In other words, all the far-sighted politicians and military strategists at that time saw the important position of Jingzhou and Yizhou in the world's disputes, and also saw that the rulers of Jingzhou at that time were unable to defend this area, so it became an important geoman

Before the Battle of Chibi and the formation of the Three Kingdoms, Jingzhou became an important strategic location for the disputes between Wei, Shu, and Wu. That is to say, all the far-sighted politicians and military strategists at that time, saw the important position of Jingzhou and Yizhou in the world's disputes, and also saw that the rulers of Jingzhou at that time were unable to defend this area, so it became an important Feng Shui treasure land in their eyes, and they all tried their best to take it for themselves. Therefore, Jingzhou became the focus of competition among Cao Cao, Sun Quan, Liu Bei. Zhuge Liang, Lu Su and others also planned strategies in detail, all wanting to compete for this area of ​​Jingzhou.

1. The Battle of Chibi and the evolution of Jingzhou's structure

After the Yellow Turban Uprising, Liu Biao occupied Jingzhou for a long time, and took measures to protect the environment and the people, which kept Jingzhou peaceful for a period of time and avoided war. However, after the Battle of Guandu, the situation in the Central Plains changed greatly. Cao Cao basically stabilized the north, controlled the Central Plains, and began to expand to the Jingzhou area.

Prior to this, Lu Su of Soochow had long proposed to Sun Quan a plan to capture Jingzhou and control the Yangtze River basin. According to the plan, Sun Quan led troops to conquer Huang Zu in 207, occupied Jiangxia, and took the lead in entering Jingzhou. Liu Bei also started planning Jingzhou according to the plan of " Longzhong vs. ". A battle in Chibi is inevitable, and the competition between the three parties for Jingzhou is becoming increasingly fierce.

. Cao Cao went south to seize Jingzhou

In July of the 13th year of Jian'an (208), Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao and returned to Yecheng only half a year before he ordered to march into Jingzhou. Obviously, Cao Cao, who unified the north, was not satisfied with the achievements he had made. He was very ambitious and prepared to go south to eliminate the separatist forces in the south in one fell swoop and achieve unification.

When Cao Cao's group went south, they first focused on Jingzhou occupied by Liu Biao. Jingzhou has a very superior geographical location and a very important strategic position. Jingzhou occupies a part of present-day Hubei, Hunan and Henan, and its geographical location is very important. Just as Zhuge Liang mentioned in "Longzhong Dui": "Jingzhou controls Han and Mian in the north, takes full advantage of the South China Sea, connects Wuhui in the east, and Bashu in the west. It is a country that uses force."

It can be said that as long as Cao Cao occupies Jingzhou, he can annex Sun Wu by going east along the river, and merge Bashu by going west. It is a battleground for military strategists . More importantly, Liu Biao, who occupied Jingzhou, was old and dim, and internally unstable. Liu Bei, who was dependent on Liu Biao, had long had ambitions to capture Jingzhou. Sun Quan of Jiangdong had also eliminated Huang Zu of Jiangxia, and his strength had greatly increased. His next goal of using troops had already been planned, which was to capture Jingzhou. So at this stage, Cao, Liu, and Sun all began to covet Jingzhou. This was a prelude to the formation of a three-legged structure. Whoever could seize Jingzhou would be able to take the lead and occupy the strategic commanding heights.

After basically unifying the north, Cao Cao saw very clearly that in order to achieve unification, he had to seize Jingzhou. In order to seize the opportunity, he quickly sent his troops south in an attempt to seize Jingzhou. Cao Cao sent his troops south, but before reaching Jingzhou, Liu Biao had already died of illness. Liu Cong who came to the throne quickly surrendered to Cao Cao, and Cao Cao occupied Xiangyang without any effort.

