Ancient Battlefield of the Three Kingdoms

　　After the Yellow Turban Rebellion in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, the whole country fell into a state of warfare. The flames of war spread from the Central Plains to the borders, and the Qinlong region where Xihe is located became an important contested area between Wei and Shu. Mount Qishan also became a famous battlefield of the Three Kingdoms due to Zhuge Liang’s “Six Campaigns Against Qishan” during his northern expeditions against Cao Wei. Qishan is not the tall hill beside Tiansi Highway in present-day Qishan Township known as Qishan Fort, but rather a continuous range of peaks north of where the Jianhe River (also called the Xihe River) meets the Xihan River (also called the Yanguan River). Qishan guards the strategic throat between Xili, Tianshui, and controls key routes: northward to Tianshui and Baoji, southward to Wenzhong and into Sichuan, and southeastward through Liangyuan to Hanzhong—truly a strategic corridor between Long (Gansu) and Shu (Sichuan).

　　In 221, Liu Bei proclaimed himself emperor, established the state of Han, and made Chengdu his capital. In 223, after his defeat at the Battle of Yiling in the conflict between Wu and Shu, Liu Bei fled to Baidi City. On his deathbed, he entrusted his son Liu Shan to Zhuge Liang. Amid external threats and internal strife, Zhuge Liang renewed peaceful relations with Wu, reorganized the government, and stabilized the southern regions. He then launched northern campaigns—not only to fulfill the late Emperor Liu Bei’s dying wish of “reviving Han” and unifying the realm, but also out of necessity to “defend Shu,” adopting a strategy of “defending in order to attack.” In 227, Zhuge Liang submitted the “Memorial on the Expedition.” In 228, he launched his first campaign against Qishan, capturing the three commanderies of Nanan, Tianshui, and Anding, shaking the Guanzhong region. However, when Ma Su lost Jieting, the battle situation deteriorated rapidly, and the Shu army retreated. Zhuge Liang only managed to bring back the renowned general Jiang Wei of Tianshui to Hanzhong. In 228, he made a second expedition and besieged Chencang, but had to withdraw due to insufficient supplies. In 229, Zhuge Liang conducted his third campaign against Wei, capturing Wudu (present-day Cheng County) and Yangping (northwest of Wen County). In 230, his fourth campaign ended in failure due to heavy rain. In 231, during his fifth campaign against Qishan, the rugged mountain paths and supply difficulties led Zhuge Liang to invent the “wooden ox,” solving the problem of grain transport. However, the campaign ultimately fell short when Li Ping delayed military operations and falsely relayed an imperial decree to retreat. In the spring of 234, Zhuge Liang personally led 100,000 troops out of Xie Valley, capturing the Wuzhang Plains south of the Wei River, where he stationed troops to farm and engaged Sima Yi in a war of attrition. He improved the “wooden ox” to create the “flowing horse”—modifying a hand-pushed wheelbarrow into a cart pulled by animals, either two- or four-wheeled, increasing both speed and load capacity. Although Zhuge Liang’s six campaigns against Qishan, aside from the first setback, saw him hold the upper hand in most battles and struck fear into the heart of the Wei commander Sima Yi—“who feared Shu as if it were a tiger”—Zhuge Liang eventually died from overwork during his sixth campaign. “He died before he could complete his mission, leaving heroes in tears forever.” Though he did not fulfill his grand vision of restoring the Han dynasty, Zhuge Liang’s dedication, intelligence, and peerless military prowess have inspired countless people throughout history. Several of the heroic episodes of Zhuge Liang’s six campaigns against Qishan took place on the land of Xihe. When we look back through historical records and trace the ancient sites, our hearts naturally swell with deep reverence.