Wu Qichuan's Political View

Wu Qi (about 440 BC-38 BC1) was a famous strategist and politician in the early Warring States period.

During his tenure in Xihe, he wrote Woods Art of War based on many years of combat experience. This is an ancient military work juxtaposed with the Art of War in China's military history. According to Woods' Art of War, there are 48 articles. There are only six Woods in existence, many of which have been lost. However, the existing six articles are also mixed with the characters of Han, Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties or Tang Dynasty in some places. But it can basically be regarded as Wu Qi's works and an important document for studying Wu Qi's military thought. Woods' The Art of War fully embodies his outstanding military thoughts. Regarding the cause of the war, Wu Qi tried to find the reason from the social aspect. He said:

Every soldier has five reasons: first, fighting for fame, second, fighting for profit, third, accumulating evil, fourth, civil strife, and fifth, starving. ("Woods Slaughters the Country")

Wu Qi believes that war is a social phenomenon and probes into the root causes of war. This is the earliest exploration of the root causes of war in the world military history. Of course, Chi WU's view is superficial.

What are the reasons for his fame and fortune, his aversion to civil strife, and the root of his hunger and thirst? No in-depth analysis. Lenin said: "Private ownership has caused war and will always cause war." (Complete Works of Lenin, Volume 30, page 360) and said: "When class rule still exists, war will not be eliminated." (Complete Works of Lenin, Volume VIII, page 35) Due to the limitations of class and history, Wuqi neither realized the real root of the war nor found a way to eliminate it. However, his search for the cause of the war from the social level at that time still has progressive significance. In the relationship between war and politics, it emphasizes putting politics first. He said:

Yesterday, Wang Xiude in the history of mulberry ruined the country. There was a king of the Hu family who lost his country with the courage of the masses. ("Woods Slaughters the Country")

In other words, if a monarch only emphasizes morality and abandons military equipment, or relies on many soldiers to fight, then he will perish. To govern the country well, we must pay equal attention to politics and military affairs. Starting from this thought, Wu Qi paid attention to military reform on the one hand, and engaged in political and economic reform on the other hand, which laid the foundation for the prosperity of Wei State. Wuqi realized from the war practice that it is not enough to have a well-trained army, but also to have a stable rear. So he said, "We must teach the people first and be close to the people." Only when the family and the troops in front unite can we win the battle.

He advocated:

The Lord of the Tao must first use his people, value peace and make great things. ("Woods Slaughters the Country")

He added:

If you are not in harmony with the country, you cannot leave the army; If you are not in harmony with the army, you will not be able to get out; If you are not in harmony with the array, you cannot enter the war; If you don't agree with the war, you can't win. (same as above)

That is to say, domestic opinions are not unified and we cannot send troops to fight; Without unity within the army, it is impossible to go out to fight; After going out, the troops could not fight without mutual cooperation; After the battle, the fighting actions of all parts are uncoordinated and it is impossible to win. He further said: "If all people are our monarchs instead of neighboring countries, then the war has been won." (ditto) Wu Qi expounded the relationship between the state, the army and the people, and believed that the people's heart was the key to success or failure in the military. In short, politics determines military affairs. On the issue of how to reunify China, Wuqi advocated that the goal can only be achieved by force. At this point, he is inconsistent with Confucianism. Wuqi's thought directly influenced Sun Bin's later proposal that "the soldiers should be arrested when they are transferred" and "the world will be conquered if they win" (Sun Bin's Art of War Seeing the King).

On the one hand, Wuqi saw the great role of war, and at the same time saw the pain and disaster it brought to the people. Therefore, he believes that we should be cautious about war and oppose rashly launching war. He summed up the war experience in history and said:

During the Warring States period, five victories were chaos, four victories were chaos, three victories were power, two victories were king, and one victory was emperor.

