The Battle of Feishui
The Battle of Feishui in 383 (in the area of ??Wabu Lake in present-day Anhui, China)
The Battle of Feishui is a famous battle in Chinese history. An example of winning many battles. It determined the pattern of long-term division during the Southern and Northern Dynasties.
The corrupt politics in the late Western Jin Dynasty triggered great social unrest, and Chinese history entered the period of division and separatism in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. In the south, Sima Rui, the evil king of Langye of Jin, proclaimed himself emperor in Jiankang (now Nanjing, Jiangsu Province) in 317 AD, established the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and occupied most of the area south of the Han River and the Huaihe River. In the north, there are frequent disputes over the political power of various ethnic minorities. The former Qin State established by the Di people successively destroyed the former Yan, Dai, Qian Liang and other separatist states, and unified the Yellow River Basin. Later, in 373 AD, they captured Liang (now Hanzhong, Shaanxi) and Yi (now Chengdu, Sichuan) states in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and expanded their power to the upper reaches of the Yangtze River and Han River. The former Qin Emperor [url] Fu Jian was so ambitious that he wanted to use the power of "a strong wind to sweep away the autumn leaves" to quell the Eastern Jin Dynasty, which was peaceful in the south of the Yangtze River, and unify the north and the south.
In August 383 AD, Fu Jian personally led an army of 600,000 infantry, 270,000 cavalry, 30,000 Yulin Lang (Prison Guards), and a total of 900,000 soldiers from Chang'an southward. At the same time, Fu Jian He also ordered Pei Yuanlue, the governor of Zitong, to lead 70,000 navy troops down the river from Bashu to the east and march toward Jiankang. Nearly a million marching troops "thousands of miles to the front and back, facing each other with flags and drums. Thousands of miles to the east and west, marching on land and water." Fu Jian arrogantly declared: "With all my troops, we will throw whips into the river and cut off its flow with our feet." This is the famous saying. The origin of the allusion "throwing a whip to cut off the flow".
The Eastern Jin Dynasty was under pressure from powerful enemies and faced a critical juncture of life and death. The main fighting faction headed by Prime Minister Xie An was determined to rise up and resist. Recommended by Xie An, Emperor Jin appointed Xie An's brother Xie Shi as the commander-in-chief of the expedition, and Xie An's nephew Xie Xuan as the vanguard. He led 80,000 "Beifu soldiers" with strong combat effectiveness after seven years of training to go west along the Huaihe River to attack the Qin Dynasty. The main force of the army. Hu Bin was sent to lead 5,000 navy troops to reinforce the strategically important Shouyang (now Shouxian County, Anhui). He also appointed Huan Chong as the governor of Jiangzhou and led 100,000 Jin troops to control the middle reaches of the Yangtze River to prevent the Qin, Bashu and Shu armies from moving eastward along the river.
On October 18, Fu Jian's younger brother Fu Rong led the Qin vanguard troops to capture Shouyang and captured the Jin army guard Xu Yuanxi. At the same time, the Qin army's Murong Chui tribe captured Yun City (today's Yun County, Hubei Province). Hu Bin, who was ordered to lead the navy to rescue Shouyang, learned on the way that Shouyang had been captured by Fu Rong, so he retreated to Xiashi (southwest of Fengtai, Anhui today), waiting to join Xie Shi and Xie Xuan's army. Fu Rong led his army to attack Xiashi again. Fu Rong's general Liang Cheng led 50,000 troops to attack Luojian (in the east of Huainan, Anhui today), cutting off the traffic on the Huaihe River and blocking Hu Bin's retreat. Hu Bin was trapped in Xiashi and ran out of food and grass. It was difficult to support him. He wrote to Xie Shi for help. However, the Jin soldiers who delivered the letter were captured by Qin soldiers, and the letter fell into the hands of Fu Rong. Fu Rong immediately reported to Fu Jian that the Jin army had few soldiers and lacked food and grass, and suggested that troops should be raised quickly to prevent the Jin army from escaping. Fu Jian was rewarded, so he left his army in Xiangcheng and led 8,000 cavalry to Shouyang.
