The straw boat borrowing arrows is a popular story in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", which took place during the Battle of Chibi in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. Cao Cao led his army south in an attempt to unify China, while Sun Quan and Liu Bei formed an alliance determined to resist Cao Cao's invasion together. The two armies met at Chibi, and since Cao Cao's soldiers were mostly northerners and unfamiliar with water warfare, he ordered the warships to be connected with iron cables to increase stability.
Zhuge Liang, as Liu Bei's military advisor, issued a military order to Zhou Yu, promising to make 100,000 arrows in three days. In order to achieve this goal, Zhuge Liang skillfully used the grass boats and the shouts of the soldiers. He ordered his soldiers to shout on the grass boats, creating a loud noise and smoke that successfully attracted the attention of Cao Cao's archers. In the process of borrowing arrows from the grass boat, Zhuge Liang also deliberately asked the soldiers to shout "Thank you Prime Minister Cao for the arrows" to provoke Cao Cao.
Seeing this, Cao Cao was furious and ordered the archers to shoot arrows at the grass boats. As the dense number of arrows shot at the straw boat, the soldiers on the boat quickly collected these arrows with straw mats, and finally Zhuge Liang successfully borrowed 100,000 arrows and completed the task.
The story of the straw boat borrowing arrows not only shows Zhuge Liang's resourcefulness and courage, but also profoundly reflects the historical background and war situation at that time. This story has become one of the classic stories in traditional Chinese culture, passed down from generation to generation, and is deeply loved and respected by people.