THREE KINGDOMS PERIOD SERIES

They see the outline of these boats coming down the river through the fog, but because of the cover, they can’t see very clearly. (Image: Photographed by Shizhao/Public domain) Zhuge Liang’s army collecting arrows from their enemy. On the southern bank, the sentries are alert, watching out, and they know that under the cover of fog is a dangerous time because the enemy on the north bank may try to slip across the river and attack. The boats float downstream in the evening, just as the fog is descending on the river. They build dummies out straw, dress them in uniforms, then tie the boats together and push them out into the stream. They go upstream and commandeer boats as they go along. It’s a time of year when at night, the air cools down and the air rising from the river condenses, creating a thick layer of fog over the river.

They decide to take advantage of a particular circumstance in their location: The river that flows between the two armies in the evenings tends to become covered with fog. If you don’t have arrows, your archers aren’t going to be very useful. Learn more about Chinese culture’s most important contributions to world history Archers are a critical component of warfare. But they’re in a tough spot because in the fighting that has gone on up to this point, they have used up almost all their arrows. If they can inflict a decisive defeat on their enemy at this point, they may gain everything. The army on the northern bank of the river is far from home, its supply lines are extended. Their army is on the northern bank of the river on the southern bank of the river are the enemy’s forces. The stories of these men are remarkable for their cleverness: In one instance, a general has brought his army to the south, and they’ve camped on the bank of a great river.

THREE KINGDOMS PERIOD SERIES

This is a transcript from the video series From Yao to Mao: 5000 Years of Chinese History. Cao Cao and Zhuge Liang are often held up as the great exemplars of clever strategy. Zhuge Liang was a general-he never became a ruler or seems to have had the ambition of seizing power for himself-but he came to be known as one of the greatest strategists in Chinese history. One particularly fascinating figure was Zhuge Liang. This is an age in which deceiving, outwitting, and winning fights against your enemy by not fighting are considered to be the great talents and accomplishments of the heroes of the age. These are military men, noted not for their strength or for their ability to crush their opponents, but for their cleverness and wit. The reason for this is, in part, because the heroes of this period are not the kinds of scholars, political officials, or emperors who are portrayed as the great culture heroes in later times. Zhuge Liang, a General in the Shu Han Kingdom, is often held up as an exemplary figure in the stories of The Three Kingdoms.

Three kingdoms period