As soon as Fu Jian arrived in Shouyang, he immediately sent Zhu Xu, the former Eastern Jin Xiangyang guard general, to the Jin army camp to persuade them to surrender. After Zhu Xu arrived at the Jin camp, instead of persuading him to surrender, he instead provided Xie Shi with the situation of the Qin army. He said: "Although the Qin army has millions of people, it is still advancing. If the troops are concentrated, it will be difficult for the Jin army to resist. The situation is different now. We should take advantage of the opportunity when the Qin army has not all arrived to launch an attack quickly. As long as If you can defeat its forward troops and weaken their energy, you can defeat Qin's millions of troops." Xie Shi initially thought that Qin's army was strong and planned to hold on without fighting until the enemy was tired and then wait for an opportunity to counterattack. After listening to Zhu Xu's words, he thought it made sense, so he changed his combat strategy and decided to switch from defense to offense and take the initiative.
In November, Xie Xuan sent Liu Laozhi, the brave general, with 5,000 elite troops to attack Luojian, which kicked off the Feishui War. Qin general Liang Cheng led 50,000 troops to form a formation near Luojian to attack. Liu Laozhi divided his troops and detoured back to the Qin army's formation to cut off their return. He led his troops to cross the Luoshui River and stormed the Qin army's formation. The Qin army panicked, barely resisted for a while, and then collapsed. General Liang Cheng and his younger brother Liang Yun were killed in the battle. The officers and soldiers rushed to cross the Huaihe River to escape, and more than 15,000 people lost their lives. The great victory at Luojian greatly boosted the morale of the Jin army.
Xie Shi sent his army forward by land and water, reaching the east bank of Feishui River (today's Fei River, south of Shouxian County, Anhui Province). He set up camp on the edge of Bagong Mountain and confronted the Qin army in Shouyang across the bank. Fu Jian stood on the tower of Shouyang City. Looking around, he saw that the Jin army on the other side was neatly arrayed and had elite soldiers. Even the grass and trees on Bagong Mountain felt like human figures, and he mistakenly thought they were Jin soldiers. He was quite panicked and said to Fu Rong: "This is also a strong enemy, how can it be weak?" This is the origin of the famous allusion "Every tree and grass is a soldier".
Because the Qin army was pressing on the west bank of the Fei River, the Jin army was unable to cross the river and could only confront them across the bank. Xie Xuan sent an envoy to meet Fu Rong and told him in a provocative way: "You are hanging your army deep and setting up formations to force the water. This is a long-term strategy, not a quick battle. If you move your formations and retreat in a short time, the Jin will be defeated." Isn't it good for the troops to cross to decide the outcome?" All the generals of the Qin army expressed objections, but Fu Jian thought that he could use the trick and let the army retreat slightly, and then charge with the cavalry when the Jin army was halfway across the river. This will lead to victory. Fu Rong also agreed with Fu Jian's plan, so he agreed to Xie Xuan's request and commanded the Qin army to retreat. However, the morale of the Qin soldiers was low. As a result, they lost control as soon as they retreated, and the battle was in chaos. Xie Xuan led more than 8,000 cavalry to cross the Feishui River and attack the Qin army fiercely. Zhu Xuze shouted from behind the Qin army's formation: "The Qin army is defeated! The Qin army is defeated!" The Qin soldiers believed it to be true, so they turned around and ran away. Seeing that the situation was not good, Fu Rong hurriedly rode forward to stop it in an attempt to stabilize his position. Unexpectedly, his horse was knocked down by the rebels and was killed by the Jin army's pursuers. The Qin soldiers who lost their commander became more and more confused and collapsed completely. The defeat of the forward caused panic among the following troops, who also fled, creating a chain reaction. As a result, the entire army fled and retreated northward. The Qin army collapsed and did not dare to stop along the way. When they heard the roar of the wind and cranes, they all thought that the Jin army was chasing them (this is the origin of the famous allusion "The roar of the wind and cranes"). The Jin army took advantage of the victory and pursued it until they reached Qinggang near Shouyang. Qin soldiers and horses trampled each other to death, filling the mountains and fields and filling the rivers. Fu Jian himself was wounded by an arrow and fled back to Laoyang alone.
