In the autumn of 208 Cao Cao accepted Liu Cong’s surrender, took the north bank of Jing, and prepared to come down the Yangzi. Sun Quan chose to fight. Zhou Yu and Cheng Pu were the commanders, Lu Su was in the counsel, and Liu Bei’s army joined them. They met near the Red Cliffs. Cao Cao had the numbers. His northern troops were unused to ships, disease was in the camps, and the newly surrendered Jing navy was not necessarily loyal.
Huang Gai proposed fire. Covered boats ran into Cao Cao’s fleet. When the southeast wind rose, the fire ships caught and the blaze spread to the shore camps. Cao Cao withdrew toward Huarong and left Cao Ren at Jiangling. He could not swallow Jiangdong in the short term. Liu Bei gained room to the south. Sun Quan kept his base. The geographic outline of the three states starts here.
The Records stop at the fire and the retreat. Zhou Yu beating Huang Gai, Jiang Gan’s letter, the borrowed arrows, and Zhuge Liang’s east wind are the novel’s way of turning the victory into a duel between Zhuge Liang and Zhou Yu. Huang Gai’s plan and Zhou Yu’s command remain the historical Red Cliffs.