Chapter 4; Fight against Lu Bu
Zhao Yun and the others watched from the castle as Zhang Liang started setting their camp almost in the exact area Zhao Mi had predicted. Zhao Yun had to admit that his sister had gotten a lot more beautiful and smarter. They waited until night came.
Sun Ce looked happier when Zhao Yun said, "We'll start our surprise attack and get rid of them as quickly as possible. We've got to leave Ping Won with all the supplies by tomorrow. Since we've got all the food supplies and the gold's ready, all we have to do is destroy Zhang Jiao's army and then we're going southeast to the land of Wu!"
The men started shouting war cries and at night, about a thousand archers with fire arrows hid near the enemy's camp, ready to fire their arrows. When it was exactly 1 in the morning, they shot the fire arrows everywhere. As they had suspected, the whole camp was put on fire. Zhang Jiao's giant army was already shredding down little by little. Then they saw most of the soldiers escaping towards the place they had come from; the place with the most bombs. When lots of soldiers started to get on the bombs, Zhao Mi yelled, "Fire!"
Another row of fire arrows landed on the bombs, causing them to explode, which caused other bombs to collide and created a bigger explosion. The Yellow Turbans soldier's bodies started flying everywhere. It was really something to see. Zhao Yun was waiting in the castle gates for Zhang Jiao to appear. Then he saw a man wearing a dark cloak with a big staff coming towards the castle and when the bombs there exploded, he fell back and ran around crazily.
Zhao Yun ran to that area once all the bombs had been set off. The whole army just ran the Turbans over and Zhao Yun was left alone with Zhang Jiao.
"You stupid fool! You don't know who you're messing with!"
"Zhang Jiao, I think I know very well who I am messing with. You've only made Han a difficult place to live when it was hard enough as it was. You don't deserve to live."
Zhang Jiao looked superior even though 100,000 soldiers were all around him. Then using his staff, Zhang Jiao became lighter and lighter until he disappeared. When Zhao Yun was looking around for Zhang Jiao, he appeared behind Zhao Yun and gave Zhao Yun a baseball swing with his staff on the head.
Zhao Yun fell over and got his spear ready. Then as Zhang Jiao disappeared again, Zhao Yun got hit three more times. Zhao Yun was bleeding pretty badly now on the head. Zhang Jiao started laughing and cackling like crazy and tried his trick again. Then Zhao Yun closed his eyes and waited for Zhang Jiao to appear. When Zhang Jiao had come behind Zhao Yun again, Zhao Yun felt him and stabbed Zhang Jiao right through the heart. Zhang Jiao stopped dead in the position of getting ready to hit Zhou Yun with a baseball swing.
Zhang Jiao fell, but Zhao Yun twisted his spear when it was stuck on Zhang Jiao's heart. After killing Zhang Jiao gruesomely, Zhao Yun stood there for a while and shouted, "The Yellow Turbans have been completely destroyed!"
The soldiers gave another war cry and went back to the castle to get a good night's sleep.
In the morning, everybody was busy eating breakfast. After breakfast, they got ready to leave for Wu. They were going to need boats to get to Wu, so they got some wood ready to make the boats when they got there. Taking the 100,000 soldiers, food, and gold, Zhao Yun and his troops finally left Ping Won.
They traveled south and they were thankful that they were going south. It was mid-December and it had been cold in the northern area. They traveled for another month and they reached the river. Having learned how to survive in water, they got through Yellow river without any problems. Then when they arrived at Wu, it was a free city, so Zhao Yun decided to stay at the castle for the meantime. At Wu, Zhao Yun started making the soldiers farm for their own food, as a part of their training.
Then a few months later, Zhao Yun's training was going well. Then he heard news that Dong Zhou took control of the emperor and leaders from all over Han were going to become one and take care of Dong Zhou. Around that time, the emperor told Zhao Yun and Sun Ce to come to Nak Yang, the capital of Han. It took the two of them two months to go to Nak Yang.
They bowed to the emperor and didn't get up until the emperor told them to get up. The emperor was a kid, probably just a little over ten. However, the emperor looked very smart and the way he talked seemed to affect everyone in different ways.
"I have heard of all the things you did, Zhao Yun and Sun Ce. You got rid of the Turbans from Nam Pi and Ping Chon. Also, you guys defeated Zhang Liang, Zhang Bao and Zhang Jiao. For all the things you have done, I wish to give you two a present."
Sun Ce didn't say anything, expecting a present. However, Zhao Yun knew his manners and said, "My Lord, we have only done what we were supposed to do for the Han. If a rebellion starts, it's only obvious that we stop it."
"Zhao Yun, I am moved by your manners. Let's walk around and talk for awhile."
They followed the emperor to the stable where all the horses were resting.
Pointing to the two crappy horses they received from Jwa Jwa, the emperor said, "These horses are your horse, is it not?"
"Yes it is, my lord."
"These horses are too pitiful. You guys have revived the Han and those two heroes ride horses like that? Sun Ce, take this Shadow Runner as your horse. This horse is invincible and it's good on battles. Zhao Yun, you can take the Red Hare, the fastest horse in the world. It's better if you guys take it, anyways. Dong Zhou would probably take everything away from me anyways. So take this Storm Runner, too."
