Chapter Twelve: High Bridge Saddle

  Liu Ze stood on the city wall, witnessing the entire battle process. Although he was just a bystander, his blood was boiling and his heart was racing. This is war! Cruel and bloody war! For someone who had lived in peace for 40 years, everything before him was too shocking. Chaotic world, this is the real chaotic world! Today, he could only be an onlooker, but in the future, if he wanted to survive in this chaotic world, he couldn't remain just an onlooker anymore.

  Gongsun Zan returned to the city amidst the cheers of his soldiers, today he was undoubtedly the most brilliant, the first to charge into the enemy array, killing two enemy generals, only a little short of capturing the Xianbei leader Tanshihuai. The white cloak behind him was stained with blood.

  Liu Bei went forward to welcome him, clasped his hands and congratulated: "Elder brother Bo You, with bravery surpassing the three armies, leading by personal example, a true hero of the ages!"

  "My humble brother has overpraised me. Today's complete victory is thanks to the efforts of our three armies and the unity of our officers and soldiers. How could I dare to monopolize the credit?" Gong Sun Zan said with humility, but his flying spirit revealed that he was indeed very pleased today.

  "Gongsun brother, in terms of bravery and strategic vision, there are hardly a few people in the world who can compare to him. His future achievements will definitely surpass those of Wei Qing and Huo Qubing." Liu Ze's praise was not insincere, for in the next twenty years, Gongsun Zan would dominate several northern states, resist the Huns in the north, and fight against Yuan Shao in the south, making him a prominent hero.

  Gongsun Zan burst out laughing, and Liu Ze compared him to Wei Hao, which made him very pleased. "Younger brother is overpraising me, if Zan can just catch a glimpse of the back of Wei Hao's head, he will be satisfied."

  "I wonder how Director Zhao is doing?" Both his wife and mother had passed away, the blow to Zhao Bo was probably too great. How much pressure could he withstand in order to command the army to defeat the Xianbei? Liu Ze held Zhao Bo in high esteem, hence this question.

  Mentioning Zhao Bo, Gong Sunzhan's expression also became somewhat melancholy. "Zhao Taishou found the bodies of his wife and mother in the chaotic army, wailed and fainted, unconscious for a long time. His second brother has already helped him back to the mansion to rest. If it weren't for Zhao Taishou's sacrifice of filial piety for righteousness, and Madam Zhao's sacrifice for the sake of her son, I'm afraid our army would have had no chance of winning."

  Liu Ze sighed, "Zhao Taishou was loyal to the country, bearing the pain of losing his mother and wife. With great righteousness, he defeated the enemy on the battlefield. If our Great Han Dynasty had more officials like Zhao Taishou, how could we worry about not destroying the Xianbei or the Hu barbarians?"

  The three of them sighed for a while, and Gongsun Zan bid farewell and left to return to his camp to report.

  Three days later, the three armies dressed in mourning attire and escorted the coffins of Lady Zhao and Madam Qiao out of the city for burial, with tens of thousands of people wailing together.

  Zhao Bao knelt down in front of his mother's tomb, weeping and saying: "To eat one's salary while avoiding danger is not loyalty; to kill one's mother to preserve righteousness is not filial piety. If it were so, what face would I have to stand in the world?" Then he looked up at the sky and let out a long wail, spitting out several pints of blood. Gong Sunyang hastily summoned doctors to save him, but Zhao Bao's liver and gallbladder were both shattered, and there was no medicine that could cure him.

  All the soldiers and civilians cried, even Liu Ze couldn't help but shed tears. To resist foreign enemies, they abandoned filial piety to seek loyalty; after defeating the enemy, they sacrificed their lives to seek filial piety. Loyalty was the ultimate loyalty, and filial piety was the ultimate filial piety. However, such loyal and filial heroes were rarely known to later generations, which is truly lamentable.

  Gongsun Zan had no choice but to bury Zhao Yun and his wife together in one place, and reported the details to the imperial court. After the matter at Liu City was settled, Gongsun Zan led his army back to the city of Liaoxi Commandery. Gongsun Zan also wanted to go to Yang Le, so naturally Liu Bei and Liu Ze went together as well.

