Jinting Han people

Chapter 58: The Hu Man Howling at the Door (4k)

This was the second time Liu Xian had ever heard someone howl.

The first person to do so was, of course, Little Ruan Gong. He indulged himself in the bamboo forests and mountains and rivers, and whenever he felt inspired, he would let out a long howl. His howl echoed above the green hills and beneath the white clouds, causing monkeys to shout along and hundreds of birds to chirp. The leaves in the forest rustled and the mountain mists rose slowly. There was a solemn and majestic aura that swept across the sky.

But the long whistle Liu Xian heard this time was completely different from that of Xiao Ruan Gong.

When Mr. Ruan howled, it was mostly in a deep and thorny place where I had rarely been. Although the howl was far away, few could hear it, and the source of the howl was the sorrow rooted in his heart.

Yet, this long howl occurred in the bustling city. People were coming and going, and even the most prominent officials in the court were traveling. Such a lively atmosphere could not suppress this long howl.

The whistling sound first broke through the air sharply, rising like a summer bamboo, and like a sharp knife cutting through thin paper, attracting the attention of everyone around.

But the howler didn't care at all. He just continued to howl. When the sound reached a very high pitch, his howl began to swirl and float, as if a roc spread its wings and flew freely, sometimes rising, sometimes sinking, as if he didn't care about the world. In the blink of an eye, he had flown to a place 90,000 miles away, leaving only the white clouds, and no trace of him could be seen.

What an impudent howl!

This was Liu Xian’s first thought.

After he calmed down a little, he realized that the originally noisy Jianchun Gate was now silent. The crowded crowd was stopped by the whistle, including the famous scholar Wang Yan on the ox cart, who couldn't help but stand up and look around to find the owner of the whistle.

In their opinion, anyone who dared to roar so loudly must be a remarkable person.

The whistler was standing right beside Liu Xian, or more precisely, about six feet to his northwest. Upon seeing the whistler's face, everyone was stunned, then burst into laughter and dispersed, believing they had witnessed only a brief farce.

Because this is a Hu person, and a Hu boy who looks very embarrassed.

The young man had a high nose and deep eyes, fluffy, slightly yellowish hair, and very fair skin—a typical example of a Western Jiehu. His clothing was tattered, his ordinary linen shirt covered in dirt and grime, and riddled with holes. If it weren't for the sword at his waist and the horse he held, he would have been no different from a beggar. No wonder everyone kept their distance.

But facing the sarcastic looks from the crowd, the young man seemed unmoved. Instead, he smiled, as if he was savoring the whistle he had just made.

This bright and sunny smile reminded Liu Xian of his childhood memories, and he couldn't help but be slightly distracted.

After the crowd had resumed its flow, Liu Xian remained where he was. He carefully examined the young Hu man, then approached him and asked with a smile, "Hey, Xiao Hu, were you born in the Year of the Rooster?"

The greeting was impolite, sounding like a mockery of his earlier whistle. Therefore, the peculiarly behaved young man stopped smiling. He stared at Liu Xian and said seriously, "If I was born in the Year of the Rooster, then you must be born in the Year of the Snake, right?"

Xi'an and Zhang Gu were a little confused, while Liu Xian burst out laughing.

This young man had such quick reflexes, actually mocking his harsh words like this! He looked younger than himself, yet his stature was barely smaller. More importantly, he showed no fear and possessed a wonderful aura. He felt even more strongly that this man was extraordinary.

"I was presumptuous just now. I am a person born in the Year of the Dragon. But the roar you just made is indeed not something that an ordinary person can make."

"Indeed," the young man nodded proudly, "then you should have guessed that I was born in the Year of the Tiger. Roosters aren't the only ones who crow loudly."

"So you mean you're two years older than me?"

"You're kidding!" The young man's eyes widened, and he patted his mount and said, "Don't you see the BMW behind me? Anyone who can use such a fine horse must have been born in the Year of the Horse!"

It turned out that he was a year younger than him. Liu Xian laughed to himself. But when he looked at the young man's mount, he couldn't help but be surprised:
This is indeed a fine horse! Although it hasn't been groomed for a few days and its mane is dirty, as soon as you take a closer look, you can tell that this is undoubtedly a fine horse.

The horse's coat was a motley mix of brown, red, and yellow, occasionally interspersed with white. It didn't look particularly impressive. But its legs, like a pipa, possessed a powerful presence. Its shoulder blades were broadly spread, and its calves were like taut hemp ropes, devoid of a trace of excess fat. Its stance was characterized by the light, agile demeanor commonly known as "chicken feet."

To be honest, among all the horses Liu Xian had ever seen, perhaps only Shi Chong's Black Dragon Colt could compare with it.

"Good horse! What a good horse! Xiao Hu, does this horse have a name?" Liu Xian expressed his sincere praise.

The young man angrily said, "What a idiot! My name is Afule! How can you ask the horse's name before asking the owner's name? You are so rude!"

"Sorry, sorry." Liu Xian smiled and apologized, "I'm Liu Xian. I'm honored to meet you today. I wonder if this fine horse has a good reputation?"