After receiving the presents, they were allowed to stay at the palace for a month. The stay at the palace was good. There were lots of food, girls, and entertainment. Zhao Yun shared a giant room with Sun Ce. The room had two giant king size beds with cushions everywhere and it was decorated with the most colorful colors. The only people that ate with the emperor were Sun Ce, himself, and Dong Zhou. Zhao Yun also got to see the man named Lu Bu.
Lu Bu was a man about a foot taller than Sun Ce, and he looked somewhere in his late twenties or early thirties. On top of his head, there were some antennas attached to the armor he wore. It made him look like a bug, but Zhao Yun knew that that was the biggest bug he had ever seen. He held a giant halberd with him and he accompanied Dong Zhou at all times, making him Dong Zhou's bodyguard.
Zhao Yun couldn't say he was friendly with either Dong Zhou or Lu Bu. They always shot his dark and scary glances. Sun Ce, who was also pretty good fighting with they eyes always had an eye fight with Lu Bu before dinner. One night, it was the young Emperor's birthday. They were eating with the emperor when Dong Zhou told the emperor, "Emperor, I'd like to give you the best of the entertainment, for you have turned twelve today."
"Oh, Dong Zhou! I can't wait! What is the entertainment you prepared?"
Dong Zhou yelled to the servants, "Bring Diao Chan in!"
As he said that, Zhao Yun could see Lu Bu flinch and stare at Dong Zhou as the curtains were drawn.
As the curtains were being drawn, Zhao Yun saw Lu Bu flinch and glare at Dong Zhou with the most loathing look on his face. Zhao Yun would've looked more, but he looked at the girl after the curtains were drawn. Zhao Yun stopped and just stared at the girl. He knew that there would be no one to match this girl's beauty. He just gazed at her in a stunned way. The emperor smiled, Dong Zhou just stared at her dreamily, and Sun Ce had his mouth open and didn't take his eyes off her.
Diao Chan was a young girl about the age of fourteen. Even though she was young, she had a look of maturity in her face and body. She walked gracefully to the center of the room.
Dong Zhou looked around and looking at Zhao Yun and Sun Ce's expression, he looked satisfied and said, "Diao Chan, perform your dance for your audience."
"Yes, my lord."
Diao Chan started dancing and it looked more graceful and water started coming out of Sun Ce's mouth from opening it too wide. Zhao Yun couldn't take his eyes off either. Diao Chan danced, sang, and played instruments for hours until it was late at night. Then she went away and Dong Zhou smiled satisfactorily.
Looking at Sun Ce and Zhao Yun, he said, "How did you like Diao Chan?"
Sun Ce spoke up right away. "I never knew such a girl actually existed in China. You are surely the luckiest man in the world."
Dong Zhou laughed loudly and agreed with Sun Ce. Then the way Dong Zhou looked at Zhao Yun, Zhao Yun figured that he wanted an answer. So Zhao Yun just said, "Unbelievable."
Dong Zhou seemed satisfied with the answer and they finish the night off by drinking. Then they all bowed to the emperor and went to their own rooms. Zhao Yun and Sun Ce walked to their rooms, talking about things like who Diao Chan gave looks at and who she'd like best.
Sun Ce said, "I think I just saw my dream wife today."
Zhao Yun laughed and said, "You took the words right out of my mouth, boy."
At the room, Sun Ce fainted on his bed from drinking too much. Zhao Yun got to his bed and tried to sleep, but it was as if rice wine he drank kept him up rather than putting him to sleep. After tossing and turning for hours, he decided to take a walk around the palace. Wearing his night robes, he walked around the pond and felt the peacefulness of night at the palace. He tried to listen to the crickets softly chirping, but he instead heard sounds of somebody crying. He heard it coming from the other side of the river. When he got near the person, it was Diao Chan, the beautiful girl that had danced for them tonight.
"Uh. . .are you all right?"
Diao Chan flinched, not knowing whom it was. It took her awhile to recognize the person in the dark. Then her eyes turned big and said, "You were the one. . ."
"Yeah. I really liked you singing and dancing today. You're really talented."
Zhao Yun could see Diao Chan's smile on her skin, which shined in the moonlight. She looked even more beautiful now.
Diao Chan smiled as she said, "Thanks. I was taught ever since I was young."
"But why were you crying just now? You sounded so sad."
Diao Chan looked up at Zhao Yun. She was a good half a foot shorter than Zhao Yun.
"Can I trust you, uh. . ."
"Zhao Yun. My name's Zhao Yun."
"Oh, Zhao Yun. You probably know my name, Diao Chan."
"Yeah. Of course I do."
"Can I trust you, Zhao Yun?"
Zhao Yun nodded.
Diao Chan started, "Well, my parents died when I was young, but Wang Yun took me in and he's been like a father to me since. Then when Dong Zhou took control of the emperor and power, Wang Yun sent me as bait to make Dong Zhou and Lu Bu separate. Dong Zhou can't live without Lu Bu's power and Lu Bu can't live without Dong Zhou's help. If all goes well, Lu Bu will fight back against Dong Zhou and that'll be the end of both of them. That was my mission, but things are getting so hard that I can't bare it anymore. I want to go far away. . ."