It is rare to win the world through several victories and die because of many victories. ("Woods Slaughters the Country")

Launching wars often rashly will consume a lot of manpower and material resources, which will make people miserable, weaken the country and bring disaster. Therefore, in many wars, there are fewer chances of winning in the world and more chances of winning the country. Sun Wu, a military strategist earlier than Wuqi, also said: "Soldiers, the important events of the country, the place of life and death, and the way of survival must be guarded." (Sun Tzu's Art of War) It can be seen that Wuqi inherited Sun Wu's thought and developed it. It also influenced his late strategist Sun Bin. Sun Bin saw the outcome of the war determines the survival of the country, and pointed out that:

Music soldiers (militancy) die, victory (eagerness for success) humiliation. If soldiers don't like it, it's useless to win. ("Sun Bin's Art of War See Wang Wei")

From this, we can clearly see the inheritance relationship between their thoughts. Comrade Mao Zedong pointed out in On Contradiction: "Dialectical world outlook originated in ancient times, whether in China or Europe. But ancient dialectics has a spontaneous and simple nature. " Wu Qi's strategic and tactical thought can be said to be the application of ancient spontaneous simple materialism and simple dialectics in the military.

Starting from the frequent war situation during the Warring States Period, Wu Qi realized that war could break out at any time. Therefore, he attached great importance to the preparation of war strategically. He said: "The way to make a country safe is to take preventive measures first." (Woods foresees the enemy) To make our country safe, we must first prepare for war in peacetime. He said:

Simply for the sake of safety. Yesterday, Qi Huan summoned 50,000 scholars to rule the princes.

Jin Wen called on 40,000 people to travel to realize his ambition. Qin Miao trapped Chen 30 thousand and served neighboring countries. ("Woods Slaughters the Country")

For the army, Wu Qi advocated "learning lessons first" (Woods Ice) and paid attention to peacetime training.

He pointed out: "If you are prepared, you will see the enemy when you go out." (Woods on the River) These war preparedness thoughts reflect his enterprising spirit for establishing and consolidating the emerging landlord class regime.

Wu Qi abandoned the subjective assumption of idealism when directing operations, and attached great importance to understanding the enemy's situation from the perspective of simple materialism. He pointed out that "when using troops, it is necessary to judge the enemy's actual situation and make it dangerous" (Woods' Expected Enemy). In other words, only by knowing the enemy's troop deployment can we choose its weak links and carry out key strikes. In order to understand each other's situation, Wu Qi attached great importance to the use of spies, went deep behind enemy lines to collect all kinds of information of the enemy, and "rushed over to spy and see what happened" (Woods expected the enemy). At the same time, also pay attention to the use of force reconnaissance on the battlefield, "Woods on the River" records:

The marquis of Wu asked, "The two armies are facing each other, and we don't know what they will do. I want to meet them. What skills do they have? " Da yue:

"Base and brave, will light sharp product, business in the north, not in, watched the enemy coming, sit together.

Its politics is rational, its pursuit of the north is not as good as its benefits are unknown. Those who do this are called wise generals, and don't fight. If the crowd is noisy and the flags are chaotic, their soldiers will stop on their own, and their soldiers will be vertical or horizontal, and they will not be able to catch up with the north and see the benefits. This is a stupid general, although many people can get it. "

That is, send a small team to pretend to attack the enemy, but pretend to retreat, lure the enemy to pursue, observe the actual situation from the enemy's pursuit, and then decide the countermeasures.

