Boom boom boom—
On the river, the sound of drums shook the sky. The boats of the Eastern Wu navy came breaking through the waves. The waves on the river rolled, and the warships were up and down. Coupled with the collision of ships, Cao's army could not stand steadily and everyone sat on the boat.
Han Dang drove his boat into the fleet. No matter how the warships rose and swayed, he remained motionless as if they had taken root under his feet. He fired arrows at will, causing countless casualties on Cao's army. In a blink of an eye, all the ships of the vanguard sank into the river.
Seeing this from behind, Cao Xiu hurriedly commanded his warships to rescue and encircle the enemy from both sides. At this time, the Eastern Wu ships were already blocking the middle of the river and could be surrounded and destroyed.
But at the same time, Zhou Yu on the shore was also watching the battle. He smiled coldly, waved his command flag, and ordered Jiang Qin on the right and Zhou Tai on the left to lead the navy to meet the enemy.
It was at this time that the Wu army sent out its most powerful warships, three-story warships as big as buildings, to meet the Cao army, and a huge sense of oppression was overwhelmed.
Cao's army dodged in a hurry, but the navy was extremely fast and rushed straight into the fleet, shooting arrows like rain. Behind the large ships, there were warships and light boats moving alternately among them, cutting off Cao's ships and boarding them to fight.
Although Cao's army had also been trained for two years, most of them were recruited locally in Hebei. They were no match for the Wu army which had grown up on the water in naval battles. In addition, Liu Xun was killed and there was no one to command and dispatch the troops, so the army fell into chaos in a blink of an eye.
The Eastern Wu warships rampaged on the water like big fish swimming among a school of shrimps. They were both powerful and agile. The Cao army could not resist and screams were heard everywhere.
The Xuanwu Lake, which was temporarily dug by Cao's army, usually had no ripples, and was easy to control during military training. But now, when they were on the river, once the boats started moving, the waves rolled, the boats became ups and downs, and there was even a risk of capsizing. The helmsman was already panicked.
The boats lost their direction and drifted with the waves. Cao's army was like a headless fly. They wanted to kill the enemy but couldn't, and they wanted to retreat but couldn't. They just circled in the river and were hit by enemy ships. Many of them fell directly into the river.
When Cao Xiu sounded the horn to retreat again, the Cao army was already helpless. They had to watch the Wu army's ships crisscross the water and were divided and surrounded by them. Countless people were shot by arrows and fell into the water, leaving only the broken ships floating on the water.
Zhou Yu ordered his men to beat drums to aid the battle. Han Dang and other three groups of warships charged straight at Cao's army. Cao Xiu was horrified and dared not stay in the middle of the river any longer. The entire army rowed hard and retreated to the north of the river.
Zhou Yu was unwilling to fight and ordered the navy to return. The Wu army sailed on the water to collect ships and arrows. Suddenly, someone shouted, "Captain, look! It's a pig dragon!"
Han Dang looked from the boat and saw countless gray shadows about ten feet long moving across the river. There were at least three or four hundred of them. The corpses of Cao's soldiers were dragged to the bottom of the river, and streams of scarlet blood foam emerged.
Jiang Qin laughed and said, "They must have not eaten blood for a long time. After having a full meal, they will not attack fishermen again. Cao's army has done a good deed for the people of Jiangdong."
This is exactly the crocodile dragon found in the Yangtze River area of Yangzhou. The people of Jiangdong call it the pig-dragon. Its back and tail are covered with scales like armor and it is very ferocious. It must have been attracted by the smell of blood. In order to compete for food, it is not afraid of the ships on the water.
Zhu Huanyan said: "Why not capture some and make them into drumheads to boost the army's morale?"
Han Dang shouted, "It's hard to catch even one of these things. There are hundreds of them gathered here. It's unclear who will kill whom. Order the whole army to retreat quickly."
These crocodile dragons are very vengeful. Once they are angered, they will come in groups to take revenge. Small boats will be smashed to pieces by them, and even large ships may be bitten. These hundreds of them are enough to match a navy. How dare we offend them? The navy retreated to the camp. Zhou Yu heard this and laughed, "The crocodile dragons are here to cheer for our army. This battle will surely win a great victory!"
