Last year, there was a great funeral in the state of Wu, Wu Ziyi died in the first month, and his son was enthroned as the king of Wu. At the beginning of his reign, the situation in the country was unstable, and he had to concentrate his efforts on quelling the rebellion. Qi Jinggong took advantage of the chaos to attack Xu and forced Xu Zi to sign an alliance under the city; The state of Chu took advantage of the chaos to destroy the barbarian state (southeast of present-day Linru County, Henan).

In the seventeenth year of the reign of Emperor Lu Zhao (525 BC), the Wu royal bureaucracy eliminated several restless brothers and nephews, stabilized the domestic order, and consolidated the ruling power. He repaired the royal ship "Yuhuang" on which the first emperor Yimo was riding, and built 200 warships, and then attacked Chu from the waterway.

At that time, the state of Chu Ling Yin was the great-grandson of King Chu Mu, Yang Kuo (Zi Fang), and Da Sima was the brother of King Chu Ping, Wang Zifang (Ziyu). Ziyu was a knowledgeable and experienced veteran of war, who had been closely following the movements of Wu for many years and studying how to fight against Wu.

When the Wu people began to renovate Emperor Yu, he concluded that the Wu army was going to invade Chu against the river; He also ordered the construction of warships and stepped up the training of sailors.

In the winter of October, the Wu army set out from Gusu to the north, and the supreme commander was Gongzi Guang, the cousin of the Wang Wing (the Wang Wing always felt that someone was trying to usurp the throne, so he did not dare to leave the capital). The army boarded ships at the town of Zhufang (Zhufang was the shipbuilding base of the state of Wu); The warships of the state of Chu and the state of Sui, which were full of sergeants, also set off from the base and went down the Yangtze River, preparing to meet the Wu army on the long bank.

The long bank refers to the area where the Yangtze River flows through Wuhu and Ma'anshan, with Dangtu in present-day Anhui Province as the center and two sections extending to Wuhu and Ma'anshan. The east bank of the Chang'an basin is Xiliang Mountain, and the west bank is Dongliang Mountain; The two mountains are like the pass of Tianmen, so they are also called "Tianmen Mountain".

Ordered Yin Zibian to perform divination before the battle, and the result was a "big murderer". Zibian's heart was upset, and the doctors were depressed. But Da Sima Ziyu said: "We are in the upper reaches and occupy the best geographical position, why don't we win?" Besides, it was Da Sima who led the war in the Chu State, not Ling Yin, so it should be up to me to order the turtle. ”

The divination official re-invited the big treasure turtle, Ziyu Ling Turtle: "I, Wang Zifang, will lead my subordinates to die generously tomorrow." If I die, and Chu Shi continues to press me, will our army be able to win? The divination result was "good luck", and all the generals present burst into tears.

Ziyu issued an order to his subordinates and said: "Tomorrow the war will start, with jade in your mouth, only to kill the enemy, not to protect yourself!" ”

Early the next morning, the officers and men of the two armies began to maneuver the warships and set up a position. The Chu army used an offensive wedge-shaped array, with the flagship of Ziyu located directly in front and several frigates flanked by him; The command ships led by the generals were distributed in the back. The Wu army took a defensive stance, with the flagship Yu Huang at the front and the ships behind it distributed over the vast river. The size of the warships of the Chu army was generally larger than that of the enemy ships, but the number was significantly smaller than that of the other side. Although the warships of the Wu people were large in number and flexible, their hulls were relatively thin and not as strong as those of the other side.

The Chu army took the lead in beating the drums, and the people of Wu were not to be outdone and responded to the drumming of the enemy army. Ziyu's battleship was the first to rush into the enemy line, but left the frigate behind. Wu was overjoyed, believing that capturing the enemy's command ship at the beginning of the battle would lead the battle, so they waited for the command ship to approach and then boarded the gangplank and rushed onto the enemy ship.

But Ziyu has only one purpose, which is to rush forward desperately and non-stop, tearing a gap in the enemy's defense; So he organized resistance and ordered the oarsmen to row with all their might.

