Xiang Yu, the Overlord of Western Chu

Xiang Yu (232 BC - 202 BC), named Yu, was born in Xixian (now southwest of Suqian, Jiangsu Province). Descendants of the generals of Chu State. After the fall of Chu, he fled to Wuzhong (now Suzhou, Jiangsu) with his uncle Xiang Liang. When he was young, he failed to learn calligraphy. He also failed to learn swordsmanship. Determined to learn how to "defend ten thousand people" (the ability to withstand ten thousand people), he learned the art of war from his uncle. But he only "knew a little about its meaning, but refused to learn it." Xiang Yu was eight feet tall, capable of lifting a cauldron, and had great ambitions when he was young. Once when Qin Shihuang was on a patrol crossing Zhejiang (today's Qiantang River), Xiang Yu saw the majesty of his chariots and horses, and he blurted out: "He can be replaced by him." In the first year of Qin II (209 BC), Chen Sheng and Wu Guang In Daze Township, they raised their arms and raised their arms. Xiang Yu followed Xiang Liang and raised troops in Wuzhong to respond. The 24-year-old Xiang Yu was pushed into history by the violent storm of the people's uprising.

After Xiang Liang's uprising, he recruited eight thousand elite soldiers and Xiang Yu became a general (deputy general). In order to facilitate the call, he adopted the suggestion of counselor Fan Zeng and established Xiong Xin, the grandson of the former King Huai of Chu, as king. He established his capital in Xuyi and was still called King Huai of Chu. Xiang Liang led the rebel army to victory one after another in battles with the Qin army, which gave rise to the idea of ??being arrogant and underestimating the enemy. As a result, he was defeated by the army commanded by Zhang Han of the Qin army in Dingtao (now northwest of Dingtao County, Shandong), and Xiang Liang died in the battle.

After the Battle of Dingtao, the Qin army crossed the Yellow River north to attack King Xie and Zhang Er of Zhao who had rebelled against Qin, and besieged the Zhao army in Julu (now Pingxiang, Hebei). King Huai of Chu appointed Song Yi as general and Xiang Yu as second general to lead his troops to rescue. When Song Yi led his army to Anyang (now south of Anyang, Henan Province), he hesitated and stationed troops for forty-six days. At that time, it was raining continuously, and the rebel army was in dire straits due to lack of food and clothing. Xiang Yu made a decisive decision and killed Song Yi, forcing King Chu Huai to appoint him as general and order him to immediately send his troops north to rescue Zhao.

Xiang Yu led his chariots to the south bank of the Zhang River to confront the Qin army across the bank. He first sent generals Yingbu and Pu to lead 20,000 elite troops across the river to cut off the Qin army's grain transportation channels. Then he personally led the main force to cross the river, scuttled the boats, destroyed the cooking utensils, and burned the camps. Each person only brought three days of rations. This is the origin of the famous idiom "The cauldron sinks the boat." As soon as they arrived at the battlefield, the Chu army surrounded the Qin army with thunderous momentum and lightning-fast movements. Xiang Yu took the lead and charged into the battle. Each Chu army bravely killed the enemy, one against ten, and won nine battles and nine victories. He defeated the Qin army, captured Qin general Wang Li, killed Qin deputy general Su Jiao, and forced Qin deputy general Shejian to commit suicide. The siege of giant deer. When Xiang Yu's army was fighting fiercely with the Qin army, the reinforcements from various princes huddled on the ramparts to watch and did not dare to join the battle. After the battle, Xiang Yu summoned the reinforcement generals. They "entered the camp gate and walked on their knees, no one dared to look up." Xiang Yu became the commander-in-chief of the princes' armies.

After the Julu battle, Xiang Yu took advantage of the victory to pursue the victory, but the Qin army retreated steadily and its morale was disorganized. Seeing that the situation was over, Zhang Han led 200,000 Qin troops to surrender to Xiang Yu. However, on his way to the west, Xiang Yu ordered all the 200,000 surrendered soldiers to be killed in Xin'an City (today's east of Shengchi, Henan). At this time, another rebel army, Liu Bang, took advantage of the main force of the Qin army and was pinned down by Xiang Yu in Julu. Guanzhong was empty and occupied Xianyang.

Xiang Yu was greatly dissatisfied and led his army to break through the pass and stationed in Hongmen (now northeast of Lintong, Shaanxi Province). At that time, Xiang Yu's army was 400,000, and Liu Bang's army was less than 100,000. There was a huge disparity in strength between the two sides. Liu Bang realized that he was no longer able to defeat Xiang Yu, so he adopted Zhang Liang's plan to win over Xiang Yu's uncle Xiang Bo and went to Hongmen to plead guilty. At the Hongmen Banquet, the glint of swords and swords flashed amidst the exchange of glasses of wine. Xiang Yu's counselor Fan Zeng raised the jade pieces he brought several times, suggesting that Xiang Yu kill Liu Bang, but Xiang Yu was indecisive and Liu Bang escaped with an excuse. This is the story of the famous "Hongmen Banquet" in history. Xiang Yu relied on his powerful troops to temporarily suppress Liu Bang. He led troops into Xianyang, "killed Qin's prince Ying, burned Qin's palace, and the fire lasted for three months, collected his goods, treasures, and women and headed east" (Historical Records? Xiang Yu's Anthology). Xiang Yu used his remaining military power to issue orders as a general to the princes. He established himself as the overlord of Western Chu, took over nine counties in the Liang and Chu lands (occupying parts of today's Jiangsu, Anhui, Shandong, and Henan), and made his capital Pengcheng (now Xuzhou, Jiangsu). At the same time, he also ceded lands and enfeoffed kings, and divided eighteen princes into enfeoffments. He named Liu Bang King of Han, king of Hanzhong and Bashu, in an attempt to restrict the development of Liu Bang's power and prevent him from advancing eastward. As a result, raising tigers caused trouble and led to a comeback of the Han army in the future.