The Jin army regained Shouyang, and Xie Shi and Xie Xuan sent Pegasus to Jiankang to report their victory. At that time, Xie An was playing chess with guests at home. After reading the good news sent by Xie Shi, he put the good news aside without showing any signs of it and continued to play chess. Knowing that it was a battle report from the front, the guest couldn't help but ask Xie An: "How is the battle going?" Xie An said slowly: "The children finally defeated the Qin people." After hearing this, the guest was so happy that he didn't want to play chess anymore. , wanting to tell others the good news quickly, he said goodbye and left. Xie An saw off the guests and returned to the inner house. He could no longer contain his excitement. When he crossed the threshold, he staggered and broke the teeth of the wooden clogs on his feet. This is the origin of the famous allusion "breaking clogs teeth".
In the Battle of Feishui, the former Qin army was annihilated and more than 700,000 soldiers fled. Only the 30,000 horses of Murongchui's tribe in Xianbei were still intact. Fu Jian's hope of unifying the north and the south was completely shattered. Not only that, the temporary unity of the north also disintegrated and split again into more local ethnic governments. Nobles from other ethnic groups such as Murong Chui of the Xianbei people and Yao Chang of the Qiang people re-emerged, and their respective A new country was established, but Fu Jian himself was captured and killed by Yao Chang two years later, and the former Qin Dynasty perished. Although the victor of this battle, the Eastern Jin Dynasty, was unable to restore its rule over the whole of China, it effectively curbed the southward intrusion of northern minorities and created conditions for the socio-economic recovery and development of the Jiangnan region.
The Battle of Feishui established the long-term division of the Northern and Southern Dynasties. Later, Liu Yu of the Southern Dynasty entered Chang'an in 417 AD and could not stay for a long time. Hou Jing of the Northern Dynasties rebelled repeatedly and fell into Jiankang in 548 AD. He was killed by his subordinates soon after. He had a far-reaching goal of unifying the country. It was not until 589 AD that Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, Yang Jian, established the "Great Harmony of the World" and the "Ou Yu Family". It has been 206 years since the Battle of Feishui.
The Battle of Feishui has also become a famous example of defeating more with less. It has been recorded in military history and has had a long-lasting influence on the war concepts and decisive battle ideas of later generations of military strategists.
During the Five Hus and Sixteen Kingdoms period, the former Qin Dynasty, which had basically completed the unification of the north, and the Eastern Jin Dynasty regime entrenched on the left side of the Yangtze River launched a war of "astonishing scale" in Feishui, Huainan in 383 AD. This was a duel of the century between the bravery and majesty of the North and the graceful demeanor of Jiangzuo. It was also a confrontation that determined the fate of China in the Wuhu era.
The outcome of this war was completely beyond the expectations of many people at the time. History books tell us that the Eastern Jin army defeated the larger army with less, and the 80,000 Jin army defeated the former Qin army, which was known as 970,000.
The impact and aftermath of this shocking war went far beyond the war itself. As a result, the political landscape of the third and fourth centuries of medieval China changed. The Battle of Feishui directly led to the disintegration of the former Qin rule. Later, the former Qin leader Fu Jian was also hanged by the rebel Yao Chang. The Eastern Jin Dynasty, which was located on the left side of the Yangtze River, relied on this battle to continue to maintain its power, and the Han culture Zhengshuo was also passed down through this battle. China's great division and chaos not only failed to end, but also intensified. The reunification of the north and the south was postponed for two centuries. It can be said that without the collapse of the former Qin after the Battle of Feishui, there would not have been the rise of the Tuoba clan in the Northern Wei Dynasty, and the Northern and Southern Dynasties that lasted for more than 160 years would not have been possible, let alone the Sui and Tang Dynasties that inherited the Northern Wei and Northern Zhou Dynasties. .
The historical impact of the Battle of Feishui was so important that people were keen on legendary accounts and ignored the real history. For thousands of years, idioms such as "throwing a whip cuts off the flow" and "the wind roars and the cranes roar, the grass and trees are all in war" have been familiar to people. Fu Jian's stubbornness and Xie An's military style have become the talk of countless scholars and historians. Many people believe that the Battle of Feishui was a war in which chance outweighed inevitability. However, the Battle of Feishui was not an isolated historical event. To understand the causes and effects, process and details of the Battle of Feishui, we cannot leave the general process of the history of the north and the south since the Five Husties in China. This article attempts to explore the inevitable factors behind "accidental events" and focuses on process analysis rather than giving simple conclusions easily.