The flagship of the subfish was huge and sturdy, and smashed many enemy ships; The subsequent frigates rushed into the enemy line, tearing the gap wider and wider; It was followed by the main force of the Chu army. The Wu army was so angry that they gave up the idea of capturing Ziyu alive and destroyed the flagship with all their might, and Ziyu was killed like many fearless sergeants.

The Chu army was greatly grieved, and the sergeants immediately turned their fierce emotions into bitter hatred for the enemy: they completely ignored their own danger, drove ships on a rampage through the enemy line, and attacked distant targets with bows and arrows and javelins; Hop aboard an enemy ship and engage in hand-to-hand combat with the enemy; Roll into the wreckage-covered river with the enemy in your arms and sink to the bottom with the enemy.

The Wu people were intimidated by the enemy's desperate tactics, and their ships began to rush and collide in an disorderly manner, and the Wu ships could not hit the enemy ships, but they often died with their own ships. The rearmost ships were the first to flee the battlefield in order to avoid greater losses; The situation of the escape gradually spread to the entire fleet. However, the huge and bulky Yu Huang was surrounded by enemy ships because of his loss of protection and slow travel.

Chu **Shi began to throw hooks with long ropes tied to the deck of Emperor Yu, and climbed up like ants. Childe Guang sighed: "I can't imagine that I will die so badly today!" With that, he drew his sword and prepared to commit suicide. The captain of his guard snatched his sword and said, "Once the Lord is dead, how many soldiers will be killed by the enemy or put to death by the king?" Escape quickly, Master, and I will resist to death!" He winked, and the guards around Gongzi Guang dragged him to the boat and protected him from danger; However, the captain of the guard and the other warriors fought until the last moment, and all of them died heroically.

The battle ended at noon, and the Chu army won a complete victory, but the generals and soldiers were not happy at all; The sergeants found the scarred body of Da Sima and knelt beside him and wept. The sergeant then wrapped the body in a military flag and placed it on a stretcher, and Zibian and seven sergeants carried it on their shoulders and sent it to the Chinese military tent.

The Chu army dragged Emperor Yu to the river beach farther away from the river and dug a deep ditch around the flagship. In some places, underground springs were dug up, and the Chu people used charcoal to block the springs, and Zibian sent people to guard them strictly to prevent the Wu people from seizing them.

On the other side, Childe Guang is going to die of sorrow. He gathered his soldiers together and said, "Defeat is not terrible, but the loss of the flagship of the former king is not a crime that I can afford alone—and you will not be spared!" So even if it is to save his own life, he must take back Emperor Yu! ”

The sergeants nodded one after another, and Gongzi Guang continued: "I need three dead soldiers, who is willing to sign up!" The crowd raised their hands, and Gongzi chose three bearded ones, and said to them, "You are lying in ambush on three sides of Emperor Yu, and I shout, 'Emperor Yu.'" Answer in order. ”

At midnight that day, the Chu people had fallen asleep after half a day of hard fighting, and the sergeants guarding Emperor Yu were also holding weapons and beating spirits, and the bonfire was also beating weakly. Gongziguang lurked around Emperor Yu with a death squad, and the three dead soldiers also entered the predetermined position.

Gongziguang shouted: "Emperor Yu! ”

One of the dead men shouted, "Here! ”

The defender was startled and immediately clenched his weapon and vigilantly observed the surrounding situation, and the man shouted again: "Here I am!" The guard immediately reached for the place where the sound was made.

Gongzi Guang shouted again: "Emperor Yu! ”

Another responded, "Here! ”

Some of the guards walked over to the second person's location.

Gongziguang shouted for the third time: "Emperor Yu! ”

The third person responded: "Here! ”

The guards were completely stunned, and when Childe saw that the time had come, he immediately drew his sword and rushed out of the ambush, slashing at the enemy. The defenders were immediately disorganized and fled to the barracks; Gongziguang led the army in hot pursuit

The Wu people quickly filled in the ditch and pulled Emperor Yu into the river. At this time, there was also chaos in the Chu military camp, and Gongzi saw that his goal had been achieved, so he took advantage of the chaos to escape; In this way, he recaptured Emperor Yu, saved himself from being killed, and ascended to the throne nine years later by killing the king's subordinates.