The young man then smiled and said, "Okay, since you're so sincere, I'll tell you. This horse's name is Fanyu. He's only three years old, and I raised him myself!" He paused for a moment, tilting his head and saying to Liu Xian, "Liu Xian, I have to tell you in advance, don't have any bad ideas, I'm not selling this horse!"

Liu Xian looked at the horse, then looked at him: "I didn't say I wanted to buy it!"

A Fule said, "Don't try to deceive me. Your eyes have already told me that you definitely want to buy it!"

"no?"

"You just want to buy it!" Afule jumped up and said, "You want to buy my brother? I tell you, you have to pay more!"

"..."

"One price! One hundred gold! Otherwise I'll turn around and leave!"

"..."

Xi An, who was standing by, couldn't stand it any longer and tried to persuade him, "Hey, hey, hey, little brother, why are you still trying to blackmail me? Does my young master really look like a fat sheep?"

"Then why did you come to see me?" Afule asked, "Your clothes aren't cheap, you can't be here to have fun with me!"

Liu Xian smiled and said, "You're young and handsome, isn't that okay?"

"You have good taste." Afule nodded, patted Liu Xian's shoulder and said, "Then I'll sell it to you at a lower price, eighty gold."

"Do I look like I have eighty gold on me?"

"This is already a friendly price! No more negotiation!" Afule lamented, feeling desperate. "Oh my God, a hero's end, I'm forced to this point. I think back to when Han Xin was humiliated by being kicked in the crotch, it must have been in this situation."

Although the Jiehu youth's every move was bright and full of emotion, Liu Xian couldn't help but find his words a bit too humorous: "You, a Hu person, are comparing yourself to Han Xin?" "Of course!" Afule said with wide eyes. "To be honest, if I hadn't been robbed and hadn't eaten in three days, and if you hadn't spoken so kindly, I wouldn't sell this horse for three hundred gold! Who would be so fussy with you?"

"Just be straightforward. Are you going to buy it or not? If not, I'll find someone else! The horse market is right next to us. Such a good horse, why would I be afraid that no one would buy it?"

"I really don't have the money to buy a horse." Upon hearing this, Afule really took the horse and was about to leave, but Liu Xian's next sentence was: "But I can still afford the money for the dinner."

A Fule came back immediately, his face bright and sunny, saying, "I've known about a good shop for a long time, and I've been coveting it for a long time!"

After saying this, he walked ahead to clear the way. After taking two steps, he turned around and shouted, "What are you waiting for? Didn't you say you'd treat me?"

What a rude Hu boy! But also quite amusing. Liu Xian smiled at his two companions and followed them.

Across from the horse market was a street full of restaurants and bars, and there was indeed a lot of delicious food. The restaurant Afule chose was called "Han Xiu Lu," meaning that customers would get drunk before they could stop.

As soon as Afule sat down, he was unceremonious, rattling off a dozen dishes to the waiter. They included mutton soup noodles, fried pork skin, honey bean porridge, meatball soup, yellow mustard fish sashimi, steamed lamb, roasted beef liver, scallion-covered pork, wild mushroom and chicken stew, and peppercorn dog meat soup. Liu Xian was practically numb from listening, but Afule, still not satisfied, ordered two more pots of corn wine and a bowl of candied dates.

After the announcement, even the waiter thought it was a joke and looked at Afule and said, "There's not enough space on this table. Can the guests finish it?"

A Fule waved his hand, pointed at Liu Xian and said, "A distinguished guest is treating us, so why are you wasting your time? Can't I just pack up the leftovers?"

Well, it turns out that the next few meals are included.

Seeing the waiter's eyes looking at him, Liu Xian took out a string of 100-5-zhu notes from his sleeve and said, "You can do it as you please. If it's not enough, I'll pay more."

"Generous!" A Fule gave a thumbs-up and praised. "I, A Fule, have been unlucky for so many days on this trip to Beijing. Today, my luck has finally turned and I met a kind man!"

"Oh?" Liu Xian was indeed somewhat curious about where this young Jiehu, who dared to howl to the heavens in the bustling streets of Luoyang City, came from and what his background was. "Then tell me, where are you from and what misfortune has befallen you?"

The waiter could see that Afule was really hungry, so he immediately brought over the fried pork skin and Hu pancakes. Afule immediately started to devour them, and then he began to murmur his own experience:

"That's a long story..."

It turned out that he was from Shangdang, Bingzhou, and his ancestors were descendants of the Qiangqu tribe, a branch of the Xiongnu. They originally lived a nomadic life in the northern desert.

About two hundred years ago, his ancestors followed the Southern Xiongnu Chanyu and migrated south, eventually settling in the Meiji area of Xihe Commandery. By the time of his great-grandfather, Cao Cao had conquered Bingzhou and divided the Xiongnu into five tribes. His family was relocated again, settling in Shangdang, where they have lived for over sixty years.

