Liu Bei: My younger brother is a deity.

Chapter 36 The Wandering Swordsman

A guest from Yan wears a silk tassel on his hat, his Wu hook sword gleaming like frost and snow. His silver saddle shines on his white horse, swift as a shooting star.

He can kill one man in ten steps, leaving no trace for a thousand miles. Having accomplished his task, he dusts off his clothes and departs, concealing his identity and name.

……

He wielded his golden hammer to save Zhao, and Handan was the first to be shocked. Two heroes for all time, their fame resounding throughout Daliang.

Though he dies, his chivalrous spirit remains, worthy of being a hero of the world. Who can write of your life, with your white hair and profound wisdom?

Liu Quan recited the poem "The Knight-Errant" with great passion and emotion.

Liu Bei, Zhang Fei, and their troops listened with great emotion.

After Liu Quan finished reciting it once, Liu Bei felt it wasn't enough and kept pestering Liu Quan to recite it again.

Once again, and then again.

Once Liu Bei had memorized it, he began to recite it aloud.

again and again.

They only stopped, still wanting more, when Zhou Cang turned around.

"Zhou Cang, the woman has been sent back," Liu Bei asked.

Zhou Cang wiped his sweat, first clasped his hands in a fist salute to Liu Quan, and then replied, "My lord, the woman has been sent home. I saw her enter the house. She was only away from home for a day, so the neighbors should not have noticed anything. As long as she doesn't say anything, no one will know what she went through."

"Excellent!" Liu Bei nodded. "Let's cross the river."

The group crossed the river at Mengjin.

After crossing the Yellow River, the world suddenly became lively.

The scenery south of the Yellow River is very different from that in Hebei.

The north bank was still a desolate scene of withered grass and yellow dust, but once past Mengjin, people gradually appeared.

In the wheat fields on both sides of the official road, the winter wheat has already sprouted, and a green layer has spread on the ground, like a thin blanket covering the earth.

The villages became more densely packed, with one every three or five miles, where wisps of smoke rose from chimneys, only to be dispersed by the north wind.

But the weather is getting colder and colder.

The wind blew across the river, carrying moisture, and was truly bone-chillingly cold.

Liu Bei and his party were all from the north. The winters in Zhuo County were much colder than here, but the cold in Zhuo County was a dry cold, and they could withstand it by wearing a few fur coats.

The cooling here is a damp cold; the chill feels like countless fine needles, seeping into your bones through your clothes.

Liu Deran huddled inside the carriage and refused to come out.

Even a tough guy like Zhang Fei couldn't help but wrap his clothes tighter, bend over to avoid the wind, and muttered, "Damn it, winter in the south is even harder to endure than in the north."

Liu Quan, on the other hand, remained calm and composed. His robes fluttered in the wind, his hair swayed in the breeze, and he sat upright on his horse, appearing completely unmoved.

After crossing the river, the group moved a little slower.

Because there were constant troubles along the way.

From Mengjin to Yanshi, a distance of just over a hundred li, they encountered three groups of highway robbers.

The number of men ranged from a few dozen to over a hundred, but they were easily dealt with by Liu Bei and Zhang Fei with their troops.

When they passed through Yanshi County, they encountered a caravan being robbed by bandits on the official road.

Hundreds of bandits surrounded seven or eight oxcarts. Several of the caravan's guards had already fallen, and the rest were desperately trying to protect the carts.

The bandit leader rode a yellow horse, wielding a long knife. He was quite brave and strong. Three caravan guards surrounded him, but he killed them in a sorry state.

The bandit leader roared and knocked one of the guards off his horse, about to step forward and kill him.

At that moment, a sharp whistling sound came.

Before the bandit leader could react, an arrow shot from the side, entering his neck from the left and exiting from the right, demonstrating its immense force.

The bandit leader stared wide-eyed in disbelief, trying to turn his head to look at the archer, but he had already lost his strength, swayed, and fell headlong off his horse.

The yellow horse was startled, let out a long neigh, raised its front hooves, threw its master's body to the ground, and ran away on all fours.

The bandits were stunned. Their leader was dead?!

Before they could react, the second arrow arrived, piercing the chest of a bandit who was raising a short knife, and the man fell backward.

