A Summary of Three Kingdoms:
Source: http://www.china-on-site.com/pages/comic/comiccatalog2.php
The story begins in 169 and ends in 280,telling the battles and complicated connections among the Three Kingdoms–Wei,Shu and Wu.Ts’ao Ts’ao stands for the north power.He holds the Han’s emperor under duress and founds the Wei Kingdom.In the south,Liu Pei, who once seld fans and shoes,founds the Shu Kingdom because of his Imperial Uncle title and reputation;while Sun Ch’uan,head of Wu Kingdom seating in the southeast.There are also many politicians and knights helping the three persons.In order to consolidate China,Ts’ao Ts’ao makes several battles.On the other hand,the other two men want to enlarge their force and power to be king of the unified China.Through many battles,such as the Battle of Red Cliff,lastly the Xi Jin Kindom defeats the Three Kingdoms and completes this period.
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The Battle of Red Cliff
This is a very famous fight in the Han period.It established the fundation of the Three Kingdoms.After unifying the north,Ts’ao Ts’ao leads his force down to the south where there are already two leuds Liu Pei and Sun Ch’uan,both of whom are weak because of their new-established lands.But as Ts’ao Ts’ao is pride of his strong army,he ignores his disadvantage–his soldiers are all north local native,so they usedn’t to the battle on water.Liu and Sun ally together and take advantage of ways of wind.Then they use fire to defeat Ts’ao Ts’ao completely.
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1
In the late Eastern Han Dynasty(25 A.D. to 220 A.D.), the imperial government was very corrupt,and the people lived a miserable life.As a result,there were peasant uprings,and the empire began to crumble.The warlord Ts’ao Ts’ao was able to take advantage of this instability and increase his power.He defeated other warlords,such as Lu Pu,Yuan Shao,etc.,and unified north China under his rule.
2
In 208 A.D.,Ts’ao Ts’ao took the emperor Hsien Ti captive,and with the emperor under his control,named himself the prime minister of the imperial government.Then he led his army and navy south to attack the Wu Kingdom located southeast of the Yangtze River.Ts’ao Ts’ao annexed the warlord Liu Tsung’s troops and prepared to defeat Liu Pei,the ruler of the Shu Kingdom located southeast of the river.He sent a letter to Sun Chuan,the ruler of the Wu Kingdom,challenging Sun to a battle.
3
In the letter,Ts’ao Ts’ao claimed that he had a navy and army combined of 800,000 soldiers.(The actual number was 230,000.) At this point,Liu Pei’s Shu Kingdom forces had retreated in defeat to Ch’angpan in Tangyang District,and Sun Ch’uan of Wu Kingdom realized the only way to resist Ts’ao was to form an immediate alliance with Liu Pei.So Sun Ch’uan asked his representative,Lu Su,to visit Liu Pei and discuss the possiblility of an alliance.
4
Lu Su met with Liu Pei at Ch’angpan and proposed that Liu Pei of Shu Kingdom and Sun Ch’uan of Wu Kingdom form an alliance.With their combined forces and supplies,they could resist Ts’ao Ts’ao.Liu Pei was very glad to accept this proposal.Liu Pei’s military counsellor,Chu-ke Liang,suggested that he go to the Wu Kingdom as Liu Pei’s representative and ask Sun Ch’uan for help.Liu Pei agreed to let Chu-ke Liang go back with Lu Su to meet with Sun Ch’uan.
5
Arriving at Ch’ai Sang in Wu Kingdom,Lu Su asked Chu-Ke Liang to rest in an inn and went to report to Sun Chuan.Sun Chuan was discussing the military situation with his civil and army officials.One of the civil officials,Chang Chao,was advising him,”Ts’ao Ts’ao’s power is great because he controls the emperor.He has recently taken Chingchou City.This means we have already lost half of the Yangtze River as our natural line of defence.I think the best way to settle is to surrender.”
6
Chang Chao’s words got nods of agreement from many of the advisers.Chang Chao added,”Your Majesty,I have no doubt that after our surrender to Ts’ao Ts’ao,all the people of Wu Kingdom will have a peaceful and stable life,and our six Prefectures will also saved from the ravages of war.”Hearing this,Sun Ch’uan kept silent with his head bowed.
7
Then Sun Ch’uan went into the rear hall.Lu Su followed him and said,”Your Majesty should never accept what the others said to you just now.You will lose more from surrender than they will.”Sun Ch’uan asked,”Why?”
8
Lu Su explained,”If we advisers surrender to Ts’ao Ts’ao,we will probably be allowed to keep our positions as prefecture or county officials.If Your Majesty surrenders to Ts’ao Ts’ao,you will have a title but no power.Ts’ao Ts’ao could never let you have the same status you have now.What your people advised was in their own interests only.Your Majesty should never accept their proposal,but instead make your own decision at once.”
9
Hearing this,Sun Chuan was deeply moved.He sighed,”What Chang Chao and the others have said makes me feel hopeless and disappointed.What you have said to me is exactly what is in my heart.But I am afraid that we can not defeat Ts’ao Ts’ao.”Lu Su then advised Sun Chuan to meet with Chu-ke Liang from Shu Kingdom and ask for his assessment of the actual strength of Ts’ao Ts’ao’s troops.
