After Qin Shihuang unified China, why did he send troops to conquer Baiyue, which was not within the territory of China?

In the early Warring States period, the King of Chu used Wuqi to "take a hundred steps to go south", but in the late Warring States period, after Chu Weiwang defeated the King of Yue, the Yue people began to "serve Chu" and became a part of Chu. In 223 BC, after Qin Jun destroyed Chu, in the second year, General Wang Jian led the army to continue southward, seized part of the territory and established Huiji County. When the Qin Dynasty was founded, the Yue people were mainly distributed in Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan and Fujian. Because the Vietnamese did not form a country, only tribes or tribal alliances, and there were many races, which were particularly complex and diverse, so the Central Plains people used to call it Baiyue. In Baiyue, the Vietnamese living in present-day Guangdong and Guangxi are called South Vietnam and Western Europe, and Fujian is called Minyue. South Vietnam takes Panyu (now Guangzhou) as the activity center, and West Ou takes Guangxi Guixian as the activity center. Because Guangdong and Guangxi are located at the southern foot of Nanling Mountains, they are also called Lingnan. The main characteristics of the Yue people are tattooed hair, staggered arms, aggressive tribes, cave dwelling, fishing and simple agricultural production, and they are in an uncivilized and barbaric state as a whole.

The cause of the war? Qin Shihuang's ambition to unify the world after destroying the six countries.

In 22 1 BC, after Qin Shihuang wiped out the six countries and unified the Central Plains, he set out to formulate the strategy of finding Xiongnu in the north and Baiyue in Nanping.

As far as the Yue people are concerned, the threat of the Yue people to the Central Plains is less than that of the Huns. The main reason is that Vietnamese people know more about water warfare and don't like land warfare. In addition, there are steep barriers between the living quarters and the Central Plains, such as Dayu, Qitian, Dubang, Zhu Meng and Yuecheng. Even if attacking the Central Plains, it is not as convenient and fast as the Huns, and it will not pose too much threat to the Central Plains in a short time. In addition, although there are a large number of Yue people in Lingnan, the agricultural economy is underdeveloped, most of them are still in the primitive state of slash and burn, and there are not enough material conditions as supplies for operations and large-scale wars.

Although due to the above geographical environment, economy, lifestyle and other restrictions, the political and military threat of the Vietnamese to the Central Plains is far less than that of the Huns, but after all, the Vietnamese are a huge group with the same religious beliefs and a long history. They have accumulated rich experience in long-term mutual attacks and foreign wars, and gradually formed a brave and fearless fighting tradition. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the Vietnamese fought against the Central Plains countries many times, which made the Central Plains countries suffer a lot. Such a populous nation is bound to pose a considerable threat to the newly established Qin Dynasty. This kind of threat can not be ignored for the ambitious, high-spirited and ruthless Qin Shihuang and the entire Qin Empire. If we want to keep the empire strong and stable and create a lasting legacy, we must fight against external threats.

Therefore, the conquest of the Yue people in Lingnan by the Qin Empire was inevitable.

War process? Five years later, 500,000 troops were finally pacified.

The first battle was unfavorable and the stalemate lasted for three years.

After a series of preparations, in 2 18 BC, Qin Shihuang ordered generals Tu Youyou and Zhao Tuo to lead a 500,000-strong army and launched a war to conquer the Vietnamese in Lingnan. Qin Junbing was divided into five roads, passing through Yuechengling in the north of Guangxi, Jiuyi Mountain in the south of Hunan, Nankang and Yugan in Jiangxi, and marched into Yue State in Guangdong and Guangxi today. Among them, Qin Jun, which captured Panyu, was the fastest. They passed through Jiuben Fortress, went down the Beijiang River, went straight to the Pearl River Delta and occupied Panyu. However, the two armies that attacked the Vietnamese in Guangxi today, because some Qin Jun officers headed by Tu Youyou adopted the policy of discriminating against the Vietnamese and pursued tyranny, caused the Vietnamese to resist in an all-round way. Because Vietnamese are familiar with the terrain and good at climbing mountains and wading, they attack Qin Jun at night, which makes Qin Jun miserable. Once the Vietnamese won, Qin Jun's grain route was cut off and supplies were insufficient, and Tu Youyou, one of the commanders, was also killed. Due to lack of food, the Commander-in-Chief was killed, Qin Jun suffered hundreds of thousands of casualties, and the war fell into a confrontational stage, which lasted for three years.

Building Lingqu to Solve the Problem of Logistics Supply

In order to reverse the shortage of troops and the difficult supply of grain and grass, in 2 17 BC, Qin Shihuang ordered Yu Shilu, a military supervisor, to dig a Lingqu connecting Hunan and Lishui in Xing 'an, Guangxi. As the total length of Lingqu is only 34 kilometers, the amount of the project is not large, and Qin Jun was soon completed. Lingqu connects the Xiangjiang River and the Pearl River system, and Qin Jun's wages can be continuously transported to Lingnan, providing a reliable material guarantee for Qin Shihuang to complete the great cause of Lingnan reunification.

Everything is ready, and the first battle will destroy a hundred leaps.

In 2 14 BC, Qin Shihuang ordered Ren Tao and Zhao Tuo to attack Baiyue tribe again. Qin Jun was on a roll, and soon defeated the resistance of Xi 'ou people in Guangxi and Luoyue people in central and northern Vietnam, and the whole Lingnan area was incorporated into the territory of the Qin Dynasty.

Intermarriage system promotes national integration, and technology dissemination promotes cultural integration.

In order to maintain the stability of Lingnan, Qin Shihuang ordered the soldiers who marched into Lingnan to stay there? Garrison? It is to adopt the system of wasteland, farming at home at ordinary times and fighting at critical moments. In addition, there are a large number of Central Plains immigrants to Lingnan area. The remaining soldiers and immigrants, except a few who married migrant women from the Central Plains, mostly married Yue Nv. They brought advanced culture, agriculture and handicraft technology to Lingnan area, and made great contributions to the development of Lingnan. The war at the southern foot of Qinling Mountains was an important part of Qin Shihuang's war to unify China. For the first time in history, Lingnan was formally incorporated into Chinese territory, making the Yue nationality a member of the Chinese nation. It has played an important role in promoting the integration of Han and Vietnamese nationalities and the social, political, economic and cultural development of Lingnan.