Cheng Pu
After his defeat at Red Cliffs, Cao Cao returned to Xu (許; present-day Xuchang, Henan) and left Cao Ren and others behind to defend Jiangling County, the capital of Nan Commandery (). Zhou Yu and Cheng Pu led their troops towards Nan Commandery and were separated from Cao Ren's forces by the river. Liu Bei told Zhou Yu: "Cao Ren is defending Jiangling and he has much supplies in the city. He poses a big threat to us. I will send Zhang Yide with 1,000 men to accompany you, while you dispatch 2,000 troops to follow me. We will then cross the Xia River (夏水; a tributary of the Yangtze River starting from southeast of Shashi District and ending at north of Jianli County in Hubei) and attack Cao Ren's rear. When Cao Ren hears that we have infiltrated his rear, he will definitely retreat." Zhou Yu agreed to Liu Bei's suggestion.