10
The next day,Lu Su accompanied Chu-ke Liang to the meeting with Sun Ch’uan.Chu-ke Liang first relayed greetings from Liu Pei to Sun Ch’uan.As they talked,Chu-ke Liang studied Sun Ch’uan,and seeing that he was a man of great pride,realized he could easily persuade Sun Ch’uan to fight Ts’ao Ts’ao.
11
Sun Ch’uan asked Chu-ke Liang for his assessment of the actual strength of Ts’ao Ts’ao’s forces.Chu-ke Liang lied,”Ts’ao Ts’ao has infantry,navy and cavalry combined of 1,000,000 soldiers.”Sun Ch’uan asked,”How can we resist then?”Chu-ke Liang replied,”If you want to resist Ts’ao Ts’ao’s aggression from the north,you must cut your ties with Ts’ao Ts’ao as soon as possible.If you think it is impossible to resist,then surrender to Ts’ao Ts’ao.The most dangerous choice now is to hesitate.”
12
Sun Ch’uan retorted sarcastically,”Why hasn’t Liu Pei surrendered to Ts’ao Ts’ao then?”Chu-ke Liang said,”In ancient times,there was a hero named’T'ian Heng’ from a small kingdom called Ch’i Kingdom.Even when Ch’i Kingdom was completely surrounded by enemies,T’ian Heng still wouldn’t surrender to the new ruler.Liu Pei is a hero who is highly respected by everyone in our kingdom.Although he is now in a difficult situation,it is still unacceptable for him to surrender to Ts’ao Ts’ao.”
13
Sun Ch’uan’s pride was aroused by this story,and he insisted,”I could never put my six prefectures and 100,000 soldiers under another’s control.I will resist Ts’ao Ts’ao.”Chu-ke Liang then analysed the weakness of Ts’ao Ts’ao’s forces and said,”Although we have lost Chingchou City,our general Kuan Yu still has 10,000 good soldiers,and General Liu Ch’i has another 10,000.They have enough for us to resist Ts’ao Ts’ao…”
14
Chu-ke Liang continued,”Ts’ao Ts’ao’s soldiers come from another region and are not used to naval battles.Our people in Chingchou City hate Ts’ao Ts’ao and his men.Given these facts,if you make an alliance with Liu Pei,we together will surely defeat Ts’ao Ts’ao.Then Ts’ao Ts’ao will retreat to the north.You can keep the area southeast of the Yangtze River, and Liu Pei will take back Chingchou City.Then there will be three independent Kingdoms.Now is the time to make your decision.”
15
Sun Ch’uan was very happy to hear this.He said to Chu-ke Liang,”My hesitation is gone now that I have heard your advice and analysis.I have decided to resist Ts’ao Ts’ao.Let us discuss exactly how to resist him later on.”Sun Ch’uan then asked Lu Su to announce his decision to all the officials,and Chu-ke Liang went back to the inn to rest.
16
The civil official Chang Chao was very upset to hear Sun Ch’uan’s decision to fight Ts’ao Ts’ao.He went to see Sun Ch’uan with another civil official called “Ku Yung” and insisted that the enemy was too powerful to resist.Ku Yung added that Liu Pei simply wanted to use Wu Kingdom so that Shu Kingdom would not have to fight.Listening to their arguments,Sun Chuan lost his resolve.
17
At home,Sun Ch’uan’s mother found her son terribly upset.She asked him what was wrong.So Sun Ch’uan told his mother about his dilemma.She advised him,”Don’t you remember your brother’s instructions?He told you to consult Chang Chao for internal affairs and consult Chou Yu for external affairs.”Sun then remembered his brother’s words and asked the servant to send for Chou Yu at once.
18
While training the Wu Kingdom navy at PoYang Lake,Chou Yu heard that Ts’ao Ts’ao’s troops had arrived at Hanshang and were preparing to defeat Liu Pei’s forces and then annex Wu Kingdom.Chou Yu came to Ch’aisang and met with Lu Su,who reported all the details of the discussion of how to deal with Ts’ao Ts’ao.
19
After Chou Yu’s arrival in Ch’aisang,Chang Chao,Ku Yung and the other civil officials all came to Chou Yu to argue for surrender while the generals,Huang Kai,Han Tang,etc.,came to argue for resistance.Chou Yu listened to the arguments of the two sides and said,”Tomorrow,let us discuss it with Sun Ch’uan.”
20
The next morning,Sun Ch’uan called all his civil and army officials together and asked Chou Yu to make the decision for him.Chou Yu said,”From the military point of view,Ts’ao Ts’ao’s expansion to the south will be limited by four problems:First, he doesn’t have a stable home front.Second, people from north China are usually not good at naval battles.Third, it is winter time now,and their cavalry is short of fodder. Fourth,they are not used to the weather and living conditions in the south.”
21
Chou Yu continued,”Ts’ao Ts’ao claimed to have an army and navy of 800,000 soldiers.But he actually has only about 200,000.Your Majesty,please let me lead a force of 50,000 soldiers,and I will surely defeat Ts’ao Ts’ao.”Sun Ch’uan was encouraged by Chou Yu and replied,”What you have said is what my heart tells me to do.I have now decided to fight Ts’ao Ts’ao.”
