Three Kingdoms: Rebirth of Liu Bei, the Zhaolie

"Why did you call me that?"

Zhang Fei was quite surprised to be recognized, and stared directly at Liu Bei.

—The kid really is Zhang Fei.

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei smiled slightly:

"I guessed, and I didn't expect to be right."

Little Zhang Fei tilted his head:

I don't believe it.

Believe it or not.

Liu Bei smiled again, then, seeing the Wuhuan man, asked seriously, "Who is this person?"

"His name is Wutulu, and he is a retainer of our Zhang family."

Zhang Fei's answer was frank and open, showing no fear.

Liu Bei then asked:

"Was that big iron mace thrown by this guy named Wutulu?"

Wutu Lu remained unmoved.

Zhang Fei puffed out his small chest and said in a deep voice:

"I told him to throw it."

"He's bold and responsible; he's a real man."

Liu Bei praised him highly, "But your ambush of me from the dense forest is the act of a coward."

Zhang Fei snorted coldly and said:

"Didn't you also ambush my cousin in the dense forest east of the city?"

"Zhang Hun..."

Liu Bei immediately understood, "So you've come here to avenge your cousin."

"Yes."

Zhang Fei nodded in agreement.

Liu Bei shook his head somewhat helplessly:

"You don't know yet, do you? Just now in the Zhuoxian County government office, the county magistrate interrogated me and cleared me of the murder charge. I didn't kill your cousin Zhang Hun. — If you don't believe me, you can go back and ask your other cousin, Zhang Jun, who is in charge of the western patrol. Zhang Jun was also present during the court hearing."

Zhang Fei frowned:

"But everyone in the family says that someone saw Liu Bei from Lousang kill my cousin..."

"So, you brought this entire retinue to Lousangli to seek revenge against me?"

Liu Bei was also somewhat puzzled, "We've never met before, how did you recognize me at a glance?"

Zhang Fei gave a light snort and said:

"This is no problem for me. When I arrived near Lousangli, I spent a little money to ask around about your appearance and clothing. You have big ears and long arms, and you're wearing a dark robe that's almost faded from washing but you still can't bear to throw it away. I originally wanted to go to your house to look for you, but they all said you went to Shiwulipu. But Lousangli is your home, and you'll eventually come back. So, I waited for you to return in this dense forest, and I didn't expect to wait until now."

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei realized that although Zhang Fei was somewhat clever despite his roughness, he was still ultimately a child at heart, and he couldn't help but shake his head again.

After all, Zhang Fei was only eleven years old.

But that Wuhuan man looked to be in his twenties, how could he be so foolish and reckless? Could he be mentally challenged?

As for the old black robe Liu Bei was wearing, it was bought for him by his father when he was alive. It was the only piece of clothing he could show off, and he rarely wore it except when he was out and about.

Therefore, he traveled back and forth between the shops on the fifteen-mile route, selling straw sandals, and was easily recognized at a glance.

His large ears and long arms are very distinctive physical features.

No wonder Zhang Fei recognized him immediately when he saw him riding up on horseback.

"That was extremely dangerous just now. I was almost killed by your reckless subordinate with a hammer. If I had been killed by you, wouldn't I have died unjustly? You are still young, and such reckless behavior will ruin your entire Zhang family in Zhuo County."

Liu Bei had already experienced Zhang Fei's irritable and easily angered nature in his previous life.

Zhang Fei ultimately died because of his volatile and easily angered personality.

It's truly a pity.

"A person who can control his emotions is greater than a general who can conquer a city." This quote seems to be from Napoleon.

In this life, Liu Bei insisted on making Zhang Fei change his easily angered and irritable personality and teach him emotional management.

Zhang Fei believed Liu Bei's words and asked, "Since the magistrate of Zhuo County has cleared you of suspicion, then who killed my cousin?"

"I will assist Mao Wei, a guerrilla leader in the north, and Cheng Xiao, a guerrilla leader in the east, in investigating the real culprit tomorrow."

Liu Bei sighed. "Although I've cleared my name, my reputation has been damaged by this fugitive. Therefore, I must find him! Let everyone in Zhuo County know who the real murderer is!"

Zhang Fei believed that Liu Bei was not feigning sincerity, but rather acting genuinely, and said somewhat embarrassedly:

"...I misunderstood you. I almost killed you just now..."

"Ugh."

Liu Bei was helpless. "However, in a way, you could say we became friends after a fight."