She burst into tears again and started crying on Zhao Yun's robe like a little girl. So after crying for a long time, Diao Chan fell asleep on Zhao Yun's lap. Zhao Yun sat by the pond, just looking at her. She looked like a doll, so pretty, so fragile and so weak. He wanted to touch her soft skin, but something told him that it wasn't a good idea. Then he stroked Diao Chan once on the face, but then Diao Chan took hold of Zhao Yun's hand and kept it on her face. They stayed this way until the sun started coming up. Then as he saw the sunlight hit Diao Chan's skin, she woke up slowly. After she had woken up, she still was holding on to Zhao Yun's hand tightly. Then after knowing what she was doing, she quickly let go and blushed to the color of crimson.
"Zhao Yun, I'm so sorry. . ."
"No, no it's okay."
Diao Chan just nodded, but he saw her continue blushing as she ran back into the palace. Zhao Yun stayed for a few more minutes before he went into the palace as well. Sun Ce was still snoring loudly on his bed facedown. He must've not changed his sleeping position ever since he fainted onto the bed facedown. Chuckling, Zhao Yun got ready for another day.
For the next few weeks until it was time for Zhao Yun and Sun Ce to depart, he met Diao Chan in the halls here and there. She always seemed to blush and smile her beautiful smile at the same time. Sun Ce seemed to be the saddest to leave the palace, but taking the three horses, they did one last bow to the emperor for their farewell.
It was around six in the morning. It was probably obvious that Dong Zhou was still asleep. By seeing the size of his stomach, that guy had to get at least 12 hours of sleep everyday. Glad that he wouldn't have to say good- bye to his fat friend. With his silver armor, he got on his red hare as Sun Ce got on his Shadow Runner, with his red shiny armor on him. They took the Storm Runner without a rider, so as they were leaving the castle walls, Zhao Yun felt sorry that he couldn't say farewell to Diao Chan. He figured that Dong Zhou or Lu Bu would kill him on sight if he did. Sun Ce seemed to be thinking about the same thing, because he said, "I'm going to miss Diao Chan. . .She was the girl of my dreams."
Zhao Yun nodded slowly and as they slowly turned their backs on Nak Yang. Then they heard light footsteps coming their way, followed by heavy footsteps. They looked and saw Diao Chan running towards them, but were closely chased by Lu Bu with his giant halberd. Zhao Yun, noticing what was going on yelled, "Sun Ce, get Diao Chan on the Storm Runner and run away fast! I'll hold Lu Bu off!"
Sun Ce looked confused for a moment, but he grabbed Diao Chan off the ground and put her on top of the Storm Runner. Then Sun Ce yelled, "Ya!!!" and the two horses started running off into the distance. If he let the Red Hare get into Lu Bu's hands, Sun Ce and Diao Chan could be in trouble. So Zhao Yun got off the Red Hare and hit its behind sending it to Sun Ce and Diao Chan.
Lu Bu looked as if his life was at an end. He had no horse to catch up to them and he had lost Diao Chan.
Lu Bu turned red and he yelled, "Argh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
His eyes turned red and a red aura surrounded him. Zhao Yun started backing off, a little freaked out. Then Lu Bu gave Zhao Yun his death stare.
"You took away my Diao Chan! Dong Zhou was enough for me, but you? I'll rip your bones apart! YAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!" Lu Bu took a giant swing and his halberd was on fire. Zhao Yun used his defense against Lu Bu's attack. He blocked the first swings nicely, but the finishing swing was two or three times stronger than the other ones. The shield broke, sending Zhao Yun far away. Zhao Yun noticed his chance and when he was far away, he started running away. Lu Bu ran after him and Zhao Yun looked back to see Lu Bu not too far away from him. Lu Bu started gaining on Zhao Yun and he took another swing giving Zhao Yun a great gash in the back. Zhao Yun knew that Lu Bu was strong in attack, defense, and speed. There was no way to run or hide, so Zhao Yun faced Lu Bu face to face. Zhao Yun had a slash on his chest from the first attack and he had the big gash on his back as well. Lu Bu grinned maliciously and said, "Finally! You've decided to fight me like a man! You've made a nice decision. It's better dying fighting with honor rather than dying while running away like a coward. Well, let's start!"
Zhao Yun got his spear ready, even though he was continuously bleeding on his chest and back. Zhao Yun took a few swings and Lu Bu just blocked them off easily. Then Lu Bu raised his halberd up to take another giant swing, but Zhao Yun saw right through that and quickly poked Lu Bu hard on the stomach before the halberd came down.
Lu Bu fell back and started coughing up a little blood, looking surprised.
"Not bad, not bad at all. I can't believe you gave me an injury."
Not saying anything Zhao Yun took a side slash at Lu Bu, who just barely blocked it off. Then Lu Bu started looking exhausted himself. It was already noon and they had been fighting for almost 6 hours already. The hot sun scorched them, making it harder for them to fight.
Lu Bu was panting heavily as he said, "Let's give it all we've got to finish off the battle. We've got to give it all we've got, got it? We'll take one last swing at each other and if it still remains as a draw, I'll let you go for today. I have some hatred but some good thoughts on you as well. I can't forgive you for taking my Diao Chan, but I have to say that fighting with you made feel a whole lot better." He gave his evil grin again. Then they stood about 50 feet away from each other, storing all the energy they had. Then they shouted as loud as they could and started running at each other. Then both the halberd and spear was covered with fire and Zhao Yun's secondary power of wind and Lu Bu seemed to have some kind of purple aura with the fire. When the two weapons met, a gigantic collision took place and a nearby person could've predicted that an atom bomb had been dropped. The only problem was that there were no atom bombs back then. The explosion killed all the people within a mile or two. It also sent a strong wind that went about ten miles.