22
Chou Yu was afraid that Sun Chuan would lose his resolve again.He added,”I myself want to risk my life to defeat Ts’ao Ts’ao for Your Majesty.But I am afraid you will change your mind again.” Sun Chuan suddenly pulled out his sword and chopped off a corner of his desk and proclaimed to everyone,”From now on,this is what will happen to anyone who wants to surrender to Ts’ao Ts’ao.”
23
Sun Ch’uan passed the sword to Chou Yu and announced to all the officials that he was appointing Chou Yu as Marshal,General Ch’eng P’u as Assistant Marshal,and Lu Su as Field Officer;he conferred on each the power to kill anyone who dared to disobey orders.Then Chou Yu announced,”Tomorrow morning,everyone must report to my camp.Anyone who is late will be punished.”
24
The next day,Chou Yu deployed 30,000 of his best soldiers by both water and land.Chu-ke Liang accompanied Chou Yu and Lu Su in one of the boats.Chou Yu ordered his forces to halt about 30 kilometers from Sanchiangkou.
25
Liu Pei had encamped at Fank’ou and was worried about the progress of Ts’ao Ts’ao’s troops.He sent his scouts out every day to look for a response from Sun Ch’uan.When he heard that navy and army forces from Wu Kingdom,led by Chou Yu,were moving west,he immediately sent his people to welcome Chou Yu’s forces and himself went to greet Chou Yu by boat.
26
Liu Pei said to Chou Yu,”Marshal Chou,you have made the right decision.May I ask how many soldiers you have?”Chou Yu answered,” 30,000 soldiers.”Liu Pei said,”Not enough.”Chou Yu replied firmly,”They are enough!Just wait,Your Majesty,and you will see me defeat Ts’ao Ts’ao’s forces.”Seeing Chou Yu full of confidence,Liu Pei returned to his camp satisfied that they would defeat Ts’ao Ts’ao.
27
Several days later,Ts’ao Ts’ao sent a letter of challenge to Chou Yu addressed:” From the Great Prime Minister of Han Dynasty to Marshal Chou.” Chou Yu flew into a rage when he saw the letter.Without opening it,he tore it into pieces and ordered his soldiers to kill the messenger at once.He ordered the messenger’s assistant to take the head of the messenger back to Ts’ao Ts’ao.
28
The next morning,Chou Yu ordered his general Kan Ning to lead the advance fleet,General Han Tang to lead the left wing fleet,and general Chiang Ch’in to lead the right wing fleet.Chou Yu himself led the rear fleet.The four fleets of warships sailed to the west together at full speed.At Sanchiangk’ou,they saw large fleets of warships sailing from Ts’ao Ts’ao camp ready to fight.
29
Ts’ao Ts’ao became enraged when he heard that Chou Yu had torn his letter into pieces and killed his messenger.He ordered Generals Ts’ai Mao and Chang Yun,who had surrendered to him after the fall of Chingchou City,to lead the advance fleet,and Ts’ao Ts’ao himself led the rear fleet against Chou Yu’s attack.As the two enemy fleets got closer and closer to each other,Ts’ai Mao’s younger brother Ts’ai Hsun decided to attack General Kan Ning of the Wu Kingdom navy.Kan Ning shot down Ts’ai Hsun with an arrow and Kan Ning’s sailors began shooting with their crossbows.
30
Generals Chiang Ch’in and Han Tang made their attacks from the left and the right into Ts’ao Ts’ao’s fleet.Most of Ts’ao Ts’ao’s soldiers were new recruits from Chingchou and Hsuchou Cities and had no experience on the water.Because they could not even stand steadily on the rocking warships,many of them were killed or wounded.After fighting for several hours,Chou Yu had routed Ts’ao Ts’ao’s navy,and he decided to retreat since he saw Ts’ao Ts’ao had more warships than he had.
31
After returning to his camp,Ts’ao Ts’ao blamed Ts’ai Mao and Chang Yun for the defeat.Ts’ai Mao explained,”The soldiers from Chingchou City have not been well trained and the soldiers from north China have no experience on the water.Now we must defend our camp and train the soldiers from north China together with the soldiers from Chingchou City.When they all become good at naval battles,we can renew our attack on the enemy.”Ts’ao Ts’ao then appointed Ts’ai Mao and Chang Yun to take charge of the training of his navy.
32
Both forces had halted at Ch’ihpi(Red Cliff) on the Yangtze River.For more than a month,they faced each other across the river.Ts’ao Ts’ao became increasingly anxious and called his civil and army officials together.His adviser Chiang Kan said,”I was once Chou Yu’s schoolmate.I want to go to Wu Kingdom and try to persuade Chou Yu to change his mind.I am sure I can convince Chou Yu to surrender to us.”
33
Ts’ao Ts’ao asked Chiang Kan how many people he needed for the trip and if he needed to bring gifts.Chiang Kan said,”I need a small boat,nothing else.”Ts’ao Ts’ao agreed to let Chiang Kan go to the enemy camp by himself.The next day,Chiang Kan and a childservant crossed the Yangtze River in a small boat and arrived at Chou Yu’s camp.Chiang Kan asked the guards to announce his arrival to Chou Yu.