Liu Bei was stationed in Fancheng at this time and knew nothing about Liu Cong's surrender. When he knew the news, Cao Cao's army had arrived at Wancheng, which was very close to Fancheng. Liu Bei was shocked at this time. The enemy was already under his nose. Liu Bei's power was simply unable to compete with Cao Cao. In desperation, Liu Bei could only choose to lead his army to evacuate Fancheng, avoid Cao's army and march towards the Jiangling area.

Jiangling is a strategic location in Jingzhou. It stores a lot of food, grass, equipment and equipment. If Liu Bei captures Jiangling, his power will grow rapidly.When Cao Cao learned that Liu Bei was going to flee to Jiangling, he was afraid that Liu Bei would occupy this strategic location and obtain a large amount of military supplies stored in Jiangling, so he personally led 5,000 elite cavalry to pursue Liu Bei day and night, marching more than 300 miles day and night.

When Liu Bei's army retreated to Dangyang Changban, Cao Cao's cavalry also rushed there. Liu Bei was caught off guard and was defeated by Cao Cao. His wife and children were scattered by Cao Cao's army, and he fled with only a few relatives. In the end, Liu Bei's road to Jiangling was cut off by Cao Jun. Liu Bei was forced to give up his plan to defend Jiangling, and rode with Zhuge Liang, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun and other dozens of horses to the southeast to Hanshui to escape. He joined forces with Guan Yu, Liu Qi and others who came to respond, and retreated towards Xiakou. Liu Bei's strength was severely weakened and he had no power to stop Cao's army from moving south. Cao Cao successfully occupied Jiangling and gained a strategic advantage.

2. The evolution of Jingzhou's situation before and after the Battle of Chibi

Cao Cao's large-scale march south already had a large number of troops and strong strength. When he arrived in Xiangyang, he incorporated Liu Cong's army, defeated Liu Bei, and occupied Jiangling. Cao Cao, who had been victorious before, became more powerful at this time, and it seemed that it was only a matter of time before the unification of the north and the south was achieved.

On the one hand, he gathered the land and naval forces and headed eastward along the Yangtze River, preparing to eliminate Liu Bei; on the other hand, he sent people to write a letter of war to Sun Quan, claiming that he had 800,000 naval and naval forces, and threatened him to fight Sun Quan.

Within Soochow, facing the threat of Cao Cao, two different voices emerged . When Cao Bing was about to arrive, Soochow was divided into two factions: a few wanted to fight, and a majority wanted to surrender. Faced with the two opinions, Sun Quan seemed hesitant and at a loss. Cao Cao has already occupied Jingzhou. Once the war begins, Cao Cao's army in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River can flow down the river, while Soochow has lost the superior conditions of the natural dangers of the Yangtze River.

More importantly, Cao Cao's military strength is much stronger than Soochow . Moreover, Cao Cao has also incorporated Liu Biao's Jingzhou navy and warships. The force is unstoppable and cannot compete with them. It is better to surrender temporarily to avoid a decisive battle with Cao Cao. This argument pervaded Soochow, but Zhou Yu and Lu Su and others strongly opposed this argument of avoiding war and surrendering.

Lu Su believed that ordinary officials who surrendered to Cao Cao could still be used by him. They could be promoted to noble positions and make friends with scholars, and they could still make the best use of their resources. Sun Quan, who was a prince, would inevitably be eliminated once he surrendered to Cao Cao. Zhou Yu analyzed the weaknesses of Cao's army for Sun Quan. Zhou Yu told Sun Quan that now that Cao Cao is moving south, the rear is actually not stable. In the Hexi area there are Ma Chao and Han Sui who are his future troubles and threaten his rear; in addition, it is the cold winter in October, Cao Cao is short of horses and grass , and the supplies are insufficient; also, Cao Cao drives the northern warriors to travel long distances, and the climate and soil are not suitable for them, which will inevitably give rise to diseases.

