Chapter 54 Chapter Fifty-Fourth Broken Clothes Heart

One day, Guan Yu strolled to the Prime Minister's Mansion. He said to the officials of the Prime Minister's Mansion: The inner courtyard where the two wives live may be due to the dilapidated building. It leaks every time it rains. It is very troublesome. I hope it can be repaired in time.The official of the prime minister's mansion replied graciously: "Understood, report to the prime minister immediately, and come to repair the house soon." After hearing such a satisfactory answer, Guan Yu walked home slowly. Coincidentally, Cao Cao saw Guan Yu's back from the balcony.He said, "Isn't that General Guan?"

So, they immediately sent someone to call Guan Yu back. "Do you have anything to do with me?" After a while, Guan Yu came to Cao Cao with a happy face. Cao Cao personally took out the glazed cup that he had secretly kept, drank a cup with Guan Yu briefly, and said, "I see that the green robe that the general is wearing now is too old, and I can't even see the background color of the green brocade. The weather is so good today." , the weather is sunny, your green robe looks more and more ragged, you should put this on, it is made according to General Guan's body shape."

As he spoke, he ordered someone to bring him a brocade robe of fine texture and exquisite workmanship. "Hey, this is too luxurious." Guan Yu accepted the brocade robe Cao Cao bestowed, put it on one hand and went back.Not long after, Cao Cao suddenly saw that Guan Yu was wearing something strange on a certain occasion. Inside was the brocade robe he had given him a few days ago, but outside he was still covered with the tattered old green robe that seemed to be infested with lice. Cao Cao asked puzzledly: "General Guan, you are not only an excellent warrior, but also a great frugal person. Why do you cherish old clothes so much?"

"Hey, what the prime minister said is wrong. Guan doesn't want to be extravagant, nor does he think he is a particularly frugal person." "General Guan is too polite. Do you have any concerns? You think I, Cao Cao, bribed you, and you feel uncomfortable in your clothes? Other than that, I can't understand. I've never seen anyone put on a mask to protect their new clothes." Put on an old robe." "Oh, this is what you're talking about?!" Guan Yu looked at his sleeves and said, "This old robe is a benevolent robe I received from Uncle Liu. No matter how old it is, I will wear it day and night. It. Every time I take off my robe, I feel extremely happy as if meeting the emperor's uncle kindly. Therefore, even though I have a new brocade robe bestowed by the prime minister, I still don't want to throw away this old robe."

Cao Cao was very moved when he heard this, and couldn't help thinking to himself: "Guan Yu is indeed a noble and loyal person." Cao Cao's admiration for Guan Yu naturally deepened. At this moment, the servants serving the two wives in the guest house greeted them and said: "General Guan, please go home quickly. The two wives sighed for some reason and asked you to go." "Huh? What happened?" Guan Yu asked in surprise, and left in a hurry without even saying hello to Cao Cao. Cao Cao would not have remained silent when he was treated so rudely.But this time he didn't react much, as if he was ruthlessly abandoned without getting angry, he just watched Guan Yu's leaving back blankly.Cao Cao said to himself with admiration: "...he is really a loyal man. He never shows off, never embellishes, and only has loyalty in his heart."

Cao Cao secretly compared himself with Liu Xuande in his heart, and felt that although Liu Xuande could not be said to be inferior to himself in everything, his own advantages were self-evident.The only thing is that he is not confident yet. Does he have a loyal minister like Guan Yu under his command?He questioned himself, and finally had to admit that it was the only point at which he was at a disadvantage.Thinking of this, Cao Cao's heart became even hotter, and he made a firm oath in his heart: I will make Guan Yu be my loyal subject. Guan Yu followed the servants of the two wives and went straight back to his mansion without looking back.He hurried into the inner courtyard, only to see the two wives hugging each other and weeping bitterly.

"What's going on? What happened?" Guan Yu asked anxiously. Madam Mi and Madam Gan said with tears on their faces: "Oh, it's Guan Yu...that's what happened, we can't live anymore. Instead of doing this, we might as well die. I just want to ask the general what he thinks Yes, so I am waiting for your return." After speaking, he wept again. Guan Yu dissuaded in horror: "You must not have short-sightedness to seek death. As long as I, Guan Yu, are here, even if disasters are imminent, the two wives must relax. What happened today? Please tell me in detail."

The two wives finally calmed down a little bit, and Mrs. Mi explained the reason.When Guan Yu heard this, he thought it was just a false alarm and nothing happened.It turned out that when Mrs. Mi was taking a nap today, she suddenly dreamed of the tragic death of Liu Xuande. Guan Yu smiled with relief: "Haha! I thought it was a dream, so it was a dream. Are the two ladies thinking that the lord has encountered something dangerous? In fact, no matter what kind of ominous dream it is, it is just a dream after all. It's not worth it to lament and cry for this dream. Okay, okay, it's okay."

