Nine dragons fight for the throne, I don't want to sit on this throne

Thick fog gradually rose on the river surface, and the moonlight shattered into thousands of silver scales among the waves.

Zhou Yu stood on the deck of the huge Fu ship, holding the command flag tightly in his hand under the iron armor.

Behind him, more than 30 Han warships were speeding eastward in a goose formation, and the water splashed by the oars was like pearls in the moonlight.

"General, the Chu army's pursuers are less than two miles away from our rear army!" The soldier on the watchtower said in a trembling voice.

Zhou Yu squinted his eyes and looked back, but saw the scarlet flag of the Chu army flagship faintly visible in the middle of the river. The dragon embroidered with gold thread on the flag was baring its fangs and claws in the firelight.

Suddenly, rapid drumbeats were heard from the Chu army.

Dozens of Mengchong speedboats rushed out of the main formation like arrows, and the iron-clad rams on the bows split the waves.

These light boats were only about ten feet long, but were manned by double rows of oarsmen, and in a blink of an eye they were blocking the Han army's retreat route.

Zhou Yu's pupils suddenly shrank - the Chu army sailors on those small boats were working together to lift the iron net. The cold and flashing barbs between the meshes looked eerie and terrifying under the moonlight.

"Turn the rudder! Avoid the iron net formation!" Before Zhou Yu's roar fell, the scream of a huge rock breaking through the air was heard in the night sky.

The catapults on the Chu army's ships fired at the same time, and millstone-sized stones wrapped in kerosene hit the Han army fleet.

The ship on the right was the first to be hit. The mast collapsed with a teeth-grinding crackling sound, and flames suddenly shot up into the sky from the deck.

Wang Hu, a personal soldier, came running over: "General, the lower cabin is flooded!"

Blood seeped through the cracks in his armor: "Three warships have sunk, and five warships have been damaged..."

Before he could finish his words, another flying rock hit the stern, causing the entire warship to shake violently.

Zhou Yu held onto the side of the boat, his palms bleeding from the splinters.

The river wind suddenly turned stronger, blowing away the scattered hair on his forehead.

The general, who was over forty years old, saw that the main force of the Chu army had surrounded them in a crescent shape, and the warships in the front row were setting up the second wave of iron nets.

He stared intently at the Chu army ships not far away and said harshly, "The key to this battle is to lure the Chu army navy away from the main battlefield."

"Order the entire army—"

Zhou Yu suddenly drew his sword, the blade drawing a cold arc in the moonlight: "Turn the ship around and fight to the death!"

Since there is no way to escape, the only option is to fight to the death!

Perhaps only in this way can they contain the Chu army here and give their emperor Liu Che a chance to break out.

Otherwise, if the Chu army here abandons them and turns to attack the shore, their emperor will be in great danger!

The Han army's war drums suddenly changed tune.

The remaining twenty or so warships created a huge white whirlpool in the middle of the river, and the damaged Fu ship even completed the turn by dragging its burning stern rudder.

The river between the two fleets began to boil, and thousands of arrows intertwined into a web of death in the night sky.

When the tower ships of both sides were a hundred steps apart, dozens of ladder-like wooden frames suddenly appeared in the Chu army's formation.

Zhou Yu's heart trembled. That was the legendary "flying bridge" - the Chu army pulled the rope violently, and the iron-clad wooden frame collapsed, actually building a floating bridge between the ships!

"Kill——" The Chu army soldiers rushed in like a tide.

Zhou Yu's personal guards formed a battle formation with shields, and the archers on the deck kept shooting arrows, but they could not stop the endless stream of enemy troops.

A centurion of the Chu army broke through the defense line. Zhou Yu dodged the incoming scimitar and pierced the opponent's throat with a backhanded sword.

Warm blood sprayed on his sparse temples and dripped onto the deck along the lines of the armor.

By midnight, the lucky ship had become a bloody ship.

Zhou Yu's sword had been cut into seven or eight pieces, and the wound on his left arm caused by a stray arrow was bleeding continuously.

He leaned against the mainmast and looked around: there were only seven personal guards left, and the corpses piled on the deck made the footing narrow.

