2.


"Mushu, awaken!"
A small stone dragon perched high in the interior of the Fa family temple became animated, and amid a bright flash, again assumed its vibrant red color.
Mushu stretched his arms. "I live . . . again!" he exclaimed.
The little red dragon stood up groggily, took two steps, fell off his pedestal and took a swan dive to the stone floor.
"Ugh. That was not fun."
"Mushu!" the Spirit of the First Ancestor called again.
With his head riveted on the floor, Mushu looked up, and called to him. "Oh, hello, Great upside-down Ancestor!"
The First Ancestor grabbed his staff and rapped Mushu on the butt. "Mushu, the Ancestors need you to go on a very important mission. We need you to look after Mulan."
The dragon stood upright and brushed himself off. "Mulan, again? Man, that girl never stays out of trouble. What happened this time?"
"She has joined the army again, and we want you to watch after her. We don't want to take any chances that any danger or dishonor will befall her."
"Mulan, off to the army again? She is getting way too much sun. Well, you can count on me. I'm a Guardian again. The Great Protector. The Fabulous Mushu--"
"Great?" the Ancestor sneered. "Consider yourself lucky I allowed you to be a Guardian again. The hallmark of a Guardian is to act in the interest of the Fa family. Not for oneself."
"Yeah, so?"
"I know very well why you went to help Mulan last time--in place of the Great Stone Dragon that you destroyed."
Mushu stammered.
"By your own admission," the Ancestor continued, "you risked Mulan's life in order to help yourself. You always do things just for yourself. You have never done a selfless deed in your life!"
"I've done selfless things!" Mushu protested.
"Name one."
"Well, there was the time . . . no, that wasn't me. Uh, let me think for a minute."
The Great Ancestor sighed and drummed his fingers. "No one believes in self-sacrifice anymore," the Ancestor complained. "There was a time when people would offer great sacrifices to the Ancestors. Where is your sacrifice, Mushu?"
"Don't worry. I'll find one."
The First Ancestor rolled his eyes skyward. "If you don't stop your self-exultation and show you care about others, I'll have you clanging the gong again before you know it. You must prove yourself worthy to be a Family Guardian!"
"Look, I'd show I care about others, if only other people didn't always get in the way . . ."
"You can start with Mulan."
"You can count on me," Mushu said. "I'll always be there for Mulan . . ."
"Good. Now go."
"I'm Mr. Dependable. The reliable--"
"GO!" the Great Ancestor thundered.
Mushu took off like a shot.

Mulan and Shang continued their gallop toward Camp Wu Zhong. Mulan eyed Shang as his bright red cape billowed behind him. Amid the fuss over the Emperor's message to Mulan, Shang had forgotten to tell her some important news.
"I'm General Li Shang now. The Emperor has appointed me to take my father's place as commander of the armies of China."
The death of Shang's father at the hands of Shan-Yu had left the Emperor without a general, and the Emperor was grateful for Shang's part in helping save his life. So, the Emperor promoted Shang to fill the vacancy.
Mulan was excited for Shang, and smiled over to him. He was staring straight ahead, however, and Mulan thought he had an unsure look about him. Mulan rode silently for a while, wondering. It was the first time she had seen Shang doubt himself.
The female soldier also wondered why Shang, now the commander of the nation's army, would ride alone to deliver her the Emperor's message. She quietly speculated.
Maybe Shang really likes me, Mulan thought. If only he would open up to me. If only he would spend time with me and tell me what's on his mind.
Mulan reminisced.
You fight good. She remembered her disappointment when that was his only comment to her, that after the second time she had saved his life.
Shang interrupted her thoughts. "The Emperor has sent Chi Fu to supervise me again," he said.
Mulan saw that Shang was a little less than thrilled about it.
There was no love lost between Shang and Chi Fu. Chi Fu, who felt he had far more experience to lead the Imperial Army, was incensed upon hearing the news of Shang's promotion, and he made no secret about his feelings. Shang resented Chi Fu's arrogance and his shabby treatment toward Mulan. The new General and the Emperor's Counsel frequently engaged in loud shouting matches, even in front of the Emperor.
"Finally, the Emperor had enough, and told us that if we ever argued again, he would have us both beheaded. I think he was just joking, but I don't want to take any chances. So, I just travel with Chi Fu without speaking."