1. The rise of the former Qin Dynasty and the journey to unify the north
The Five Husties disrupted China, which began with the Rebellion of the Eight Kings in the late Western Jin Dynasty. Since the Yongjia Disaster, the Hu tribe outside the Great Wall have stepped onto the stage of China's history one after another. They have successively ruled the core areas of ancient China - Guanzhong, Guandong and North China. During this period, the Han people gradually withdrew from the political arena in the north. For more than a hundred years before the Northern and Southern Dynasties, there were many Hu tribes in the north, fighting endlessly, and various forces competed with each other for supremacy. Hu tribes such as the Xiongnu, Jie, Di, Qiang, and Xianbei were proclaimed kings and founding states like a revolving door. , this period is known as the Five Hus and Sixteen Kingdoms period.
Fu Jian of the former Qin Dynasty was a very accomplished monarch during the Five Hus and Sixteen Kingdoms period. Fu Jian ascended the throne of the former Qin Dynasty after launching a palace coup in 357 AD. For about twenty-six years from 357 AD to the Battle of Feishui, the pre-Qin army conquered the east and west, and finally unified most of the north.
The former Qin Dynasty eliminated the Qiang forces headed by Yao Xiang in 357 AD, and then wiped out the local princes of Later Zhao, Zhang and Pingping. In 366 AD, the former Qin put down the rebellions of Cao Hub, the right king of the Xiongnu, and Liu Weichen, the left king of the Xiongnu.
In 370 AD, the former Qin ordered Wang Meng and Deng Qiang to lead 60,000 infantry and cavalry to attack Murong Xianbei's former Yan. Between the former Yan and the former Qin, in terms of economy, population, territory, and military strength, the former Yan was stronger than the former Qin. Perhaps Fu Jian's original intention was just to attack Qian Yan, and he had no intention of destroying Yan. However, the progress of the war greatly exceeded both sides' expectations. Wang Meng and Deng Qiang defeated the former Yan army of more than 400,000 people led by Murong Ping, the former Yan Taifu. Fu Jian then personally led an army of 100,000 to support Wang Meng, thus completely wiping out Qian Yan's military power. Qianyan, which had existed for more than sixty years since the founding of the People's Republic of China, perished.
In 373 AD, the former Qin sent 50,000 troops to capture Liangzhou (today's Hanzhong area of ??Shaanxi Province) and Yizhou (today's Sichuan) under the Eastern Jin Dynasty, and expanded its power to the upper reaches of the Yangtze River and Han River. The two states of Liang and Yi were respectively the places where Liu Bang, the founder of the Han Dynasty, and Liu Bei, the great emperor of Shu, and Wang Zuo, the great emperor of Shu, arose. In the early years, the two prefectures of Liang and Yi were recovered by Huan Wen of the Eastern Jin Dynasty and merged into the Eastern Jin Dynasty not long ago. They belonged to the strategic fringe area of ??the Eastern Jin Dynasty and were still in a semi-separated state of local warlords at that time. Therefore, losing the two states of Liang and Yi was a great loss to the Eastern Jin Dynasty, but it did not damage its vitality.
In 376 AD, the former Qin Dynasty opened two battlefields on the east and west fronts almost simultaneously. The former Qin ordered Gou Chang, Mao Sheng, Liang Xi, Yao Chang and other generals to lead an army of 130,000 infantry and cavalry into Guzang, Liangzhou. Qian Liang advocated that Tianxi be defeated and surrender, and Qian Liang be destroyed.
The war on the Western Front was not yet completely over. Fu Jian ordered Fu Luo to be the Commander-in-Chief of the Northern Campaign, leading 100,000 troops from Youji, but they were all in trouble. Deng Qiang and others led 200,000 infantry and cavalry, and eight troops were transferred from the Liangzhou battlefield on the Western Front. Thousands of cavalry split up their forces to attack Dai, who had conquered Xianbei, and Dai was declared destroyed. In this battle to destroy the dynasty, the total force used by the former Qin Dynasty was about 300,000. After Qianliang and Dai were destroyed, Fu Jian basically unified most of the north.