When the dust cleared, Lu Bu's legs were shaking hard as he pushed his halberd with all his might. Zhao Yun already had a knee down, not being able to take the pressure, but giving all the strength he had as well. Then Lu Bu stopped putting in strength and said, "I'll let you go for today, Zhao Yun. But next time we meet, we'll fight to the end."
"Of course, Lu Bu. Just what I wanted."
Then Zhao Yun saw Lu Bu walk back to Nak Yang. Zhao Yun also walked back tiredly to the way Sun Ce and Diao Chan had gone to. His chest and back had stopped bleeding, but there was a giant wound of red left there. He started walking slower and he went under a tree and started resting. Feeling dizzier and dizzier, Zhao Yun finally overcame the pain and fell into a peaceful sleep.
Zhao Yun woke up shirtless and covered with bandages around his chest and back. He was in some kind of hut, sometime around night. There was only a blanket around him and Zhao Yun still felt dizzy. He couldn't see the blurred figure moving around the hut. The sweet fragrance was coming from the person and when his view got clearer, it was no other than the beautiful Diao Chan. She noticed that Zhao had gained his consciousness. She ran over to him and got on her knees in front where Zhao Yun lay and tears spilled across her beautiful face.
"I'm so sorry! You risked your life just to save my life! Lu Bu could have killed you! The fight was so incredible. . .I wanted to help you, but Sun Ce wouldn't let me. It was stupid of me trying to run away while Lu Bu was following me. If I just stayed where I was, none of this would've happened. I just wanted to follow you, away from Doug Zhou and Lu Bu." She continued crying and it hurt Zhao Yun even more to see Diao Chan cry. As he saw the tears stream down, he felt his two scars burn as if on fire. It hurt even more than any attack Lu Bu could've given him. It was sadness, Diao Chan's sadness.
"Diao Chan!" Zhao yelled so loudly that Diao Chan looked surprised and she stopped crying as well. Then he grabbed her small shoulders and pulled her into a tight embrace. Her expression had 'shocked' written all over it, but she didn't try to pull away, which was a good sign. They stayed locked with their embrace for a long time. At first, Diao Chan still had signs of sniffling, but it ceased after a little while.
Zhao Yun loosened his embrace and looked at her.
"You all right now?"
Diao Chan stared at him with her beautiful eyes and nodded. Just then, Sun Ce came inside, carrying an armful of firewood with him.
"Hey, Zhao Yun! You're up now!"
They were eating Diao Chan's cooking, which tasted good and reminded Zhao Yun of home. They talked about what had happened earlier in the day.
"We have the Red Hare with us. It followed us after you sent it. Then we were going to go south, but Diao Chan refused to leave without you, so we stayed at a forest and watched the fight from a distance. Diao Chan cried like heck when Lu Bu slashed you two times. Even I thought you were dead for a moment. You guys were pretty close to the trees by the time you stopped running away. Then the battle was really something to see and we had to hide in the ground when the explosion stared. Then when we saw you and Lu Bu call a truce and we saw you faint by a tree. Then when we saw Lu Bu go back inside Nak Yang, we took you and walked for like 8 hours, getting away. You were damn heavy and I had to carry you for a damn long time. But heck, that battle with Lu Bu was like a fight that comes every few dynasties.
Zhao Yun nodded slowly as he finished his soup.
"So where are we now?"
"Quiet far away. I think we're somewhere around the area of Dong Ping. We made good time since we had the horses. There's a castle that belongs to Cao Cao's near here. So we'll leave by daylight tomorrow, so we won't be seen by some of his idiots. You'll be well enough tomorrow to ride on a horse."
It was next morning and Zhao Yun woke up and saw Sun Ce sleeping on the floor and Diao Chan sleeping next to him. He sat up quickly and it was then when he noticed his pain had lessened a lot from yesterday. Zhao Yun just stared at Diao Chan's beautiful face for a long time. Then when Zhao Yun noticed how much time had passed, he got up and started warming up his injured body. He took a few light swings with his spear and took a deep breath.
Zhao Yun exercised for a few more hours until it was almost noon. He was about to go back inside when he heard something approaching this area. Sensing danger, Zhao Yun ran in and woke Diao Chan and Sun Ce up. Then after telling them that someone was coming, Zhao Yun grabbed his armor and put it on. He dashed out and waited for the sound, coming closer. Then he knew what it was. Soldiers. The soldier's footsteps could be now heard clearly. He started seeing soldiers and horses. Then on a black horse, Zhao Yun saw a man with a white turban on his head and had a white cloak down to his legs, making him look like an Arabian prince. He was now in view of Zhao Yun and he stopped.
The man got off his horse and walked towards Zhao Yun. He looked bigger than he was with the long, big axe next to him. He had about twenty soldiers around him, who looked like bodyguards.
"You must be Zhao Yun."
Zhao Yun looked carefully at him, making sure to remember him. However, Zhao Yun probably figured that it'd be hard to find someone with a white turban on his head somewhere in China.
"What if I am Zhao Yun?"
The man bowed his head formally to Zhao Yun and he said, "Zhao Yun, it is a pleasure meeting you. My name is Xu Huang."
