Preface
During the Three Kingdoms period, there was a battle that not only changed the outcome of Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition, but also affected the future prospects of the entire Shu Han. This is known as the "Battle of the Street Pavilion".
What happened in this battle? What kind of stories did the protagonists who participated in it experience? And what impact did their choices have on the situation in the three countries?
Chapter 1 Zhuge Liang's Dream of the Northern Expedition
In the spring of 228 AD, Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of Shu Han, once again embarked on the journey of the Northern Expedition. As a generation of military wizards, Zhuge Liang is full of confidence and expectation for this Northern Expedition.
In his opinion, this Northern Expedition will not only be able to recover the territory that once belonged to the Han Dynasty, but also realize the grand ideal of "reviving the Han Dynasty and returning it to the old capital". After all, as an emerging regime, Cao Wei's ruling foundation was still quite fragile, and once Zhuge Liang's army arrived in Chang'an, Cao Wei's legitimacy would probably be difficult to maintain.
So, Zhuge Liang carefully deployed, mobilized elite troops, and pointed directly at the important place on the northwest border of Cao Wei - Jieting. It is not only geographically important, connecting the main road to Chang'an, but also the only way for Zhuge Liang to attack Guanzhong
In order to ensure the success of this Northern Expedition, Zhuge Liang deliberately selected a young and promising general, Ma Yan, to serve as the main general of the Battle of Jieting. In Zhuge Liang's view, Ma Jian is "talented and good at military strategy", and he is deeply valued by himself, and he is a talent that can be created.
It's just that Zhuge Liang probably didn't expect that Ma Yan's performance would bring this key battle that might have changed the pattern of the Three Kingdoms to a tragic end.
Chapter 2 Ma Tan's self-inflicted cleverness
When Ma Tan led the Shu army to Jieting, he did not follow Zhuge Liang's deployment and set up a large camp in the middle of the road. On the contrary, he cleverly brought all his troops to the nearby Nanshan Mountain and stationed them.
Ma Tan's reason was very simple, he found that the terrain of Nanshan was dangerous, and if he was stationed here, it would be in line with the "condescending" combat advantage in the Art of War. Therefore, he resolutely refused Wang Ping's dissuasion and insisted on placing the army on Nanshan.
This decision is undoubtedly a departure from Zhuge Liang's strategic deployment. Zhuge Liang's original plan was to let Ma Jian camp in the middle of the road and directly block the footsteps of Cao Wei's reinforcements. And now, Ma Tan has abandoned this key strategic point, and instead chose a high ground that is not conducive to defense.
Soon, Cao Wei's coach Zhang He discovered Ma Yan's mistake. He quickly led his army to surround Nanshan, where Ma Jian was located, and first cut off the water source for Ma Tan's army. In the absence of water, Ma Tan's army soon fell into a desperate situation.
At this moment, Zhang He launched a fierce attack. Faced with such a situation, Ma Jian finally realized his mistake, but it was too late. The Shu army was defeated and retreated under Zhang He's onslaught, and finally suffered a complete rout.
This battle of Jieting ended in this way with the crushing defeat of the Shu army. Ma Yan's self-inflicted cleverness not only dealt a heavy blow to Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition plan, but also brought severe challenges to Shu Han's future prospects.
Chapter 3: Zhuge Liang's Disappointment
For Zhuge Liang, the defeat in the Battle of Jieting was undoubtedly a heavy blow. As the chief architect of this Northern Expedition, he originally thought that Ma Jian would be able to firmly guard the street pavilion in accordance with his own deployment, so as to create favorable conditions for the subsequent attack.
But reality gave Zhuge Liang a resounding slap in the face. Ma Yan's self-inflicted cleverness not only caused the Shu army to suffer a crushing defeat in Jieting, but also made all the results of Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition come to naught. The area of the three counties, which had already surrendered, returned to Cao Wei's control again.
Zhuge Liang had to take thousands of families and retreat to Hanzhong in a hurry. This most promising Northern Expedition was declared a failure. Since then, Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition has never made greater progress.
For such a result, Zhuge Liang was undoubtedly full of disappointment and anger in his heart. As a military wizard of a generation, his carefully planned Northern Expedition plan fell short because of the stupid decision of a novice general.
However, Zhuge Liang did not give up. He knew that in order to realize the grand ideal of "reviving the Han dynasty and returning it to the old capital", it was necessary to continue to promote the Northern Expedition. So, he began to prepare for the Second Northern Expedition, hoping to make up for this defeat.
It's just that Zhuge Liang probably didn't expect that the influence of the Battle of Street Pavilion would last longer than he imagined. This battle not only changed the outcome of Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition, but also became an important criterion for later generations to judge Ma Yan.
Chapter 4 Zhang He's Opportunity
For Cao Wei, the victory in the Battle of Jieting was undoubtedly a major gain. As one of Cao Wei's "five good generals", Zhang He, this battle was undoubtedly a great victory for him.
In this battle, Zhang He gave full play to his military talents. He not only quickly discovered Ma Tan's tactical mistakes, but also decisively took measures to cut off the water source and encircle Nanshan. In the end, under Zhang He's fierce attack, the Shu army suffered a complete rout.
This victory not only further consolidated Zhang He's position in Cao Wei's army, but also made his position in Zhuge Liang's heart more important. As a generation of military wizards, Zhuge Liang has always been in awe of Zhang He's military talents. The victory in the Battle of Jieting further strengthened Zhang He's position in Zhuge Liang's heart.