The journey of the Pre-Qin Dynasty to unify the north was a history of illustrious military conquests. "Book of Jin·Fu Jian Zai Ji" states that "(Pre-Qin Dynasty) defeated Yan and conquered Shu, captured Dai and swallowed Liang, spanned two-thirds of the nine states, and ranked seventh among the nine states." By the time of the Battle of Feishui, the world was victorious, except for Jingzhou , Huainan and Jiangnan, the former Qin Dynasty had already won seventy-eight percent of it. The territory of the Pre-Qin Dynasty was already "the vast sea in the east, Qiuci in the west, Xiangyang in the south, and the desert in the north" [1]. Silla and Sushen in the east, Dawan, Kangju, Khotan, and Tianzhu in the west all sent envoys to establish friendly relations with the former Qin. During this period, the former Qin Dynasty was very powerful. "Although the Five Hus were more prosperous, nothing could compare with them."[2]
However, if we open the relevant chapters of "Book of Jin" and "Zi Zhi Tong Jian", we will It is discovered that this history of illustrious military conquests is also a history of constant rebellions, frequent wars, and recurring ethnic conflicts. From the time Fu Jian ascended the throne in 357 AD to the Battle of Feishui in 383 AD, the frequency of wars in the former Qin Dynasty was quite alarming. Except for 362 and 363 AD, there were wars every year. Among these wars, except for the above-mentioned unification war of "pacifying Yan and conquering Shu, capturing Dai and swallowing Liang" and a series of small-scale wars with the Eastern Jin Dynasty, most of them were to put down various rebellions. The frequency of civil wars was similar to that of foreign wars, indicating that the rule of the former Qin Dynasty was not stable.
After the former Qin quelled rebellions or conquered neighboring countries, it adopted punitive immigration and used coercive measures to move a large number of hostile tribes to Guanzhong, Guandong, Hebei and other places in an attempt to disrupt the other party's rule in their original places. . For example, in 358 AD, Fu Jian moved more than 3,000 households from Zhangping's tribe to Chang'an. In October of 360, tens of thousands of commanders from Wuhuan Dugu tribe and Xianbei Moyigan surrendered to the Qin Dynasty. They first moved to the south of Sainan and then to the north of Saibei. In 365, the former Qin Dynasty defeated Cao Hub, the right virtuous king of the Xiongnu, and moved more than 6,000 of his heroic households to Chang'an. 370 years ago, the Qin Dynasty destroyed the former Yan and later moved more than 40,000 Xianbei wealthy families under Murong to Chang'an. In 371, Fu Jian moved 150,000 Guandong heroes and miscellaneous barbarian households to Guanzhong, moved the Wuhuan tribe to Fengyi and Beidi, and moved the Dingling and Zhaibin tribe to Xin'an and Mianchi. In September of 376, after the former Qin destroyed the former Liang, more than 7,000 powerful families moved to Guanzhong. In the same year, the Tuoba Xianbei tribe was dispersed and settled in the northern border. [3]
Compulsory immigration measures have a long history. The Han, Cao Wei, Western Jin, Hou Zhao and other dynasties all have records of large-scale migration of powerful and Hu people. In order to eliminate the influence of these forces in the original place, the ruling class often adopts this method of immigration. Under the former Qin Dynasty, this kind of migration was much more than that of the previous dynasty, which is related to the frequent ethnic conflicts. Fu Jian's approach was slightly different from that of the previous dynasty in that he always moved the defeated party to strategic core areas, such as Guanzhong, the Central Plains, and the northern fortresses of Beidi and Yanmen. After these relocated people arrived in their new places of residence, many nobles became poor. For example, after Qian Yan was destroyed, some Xianbei nobles actually sold straw sandals on the streets of Chang'an to make a living. Although this migration policy did not really play the role of strengthening rule, on the contrary, it greatly intensified the hatred between different ethnic groups. Once the world changes, these tribes will become factors of instability.
