Why did Zhuge Liang do this every time he went to attack Longyou, Gansu Province during the Northern Expedition to the Central Plains?

After Liu Bei's death, Zhuge Liang became the real leader of Han Shu Group and held the power of Han Shu. However, he is not the kind of person who uses power for personal gain. Instead, he devoted the rest of his life to the Northern Expedition of Shu Han. For the long-term development of Shu and Han dynasties, Zhuge Liang chose to explore Cao Wei again and again, but we can see that although Zhuge Liang has been exploring the Central Plains in the north, he has actually been inexplicably attacking Longyou area, which is what we call Gansu area today. what does he want to do?

First, let's look at Zhuge Liang's first Northern Expedition. Zhuge Liang sent Zhao Yun directly from Hanzhong to the north, threatening to attack Meixian from Jiju. When Cao Wei heard this, he quickly sent General Cao Zhen to Meixian to prepare for Zhao Yun. However, when Cao Wei targeted Zhao Yun, the main force of the Shu army led by Zhuge Liang suddenly appeared in Longyou. Suddenly, Cao Wei fell into a panic, and quickly sent General Zhang He with a tie and 50,000 troops to Longyou to attack the Shu army. Zhuge Liang had planned everything for a long time, but Ma Su failed to keep the street pavilion, which led to the failure of the whole plan and finally had to return to Hanzhong.

Although the second attack on Wei marched into Chencang, it did not directly attack Longyou, because Zhuge Liang wanted to occupy Chencang first, which was located between Guanzhong and Longyou. As long as you catch it, you can do it. Enter Guanzhong in the east and Longyou in the west. So Zhuge Liang's ultimate goal is Longyou. In fact, from the third attack to the last attack on Wei, Zhuge Liang was desperate to March into Longyou, so I won't go into details here. Why did Zhuge Liang always die in Longyou? In fact, if we analyze the value and significance of Longyou, we will find that Zhuge Liang's move is actually vicious and not simple at all!

First, Longyou is a place where the brave are strong. People here have always advocated force and are very tough. Since the Western Han Dynasty, there have been many famous soldiers in Longyou area, such as Li Guang and Zhao Chongguo, who fought against the Huns in the Western Han Dynasty, all from here. During the Three Kingdoms period, there were many famous players in Longyou, such as Pound, Ma Chao and Jiang Wei, who all grew up here.

Second, Longyou is rich in war horses. According to historical records, Liangzhou's "customs are quite different, the land is vast and sparsely populated, and aquatic plants are suitable for grazing, so Liangzhou's livestock are spared in the world." Therefore, Longyou, as a developed animal husbandry area, is naturally rich in horses, and cavalry is indispensable in combat. Therefore, once Zhuge Liang occupies Longyou, it is equivalent to having a steady stream of military forces, which is enough for Shu Han to form a strong cavalry team.

Third, Longyou is rich in products. From the Western Han Dynasty, the imperial court immigrated to the real border here and reclaimed wasteland. The custom of "diligently threshing grain" in Longyou shows that agriculture in this area is very developed. During the Three Kingdoms period, Xia, the general of Cao Wei, "counterattacked Wudu County and gathered more than 100,000 people." Summer can get so much food with a small invasion, which is enough to show how rich the food in Longyou area is. Therefore, as long as Zhuge Liang takes Longyou area, it is equivalent to getting a super granary, and the grain and grass used by the army no longer need to be transported from Yizhou.

Therefore, it can be seen that Zhuge Liang's intention to occupy Longyou is very obvious. He wants to take Longyou as the base, then use Guanzhong to finally realize the strategic plan of Beiding Central Plains. It can be said that his strategic vision is very unique, because once the line from Hanzhong to Longyou is consolidated and then advanced to Chang 'an, there will be no worries anymore. It's a pity that Zhuge Liang's plan is perfect, but his opponent is unexpected. Sima yi's level of fighting was comparable to his, so that Zhuge Liang's many northern expeditions were in vain. After all, he can't beat the powerful Wei State and can only end in failure.