Three Kingdoms: Red Cliff · chapter 8 of 8
Huarong Road
华容道
Cao Cao limps home in the rain, laughing at his enemies, until a red-faced general appears on the road. Old debts and honor decide the last move.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 大火烧了一夜。曹操带着剩下的兵，走进了华容道。天下起了雨，路上全是泥。
Dà huǒshāo le yí yè. Cáo Cāo dài zhe shèngxià de bīng, zǒujìn le Huáróng Dào. Tiānxià qǐ le yǔ, lùshàng quánshì ní.
The fire burned all night. Cao Cao led his remaining soldiers onto Huarong Road. It began to rain, and the road was all mud.
- The Young Soldier 大人……我的鞋掉在泥里了……我的脚好冷……
Dàrén… wǒ de xié diào zài nílǐ le… wǒ de jiǎo hǎo lěng…
Sir... my shoe fell off in the mud... my feet are so cold...
- Cao Cao 别说话了，省点力气。再走一会儿，我们就到家了。
Bié shuōhuà le, shěng diǎn lìqi. Zài zǒu yíhuì'er, wǒmen jiù dào jiā le.
Stop talking and save your strength. A little farther and we'll be home.
Chapter 8 is part of SayMei Stories ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Chapter 1 of Three Kingdoms: Red Cliff is free, and so are The Second Cup of Tea, Mulan, The Butterfly Lovers, Journey to the West: The Monkey King, Cinderella, The Night of the Nian, Chang'e and the Moon, The Great Race: The Twelve Animals, Aesop's Fables, Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Little Pigs, The Ugly Duckling, Pangu and Nüwa: How the World Began, Beauty and the Beast, The Magic Lotus Lantern, Alice in Wonderland, Zhong Kui the Demon Queller, The Odyssey, Robin Hood, Jiang Ziya Goes Fishing, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Kitchen God from start to finish.
- The Young Soldier 大人，我的鼓也没有了。要是有鼓，我还可以敲几下，给大家加加油。
Dàrén, wǒ de gǔ yě méiyǒu le. Yàoshi yǒugǔ, wǒ hái kěyǐ qiāo jǐ xià, gěi dàjiā jiā jiāyóu.
Sir, I lost my drum too. If I had it, I could drum a bit and cheer everyone up.
- Cao Cao 你的鼓，比周瑜的火还热闹。留着力气吧，等回了家，你再敲。
Nǐ de gǔ, bǐ Zhōu Yú de huǒ hái rènào. Liúzhuó lìqi ba, děng huí le jiā, nǐ zài qiāo.
Your drum is noisier than Zhou Yu's fire. Save your strength, and when we're home you can drum.
- Cao Cao's Adviser 大人，前面有两条路。大路很远，小路近一些，可是小路上有很多烟。
Dàrén, qiánmiàn yǒu liǎng tiáolù. Dàlù hěn yuǎn, xiǎolù jìn yì xiē, kěshì xiǎo lùshàng yǒu hěnduō yān.
Sir, there are two roads ahead. The main road is far, and the small road is shorter, but there's a lot of smoke on it.
- Cao Cao's Adviser 大人，士兵们又冷又饿，可以停下来煮点饭吗？
Dàrén, shìbīng men yòu lěng yòu è, kěyǐ tíngxiàlái zhǔ diǎn fàn ma?
Sir, the men are cold and hungry. Can we stop and cook some rice?
- Cao Cao 锅都丢在江里了，拿什么煮？先走吧，路上再想办法。
Guō dōu diū zài jiānglǐ le, ná shénme zhǔ? Xiān zǒu ba, lùshàng zài xiǎng bànfǎ.
The pots were all lost in the river. What would we cook in? Let's go first and figure something out on the way.
- Cao Cao 有烟，就是有人。周瑜和诸葛亮，是想让我们走大路。
Yǒuyān, jiùshì yǒurén. Zhōu Yú hé Zhūgě Liàng, shì xiǎng ràng wǒmen zǒu dàlù.
Smoke means people. Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang want us to take the main road.
- Cao Cao 那我们偏偏走小路！哈哈哈！他们也不过如此！
Nà wǒmen piānpiān zǒu xiǎolù! Hāhāhā! Tāmen yě búguò rúcǐ!
So we'll take the small road on purpose! Ha ha ha! They're nothing special after all!
- Cao Cao 要是我来用兵，我一定会在这里放一队人。周瑜和诸葛亮，太不聪明了！
Yàoshi wǒlái yòngbīng, wǒ yídìng huì zài zhèlǐ fàng yíduì rén. Zhōu Yú hé Zhūgě Liàng, tài bù cōngming liǎo!