How'd you guys like Chapter 4? More coming up later!!!!! PLZ R&R!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Zhao Yun and the others watched from the castle as Zhang Liang started setting their camp almost in the exact area Zhao Mi had predicted. Zhao Yun had to admit that his sister had gotten a lot more beautiful and smarter. They waited until night came.
Sun Ce looked happier when Zhao Yun said, "We'll start our surprise attack and get rid of them as quickly as possible. We've got to leave Ping Won with all the supplies by tomorrow. Since we've got all the food supplies and the gold's ready, all we have to do is destroy Zhang Jiao's army and then we're going southeast to the land of Wu!"
The men started shouting war cries and at night, about a thousand archers with fire arrows hid near the enemy's camp, ready to fire their arrows. When it was exactly 1 in the morning, they shot the fire arrows everywhere. As they had suspected, the whole camp was put on fire. Zhang Jiao's giant army was already shredding down little by little. Then they saw most of the soldiers escaping towards the place they had come from; the place with the most bombs. When lots of soldiers started to get on the bombs, Zhao Mi yelled, "Fire!"
Another row of fire arrows landed on the bombs, causing them to explode, which caused other bombs to collide and created a bigger explosion. The Yellow Turbans soldier's bodies started flying everywhere. It was really something to see. Zhao Yun was waiting in the castle gates for Zhang Jiao to appear. Then he saw a man wearing a dark cloak with a big staff coming towards the castle and when the bombs there exploded, he fell back and ran around crazily.
Zhao Yun ran to that area once all the bombs had been set off. The whole army just ran the Turbans over and Zhao Yun was left alone with Zhang Jiao.
"You stupid fool! You don't know who you're messing with!"
"Zhang Jiao, I think I know very well who I am messing with. You've only made Han a difficult place to live when it was hard enough as it was. You don't deserve to live."
Zhang Jiao looked superior even though 100,000 soldiers were all around him. Then using his staff, Zhang Jiao became lighter and lighter until he disappeared. When Zhao Yun was looking around for Zhang Jiao, he appeared behind Zhao Yun and gave Zhao Yun a baseball swing with his staff on the head.
Zhao Yun fell over and got his spear ready. Then as Zhang Jiao disappeared again, Zhao Yun got hit three more times. Zhao Yun was bleeding pretty badly now on the head. Zhang Jiao started laughing and cackling like crazy and tried his trick again. Then Zhao Yun closed his eyes and waited for Zhang Jiao to appear. When Zhang Jiao had come behind Zhao Yun again, Zhao Yun felt him and stabbed Zhang Jiao right through the heart. Zhang Jiao stopped dead in the position of getting ready to hit Zhou Yun with a baseball swing.
Zhang Jiao fell, but Zhao Yun twisted his spear when it was stuck on Zhang Jiao's heart. After killing Zhang Jiao gruesomely, Zhao Yun stood there for a while and shouted, "The Yellow Turbans have been completely destroyed!"
The soldiers gave another war cry and went back to the castle to get a good night's sleep.
In the morning, everybody was busy eating breakfast. After breakfast, they got ready to leave for Wu. They were going to need boats to get to Wu, so they got some wood ready to make the boats when they got there. Taking the 100,000 soldiers, food, and gold, Zhao Yun and his troops finally left Ping Won.
They traveled south and they were thankful that they were going south. It was mid-December and it had been cold in the northern area. They traveled for another month and they reached the river. Having learned how to survive in water, they got through Yellow river without any problems. Then when they arrived at Wu, it was a free city, so Zhao Yun decided to stay at the castle for the meantime. At Wu, Zhao Yun started making the soldiers farm for their own food, as a part of their training.
Then a few months later, Zhao Yun's training was going well. Then he heard news that Dong Zhou took control of the emperor and leaders from all over Han were going to become one and take care of Dong Zhou. Around that time, the emperor told Zhao Yun and Sun Ce to come to Nak Yang, the capital of Han. It took the two of them two months to go to Nak Yang.
They bowed to the emperor and didn't get up until the emperor told them to get up. The emperor was a kid, probably just a little over ten. However, the emperor looked very smart and the way he talked seemed to affect everyone in different ways.
"I have heard of all the things you did, Zhao Yun and Sun Ce. You got rid of the Turbans from Nam Pi and Ping Chon. Also, you guys defeated Zhang Liang, Zhang Bao and Zhang Jiao. For all the things you have done, I wish to give you two a present."
Sun Ce didn't say anything, expecting a present. However, Zhao Yun knew his manners and said, "My Lord, we have only done what we were supposed to do for the Han. If a rebellion starts, it's only obvious that we stop it."
"Zhao Yun, I am moved by your manners. Let's walk around and talk for awhile."
They followed the emperor to the stable where all the horses were resting.
Pointing to the two crappy horses they received from Jwa Jwa, the emperor said, "These horses are your horse, is it not?"
"Yes it is, my lord."
"These horses are too pitiful. You guys have revived the Han and those two heroes ride horses like that? Sun Ce, take this Shadow Runner as your horse. This horse is invincible and it's good on battles. Zhao Yun, you can take the Red Hare, the fastest horse in the world. It's better if you guys take it, anyways. Dong Zhou would probably take everything away from me anyways. So take this Storm Runner, too."