Wuqi said:

Please discuss the customs of these six countries. The husband's qi array is heavy but not strong, the Qin array is scattered and fighting by itself, the Chu array is all but not long, the Yan array is kept without leaving, and the Sanjin array is ruled without using it. ("Woods Liao Enemy")

From Wu Qi's analysis of the military situation of the six countries, we can see that he has a clear understanding of the politics, economy, military affairs, customs and customs of all countries. Wu Qi attached importance to investigation and study, and apparently inherited the thought of Sun Wu, a senior strategist, that "know yourself and know yourself, and fight every battle". Wu Qi pays attention to his own subjective guidance to the war and strives to conform to the objective reality, which is of great significance to guiding the war to victory. Wuqi also saw the important role of a vast, populous and well-equipped army in the war. Woods' Expected Enemy. Wuqi also attached great importance to war horses, which was one of the important factors in the war. He said:

A horse must be in its place, suitable for its aquatic plants and hungry for its body. It is warm in winter and cool in summer. Cut my hair short. I want it to hang down. It's not shocking to slap its eyes and ears. Learn to chase, learn to release. ("Woods Ice")

Say it again:

Every horse that doesn't hurt at the end will hurt at the beginning; If you don't hurt hunger, you will be full. At sunset, the road is long, and there must be numbers up and down. You'd better work for others, but be careful not to work for horses. Always do more than enough, in case the enemy answers me. ("Woods Ice")

In other words, we should be good at raising, training and caring for war horses, so as to achieve "blind date between men and women, and then we can succeed."

(ditto) he noticed the relationship between people, horses, cars and terrain in the war, and put forward:

Make the land light, the horse light, the car light and the people light. It is easy to know risks and light land; When time is short, the horse is good; The more cream and mace, the lighter the car; Sharp strength makes light war. (same as above)

That is, knowing the danger and difficulty of the terrain and making good use of it can make the terrain easy for horse racing; Feed the horse in time to make it fat, so that the horse can easily control the chariot; Prepare enough lubricating oil and iron for the axle, and pay attention to timely repair, which will make the car easy to lead troops; Sharp weapons and strong armor make soldiers easy to fight. Only in this way can we play easily. Attack, defense, advance and retreat in war should be based on changing objective reality. Wu Qi has accumulated rich experience in frequent wars and mastered the art of directing wars skillfully. He put forward thirteen situations of "no doubt quick strike":

The enemy is far and new, and the ranks are undecided and can be hit; You can go on strike without equipment to eat; Run, can fight; Hard-working and able to strike; There is no suitable place to go on strike; If you lose time, you can go on strike; If the road is long and you don't rest, you can hit it; Half crossing the water can strike; Dangerous roads and narrow roads can be played; When moving the standard, you can hit it; The array number moves and can be hit; We must keep our foot soldiers and strike them; The heart is fearful and can be hit. If this is the case, choose to rush quickly and follow suit. Don't doubt it. ("Woods Liao Enemy")

In other words, the enemy has just come from afar and the team has not been reorganized; The troops ate, but they didn't keep watch; Hurriedly escape; Too tired; Did not occupy favorable terrain, lost fighters, and fell into a passive position; After a long journey, the successor troops have not yet reached their destination; Only halfway across the river; March on a narrow and dangerous road; The flag is moving and the soldiers are in chaos; The formation of troops changes frequently; The general broke away from his soldiers: the morale of the army was terrible. In any of the above cases, we should choose elite troops as pioneers, and at the same time be surrounded by troops to launch an attack quickly without hesitation. Wuqi opposed recklessness in the war and advocated "advancing according to the situation and retreating after knowing difficulties". This paper analyzes eight cases of "one strike misses" when encountering favorable opportunities:

As soon as there is a strong wind and a cold, move early, cut ice and save water, not afraid of difficulties; Second, it is hot in midsummer, and we are eager to quench our hunger and thirst, so we should take it far; Third, because the division headquarters has been flooded for a long time, there is no food, the people are angry, and monsters are too numerous to mention; In April, the military assets were exhausted, the salary was meager, and the rain continued, and there was no looting; Fifth, there are not many people, the land and water are unfavorable, the people are sick, and the neighbors are absent; On the sixth day, the road was long and Xiu Yuan was awkward. Scholars were afraid of hard work, tired without food, but relieved; Seventh, the official is light, the foot soldiers are not solid, the three armies are surprised, and the mentoring is helpless; Eight said that Chen was undecided, gave up and went to Osaka for adventure, half hidden and half present. ("Woods Liao Enemy")

