Chapter 38: Zhongshan Horse Merchant

  Liu Ze and Guan Yu exchanged a smile, Zhang Fei was indeed hot-tempered.

  Two men were about to go out and take a look, but Zhang Fei came back with his head down, sat silently on the mat, picked up a cup of wine and drank it all in one gulp. Liu Zeqi said: "Third brother, how did you come back in the blink of an eye?"

  Zhang Fei snorted: "What horse thieves? They're just a few merchants selling horses."

  Liu Ze's eyes lit up, and he thought to himself that it was easy to get what he wanted without having to go out of his way. He had been worried about the war horses, but now everything was taken care of. Before he could even step out, the horse merchants had already entered the store, ordering wine and dishes, and starting to eat.

  Liu Ze stepped forward and bowed, exchanging a few pleasantries. The merchants, seeing Liu Ze's courtesy, also rose to return the bow. One of them, a slightly taller man with a pale face and short mustache, said: "I take it that you are from Youzhou by your accent, young master?"

  "He was indeed from Zhuo County in Youzhou Prefecture."

  A slightly shorter and younger merchant beside him happily said, "Our ancestors were also from Youzhou Jixian, meeting fellow countrymen in a foreign land is a joyful thing, let's have a drink together!"

  "Hey, aren't you two horse traders Su Shuang and Zhang Shipei?" suddenly said Zhang Fei, who was drinking with his head down on the other side.

  The two turned their heads and rushed to pay their respects, saying: "So it's the young master of Zhang, the official from Zhuo County! Forgive me for not showing respect earlier. I heard that Young Master Zhang spent all his family's wealth to do big business in the capital, but didn't expect to meet you here."

  Zhang Fei smiled awkwardly and said, "What big business can I do? It's just a matter of making a living."

  Their conversation was clearly heard by Liu Ze, Su Shuang and Zhang Shiping, weren't they the two big merchants from Zhongshan who gave gold, iron, and horses to Liu Bei when he started his uprising? Who would have thought that they would meet again today.

  "So it seems that you two bosses are old acquaintances with my brother, please take a seat quickly."

  Zhang Fei said: "In the past, our family always bought horses from them, and we became familiar with each other after repeated transactions."

  "It just so happens that I want to buy some good horses, do you two bosses have any goods?" Liu Ze was most concerned about whether Su Shuang and Zhang Shi Ping had good horses in their hands.

  As soon as he heard that there was a deal to be made, Zhang Shiping became very excited. "Sir, you've asked the right person, we have all kinds of horses here, including horses from Pingzhou, Xiliang and Youzhou. But I don't know what your purpose is, are you going to ride them or use them for carriage?"

  "I want to buy a batch of horses suitable for cavalry use."

  "Is it warhorses that young master wants?"

  "That's right."

  Zhang Shiping looked up and down at Liu Ze, saying: "Young master, you don't know that the government strictly controls the buying and selling of military horses to prevent them from falling into the hands of bandits and thieves. We are law-abiding citizens and would never dare to do such a thing."

  Liu Ze smiled and said: "Boss Zhang, don't you think that's just a bunch of bandits?"

  Mr. Zhang hastily said, "Young master, please don't misunderstand, I have no other intention, let alone being familiar with Young Master Zhang, even if we didn't know each other, looking at your dignified appearance and refined demeanor, you must be doing legitimate business."

  "I'm sorry to bother you, but I have a sudden question. I deal in silk and porcelain, although my business is not large, I often travel between Sichuan, Jiangdong and other places. In these times, the roads are not safe, bandits and robbers frequently plunder in the wilderness. Although I have brave warriors under me, those thieves come and go without a trace, making it extremely difficult to capture them. What I regret is that my horse is not good, with the intention of killing the bandits but no strength to chase after them. I had thought of buying some good horses for emergency needs, but there are many people selling horses in the world, while good horses are even rarer, hence this question."

  "In these times, thieves and bandits are rampant, so it's necessary to have some precautions when traveling on the rivers and lakes. However, our business mainly deals with civilian horses, military horses are scarce and expensive, ordinary people can't afford them."

  "Price is no object, as long as it's a good horse."

  Zhang Shiping lowered his voice and said, "Among the horses we are transporting this time, there are fifty fine Wuhuan horses. Due to the official regulations, they are mixed with the Youzhou horses, but the quality of these horses is top-notch, even surpassing that of the cavalry horses used by the government troops."

  Liu Ze was overjoyed and hastily said: "Good, Old Man Zhang, I'll take all fifty of these Wuhuan horses. Just name a price."

  "We previously did business in Youzhou and were taken care of by Old Master Zhang, we are extremely grateful. These 50 Uwan horses can be sold to us at cost price."

