Chapter 29: Caught Red-Handed

Achoo!
The night wind was biting, relentlessly seeping into the bedding.
Lu Bu sneezed, rubbing his nose, and in a daze saw a figure carrying a wine jar leaving the bedchamber.
Had he seen a ghost?
No, that couldn’t be. Last night, after drinking heavily with Zhang Liao, they had fallen asleep foot to foot.
He reached out to the side—sure enough, the couch was empty.
“Wenyuan, where are you going?” Lu Bu called after the retreating figure.
But Zhang Liao walked farther and farther away, showing no intention of stopping.
“Hey! It’s the middle of the night—why aren’t you sleeping? Lost your soul?”
Lu Bu muttered, tightening his quilt around himself.
But in the eleventh month, the cold in Sizhou’s capital was unforgiving. Zhang Liao hadn’t closed the door, and the chill sliced through the room, so even someone as robust as Lu Bu couldn't bear it.
He tossed and turned several times, unable to sleep; his scalp only grew colder.
Grumbling, Lu Bu kicked off his quilt, deciding to give up on sleep altogether and began donning his armor.
Although they had not captured Cao Cao, Lu Bu was in good spirits.
There was news from Luoyang: the Grand Tutor, impressed by his loyalty and courage, wanted him back in camp to receive a reward.
Thinking of this, he even bowed in the direction of Luoyang.
...
The stars were sparse beside the bright moon, and braziers still burned on the ramparts of Guancheng, crackling in the wind.
“General.”
“General.”
“What ‘general’? Xu Third Brother, Ma Sixth Brother, don’t tease me.” Zhang Liao lifted the wine jar in his hand. “Want a drink?”
In truth, after Lu Bu defected to Dong Zhuo, the old Bing Province officers had not been promoted.
Zhang Liao now held only a minor cavalry command.
On the surface, the Bing Province officers had newly joined and had no military achievements, so naturally there was no promotion.
In reality, Dong Zhuo deliberately divided the Bing Province contingents. Stubborn loyalists like Zhang Liao, who outwardly respected Dong Zhuo but took Lu Bu as their leader, were not favored, and talk of promotion was out of the question.
The two old soldiers on night watch were not at all reserved, grinning as they approached.
Breaking the seal, the three of them sat on the ground; there was no need for cups—they passed the jar around, drinking straight from it.
“Wenyuan, is something on your mind?”
“Xu Third Brother, you worry too much. I just couldn’t sleep because of Fengxian’s snoring.”
“You’ve always been a thoughtful one, but never mind, let’s just drink!”
Zhang Liao pulled a wry smile and drank the bitter wine in silence.
They say a fool eats and sleeps well, living to a hundred.
He was unlike the carefree Lu Bu.
Precisely because Zhang Liao saw further and thought more, his worries multiplied.
Halfway through the jar, the sound of hoofbeats rang out in the distance.
The three of them assumed it was scouts returning and paid it no mind.

