《资治通鉴·汉纪》151｜还原彭城之战：项羽再封神（1）

Summary

This 芮淇讲透资治通鉴 episode opens the 彭城之战 branch by explaining the political and strategic setup before the famous battle itself. 新城董公 gives 刘邦 the argument that 项羽’s killing of Yi Emperor 芈心 / 楚怀王 can be turned into a public mourning rite and punitive call to the lords. The episode then follows Liu Bang’s coalition-building through 陈馀, the northern cleanup after 司马卬’s defeat, 田横’s renewed Qi resistance around 莒城 / 城阳, and finally Liu Bang’s capture of 彭城, where victory quickly becomes indulgence and lowered vigilance.

Key Claims

• The episode frames Pengcheng as the first large Chu-Han battle and states the later result: Xiang Yu’s smaller elite force will break Liu Bang’s much larger coalition, but this installment stops before the tactical battle is narrated.
• Dong Gong’s advice turns Yi Emperor Mi Xin’s murder from an existing grievance into a usable 道德化战争借口: Liu Bang should mourn publicly, name Xiang Yu a regicidal rebel, and call the lords to punish him.
• Liu Bang’s mourning ritual matters because it reduces the moral cost for lords who already have reasons to leave Xiang Yu’s order; opposition can now be styled as punishing disorder rather than opportunistic defection.
• Liu Bang secures Zhao participation through a deception: he preserves 张耳 but sends 陈馀 a substitute head to satisfy Chen Yu’s demand for Zhang Er’s death.
• After Liu Bang captures 河内郡, the Yellow River north becomes much less favorable to Xiang Yu, while Chen Yu’s Zhao controls Handan and Julu areas.
• 田横 gathers Qi remnants, installs 田广 as Qi king, and holds out near Chengyang/Ju, keeping Xiang Yu tied down in Qi.
• The source uses the Chengyang/Ju note to connect this Chu-Han moment with older Qi survival memory: Ju had been one of the last anti-Yan holdouts after Le Yi’s conquest.
• Liu Bang captures Pengcheng while Xiang Yu’s main force is away in Qi, but the capture immediately produces the source’s warning sign: Liu Bang and his soldiers indulge in treasure, women, drinking, and celebration.
• Even 张良 and 陈平 are described as momentarily silent inside the sudden victory mood, marking the failure as broader than one man’s pleasure-seeking.
• Xiang Yu’s reaction is immediate anger and rapid movement, but the source ends at the moment he starts responding.

Key Quotes

“顺德者昌，逆德者亡” - Dong Gong’s moral-political frame for why the campaign needs a public name.

“收其货宝美人，日置酒高会” - the source’s cited record of Liu Bang’s conduct after entering Pengcheng.

Connections

• 彭城之战, 刘邦, 项羽, and 彭城 - battle setup, capture of the Chu capital, and Xiang Yu’s pending counterattack.
• 新城董公, 芈心 / 楚怀王, 道德化战争借口, and 联军战后安排失败 - Yi Emperor’s death converted into anti-Xiang mobilization.
• 陈馀, 张耳, 赵歇, and 赵国 - Zhao participation made possible through deception and the earlier Zhang Er/Chen Yu rupture.
• 田横, 田荣, 田广, 齐国, and 莒城 / 城阳 - Qi resistance as the strategic distraction that keeps Xiang Yu away from Pengcheng.
• 张良, 陈平, and 数胜必亡式胜利反噬 - advisers who usually restrain danger appear overwhelmed by the capture of Pengcheng.

Contradictions

• No settled contradiction is recorded. The episode explicitly limits itself to the pre-battle setup and the moment Xiang Yu learns of Pengcheng’s fall, so the famous three-ten-thousand-versus-fifty-six-ten-thousand battle process remains for a later source.