The protagonist of A Hundred Steps to Cross the Yang is Yang Youji.
Yang Youji was a general of Chu State in the Spring and Autumn Period. He once shot and killed Jin general Wei Qi and Dou Yuejiao. Allusions related to Yang Youji include a hundred hits and a hundred steps, etc. The allusion of crossing the poplar tree with a hundred steps can be found in records in ancient books such as "Historical Records of the Zhou Dynasty" and "Warring States Policy of the Western Zhou Dynasty".
Allusions
During the Warring States Period, heroes emerged in large numbers. Yang Youji was a native of Xiangyang County, Chu State, and was also an expert archer. He shot an arrow a hundred steps away from a willow tree, and every arrow hit the target. In the center of the willow leaf, the shot is always on target. People who look to the left and right say that the shot is very good.
At that time, there was a warrior named Pan Hu who was also good at archery. One day, the two people competed again. The target was set fifty steps away, where a board was propped up with a red heart on it. Pan Hu drew his strong bow and hit the red heart with three arrows in a row. Yang Youji pointed to a willow tree a hundred steps away and asked someone to choose a leaf on the tree and paint it red as a target. Then, he drew his bow and shot with a sound of "instigation". As a result, the arrow penetrated right through the center of the willow leaf. Everyone present was stunned by this incredible archery skill.
But a passerby said: "This man, you can teach him how to ejaculate." When Yang Youji heard this, he felt very uncomfortable and said, "Everyone says I can ejaculate." Well, you said you can teach me archery, so why don’t you come and shoot the willow leaves for me?” The man said, “I can’t teach you how to stretch your left arm and bend your right arm in archery; but have you ever thought about it? However, you can shoot willow leaves with perfect accuracy, but you are not good at resting. After a while, you will get tired and miss a single arrow, and all your efforts will be in vain."