It was very quiet outside the hall, and from time to time you could hear the sound of snowflakes sweeping away dead leaves. The moonlight shines on the door, and you can vaguely see the figures of father and son having a drink in the hall.
In the fifth year of Jian'an, the Guandu battlefield occurred. The autumn wind was sharp and bone-piercing, but it could not dissipate the strong smell of blood.
Different from the joy Xiahou Shang imagined on the battlefield, when his spear and iron sword were covered with blood, he seemed to feel that his arms were a little unruly, and the weapons that were usually so handy suddenly became useless. Heavy.
That's not a haystack, that's a living person! They didn't even have time to scream, before they collapsed on the battlefield filled with rage...
Behind the majestic and murderous tiger and leopard face, the childish face was already covered with tears. After all, he is just a sixteen-year-old boy...
Xia Houxuan looked at his father with trembling brows and filled a bowl of wine for him.
"This battle, which almost determined who would win in the world, finally ended with our army's victory. On the battlefield in Hebei, Yuan Jun turned his back on the black-armored cavalry with the commander's flag of 'Cao'. The late king actually used just Within a few years, we defeated Ji, Qing, You, and Bing, and unified the north. From then on, the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry became a battlefield myth."
"In this way, I grew up from a boy on the battlefield. I was used to seeing killings, so I always thought that I had become a stone of heart. Until later, I met her in Qingzhou..." Father There seemed to be infinite tenderness in his eyes, like a cool breeze, which made Xia Houxuan look crazy.
In the tenth year of Jian'an, it was early autumn on the outskirts of Qingzhou.
The girl who had gone out to pick mulberry medicine was waiting to return home when she suddenly spotted a strong black horse in the forest.
It seemed to have suffered a leg injury, and seemed to be waiting for something. It stayed by the stream and refused to leave. Looking at the horse's attire, it looked like a military horse. There was also a majestic and terrifying horse hanging on the saddle. black tiger mask.
"Ma, you must be waiting for your master." The girl knelt down, caressed the horse's injured leg with compassion, took out the herbs in the straw basket, chewed them in her mouth, and applied them gently on He touched the wound on the horse's leg: "Don't worry, horse, it will get better soon after applying the medicine."
In the distance, she seemed to hear the sound of branches scraping against metal. When he turned around, he saw a sergeant coming slowly.
That smile, like the warm spring breeze or the hazy drizzle, instantly melted Xia Houshang's heart...
Such beauty made him awe-struck, and he actually bowed to the woman, causing the wild fruits he picked to fall all over the ground.
"Later, the war was over. I took her back to Xudu together. I still remember telling her that one day, when I no longer fight, I would take her away from the busy city and go to the peaceful place. Days... and later..." Xia Houshang drank the wine in one gulp: "It will come later, and you will know the rest."
Yes, later on, the late king granted marriage and the parents got married. My father once promised Aunt Han a lifetime of happiness, but he could only make her his concubine. The mother loves her father so much, but she can never get the same amount of love. Many things are always out of control...
Xia Houxuan saw that his father was a little sad, so he tried to change the subject: "Then, what happened to my father in the army, uncle, and Commander Cao Chuntao?"
"Speaking of your uncle, there is something very majestic. Do you want to hear it?" Xia Houshang raised his wine bowl and smiled.
―――
That year in the north, the cold wind was still biting to the bones. The new year is approaching, but the soldiers have not returned home, just to stabilize the northern border that has just been pacified.
Youzhou, the suburbs of Daijun.
The sergeants accompanying him were discussing quietly.
"It seems that I won't be able to go home again this year. Unfortunately, my dog is one year old, but I can't go home to visit him."
"Hey, that's wrong. Didn't the Lord even return to the Central Plains? He stayed with us to suffer the cold here, and even took us out to hunt in the countryside?"
"It's true. It's just that in such a cold season, where can we find prey? But stepping out and stepping on the snow in the north is also a unique experience."
At the head of the hunting team were Prime Minister Cao Cao, as well as Tiger and Leopard Cavalry Commander Cao Chun, Leopard Cavalry Camp Sima Cao Xiu and Xia Houshang, as well as Cao Zhen and other young generals from the clan.
The cold wind in the north, riding horses through the snow, although there is no prey, it does have a unique flavor.
Amidst the biting wind, there seemed to be a strange noise, like some giant beast roaring.
Just when the leading guard general was about to send people to investigate, a huge creature jumped out of the strong wind and snow! It's a tiger!
"Protect the lord!" The accompanying guard hurriedly took out the bow, but unexpectedly the weather was too cold and the bow at the corner was too hard to draw. The group of people had no choice but to protect them with short soldiers and long swords.
"I have heard in the early years that there are many strange beasts in the Yan Dynasty. When I see them today, they are indeed majestic!" Cao Zhen said with a bold smile: "My lord, please order me to capture this tiger and present it in front of the battle!"
Before Cao Cao and the others could stop him, Cao Zhen bolted out.
"Zidan, no!" Xiahou Shang Cao Xiu shouted and was about to get out of the queue, but was stopped by Cao Chun.
"The snow is very slippery, and the large number of people will make it difficult to move forward!" Cao Chun pulled the reins of the two horses and said in a commanding tone: "Don't worry."
Cao Zhen rode his horse and circled around with the tiger in the snow. He saw him holding a short bow in his left hand and an arrow in his right hand, and actually pulled the hard curved bow away. Xiahou Shang couldn't help but feel nervous.
"Phew!" The feather arrow pierced the fierce cold wind, pierced the blocking snowflakes, and also shot through the tiger's head!
A loud roar was heard, and the tiger fell to the ground. The three armies raised their arms and cheered, and the shouts shook the wilderness.