Due to the unfairness of Xiang Yu's enfeoffment, the princes and heroes were dissatisfied. First, Tian Rong occupied Qi and rebelled against Chu. Xiang Yu hurriedly led his army to attack, and Liu Bang took advantage of the opportunity to advance eastward. In August 208 BC, the Han army sneaked out of Hanzhong and defeated the three kings of Qin who were entrusted by Xiang Yu. They quickly marched eastward and reached Yangxia (now Taikang, Henan). Then, while Xiang Yu was fighting with the Qi army, he attacked Pengcheng, the capital of Chu, in one fell swoop. Yu hurriedly led 30,000 elite troops to rescue Pengcheng.

At this time, Liu Bang relied on his large number of troops and generals, paralyzing and underestimating the enemy. Xiang Yujun was eager to regain the lost ground and had high fighting spirit. Thirty thousand Chu troops, led by Xiang Yu, left Shandong, passed through Huling (southeast of today's Yutai, Shandong) and approached Xiao (now northwest of Xiaoxian, Jiangsu), reaching the flank of the Han army in Pengcheng. The battle started at dawn. The Chu army was brave and tenacious, fighting and charging at the same time. By noon, the Han army had been defeated. The Chu army pursued them to Sishui, northeast of Pengcheng, and the Han army fell into the water one after another, killing more than 100,000 people. The Han army fled to the mountains to the south, and the Chu army pursued it to the Suishui River east of Lingbi (in today's Anhui Province) and annihilated hundreds of thousands more. Liu Bang only escaped with a few dozen cavalry, and even his wife Lu Fei and his father Taigong became Xiang Yu's prisoners. In the Battle of Pengcheng, Xiang Yu made a decisive decision and quickly led his elite troops back to rescue Pengcheng. He caught the enemy unawares and defeated hundreds of thousands of Han troops. This was an example in the history of war of defeating more with less.

After the Battle of Pengcheng, Xiang Yu took advantage of his victory to advance and fought a battle with Liu Bang between Jingyi and Suoting (west and south of Xingyang), but was blocked east of Xingyang. The two sides had a stalemate in the Chenggao area for two years. During this period, Liu Bang adopted correct combat guidance, guarding Chenggao, consuming the opponent's strength in a protracted battle, and waiting for opportunities to counterattack; Xiang Yu approached Liu Bang for a decisive battle, but he was unable to attack in a hurry. The forces of both sides have undergone fundamental changes. The Han army has changed from weak to strong, and Xiang Yu has changed from strong to weak. In the fifth year of Emperor Gao of the Han Dynasty (202 BC), Liu Bang launched a general attack on Xiang Yu and surrounded Xiang Yu's army in Gaixia. At this time, the 100,000 Chu troops were exhausted and their morale was low. At night, I heard the Han army singing Chu songs on all sides again. Xiang Yu was so hungry that he drowned his sorrows with wine, and sang generously and sadly: "Strengthening the mountain, the world is overwhelming, the times are not good, but the time is not gone. What can be done if the time is not going away, what can be done if the time is running out?" After singing, He jumped on his horse and led eight hundred cavalry to break through and go south. When they came to Dongcheng (now southeast of Dingyuan, Anhui), there were only twenty-eight people left. He wanted to cross the Wujiang River eastward to regroup, but he felt ashamed to see his elders east of the river. He fought hard for a while, then committed suicide with his sword.

Xiang Yu is an outstanding military commander. He is good at fighting, and he is heroic and powerful on the battlefield. In the Battle of Julu, Xiang Yu destroyed the cauldron and defeated the many with a small number, and completely annihilated the main force of the Qin army. This objectively created conditions for Liu Bang to enter Xianyang and overthrow the Qin Dynasty. In the Chu-Han War, he defeated Tianrong, rescued Peng Cheng, saved Xingyang, and captured Chenggao. He fought dozens of battles in his life and won many victories. Therefore, the ancients called him "a talent capable of winning every battle" (Su Xun Jiayou Collection? Xiang Ji).

However, Xiang Yu is also a tragic figure. After the fall of the Qin Dynasty, he claimed to be an overlord and was busy dividing the feudal lords and supporting the remnants of the nobles of the six countries. He violated the people's desire for unification and created a chaotic and separatist situation. He behaved cruelly and killed more than 200,000 Qin soldiers. After entering the Pass, the Qin Palace was burned down, and the fire continued for three months. His atrocities of burning, killing and looting went against the will of the people and were the fundamental reason for his defeat. Xiang Yu relied on his martial arts to intimidate the princes, but lacked foresight and did not win alliances. He was also jealous of the wise and capable, and could not employ people, which led to the rebellion of the people and the loss of morale in the army. Militarily, he lacks the vision of a strategist, is headstrong, and does not tolerate evil. As a result, they repeatedly lost battle opportunities, had no solid rear base, and did not have sufficient food, pay, and troops. Although they won many battles, they went from prosperity to decline. Therefore, although Xiang Yu has outstanding military command talents, it is difficult to avoid failure in the end