Since 263 AD, the Eastern Wu has fought against Cao Wei and the subsequent Western Jin dynasties. Of course, it was not until 280 AD that the Western Jin Dynasty destroyed the Eastern Wu and completely ended the Three Kingdoms era. So, the question is, after Sima Zhao destroyed Shu Han, why could the Dongwu, which was fighting alone, last for 17 years?
1. The Chengdu Rebellion and the Wei Dynasty in the Western Jin Dynasty
First of all, in my opinion, the Chengdu Rebellion and the Wei Dynasty in the Western Jin Dynasty gave the Eastern Wu a chance to breathe. In 263 AD, after the demise of Shu Han, Deng Ai, the first to destroy Shu, was immediately framed by Zhonghui and was imprisoned by Sima Zhao. At the same time, Jiang Wei and Zhong Hui plotted to rebel in Chengdu.
Deng Ai was taken back, and Zhong Hui immediately rushed to Chengdu, leading the army, and shocked Yizhou. I think I am extremely fame and fortune in the world and I don’t want to be inferior to others anymore. In addition, the powerful generals and elite soldiers were controlled by themselves, so they raised their troops to rebel. Zhong Hui planned to send Jiang Wei to lead Shu troops out of Xiegu , occupy Chang'an , and then send cavalry to seize the world by land and infantry by water. It is worth noting that Jiang Wei did not really surrender to Zhong Hui, but hoped to take advantage of the troubled waters to restore Shu Han.
However, on the 18th day of the fifth year of Jingyuan (264), Zhong Hui and Jiang Wei died in a mutiny at the age of forty. In addition, Wei Guan instructed Tian Xu to kill Deng Ai and his son, and Shi Zhuan and others were also killed. Indeed, the Chengdu Rebellion was put to rest. However, this also made Cao Wei missed the opportunity to take advantage of the situation to attack the Eastern Wu, especially the death of Zhong Hui and Deng Ai, which also made Sima Zhao even more afraid of the generals who were respectful and would not rush to promote the opportunity to eliminate the Eastern Wu.
In my opinion, in this regard, the demise of Shu Han did bring great shock to the Eastern Wu. Of course, because of the Chengdu chaos, Sima Zhao pressed the pause button, which undoubtedly gave Dongwu a chance to breathe.
In 265 AD, Sima Zhao died of illness. After his death, Sima Yan was busy replacing Cao Wei's affairs and had no energy to attack Dongwu. As a result, the Eastern Wu was able to organize troops, strengthen defense, and gradually adapted to the situation of fighting against the Western Jin Dynasty alone.
2. Qin Liang's change
Secondly, after spending several years integrating Shu Han and internal affairs, the strength of the Western Jin Dynasty was indeed significantly stronger than that of the Eastern Wu. However, the Western Jin Dynasty had to devote tremendous energy to deal with the northern nomadic peoples at that time. In 270 AD, the leader of the Xianbei tribe of initiated a rebellion, which was the famous Qin Liang Incident. At that time, Qinzhou Governor Hu Lie sent troops to suppress the rebellion, but he not only failed to win, but he was also killed by the Xianbei army.
After Hu Lie was killed, Qian Hong and other generals sent by the Western Jin Dynasty were also killed one after another. For a moment, the northwest region of the Western Jin Dynasty was shocked. On this basis, Sima Yan continued to invest in his troops and took 9 years to pacify the Xianbei forces in the northwest region.
In this regard, in the view of many historians, in the nine-year Qin Liang Incident, in order to pacify the Hexi Xianbei, Sima Yan almost sent all the Jin Dynasty generals to the northwest battlefield, and lost four brigade officials who galloped across the northwest, losing tens of thousands of troops, which had affected the overall situation of the Western Jin Dynasty. If Qin Liang lost control, the Western Jin Dynasty could not attack the Eastern Wu, and the Eastern Wu was immortal, the Western Jin Dynasty would face the dilemma of being attacked on both sides, and Sima Yan's ambition to unify the world would not be realized.
3. The danger of the Yangtze River and the famous general Lu Anti-
Of course, the Eastern Wu was able to support the demise of Shu Han for 17 years, which was also inseparable from its own conditions and efforts. As we all know, among the three kingdoms of Wei, Shu and Wu, Shu Han had the danger of mountains and rivers, while in the Eastern Wu, there was the danger of Yangtze River and . On the basis of the danger of the Yangtze River, the Eastern Wu also had an experienced navy, which was not only an important reason why it could win the Battle of Red Cliffs, but also the basis for it to resist the Wei State's attack on multiple times. In addition to the Yangtze River natural barrier and the Eastern Wu Navy, the existence of the general Lu Kang provided a guarantee for the continuation of the Eastern Wu.
As we all know, Lu Kang is the son of Lu Xun . Just as his father won the battle of Shiting , Lu Kang also had the dazzling record of Xiling .In 272 AD, the general of Wu State, Buchan, chose to betray and presented Xiling to the Western Jin Dynasty. Xiling is located at the boundary between the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze River and is an important node of the Yangtze River defense line in the Eastern Wu. If it is captured by the Western Jin Dynasty, it will bring huge loopholes to the Eastern Wu's defense line.
In response to this, the Western Jin Dynasty sent three armies to meet Bu Chan. Of course, at the critical moment, Lu Kang took the lead, not only defeated the reinforcements sent by the Western Jin Dynasty, but also eliminated the traitor Bu Chan, thus resolving a major crisis. In 274 AD, Lu Kang died, which prompted the Eastern Wu to lose the last Great Wall . In 280 AD, Sima Yan mobilized 200,000 troops to attack Wu, forcing Sun Hao to give up resistance. With the demise of the Eastern Wu, the Three Kingdoms era was completely over.
