In 234 AD, Zhuge Liang led his army to occupy Wuzhangyuan and settled in Weibin; Sima Yi fought against Weinan and agreed with Wu Kingdom to jointly send troops. The confrontation between the armies was about to begin. Sima Yi knew that Zhuge Liang was a difficult person to deal with and did not dare to act rashly.
Sima Yi sent people to inquire about Zhuge Liang from time to time. When he learned that Zhuge Liang ate a pound of rice a day, he couldn't help shouting happily: He is not far from death! Why did Sima Yi make such remarks?
Zhuge Liang was overworked, and his health had already been foreshadowed.
Zhuge Liang's trip to Wuzhang was originally the fifth Northern Expedition. After suffering several losses in the battle with Sima Yi, the preparations for this war can be said to be more sophisticated. Preparations for transporting grain and grass are in place at the front, and the Weibin farmland at the rear can supply grain for a long time.
rushed all the way to Wuzhangyuan. At this time, Zhuge Liang was not in good health. So he didn't want to waste time with Sima Yi. As long as Sima Yi fought with him, he would definitely fall into his trap and he would definitely win the battle.
He just asked for a challenge many times, but Sima Yi just didn't come out to challenge. Even if Sima Yi was insulted by using women's trappings, he still refused to accept the challenge.
In Sima Yi's opinion, the more Zhuge Liang wanted to start a war, the more Sima Yi had to delay it. Dragging them out of food and grass, dragging them out of patience, was the time for Sima Yi to take the initiative.
Seeing that it could not continue like this, the two armies began negotiations.
After Zhuge Liang's envoy arrived at Sima Yi's military tent, Sima Yi was very kind to him and entertained him warmly. However, Sima Yi had other motives for this move. He deliberately inquired about Zhuge Liang's physical condition.
"How is Zhuge Liang sleeping, and how is his appetite?"
On the surface, he seemed to be concerned about Zhuge Liang, but secretly he wanted to know about the other person's situation. As the saying goes, if you know yourself and your enemy, you will be victorious in any battle. Zhuge Liang is the backbone of the Shu army. If something happens to his health, it will be good news for Sima Yi.
The envoy did not expect that there was something wrong with Sima Yi's usual greetings, so he told him everything. "Zhuge Gong goes to bed late every day and gets up early every day. He does everything in the army personally, and the food he eats is less than 3 liters."
Sima Yi was secretly happy after hearing the news. After the envoy left, he was overjoyed and said: "He is about to die."
You must know that Zhuge Liang was 53 years old in 234 AD, which was indeed considered relatively old at that time. I work so hard every day in the military and have to worry about everything. How can my body cope with going to bed late and getting up early?
Sima Yi concluded from this that Zhuge Liang, as the coach, would definitely not be short of food. The reason why eats so little is not because he has nothing to eat, but because his body is failing and he cannot eat.
In addition, Zhuge Liang was already sick due to overwork in Wuzhangyuan, and not paying attention to rest at this time would only make matters worse.
Therefore, it does make sense for Sima Yi to judge Zhuge Liang's physical condition from his appetite. If a person's appetite becomes smaller, death is not far away.
How much rice did ancient people eat a day? Is one pound a day considered too little?
However, some people may have doubts. According to the current measurement unit, three liters of rice is equivalent to 6 kilograms today. Isn’t this a small amount of food? Why was Sima Yi able to tell that Zhuge Liang was dead? How much food did ancient people eat in a day?
Actually, the current units of measurement are still somewhat different from those in ancient times. The "three liters" at that time was actually about one kilogram today if converted. Zhuge Liang ate one kilogram of rice a day, while ordinary soldiers at that time could eat 6 to 7 liters of rice a day. Judging from this, Zhuge Liang's appetite was indeed not very good.
Secondly, in ancient times, there were no fruits or snacks that you could eat non-stop like now. Apart from meals, there is basically nothing else to eat every day. We don’t eat rice, but brown rice. Most of them are rough food without much nutrition.
An adult who fights in the military camp every day or works hard will eat more. Eating 3 liters of food a day can be said to be pitiful and difficult to maintain health.
" Lian Po I am old, can I still eat?" We can also see from this sentence that in ancient times, a person's health status was determined by whether he could eat.
In ancient times, how to judge a person's health was mostly based on food intake. As long as you can eat, there will basically be no major problems and your body will be able to recover. If a person can't eat anymore, he won't live long.
Furthermore, Zhuge Liang was a little over 1.8 meters tall and only ate so much every day. Sima Yi guessed that he would not live long, which was indeed normal.
Zhuge Liang died in Wuzhangyuan, just as Sima Yi expected
Sure enough, Sima Yi's judgment was correct. Zhuge Liang and Sima Yi fought for more than a hundred days. Zhuge Liang died in Wuzhangyuan due to overwork.
Zhuge Liang's death actually had a lot to do with himself, mainly because he was a life-worryer. You have to worry about all the big and small things in the army, and a person's body will definitely be unable to handle it if he is overworked.
In addition, he sleeps less. On the one hand, he has to make suggestions, and on the other hand, he has to manage various things in the army. 's body couldn't bear it and he fell ill. He was already quite old and overworked, so he passed away.
Although Zhuge Liang died, he left a group of capable troops for Shu before his death. The struggle between Sima Yi and Cao continued, leaving time for Shu. Therefore, Shu continued to survive for more than 30 years after Zhuge Liang's death.
It is said that Zhuge Liang is a master of predicting events. He must have thought of a countermeasure before he died. Therefore, the Shu Kingdom was guarded by Dong Yun, Jiang Wan and other talents, allowing the Shu Kingdom to maintain a peaceful situation.
is written at the end:
In the era of war, if you want to protect the safety and peace of your country, you have to strengthen your own strength. Only in this way will you be able to fight back when the enemy attacks, and give the enemy a heavy blow so you won't be bullied.
The war is changing rapidly, and no one knows what will happen next moment. From Zhuge Liang's story, we can also learn that if wants to fight a protracted war, our own body is the most important asset.
If you just work hard, you may not win the final victory of the war, and you will fall ill. Only when you are healthy can you have the capital to fight and see the final victory.
Among these people, Sima Yi can be said to have the best psychological quality. When Zhuge Liang used the method of provoking generals, he was still able to swallow his anger and lie dormant. It must be said that he has excellent psychological quality. Anyone else would have gone to challenge him long ago.
It is precisely because of his good psychological quality that he survived until Zhuge Liang died of illness and all his enemies died, and he became the final winner. There are indeed very few people who can do this in . Being able to live a long time is also a skill.
In fact, Sima Yi’s basis for judging that Zhuge Liang was about to die can also be applied today. Most people who are dying cannot eat much in the final stage, and their appetite becomes smaller and smaller. Eventually the body gradually wastes away until death.
I have to say that Sima Yi’s inference makes sense. What do you think?
