The twenty-fourth year of Duke Xiang of Zuo Zhuan records: "In summer, Lord of Chu led the navy to attack Wu," marking the earliest naval battle with a clear chronological record in our literature.
The twenty-seventh year of Duke Zhao of Zuo Zhuan records: "Wu attacked Chu, Yang Yun became the Grand Tutor. Divination for battle was unfavorable." Sima Ziyu said, "We occupy the upper reaches, why is it unfavorable... We routed the Wu forces and captured their flagship, the Yu Huang."
These records indicate that often, the victory or defeat in a naval battle could control the upper reaches of a river or stream, thus gaining the initiative in the strategic situation.
Mozi's "Lu Wen" also records, "The Chu people and Yue people fought a naval battle on the river." "The Yue people advanced against the current and retreated with the current; they advanced when they saw advantage and retreated swiftly when they saw disadvantage. The Yue people thus leveraged the situation and repeatedly defeated the Chu people."
These records show that the Yue people's tactical application was more successful than the Chu people's.
Zhuangzi's "Free and Easy Wandering" also recorded that Wu and Yue engaged in naval battles even in winter. The Wu army used the "non-cracking hand medicine" invented by the people of Song, an external application to prevent skin chapping on hands and feet, achieving a localized advantage.
From this, it can be seen...
In a naval battle, whether it be tactics or injuries and illnesses... every aspect requires extreme attention.
At this moment...
Before Wulin Port, a port facing Chibi across the river, the churning river water suddenly surged...
A naval battle.
To be precise, for Great Wei, it was a sudden encounter battle;
For Jiangdong, it was a long-planned naval battle on the verge of erupting...
The Cao army's Xuanwuchi navy, the Jingzhou navy, with their densely packed warships sailing in Jiangdong, their destination Wulin was ahead, only to discover... the Mengchong warships of Jiangdong had already launched a full-scale attack on the Cao army!
At this point...
Not only Cao Cao, but even the Jingzhou navy generals Cai Mao and Zhang Yun, and the Xuanwuchi navy general Cao Ren... were completely unprepared.
Of course, whether they were prepared or not was no longer important.
Because the great battle was imminent.
Whether naval or land battles... the first engagement concerns morale and is of utmost importance!
Soaring battle intent swept through.
The flames of war permeated the entire Yangtze River.
In Wulin Port, looking at the battlefield on the river, Cao Cao realized something was amiss.
His Xuanwuchi navy and Jingzhou navy, in terms of both ships and numbers... should have held an absolute advantage.
With several times the number of ships as the enemy, it should have been an overwhelming victory.
However...
It was nothing like that. The Yangtze River was not that wide, and it was impossible to execute maneuvers and encirclements like in land warfare. The advantage in manpower and ship numbers could not be utilized at all.
"King Wei, this is bad... The enemy ships are incredibly fast, and our navy cannot resist!"
"King Wei... the Jiangdong navy is extremely skilled in naval warfare. Our navy, after a long march, is showing signs of fatigue..."
"King Wei, the deck is unstable... our navy cannot form ranks to meet the enemy!"
"King Wei, General Cao Ren has sent a small boat report stating that a large number of the Xuanwuchi navy troops have contracted plague due to unfamiliar climate and water. If the Jingzhou navy ahead is routed, the subsequent Xuanwuchi navy... cannot reinforce them."
"King Wei..."
"Enough!" Cao Cao shouted coldly. Ever since he stood at this Wulin Port, not a single piece of news had brought him any peace.
All the unfavorable urgent reports buzzed around his ears like flies, making him incredibly irritable.
The Yangtze River was not wide enough!
Why hadn't he noticed this before?
Thousands of warships unable to maneuver, the advantage in troops and ship numbers unable to translate into victory...
So? Why had no one taken precautions in advance?
The deck was unstable... what had the Xuanwuchi navy been training for in Ye City all these years?
They couldn't even stand steady on deck? Then fighting was pointless!
And the plague...
Why were all the bad news arriving at once.
At this moment, Cao Cao's eyes turned cold, and suddenly... he felt like he had been thoroughly screwed!
Visibly, the Great Wei's fleet was being continuously breached by the Jiangdong Mengchong warships. Countless ships were sunk... and many were captured by the Jiangdong soldiers.
Even...
This was not the most terrifying part. The plague caused by the northerners' unfamiliarity with the climate and water... this was more fatal!
The eighty thousand troops were originally an advantage, but because of this plague, in an instant... the advantage was about to become a scythe of death, a shackle...
"Transmit my order, all ships need not engage further, retreat immediately to Wulin Port! Defend Wulin, attack by defending!"
"Yes!"
Cao Cao immediately issued the order, and the messengers sent out signal arrows... attempting to have the Great Wei navy withdraw.
However...
If Cao Cao could think of this, how could Zhou Yu not?
The Jiangdong navy fiercely blocked the Great Wei navy's route to Wulin. Zhou Yu had no intention of stopping after a partial victory in this battle; he intended to heavily damage the Great Wei navy.