That is, the cold wind blows hard, the army sets out in the middle of the night, marches day and night, breaks the ice and crosses the river, regardless of the difficulties of foot soldiers; Second, in the hot summer, the team started late, just under the scorching sun, marching in a hurry, regardless of the hunger and thirst of the foot soldiers, just rushing forward; Third, the team walked for a long time, all the food was eaten up, the people complained and even got angry, and strange words appeared repeatedly, but the generals could not ban them; Fourth, the supplies of the troops are exhausted, even firewood is scarce, but in rainy weather, there is nowhere to plunder; Fifth, there are not many soldiers, the soldiers and horses are sick, and the reinforcements of the neighbors have not arrived yet; Sixth, after a long journey, it is near dusk, and the foot soldiers are tired and afraid, so they can't eat. They all took off their armor and rested anywhere. Seventh, generals have no prestige and foot soldiers are uneasy. The whole army has been hit many times and the troops are isolated and helpless; Eighth, the deployment of troops is uncertain, and the campsite has not been arranged. Only half of the people passed the climb. Anyone who encounters the above situation should immediately send troops without divination. Wu Qi also analyzed six situations of "avoiding doubts" when the situation was unfavorable:

One is vast territory and abundant resources, and the people are rich; Second, the above love, Hui Shi spread cloth; Third, if you have a prize, you will be punished in time; Fourth, Chen Gong is in the column, and Ren Xian makes it possible; Fifth, the master and apprentice are both elites in Jia Bing; Sixth, the help of neighbors and the help of big countries. (same as above)

In other words, we should avoid the enemy's strengths and attack the enemy's weaknesses when fighting. In addition, starting from actual combat, Wuqi put forward some matters that must be paid attention to when marching and camping:

Where is the way to March, there is no way to invade and stop, no way to eat and drink, no way to beat people. These three are free to order. If you let it be ordered, you will be ruled by it. ("Woods Ice")

In other words, in marching, it is necessary to reasonably arrange the itinerary and the load of the troops, do a good job in food supply, and ensure that the troops obey the command of their superiors, thus ensuring the combat effectiveness of the troops. Wuqi attaches great importance to the understanding of the terrain, think:

Anyone who crosses the border must examine the terrain and know the direction of the subject and object. If you don't know the terrain, you will fail.

(Taiping YuLan) Volume 332, Ministry of War 63)

He pointed out that when an army arrives at a place, it must first understand the surrounding "mountains and rivers within 50 miles" so as to "know the dangers and make it easy", and "make the sergeant wait for the ambush, and it will do its own thing, depending on the situation of the place." Even if the sergeant pays attention to whether there is an enemy ambush, the general should use the terrain to deal with the enemy. Wu Qi also pointed out that the army stationed "no stove, no leader. Made in heaven, the mouth of Otani; The leader is the end of the mountain. " In other words, the camp should not be at the entrance of the Grand Canyon, nor should it be on the top of a high mountain.

All the above are the laws of war summed up from practice, which embodies Wu Qi's simple materialistic thought from objective reality. In Wuqi's strategic and tactical thoughts, many places are shining with the brilliance of simple dialectics.

Wuqi said:

Where the battle is important, we must seize its generals first, examine its talents, and gain something for nothing because of the use of power. (Woods on the River)

He believes that leading troops must first analyze and study the enemy generals and decide different countermeasures according to different situations, so as to achieve success without blowing off dust. This is the inheritance and development of Sun Wu's thought that "impermanence of water" is compared with "impermanence of soldiers" and changes according to the changes of enemy soldiers, so as to win. On the question of how to treat life and death, Wuqi despised the shameful behavior of being a deserter for fear of death on the battlefield.

