Zhang Heng, a great scientist of the Eastern Han Dynasty, was praised by Guo Moruo as "such a well-rounded figure" who is "rare in world history", and Zhang Heng's achievements are naturally inseparable from his talent and hard work, but the influence of his grandfather Zhang Kan on him cannot be underestimated.
Zhang Kan was born in Nanyang, but unfortunately, he lost his parents very early, and fortunately, his father left him a huge family property, which was enough for him to live and live without worries.
However, Zhang Kan did not value these things, he was keen to read the history of the scriptures, liked to study the art of war, and had incomparably lofty ambitions and ideals. At the age of sixteen, Zhang Kan ceded the rich family property left by his father to his nephew, and then traveled west to taixue in the capital Chang'an to study.
Taixue was the highest institution of learning in the country at that time, gathering talents from all over the world, including the later Guangwu Emperor Liu Xiu.
Although Zhang Kan was the youngest of his classmates, he was not only outstanding in his studies, but also had excellent character, and was respected by everyone as a "holy child". Liu Xiu was particularly appreciative of him, and often talked with him about the past and the present, and exchanged views with him.
After Liu Xiu ascended the throne and proclaimed the emperor to establish the Eastern Han Dynasty, Zhang Kan accepted the imperial conscription to serve as Langzhong, and a few years later he was appointed as the Taishou of Shu Commandery (蜀郡太守), assisting Sima Wu Han in his conquest of Gongsun Shu( 宛蜀). In this major battle, Zhang Kan fully demonstrated his literary talent and martial strategy, and made great contributions to the great cause of the unification of the Eastern Han Dynasty.
Gongsun Shu was Liu Xiu's strongest opponent at that time, he ruled Bashu for many years, his soldiers were strong and strong, and he was quite powerful, while Wu Han was one of the most powerful generals under Liu Xiu, invincible and invincible, and what kind of hard bones could not help him.
When Zhang Kan led 7,000 cavalry to the outskirts of Chengdu, Wu Han, who had been with Gongsun Shu for several months, was preparing to retreat, because the remaining military food could only last for seven days. Zhang Kan knew that Gongsun Shu's Shu army, like the Han army, was already at the end of the crossbow, and whoever could hold out until the end was the victor, so he suggested that Wu Han should not withdraw his troops, and gave a trick to show weakness and lure the enemy and then surround and annihilate him.
As Zhang Kan expected, Gongsun Shu led the elite Shu army out of the city to pursue the retreating Han army, only to be ambushed and killed by the turtle caught in the Wu Han urn, so that Shu land was successfully incorporated into the territory of the Han Dynasty.
During his two years as the Taishou of Shu County, Zhang Kan cared for the people, loved the soldiers, and devoted himself to the peace and development of Shu. There is no one in Shudi who does not support him, and everyone wants to make a name for him, and everyone is willing to serve him.
When the unified Shu land first entered Chengdu, the treasures in Gongsun Shu's treasury were piled up, and Zhang Kan could leave an inexhaustible wealth for his descendants to enjoy at will, but he recorded those treasures one by one and reported them to the imperial court, and never moved his selfish heart.
Two years later, when Zhang Kan returned to the capital Luoyang at the end of his term of office to report to the Guangwu Emperor Liu Xiu, his car was just a broken and broken carriage, and the luggage on the car was just some clothes and bedding.
Emperor Guangwu assigned Zhang Kan more difficult tasks and a greater platform for him to display his talents, and he was appointed as the Taishou of Yuyang, taking on the historical responsibility of defending the northern frontier against the Xiongnu.
Yuyang is now Beijing and the eastern part of Hebei, when it was often invaded by the Xiongnu. Some treacherous villains also took advantage of the opportunity to cause trouble, colluding with the Xiongnu to harm the people, and as a result, the people of Yuyang County were panicked and the people were not happy. After Zhang Kan arrived at his post, on the one hand, he patrolled around to arrest the Han traitors who had lured wolves into the house; on the other hand, he trained cavalry and was always ready to fight to the death with the Xiongnu Iron Horse.
Zhang Kan's heart is for the people, he loves the people like a son, the rewards and punishments are clear, the army is well governed, and the officers and soldiers and the people are willing to follow him and use him. With the support of the common people, Zhang Kan's army became more and more courageous in the confrontation with the Huns, and the Xiongnu cavalry no longer dared to provoke across the border.
The once invincible Xiongnu leader naturally refused to concede defeat and gathered 10,000 cavalry to launch an attack on Yuyang City. Zhang Kan, who had already made preparations for a counterattack, was not afraid, and led thousands of iron horses out of the city to meet the enemy.
Zhang Kan was calm in the face of an enemy army several times larger than his own, and his command was determined, and he finally beat the Xiongnu to a great defeat, and the northeast border was peaceful and peaceful for several years, and the people were happy.
After restoring peace in Yuyang, Zhang Kan again focused his main energy on developing the economy and enriching the people's prosperity, and he encouraged the people in Hunu County (in present-day Shunyi District, Beijing) to open up more than 100,000 acres of rice fields, so that thousands of people gradually lived a rich and solid life.
In order to praise Zhang Kan's virtues, the people of Yuyang originally sang such a song -- "Mulberry has no branches, the ears of wheat are two different, Zhang Jun is the government, and the joy is unbearable."
"Two ears of wheat" means that a plant of wheat grows two ears of wheat, which are used by posterity to praise Guotai Min'an and outstanding achievements, while "happiness is unsupportable" has become a well-known idiom.
When you use this idiom, you will definitely not think that it comes from Zhang Kan, the grandfather of the great scientist Zhang Heng!
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