In order to eliminate the uneasiness in the hearts of the two wives, Guan Yu deliberately turned to happy topics frequently.He knew very well in his heart that no matter how Cao Cao kept his promise, no matter how freely he and his two wives lived, this was the capital of the enemy country after all.Think about the thoughts of the two wives, they would be scared to cry even in their dreams, they are as weak as babies, and their painful state of mind makes it difficult for them to smile. Guan Yu later comforted the two wives in this way: "I don't think the time will be very long. I, Guan Yu, swear that I will try to wait until the day I meet the lord. To achieve this goal, we must be more patient. The two wives must take care of their health."

While talking, I didn't expect that Cao Cao's envoy had already arrived in the garden of the inner courtyard when people were not aware of it. It seems that because the servants of the two wives asked Guan Yu to go back, Guan Yu went home in a hurry, which aroused Cao Cao's suspicion. Cao Cao's envoy stayed for a while, and after seeing Guan Yu, he said unhappily: "The general, please come over as soon as you are done with your business. The prime minister has prepared a banquet, and we are waiting for you to come again." Guan Yu had to go to the prime minister's mansion again.To be honest, he really didn't want to meet Cao Cao.In the past, even when drinking good wine, I was not happy in my heart.When I met Cao Cao, I couldn't forget my old master Liu Xuande.But he thought to himself that Cao Cao's interest must not be swept away now, as it would not be conducive to the realization of long-term goals, so Guan Yu always swallowed his tears helplessly, and no matter what happened, he bowed obediently and bowed down.