34
When Chou Yu heard about Chiang Kan’s arrival,he was in his tent talking with his generals.Chou Yu suspected the purpose of Chiang Kan’s visit and quickly devised a way to use Chiang Kan to trick Ts’ao Ts’ao.He left his tent with 100 servants and guards and went to greet Chiang Kan.They greeted each other,and then Chou Yu said to Chiang Kan with a smile,”You must be very tired since you have travelled such a long distance to cross the river.I think you must be an envoy for Ts’ao Ts’ao.”
35
Chiang Kan was seized with terror but then calmed down and explained,”Since I have not seen you for a long time,I am now paying a special visit to you.How could you suspect me of working for Ts’ao Ts’ao?”Chou Yu said,”Although I am not a clever man,I am not a fool.”Chiang Kan bowed and said to Chou Yu,”My dear schoolmate,I didn’t expect you to treat your old friend like this.So I will say good-bye to you now.”Taking Chiang Kan’s hand,Chou Yu said,”Don’t be so grim.Since you are not Ts’ao Ts’ao’s envoy,why don’t you stay here for a while?”Then he invited Chiang Kan into his tent.
36
Chou Yu hosted Chiang Kan with a big feast and introduced him to his officers:”This is my former schoolmate,Chiang Kan,who is not an envoy for Ts’ao Ts’ao.Today,we will talk only of our friendship and say nothing of military affairs.”Chou Yu proposed a toast to Chiang Kan and said,”Since I was appointed Marshal,I have not had any wine.Today is a reunion of two old friends,so let us drink to celebrate.”Then he laughed and repeatedly toasted Chiang Kan and the other civil and army officials.
37
When he was almost drunk,Chou Yu led Chiang Kan out of the tent and around the camp.Chou Yu showed Chiang Kan his vigorous soldiers and stacks of fodder,and Chiang Kan said admiringly,”You have fine soldiers and more than enough supplies.”
38
Chou Yu replied,”A man must be loyal to his leader.Not even strategists like Su Ch’ing and Chang I of ancient times could make me change my mind.”Then he laughed again,making Chiang Kan very nervous.
39
Chou Yu invited Chiang Kan into his tent again to continue the feast and said,”Today,all the people at the feast are heroes from Wu Kingdom,so it is a feast for heroes.”Chou Yu composed a short song and performed a sword dance.All the people at the feast were very happy.
40
When the feast ended at midnight,Chou Yu asked Chiang Kan to sleep in the same tent with him.Soon after going to bed,Chou Yu appeared to be sleeping soundly.Chiang Kan could not sleep since he was worried about his mission.
41
Chiang Kan quietly got up and by the light of a candle furtively looked through the letters on Chou Yu’s desk.He saw a sealed envelope addressed:”From Ts’ai Mao and Chang Yun.”Chiang Kan opened it and read it.It was from Ts’ao Ts’ao’s generals,Ts’ai Mao and Chang Yun,and stated their intention to kill Ts’ao Ts’ao and surrender to Wu Kingdom with Ts’ao Ts’ao’s head.
42
Chiang Kan was stunned.He said to himself,”Fortunately, I came across the river and discovered this secret;otherwise, Ts’ao Ts’ao would have been killed.”Just then Chou Yu turned over in bed and said in his sleep,”Chiang Kan,I will show you Ts’ao Ts’ao’s head in a couple of days.”Chiang Kan hid the letter in his sleeve,blew out the candle and returned to bed.
43
Lying awake in bed until early morning,Chiang Kan was thinking,”Chou Yu is a clever man.If he finds the letter missing,surely he will suspect me.I must escape now.I can not stay here any longer.”He quietly left the tent and woke his childservant up,persuaded the guards to let them leave the camp,and then got into the boat and sailed back across the river.
44
It was daytime when Chiang Kan got back to Ts’ao Ts’ao’s camp.Ts’ao Ts’ao asked him what had happened,and Chiang Kan said,”I am sorry but I could not make Chou Yu change his mind.”Ts’ao Ts’ao said coldly,”They must be laughing at us now.” Chiang Kan said,” Although I didn’t succeed in persuading Chou Yu to surrender to us,I found a much more important secret for you,Prime Minister.Could you please ask the others to leave?”
45
Ts’ao Ts’ao asked the others to leave the camp,Chiang Kan took out the letter and handed it to Ts’ao Ts’ao.Ts’ao Ts’ao read the letter:…We are forced to surrender to Ts’ao Ts’ao.Now we have convinced Ts’ao Ts’ao not to attack until his men are better trained.When the time is right,we will present Ts’ao Ts’ao’s head to you.”
46
Ts’ao Ts’ao was stunned.He called for Ts’ai Mao and Chang Yun immediately and ordered them to start the attack on Chou Yu’s forces.Ts’ai Mao said,”Our navy is still training.We should not attack until the men are well trained.”Ts’ao Ts’ao exclaimed,”By the time you have trained them,my head will have been presented to Chou Yu!” Ts’ai Mao and Chang Yun were taken aback and didn’t know how to answer Ts’ao Ts’ao.Ts’ao Ts’ao ordered the guards to arrest the two and kill them at once.
