Editing Battle of Red Cliffs (section)

== Aftermath ==
By the end of 209, the post that Cao Cao had established at Jiangling fell to Zhou Yu. The borders of the land under Cao Cao's control contracted about {{convert|160|km|mi}}, to the area around [[Xiangzhou District, Xiangyang|Xiangyang]].{{sfnp|de Crespigny|1990|p=291}} For the victors of the battle, however, the question arose on how to share the spoils. Initially, Liu Bei and Liu Qi both expected rewards, having participated in the success at Red Cliffs, and both had also become entrenched in Jing Province.{{sfnp|de Crespigny|1990|p=227}} Liu Qi was appointed Inspector of Jing Province, but his rule in the region, centred at [[Jiangxia Commandery]], was short-lived. A few months after the Battle of Red Cliffs, he died of sickness. His lands were mostly absorbed by Sun Quan.{{sfnp|de Crespigny|1990|p=227}} However, with Liu Qi dead, Liu Bei laid claim to the title of Inspector of Jing Province and began to occupy much of it.{{sfnp|de Crespigny|1990|p=227}} He gained control of four commanderies south of the Yangtze in Wuling, [[Changsha]], [[Lingling, Yongzhou|Lingling]], and [[Guiyang]]. Sun Quan's troops had suffered far greater casualties than Liu Bei's in the extended conflict against Cao Ren following the Battle of Red Cliffs, and the death of Zhou Yu in 210 resulted in a drastic weakening of Sun Quan's strength in Jing Province.{{sfnp|de Crespigny|1990|pp=291–292, 197}}

As Liu Bei occupied Jing Province, which Cao Cao had recently lost, he gained a strategic and naturally-fortified area on the Yangtze River that Sun Quan still wanted for himself. The control of Jing Province provided Liu Bei with virtually-unlimited access to the passage into [[Yi Province]] and important waterways into [[Wu (region)|Wu]] (southeastern China) as well as dominion of the southern Yangtze River. Never again would Cao Cao command so large a fleet as he did at Jiangling, and he never had another similar opportunity to destroy his southern rivals.{{sfnp|de Crespigny|2007|p=37}} The Battle of Red Cliffs and the capture of Jing Province by Liu Bei confirmed the separation of southern China from the northern heartland of the [[Yellow River]] valley and foreshadowed a north–south axis of hostility that would continue for centuries.{{sfnp|de Crespigny|1990|p=260}}