liu Bang, King of Han.

As for the Han envoy Li Shiqi, Tian Heng did not immediately let him return to the country to return to his command, but enjoyed drinking with the drunkard every day.In fact, Tian Heng kept an eye out. Although he had reached a written agreement with Han, the current situation was turbulent and would inevitably change. He kept Li Shiqi as a hostage in disguise, and then observed the movement of Han.

Li Shiqi didn't think of this, all he saw was the golden bottle of fine wine brought out by the servants of Qi State.Mr. Li put his arms around the beautiful maid in one hand, held a bottle in the other, and laughed heartily.I can understand Li Shiqi's excitement. Qi's 72 cities have instantly become Han's indirect territory. Li Shiqi alone deserves the credit, and Han Xin has to stand aside.

Since Li Shiqi went to Qi State with Han Xin behind his back, Han Xin didn't know about it, otherwise he would not have brought the newly trained Han army to the plain (now the Shandong Plain), which is only two hundred miles away from Lixia.It was not until then that Han Xin got the information.Han Xin was stunned, why did no one tell me about Li Shiqi's envoy, which is closely related to him?Could it be that the King of Han was drunk, or was someone deliberately hiding something from him?
Han Xin felt a little unhappy about being left out, but he was still happy for Li Shiqi, who made Qi successful.Li Shiqi said that one of the biggest benefits of going to Qi State to Han Xin is that Han Xin does not have to fight hard with the Qi army. On the one hand, it can ensure the integrity of the team and maintain strong physical strength; Inserting the hinterland of Chu State, completed the northern line encirclement of Chu State in a strategic sense.

Han Xin rubbed his hands excitedly, and he immediately ordered the army to stand by on the spot for a little repair.Han Xin was going to send someone to Linzi to negotiate with Tian Heng about the Han army crossing the border of Qi.After all, Qi is still a sovereign state, and foreign armies passing through without saying hello can easily lead to diplomatic disputes and even wars.

Just as Han Xin was about to pass the envoy into the hall to accept the task of going to Linzi, he suddenly heard someone shout from behind: "General, wait a minute." Han Xin looked back and saw Kuai Che, the counselor.

Kuai Che, from Fan Yang, is also a well-known debater in the world.Kuai Che once served as a lobbyist for Fan Yang to order Xu Gong, and successfully persuaded the military officials of Zhao Wang in the Chen Sheng era, so that the murderous military officials sent a chariot Baicheng to welcome Xu Gong with Hou Yin.Xu Gong returned to the military officials, which played a very good role in leading the surrounding princes. There were more than 30 cities in Yan State and Zhao State who surrendered to the military officials, which can be seen in the storm of Kuai Che.

Kuai Che asked Han Xin: "The general doesn't want to make contributions to the world, so why stop the soldiers in the plain?"

"Don't you know that Mr. Guangye (that is, Li Shiqi) has already said Xia Tianheng? Qi and Han are in harmony, where do I want to use my troops?" Han Xin was puzzled.

"The king of Han ordered the general to send troops to attack Qi, but secretly sent the old man Li to go to the state of Qi like a thief. The general dismisses the soldiers of Qi?" Kuai Che asked again.

Han Xin was at a loss: "No."

Kuai Che moved the mouse's beard with his hands, and smiled ambiguously: "Since there is no edict in the Han Dynasty to stop the generals from striking together, then there is no need for the generals to stop fighting because of Li Shiqi's words. As far as I have heard, Qi has already Dismiss all soldiers, Lixia is empty, there is no one at the river crossing, why don't the general take advantage of the emptiness and go straight to the truth? According to the command flag, Wanfu goes east, Linzi can be settled in the first battle. I kindly remind the general, if you don't want to take credit for it Under Li Shiqi, he must come to Qi with soldiers. Otherwise, Li Shiqi will be the first to equalize Qi. What is the face of the general? When the general defeated Zhao, tens of thousands of people died, and they went through hardships to conquer Fifty cities in the Zhao Kingdom. Li Shiqi is just a lip service, relying on his ability to spit out lotus flowers, he said that Qicheng 72, this achievement is enough to shake the world. Compared with Li Shiqi, the achievements of the generals are not ashamed Faint? And Tian Heng's return to the Han was not due to Li Shiqi's merits, but because Tian Heng was afraid of the great general's prestige. For the merits of Ping Qi, the general should be the first, but let Li Shiqi get his own merit. After that, the world Everyone knows about Li Shiqi in Gaoyang, but who knows about Wushuang Guoshi and Huaiyin Han Xin!"