47
After seeing Ts’ai Mao and Chang Yun killed,the other generals came into the tent and demanded that Ts’ao Ts’ao explain why they were killed.Ts’ao began to think that he had fallen for a plot to sow distrust among his officers.Instead of admitting his mistake,Ts’ao Ts’ao explained that the two generals had been killed because they balked at carrying out his orders.Then Ts’ao Ts’ao appointed generals Mao Chieh and Yu Chin to be the new marshals of his navy.
48
Knowing that Ts’ao Ts’ao’s soldiers were not used to the rocking and tossing of the waves,Mao Chieh and Yu Chin suggested connecting the warships with iron chains to reduce the motion.Ts’ao accepted their suggestion and ordered them to go ahead and connect the warships.
49
Two days later,Chou Yu’s scouts reported the deaths of Ts’ai Mao and Chang Yun,Chou Yu was very happy to hear the news because Ts’ai Mao and Chang Yun had lived near the Yangtze River and were very familiar with naval warfare.That is why Chou Yu had plotted to have the two killed.Lu Su came to congratulate Chou Yu and Chou Yu said,”The only one who could have seen through my plot is Chu-ke Liang.Go and test him.”
50
Lu Su paid a visit to Chu-ke Liang.Chu-ke Liang congratulated Lu Su,but Lu Su pretended to know nothing about the news.Chu-ke Liang said,”Now that Ts’ai Mao and Chang Yun are dead,Ts’ao’s navy won’t be a threat to Wu Kingdom.Chou Yu knew he could use the gullible Chiang Kan to trick Ts’ao Ts’ao.Although Ts’ao Ts’ao was deceived at first,he must have soon realized the truth.”
51
Chu-ke Liang exhorted Lu Su,”Please,never tell Chou Yu that I have seen through his plot;otherwise,I will get into trouble.”Lu Su agreed.
52
But Lu Su told Chou Yu that Chu-ke Liang had figured out the trick.The next day,Chou Yu asked Chu-ke Liang to talk to him.He aked Chu-ke Liang if he could make 100,000 arrows in 10 days.Chu-ke Liang replied,”I need only 3 days to make the arrows.”Chou Yu called the army secretary and sighed a contract with Chu-ke Liang.Chu-ke Liang said,”Starting from tomorrow,in three days send 500 soldiers to the river bank to get the arrows.”
53
Then Lu Su was instructed by Chou Yu to watch Chu-ke Liang’s response.Chu-ke Liang complained to Lu Su,”I told you not to tell Chou Yu but you did.This has caused me great trouble.”Lu Su replied,”It was not my fault.You created your own trouble.”Then Chu-ke Liang asked Lu Su to provide him 20 boats,600 soldiers,some black cloth and some straw.
54
Lu Su provided the soldiers,boats, black cloth,and straw.Chu-ke Liang asked the soldiers to wrap the boats in the black cloth and set up scarecrows on both sides of each boat.He assigned 30 soldiers to each boat and instructed them to wait for further orders.
55
Two days passed,but still Chu-ke Liang waited.In the early morning of the third day,Chu-ke Liang invited Lu Su to ride in a boat with him.Chu-ke Liang ordered the soldiers to connect the 20 boats with rope,and then they sailed toward the north bank of the Yangtze River.It was so foggy on the river the soldiers could hardly see each other,even standing face to face.
56
Chu-ke Liang ordered the boats to speed up and then drank some wine with Lu Su inside.Lu Su was very nervous,as he had no idea what Chu-ke Liang was going to do.By daybreak,they were approaching Ts’ao Ts’ao’s camp.Chu-ke Liang directed the 20 boats to sail in a line with the bows facing west and sterns east.He then ordered the soldiers to beat their drums and shout loudly.
57
Hearing the noise of drums and shouting coming from the river,Ts’ao Ts’ao’s soldiers reported to Ts’ao Ts’ao.Ts’ao Ts’ao figured that if Chou Yu’s forces were attacking in such foggy weather,they were intending to ambush his navy.Then he ordered all his soldiers to stay inside the camp and asked the archers to shoot the attacking ememies on the river.When the scarecrows on one side of the boats had received enough arrows,Chu-ke Liang ordered the soldiers to turn to 20 boats around so the scarecrows on the other side of the boats would receive the arrows.
58
In the morning when the fog had almost dispersed,Chu-ke Liang ordered his soldiers to sail back.Lu Su praised Chu-ke Liang and asked him how he had predicted the fog.Chu-ke Liang replied,”How can a man be a general without knowledge of meteorology and geography?Chou Yu asked me to make 100,000 arrows in 10 days.It is obvious that he wanted to find an excuse to kill me.You see,he can not deceive me.”
59
Arriving at the south bank of the river,they saw the 500 soldiers waiting for them as Chou Yu had promised.Chu-ke Liang asked them to take the arrows out of the boats and count them.All together they had more than 100,000 arrows.Lu Su went back to the camp first and told Chou Yu all about how Chu-ke Liang had gotten the arrows using boats and scarecrows.Chou Yu was so astonished he put aside his scheme to kill Chu-ke Liang.
