Chapter 48: A Banquet on the Long River—Cao Cao Composes Poems; The Northern Army Employs Chained Warships
Pang Tong confesses Xu Shu’s betrayal, and Xu Shu departs to spread rumors that Han Sui and Ma Teng are revolting. Alarmed, Cao Cao sends Xu Shu to guard San Pass. Riding the flagship on a calm Yangtze, Cao Cao banquets his generals beneath a full moon, boasts of conquering the south, and composes “To Drink a Song.” As night falls, he praises his chained warships, convinced of victory. Two former Yuan Shao officers, Jiao Chu and Zhang Nan, volunteer to raid the southern camps in twenty small boats but are slain by Han Dang and Zhou Tai. Observing the north’s fleet return, Zhou Yu rejoices until a banner is ripped by wind, brushing his face—he cries out and collapses, blood flowing, stricken by a dire omen.