Novel scene
Cao Cao Defeated at the Yu River 曹孟德敗師淯水
About this event
"Cao Cao Defeated at the Yu River" is the latter scene of the title of Chapter 16 of the Romance, "Lü Bu Shoots the Halberd at the Camp Gate; Cao Cao Defeated at the Yu River," the episode in the first clash of the Battle of Wancheng in which Zhang Xiu, who had surrendered, turned against Cao Cao again and raided his camp. The Romance begins with Cao Cao raising an army of a hundred and fifty thousand to attack in person when Zhang Ji's nephew Zhang Xiu, with Jia Xu as his adviser and in alliance with Liu Biao, was stationed at Wancheng. Romance, Ch. 16 §40–42
The same events also appear in Chen Shou's text. The Annals of Emperor Wu (Records of Wei 1) record that in the 1st month of the 2nd year of Jian'an (197), when Cao Cao reached Wan County, Zhang Xiu surrendered and then rebelled again, and this battle also appears in the biography of Zhang Xiu in Records of Wei 8, the biography of Dian Wei in Records of Wei 18 and the biography of Yu Jin in Records of Wei 17. Records, Wei 1 §43Records, Wei 8 §57Records, Wei 18 §64–66Records, Wei 17 §29–31
In the Romance
In Chapter 16 of the Romance, when Cao Cao set up camp on the Yu River, Zhang Xiu surrendered on Jia Xu's advice. Cao Cao wanted to employ Jia Xu as an adviser, but Jia Xu declined, and Cao Cao entered Wancheng and stayed several days. One day, when the drunken Cao Cao asked for a courtesan, Cao Anmin brought him Lady Zou, Zhang Ji's wife, and Cao Cao moved with Lady Zou to the camp outside the city and had Dian Wei guard outside the tent. Romance, Ch. 16 §42–46
Learning of this, Zhang Xiu was enraged and, after consulting Jia Xu, moved his troops close to the central army, and his lieutenant Hu Cher proposed a plan to steal Dian Wei's Shuang Tieji (pair of iron halberds). That night, after Jia Xu had invited Dian Wei and got him drunk, fires broke out all over the camp at the second watch; unable to find his halberds, Dian Wei cut down more than twenty men with a foot soldier's waist sword, and when its blade was ruined he seized two enemy soldiers in his two hands and swung them about. Holding the camp gate, Dian Wei was stabbed in the back by a spear and died streaming blood. Romance, Ch. 16 §47–52
Cao Cao, hit in the right arm by an arrow, fled out the back of the camp, and Cao Anmin, following on foot, was cut down on the bank of the Qingshui River. When Cao Cao had crossed the river and climbed the bank, his horse was struck in the eye by an arrow and fell, and his eldest son Cao Ang gave him his own horse and was then killed by arrows. Meanwhile Yu Jin attacked the Qingzhou troops who were plundering, set up camp before explaining himself, and drove off Zhang Xiu's pursuit, and Zhang Xiu went to Liu Biao. Cao Cao enfeoffed Yu Jin as Marquis of Yishou Pavilion, and at the sacrifice for Dian Wei he said that he wept for Dian Wei more than for the loss of his eldest son and his beloved nephew. Romance, Ch. 16 §53–57
Where the Romance differs
Why he rebelled: In Chapter 16 of the Romance, when Cao Cao took in Lady Zou, Zhang Ji's wife, the enraged Zhang Xiu laid plans with Jia Xu and raided him. In the biography of Zhang Xiu in the Records, Zhang Xiu resented Cao Cao for taking in Zhang Ji's wife, and when Cao Cao heard of his displeasure he secretly plotted to kill Zhang Xiu; the plot leaked, and Zhang Xiu made a surprise attack on Cao Cao. Romance, Ch. 16 §44–47Records, Wei 8 §57
Dian Wei's fight: In Chapter 16 of the Romance, Dian Wei, his Shuang Tieji stolen by Hu Cher, fought with a waist sword and his bare hands. In the biography of Dian Wei in the Records, at the surrender banquet Dian Wei stood behind Cao Cao holding a great axe, so that Zhang Xiu and his commanders dared not raise their heads, and in the raid some ten days later he struck left and right at the camp gate with a long halberd, breaking more than ten enemy spears with each thrust; having suffered dozens of wounds, he crushed two enemies to death under his arms and died glaring and cursing. Romance, Ch. 16 §48–52Records, Wei 18 §64–66
Cao Cao and Cao Ang: In Chapter 16 of the Romance, Cao Cao was hit in the right arm by an arrow, and Cao Ang was killed by arrows after giving him his horse. The Annals of Emperor Wu in the Records record only that Cao Cao was hit by a stray arrow and that his eldest son Cao Ang and his nephew Cao Anmin were killed, and the biography of Cao Ang records that Cao Ang followed the southern campaign and was killed by Zhang Xiu. Romance, Ch. 16 §53–54Records, Wei 1 §43Records, Wei 20 §4
Written by 3KDEX (not yet reviewed) — The tags at the end of each paragraph link to the exact passage in the Records volume or Romance chapter it is based on.