60
That evening,Chou Yu congratulated Chu-ke Liang with a banquet.During the banquet,Chou Yu said,”Yesterday,Sun Chuan urged me to begin the attack on Ts’ao Ts’ao soon.It will not be easy to attack Ts’ao Ts’ao,since his camp is heavily guarded.I have a plan,but I am not sure if it will work or not.I want to ask you,Chu-ke Liang,to make a decision for me.”
61
Chu-ke Liang said,”Don’t say anything.Write your idea in your palm,and I will do the same.Then we can see if we have the same idea or not.”Chou Yu agreed and asked for brushes and ink.Then each man wrote something in his palm.
62
They both laughed when they showed each other the characters written in their palms.Each had written the character for “Fire”.Chou Yu said,”Since we both have had the same idea,it must be the right one.But we cannot reveal it to anyone else.”Chu-ke Liang said,”Of course not!This is our most precious secret!”
63
Several days later,Ts’ai Mao’s younger brothers Ts’ai He and Ts’ai Chung crossed the river with 500 soldiers to surrender to Chou Yu.When they saw Chou Yu,they knelt down and cried,”Our elder brother was killed by Ts’ao Ts’ao for no reason.We come to surrender to you in order to take revenge on Ts’ao Ts’ao.”Chou Yu was glad to hear this and sent them to serve under his general Kan Ning.
64
Chou Yu told Kan Ning secretly,”Ts’ai He and Ts’ai Chung came to surrender to us without their families,so they don’t really want to surrender.They must be spying for Ts’ao Ts’ao.I want to turn Ts’ao Ts’ao’s trick against him by using Ts’ai He and Ts’ai Chung to pass false information to him.Watch them carefully,but don’t let them know anything about my plan.”
65
That same evening,General Huang Kai from Wu Kingdom came to Chou Yu and suggested a fire attack on Ts’ao Ts’ao’s camp.Chou Yu said,”I am thinking about the details of a fire attack.Since the enemy camp is on the other side of the river,we must have someone make a false surrender to Ts’ao Ts’ao first,and then we can make our fire attack on their fleet.That is why I am using Ts’ai Chung and Ts’ai He to pass false information to Ts’ao Ts’ao.But nobody wants to make a false surrender to Ts’ao Ts’ao now.”Huang Kai said bravely,”I will do it!”
66
The next day,Chou Yu called all the generals and announced,”Ts’ao Ts’ao claims that he has 1,000,000 soldiers.I don’t think that we can defeat Ts’ao Ts’ao quickly,so everyone should round up at least enough supplies for 3 months.”Soon after his announcement,General Huang Kai stepped forward and said loudly,”Even if we have enough supplies for 30 months,it will still be useless.I think if we cannot defeat Ts’ao Ts’ao this month,we had better surrender as Chang Chao advised.”
67
Chou Yu replied angrily,”Sun Ch’uan said anyone who wanted to surrender to Ts’ao Ts’ao should be killed.If you are not punished,why should others obey orders?”Huang Kai said,”Three generations of my family have served the Wu Kingdom since I followed General Sun Chien to fight for the founding of the kingdom.When we were fighting to found this kingdom,you didn’t even exist.”Chou Yu ordered the soldiers to take Huang Kai out and kill him at once.
68
Chou Yu shouted with anger,”Kill Huang Kai immediately!” General Kan Ning begged Chou Yu to save Huang Kai,”Huang Kai is our oldest general.Please spare his life this time.”Without waiting for Kan Ning to finish,Chou Yu ordered his guards to beat him.
69
The other generals knelt down and begged Chou Yu not to kill Huang Kai.They argued that killing a senior general before attacking an enemy would be very bad for morale.It would be better to punish Huang Kai after defeating Ts’ao Ts’ao.Because so many of the generals wanted Huang Kai to live,Chou Yu relented,”I will spare Huang Kai’s life this time.But he will be flogged 100 lashes instead.”
70
Nobody dared to disobey Chou Yu’s order.The soldiers took off Huang Kai’s uniform and pushed him on to the ground and then started the flogging.After 50 lashes,Huang Kai was bruised and lacerated.Seeing this,the other generals begged Chou Yu to stop the flogging.Chou Yu ignored them and stalked into his tent.
71
Lu Su went to look for Chu-ke Liang and pleaded,”Today Chou Yu is very angry.He was beating Huang Kai just now.Since we report to him,we cannot make him stop.You are a guest.Why don’t you reason with him?”Chu-ke Liang said with a smile,”Punishing Huang Kai is a ruse to win the confidence of the enemy.One was willing to beat;the other was willing to be beaten.Why should I tell them to stop?”Lu Su then suddenly understood the truth.
72
Huang Kai returned to his own tent to heal his wounds.His friend Han Tse can see him.Huang Kai told him about the plot and said that he needed a messenger to take a letter to Ts’ao Ts’ao offering surrender.Han Tse was flattered,and he agreed to take Huang Kai’s letter to Ts’ao Ts’ao.
73
Huang Kai wrote his letter offering to surrender and gave it to Han Tse.When dark fell,Han Tse disguised himself as a fisherman and sailed to the north bank of the river.When he arrived at Ts’ao Ts’ao’s camp,he was stopped by Ts’ao Ts’ao’s patrols.Han Tse said,”I am a staff officer from Wu Kingdom and I have an important secret to report to Premier Ts’ao Ts’ao.”