[Note 1: "Three Kingdoms·Wei Shujiu": "(Cao Zhen) often hunted, but was chased by tigers. He shot at the tiger and fell down in response. Taizu strengthened his courage and ordered him to ride tigers and leopards."]
―――
"Back then, your uncle shot down that fierce tiger in the snow, and immediately became the army commander of the Tiger Cavalry Camp, and became the deputy general of Cao Chun. He is truly a young hero!" Xia Houshang laughed heartily. He seemed to be the heroic young man back then.
"Since my father, uncle, and uncle Cao Xiu were all deputy generals of the Hubao Cavalry back then, why is the name Hubao no longer seen in the army now?" Xia Houxuan suddenly became very curious and asked casually.
"Then, that's what happens after Red Cliff..."
―――
In the thirteenth year of Jian'an, it was July in the summer. Prime Minister Cao Cao's army went south to conquer Jingzhou. In August, Liu Biao, the herdsman of Jingzhou, died of illness. His son Liu Cong led his troops to surrender, and Liu Bei led the remaining troops to flee south.
Cao Chun, the commander of the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, received the mission and must intercept and kill Liu Bei before he fled to Jiangxia.
In a suburb of Jingzhou, five hundred tigers and leopards who were ordered to intercept were taking a short rest.
Xia Houshang wiped the blood-stained iron sword with his incomplete battle robe. In the past, brothers fought side by side, but this time, Zidan and Wenlie were all ordered to fight Wuhuan from the north, and they actually felt an inexplicable panic.
"Brother, take advantage of this little time to drink some water. We will be setting off again in less than a moment." A fellow sergeant threw a water bag over.
Xia Houshang took the water bag and took a sip. He looked at the sergeant and saw that he had a handsome face. He looked like a Confucian scholar, not a member of the military. What's more, he was a man riding a tiger and a leopard. Xia Houshang He opened his mouth and asked, "Brothers look familiar, but are they from the same battalion?"
"I'm from the Leopard Cavalry Camp just like you. My name is Yu Gui..." Before the man finished speaking, he heard the sound of beating drums. Xia Houshang stood up, held his sword, and joined Yu Gui. Follow the team in pursuit south.
"It turns out that master was also a soldier of the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry. No wonder he is so powerful..." Xia Houxuan couldn't help but murmured.
"Although Brother Cao Chun led us in pursuit at full speed, Liu Bei was still able to escape at Changbanpo. The late king was furious and ordered the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry not to follow the army south, so we could only stay in Xiangyang and wait for the Lord's victory. .”
"As a result... wasn't the late king defeated in Chibi back then..." Xia Houxuan listened in rapt attention and then asked.
"Yes, after hearing that the army was attacked by fire in Chibi Wulin, Brother Cao Chun immediately led more than 4,000 troops south to rescue and rescue. When we arrived at Chibi, we didn't know that the late king had already withdrawn to Huarong... .”
―――
In the thirteenth year of Jian'an, Chibi.
When Cao Chun led his troops to the battlefield, they found fireworks everywhere and the battle had already ended.
"Report..." A cavalry galloped from the northwest: "General, we found that our lord has withdrawn his troops towards Huarong!"
"Huarong..." Cao Chun frowned slightly and immediately issued an order: "The entire army retreats slowly towards Huarong to stop the pursuing troops for our lord!"
"No!" The generals of each battalion obeyed the order generously.
"Back then, after we had retreated less than twenty miles, we encountered the pursuers of Soochow. At that time, there were more than 20,000 pursuers, and they were all the elite troops of Wu, Danyang Shangjia. .....”
Jian'an year, Jingzhou battlefield.
War drums thundered, and the sound of killing shook the sky.
Not long after the long-distance attack, the four thousand tigers and leopards who had not had time to rest were engaged in a bloody battle with the powerful 20,000 Danyang Shangjia.
For the first time, Xia Houshang felt that Hubao might be defeated. He actually panicked in his heart. Not long ago, a letter came from home saying that his wife was pregnant. He didn't know whether it was a boy or a girl... and Han'er, I wonder how she is doing lately...
With his attention distracted, he failed to block the flying arrow, and the sharp arrow penetrated his right arm. In his daze, he could only hear the screams of killing in his ears, and he finally fainted.
"Xiahou Shang!" Yu Gui, who was not far away, quickly raised his round shield and ran forward to protect Xia Houshang...
"I don't know when the battle has ended. Although more than ten thousand enemies were killed, the tigers and leopards also suffered heavy losses. They lost nearly two thousand people. After being rescued by Brother Yu, my right arm was severely injured. Even if it recovered, I could not Then I opened the curved crossbow in the Tiger and Leopard Army, so I had no choice but to leave the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry." Xia Houshang drank another bowl of wine and sighed with emotion: "The next year, you were also born. Apart from my joy, I I thought of hosting a banquet for the brothers in Tiger and Leopard, including Brother Cao Chun, but I didn’t expect that bad news came from Chang’an soon. Brother Cao Chun, who was only in his thirties, died suddenly of illness..."
Xia Houshang was in a daze. He seemed to remember the confident expression of the former commander before every charge; and at a celebration banquet that year, the half-drunk commander in the military tent patted his shoulder. The words 'Brother...'
"After the death of Brother Cao Chun, Hubao disbanded his organization and mixed into the Forbidden Army. Later... the late king passed away and Zihuan became the King of Wei. Zidan, Wenlie, and I each guarded one side. We rarely get together anymore…”
[Note 2: It is said in "Heroes" that after Cao Chun's death, an official asked Cao Cao who could continue to command the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry. Cao Cao replied: "How can we regain the pure ratio! I am not the commander-in-chief alone?" , meaning who can compare with Cao Chun, I should lead it myself. 】
Outside the courtyard, the color of the sky curtain changes from dark to light.
There is still snow dancing all over the sky.
