Ma Su lost the street pavilion
After pacifying Nanzhong, Zhuge Liang, after two years of preparation, led a large army to garrison Hanzhong in the winter of 227 AD. Because Hanzhong is close to the border between Wei and Shu, there is always an opportunity to attack Wei at any time.
When he left Chengdu, he wrote a memorial to his successor Liu Shan, urging him not to be satisfied with the status quo and to belittle himself; To get close to wise officials and distance oneself from petty people; And he also expressed his decision to take on the responsibility of reviving the Han Dynasty. This memorial is the famous "Memorial to Teachers" in history.
After the New Year, Zhuge Liang adopted the method of attacking the east and striking the west, and spread news that he wanted to attack Meicheng (now Meixian County, Shaanxi). He also sent General Zhao Yun to lead a team of troops to settle in Jigu (now north of Baocheng City, Shaanxi), pretending to attack Meicheng. The Wei army received intelligence and indeed deployed its main forces to defend Meicheng. Zhuge Liang took advantage of the Wei army's lack of defense and personally led a large army. Suddenly, he rushed from the west road towards Qishan (now east of Lixian County, Gansu Province).
After several years of rigorous training by Zhuge Liang, the Shu army had a well-organized lineup, strict orders, and high morale. Since Liu Bei's death, there has been no movement in Shu Han for many years, and the Wei state has been completely unprepared. This time, the Shu army suddenly attacked Qishan, and the Wei army guarding Qishan could not resist and retreated one after another. The Shu army took advantage of their victory and advanced. The defending generals of Tianshui, Nan'an, and Anding counties north of Qishan all betrayed the state of Wei and sent people to plead with Zhuge Liang for surrender.
At that time, Emperor Wen of Wei, Cao Pi, had already died of illness. The civil and military officials of the Wei court were at a loss when they heard of the Shu Han's massive attack. Emperor Wei Ming, Cao Rui, who had just ascended the throne, remained calm and immediately sent Zhang He to lead 50000 troops to Qishan to resist. He also personally went to Chang'an to supervise the battle.
Zhuge Liang arrived at Qishan and decided to send a team to occupy Jieting (now southeast of Zhuanglang, Gansu) as a stronghold. Who will lead this team. He had several seasoned veterans by his side beforehand. But he was ineffective, only interested in joining the army, Ma Su.
Ma Su has indeed read many military books and enjoys discussing military affairs in his daily life. Zhuge Liang came to him to discuss the matter of war, and he talked endlessly, and also came up with some good ideas. Therefore, Zhuge Liang trusted him very much. But when Liu Bei was alive, he could see that Ma Su was not very down-to-earth. He specifically reminded Zhuge Liang before his death, saying, 'Ma Su is an exaggeration and cannot be sent to do great things. He needs to be carefully examined.' However, Zhuge Liang did not take these words to heart. This time, he sent Ma Su as the vanguard and Wang Ping as the deputy general.
Ma Su and Wang Ping led their troops to Xianting, and Zhang He's Wei army was also coming from the east. Ma Su looked at the terrain and said to Wang Ping, "The terrain in this area is steep, and there is a mountain next to the street pavilion. Fortunately, camps were set up on the mountain to set up ambushes
Wang Ping reminded him, "When the Prime Minister left, he instructed me to obey the city and set up a stable camp. Camping on the mountain is too risky
Ma Su had no experience in warfare and thought he was familiar with military books. He didn't listen to Wang Ping's advice and insisted on camping on the mountain. Wang Ping repeatedly advised Ma Su but to no avail, so he had to beg Ma Su to allocate him a thousand troops to station near the foot of the mountain.
Zhang He led the Wei army to Jieting and saw that Ma Su had abandoned the existing city and stationed his troops on the mountain. He was secretly pleased and immediately ordered his soldiers to build a camp at the foot of the mountain and surround the mountain where Ma Su was camping.