74
Ts’ao Ts’ao’s soldiers guided Han into a tent brightly lit with candles and lamps.Ts’ao Ts’ao demanded that Han Tse tell him his real purpose for coming to his camp.Han Tse answered with a hopeless expression on his face,”I have been told that you are a person who appreciates intelligent people.But now I know it is not true.”
75
Ts’ao Ts’ao explained,”You are an emissary from an enemy force.I must question you when you come alone.”Han Tse said,”The old general Huang Kai from Wu Kingdom advised Chou Yu to surrender to you,Prime Minister,but he was badly beaten as a result.Huang Kai now hates Chou Yu and wants to surrender to you.Since I am his good friend,I have come here with his letter,and I want to know if you will accept his offer or not.”
76
Han Tse passed Huang Kai’s letter to Ts’ao Ts’ao.Ts’ao Ts’ao read.”…Here every official hates the imperious and despotic Chou Yu.I have decided to surrender to you,Prime Minister.If you accept my offer,I will lead my troops,with weapons and fodder,to surrender to you…”
77
While Ts’ao Ts’ao was reading the letter,a servant came in and whispered to him.Ts’ao Ts’ao said,”Show me the letter at once!”Then the servant passed another letter to Ts’ao Ts’ao.Han Tse glanced furtively at Ts’ao Ts’ao.Seeing the pleased expression on Ts’ao Ts’ao’s face,Han Tse concluded,”It must be news of the punishment of Huang Kai,which has been sent here secretly by Ts’ai Chung and Ts’ai He.”
78
After reading the letter,Ts’ao Ts’ao said to Han Tse,”Please go back to Wu Kingdom and tell Huang Kai to arrange a meeting place so that I can send my troops to escort him.”Han Tse agreed and sailed back across the river.Then he reported all the details of his meeting with Ts’ao Ts’ao to Huang Kai.
79
After receiving Huang Kai’s letter,Ts’ao Ts’ao felt enormously proud of his sucess.In mid-November,he inspected his navy and saw all his warships tied together with iron chains floating gently on the waves.He was satisfied his soldiers could fight on the ships as well as they could on the ground.
80
Ts’ao Ts’ao’s staff officer Cheng Yu argued,”Although it is easier for our soldiers if we connect the warships with iron chains,it will be difficult to resist a fire attack from Chou Yu.We must prepare for it.”Ts’ao Ts’ao laughed loudly and said,”A fire attack can not be made without the help of the wind.Now it is winter time,and only the northwest wind blows.If Chou Yu starts a fire attack against the northwest wind,surely they will burn themselves up.”All the other officers agreed with Ts’ao Ts’ao and praised his keen observation.
81
Although Chou Yu had decided to make a fire attack,and Huang Kai had succeeded in deceiving Ts’ao Ts’ao with his offer to surrender,Chou Yu was still very worried.The northwest wind continued to blow,and out of frustration he fell ill.Lu Su told Chu-ke Liang the news of Chou Yu’s illness.Chu-ke Liang smiled,”Lu Su,I can cure your marshal.”
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Then Lu Su and Chu-ke Liang went to see Chou Yu.Chou Yu said with a sigh,”No one can predict his health.”Chu-ke Liang smiled,”And how can a man predict the weather?”Chou Yu was taken aback when he heard this and wondered if Chu-ke Liang could read his mind.Then he asked Chu-ke Liang for his remedy.
83
Chu-ke Liang wrote down the remedy and passed it to Chou Yu saying.”This will cure you.”Chou Yu looked at it.”To defeat Ts’ao Ts’ao,a fire attack is the only way.Everything is ready except the east wind.”Again,Chou Yu was astonished,and he realized he could not outwit Chu-ke Liang.Then he told Chu-ke Liang all his worries about the upcoming battle.
84
Chu-ke Liang had studied the weather.He knew that the southeast wind would begin to blow in a couple of days,but he convinced Chou Yu that he had magic powers and that he could summon wind and rain.He suggested to Chou Yu,”Why don’t you build an altar where I can practise my magic and borrow the southeast wind for you for three days and nights?”Since Chou Yu had competely recovered after unburdening his heart to Chu-ke Liang.He asked his soldiers to build an altar on Nanp’ing hill and invited Chu-ke Liang to practise his magic there.
85
Chu-ke Liang went up to the altar in a Taoist robe and with a sword in his hand.Chou Yu and all the generals waited anxiously for the wind to change.The wind had died down,but it was still blowing from the northwest.Chou Yu said to Lu Su,”Chu-ke Liang must be cheating us.How can the southeast wind blow in this season?”Although Lu Su didn’t say anything,he was also very doubtful.
86
At midnight,they heard the flags on their tents whipping in the wind.Chou Yu and Lu Su ran out of their tents and saw all the flags pointing to the northwest.The southeast wind had come up.They were all greatly relieved.
87
Chou Yu suddenly realized that such a gifted man as Chu-ke Liang might challenge his power in the future,and he decided to kill Chu-ke Liang immediatedly.He asked generals Ting Feng and Hsu Sheng to rush to Nanp’ing hill with their soldiers and kill Chu-ke Liang there.But when the two generals reached the hill,they found the altar empty.They asked the guards there about Chu-ke Liang,and the guards told them that Chu-ke Liang had left in a boat.