Kuai Che's last sentence was really cruel!It directly turned Han Xin's previous excitement into silence.

After receiving the news that Li Shiqi said that he was going to Qi, Han Xin was only concerned about being happy for Li Shiqi, but he didn't think about what Kuai Che said at all.Li Shiqi is indeed magnificent, but Han Xin will be forgotten. At least in this matter, Han Xin is sadly reduced to a supporting role, although his contribution is no less than that of the protagonist Li Shiqi.

A majestic general, since he was born, he has been invincible and invincible in every attack. He conquered Qin, Ping Wei and defeated Zhao Shuoyan, shocking the world.But behind this infinite scenery, who knows how much painstaking effort and sweat Han Xin has put into it?Not to mention the unbearable and miserable life before becoming the general of the Han Dynasty.Li Shiqi's mouth alone was enough to instantly dim Han Xin, who had countless auras.

This is intolerable to the proud Han Xin.

Don't say that Han Xin was jealous of the virtuous and capable, and Li Shiqi was jealous of his merits. In this incident, Liu Bang did a very unreliable job, and Li Shiqi could not escape the suspicion of stealing credit.When Liu Bang sent Li Shiqi to Qi State, he should have informed Han Xin in advance instead of asking Han Xin to lead troops for long-distance training.

Li Shiqi knew that Han Xin's army was about to fight against Qi, but he didn't remind Liu Bang that Han Xin should be notified, and from his conversation with Tian Heng, he never mentioned Han Xin's merits, which has already explained the problem.From Li Shiqi's presentation of Qi's strategy to Qi's success, Han Xin was completely kept in the dark, and Liu Bang repeatedly restrained Han Xin, how could Han Xin swallow this breath!
The more Han Xin thought about it, the more annoyed he became, not because he was greedy for merit, but because Liu Bang and Li Shiqi lacked respect for him.Although Han Xin did not belong to the Peiren Group, Liu Bang's most trusted confidant, Han Xin ranked first in Han Guo's development to this day.Is it difficult to get a minimum of respect?

Kuai Che is right, Han Xin can pretend to be ignorant of Li Shiqi's envoy Qi, and raid Qi State when the Qi army has withdrawn Li Xia's guards. Although Li Shiqi will be put to death, military But it is the best choice.

Han Xin also had an additional layer of military strategic considerations. Although Qi became an ally with Han, it was relatively independent and was not under the jurisdiction of Han, so it was possible to rebel against Han at any time.If Han Xin's sneak attack is successful, Han will completely control Qi, and truly complete the strategic encirclement of Chu.Moreover, if Han did not attack Qi, once Chu got Qi, the defense system that Han Xin had worked so hard to build on the northern front would collapse in an instant.

Han Xin decided to follow Kuai Che's strategy.He is a general of the Han Dynasty, and he must consider the overall situation, not personal grievances.As for Li Shiqi's life and death, honor and disgrace, it's up to fate.The general ordered: All the ministries should be ready immediately, take up their spears and halberds, and rush from the plain to the north bank of Lixia's Tishui at the fastest speed, preparing to cross the river and enter Qi.

In October of the fourth year of the Han Dynasty (203 BC), the new year began, and Han Xin believed that he would welcome another victory.

