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Chapter 279: The Hero in Troubled Times

Deng Ai lost his father at an early age, his family was poor, and he worked as a cowherd when he was young. However, Deng Ai set great ambitions from an early age and was determined to change his destiny through struggle.

In the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms era when family background was important, Deng Ai was more like a small town youth who was determined to change his destiny.

In the spring of 210 AD, Cao Cao issued an order to seek talents. This was quite bold at the time because Cao Cao's "selecting people based on their talents" was contrary to the mainstream social concept.

It was the relatively fair talent selection environment continued by Cao Cao that gave Deng Ai the opportunity to realize his personal value. With his own talents, Deng Ai was recommended as a bachelor of the Diannong Duwei, which enabled him to serve as some lower-level officials and enter the system.

For people of humble origins, this is already a good way to change their status.

However, Deng Ai was born with a defect - stuttering. The then Diannong Duwei, the chief executive of the Tuntian District, looked down on Deng Ai and assigned him to be a minor official guarding straw.

Born in poverty, it is not easy to stand out. In this way, Deng Ai spent nearly 20 years in a dull manner. But talented people are destined to be extraordinary. By chance, he went to Luoyang to report on the situation of military farming and met the Grand Commandant Sima Yi.

Sima Yi had a keen eye and greatly appreciated this young man and promoted him. Meeting Sima Yi could be said to be a major turning point in Deng Ai's life. From then on, he was no longer ordinary.

Deng Ai's military ability is often praised, but his talent for governing the country is often overlooked. After being appreciated by Sima Yi, he began to participate in the planning of various major strategies of the Wei State and wrote policies such as "On Crossing the River".

During this period, he mainly proposed two strategic ideas: first, to open canals and develop water conservancy; second, to implement large-scale farming in Huaibei and Huainan. Deng Ai pointed out sharply that the local land was fertile, but it could not be fully utilized due to lack of water.

He advocated digging canals, diverting water for irrigation, storing military food, and opening up waterways for transport.

These two policies greatly enhanced Wei's national strength and provided strong logistical support for Wei's subsequent attacks on Shu and Wu. It can be said that many of Deng Ai's political propositions played a big role in the fact that Cao Wei regime was able to remain the strongest among the Three Kingdoms.

Deng Ai was not only good at writing but also good at fighting. In the early days, when he fought against Zhuge Ke of the Eastern Wu in Huainan, he repelled the enemy's attack and made him return empty-handed.

In addition, he also suppressed Wang Ling's rebellion, showing his superior military talent. At the age of 46, Deng Ai was officially appointed as the governor of Nan'an, guarding the border with Shu.

After that, he began a game of chess with the famous Shu Han general Jiang Wei. Although Deng Ai was far less famous than Jiang Wei, he often anticipated the enemy's moves and always took the initiative on the battlefield during the battle between Wei and Shu.

Deng Ai never lost a single battle against Jiang Wei. In the Battle of Duangu, Deng Ai defeated the Shu army led by Jiang Wei, causing numerous casualties. This battle was also the worst defeat for Jiang Wei in all his Northern Expeditions.

On the other hand, this failure also dealt a heavy blow to Jiang Wei's reputation within Shu Han, and became an important opportunity for the rise of the peace faction in the Shu Han court.

In the second year, Deng Ai wrote the famous article "On Hating the Country" which has been passed down through the ages, which also laid the groundwork for the failure of Jiang Wei's Northern Expedition. Judging from the battle of Duangu alone, Deng Ai's military ability is naturally beyond doubt, and he outperformed Jiang Wei.

However, the victory at Duangu was not the end of his career. The campaign to destroy Shu was the pinnacle of Deng Ai's military career. The "Art of War" by Sun Tzu says: "In any battle, the right tactics should be used to win. Therefore, those who are good at using the unexpected tactics are infinite like the heavens and the earth, and inexhaustible like the rivers and streams."

A true top military strategist often wins by surprise. Deng Ai was good at using cavalry, and his tactics were unpredictable, making it difficult for his opponents to figure out what was going on, so that he could be invincible and bring peace to those he touched.

For example, in the Battle of Yanyu, Zhao She, a famous general of the Warring States Period, faced with the powerful offensive of the Qin State, adopted the strategy of creating illusions and winning by surprise, and finally successfully lifted the siege of Yanyu.

Another example is the masterpiece of Chairman Mao’s military career - the Battle of Crossing the Chishui River Four. He took advantage of the situation and faced powerful enemies with great ease, and found the most suitable path in the dilemma. It is a model of winning by surprise.

In the battle to destroy Shu, Jiange was known as "one man guarding the pass, ten thousand men cannot open it", which made Zhong Hui unable to take it after a long siege and at a loss. The Wei army was running out of food and was ready to retreat.

While the main forces of the two armies were in a stalemate, Deng Ai led his elite cavalry to make a large-scale roundabout penetration in depth, bypassing the frontal defense of the Shu army and heading straight for the Shu capital Chengdu, forcing the Shu ruler Liu Chan to surrender to Deng Ai.