This battle was the first engagement, and also... a battle that would decide the victor!
"King Wei... this is bad, the waterway has been completely blocked by the enemy's Mengchong warships, and we cannot retreat into Wulin Port."
"King Wei, the enemy's Mengchong warships are extremely fast. Whether retreating or pursuing, our navy cannot break through."
"King Wei, Zhou Yu's navy is continuously encircling, this is blocking our retreat route!"
"King Wei, the Jiangdong navy... in terms of speed, they have Mengchong warships, and in terms of power, they have Louchuan. With the cooperation of both... a frontal blockade, and our navy is in complete rout... we can... can barely hold on."
From a bird's-eye view...
The Jiangdong warships were like a crimson torrent continuously battering the muddy lowlands of Great Wei...
At this moment, the lowlands were riddled with holes... like crumbling dams, they were leaking from all sides!
Cao Cao's face was as dark as water. He had underestimated Zhou Yu too much...
Who could have imagined...
That with an army of eighty thousand marching south, thousands of warships... under such immense pressure, Zhou Yu would choose to fight to the death, without fear or retreat, and instead launch a proactive attack, using the terrain and ship formations to surprise Cao Cao... with his inferior navy!
Even the meticulous Cao Cao had not anticipated this battle...
Unexpected, too unexpected!
One hour...
Two hours!
For a full three hours, the Jingzhou navy, led by Cai Mao and Zhang Yun, on the narrow river surface... was no match for the Jiangdong navy... they collapsed rapidly!
The ships behind, unaware of the situation ahead, advanced recklessly... only to fall into one mire after another.
Fortunately, Cai Mao and Zhang Yun possessed some skill in commanding and maneuvering during the battle, and managed to stabilize the situation under absolute adversity.
But...
Ship after ship was breached, and the defeat was inevitable!
"I never thought the gap in naval forces would be so vast!"
"The Jingzhou navy and Xuanwuchi navy are like ants before the Jiangdong navy!"
Cao Cao lamented again...
With a sigh, he covered his face and looked up at the sky. At this moment... he thought of Yu'er, and of that night in Xiangyang City, Jingzhou.
That night... Yu'er had specifically found him and given him a piece of intelligence!
The Long Xiao Battalion navy had completed its training, and moreover... having conquered the Yamatai Kingdom, they were now rushing over with over a hundred Yamatai warships.
At this moment, Lu Yu's words echoed clearly in Cao Cao's mind.
"King Wei leads the army down the water route... abandon land routes like Yunmeng Ze, and head directly towards Chibi with the eighty thousand troops. I will then rush to Hefei to rendezvous with the Long Xiao Battalion navy... travel via Bohai and the Yellow Sea upstream, enter the Yangtze River... bypass Ruxu Port through the Taihu Lake network... and attack from the flank. In this way... the Jiangdong navy will surely be unprepared! The Long Xiao Battalion navy is highly likely to achieve a great feat!"
This...
Cao Cao clearly recalled the incredulity in his eyes when he heard Yu'er's words at the time.
Eighty thousand troops, thousands of warships as bait...
Instead, they served as cover... for the unverified Long Xiao Battalion navy, for those never-before-seen hundred-plus warships. This... no matter how you looked at it, the idea was not just bold, it was simply incredible!
But now...
What was once incredible had become Cao Cao's only hope... the hope of the entire village... no, the hope of Great Wei!
"Yu'er..."
Amidst the soaring battle flames, Cao Cao's eyes narrowed. His face, already not unattractive, now became even more clouded and even somewhat ferocious, even terrifying, due to his furrowed brow and tightly knit features!
Amidst the sounds of slaughter...
Amidst the flames of war!
The two words "Yu'er" that Cao Cao uttered were quickly drowned out... however, Xi Zhicai heard Cao Cao utter these two words!
Yu'er?
Lu Yu?
Xi Zhicai was somewhat puzzled. Although Lu Yu had married Xiahou Juan, making him Xiahou Yuan's son-in-law... if Xiahou Yuan called him Yu'er, it might be understandable. But... Cao Cao's words?
There was something strange about this "Yu'er."
"Gongda? Did you hear what King Wei just called out?"
Xi Zhicai asked Xun You beside him...
Evidently, Xun You had heard it. At such close proximity, both of them had heard it clearly.
However... how to explain this "Yu'er"? And... given the current situation, it didn't seem like the time to explain.
"Zhicai, the situation is critical. What Yu'er or whatever, the urgent matter is to find a way to preserve the Great Wei navy... otherwise... if we continue to fight like this, I fear half of the Great Wei navy will be lost!"
Xun You's words reminded Xi Zhicai...
Xi Zhicai's eyes turned cold. Array deployment at the critical moment was his forte.
So...
"King Wei, as things stand... we can only have the navy dock first, abandon the warships in the river, and use archers on the shore to repel the enemy with fire arrows..."