After receiving the presents, they were allowed to stay at the palace for a month. The stay at the palace was good. There were lots of food, girls, and entertainment. Zhao Yun shared a giant room with Sun Ce. The room had two giant king size beds with cushions everywhere and it was decorated with the most colorful colors. The only people that ate with the emperor were Sun Ce, himself, and Dong Zhou. Zhao Yun also got to see the man named Lu Bu.
Lu Bu was a man about a foot taller than Sun Ce, and he looked somewhere in his late twenties or early thirties. On top of his head, there were some antennas attached to the armor he wore. It made him look like a bug, but Zhao Yun knew that that was the biggest bug he had ever seen. He held a giant halberd with him and he accompanied Dong Zhou at all times, making him Dong Zhou's bodyguard.
Zhao Yun couldn't say he was friendly with either Dong Zhou or Lu Bu. They always shot his dark and scary glances. Sun Ce, who was also pretty good fighting with they eyes always had an eye fight with Lu Bu before dinner. One night, it was the young Emperor's birthday. They were eating with the emperor when Dong Zhou told the emperor, "Emperor, I'd like to give you the best of the entertainment, for you have turned twelve today."
"Oh, Dong Zhou! I can't wait! What is the entertainment you prepared?"
Dong Zhou yelled to the servants, "Bring Diao Chan in!"
As he said that, Zhao Yun could see Lu Bu flinch and stare at Dong Zhou as the curtains were drawn.
As the curtains were being drawn, Zhao Yun saw Lu Bu flinch and glare at Dong Zhou with the most loathing look on his face. Zhao Yun would've looked more, but he looked at the girl after the curtains were drawn. Zhao Yun stopped and just stared at the girl. He knew that there would be no one to match this girl's beauty. He just gazed at her in a stunned way. The emperor smiled, Dong Zhou just stared at her dreamily, and Sun Ce had his mouth open and didn't take his eyes off her.
Diao Chan was a young girl about the age of fourteen. Even though she was young, she had a look of maturity in her face and body. She walked gracefully to the center of the room.
Dong Zhou looked around and looking at Zhao Yun and Sun Ce's expression, he looked satisfied and said, "Diao Chan, perform your dance for your audience."
"Yes, my lord."
Diao Chan started dancing and it looked more graceful and water started coming out of Sun Ce's mouth from opening it too wide. Zhao Yun couldn't take his eyes off either. Diao Chan danced, sang, and played instruments for hours until it was late at night. Then she went away and Dong Zhou smiled satisfactorily.
Looking at Sun Ce and Zhao Yun, he said, "How did you like Diao Chan?"
Sun Ce spoke up right away. "I never knew such a girl actually existed in China. You are surely the luckiest man in the world."
Dong Zhou laughed loudly and agreed with Sun Ce. Then the way Dong Zhou looked at Zhao Yun, Zhao Yun figured that he wanted an answer. So Zhao Yun just said, "Unbelievable."
Dong Zhou seemed satisfied with the answer and they finish the night off by drinking. Then they all bowed to the emperor and went to their own rooms. Zhao Yun and Sun Ce walked to their rooms, talking about things like who Diao Chan gave looks at and who she'd like best.
Sun Ce said, "I think I just saw my dream wife today."
Zhao Yun laughed and said, "You took the words right out of my mouth, boy."
At the room, Sun Ce fainted on his bed from drinking too much. Zhao Yun got to his bed and tried to sleep, but it was as if rice wine he drank kept him up rather than putting him to sleep. After tossing and turning for hours, he decided to take a walk around the palace. Wearing his night robes, he walked around the pond and felt the peacefulness of night at the palace. He tried to listen to the crickets softly chirping, but he instead heard sounds of somebody crying. He heard it coming from the other side of the river. When he got near the person, it was Diao Chan, the beautiful girl that had danced for them tonight.
"Uh. . .are you all right?"
Diao Chan flinched, not knowing whom it was. It took her awhile to recognize the person in the dark. Then her eyes turned big and said, "You were the one. . ."
"Yeah. I really liked you singing and dancing today. You're really talented."
Zhao Yun could see Diao Chan's smile on her skin, which shined in the moonlight. She looked even more beautiful now.
Diao Chan smiled as she said, "Thanks. I was taught ever since I was young."
"But why were you crying just now? You sounded so sad."
Diao Chan looked up at Zhao Yun. She was a good half a foot shorter than Zhao Yun.
"Can I trust you, uh. . ."
"Zhao Yun. My name's Zhao Yun."
"Oh, Zhao Yun. You probably know my name, Diao Chan."
"Yeah. Of course I do."
"Can I trust you, Zhao Yun?"
Zhao Yun nodded.
Diao Chan started, "Well, my parents died when I was young, but Wang Yun took me in and he's been like a father to me since. Then when Dong Zhou took control of the emperor and power, Wang Yun sent me as bait to make Dong Zhou and Lu Bu separate. Dong Zhou can't live without Lu Bu's power and Lu Bu can't live without Dong Zhou's help. If all goes well, Lu Bu will fight back against Dong Zhou and that'll be the end of both of them. That was my mission, but things are getting so hard that I can't bare it anymore. I want to go far away. . ."