More than 1000 years later, on the battlefields of World War II, the famous German general Manstein also reproduced this scene.

At that time, facing the French Maginot Line, which was known as "impregnable", he sent a surprise attack through the Ardennes Mountains, which was considered insurmountable, and successfully launched a blitzkrieg on the French capital, Paris. The Gallic rooster surrendered, and the Maginot Line became a laughing stock.

Deng Ai's sneak crossing of Yinping was a famous surprise attack in China's war history and was recorded in history as a masterpiece of military history.

After Deng Ai pacified Shu, he made great achievements. After he entered the city, there was no looting, he appeased the surrendered people, and let them take up their posts and jobs. He was supported by the people of Shu and had the style of a Confucian general.

However, as the saying goes, "A gentleman is concerned with righteousness, while a villain is concerned with profit." The jealousy of villains is often a fate that many famous generals cannot escape. For example, Zhou Yafu, a famous general in the Han Dynasty, died because of a villain's frame-up.

In 264 AD, Deng Ai, who had made great contributions, was slandered by Zhong Hui, suspected by Sima Zhao and was taken into custody, and was finally unjustly killed.

So why did Deng Ai end up in such a tragic situation? And why is he not as well-known as Jiang Wei? Many people attribute Deng Ai's death to his many problems before and after the surrender of Shu Han, such as "acting on his own initiative and beheading before reporting", which angered Sima Zhao.

However, this was not Deng Ai's fault, but the difference between the kings. Deng Ai's actions were actually based on the examples of Liu Xiu and Deng Yu during the founding of the Eastern Han Dynasty. But many people believe that the two environments and situations were different.

If you think about it carefully, firstly, Sima Zhao was far from Liu Xiu's mind and ability; secondly, Deng Ai was born in a humble family and was far from Deng Yu's trust from Liu Xiu. Therefore, even if Deng Ai, who held military power, did not have these problems, facing the extremely suspicious Sima Zhao, it would be difficult for him to have a good end.

Later generations commented on Deng Ai, saying: "Deng Ai was a fierce warrior, but he was not very cunning when it came to conspiracy and intrigue, and was easily deceived and plotted against by others."

This shows that Deng Ai was a very honest and straightforward person. Sima Zhao did not trust him, so he appointed Zhong Hui as the commander-in-chief to pacify Shu, and he also recruited soldiers because of his own fault. Talking about how much he could achieve by rebelling is nothing but a pipe dream.

In addition, for a long time, Shu Han has been the orthodox in the minds of the vast majority of Chinese people. Even now, the spread of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" has made Shu Han still have a huge number of fans.

Because of this, Deng Ai, who destroyed Shu Han, naturally labeled himself as a villain. From the perspective of history and culture, Deng Ai's position must be very embarrassing.

Because of this, although Jiang Wei, who fought with Deng Ai many times, lost more than he won and was not entered into the Temple of Martial Arts, his historical presence is stronger than Deng Ai's because he stood on the so-called "orthodox" side.

Looking back at Deng Ai's life, although he died unjustly in the end, heroes are often extraordinary. Perhaps Deng Ai has long become the dust of history, and is not as famous as Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang, but this does not affect his splendid history and our respect.

Deng Ai's life is actually the life of most of us ordinary people. As a "small town test-taker", he started from the bottom, experienced hardships, worked hard, and made achievements. Even if he eventually declined, he did not change his original intention. Such a person is more worthy of our remembrance.

[Historical knowledge of the Three Kingdoms during the late Han Dynasty, the tyranny that brought disaster to the country]

What is a hero?

A hero usually refers to a tyrannical and ambitious person. The person we are going to talk about today was the one who, during the chaotic period of the late Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms, overwhelmed a group of heroes such as Huangfu Song and eventually seized power in the Han Dynasty.

Although he was called a "traitor", he was still a great hero by relying on power and seizing opportunities. He was Dong Zhuo, the Grand Tutor and Marquis of Mei in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Dong Zhuo, also known by his courtesy name Zhongying, was a native of Minxian County, Gansu Province. In works on the Three Kingdoms, Dong Zhuo is often portrayed as a sturdy, mean, and cruel traitor.

However, the image of Dong Zhuo in history is quite different from what we have in mind. He grew up in a powerful family in Liangzhou, northwest China. When he was young, he was a young knight-errant with great strength and superb martial arts. He could shoot arrows with both hands while riding a horse.

As an adult, Dong Zhuo served as an official in the Longxi County government, responsible for local security. At that time, the Hu people often harassed the border and robbed the people. Dong Zhuo led his troops to defeat the Hu people and gained a lot of gains. He was called one of the "Three Mings of Liangzhou" and became a general of the famous general Duan Jiong in the late Han Dynasty.

Duan Xing recommended Dong Zhuo to the imperial court because of his merits, and Dong Zhuo began to rise from then on.

