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Text: Yanyan
Edited by Yeon-yeon
Preface
On the shore of Poyang Lake, a grand battle rolled up the smoke clouds of war. Chen Youliang held 600,000 male divisions and shocked Jiangnan, but he was unexpectedly defeated by Zhu Yuanzhang, who was sparsely numbered and seemingly weak.
What is the profound inside story hidden at this turning point in history? Was it a tactical mistake, or is it an unknown force behind the balance of power?
How did Chen Youliang lose the throne of victory on the criss-crossing battlefield? How did Zhu Yuanzhang reverse the situation and become the master of history?
Heroes of Troubled Times: The beacon of the Red Turban Army's uprising
In 1351, an uprising broke out on the land of China that changed the course of history, the Red Turban Rebellion. The Yuan Dynasty ruled for nearly a hundred years, but its brutal rule and heavy taxes made the people miserable.
In this context, Han Shantong and others held high the banner of the uprising, which quickly received a response from people everywhere. The flames of the uprising spread rapidly, and Guo Zixing in the north joined them. However, the development of the uprising was not without its challenges.
In 1355, Han Shantong's son inherited the leadership and established a regime against the Yuan dynasty. But as time went on, the internal contradictions of the Red Turban Army intensified.
In this turbulent era, two figures destined to shine on the stage of history quietly rose - Zhu Yuanzhang and Chen Youliang. Zhu Yuanzhang was born poor and once begged for a living, and later joined Guo Zixing's uprising.
His talent was quickly appreciated by Guo Zixing, and he was not only entrusted with important tasks, but also married Guo Zixing's righteous daughter. Zhu Yuanzhang has always been grateful to Guo Zixing, and when Guo Zixing was captured by Zhao Jun, he desperately went to the rescue.
On the other hand, Chen Youliang also made a name for himself in the Red Turban Army. His military prowess and ambition were equally remarkable, and he soon became a vassal of one side.
Ying Tian's Rise: Zhu Yuanzhang's Strategic Vision
In 1356, Zhu Yuanzhang seized a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. At that time, Zhang Shicheng was doing his best to deal with the Yuan army, and he had no time to take care of anything else. Zhu Yuanzhang was keenly aware that this was an excellent opportunity to expand his power.
Although Zhu Yuanzhang's strength was far inferior to Zhang Shicheng and others at that time, he knew that time was running out. The fall of the Yuan Dynasty was only a matter of time, and once the Yuan Dynasty fell, the various princes would inevitably fight more fiercely.
Zhu Yuanzhang decided to strike first. He led his army to attack Jiqing (present-day Nanjing), and although he was unsuccessful the first time, Zhu Yuanzhang was not discouraged.
After repeated attempts, he finally captured Jiqing after several attacks and renamed it Yingtianfu. The occupation of this strategic place laid a solid foundation for Zhu Yuanzhang's future rise.
Zhu Yuanzhang is well versed in the way of governing the country. He vigorously developed the economy in Yingtianfu, recruited talents, built water conservancy projects, and accumulated military supplies. These measures not only strengthened his strength, but also won the hearts and minds of the people.
Enter the Dragon: The first confrontation between Zhu Yuanzhang and Chen Youliang
With the expansion of power, the contradiction between Zhu Yuanzhang and Chen Youliang deepened day by day. In 1357, the two men came into direct conflict for the first time. In this war, Zhu Yuanzhang showed outstanding military talent and strategic vision, and won a complete victory.
However, Chen Youliang did not give in. He quickly regrouped, made a detour to attack Taiping, and proclaimed himself emperor there. This move is undoubtedly a blatant provocation against Zhu Yuanzhang.
Chen Youliang thought that Zhu Yuanzhang was at the end of his crossbow, so he united with Zhang Shicheng to attack Ying Tianfu again. Faced with the dilemma of being attacked from both sides, Zhu Yuanzhang convened his ministers to discuss countermeasures.
At the suggestion of the strategist Liu Ji, Zhu Yuanzhang decided to concentrate his main force on Chen Youliang, and skillfully used Chen Youliang's friend Kang Maocai. Kang Maocai wrote a letter to Chen Youliang to induce him to come to the agreed place.
Although Chen Youliang was suspicious, he still went to the appointment. This decision made him fall into a trap carefully designed by Zhu Yuanzhang and suffered a fiasco. Zhu Yuanzhang took advantage of the victory to pursue, occupied Xinzhou and other regions, and further expanded his sphere of influence.