Guan Yu walked into the prime minister's mansion and found that this banquet was held in a different pavilion from the previous one.The exquisite pavilion is decorated with bright flowers, and there are many beauties who serve wine. The tables are full of delicious food and bottles of various red wine and yellow brew. Cao Cao was waiting for Guan Yu with great interest. As soon as they met, he asked, "Have you finished your work?" Guan Yu said, "It's really rude to leave halfway just now." "Today I just want to have a good drink with General Guan." "Guan is very honored." Cao Cao raised his wine glass to Guan Yu as if nothing had happened, and suddenly found that Guan Yu's eyelids had traces of crying.So, he asked a little unhappily: "Why does the general look like he just cried? This is the first time I know you can cry too." "Haha! Have you seen it? I'm actually a crying bug. The two wives miss Uncle Liu Huang day and night, and lament endlessly. To be honest, they made me cry just now." Cao Cao admired Guan Yu's unabashed frankness very much.When the wine was half drunk, he changed the subject and asked playfully, "Your beard is really long and beautiful, how long is it?" Guan Yu's beard is very famous. The so-called beard is a long and beautiful beard. At that time, people in Xudu praised Guan Yu's beard like this: "Xudu is the most beautiful beard." Now when Cao Cao asked this question, Guan Yu held the jet-black beard that had reached his chest in his hand, showing a look of disappointment on his face, but he said nonchalantly, "If you put this beard down completely, it should be more than half of your body. In autumn, it will naturally drop hundreds of old beards with the change of seasons. In winter, I think it loses its beautiful luster just like the plants withered. So when it is extremely cold, in order not to make the beards If the beard is frostbitten, I will wrap it in a cloth bag, and I will only take off the cloth bag when meeting guests." "Oh, does the beard need such careful care? When you were drunk, I found that your beard seemed to be washed by wine, and it was extraordinarily beautiful." "The prime minister has won the award, which made Guan extremely ashamed. In fact, what's the use of having a beautiful beard? I'm busy, living on my salary for nothing, making no contribution to the country, and breaking the agreement between the old master and brothers. Drunk and dreaming in other countries... I can't imagine that there are people as despicable as me in this world." No matter what he said, Guan Yu would always blame himself first, and his yearning for Liu Xuande was beyond words.Whenever this happened, Cao Cao always tried to divert the topic immediately, but he had mixed feelings in his heart.He was not only moved by Guan Yu's loyalty, but also tasted the jealousy and unhappiness unique to men, so he often had a very complicated state of mind. The next day, Cao Cao invited Guan Yu to go to court together, and specially gave him a kit for protecting his beard. The emperor felt very strange when he saw a kit hanging on Guan Yu's chest, so he asked, "What is this?" Guan Yu untied the brocade bag and explained: "The minister's beard is too long, the prime minister specially gifted the brocade bag to protect his beard." The Son of Heaven looked at Guan Yu's distinctive long black beard that stretched beyond his abdomen, and said with a smile, "As expected, he is really a handsome bearded man." From then on, this good name passed down from the palace was called out, and everyone called Guan Yu "beautiful bearded man". On the way back from the palace gate, Cao Cao saw Guan Yu riding a weak horse again. He couldn't help but suspect that the general of Wumen didn't know how to take care of the horse, so he said reproachfully, "Why don't you feed it with better fodder?" Horse, how about making it strong?" "No, no matter how I feed him, he has always been in the same shape. Now he is old, and the average horse will become thin." "That's right! If it's an ordinary horse, wouldn't you damage it by riding it like this?" Cao Cao hurriedly asked his courtiers to bring a horse from a secret place. Guan Yu took a closer look, and saw that the horse's mane was as red as a flame, and it was staring at two big eyes like copper bells. "Beautiful beard, do you remember this horse?" "Well, this..." Guan Yu was fascinated by the horse in front of him. He thought for a long time in a daze, finally slapped his knees, and suddenly said: "Oh, yes, isn't that the red rabbit horse that Lu Bu is riding?" "It's the red rabbit horse. We managed to capture it. But no one dares to ride this violent horse. How about using it for you?" "Huh? Is it for me?" Guan Yu thanked him again with joy.It was the first time Cao Cao saw Guan Yu so happy. He asked with some doubts: "I have never seen you so happy when I gave you ten beauties. Why are you so happy when I give you an animal?" Guan Yu replied easily: "I have such a Maxima. Once I know the whereabouts of the old master Liu Xuande, I can gallop to him in one day. So this is really a great blessing." Guan Yu rode a red rabbit horse and walked slowly on the way home. Cao Cao watched Guan Yu's back, and bit his lip tightly: "Oh no, no." He regretted it too late.No matter how big troubles Cao Cao usually has, they will not show on his face for a long time, but that day he was depressed all day long.After Zhang Liao heard the details of that day from the courtiers around Cao Cao, he felt deeply that he had a great responsibility.He said to Cao Cao: "Let me meet Guan Yu as a good friend and find out his true intentions." After receiving Cao Cao's acquiescence, Zhang Liao paid a special visit to Guan Yu several days later.After chatting for a while, Zhang Liao gradually entered the topic of probing.He said: "It was I, Zhang Liao, who introduced you to the prime minister. Have you settled down in the capital recently?" Guan Yu said: "I will always remember your friendship and the prime minister's kindness deeply in my heart. But my heart is always with Liu Huangshu, not in the capital. Guan Yu in Xudu is just a sloughing cicada." "Haha!" Zhang Liao smiled and looked at Guan Yu frequently, "A man should not be obsessed with trivial matters, but should consider his own conduct in the overall situation. Now the prime minister is the most important minister of the court, and you are still envious of the old master. , is really stupid." "I am very aware of the great kindness the prime minister has shown me. But these are only shown in the form of rewards, and the oath between Guan Yu and Uncle Liu is not an item, but a heart-to-heart contract." "No, this is your misunderstanding. Prime Minister Cao is also a man of temperament, and his admiration for righteous men is no less than that of Liu Xuande." "However, the friendship between Uncle Liu Huang and I was forged in the poverty-stricken period when we had no soldiers. It was a vow to go through all difficulties and share life and death. Even so, not thinking about the kindness of the prime minister was also affected by the sentiment of the general. It is not allowed. So once something happens, I will definitely take corresponding actions, first repay the prime minister for his usual kindness, and then consider leaving." "Then...if Liu Xuande is no longer in this world, what should you do?" "Even if the lord goes underground, my admiration for him will never change." Zhang Liao felt that he had spoken very frankly, but facing Guan Yu's hard heart was still difficult to work, so he stopped trying to persuade him. After leaving Guan Yu’s residence and returning home, Zhang Liao was troubled by himself, thinking to himself: “The prime minister is the lord, and Yu Yi is like a father. Guan Yu is a close friend who understands God, and Yu Yi is like a brother. And lying to your father is disloyalty. Ah, what should I do?" Zhang Liao finally made up his mind: Even if he understood Guan Yu's loyalty, he could not deceive his lord. "I went to meet Guan Yu. After we chatted, I tested him in various ways, but I still couldn't see that he had any intention of staying. Although he deeply felt the kindness of the prime minister, I think he still I didn't change my mind and wanted to serve the second lord." Zhang Liao replied to Cao Cao according to the facts.Cao Cao is worthy of being a dignified man. He didn't get angry when he heard this, but just let out a long sigh: "Being the king but not forgetting the root, Guan Yu is really a righteous man in the world. Let him go sooner or later! Let him go back sooner or later! Ah, there is really no way." .” Zhang Liao hastily added: "However, Guan Yu said something like this again. If there is such a day, he will first repay the prime minister's kindness, and then leave." Hearing what Zhang Liao said, Xun Yu said from the side as if talking to himself: "Of course! Of course! A loyal man must also be a benevolent man. So as long as Guan Yu is not allowed to make meritorious service, he has to stay in Xudu."