She burst into tears again and started crying on Zhao Yun's robe like a little girl. So after crying for a long time, Diao Chan fell asleep on Zhao Yun's lap. Zhao Yun sat by the pond, just looking at her. She looked like a doll, so pretty, so fragile and so weak. He wanted to touch her soft skin, but something told him that it wasn't a good idea. Then he stroked Diao Chan once on the face, but then Diao Chan took hold of Zhao Yun's hand and kept it on her face. They stayed this way until the sun started coming up. Then as he saw the sunlight hit Diao Chan's skin, she woke up slowly. After she had woken up, she still was holding on to Zhao Yun's hand tightly. Then after knowing what she was doing, she quickly let go and blushed to the color of crimson.
"Zhao Yun, I'm so sorry. . ."
"No, no it's okay."
Diao Chan just nodded, but he saw her continue blushing as she ran back into the palace. Zhao Yun stayed for a few more minutes before he went into the palace as well. Sun Ce was still snoring loudly on his bed facedown. He must've not changed his sleeping position ever since he fainted onto the bed facedown. Chuckling, Zhao Yun got ready for another day.
For the next few weeks until it was time for Zhao Yun and Sun Ce to depart, he met Diao Chan in the halls here and there. She always seemed to blush and smile her beautiful smile at the same time. Sun Ce seemed to be the saddest to leave the palace, but taking the three horses, they did one last bow to the emperor for their farewell.
It was around six in the morning. It was probably obvious that Dong Zhou was still asleep. By seeing the size of his stomach, that guy had to get at least 12 hours of sleep everyday. Glad that he wouldn't have to say good- bye to his fat friend. With his silver armor, he got on his red hare as Sun Ce got on his Shadow Runner, with his red shiny armor on him. They took the Storm Runner without a rider, so as they were leaving the castle walls, Zhao Yun felt sorry that he couldn't say farewell to Diao Chan. He figured that Dong Zhou or Lu Bu would kill him on sight if he did. Sun Ce seemed to be thinking about the same thing, because he said, "I'm going to miss Diao Chan. . .She was the girl of my dreams."
Zhao Yun nodded slowly and as they slowly turned their backs on Nak Yang. Then they heard light footsteps coming their way, followed by heavy footsteps. They looked and saw Diao Chan running towards them, but were closely chased by Lu Bu with his giant halberd. Zhao Yun, noticing what was going on yelled, "Sun Ce, get Diao Chan on the Storm Runner and run away fast! I'll hold Lu Bu off!"
Sun Ce looked confused for a moment, but he grabbed Diao Chan off the ground and put her on top of the Storm Runner. Then Sun Ce yelled, "Ya!!!" and the two horses started running off into the distance. If he let the Red Hare get into Lu Bu's hands, Sun Ce and Diao Chan could be in trouble. So Zhao Yun got off the Red Hare and hit its behind sending it to Sun Ce and Diao Chan.
Lu Bu looked as if his life was at an end. He had no horse to catch up to them and he had lost Diao Chan.
Lu Bu turned red and he yelled, "Argh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
His eyes turned red and a red aura surrounded him. Zhao Yun started backing off, a little freaked out. Then Lu Bu gave Zhao Yun his death stare.
"You took away my Diao Chan! Dong Zhou was enough for me, but you? I'll rip your bones apart! YAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!" Lu Bu took a giant swing and his halberd was on fire. Zhao Yun used his defense against Lu Bu's attack. He blocked the first swings nicely, but the finishing swing was two or three times stronger than the other ones. The shield broke, sending Zhao Yun far away. Zhao Yun noticed his chance and when he was far away, he started running away. Lu Bu ran after him and Zhao Yun looked back to see Lu Bu not too far away from him. Lu Bu started gaining on Zhao Yun and he took another swing giving Zhao Yun a great gash in the back. Zhao Yun knew that Lu Bu was strong in attack, defense, and speed. There was no way to run or hide, so Zhao Yun faced Lu Bu face to face. Zhao Yun had a slash on his chest from the first attack and he had the big gash on his back as well. Lu Bu grinned maliciously and said, "Finally! You've decided to fight me like a man! You've made a nice decision. It's better dying fighting with honor rather than dying while running away like a coward. Well, let's start!"
Zhao Yun got his spear ready, even though he was continuously bleeding on his chest and back. Zhao Yun took a few swings and Lu Bu just blocked them off easily. Then Lu Bu raised his halberd up to take another giant swing, but Zhao Yun saw right through that and quickly poked Lu Bu hard on the stomach before the halberd came down.
Lu Bu fell back and started coughing up a little blood, looking surprised.
"Not bad, not bad at all. I can't believe you gave me an injury."
Not saying anything Zhao Yun took a side slash at Lu Bu, who just barely blocked it off. Then Lu Bu started looking exhausted himself. It was already noon and they had been fighting for almost 6 hours already. The hot sun scorched them, making it harder for them to fight.
Lu Bu was panting heavily as he said, "Let's give it all we've got to finish off the battle. We've got to give it all we've got, got it? We'll take one last swing at each other and if it still remains as a draw, I'll let you go for today. I have some hatred but some good thoughts on you as well. I can't forgive you for taking my Diao Chan, but I have to say that fighting with you made feel a whole lot better." He gave his evil grin again. Then they stood about 50 feet away from each other, storing all the energy they had. Then they shouted as loud as they could and started running at each other. Then both the halberd and spear was covered with fire and Zhao Yun's secondary power of wind and Lu Bu seemed to have some kind of purple aura with the fire. When the two weapons met, a gigantic collision took place and a nearby person could've predicted that an atom bomb had been dropped. The only problem was that there were no atom bombs back then. The explosion killed all the people within a mile or two. It also sent a strong wind that went about ten miles.