"However, if we do this... while burning the enemy, our own ships will also be burned. And in such a dense river, our ship losses will surely be greater than the enemy's!"
This...
Xi Zhicai's words were like a single spark in the darkness. However, if this single spark were truly ignited, beneath the raging flames, the entire river surface would become a sea of fire. With the current dense formation of Cao's fleet... it would likely be reduced to ashes within half a day.
This was... the burning of Wulin?
Or perhaps... the burning of Chibi?
"Gulp..."
Cao Cao subconsciously swallowed a mouthful of saliva, his pupils widening considerably. The situation had turned around so drastically. He... he could no longer think of a better solution.
Among two evils, choose the lesser...
Better to be shattered jade than intact tile...
"I would rather harm the world than let the world harm me!"
Cao Cao shouted...
This statement had a flavor similar to "I would rather betray the world than let the world betray me"...
"Transmit the order," Cao Cao's tone became even more resolute. "Tell Cai Mao and Zhang Yun to steer the ships towards the riverbank..."
"Transmit the order, tell Xiahou Yuan and Cao Ren to lead the archers and shoot fire arrows into the river. Regardless of friend or foe... all ships on the river shall be incinerated!"
"Yes... Yes..."
At this moment... even the iron-willed Xu Chu, with two "yes" in succession, had a somewhat choked voice!
Had it really come to this point of mutual destruction and perishing together?
...
"Archers, prepare fire arrows..."
"Issue the signal arrow... summon the ships on the river!"
"Shout to Generals Cai Mao and Zhang Yun, tell them to think of their families and children."
Xiahou Yuan and Cao Ren's shouts echoed one after another.
However...
Xiahou Yuan and Cao Ren both knew that once these fire arrows were released, while it meant mutual destruction, it would also completely chill the hearts of the Jingzhou navy and the Xuanwuchi navy!
The morale of the three armies would instantly plummet to the bottom.
This was a matter of one move affecting the whole situation. Fighting like this, could Chibi still be taken?
But...
Everyone knew that in the current predicament, at such a critical juncture, there was no time to think carefully... they had to make a decisive move!
Otherwise... it would not be mutual destruction... but being torn apart and devoured bite by bite by Zhou Yu's ships...
At that time, the Great Wei navy would be even more miserable!
At this moment... Cao Cao was drenched in sweat, beads of sweat like raindrops falling from his forehead. Xiahou Yuan and Cao Ren were the same... Xi Zhicai, Xun You, Xu Chu were even more so...
Even the archers who had already drawn their bows... were about to be loaded with whale oil and shot towards the river...
Everyone's mood was incredibly broken... despair!
Yesterday they were comrades-in-arms, and today... they were about to personally send them to their doom?
"What are you still standing around for? Release the arrows... release the fire arrows!" Cao Cao gritted his teeth, "I would rather betray the world than let the world betray me!"
Rarely...
Cao Cao uttered this line again, but the situation today was vastly different from the past. Today it was a hundred times more perilous...
Who would have thought... that as soon as Cao Cao's voice fell.
Just as Xiahou Yuan and Cao Ren were about to shout "Shoot"...
Suddenly, a female voice echoed in Wulin Port.
"The Long Xiao Battalion... the Long Xiao Battalion navy!"
Because it was a female voice, and an extremely loud and high-pitched female voice, it immediately captured everyone's attention.
This voice was naturally uttered by the female general Ma Yunlu in the Great Wei army...
But...
This was not important. What was important was that everyone looked towards the sound.
They saw far away on the Yangtze River, at the horizon where the sky met the water...
From behind Zhou Yu's navy, colossal warships, one after another, were rushing at full speed, crashing through the waves... on countless large ships, hundreds of banners slowly unfurled against the river wind.
And on each banner, the large characters "Long Xiao" were exceptionally conspicuous...
Under the twilight...
These hundred warships, illuminated by the vast expanse of sunset, between the sky and the rippling blue river surface, appeared exceptionally dazzling!
Their speed was incredibly fast, like sprites on the river. Wherever they passed, they stirred up ripples, like whirlwinds... more like divine soldiers descending from the heavens, arriving on the waves!
"It's... it's the Long Xiao Battalion navy!"
"It's... it's Lu Ziyu!"
"He's here... he's here... he's here!"
Xi Zhicai was the first to become excited...
Xun You also widened his eyes. He felt that everything he was seeing was so unreal.
Xiahou Yuan and Cao Ren quickly told the attacking forces to lower their arrows...
Long Xiao... these were two words that always brought miracles!
Perhaps... perhaps they could really turn the tide of the battle!
They are here...
They are here!
Closer... closer! Those warships, much larger than Louchuan, and faster than Mengchong, those ballistae as large as a small Jiangdong boat, those warships that had fought whales countless times, those warships proven to be able to navigate on the sea, even more turbulent than the Yangtze River...
Against the river wind...
Treading the river waves... they swept in, roaring!
...
...