Cheng Pu laughed and said, "If we talk about fighting on the water, who can compare with us Jiangdong men? Even if Cao Cao brings another 100,000 troops, he can't cross the river."
Huang Gai said: "This time we have won a great victory and defeated more than 10,000 enemies. We should quickly report the victory to Jianye to reassure the lord and the civil and military officials. Only when the people of Jiangdong are united can we calmly resist Cao."
Zhou Yu ordered a reward for the three armies and sent people to Jianye to report the victory. The entire army was divided into five teams and would cross the river and head north tomorrow.
This battle allowed the navy to regain confidence, and they took advantage of the victory to recapture Ruxu in one go.
Cao Xiu returned to the camp in a panic and apologized to Cao Cao. In this battle, more than half of the navy in Xuanwu Lake was lost, Liu Xun was killed, and countless warships and weapons were lost.
Cao Cao waved his hand and said, "This battle was caused by Liu Xun's eagerness for revenge. He advanced rashly and fell into a trap. It has nothing to do with you. Strengthen the training of the navy and strengthen the defense along the river."
Cao Xiu withdrew, and Cao Cao sighed: "We didn't listen to Gongda's advice, and we lost soldiers and generals, and morale fell. What should we do now?"
Xun You said: "After all, the Northern Army is not familiar with naval warfare. They have barely trained, but they are not as skilled as the Eastern Wu navy. The soldiers of Xuanwu Lake are like a frog in a well against a crocodile in the river. How can they win? I predict that Zhou Yu will take advantage of his victory to attack. We can defend the dry camp and wait for him to cross the river and attack him. We will definitely be able to turn defeat into victory."
Cao Cao nodded and said, "Using my weakness to attack his strengths is my fault!"
He then ordered the three armies to come to the tent and listen to his orders, and ordered Cao Xiu to deploy ten water forts along the river, with large ships stationed outside for defense like a city wall, and small boats placed inside the forts, and act according to the plan.
The next morning, Zhou Yu sent Taishi Ci, Huang Gai, Han Dang, Jiang Qin and Zhou Taiwu as the vanguard, each leading a fleet of tower ships, and marched straight to the north of the Yangtze River.
He and General Cheng Pu, the commander of the left and right armies, followed by boats to support them. He left Lu Fan and Zhu Zhi to guard the camp and patrol the four directions, preparing to recapture Ruxu in one fell swoop.
When the boat crossed the middle of the river, we saw Cao's army had built water strongholds along the coast for dozens of miles. Each stronghold was strictly defended and supported each other. The Wu army's warships were lined up on the water, awaiting orders from the general.
While he was observing, there was a loud sound of drums on the shore. He saw a crowd of people in the water stronghold in the middle. Under the green dragon umbrella, there was a general wearing a red robe and a golden helmet. Although he was short in stature, he had an extraordinary bearing, and his three long beards fluttered in the wind. It was Cao Cao.
As the order was passed down, fleets immediately rushed out from the east and west camps of Cao's army, and the large ships in the camps on the two sides slowly moved out to provide support.
"You thief Cao, I'm going to throw you into the river!" Taishi Ci's face darkened, and he immediately gave orders at the bow, waving the command flag.
He hated Cao Cao's massacre of Xuzhou the most. Many of his relatives were also harmed by it. Recently, he killed the famous scholar Kong Rong, who was the pride of the people of Beihai. He was killed just because of a few words. How cruel was he
The two veteran generals Han Dang and Huang Gai on the left and right split up their boats to meet the enemy, while Jiang Qin and Zhou Tai in the middle were as steady as a rock, temporarily keeping their troops in place and waiting for the opportunity.
The Wu army's navy was equipped with powerful bows and crossbows. The two armies went out on the left and right, and just like yesterday, they were invincible. In a blink of an eye, they killed Cao's army into pieces and fled on their boats.
At this time, the three naval forces in the middle also rushed forward. Jiang Qin and Zhou Tai guarded on the left and right. When the enemy ships got close, with Taishi Ci's order, arrows were fired, covering the sky and killing all of Cao's army.
The Cao army that came to fight was quickly wiped out. Taishi Ci drew his sword and shouted, "Follow me, kill Cao the thief, save Dongwu, and avenge our fellow countrymen!"