Tap, tap, tap...
After the vast procession, a resolute young man clad in dark armor rode his steed up beside Duke An, speaking earnestly,
"Father, it's difficult to travel in the cold, and the road back to the Capital is far. Please rest in the carriage at the rear!"
Cao Mao, with frost on his temples and deep wrinkles, looked at the youth in front of him—a capable leader whose renown in the North City Army was second only to his own and on whom he greatly relied—and suddenly said,
"Do you think your father is too old to endure the march?"
The youth, dressed in dark armor, was startled and hastily explained,
"My son wouldn't dare, father is in his prime, a mere march should be beneath him. My son simply wishes to spare father the hardship—it was wrong of me to say otherwise, please punish me!"
While speaking, seeing that Cao Mao made no comment, the youth suddenly stretched out his hand and slapped his own face.