2. Various ethnic forces hidden under the appearance of northern unification
Fu Jian's unification of the north is the inevitable result of the expansion of force. The political and military integration among the various forces within it, as well as the integration of the various ethnic groups in the north, are far from complete. At this time, the military forces of all parties were temporarily suppressed by the powerful military power of the former Qin Dynasty. These forces were all important factors that later led to the collapse of the rule of the former Qin Dynasty after the Battle of Feishui. After a brief analysis, it can be concluded that the separatist or hidden military forces in the territory of the former Qin Dynasty at that time were roughly divided into the following departments [4]: ??
·Murong Xianbei. Murong Xianbei was the most powerful branch of the Xianbei tribe at that time.
Although the former Yan State established by the Murong family was destroyed by the former Qin Dynasty, the Xianbei people were moved to Guanzhong, Guandong and other places in large numbers. They still lived in groups and were easy to gather to cause trouble. Dignitaries among the Murong clan, such as Murong Wei, Murong Chui, Murong Chong, Murong Hong and others, served as senior officials of the former Qin Dynasty one after another and had certain military power. This dispersed but not extinct force made a comeback after the Battle of Feishui and established Xi Yan and Hou Yan.
·Extend Xianbei. Because the Tuoba tribe still wore braids, people at that time also called them "Suotou" Xianbei. Tuoba Xianbei once established the Dai Kingdom, and the vast area from northern Shanxi to the south of Mobei was under the actual control of the Dai Kingdom. After the former Qin Dynasty was destroyed, Fu Jian once said in his edict, "The Suo Tou family spans the northern part of Shuo, and divides the area in the middle. It attracts Huisun in the east, attracts Wusun in the west, controls millions of strings, and looks into the clouds." [5] It can be seen that the expansion has been extended. Unleash the power of Xianbei. The last ruler of the Dai Kingdom was Tuoba Shiyiqian. Just three years after the Battle of Feishui, in 386 AD, Tuoba Gui, the grandson of Tuoba Shiyijian, proclaimed himself king in Niuchuan, Inner Mongolia, marking the beginning of the establishment of the Northern Wei Dynasty.
·Qiang people. The Qiang people are one of the main ethnic groups in the Guanlong area. During the Later Zhao period, the entire clan was moved to Guandong. At the end of the Later Zhao Dynasty, its leader Yao Gezhong surrendered to the Jin Dynasty. After Yao Gezhong's death, his son Yao Xiang rebelled against the Jin Dynasty and attempted to use Luoyang as a base to establish the country. Yao Xiang's tribe was first defeated by Huan Wen of the Eastern Jin Dynasty and then destroyed by the Former Qin Dynasty. Later, Yao Xiang's younger brother Yao Chang led his troops to surrender to the Qin Dynasty. Yao Chang made many military exploits and became one of Fu Jian's favorite generals. After the Battle of Feishui, Yao Chang led the Qiang people to establish the Later Qin. In 385 AD, Fu Jian was captured by Yao Chang and hanged to death.
·Cool beforehand. In 376 AD, Zhang's Qianliang, which had ruled for more than seventy years, was destroyed by the former Qin. During the Battle of Feishui, Zhang Tianxi surrendered to the Eastern Jin Dynasty in front of the formation. The power of Zhang family in Qianliang never recovered after the Battle of Feishui. The territory of Qianliang was later controlled by Lu Guang of the Lueyang Di tribe.
·Lueyang Di Luguang Department. The Di Fu family in Linwei and the Lu family in Lueyang were both from Longyou. Lu Guang was a former Qin general who had made many military exploits and was loyal to Fu Jian. Before the Battle of Feishui, Lu Guang led 70,000 cavalry on an expedition to the Western Regions and brought peace to the thirty-six countries in the Western Regions. After the Battle of Feishui, Lu Guang's tribe did not return to Guanzhong to rescue Fu Jian. Instead, he defeated Liang Xi, the former Qin governor of Liangzhou, established a separatist regime in Liangzhou, known as Houliang in history, and continued to control the Western Regions.