He advocated that "life is born after death, and luck leads to death" (Woods Bingzhi), and expounded the dialectical relationship between life and death on the battlefield. Only by not being afraid of sacrifice, fighting bravely and winning can we save ourselves, and if we are afraid of death and not killing the enemy, we will inevitably fail and go to extinction. So Wuqi advocated the spirit of not being afraid of death in his army. He said: "On the day of graduation, there is the honor of death and no shame of life." (Woods on the River) That is to say, from the first day of sending troops to fight, we should make soldiers have unswerving glorious beliefs and not have shameful thoughts of dragging out an ignoble existence. In the course of combat, soldiers should be "proud of death and ashamed of retreating." (Woods Slaughters the Country) It was an honor to kill the enemy in the past, but it was a shame to leave the army later. Qi Ce Warring States Policy is about the capture of more than 70 cities in Yan Po by the Qi army. Although the situation of "cannibalism and cooking bones" is very difficult, "a scholar has no anti-North heart" and insists on fighting to the end. That such an army is "the soldiers of Sun Bin and Wuqi". It can be seen that the tenacious fighting spirit of Wuqi army was very famous at that time. On the issue of more and less, Wu Qi has many incisive expositions. He believes that fewer wins more, "Woods' expected enemy" said:

There must be warriors in the army, who can light tripod and horse, and can win the general with flags.

If so, choose not, love is expensive, it is called military orders. He has five soldiers, strong in material strength and health, and determined to swallow the enemy. He must join the team to win the battle. Be kind to parents and wives and persuade them to reward and punish clearly. Such a strong person can exist forever. You can judge this, you can play time.

As long as the army is well managed, good at selecting talents, clear rewards and punishments, and preferential treatment to family members, the army can defeat my enemies many times. Wuqi analysis said:

Governors don't meet, governors don't talk about peace, the trench is not completed, the ban is not down, and the three armed forces can't move forward, dare not move forward, and they are invincible. (same as above)

The enemy didn't join the allied forces, the monarch and the minister didn't agree, the deep trench fortress was not built, the order was not issued, and the army was in a panic, and they dared not enter if they wanted to, and they dared not retreat if they wanted to. Such an army can defeat it with half its troops and win every battle. He added:

When the enemy came, he swayed from side to side without care, the flag was chaotic, and people were not as good as heaven. If he can knock ten times, he will be at a loss. (same as above)

If the enemy comes, is scattered for a long time, has no discipline, is in disorder, is uneasy, and looks around, such an army can miss ten strikes and make it helpless. Wu Qi believes that "a stupid general can be won by many people" (Woods on Balance).

In other words, if a general is not good at commanding, even if he leads many troops, he is easy to be captured. Wu Qi said, "Use fewer people to do things." He attaches importance to the use of favorable terrain, thus creating conditions for winning more with less. He said that as long as we "avoid the easy and invite them", that is, avoid the flat and open land and make use of the dangerous terrain, we can "strike ten with one blow", "strike hundreds with ten" and "strike thousands with thousands" It can be seen that Wuqi saw the dialectical relationship between more and less from his rich combat experience. He applied these simple dialectical thoughts to military practice, and created a typical war example of 50,000 people "riding (adding) three thousand horses and breaking 500 people in Qin" (History of Wu Zili). Therefore, people praised "Wu Qizhi used soldiers, but only 50 thousand" ("Lv Chunqiu used the people"). Wei Liaozi said, "There are 70,000 people, but who is the best in the world?" Wu. According to Yang Kuan's statistics, during the Warring States period, the number of soldiers in major countries was as high as 300,000 to1000,000. "("The History of the Warring States "in July 1980, first edition, pp. 285-286) Wuqi's number of 570,000 is a good soldier and can be used to resist Qiang Qin. It can be seen that its military art reached a high level at that time.

In a word, Wu Qi's progressive view of war, simple materialism and simple dialectical strategic and tactical thoughts occupy an important position in China's military history.