Xiang Yu’s Last Stand at Gaixia | Generated by AI

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Question: Provide a complete English translation of “垓下之围” from university-level Classical Chinese.

Answer:

The Siege of Gaixia
(from Records of the Grand Historian – Annals of Xiang Yu, by Sima Qian)

When Xiang Yu had reached Yinling, his army consisted of only eight hundred horsemen. The Han army pursued him closely and caught up with him at Gaixia. Xiang Yu’s troops were exhausted and had no food left. At night they heard the Han army all around them singing Chu songs. Xiang Yu was greatly alarmed and said, “Has Liu Bang already taken all of Chu? How many Chu men are there in the Han army!” He then rose in the night and went into his tent to drink with his favorite consort, the lady Yu. Xiang Yu had a fine steed named Zhui that he always rode. Facing his beloved lady and his fine horse, he sang a sad song he had composed himself, with these words:

Force to uproot mountains,
Energy to conquer the world—
Yet the times are against me, my Zhui will not go forward.
Zhui will not go forward—what then can be done?
Ah, Yu! Yu! What will become of you?

He sang the song several times over, and the lady Yu joined in. Tears streamed down the faces of all who heard it; none could lift their heads to look at him. After singing several stanzas, Xiang Yu mounted his horse, and with about eight hundred cavalry he broke through the encirclement that night and fled southward.

When day broke, the Han army realized that Xiang Yu had escaped. They ordered five thousand horsemen to pursue him urgently. Xiang Yu crossed the Huai River, but by then he had only about one hundred horsemen left. When he reached Yinling he lost his way. He asked an old farmer for directions, but the old man deliberately misled him, saying “Go to the left.” So Xiang Yu went left and became trapped in the great marshlands (of Quyang).

By this time the Han troops had caught up again. Xiang Yu led his remaining horsemen back toward the east and reached Dongcheng, where he had only twenty-eight cavalry left. The Han army pursued him with several thousand horsemen.

Xiang Yu, seeing that he could not escape, turned to his followers and said:
“Today we must surely die. But before I die I wish to win one last victory for you. I will break through their encirclement for you, and then I will cut down one of their generals and take one of their banners—so that you may know that it is Heaven that destroys me, and not that I am unskilled in battle.”

He then divided his twenty-eight horsemen into four groups, facing in four directions. The Han army had by now surrounded them in several layers. Xiang Yu said to his men:
“I shall take one of them. Watch me—when I say ‘charge,’ all of you charge together and break out at the eastern side. I will cut down one of their generals for you.”

Then he shouted: “Charge!”
With this he galloped down the slope on his horse, and with a great shout he cut down a Han general and one of their banners. Having broken through, he regrouped his horsemen on the eastern side of the hill. Of the original twenty-eight, only two had been lost.

Xiang Yu said to his followers:
“What do you say now?”
They all bowed to the ground and answered: “We are willing to follow Your Highness to the death.”

At this moment the Marshal of Han cavalry, Yang Xi, and several other commanders were pursuing Xiang Yu with several thousand men. Xiang Yu turned back to fight again. He cut down one more general and killed dozens of men. But by now he had only one horse left, and he was wounded in several places.

Then Xiang Yu turned to the Wu River Chief and said:
“I understand that the King of Jiangdong has set aside a territory of a thousand li with a population of several hundred thousand, and that he wishes to appoint me as their king. But I am too ashamed to face them. How could I look upon the elders east of the Yangtze again? Even if they said nothing, would my heart not feel shame?”

He then turned to his horse and said:
“I know this horse, Zhong, has carried me for eight years. He has traveled more than ten thousand li. He has never failed me. Today he is about to die—I cannot bear to kill him. I give him to you, Chief. Ride him across the river.”

Then he ordered all his remaining horsemen to dismount and fight on foot. They fought with short weapons and killed several hundred Han soldiers. But Xiang Yu himself received more than ten wounds. In the end he turned his sword upon himself and died.

After Xiang Yu died, the Han cavalry fought among themselves to claim credit. Yang Xi, Wang Yi, Lü Sheng, and Yang Wu each cut off a part of his body. When they put the parts together, they were indeed those of Xiang Yu. Therefore Emperor Gaozu granted them all the title of marquis.

Lady Yu’s fate
Before Xiang Yu broke out, he ordered Lady Yu to mount a horse and flee. But she refused and stayed behind. After Xiang Yu’s death she was captured by the Han army. She later committed suicide.

References:

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