When the dust cleared, Lu Bu's legs were shaking hard as he pushed his halberd with all his might. Zhao Yun already had a knee down, not being able to take the pressure, but giving all the strength he had as well. Then Lu Bu stopped putting in strength and said, "I'll let you go for today, Zhao Yun. But next time we meet, we'll fight to the end."
"Of course, Lu Bu. Just what I wanted."
Then Zhao Yun saw Lu Bu walk back to Nak Yang. Zhao Yun also walked back tiredly to the way Sun Ce and Diao Chan had gone to. His chest and back had stopped bleeding, but there was a giant wound of red left there. He started walking slower and he went under a tree and started resting. Feeling dizzier and dizzier, Zhao Yun finally overcame the pain and fell into a peaceful sleep.
Zhao Yun woke up shirtless and covered with bandages around his chest and back. He was in some kind of hut, sometime around night. There was only a blanket around him and Zhao Yun still felt dizzy. He couldn't see the blurred figure moving around the hut. The sweet fragrance was coming from the person and when his view got clearer, it was no other than the beautiful Diao Chan. She noticed that Zhao had gained his consciousness. She ran over to him and got on her knees in front where Zhao Yun lay and tears spilled across her beautiful face.
"I'm so sorry! You risked your life just to save my life! Lu Bu could have killed you! The fight was so incredible. . .I wanted to help you, but Sun Ce wouldn't let me. It was stupid of me trying to run away while Lu Bu was following me. If I just stayed where I was, none of this would've happened. I just wanted to follow you, away from Doug Zhou and Lu Bu." She continued crying and it hurt Zhao Yun even more to see Diao Chan cry. As he saw the tears stream down, he felt his two scars burn as if on fire. It hurt even more than any attack Lu Bu could've given him. It was sadness, Diao Chan's sadness.
"Diao Chan!" Zhao yelled so loudly that Diao Chan looked surprised and she stopped crying as well. Then he grabbed her small shoulders and pulled her into a tight embrace. Her expression had 'shocked' written all over it, but she didn't try to pull away, which was a good sign. They stayed locked with their embrace for a long time. At first, Diao Chan still had signs of sniffling, but it ceased after a little while.
Zhao Yun loosened his embrace and looked at her.
"You all right now?"
Diao Chan stared at him with her beautiful eyes and nodded. Just then, Sun Ce came inside, carrying an armful of firewood with him.
"Hey, Zhao Yun! You're up now!"
They were eating Diao Chan's cooking, which tasted good and reminded Zhao Yun of home. They talked about what had happened earlier in the day.
"We have the Red Hare with us. It followed us after you sent it. Then we were going to go south, but Diao Chan refused to leave without you, so we stayed at a forest and watched the fight from a distance. Diao Chan cried like heck when Lu Bu slashed you two times. Even I thought you were dead for a moment. You guys were pretty close to the trees by the time you stopped running away. Then the battle was really something to see and we had to hide in the ground when the explosion stared. Then when we saw you and Lu Bu call a truce and we saw you faint by a tree. Then when we saw Lu Bu go back inside Nak Yang, we took you and walked for like 8 hours, getting away. You were damn heavy and I had to carry you for a damn long time. But heck, that battle with Lu Bu was like a fight that comes every few dynasties.
Zhao Yun nodded slowly as he finished his soup.
"So where are we now?"
"Quiet far away. I think we're somewhere around the area of Dong Ping. We made good time since we had the horses. There's a castle that belongs to Cao Cao's near here. So we'll leave by daylight tomorrow, so we won't be seen by some of his idiots. You'll be well enough tomorrow to ride on a horse."
It was next morning and Zhao Yun woke up and saw Sun Ce sleeping on the floor and Diao Chan sleeping next to him. He sat up quickly and it was then when he noticed his pain had lessened a lot from yesterday. Zhao Yun just stared at Diao Chan's beautiful face for a long time. Then when Zhao Yun noticed how much time had passed, he got up and started warming up his injured body. He took a few light swings with his spear and took a deep breath.
Zhao Yun exercised for a few more hours until it was almost noon. He was about to go back inside when he heard something approaching this area. Sensing danger, Zhao Yun ran in and woke Diao Chan and Sun Ce up. Then after telling them that someone was coming, Zhao Yun grabbed his armor and put it on. He dashed out and waited for the sound, coming closer. Then he knew what it was. Soldiers. The soldier's footsteps could be now heard clearly. He started seeing soldiers and horses. Then on a black horse, Zhao Yun saw a man with a white turban on his head and had a white cloak down to his legs, making him look like an Arabian prince. He was now in view of Zhao Yun and he stopped.
The man got off his horse and walked towards Zhao Yun. He looked bigger than he was with the long, big axe next to him. He had about twenty soldiers around him, who looked like bodyguards.
"You must be Zhao Yun."
Zhao Yun looked carefully at him, making sure to remember him. However, Zhao Yun probably figured that it'd be hard to find someone with a white turban on his head somewhere in China.
"What if I am Zhao Yun?"
The man bowed his head formally to Zhao Yun and he said, "Zhao Yun, it is a pleasure meeting you. My name is Xu Huang."
How'd you guys like Chapter 4? More coming up later!!!!! PLZ R&R!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!