Zhang Fei pondered for a moment, then said:

"Since you're going to help the patrolmen find the real culprit, I can join too. I hope I can be of help."

Liu Bei smiled:

"You must be eleven years old now. Aren't you attending a tribal school?"

Zhang Fei immediately said:

"I can take a day off."

"Aren't you afraid of your father's punishment?"

"I won't be punished by my father if I take a day or two off. Don't worry, I can keep up with my classes at school."

"Alright then."

Liu Bei nodded. "Come find me in Lousangli first thing tomorrow morning. Don't forget to bring this Wuhuan man named Wutulu. To be honest, he's incredibly strong. By the way, how did he just throw that eighty-pound iron mace?"

"That's how it is..."

Zhang Fei immediately picked up a tree branch from the ground, leaned back, and spun around in circles with the branch in his hand. After spinning around a few times, he suddenly threw it.

Liu Bei understood immediately upon reading it.

It is known that the Wuhuan people's throwing of large iron maces is similar to the modern sport of throwing discus, which uses body rotation to make the large iron maces fly faster and farther.

"What a strongman!"

Looking at Wutulu, a Wuhuan man, Liu Bei couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

Zhang Fei also said with a hint of envy:

"He could take on more than a dozen people by himself with his bare hands. I loved playing wrestling with him."

Liu Bei couldn't help but smile and said:

"It seems you two are also friends despite the age difference."

Zhang Fei's expression suddenly darkened. "It was my cousin who asked Wutulu to take good care of me. Wutulu had always been my cousin's personal bodyguard. My cousin loved to tease me when he was alive..."

No wonder Zhang Fei was so eager to avenge Zhang Hun; it turns out that the cousins ​​had a very deep bond.

Upon realizing this, Liu Bei suddenly thought of something and hurriedly asked Wutulu:

"Have you always been Young Master Zhang Hun's personal bodyguard?"

Wutulu nodded and said in a deep voice:

"Yes."

Liu Bei continued to press:

"Then why didn't you guards accompany Young Master Zhang yesterday, instead letting him come to the Wild Boar Forest in the east of the city alone? If you had been with him, he wouldn't have been assassinated."

Wutulu immediately said:

"That's because our lord forbids us from following."

Liu Bei frowned and pondered:

"Why didn't he let you follow? What did he say?"

Wutulu thought for a moment and said:

"I remember... our lord said he was going to see a friend and told us to stay in his residence at Fifteen Mile Shop and not wander around. Because he used to go to see friends alone or return to the Zhang clan in Peach Blossom Village alone. So we didn't think much of it. We just followed his instructions and stayed in the residence. Who knew he wouldn't return that night, and the next day we heard the news that he had been murdered in Wild Boar Forest."

Liu Bei listened, nodded silently, and then asked:

"Has Young Master Zhang offended anyone in the past... or rather, has he ever had a grudge against someone?"

"this……"

Wutulu hesitated, unsure of what to say.

Liu Bei, observing his expression, immediately noticed his embarrassment.

Zhang Hun was the nighttime leader of the Fifteen Mile Inn, and his collection of tolls and customary fees naturally offended many people.

Under normal circumstances, most people would choose to spend money to avoid disaster.

However, some people were still furious and harbored resentment, and might hire a skilled swordsman to assassinate Zhang Hun to vent their anger.

Wutulu hesitated for a moment before pondering and saying:

"Speaking of which, our lord has recently been at odds with a group of retainers at Qingxi Manor near Fifteen Mile Shop."

Upon hearing this, Liu Bei was overjoyed and hurriedly asked:

"How can we not deal with it?"

Wutulu frowned and said:

"No one who comes and goes in Fifteen Mile Inn dares to slight our lord. But the retainers of Qingxi Manor don't take our lord seriously at all. Once, in an inn in Fifteen Mile Inn, we got into a fight with the retainers of Qingxi Manor over a trivial matter—a piece of roasted meat. Among those retainers was a swordsman whose martial arts were extremely high; none of us were his match. We were defeated by him. Our lord could only swallow his anger at the time..."

After hearing Wutulu's words, Liu Bei already understood the situation.

……

Fei stood atop the broken bridge over the water, glaring and brandishing his spear, shouting, "I am Zhang Yide! Come and fight to the death!" None of the enemies dared to approach.

—From the Biography of Zhang Fei in the Book of Shu, Records of the Three Kingdoms