  Yang Le, a hundred and eighty miles away, can only be ridden on horseback. Looking at the horse brought over by the groom, Liu Ze's scalp was numb. The stirrups were not made of iron, but two ropes hanging down from above, tied to a narrow wooden board that served as the stirrup, and it was only one-sided, probably just for convenience when getting on and off the horse. As for the saddle, it was even more crude, just a cloth package tied to the horse's back. Can this be ridden? Thinking of Gongsun Zan and Baima Yi, who rode such horses galloping across the land, how did they do it?

  Gongsun Zan saw Liu Ze's predicament and burst out laughing: "Younger brother, haven't you ever ridden a horse before?"

  As for horse riding, Liu Ze had indeed ridden a horse before, but that was in modern times with a complete set of saddles and stirrups. As for this kind of horse, which is almost no different from a bareback horse, Liu Ze had never ridden one before. However, he didn't want to show weakness in front of Gong Sunzhan, so he gritted his teeth and stepped onto the horse's back with force, nearly falling off the other side. Liu Ze hastily grabbed the reins tightly and didn't dare let go again. Fortunately, this horse was quite gentle and slowly walked away from Liucheng with Liu Ze on its back.

  Gongsun Xuan, Gongsun Fan and others were seeing off Gongsun Jue at the city gate. When they saw Liu Ze, Gongsun Fan's eyes became much darker, and as Liu Ze passed by his side, he could still hear the sound of his teeth chattering.

  Liu Ze, however, was not convinced. A young master like him who only knew about music, color, dogs, and horses would probably amount to nothing in the future, so what was there to be afraid of? Liu Ze couldn't help but smile inwardly, casting a meaningful glance at Gong Sunfan.

  Gongsun Fan's face turned red with rage, his seven orifices smoking with fury. He was so angry that he wished to rush forward and tear Liu Ze in two. Gongsun Xuan rebuked him in a low voice, barely managing to stop him, but his gaze grew even more venomous.

  Liu Ze didn't bother to respond, and the troops marched out of Liu City in an imposing manner, heading east. After leaving the city, the speed of the march clearly accelerated, and Liu Ze also felt the jolting on horseback becoming more intense, making him even less daring to move around, his legs tightly clamping the horse's belly, his hands tightly grasping the reins, his entire body almost completely bent over on the horse's back.

  Gongsun Zan burst out laughing and said, "Younger brother, you can't ride a horse like that. When you get off the horse later, I'm afraid you won't even know how to walk on the road. Relax a bit and keep your balance." Gongsun Zan patiently taught Liu Ze the key to riding a horse, and Liu Ze was not stupid, quickly grasping the essentials, making horseback riding much easier.

  "Gongsun brother, why is the stirrup made like this on one side? Wouldn't it be more convenient to have stirrups on both sides when riding a horse?" Liu Ze finally had a chance to ask the question that had been on his mind.

  "This stirrup is convenient for mounting, so it's only on one side. Oh, but younger brother said that if there were stirrups on both sides, it would be much more convenient to ride, especially for beginners like younger brother, double-sided stirrups are more suitable."

  Liu Ze smiled slightly, wasn't Gong Sun Zan stupid? He had just proposed the idea of bilateral stirrups and Gong Sun Zan was able to understand its benefits. However, the limitations of the era still didn't allow him to fully comprehend the true purpose of bilateral stirrups. To make cavalry truly effective, high-bridge saddles and bilateral stirrups were indispensable. The high-bridge saddle's ends changed from smooth to high and curved, limiting the rider's front and back sliding, providing vertical stability, while the bilateral stirrups provided horizontal stability by fixing both feet, making the horse and rider a single entity, freeing up the rider's hands, whether using bows and arrows or long-handled weapons, could be completed on the back of a galloping horse, greatly enhancing the combat effectiveness of cavalry.