Afule's father was a small Xiongnu general, commanding a few hundred men. He could barely be considered a noble, but life had been tough in recent years. After two hundred years in Han territory, these Hu people had long since assimilated into Han culture, speaking Chinese and wearing Han clothing. On a daily basis, the men farmed and the women wove, just like ordinary Han people. But in recent years, Bingzhou had been plagued by repeated natural disasters, from droughts to summer hailstorms, resulting in no good harvests. At one point, the tribe was forced to sell off children to survive.

This wasn't going to work, so his father gathered several small tribes nearby and came up with an idea: to resume their traditional business of horse herding. While the profits wouldn't be high, at least they wouldn't lose money. If they could form a caravan and go to a major city like Luoyang or Yecheng, selling their produce at a high price and buying back millet and wheat from the Central Plains at a low price, at least their food and clothing problems would be solved.

The year before last and last year, they tried to do business in Yecheng, and just as they had planned, they made a lot of money.

The clan members, young and old, were extremely happy and said that although Yecheng was prosperous, it was not as prosperous as Luoyang. If they could sell horses in Luoyang, they might be able to save more money and buy a few more acres of land! So they planned to bring about 300 horses this year and come to the capital specifically to take a look.

Afule was about to turn fourteen, and having heard that he could see the dazzling world of Luoyang, he begged his father to let him come with the caravan. He was naturally intelligent and alert, and his father loved him deeply. With just a few kind words, he naturally agreed.

At this point, Afule, who was not easily sad, could not help but sigh and said:
"We really shouldn't have come here. We had just crossed the river bridge and walked into the mountain road of Mangshan. We thought that since it was the best place in the capital, the public security must be good, so we let our guard down. To our surprise, we were robbed by bandits on the mountain road!"

"Were they robbed in Mangshan?" Liu Xian was shocked. Mangshan was only thirty or forty miles away from Luoyang City. Even if he rode at full speed, it wouldn't take him half an hour to get there. How could there be bandits here? Liu Xian had never heard of such rumors.

"That's right!" Afule burped as he took a sip of rice wine. "It was almost evening, the sun was about to set, and the sky was dim. We were a group of thirty, anxious to get on with our journey and find food and lodging, so we just kept moving forward. Suddenly, twenty or so people came running out of the forest ahead, crossbows in hand, and started shooting at us. My third uncle was shot right through the face, and his teeth flew all over me!"

"Although we barbarians often fight, we have never seen so much blood. We were all terrified and didn't dare to move. Then, a dozen more people came up behind us, also holding crossbows, and spoke in a tone that was as sharp as chewing needles, asking us to surrender."

Listening to Afule's vivid description, Liu Xian couldn't help but ask, "You surrendered?"

A Fule glared and cursed, "Only a fool would surrender! He killed my Third Uncle without blinking an eye, so why would he spare our lives? He's simply afraid that another volley of arrows might accidentally kill the horse!"

After taking a breath, he continued his narration:
"I thought Fanyu was the most valuable steed among the group. As long as I was riding him, they wouldn't dare shoot arrows. Even if they did, they wouldn't necessarily hit me. So I didn't wait for them to react. I rode Fanyu forward alone."

"Haha, I really gave them a scare! They didn't even have time to react before I passed through! In the end, they could only curse and chase after me, but how could they outrun my brothers? Besides, I've been riding horses since I was five years old, so I've become one with horses. I just circulated around them a few times and got away!"

He seemed somewhat smug at this, but then his expression turned sad again. He took a piece of sashimi and ate it while sighing, "But in the end, I was the only one who escaped. Yesterday, I went back to look for my uncles and companions, but there was nothing but some bloodstains, not even a body."

Afu'er's words were actually quite absurd. The idea that bandits were setting up ambushes and killing people in the capital was simply a statement that the emperor was incompetent in governing the country. But the three of them, after seeing Afu'er's expression and listening to his emotionally charged description, unanimously chose to believe it.

Liu Xian felt very sympathetic towards him and asked, "Then what are you still doing here? Are you planning to sell this horse and return home? But even if you sell it, what will you do if you encounter bandits again? I'd like to give you some money so you can return home early!"

In his opinion, a boy of thirteen or fourteen only has this one choice.

Unexpectedly, Afule shook his head and said, "No."

He spoke with a grave expression, "There are a total of 467 members of our tribe. Now, in one day, 34 of them have died in a foreign land, without explanation, and even their remains are nowhere to be found. How can I return alone with a clear conscience? How should I face my father and the rest of my tribe? Should I tell them that I was a coward and ran away alone?"

There's nothing shameful about this, Liu Xian thought.

But Afule obviously had a different idea. He looked up at the sky and suddenly burst into tears. Liu Xian was shocked again. Just now, he had seen this young man so carefree and thought he would never cry. But now, he shed tears, not because he was weak, but because he looked very determined. He said to Liu Xian firmly:

"I want to retrieve the remains of my people and avenge them!"

"No matter who's behind this, I'll fight tooth for tooth, blood for blood! This is my responsibility and burden!"

The young Hu's words were powerful and moved Liu Xian quietly. Prince Anle couldn't help but ask himself:

Do I have the same responsibilities and burdens?

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(End of this chapter)