? According to the Records of the Three Kingdoms, Zhuge Liang launched the fourth Northern Expedition in the spring of the 9th year of Jianxing (AD 23 1 year). At that time, Cao Cao, the general of Cao Wei, was seriously ill and could not unify the army. Cao Cao of Wei Mingdi appointed Sima Yi as the commander-in-chief of the northwest battlefield, and the Guanzhong generals sent troops to fight. During the Northern Expedition, Zhuge Liang and Sima Yi confronted each other in Lucheng (now Qinzhou District, Tianshui City, Gansu Province) in the southeast of Gao Shan County. Sima yi ordered him to stick to the city and refused to go out, but he was laughed at by the Ministry. In desperation, Sima Yi had to lead the troops into battle, and the result was a fiasco with heavy casualties. Since then, Sima Yi has strengthened his tactical plan to defend against risks, and will never have a strategic decisive battle with the Northern Expedition again. Although Zhuge Liang racked his brains, he could not induce Sima Yi to play. In this way, the two sides were deadlocked in Gao Shan for several months.
? However, the brief silence of Shangguan battlefield was broken by an emergency. Li Yan, a general in the middle of Shu, ordered Zhuge Liang's army to retreat under the pretext of the late will in order to cover up the fault of the supervisor's grain and grass. Although Zhuge Liang had doubts about the order to retreat, he did not dare to disobey the order of the Emperor, so he had to end the confrontation and lead his troops back to Hanzhong. In order to ensure a smooth retreat, Zhuge Liang set an ambush on the wooden door on his way back to intercept Wei Jun's pursuit. Zhuge Liang didn't know what had happened until he returned to Hanzhong. He impeached Li Yan to the late master Liu Chan, and Li Yan was immediately dismissed.
After learning the news of the Shu army's retreat, Sima Yi, who had always been cautious in using troops, unexpectedly gave the order of pursuit, and Zhang He, then a famous soldier of Cao Wei, also made suggestions. Zhang He believes that Zhuge Liang has never lost on the battlefield, and the retreat process is orderly. It is inevitable that careful arrangements will be made in advance to prevent being pursued by Cao Jun, and rushing to pursue without knowing the enemy's situation will inevitably encounter a fiasco.
? However, Zhang He's suggestion was not adopted by Sima Yi. Instead, Sima Yi ordered Zhang He, who resolutely opposed the pursuit, to launch the pursuit. As a result, Wei Jun was ambushed while chasing the wooden door, and the famous Cao Wei Zhang He was also killed in this battle.
Later generations criticized Sima Yi's decision. Did he make a mistake or did he do it on purpose? This problem has become a puzzling mystery, but the result is very clear, that is, Zhang He, a famous Cao Wei, died in front of the wooden door. So, where is the wooden door? Why did Zhuge Liang choose wooden doors as the battlefield to ambush Cao Jun's pursuers?
? According to the Notes on Water Classics written by Li Daoyuan, a geographer in the Northern Wei Dynasty, "Wooden Gate Road" is an ancient road that started in Qinzhou District, Tianshui City, Gansu Province and ended in Luxi Town, Xihe County, Longnan City, Gansu Province. It is also an important road from Tianshui to Hanzhong via Qishan in ancient times. The highway runs from Qinzhou District of Tianshui City to the west along the river, passes through Tielu Township of Qinzhou District, then to the south, crosses the Qinling Mountains and enters the valley of the tributary river of the Western Han River, then passes through Yangjiasi Town and Caoba Township of Qin Zhou District of Tianshui City, and is ground in Dengjia Town, Lixian Town, Longnan City, Gansu Province, where it turns southwest along the Western Han River, and then passes through the town and Qishan Fort to reach the destination of Changdao Town. This whole winding ancient road is called Wooden Door Road.
? The burial place of Zhang He, a famous Cao Wei, is in the "Mugu" halfway. It is because Zhang He died here that this ancient road is known to future generations. So, where is the wooden door valley furniture? According to the Water Mirror Notes, before the Nangou River and Jinshui River, the tributaries of Kuihe River, four streams flowed into the two rivers, namely Luanshi River (now Luzigou, Qinzhou District, Tianshui City), Mumenyu Water (now Puchagou, Qinzhou District, Tianshui City), Luocheng River (now Weijiagou, Qinzhou District, Tianshui City) and Yushui (now). Therefore, it can be seen that the approximate location of Mumenyu is in Zhouqin, Tianshui City, Gansu Province.
? According to the Records of Xihe County in Qing Dynasty, there is a place called Wooden Door in the northeast of the county town 100, where the famous Cao Wei Zhang He was ambushed and killed by an arrow during the Three Kingdoms period. However, due to the long history and vague historical records, the specific burial place of Zhang He is still not very clear. Until the 1980s, local archaeologists excavated a large number of cultural relics in Mudan Town, Zhouqin District, some of which were armor, spears and powerful bows and arrows from the Three Kingdoms period. After on-the-spot investigation, textual research and analysis by relevant scholars, a consensus was finally reached that the burial place of Tomb Gate Valley and Zhang He is now in the area of Tomb Gate Village, Mudan Town, Zhouqin District, Tianshui City, Gansu Province. It is more than 60 kilometers away from Tianshui city, and its general location is consistent with the records in Water Mirror Notes and Xihe County Records.
Wooden Gate Valley has complex terrain, with wide ends and narrow middle, surrounded by Yak Pier and Wang Jialiang Mountain, and the ancient wooden gate passes through the mountain. The total length of the valley is about one kilometer and the narrowest part is about 50 meters. This place is like a natural gateway, which is an excellent place for ambush. According to the Records of the Three Kingdoms, after Zhang He led his troops to pursue Mumenyu, the Shu army that had been in ambush launched a surprise attack. The Shu army used strong bows and arrows, but Zhang He could not escape. He was shot in the leg by an arrow and finally died here.
? Although time has passed and the terrain has changed greatly, some traces left by that year can still be found. Today, there are still caves of different sizes on the hills on both sides of Mumenyu. According to local villagers, these caves were "hiding holes" used by Zhuge Liang when he set an ambush. Nowadays, Wooden Gate Village has also become a local tourist attraction, with memorial buildings such as Wuhou Temple and Zhanghe Tomb, and villages such as Zhangjiaping named after Zhanghe.
Reference books: History of the Three Kingdoms, Notes on Water Classics, Xihe County Records and Tianshui Cultural Relics Records.
Wooden door (1) Tianshui city (1) water mirror note (1)