The Siege of Hongdu: Chen Youliang's fatal mistake
In 1363, the situation changed again. Zhang Shicheng led the army to attack King Xiaoming, and Zhu Yuanzhang had to lead the main force to support. The news reached the ears of Chen Youliang, who was in Wuchang, and he thought it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Chen Youliang immediately mobilized an army of 600,000 and prepared to capture Hongdu (present-day Nanchang) in one fell swoop. He believed that with his superiority in troops, it should be easy to capture Hongdu, which was weakly defended.
However, Chen Youliang underestimated the ability of the defender Zhu Wenzheng and the fortifications of Hongdu. Zhu Wen is Zhu Yuanzhang's nephew and inherited his uncle's military talent. He used Hongdu's strong city defense and advanced firearms to stubbornly resist Chen Youliang's attack.
More than two months have passed, and Chen Youliang's army has never been able to break through Hongdu. This protracted battle not only consumed a large number of Chen Youliang's troops and materials, but also gave Zhu Yuanzhang a chance to breathe. When Zhu Yuanzhang learned the news of the siege of Hongdu, he immediately led his army back to help.
Chen Youliang realized that he was in a difficult situation. If you continue to storm Hongdu, you are likely to be attacked on your back. In desperation, he could only choose to retreat to Poyang Lake and prepare for a decisive battle with Zhu Yuanzhang.
The decisive battle of Poyang Lake: Zhu Yuanzhang's reversal victory
The Battle of Poyang Lake was a key battle between Zhu Yuanzhang and Chen Youliang in their struggle for world domination. Both sides were well prepared for the battle. Chen Youliang relied on the superiority of troops to build a large number of warships and train sailors.
His ships were tall and mighty, each one resembling a moving fortress, and even had cavalry on board. In contrast, Zhu Yuanzhang's preparation seemed a little hasty.
But he was not discouraged by this, but took full advantage of the terrain and developed a unique set of tactics. He ordered a large number of small ships to be built, equipped with firearms, and formed a flexible and mobile water force.
At the beginning of the battle, Chen Youliang gained the upper hand by virtue of his superiority in strength. However, Zhu Yuanzhang did not flinch, but calmly observed the battle situation. He noticed that although Chen's fleet was large, the ships were too closely aligned.
This reminded Zhu Yuanzhang of the story of Zhou Yu's burning of Cao Cao's warship in the Battle of Chibi. Zhu Yuanzhang decided to repeat the old trick and use fire to deal with Chen Youliang's fleet. He ordered a large number of small boats filled with gunpowder and flammable materials, and filled them with scarecrows in armor.
While waiting for the northeast wind to rise, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the boat to be set on fire. The fireboat pounced on Chen Youliang's big ship like ants. Although Chen Youliang's building ships are sturdy, they are helpless in the face of these small fireboats. The flames soon spread, and the entire lake became a sea of fire.
Many of Chen's generals, including his younger brothers, were killed in the fire. This fire attack completely turned the tide of the battle. Chen Youliang's sailors suffered heavy losses and had to begin to retreat.
However, an even bigger blow is yet to come. Because Chen Youliang was suspicious of his subordinates and often killed heroes, many generals were already dissatisfied with him. Seeing that the war situation was unfavorable, these generals rebelled one after another and took refuge in Zhu Yuanzhang.
Chen's situation is becoming more and more difficult. He tried to break through, but Zhu Yuanzhang had already laid a net and blocked all his retreats. In an attempt to break out, Chen Youliang was unfortunately shot in the head by a stray arrow and died on the spot.
In this way, this once powerful hero finally fell within striking distance of victory. The victory in the Battle of Poyang Lake cleared the biggest obstacle for Zhu Yuanzhang to unify the world.
After that, he successively defeated Zhang Shicheng and Fang Guozhen and other separatist forces. In 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne in Nanjing, established the Ming Dynasty, and opened a new chapter in Chinese history.
epilogue
The Battle of Poyang Lake was not only a decisive battle that changed the direction of Chinese history, but also a contest of wisdom and strategy.
Zhu Yuanzhang, with his excellent strategic vision, flexible tactical use and accurate grasp of timing, finally defeated Chen Youliang, who had superior forces.
This victory not only laid the foundation for Zhu Yuanzhang to unify the world, but also demonstrated that in the troubled times, what can really achieve hegemony is not only the number of troops, but also the wisdom and foresight of the leader.