The third, the fourth, the fifth... the arrows whizzed by one after another, as if they had eyes, each one hitting its mark, sending the bandits running for their lives.

The archer was Liu Quan, and the bronze bow he held was seized from Guo Jing's room.

Seeing Liu Quan shoot with both hands without missing a single shot, Liu Bei exclaimed in admiration, "Quan's archery skills are truly amazing."

Zhang Fei cried out urgently, "Ah Quan, stop! Leave some for me!"

With that, he slapped the rump of his black horse and led his troops in a charge.

Liu Bei laughed heartily, "Yide, wait for me!"

A group of people stormed into the band of thieves.

The caravan's guards, who had been in despair, were greatly encouraged by the arrival of their saviors. They rushed out from behind the oxcarts and turned the tide of the battle.

The bandits, already panicked by their leader's death and Liu Quan's divine arrows, could not withstand the pressure any longer.

It scattered with a crash.

Liu Bei and Zhang Fei led their men in pursuit.

Liu Quan followed at a leisurely pace, occasionally drawing his bow and arrow, and a thief would fall.

Liu Bei, that guy, loved to show off. While killing, he loudly recited: "The Yan guest wears a silk tassel, his Wu hook sword gleams like frost and snow. The silver saddle shines on the white horse, swift as a shooting star. He kills one man in ten steps, leaving no trace for a thousand miles. After the deed is done, he dusts off his clothes and departs, concealing his person and name..."

The caravan was led by a middle-aged man and a young man.

He was standing on the shaft of an oxcart, gazing at the backs of Liu Bei, Liu Quan, and Zhang Fei.

Upon hearing Liu Bei's song, the young man couldn't help but clap and exclaim, "Truly a chivalrous hero!"

The middle-aged man nodded and said, "Zizhong, my son and I have met a benefactor today; otherwise, we would have had to abandon the goods and break through. You will come with me to thank him properly later."

"Here you are."

…………

In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Liu Bei, Liu Quan, and Zhang Fei led their men back.

Zhang Fei was still leading a yellow horse, which was the mount of the bandit leader who had escaped earlier.

The father and son quickly stepped forward.

The middle-aged man strode up to Liu Bei, straightened his clothes, and respectfully clasped his hands in a deep bow, saying, "Mi An and his son Mi Zhu pay their respects to our benefactor."

The young man behind him also bowed.

Liu Bei quickly dismounted, reached out to help the man up, and said with a smile, "Lord Mi, there's no need for such formality. It's only my duty to help those in need when I see injustice on the road."

He said this naturally, without the slightest affectation, clearly because he genuinely thought so.

Mi Zhu secretly glanced at Liu Bei, recalling the image of him singing and killing the enemy just now. He was filled with admiration and thought to himself, "Even the heroes of ancient times were no more than this. He is truly a hero."

Mi An was helped up by Liu Bei, and only then did he look up and take a good look at himself.

The three teenagers before him must be the leaders of this group; each of them was quite extraordinary. (Liu Deran: "Where is my presence?")

The one on the far left has a youthful face but a strong physique, and his piercing eyes exude a terrifying aura.

The one in the middle is about sixteen or seventeen years old, tall and slender, exuding a heroic air.

Although he was splattered with blood, he remained calm and had a gentle smile. He was neither as rough as an ordinary wandering knight nor as reserved as a scion of a noble family, which made people want to get close to him.

The one on the far right is truly handsome.

Mi An had traveled all over the country and met many outstanding people, but he had never seen a man who was so handsome.

Moreover, this young man was not merely a pretty face.

He had seen those arrows with his own eyes; they were truly masterful marksmen.

"May I ask the names of my esteemed benefactors?" Mi An asked again.

Liu Bei then gave an introduction.

Mi An then ordered his guards to bring two oxcarts, along with their goods, to Liu Bei and his men as a token of gratitude for saving their lives.

Liu Bei firmly declined the offer, saying, "Lord Mi, as I've said before, this is my duty. If you wish to express your gratitude, then in the future, if you encounter others in distress, lend them a helping hand; that will be your way of thanking me."

Mi An was taken aback, then became solemn with respect.