Eastern Han Dynasty, not the Three Kingdoms

Ma Chao unhooked his prey and, on the way, snatched up two yellow sheep and a few rabbits. He then handed them over to the villagers to prepare and eat. The villagers, unfazed, skinned and fleshed the animals, setting a pot to boil a large broth. The women returned home with food and vegetables, and they began cooking right outside the village chief's house. Ma Chao chatted with the village chief, discussing the local customs and people. The children, however, were intrigued by Ma Chao's fine horse and gathered around to admire it. Perhaps a little bored, the horse tossed its head and snorted, startling the children into running over, much to everyone's laughter. Soon, the meat was cooked, and the village chief brought out the muddy wine, which he usually seldom drank, and shared it with everyone. The crowd cheered, and the atmosphere became even more lively, more lively than during Chinese New Year.

At night, the spring chill was still, the darkness thick, and not a single moonlight shone through. As the people dispersed from their joyous gatherings, Ma Chao was sent to rest in the wing room by the village chief. Ma Chao closed his eyes and pretended to sleep, but was not fast asleep when he heard a noise in the yard and a commotion in the cowshed. The farmer had no stable, so Ma Chao's horse was tied up in the cowshed. Ma Chao donned his cloak and carried his sword. With the gift of a top-tier warrior, his eyesight was much better than that of an ordinary person. Without lighting a lamp, he quietly opened the door and headed for the cowshed.

Two figures were looming in the cowshed, untying the horses. One was leading the reins, the other was driving them from behind. The horses were so majestic that they refused to be led away by strangers, so they stopped. The man behind them got impatient and whipped the horses, causing them to neigh in pain. The sudden neighing was abrupt in the quiet night. Farmers began to light oil lamps one after another, and young men, clothed in clothes and armed with sticks, came out to investigate. Ma Chao rushed over and saw two men stealing horses. He shouted loudly and charged forward with his sword. The two men, seeing someone coming, became emboldened and drew the sharp ox-ear knives tucked from their waists, charging forward with the intent to kill them. As soon as they engaged, Ma Chao realized they had no martial arts skills at all, just the skills of a farmer, but he didn't kill them. He knocked the dagger out of one of their hands with his sword and kicked him down. The other, seeing he was no match for him, turned and ran away in fear. Ma Chao's scabbard flew out and hit him in the calf, knocking him to the ground.

At this time, the villagers heard the sound of fighting and rushed over. Seeing that the two men were subdued, they went forward and tied them up. They used torches to check closer and found that the two men were local ruffians, and one of them was from the village.

The old village chief Yang was extremely angry and started to curse: "Yang Xiaoer, you are a piece of shit. You are lazy and idle on weekdays, but that's all. You ate a lot of meat and drank a lot today, and I didn't bother to pay attention to you. Who knew you would be so bold as to steal the horses of our distinguished guests? Folks, tie him up to a tree and beat him to death." The villagers on both sides shouted and pushed him to be tied to the tree. An old woman rushed out from the crowd, knelt in front of Yang De, crying and shouting, and pulled Yang De's trouser legs to beg for mercy: "His uncle, don't dare to beat him!" "Ah, how am I going to survive if they kill me? His father died young, and the eldest brother died in battle two years ago. We're family, and according to seniority, the second son is going to ask you to call him uncle. No matter what, you have to spare him this time..." Village chief Yang De looked at Ma Chao with embarrassment, but Ma Chao was lost in thought. Seeing this, the old woman threw herself before Ma Chao, kowtowing repeatedly to plead for mercy. Ma Chao helped the old woman up and said to the village chief, "Don't fight them yet. Ask them what they are planning after stealing the horses."

Seeing this, Yang Xiaoer was so frightened that he peed his pants and trembled as he told the truth. Ma Chao had arrived today, young and dressed in a brocade robe, riding a fine horse. Yang Xiaoer was envious of him. He had also enjoyed meat and wine that night, which made him even more jealous. After drinking, he went to the next village to hang out with the ruffians. The lively scene of cooking meat and drinking wine in the village that night had already been known to the neighboring village. The ruffian Liu San was itching to see it. Yang Xiaoer was trying to show off, and Liu San's eyes lit up when he heard about it. The two of them came up with this idea and put it into action.

Ma Chao felt that Liu San was evasive and must have other ideas that he hadn't expressed, so he deliberately said: "In that case, for Uncle Yang's sake, I will let Yang Xiaoer go, but my horse is worth a hundred gold coins, how can I let it go? I will hold Liu San down and send him to the authorities tomorrow." Liu San had seen that Ma Chao was very nice to the old woman, and thought that since he was a foreigner, the locals were all fellow villagers, so he might not be prepared to investigate further, so he was petty and just said that he had stolen the horse tonight. When he heard that he would be sent to the authorities, he was immediately frightened and begged for mercy: "Sir, sir, just beat me up to vent your anger, but don't send me to the authorities!" Ma Chao said: "Since that's the case, just tell the truth. This horse of mine is obviously a military horse, how can a country ruffian like you handle it? Even if it was stolen, where can you sell it? Tell me what you rely on?" Liu San nodded and didn't dare to say anything. Ma Chao pretended to be angry and said: "Since you don't say anything, then beat me. I will take the responsibility if you kill me." The villagers around were already gnashing their teeth at this kind of country rogue, and they were even more angry when he stole into the village. Hearing this, they swung their sticks and started beating him. The sticks hit the flesh, making a crackling sound. After only four or five hits, Liu San couldn't hold on any longer and told everything.

Liu San was a scoundrel who ran rampant in the village, despised and ignored by the villagers. He had also been beaten by villagers for stealing, leaving him filled with resentment and a deep hatred for his own people. He heard that remnants of the Yellow Turban bandits had fled to the area, burning, killing, looting, feasting, drinking, raping, and robbing, and was filled with envy. He even went out of his way to find them and request their allegiance. Unwilling to be a mere minion, he devised a treacherous scheme to lure the bandits into his village. After the plot succeeded, the villagers reported it to the authorities, but Liu San tipped them off, allowing them to evade the crackdown. For his outstanding performance, Liu San was personally summoned by Huang Bing, who promised him a small-time leader position, free to recruit minions and move on to his next target. For the past two days, Liu San had been actively trying to win over Yang Xiaoer, preparing to lead the bandits in a raid on Yangjia Village. However, despite Yang Xiaoer's rascally ways, he envied the heroic lifestyle, but he had done nothing wrong and was extremely filial to his mother. He was afraid that Yang Xiaoer would refuse to act as an accomplice in the raid, so he hesitated to reveal his intentions. It just so happened that Yang Xiaoer had been boasting about Ma Chao's fine horse today, and Liu San had been instigating him, thinking that after stealing the horse, Yang Xiaoer would have committed a crime and there was no turning back, so he could just join the gang. If he presented a fine horse here and robbed another village, he would surely be appreciated by Huang Bing, and perhaps even given a big boss position.

The villagers gnashed their teeth upon hearing this, wishing they could beat Liu San to death. Yang Xiaoer gritted his teeth, his eyes bulging with blood, and struggled to fight Liu San. The villagers were also worried about being targeted by the bandits, and the scene was in turmoil.

Ma Chao waved his hand to stop the chaos and shouted, "Fellow villagers, calm down. Now is not the time to be afraid of them. Since our village has been targeted by bandits, we are in danger of being robbed at any time. Even if they don't come to rob our village, other villages will suffer. The only way now is to wipe out these bandits and live in peace!"