Mulan and Shang made the twelve miles from her house to Wu Zhong in good time, and they arrived just as twilight was falling over the training ground. They crossed the small wooden bridge that led into camp.
Mulan was suddenly struck in the head by a turnip.
"Hello, Ping!"
She heard a chorus of three men off to her side. Mulan turned and recognized their faces. The Gang of Three--Yao, Ling, and Chien-Po--was a welcome sight.
She laughed. They knew very well what her real name was.
The woman warrior dismounted and ran over to the three men for a big group hug.
"We thought we'd never see you again," Yao said, in his distinct gravelly voice.
Mulan hugged the Gang of Three again, and they jumped up and down excitedly.
"How are you doing, Ping?" Ling asked.
"Looks like your threads are fixed up really good," Yao said.
Mulan's leather armor and robe had been damaged by a swipe of Shan-Yu's blade during her first encounter with the Hun, but had since been cleaned and repaired.
"Well, you know how I have the urge to fix things now," Mulan quipped.
The Gang, along with Mulan and Shang, walked into camp, and ate supper around the campfire. They all relaxed and chatted around the fire.
All of a sudden, Mulan heard a crackling sound from overhead. Then they all heard an animal scream as it tumbled from the trees. A red blur flashed before them for an instant, followed by a shower of leaves and tree branches.
"Mushu!" Mulan exclaimed.
They all stared at the small red dragon, flattened on the ground.
"Ow . . . oh, I know I twisted something again," Mushu said.
"What in the world is that?" Yao asked.
Ling looked at Mushu in the darkness. "It's a snake! The snake that bit me while we were swimming in the lake!"
Chien-Po looked closer. "It's not a snake, it has legs," he said. "It's a lizard."
Mushu frowned. "Mulan, will you kindly tell your friends I am not a lizard!"
They all raised their eyebrows, startled, when they realized the animal was talking to her. Mulan nodded and grinned at the sight of her Protector.
"What are you doing here, Mushu?" Mulan asked.
"Just coming along to keep you company, girl. Making sure there ain't nobody bothering you," he said, while he took out some things he had packed and stuffed them inside Mulan's supply pouch. Mulan noticed one of the items was a small rocket.
"What is that?" she asked.
"This? Just a souvenir from the Imperial palace."
"Oh? You saved a little rocket?"
"Hey, don't knock it. I like my rocket," Mushu said, amused at his gift of rhyme. "It's a souvenir. It fell out of the tower when I blew up Shan-Yu, but it never ignited. So, I'm saving it for the New Year's festival."
Mulan sighed. "Just don't light it off while it's still in the pouch, okay?"
"Don't worry. Your cow won't be harmed," Mushu said, nodding toward Khan. Khan whinnied at him in disgust.
Cri-Kee jumped over excitedly to greet his old buddy.
"Cri-Kee, what's happening?" Mushu asked, grinning.
Cri-Kee chirped again.
"We're both glad to see you again, Mushu," Mulan said.
Mushu grinned at Mulan. "Now, I've been sent to protect you, so I don't want you going off and getting yourself killed, or nothing like that."
"Mulan, you know this creature?" Shang asked.
The secret was out now, so Mulan figured it was time to explain it to him.
"This," she said, "is Mushu."
"Mushu?" Shang asked, sensing something familiar. "Where have I heard that name before?"
"Well, ah . . . does the name Ah-choo ring a bell?"
Shang was bewildered. "Ah-choo? I don't remember anyone named--" He looked at Mulan, dressed as a man again, and he remembered. "Wait a second. 'His name is Ling . . . Ah-choo . . . Mushu . . . It's Ping!'" he exclaimed.
Mulan smiled. "Mushu is a dragon--sent by my Ancestors to help and protect me as my Guardian. Remember when I fired the cannon that started the avalanche? It was Mushu who lit the cannon, because I lost my flint. It was Mushu who fired the rocket at Shan-Yu at the Imperial Palace."
Mushu blushed. "Aww, shucks, it was nothin'."
The others looked at each other. What Mulan was telling them explained a lot of things.
"And above all," Mulan continued, "Mushu is my friend. He was around to comfort me when I was alone."
Shang looked at Mulan suspiciously. "So . . . let's get this straight. You join the army as a man, but it turns out you aren't a man. Now we find out you have a secret dragon Guardian. Are there any more secrets we don't know? Are you really the Queen of Sheba or something?"
Mulan laughed. "No, there aren't any more secrets. I promise."
"Is that a real fire-breathing dragon?" Yao asked.
Mushu, standing directly behind Yao, sent Yao soaring ten feet in the air with a singed bottom.
"We'll take that as a 'yes,'" Chien-Po said, calmly.
They then noticed Chi Fu in the distance. With his eyes narrowing, the scrawny official inspected the camp, jotting notes with his brush and tablet. They all sighed. Life at Wu Zhong was not going to be easy with Chi Fu watching their every move. And they weren't in the mood to have to explain Mushu. Shang volunteered to keep Chi Fu preoccupied. He figured that at least the rest of them could eat in peace, so Shang retired to his tent to discuss strategy with the emperor's counsel.

At dawn, the recruits and the Gang of Three lined up to receive orders, when Shang approached them. Mulan, still tying her hair ribbon, breathlessly joined the rest. Yao and Ling snickered. Punctuality was never one of Mulan's strongest traits.
Shang drilled the recruits with exercises that Mulan and the Gang of Three were already familiar with. The four of them trained alongside the recruits. However, as the day progressed, it became clear that Shang was giving the four veterans particularly close scrutiny. At the end of the day, Shang pulled Mulan, Yao, Ling, and Chien-Po aside.
"Stay here. I have advanced training for just the four of you," Shang said, before ducking into his tent.
Mulan and the Gang of Three cringed. Advanced training? They envisioned having to stay up all night running or something. They knew Shang. Whatever it was, it wasn't going to be easy.
Shang returned from his tent, looked at them intently, and handed each of them a scroll. "I want you to read this, and memorize every word of it by the end of the week," he said, then walked back to his tent.
Mulan couldn't believe it. That was all? Reading was the advanced training? She opened her scroll. "Sun-Tsu. The Art of War," she read to herself.
Mulan clutched the scroll tightly in her hand, and smiled broadly. She knew this meant that Shang was going to train the four of them to be officers.
She looked over and saw that her three friends had very long faces. "I thought you'd be happy you wouldn't have more drills," Mulan said.
"We are," Yao said.
"Then, what's the matter?"
"We don't know how to read."