At the end of the reign of Emperor Huan of the Han Dynasty, Dong Zhuo served as a military commander under another famous general, Zhang Wen, one of the "Three Great Masters of Liangzhou". He fought against the people of Hanyang and made many military achievements. Later, he was recommended by the Prime Minister Yuan Kui (Yuan Shao's uncle) to serve as the governor of Bingzhou and the governor of Hedong. He participated in the suppression of the Yellow Turban Rebellion and the Yangzhou Rebellion. Although he had both victories and defeats, Dong Zhuo gradually became a powerful general with a large army in the late Eastern Han Dynasty.

It is necessary to introduce the personnel composition of Dong Zhuo's army here. Dong Zhuo had one of the most elite troops in the Eastern Han Empire. The elite troops of the Eastern Han Dynasty were mostly concentrated in the frontiers, and among the frontier garrisons, the Northwest Army was the most elite.

This is because most of the border wars during the Eastern Han Dynasty for more than a hundred years broke out in the northwest. The Eastern Han court adopted the strategy of "using barbarians to control barbarians", so there were many combative Qiang cavalry in the northwest army.

However, many people in the court felt that Dong Zhuo was too domineering and that letting him take charge of the military power was like raising a tiger to harm oneself. Emperor Ling of Han therefore issued an edict ordering Dong Zhuo to come to the capital to take up the nominal position of Shaofu.

In stereotypes, Dong Zhuo is often seen as a brave but reckless man, but in history, Dong Zhuo was quite politically savvy and politically savvy. Years of fighting in the south and the north allowed him to see through the times: in chaotic times, political power comes from the barrel of a gun, and holding military power is the hard truth.

Dong Zhuo refused to accept the order and wrote a letter to decline the order, saying that the army was unstable. After a while, Emperor Ling of Han became seriously ill and his days were numbered.

Although he was a tyrant, he had been an emperor for many years and was very wary of others. He always felt that Dong Zhuo was a serious threat. So the emperor promoted Dong Zhuo to Bingzhou Mu, who was actually the military and political chief of Yizhou.

In order to reduce Dong Zhuo's military power, Emperor Ling offered an attractive condition, but there was an additional condition: Dong Zhuo must hand over his army to the Left General Huangfu Song.

However, Dong Zhuo, who had a large army at this time, did not care even when facing the emperor.

Although Dong Zhuo accepted the appointment, he refused to hand over his army. He wrote a letter to the emperor to defend himself, saying: "I have been in charge of the army for ten years. The soldiers have a good relationship with me and are willing to fight for me. I request to take these soldiers to Bingzhou to serve."

Facing Dong Zhuo who openly disobeyed his orders, there was only one person that he was deeply afraid of, and that was the famous general Huangfu Song. Because Huangfu Song also had the most elite Northwest Army of the Eastern Han Empire, and his military ability was far superior to Dong Zhuo.

Huangfu Song could have legitimately gotten rid of Dong Zhuo at this time, thus avoiding the Dong Zhuo Rebellion. However, this famous general with outstanding military ability had very poor political ability, and he only reported to the court that Dong Zhuo was unwilling to hand over his military power.

Therefore, Emperor Ling issued an edict to blame Dong Zhuo. Finally, under pressure, Dong Zhuo led 5000 people to Bingzhou, but stopped in Hedong County and did not move forward.

As a military man, Dong Zhuo had good political acumen and he sensed that the situation in Luoyang might change. Sure enough, soon Emperor Ling of Han died and General He Jin took power.

He Jin and Yuan Shao and others planned to kill the eunuchs, but Empress Dowager He refused to issue an edict. So Yuan Shao came up with a bad idea: summon Dong Zhuo and others to lead troops into the capital to force Empress Dowager He.

Coincidentally, Dong Zhuo's elite troops were not far from Luoyang at this time. He Jin immediately ordered Dong Zhuo's troops to march towards the capital.

However, this move was undoubtedly inviting a wolf into the house. Dong Zhuo was waiting for this opportunity. As long as he entered the capital, he would be able to control the court with his power.

Without hesitation, he selected 3000 soldiers and set out immediately. He also wrote a righteous memorial requesting the execution of eunuchs including Zhang Rang, the eunuch in charge of the imperial court.

Many people had a clear understanding of Dong Zhuo and thought he was ambitious. If he was allowed to lead his troops into the capital, he would be in danger. He Jin had no opinion to begin with, so he just followed what others said. He sent someone with the emperor's edict to ask Dong Zhuo to stay outside the city.

Dong Zhuo had no choice but to set up camp in the western suburbs of Luoyang. Although the imperial capital was right in front of him, he could only stay outside the city. Dong Zhuo felt very disappointed, but at this time all he could do was wait and see.

He Jin, the general of the capital city guards, was ultimately unable to control the situation and was beheaded. Afterwards, Yuan Shao led his army to attack the palace and set fire to the palace gates. The flames shot up into the sky and could be seen from dozens of miles away.

Dong Zhuo guessed that something big must have happened in the capital, so he gathered his troops overnight and marched towards Luoyang.