·Tiefu Xiongnu Liu Weichen tribe. Northerners call Hu's father and Xianbei's mother "Tiefu". The Tiefu Xiongnu Liu Weichen tribe sometimes surrendered to Qin and sometimes surrendered to Yan in the early days, and they were erratic. After the former Qin Dynasty was destroyed, Fu Jian took the Yellow River as the boundary, and Hexi belonged to Liu Weichen. After the Battle of Feishui, Liu Weichen occupied Shuofang and was later destroyed by Tuoba Gui of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Liu Weichen's son was Liu Bobo, who later established King Helian Bobo of Daxia. Daxia Kingdom was also destroyed by the Northern Wei Dynasty.
·Tiefu Xiongnu Liu Kuren tribe. Liu Kuren was originally a southern leader of the Dai Kingdom. After the former Qin Dynasty destroyed Dai, he returned to the former Qin Dynasty and was named General Guangwu. To the east of the Yellow River, important towns such as Yanmen, Shanggu and Daijun in the former dynasty were under the jurisdiction of Liu Kuren. After Liu Kuren's death, his younger brother Liu Tou led the tribe on his behalf.
·Wuhuan. After Wuhuan was attached, they scattered in Hebei, Guandong and other places. After the Battle of Feishui, most of the Wuhuan people were loyal to Murong Chui, becoming an important force against the former Qin Dynasty and contributing to the establishment of the Later Yan State. Among the Wuhuan tribe, Zhang Xiang tribe, Liu Dawei tribe, and Luli tribe are the strongest. In 398 AD (the first year of Tianxing), Zhang Xiang's son Zhang Chao occupied Nanpi of Bohai County (now Nanpi County of Hebei Province) and called himself King Wu Wan. He was destroyed by the Northern Wei Dynasty.
·The Zhai family of the Ding Ling clan. After the former Qin Dynasty unified the north, the Dingling tribe was moved to Xin'an, Mianchi and other places. After the Battle of Feishui, the leader Zhai Bin took the lead in revolting against the Qin Dynasty. The Ding Ling people under Zhai family had been competing with the Xianbei people in the Central Plains for a long time. The Ding Ling tribe once ruled seven counties in Hebei, with a population of more than 30,000 households. Zhai Bin led the Ding Ling tribe to surrender to Hou Yan. Murong Chui was killed and the tribe was incorporated into Hou Yan.
·Xianbei in Longxi begged for help from the country. A group of Xianbei people migrated around Longxi, and their leader was Qifu Guoren. He once accepted the rule of the former Qin Dynasty and led his troops to rebel in 383 AD (the year of the Battle of Feishui). In 385 AD, Qifu Guoren claimed to be the Great Governor, the Great General, and the Great Chanyu, and was known as the Western Qin Dynasty in history.
·The remaining forces of Hou Zhao. Later Zhao generals Zhang Ping, Li Li, and Gaochang sent envoys to surrender to Later Yan, then surrendered to Eastern Jin, and finally surrendered to Former Qin. They each received titles, and some even held titles from all three kingdoms at the same time.
Their purpose of wavering is to consolidate neutrality and self-reliance. In this way, the situation in the Central Plains will become uncertain. The most powerful person was Zhang Ping, who once occupied all of Shanxi. Zhang Ping was later destroyed by the former Qin Dynasty, and Zhang Ping himself was appointed as a general. Zhang Ping's adopted son was the fierce general Zhang Hao, who participated in the Battle of Feishui.
Although Fu Jian unified the north, the tribal military system still remained. The military power of each ethnic group was not completely eliminated, and the root causes of national chaos still existed. As Fu Rong said when admonishing Fu Jian in 360 AD, although the Hu tribes appeared to be surrendered to the former Qin Dynasty, they were "actually greedy for geographical advantages, but not virtuous; they did not dare to invade the border, but were actually afraid of the military power, but not grateful." [6] When the former Qin launched a massive attack on the Eastern Jin Dynasty, all the forces were waiting for the outcome of the Battle of Feishui. The victory of the former Qin Dynasty was not disadvantageous to them, and the leaders of various ministries could be promoted to high positions. If the former Qin Dynasty was defeated, perhaps this was what they hoped for, and they could wait for an opportunity to rise again and become kings separately. The Battle of Feishui, for Fu Jian, was a fateful battle in which he could not win or lose