No one wishes for a bad reputation, and Lü Bu is no exception. When he, with his extraordinary martial skills, led his troops to repeatedly defeat the invading Xianbei tribes and piled up the heads of the barbarians, his name, Lü Bu, also known as Lü Fengxian, was praised and sung by the Han people in the Bingzhou region. He became a hero in the hearts of the Bingzhou people, a protector of the weak and a resister of invaders.
Lü Bu could never forget the scenes when he returned victorious from Shuofang County, and the enthusiastic Bingzhou people stuffed dates, wild fruits, and homemade flatbreads into his arms...
At that time, he felt the happiest.
But now, Lü Bu had an inexplicable premonition that these happiest days might be leaving him forever...
Just as Lü Bu was troubled by this puzzling premonition, a soldier came to report that a fellow townsman of the general had come to visit.
In this city of Luoyang, thousands of miles away, there was actually a fellow townsman?
However, when Lü Bu eagerly ran to the camp gate, the first thing he saw was not a fellow townsman, nor any person, but a blood-red steed standing at the camp gate—
The horse shone with a red glow, without a single blemish from head to tail, like the finest Shu brocade, with a flowing radiance under the sunlight. The horse stood eight feet tall and over ten feet long, pawing the ground with its hooves, snorting, full of vitality, shaking its head, its round eyes looking straight at Lü Bu.
The more Lü Bu looked, the more he loved it, and he couldn't help but take a couple of steps forward to see it more clearly, not noticing the person standing in front of the horse until he had passed by. Only then did Lü Bu realize and quickly turned around to see that the fellow townsman was actually Li Su!
Lü Bu's heart felt as if ten thousand grass-mud horses were galloping through, unable to connect the dark and skinny fellow townsman before him with this magnificent steed, and he blurted out, "Is this horse yours?"
Li Su laughed heartily, handed the reins to a nearby soldier, and said, "This is not the place for conversation, General Lü, won't you invite me in for a bowl of water?"
"Of course, of course, please, please!"
Lü Bu led Li Su towards his tent, but after a few steps, he turned back and instructed the soldier holding Li Su's horse, "Take good care of it, and by the way, bring my share of beans for it."
The soldier acknowledged but hesitated, "But... if the beans are given to it, what about your horse, General?"
Lü Bu glared, "Stop with the nonsense, just go!" After saying this, he reluctantly glanced at the red horse before entering the tent with Li Su.
After seating themselves as host and guest, Lü Bu casually asked, "How many years has it been since we last met? What are you doing now?"
Li Su smiled and said, "Not much, I'm just a General of the Household Cavalry now. Although the title sounds grand, I actually don't command many troops, unlike you, my friend. Look at you, tsk tsk, strong soldiers and sturdy horses, impressive!"
Lü Bu waved his hand, modestly responding, but in his heart, he thought, General of the Household Cavalry, a rank worth two thousand bushels, earning five thousand a month! The key is being close to the nobles in the court, no wonder he could get such a fine horse...
Comparing oneself to others can be frustrating, who would have thought Li Su could rise so high...
Li Su suddenly asked, "Ah, just now I heard from your subordinate that even horse feed is rationed now? Or is the bean you mentioned particularly precious?"
Lü Bu looked somewhat embarrassed and said, "To be honest, we're currently short on provisions, so..."
Li Su was shocked and exclaimed, "How can this be? Didn't General Dong already send a batch of provisions to your Governor Ding? How come you have no provisions?"
Lü Bu's eyes widened instantly, and he stood up abruptly: "Really?"
"Of course!"
Immediately, Lü Bu was filled with anger. Here I am rationing supplies, and yesterday Governor Ding told me there were no provisions!
Lü Bu angrily started to stride out but was stopped by Li Su.
"Ah, my friend, where are you going?"
"I'm going to ask Governor Ding... Governor Ding for a clear explanation!"
Li Su looked very regretful and said, "Ah, if I had known, I wouldn't have told you. Isn't this damaging your father-son relationship with Ding Yuan?"
"What father-son relationship? My father died many years ago, how can Ding Yuan be related to any father-son relationship?"
Li Su said in surprise, "Isn't that what I heard? Isn't it true? Ah, then you really shouldn't go..."
"Why not?" Lü Bu asked, puzzled.
Li Su had Lü Bu dismiss the attendants before saying, "Isn't it obvious? Why didn't Governor Ding give you provisions? Why does he claim a father-son relationship with you outside?"
Lü Bu blinked, thought hard but was still confused, frowning at Li Su, he asked, "Why is that?"
"How is your martial skill, my friend?" Li Su didn't answer Lü Bu's question directly but instead asked another.
"I dare not claim to be brave, but in the face of thousands of troops, I tread as if on flat ground!" When it comes to other things, I might not boast, but in terms of martial arts, hmph, I, Lü Bu, am very confident!
Li Su then asked, "And what about Governor Ding Yuan's martial skills?"
Lü Bu chuckled and said, "He's a civil official, what martial skills does he have!"
Li Su said seriously, "Then let me ask you, over these years, do you think defending the frontier of Bingzhou and resisting the Xianbei's southern invasions for grazing lands relied on your martial skills or Governor Ding's literary skills?"
"Of course..." Lü Bu started to answer but stopped halfway, his face changing colors.
Li Su's voice came out as if from the ground: "You've been in Shuofang for a long time, do you know there's a method of training animals there? They must be kept hungry, never fed too full, too full and they can't run... And they must be shackled, so they won't bite their master..."
The veins on Lü Bu's forehead bulged, throbbing...
Li Su observed Lü Bu's expression, then untied a bundle from his waist, opened it, and poured its contents onto the table!
Suddenly, the tent seemed to light up! Large gold ingots, round pearls, warm jade, all emitting a tempting luster, filled the tent with a dazzling array of treasures!
"...This... this..." Lü Bu secretly swallowed his saliva, staring at the jewels, and asked Li Su, "How do you have these things?"
Li Su said, "To be honest, these are all things that General Dong specifically instructed me to bring to you. Also, that horse outside, named Red Hare, is also a gift from General Dong to you!"
"Even the horse is for me? Red Hare... a good name..." Lü Bu murmured, only reacting after a long while, "This is too much, I have no relation with General Dong, and I can't accept such gifts without merit!"
Li Su smiled lightly and said, "These are just vulgar items, how can they compare to your skills? Before I came, my General Dong said that he most admires heroes like himself who resist the Qiang and Hu barbarians. These small yellow and white things are merely tokens of gratitude from the frontier people for your years of hard work on the border! Moreover, General Dong greatly admires your supreme martial arts and told us that one must use talents to their fullest, how can such a hero be wronged? Being just a mere Registrar is truly disheartening."
*****
A/N: Hmm, if ancient horses are equivalent to modern cars, then yellow-maned horses, green-maned horses, etc., are like Jetta and Santana, while Red Hare is like a Bugatti Veyron... If a car enthusiast sees a Bugatti Veyron parked in front of them, wouldn't they want to touch it?