Since the main forces of the Qi army were all in the Qi mainland to the east of Tishui, and there was no Qi army stationed west of Tishui, Han Xin set out from the plain and marched unimpeded all the way, and soon reached the west bank of Tishui.After Tian Heng united with Han, he withdrew Li Xia's guards. Han Xin stood on the west bank and looked across the bank. Sure enough, he didn't find a Qi soldier. Han Xin was very happy.

Under the leadership of Han Xin, the Han army passed through the tears very easily.

Although Qi State has a heavy army stationed under the calendar, it is not much stronger than Qin, Wei, and Zhao's heavy troops, and they are all in a state of leisure and unprepared. Han Xin can easily take down Zhang Han, Wei Bao, Chen Yu, and Tian Heng. How many wins can there be in front of Han Xin?
Judging from historical records, although the Qi army is still stationed in Lixia, it should not be on the south bank of Tishui, because Lixia is also more than ten miles away from Tishui.After the Han army crossed the river, they took a short rest. Han Xin had sent scouts to Lixia to observe the movement of the Qi army in advance. He was waiting for news.

The scout's answer was exactly as Han Xin hoped, Hua Wushang and Tian Jie were also drinking for fun every day, the Qi army was not in combat state at all, and the camp was useless.It seems that this army is more like a huge tourist group.

Very well, Han Xin immediately ordered the army to advance towards Lixia at the fastest speed. He wanted to use this momentum to break into the camp of the Qi army.Because the distance was too close, the Han army rushed into the Qi army's camp amidst the unsuspecting screams of the Qi army, wrapped in the wind speed.

Han Xin has issued an order to wipe out this Qi army, because this is all the capital of Tian Heng's adventures in the rivers and lakes. If this Qi army is destroyed, Qi will be at his fingertips.In Han Xin's northern line strategy, Wei is the head, Zhao is the waist, and Qi is the tail, and this tail is right next to the head of Chu State, so the strategic significance is very important.After controlling Qi, the Han army can go straight to Pengcheng, the capital of Chu. Han Xin will never allow this battle to be lost.

Han Xin led all recruits, perhaps not very proficient in techniques and tactics, but newborn calves are not afraid of tigers, and their fighting spirit is stronger, not as slippery as veterans.The Qi army may be larger in number, but their state is too lazy. They would never have thought that there would be a shameless sneak attack by the Han army under the situation of the Qi and Han alliance, so when they wanted to resume their combat state, it was already too late.

This was a battle without any suspense. The Qi army either died or surrendered. Only a few fish that slipped through the net escaped by chance. The life and death of Hua Wushang and Tian Jie were unknown.

Easy to conquer Lixia, the west gate of Linzi, the capital of Qi, has been slowly pushed open by Han Xin. To the west of Linzi, there is no strong city that Han Xin can't get through.Lixia and Linzi are located in the northernmost part of the hilly area of ​​central and southern Shandong, where the plains are vertical and horizontal, and the distance between the two places is less than three hundred miles, which is convenient for rapid marching.

Han Xin realized that Linzi must be captured as soon as possible, otherwise Tian Heng would be disturbed.In order to survive, Tian Heng is very likely to unite with Chu. Once the Chu army goes north to rescue Qi, the effect of the Han army's raid will be greatly reduced. Therefore, Han Xin must occupy Linzi Xingsheng before Tian Heng can react.

Han Xin rode his horse and galloped, and the Han army advanced in full formation, with a hundred thousand banners as picturesque.

The speed of the Han army was very fast, getting closer and closer to Linzi.

Tian Heng, the Prime Minister of the State of Qi in Linzi City, was too stunned to speak.He trembled slightly, and asked Li Shiqi sharply: "Han Cheng deceived me, but Han Xinbing came!" Li Shiqi's face was also full of astonishment, and he did not expect that Han Xin would come uninvited and destroy his This is a good dish.

Li Shiqi didn't know how to answer Tian Heng, Qi Guo listened to his words and sent Li Xia's soldiers, but Han Xin took advantage of the vacancy.Regardless of whether Han Xin entered the army on purpose or did not know it, from a moral point of view, Li Shiqi did not feel sorry for Qi Guo, and he did see Tian Heng's face constantly changing colors, which was terribly distorted.