“Hurry and open the way. If you delay the Grand Tutor’s business, you’ll lose your heads.”
A harsh shout rang out. The next second, a command token struck Zhang Liao squarely on the cheek.
Xu Third Brother and Ma Sixth Brother flew into a rage, drawing their waist knives and pointing them at the newcomer.
“Who are you, to be so arrogant?”
Cao Cao was taken aback.
From afar, he’d seen three men drinking: two clad in battered old armor, one in just a single robe. He’d assumed they were Guancheng’s garrison.
Only upon approaching did he realize something was off.
The two who drew their knives carried themselves with the air of seasoned veterans. The one in the plain robe seemed oddly familiar, but Cao Cao couldn’t for the life of him recall where he’d seen him before.
These three couldn’t be Liangzhou troops—no soldier from Xiliang would look so destitute.
Cao Cao’s eyes narrowed. “You’re Bing Province soldiers?”
Zhang Liao picked up the command token, admiring their audacity.
Peering from under his straw hat, he had recognized Cao Cao, which only deepened his inner conflict.
On one hand, the Bing Province army’s funding depended entirely on Dong Zhuo’s favor; they needed merit, they needed reward.
On the other hand, Zhang Liao knew Dong Zhuo was no wise lord. To intercept and kill a man as renowned as Cao Cao for the sake of a butcher like Dong Zhuo was hardly wise.
After a moment’s struggle, Zhang Liao finally rose and pressed down on his companions’ hands to stop them drawing their blades.
From his heart, he was unwilling to kill a hero like Cao Cao.
He was even less willing to bind the Bing Province army’s fate entirely to Dong Zhuo’s chariot.
If they captured Cao Cao now, Lu Bu’s already infamous name would be utterly ruined.
“This way is blocked. You’d best try elsewhere.”
Huh?
Cao Cao was puzzled. If they feared Dong Zhuo’s authority, they should let him pass. If not, they should make him dismount for inspection.
What did “try elsewhere” mean? Did they recognize him but chose not to harm him?
“May I ask the young general’s name?”
“Hahaha, Mengde, have you grown so forgetful? His name is Zhang Liao, styled Wenyuan. At the Grand Tutor’s banquet, you met.”
A wild laugh cut the air, and Cao Cao, suddenly on guard, wheeled his horse away.
Zhang Liao, looking toward the tall figure in the firelight, said awkwardly, “Fengxian, I…”
Lu Bu raised his hand. “Enough, Wenyuan. You two have only met once; the villain took advantage of the night to hide his face. Not recognizing him immediately is no fault. Return to camp and muster the troops. Glory and riches await us today!”
“Yes, sir.”
With that, Lu Bu gently nudged his horse’s belly. Red Hare neighed and shot off like an arrow from a bow.
...
“L-l-lord, who was that man? He’s truly imposing.”
Mi Heng stammered, unsure whether from fear or from the jostling of his horse.
“Lu Bu.”
“L-l-lu Bu? That Lu Bu, the one famed as peerless among men and the Red Hare among steeds?”
Seeing Cao Cao nod, Mi Heng immediately reined in his horse.
His words at last came out smoothly: “My lord, you go ahead. Let me see if I can talk that villain down!”

Chen Cong also pulled up his horse.
“Father-in-law, you go. I’ll stay behind to cover the retreat.”
“No!” Cao Cao refused at once. “Lu Bu is already formidable, and we don’t know the strength of the garrison. To attack rashly courts disaster.”
Truth be told, Cao Cao would have preferred to let Mi Heng try talking Lu Bu down.
Success or failure, at least it would buy some time.
“Father-in-law, just go. Once I drive off Lu Bu, I’ll find you in Qiao County.”
“No!”
But before Cao Cao could object, Red Hare flew upon them—Lu Bu had arrived.
Chen Cong withdrew a stone he’d prepared earlier and flicked it, striking Cao Cao’s horse in the belly with pinpoint accuracy.
He’d readied the stone in case he needed to break Cao Cao’s momentum during a buff-stacking escape.
Startled by the pain, the horse bolted away at once.
“Chen Zining, you scoundrel!”
“Second brother, guard Father-in-law well.”
“Big brother…”
“Go!”
“Lu Bu,” Mi Heng sneered, about to launch into a tirade, but Chen Cong smacked his horse’s rump with the flat of his blade.
Lu Bu didn’t pursue. He hefted his halberd, grinning as he fixed his gaze on Chen Cong.
Compared to Cao Cao, this young man interested him more.
Single-handed, he had routed two hundred of Zhang Xiu’s cavalry.
Zhang Xiu might be worthless, but two hundred armored riders were no small feat.
“Chen Zining, dismount and surrender. You’re no match for me.”
“Surrender?” Chen Cong laughed. “Do you hear yourself? To ask me to surrender—you’d do better to ask me to kill myself outright.”
“If you yield, I’ll guarantee your safety,” Lu Bu said earnestly.
Chen Cong looked at him with disdain. “You and what army?”
Lu Bu was not offended. “There’s much misunderstanding in this assassination. The Grand Tutor treats me as a son; I’ll speak for you.”
Chen Cong felt the urge to cover his face.
So this is the kind of Lu Bu you are? He could hardly bear to look…
He even suspected Lu Bu’s skull was filled with muscle instead of brains.
Where on earth did he get the confidence to say ‘as close as father and son’?
Never mind whether Dong Zhuo saw him as a good son—just look at how the halberd was most often used against his sworn fathers!
“Enough. Less talk, more action. Let’s see what you’re made of.”
“Hmph. Arrogant.”