These points are taboo in marching operations, but Cao Cao committed . Now is a good opportunity to defeat Cao Cao. Zhou Yu asked Sun Quan to give him 30,000 elite soldiers to defeat the enemy. After listening to Zhou Yu's impassioned speech, Sun Quan's confidence greatly increased. Jiang Biao passed down: Quan drew his sword and cut the prelude to the case and said: "Any general who dares to say something again should welcome Cao Cao, it is the same as this case!" Sun Quan made up his mind and vowed to have a decisive battle with Cao Wei.

That night, Zhou Yu went to see Sun Quan again. Zhou Yu pointed out that those who were not determined only saw the 800,000 navy and army mentioned in Cao Cao's letter and were frightened. It made no sense to plan to surrender before the reality was clear. Based on his own investigation, Zhou Yu knew that the troops Cao Cao brought from the north were only 150,000 to 60,000 men, and they were exhausted; the Liu Biao army he recruited only had 70,000 to 80,000 men at most, and he still had a grudge against Cao Cao. There were 150,000 to 60,000 tired and sickly troops, plus 78,000 to 80,000 half-hearted surrender troops. Although there were many people, there was nothing to fear.

Zhou Yu asked Sun Quan to give him fifty thousand elite soldiers, which would be enough to defeat Cao Cao and put Sun Quan at ease. Sun Quan has made up his mind to fight Cao Cao, and the Battle of Chibi is about to begin. In addition to Zhou Yu, Lu Su played a more critical role. Although Sun Quan gained the confidence to fight Cao Cao decisively, Soochow's strength alone was still too weak to fight Cao Cao.

According to Lu Su's strategic plan, after Soochow destroyed Huang Zu in Jiangxia, the next goal was to occupy Jingzhou Mu Liubiao in Xiangyang and annex the entire Jingzhou. Unexpectedly, Cao Cao took over first. But Lu Su showed his big heart at the critical moment and quickly adjusted his strategy. Lu Su knew the importance of Jingzhou's geographical location, and of course he would not let Sun Quan give up this area. However, because Cao Cao was too powerful, there was no possibility of victory in the battle for Jingzhou with Cao Cao. After Jingzhou was captured by Cao Cao, Soochow could not protect itself.

Therefore, Lu Su suggested to Sun Quan to adjust his strategy, temporarily changing the capture of Jingzhou to uniting with Jingzhou to jointly fight against Cao Cao. As for the object of alliance, Lu Su chose Liu Bei, who had an indomitable fighting spirit, and ignored the cowardly Liu Qi and Liu Cong. This was a very discerning choice.

Although Sun Quan was hesitant, he still accepted Lu Su's suggestion, and handed him the specific work of jointly resisting Cao and sent Lu Su to Jingzhou. As soon as Lu Su arrived in Xiakou, he heard the news that Cao Cao was marching south to Jingzhou, Liu Cong had surrendered, and Liu Bei was forced to flee south. So, Lu Su went north to meet Liu Bei at Dangyang Changban, and learned through conversation that Liu Bei planned to defect to Cangwu Prefect Wu Ju at this time.

Lu Su pointed out that Wu Ju was a mediocre person who lived in a remote area and would definitely be annexed . It was a big mistake for Liu Bei to rely on him. Then he introduced the situation of Soochow to Liu Bei, and told Liu Bei that Sun Quan was smart and benevolent, a courteous corporal, and most of the heroes in Jiangdong had joined him. He now occupied a relatively large territory. The land was fertile, the land and water transportation was convenient, and the food and grass were sufficient, which was enough to accomplish great things. He advised Liu Bei to form an alliance with Sun Quan to achieve a common goal.

Lu Su's suggestion was exactly in line with Zhuge Liang's policy of allying Wu to fight against Cao mentioned in "Longzhong Dui". After negotiation, Liu Bei finally accepted Lu Su's suggestion and sent Zhuge Liang to Soochow to lobby Sun Quan.