Lixia's soldiers vanished in an instant. This was the only heavy army in Qi. Without Lixia's soldiers, what would Tian Heng do against Han Xin?
Tian Heng fixed his eyes on Li Shiqi again, yes, he took this old man as a hostage, forced Han Xin to withdraw his troops, and then quickly asked the Chu army to go north to rescue, Qi still had a chance.Before Li Shiqi could react, he had already been tied up by Tian Heng's warriors.A boiling oil pan exudes a suffocating smell of death under the firewood grill.

Tian Heng didn't call Li Shiqi brothers anymore. He grinned grinningly and asked Li Shiqi a question: "In today's matter, Han has lost to Qi. It wasn't your rhetoric. How could my troops be attacked by Han Xin! I don’t want to embarrass you, as long as you agree to go to the Han army and say to retreat Han Xin’s soldiers and protect Qi, I will let you go back.”

Tian Heng was being stupid again, how did he know that once Li Shiqi was sent back to the Han camp, Li Shiqi would persuade Han Xin to withdraw his troops?But Li Shiqi was more foolish than Tian Heng. He didn't think that this was an absolute escape plan, but he calmly rejected Tian Heng: "Han Xin entered Qi, although he put me to death, but I can't do it." It is beneficial to Han, he did the right thing, and I would do the same if I were changed. I advise you not to be ignorant of current affairs, whether I will die or not, Qi will perish."

Tian Heng was "deceived" by Li Shiqi, and his family was ruined. He gritted his teeth, and suddenly burst into a creepy laugh.I can't beat Han Xin, but before I die, I want you to go to hell to explore the way!Tian Heng ordered the warriors to throw Li Shiqi into the oil pan, and there was a scream immediately.

It was a pity that Li Shiqi died, and Han Xin was half responsible for his death.For the sake of his own fame, Han Xin did not hesitate to let Li Shiqi act as a dead man, and died tragically in the cooking of oil. Han Xin felt ashamed in his conscience.But it was Kuai Che who should be condemned more. It wasn't that he was talking too much, and Li Shiqi wouldn't be like that.

Li Shiqi's generosity is admirable. Based on his experience, he should guess that Han Xin intends to enter the army, but he still defends Han Xin from the standpoint of Han.Because Li Shiqi knew that Han Xin's entry into the army would be beneficial to the Han State militarily.Liu Bang treated Li Shi very well, and he had nothing to repay him. He did a dead end, which can be regarded as repaying Liu Bang's kindness.

Han Xin had already reached the city of Linzi, and Li Shiqi's tragic death greatly stimulated Han Xin. He really didn't expect Tian Heng to be so ruthless, and put Han Xin in a very awkward position.Now that Li Shiqi died for Han Xin, then Han Xin should avenge Li Shiqi. If Tian Heng can't be killed, he must completely conquer Qi.

Tian Heng is really not smart enough in this matter, he can continue to kidnap Li Shiqi as a hostage, which is not conducive to Han Xin's advance.Li Shiqi's death, for Tian Heng, has lost the last means that can effectively check and balance Han Xin, waiting for his end, it goes without saying.

Tian Heng was somewhat self-aware, he knew that he and Han Xin were not on the same level, once he started a war with the Han army, he would be a moth to the flame.Tian Heng now has only one choice: escape from Linzi, defend to the death, and wait for the rescue of the Chu army.

When the Han army was about to reach the city of Linzi, Tian Heng took his nephew Tian Guang and escaped from Linzi like a frightened bird.He didn't know if he would have a chance to return to Linzi after leaving, the capital of the country ruled by the Tian family for generations.However, in order to prevent Tian Heng from being blamed by Han Xin, he let Tian Guang flee to Gaomi, and fled to Bo County (now Tai'an, Shandong) by himself.

Linzi soon fell into the hands of Han Xin.

(End of this chapter)