  After returning to Yang Le, Liu Ze immediately asked Gong Sun Cai for several carpenters and leather workers. He wanted to make a few things. Gong Sun Cai was puzzled and didn't know what kind of trick Liu Ze had up his sleeve. When he asked him, Liu Ze just smiled and remained silent. However, Gong Sun Cai still assigned several skilled carpenters and leather workers to Liu Ze, letting him do whatever he wanted.

  Two days later, Liu Ze led Gong Sunzhan to the school field. Gong Sunzhan took a look and found that the horse on the field was none other than his own white dragon steed, but there was something strange on its back. It had two high ends and a concave middle, with a stirrup hanging from each side of the horse. The stirrups' footrests were also changed to double-layered, widened and thickened.

  Gongsun Zan's face was full of doubt, and he said: "Is this what you've been working on for the past two days, younger brother?"

  "Gongsun brother can get on the horse and try it out, the wonderful use of this thing can only be known by trying it." Liu Ze didn't let him split words and pulled Gongsun Zan to the front of Baidi, urging him to get on the horse and try it.

  Gongsun Zan got on the horseback, although he didn't understand the situation. At that moment, Gongsun Zan immediately felt the wonderful use of the high-bridge saddle and double-sided stirrups. The wooden part of the high-bridge saddle fixed his buttocks firmly on the horseback, while the soft leather material in the middle of the saddle was exceptionally comfortable. With both feet stepping on the stirrups, he had a solid footing, and when galloping, he almost didn't need to hold the reins, feeling as stable as Mount Tai.

  After galloping around the school field at high speed for several laps, Gongsun Zan jumped off his horse and rushed to Liu Ze's face, excitedly waving his hands and feet. "Great! It's really great! With these two things, sitting on a horseback is as stable as a rock! Younger brother, how did you come up with such a good thing?"

  Liu Ze smiled and said, "This high saddle and double-sided stirrup were both created by our sect's founder. He once said that if we want to create a cavalry team that shakes the heavens, these two things are indispensable."

  "Yes, with this saddle and stirrup, the combat effectiveness of cavalry can be increased by at least five times. Younger brother, you gave me such a good thing, how can I repay you?" Gong Sun Zan was extremely excited, suddenly increasing the combat effectiveness of cavalry by five times. Who in the world could resist such a cavalry?

  "Gongsun brother, no need to thank you. If it weren't for Gongsun brother, my life would have been lost in Liu City long ago. I dare not speak of the great kindness, I am not talented, but I know a little skill, and I offer it to Gongsun brother to boost military prestige."

  Gongsun Zan was overjoyed and immediately reported to Gongsun Yang. At first, Gongsun Yang also dared not believe it, but after personally testing the horse, he was overjoyed and took out a whole tray of gold to reward Liu Ze. Liu Ze refused to accept it, so the Gongsun brothers had no choice but to give up and respect him even more. They held a small banquet every three days and a grand banquet every five days, treating Liu Ze and Liu Bei as honored guests.

  When he was in Liu City, Gong Sunzhan treated Liu Ze as a younger brother and helped him out. Unexpectedly, the unremarkable Liu Ze not only created the signal fire to transmit messages but also invented the horse stirrup, greatly increasing the combat effectiveness of the Gong Sun family. He is simply a lucky star sent by heaven to the Gong Sun family. Gong Sunzhan was truly grateful for his wise decision at that time. Gong Sunfan was really foolish and didn't recognize the value of Liu Ze.

  Liu Ze's body recovered quickly, and in just a few days at Yang Le, the wound was completely healed, leaving almost no scars. Liu Ze couldn't help but secretly sigh, being young is really great!

  Liu Bei has been thinking that the holiday is about to end, and he wants to return home as soon as possible. Firstly, the new semester at Lu Zhi Academy is about to start, and secondly, Liu Bei is eager to take his brother back to see their parents. He discussed with Gongsun Zan about returning, and Gongsun Zan agreed that they would set off for Zhuo County the next day, as he also needed to return to Lu's Academy to study.

  Just as they were about to set off, an imperial edict arrived from the imperial court.