  Liu Ze didn't care whether the price Zhang Shipei gave was really the cost or not, and immediately agreed with a mouthful of approval, excitedly going out to see the horse.

  Those fifty Ugo horses were indeed fine steeds, and although they were mixed in with the civilian horses, a discerning eye could pick them out at a glance. These Ugo horses stood a head taller than the ordinary civilian horses, their bodies more robust, their hooves strong and powerful, even their neighs louder. Zhang Fei immediately leapt onto the back of the nearest Ugo horse, which promptly reared up, shaking its head and tail, pawing at the ground with its hooves. Although it was a bareback ride without reins, Zhang Fei relied on brute force, his legs tightly clamped around the horse's belly, his hands grasping the horse's mane, to subdue the Ugo horse by sheer strength.

  "Ha ha! Big brother, this horse is really good!"

  Liu Ze carefully examined these Wuhuan horses, which were indeed much better than the ordinary horses used in the past. However, Liu Ze had been to the Inner Mongolian grasslands and had ridden the fine horses of the grasslands. The Wuhuan horses before him seemed to be lacking something. He raised his doubts.

  Su Shuang, who had been silent all along, smiled and said: "It seems that young Master Liu is also a connoisseur of horses. Indeed, these Wuhuan horses are better than those from Youzhou and Pingzhou, but they are not the best horses on the grasslands either. The same type of horse can be divided into upper, middle and lower grades. These barbarian tribes often raid our Great Han borders, so naturally they wouldn't sell us their top-grade horses. Just like how we only trade them food and cloth, but not ironware. Usually, we can only buy inferior horses that are only good for pulling carts, plowing fields or riding. They're far from being suitable as cavalry horses. This time, we managed to exchange for 50 mid-grade good horses, partly because of our long-term trading relationship with them, and partly because I secretly gave some bribes to a small leader of the Wuhuan tribe. That's how we were able to mix in 50 mid-grade good horses among the 500 inferior ones."

  "We also produce horses in our Great Han Dynasty's Youzhou and Bingzhou, why are they much inferior to the Hu horses?" Liu Ze asked, voicing out his doubts.

  "The Wuhuan, Xianbei and Xiongnu tribes have been living on the grasslands for a long time. Their horses are all domesticated from wild horses, which can largely guarantee pure breeding in horse reproduction. On our side, good horses are mostly conscripted into the army, where they are castrated as soon as they enter the camp. The remaining horses, after several generations of crossbreeding, naturally have poorer and poorer quality."

  Zhang Fei interrupted from the side: "Since it's a good horse, just keep it for breeding, why castrate all of them? Why didn't those barbarians castrate?"

  "When the spring comes, it is the time for horses to be in heat. If an army wants to go into battle on horseback at this time, won't they be in a state of confusion? The Hu people, however, come to raid our borders every autumn. Firstly, because the grain has ripened by then; secondly, because they avoid the horses' breeding season. This is why it's said that the Hu people's horses are superior to those of the Han - this is the main reason."

  Liu Ze asked: "Boss Su has been selling horses in the northwest for many years, I suppose you are familiar with the types, characteristics and temperaments of horses?"

  Su Shuang said with a self-satisfied smile: "Not bad, this is not Su's boasting, even if I cover my eyes and touch it, I can tell which horse is from where."

  "What kind of horse is the best choice if you want to organize a cavalry?"

  "The northern tribes: Xiongnu, Xianbei, and Wuhuan, their horses are roughly the same, we collectively refer to them as Northern horses. They have robust physique, strong endurance, fast movement, suitable for long-distance raids. These horses breed quickly, have low requirements for feed, and have a very strong adaptability, can survive in the wild regardless of extreme cold or heat. Of course, these horses are divided into three grades: upper, middle, and lower, the best choice for organizing cavalry is to use the upper and middle-grade horses."

  "These cavalrymen are wearing heavy armor, and their horses are also covered in heavy armor. I wonder if these horses can carry the load?"

  Su Shuang furrowed his brow and said, "Cavalry horses all wearing heavy armor? Neither the Hu people nor the Great Han cavalry have ever seen such equipment. If it's really as you say, Master, the northern horses will surely not be able to withstand the heavy load."

  The emergence of heavy cavalry was in medieval Europe hundreds of years later, and China also had full-body armor heavy cavalry during the Tang Dynasty. In the Three Kingdoms period, there was no such type of soldier, and the cavalry was mainly composed of archers and spearmen. Liu Ze asked this question after seeing those iron-clad knights who were invincible in the movie.

  Su Shuang continued: "If you want to take on this important task, it must be the great horse of Dawan in the Western Regions."

  Liu Ze's heart skipped a beat as he said, "But what about that legendary sweat-blooded horse?"