When it comes to the famous generals of the Song Dynasty, Yang Jiajiang, Di Qing and Yue Fei are often the first things that people think of. However, there is another heroic general who has been overlooked, and he is Cao Wei.
Cao Wei is a descendant of Cao Bin, the founding general of the Song Dynasty, who has been in the military since he was a child, is familiar with military books, and is resourceful. He made great achievements for the imperial court in the northwest battlefield and was a rare military talent.
During the reign of Song Renzong, Li Yuanhao, the leader of the Dangxiang clan, proclaimed himself emperor and established the Western Xia Kingdom. In the face of the repeated defeats of the Song army, Song Renzong decisively sent the famous general Cao Wei to the front line to deal with Li Yuanhao's fierce attacks.
However, due to the harsh border environment and the withholding of military salaries by officers, the defection of Song officers and soldiers was serious, and these traitors leaked the Song army's battle situation in front of the Tangut people, causing the imperial court to suffer continuous setbacks.
Even when Cao Wei was stationed in Qinzhou, the escape situation was still not optimistic. To solve this problem, Cao Wei developed a plan.
Cao Wei was playing chess with the guests, when suddenly a soldier came to report: "Cao Xianggong, more than ten soldiers have defected to the party!" Cao Wei didn't respond, just concentrated on playing chess.
The soldier thought that Cao Wei didn't notice it, and repeated it a few times, but Cao Wei was displeased: "I have to say it a few times!" These people were all deliberately sent out by me, don't disturb me playing chess, retreat! ”
These words were heard by the Western Xia spies lurking in Qinzhou City, and quickly reached the ears of the Western Xia people. They thought that the previous rebels were all deliberately sent by Cao Wei to surrender, so they beheaded them all.
Cao Wei's strategy not only killed the traitor, but also deterred potential traitors, which really killed two birds with one stone. In fact, Cao Wei's wisdom is not only reflected in this matter.
The Qingtang Tubo rebelled and threatened the northwest border of the Song Dynasty, Cao Wei was ordered to attack, outwitted the Tubo, broke the Tubo people in the Sandu Valley, and recovered more than ten cities occupied by the Tubo since the Tang Dynasty.
After the victory, Cao Wei calmly returned to the court with the captured cattle and sheep, and his subordinates were anxious, fearing that the enemy army would make a comeback. They advised Cao Wei to throw away his cattle and sheep and march immediately, but Cao Wei insisted on constantly sending people to reconnoiter the movements of the Tibetan army.
Sure enough, when the Tibetan army heard that Cao Wei was reluctant to give up cattle and sheep, the marching speed was slow, and they were overjoyed, so they integrated their troops and ran more than 100 miles to try to defeat the Song army. After Cao Wei got the information, he asked the team to go more slowly, and when they reached a favorable terrain, they reorganized their men and horses and lined up to meet the enemy.
When the Tibetan army arrived, Cao Wei sent a message to the other party's commander: "You must be very tired when you come from afar." We don't want to take advantage of other people's fatigue, so please let the soldiers and horses rest well, and then fight a decisive battle later. ”
Cao Wei is well versed in human nature, and is proficient in exercise physiology, and his intelligence is admirable. He skillfully exploited the weakness of human nature, rested the enemy, and then routed the enemy army in one fell swoop.
It's no wonder that such a wise man doesn't win the battle. In the eighth year of Tiansheng (1030), Cao Wei died at the age of fifty-eight. The imperial court posthumously awarded him as a servant, nicknamed "Wu Mu", and since then he has been honored as "Cao Wu Mu".