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Upon hearing this news,Chou Yu was very worried,but Lu Su advised him to defeat Ts’ao Ts’ao first and then try to find a way to deal with Chu-ke Liang.Chou Yu then put his plan in motion.He first killed General Ts’ai He,who had pretended to surrender to Wu Kingdom,and he also asked Huang Kai to send a messenger to Ts’ao Ts’ao with an offer of surrender.He ordered his soldiers to prepare fire attack boats and get them ready to sail before midnight.Then he ordered Kan Ning,using Ts’ao Ts’ao’s general Ts’ai Chung as a guide,to raid Ts’ao Ts’ao’s camp and set fire to his storehouse.
89
Then messenger sent by Huang Kai crossed the river and brought the surrender letter to Ts’ao Ts’ao.Ts’ao Ts’ao opened the letter and read it.In the letter,Huang Kai explained that he would kill the other Wu Kingdom generals and then lead his men to Ts’ao Ts’ao in the evening under a banner showing a blue dragon.Ts’ao Ts’ao was pleased.He boarded a warship with his generals and looked toward the south waiting for the arrival of Huang Kai’s fleet.
90
Soon Ts’ao Ts’ao saw a group of boats approaching,each flying a blue dragon.In the middle was a bigger flag with Huang Kai’s name written on it.General Cheng Yu said,”There is something strange about those boats.Don’t let them come near our ships.If a boat were loaded with food or fodder,it would sail low in the water.You can see that all Huang Kai’s boats are riding high and sailing fast.The southeast wind is blowing now.We must make sure it is not a trick.”
91
Hearing this,Ts’ao Ts’ao suddenly saw the truth.He asked general Wen Pin to stop the approaching boats before they reached his warships.Huang Kai was leading ten big boats full of dry straw soaked with oil.The bigger boats were towing smaller boats and the whole caravan was sailing north at full speed.
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Wen Pin shouted at Huang Kai to stop but he was shot in the arm by an arrow.Huang Kai’s fleet was fast approaching Ts’ao Ts’ao’s ships.Huang Kai brandished his knife and then all ten of his big boats started the fire attack on Ts’ao Ts’ao’s warships.
93
The southeast wind blew harder and the fire and wind stirred each other up.Because Ts’ao Ts’ao’s warships were tied together with iron chains,they were trapped,and the fire spread from one ship to another.The whole fleet sank into a sea of fire.
94
Chou Yu and Cheng Pu,together with generals Han Tang,Chi Chin and Chou Tai,surrounded the burning ships.Ts’ao Ts’ao’s men could not resist,and they jumped into the flaming water.Hundreds of Ts’ao Ts’ao’s soldiers were killed either by the enemy’s weapons or by the fire.
95
Seeing his fleet in flames,Ts’ao Ts’ao despaired.His camp was also burning,since General Kan Ning had raided the camp and set fire to Ts’ao Ts’ao’s grain and fodder storehouse.Ts’ao Ts’ao had no choice but to escape to the riverbank.Fortunately General Chang Liao came by in a small boat and helped Ts’ao Ts’ao down from the warship.
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Meanwhile,Huang Kai saw a man in a red robe and pursued him in his own boat because he was sure it was Ts’ao Ts’ao.Chang Liao drew an arrow to shoot at Huang Kai.In the roaring wind,Huang Kai didn’t hear the whistling of the arrow,and he was shot.He fell into the river but was rescued by his soldiers.
97
Chang Liao escorted Ts’ao Ts’ao to the riverbank,and they watched the fleet and the camp burn.Chang Liao found 100 unhurt cavalry soldiers and asked them to find a horse for Ts’ao Ts’ao.They met up with Generals Mao Chieh and Wen P’in and escaped to Wulin.
98
At Wulin,they joined Generals Hsu Huang and Chang He and their surviving soldiers and then continued to escape to the west.On their way from Wulin to Huajung,they were frequently ambushed by Sun Ch’uan and Liu Pei’s allied forces.It started to rain but Ts’ao Ts’ao and his men marched on.They were very cold and hungry.
99
Near Huajung,the road became very muddy,and the horses got stuck in the mud.It was too difficult to walk through,so Ts’ao Ts’ao sent his soldiers to find some grass and tree branches to put over the mud,and they continued to march.Many soldiers were so anxious to escape they trampled on the weaker ones.Many old,ill,and wounded soldiers died in the escape.
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Liu Pei and Chou Yu’s forces pursued Ts’ao Ts’ao’s troops until they got to Nanchun.Farther on,at Chiangling,Ts’ao Ts’ao finally stopped to rest.Only a few hundred of his soldiers had survived the battle and the escape.Ts’ao Ts’ao then asked his generals Ts’ao Jen and Hsu Huang to defend Chiangling and assigned General Yueh Chin to defend Hsianyang.Ts’ao Ts’ao himself led the rest of his troops back to the north.The Battle of Red Cliff left the Shu and Wu Kingdoms in control of the south and Ts’ao Ts’ao in control of the north.Thus,China was divided among three rival powers,and that period is called Three Kingdoms.
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History of China and Vietnam