The Battle of Chibi established the strategic pattern of the Three Kingdoms . In the process, Cao's army retreated for dozens of miles and lost more than half of his troops. Cao Cao's power was contained to the north of the Yangtze River, and Soochow's rule in Jiangnan was consolidated. This increased Sun Quan's confidence in using Jiangnan as his base to fight against the Central Plains. Liu Bei Group also gained its own unique development space in this process, and the competition among the three parties for Jingzhou further intensified.

After the Battle of Chibi, Cao Cao was afraid that his rear would be unstable, so he left Cao Ren to guard Jiangling. He led the main force back to the Central Plains, while both Sun and Liu further developed their power. Although Cao Cao failed, Jiangling, an important city on the Yangtze River, was still in his hands and still posed a huge threat to Soochow. Zhou Yu led his troops to attack Jiangling and had a fierce battle with Cao's army commanded by Cao Ren. Jiangling has a very strong city and sufficient food supply, and Cao Ren is also a brave and skilled man. Zhou Yu launched several attacks, but all failed.

Zhou Yu first sent Gan Ning to lead his army to surround Yiling, intending to defeat Cao's army's retreat from the upper reaches of Jiangling. Unexpectedly, Gan Ning's army was surrounded by Cao Ren's main force. Zhou Yu resolutely crossed the river to attack Jiangling and had a fierce collision with Cao Ren. In the process, Zhou Yu showed a very positive combat attitude. Even if he was injured, he still insisted on camping in Jiangbei and personally patrolled the military camp to boost morale.The two sides were in a stalemate for a year. Cao's army suffered heavy casualties and could not hold on alone, so he had to give up Jiangling and retreat north.

So Jiangling and the large area east of it fell into the hands of Sun Quan. After getting Jiangling, Zhou Yu was appointed as the Nanjun prefect, Cheng Pu was appointed as the Jiangxia prefect, Lu Fan was appointed as Pengze prefect, Lu Meng was appointed as the Xunyang order, and they stationed the troops along the river.

When Zhou Yu and Cao Ren fought against Jiangling, Liu Bei seized the opportunity to develop his power in the four counties of Wuling, Changsha, Guiyang, and Lingling. When Cao Cao's army marched south to Jingzhou, these four counties belonged to Cao Cao. After Cao's army was defeated in the Chibi Battle and retreated north, Wuling, Changsha, Guiyang, Lingling and other places, due to their weak military strength, all surrendered under the attacks of Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhao Yun. Liu Bei then occupied the southern part of Jingzhou. Before taking the four counties in the south of the Yangtze River, Liu Bei elected Liu Qi as the governor of Jingzhou in order to unite Liu Biao's old troops and successfully carry out the southern expedition.

Soon after, Liu Qi died of illness. Liu Bei became the shepherd of Jingzhou and led the army to garrison in the Youkou area. He changed the name of Youkou to public security. He appointed Zhuge Liang as the Military Advisor Zhonglang General and asked him to manage the three counties of Lingling, Guiyang and Changsha, and collect taxes to fund military and administrative expenses. At this time, Liu Bei became a popular figure in Jingzhou, and many civil and military talents in Jingzhou gathered around him, such as Pang Tong, Huang Zhong, Wei Yan, etc., who all took refuge in him one after another.

3. Summary

The Battle of Chibi was an important battle in the formation of the Three Kingdoms . After the war, Cao Cao retreated to the north and temporarily had no strength to go south, so in order to stabilize his rear, he developed his power in Kansai. Liu Bei, who gained a foothold in Jingzhou, got the opportunity to develop in Yizhou. Sun Quan stabilized his rule in Jiangdong and continued to expand into the Lingnan region. However, if any of the three parties wants to achieve unification, Jingzhou will become an area that must be fought over. Therefore, after the Chibi War, Jingzhou's strategic position becomes more and more important, especially since Liu and Sun controlled most of Jingzhou after the war. Wu and Shu competed for Jingzhou, and conflicts continued.