The Chu army was still sending reinforcements, and the newly boarded enemy soldiers were surrounding them from three sides.

"General!" Wang Hu suddenly pointed to the river bank.

On the distant hills, the black dragon flag symbolizing the Han Emperor was retreating.

Zhou Yu's lips curled up in relief - His Majesty finally understood the beacon smoke on the river.

Zhao Ben, the commander-in-chief of the Chu army, approached with a spear in hand: "General Zhou, surrender and you can save your life!"

"Han generals only have their heads cut off, not their flags surrendered!"

Zhou Yu roared, pointing the blood-stained sword towards the sky: "Everyone, follow me and kill the enemy!"

The seven personal soldiers roared like trapped beasts and actually rushed towards the enemy army that was several times larger than their own.

In the melee, Zhou Yu's sword pierced the chests of two enemy generals, but he himself was pierced through the thigh by a spear.

He knelt on one knee, using his sword to support himself.

Blood formed small puddles on the deck, reflecting the starry sky.

A stray arrow suddenly hit his right shoulder, and the crisp sound of the armor cracking could be clearly heard.

"Come on!" Zhou Yu roared and swung his sword, forcing the approaching Chu army back three steps.

Zhao Ben sneered and waved his hand, and more than ten archers lined up on the side of the ship.

At the moment when the rain of arrows came, Zhou Yu suddenly recalled his life experience. He came from a humble background, became famous in the navy by relying on his swimming skills, and eventually slowly reached his current position.

But now, he is powerless to change the situation.

The dull sound of iron arrows piercing the flesh continued.

As Zhou Yu fell on his back, he saw the Big Dipper hanging on the top of the burning mast.

His sword fell to the ground with a clang, and the four inscriptions "Loyalty and Bravery in Serving the Country" on the sword were gradually covered by blood.

The river wind howled, carrying a burning smell across the deck littered with corpses.

Zhao Ben leaned over and closed Zhou Yu's furious eyes, then turned to his personal guards and sighed, "Pass the order down. Han General Zhou Yu—died in battle."

At the same time, Liu Che on the shore suddenly reined in his horse.

He looked at the Han army's lights that suddenly went out in the middle of the river, and his hand holding the reins began to tremble uncontrollably.

The river, where the sounds of fighting had just been deafening, was now filled with only the cheers of the Chu army coming down the wind.

"Your Majesty?" Su Can rushed over with his face covered in blood, but saw the emperor staring at the river with tears in his eyes.

Liu Che recalled that when the two of them were secretly discussing three days ago, Zhou Yu pointed to the waterway map and said, "If I cannot return, Your Majesty, please consider the overall situation."

At that time, he just thought it was Zhou Yu's humble words, but now it has come true!

"Sound the retreat." Liu Che's voice was horribly hoarse. "The entire army retreats."

Su Can was shocked: "But Chu Ning's troops have already engaged us. If we retreat now, Zhijun will definitely pursue us."

"This is an imperial edict!" Liu Che suddenly drew his sword in anger and chopped off the flagpole beside him.

The broken wooden pole raised a cloud of dust, startling the warhorse and the rider so much that they stood up.

When the clanging sound of bronze bells resounded throughout the battlefield, the Han army officers and soldiers all read the truth of the battle situation on the river from the emperor's abnormal behavior.

In the Chu army formation, Ran Ming wielded his spear and decapitated a Han soldier, shouting with a fierce grin, "Zhou Yu is dead! Whoever captures Liu Che alive will be rewarded with a fiefdom of ten thousand households!"

The morale of the Chu army was greatly boosted, and the originally stalemate battle line collapsed instantly.

The shield formation of the Han army's rear guard kept retreating under the tide-like attack, and soldiers fell in pools of blood every moment.

In the reeds on the river bank, a few Han army sailors who had escaped by chance were swimming desperately towards the shore.

Looking back, they saw that of the Han navy that once dominated the Yangtze River, only a few burning wreckages were left floating in the middle of the river.

The largest Fujian ship was slowly sinking, and the large Chinese flag at the stern was half submerged in water, still stubbornly refusing to sink.

But this cannot change the outcome of the battle tonight!