For Zhang, this victory is undoubtedly an important opportunity. As an important general of Cao Wei, he was not only able to further enhance his prestige militarily, but also to obtain more resources and support politically.
However, Zhang He also knew that behind this victory was the failure of Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition plan. As a generation of military wizards, once Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition plan succeeded, it would undoubtedly have a huge impact on Cao Wei's rule.
Therefore, Zhang He knew that he must continue to be vigilant and be ready to deal with Zhuge Liang's next Northern Expedition at any time. Only in this way can Cao Wei's rule be maintained.
Chapter 5: The Tragedy of Ma Tan
For Ma Tan, the defeat in the Battle of Jieting was undoubtedly a huge blow. As a young general specially selected by Zhuge Liang, he should have shown his skills in this key battle and made great contributions to Shu Han's Northern Expedition plan.
But reality gave Ma Tan a heavy slap in the face. His self-acting cleverness not only caused the Shu army to suffer a crushing defeat in Jieting, but also made all the results of Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition come to naught. Such a result undoubtedly made Zhuge Liang feel disappointed and angry.
As a result, Ma Tan finally paid the price with his life for his mistakes. Zhuge Liang ordered him to be imprisoned and eventually sentenced to death. Such an ending undoubtedly made Ma Jian a typical example of later generations judging "eyes and masters".
However, we cannot simply define Ma Jian as an incompetent general. In Zhuge Liang's view, Ma Tan is a young man who is "talented and good at military strategy", and he is deeply valued by himself. This is also why Zhuge Liang deliberately chose him to be the main general of the Battle of Jieting.
However, the problem with Ma Tan is that he lacks actual combat experience and does not have a sufficient understanding of the complexity of war. In the face of Zhuge Liang's carefully designed strategic deployment, he insisted on being smart, and finally caused a fiasco.
Such a result undoubtedly made Ma Jian a typical example of "talking on paper" in later stories. But we can't ignore that the tragedy of Ma Jian also reflects the fragility of Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition plan.
Chapter 6: Zhuge Liang's regrets
For Zhuge Liang, the defeat in the Battle of Jieting was undoubtedly a heavy blow. As the chief architect of this Northern Expedition, he originally thought that Ma Jian would be able to firmly guard the street pavilion in accordance with his own deployment, so as to create favorable conditions for the subsequent attack.
But reality gave Zhuge Liang a resounding slap in the face. Ma Yan's self-inflicted cleverness not only caused the Shu army to suffer a crushing defeat in Jieting, but also made all the results of Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition come to naught. The area of the three counties, which had already surrendered, returned to Cao Wei's control again.
Such a result undoubtedly made Zhuge Liang feel disappointed and regretful. As a military wizard of a generation, his carefully planned Northern Expedition plan fell short because of the stupid decision of a novice general.
However, Zhuge Liang did not give up. He knew that in order to realize the grand ideal of "reviving the Han dynasty and returning it to the old capital", it was necessary to continue to promote the Northern Expedition. So, he began to prepare for the Second Northern Expedition, hoping to make up for this defeat.
It's just that Zhuge Liang probably didn't expect that the influence of the Battle of Street Pavilion would last longer than he imagined. This battle not only changed the outcome of Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition, but also became an important criterion for later generations to judge Ma Yan.
For Zhuge Liang, this is undoubtedly a pity. As a military wizard of a generation, his Northern Expedition plan should have been able to change the pattern of the Three Kingdoms, but in the end, it fell short due to the wrong decision of a novice general. Such a result undoubtedly made Zhuge Liang feel extremely regretful and disappointed.
However, Zhuge Liang did not give up. He knew that in order to realize the grand ideal of "reviving the Han dynasty and returning it to the old capital", it was necessary to continue to promote the Northern Expedition. So, he began to prepare for the Second Northern Expedition, hoping to make up for this defeat.
It's just that Zhuge Liang probably didn't expect that the influence of the Battle of Street Pavilion would last longer than he imagined. This battle not only changed the outcome of Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition, but also became an important criterion for later generations to judge Ma Yan.
epilogue
What kind of impact did the Battle of Jieting have on the situation in the Three Kingdoms? This battle not only changed the outcome of Zhuge Liang's First Northern Expedition, but also affected the future prospects of the entire Shu Han Dynasty.
Ma Yan's self-inflicted cleverness dealt a heavy blow to Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition plan, and Zhang He's witty response won Cao Wei an important victory. Such a result undoubtedly made Zhuge Liang feel disappointed and regretful.
However, Zhuge Liang did not give up. He knew that in order to realize the grand ideal of "reviving the Han dynasty and returning it to the old capital", it was necessary to continue to promote the Northern Expedition. So, he began to prepare for the Second Northern Expedition, hoping to make up for this defeat.
It's just that Zhuge Liang probably didn't expect that the influence of the Battle of Street Pavilion would last longer than he imagined. This battle not only changed the outcome of Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition, but also became an important criterion for later generations to judge Ma Yan.
In the end, what are the unsolved mysteries of the Battle of Jieting? How will Zhuge Liang's Northern Expedition plan be interpreted? Let us continue to explore the truth of this period of history and unveil the veil of this legend of the Three Kingdoms.