If I were commanding, I'd surely put a troop of men right here. Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang are not so clever!
- The Young Soldier 大人……大人，您别笑了……前面……前面有人！
Dàrén… dàrén, nín bié xiào le… qiánmiàn… qiánmiàn yǒurén!
Sir... sir, please stop laughing... ahead... there's someone ahead!
- Guan Yu 曹丞相，我等你很久了。
Cáo chéngxiàng, wǒ děng nǐ hěn jiǔ le.
Prime Minister Cao, I have been waiting for you a long time.
- Cao Cao 云长……原来是你。
Yúncháng… yuánlái shì nǐ.
Yunchang... so it's you.
- Guan Yu 奉军师的命令，在这里等丞相。
Fèng jūnshī de mìnglìng, zài zhèlǐ děng chéngxiàng.
On the strategist's orders, I wait here for you, Prime Minister.
- Cao Cao 云长，我今天败了，兵也没了。你还记得吗？以前我对你不错。
Yúncháng, wǒ jīntiān bài le, bīng yě méi le. Nǐ hái jìde ma? Yǐqián wǒ duì nǐ búcuò.
Yunchang, today I've lost, and my army is gone. Do you remember? I treated you well in the past.
- Guan Yu 我记得。丞相给我红马，给我金子。我也为丞相打过一仗，算是还了一次。
Wǒ jìde. Chéngxiàng gěi wǒ hóng mǎ, gěi wǒ jīnzi. Wǒ yě wèi chéngxiàng dǎguò yízhàng, suànshì hái le yí cì.
I remember. You gave me a red horse and gold. I also fought a battle for you, which I count as one repayment.
- Cao Cao 可是我从来没有拦过你。你要走，我就让你走。今天，请你也让我走，好不好？
Kěshì wǒ cónglái méiyǒu lánguò nǐ. Nǐ yào zǒu, wǒ jiùràng nǐ zǒu. Jīntiān, qǐng nǐ yě ràng wǒ zǒu, hǎo bù hǎo?
But I never stopped you. When you wanted to go, I let you go. Today, please let me go too. Will you?
- Guan Yu ……唉。
… āi.
... (a heavy sigh)
- The Young Soldier 大人，他……他在想。他的手，在发抖。
Dàrén, tā… tā zài xiǎng. Tā de shǒu, zài fādǒu.
Sir, he... he's thinking. His hand is trembling.
- Guan Yu 曹丞相，军令如山，可是我关羽这一生，最看重的就是一个“义”字。
Cáo chéngxiàng, jūnlìng rú shān, kěshì wǒ Guān Yǔ zhè yìshēng, zuì kànzhòng de jiùshì yí gè “yì” zì.
Prime Minister Cao, an order is heavy as a mountain. But in my whole life, the thing I hold dearest is loyalty and honor.
- Guan Yu 来人！退后，让开一条路。
Lái rén! Tuìhòu, ràngkāi yì tiáo lù.
Men! Step back and clear the road.
- Narrator 关羽拨转马头，让开了路。曹操和他的兵，低着头，慢慢地走了过去。
Guān Yǔ bōzhuǎn mǎtóu, ràngkāi le lù. Cáo Cāo hé tā de bīng, dīzhetóu, mànmàn dì zǒu le guòqù.
Guan Yu turned his horse aside and left the road open. Cao Cao and his men walked slowly past with their heads bowed.
- The Young Soldier 谢谢您，红脸的大爷……
Xièxienín, hóngliǎn de dàyé…
Thank you, Red-Faced Sir...
- Cao Cao 云长……多谢。
Yúncháng… duōxiè.
Yunchang... thank you.
- Guan Yu 军师，我放走了曹操。请军师按军令处罚我。
Jūnshī, wǒ fàngzǒu le Cáo Cāo. Qǐng jūnshī àn jūnlìng chǔfá wǒ.
Strategist, I let Cao Cao go. Please punish me according to the military order.
- Liu Bei 军师，云长是我的兄弟。请你看在我的面子上，饶了他吧。
Jūnshī, Yúncháng shì wǒ de xiōngdì. Qǐng nǐ kàn zài wǒ de miànzi shàng, ráo le tā ba.
Strategist, Yunchang is my brother. For my sake, please spare him.
- Zhuge Liang 主公不用担心。我早就知道，云长会放他走。
Zhǔgōng búyòng dānxīn. Wǒ zǎojiù zhīdào, Yúncháng huìfàng tā zǒu.
Don't worry, my lord. I knew all along that Yunchang would let him go.
- Guan Yu 军师……你早就知道？那你为什么还派我去？
Jūnshī… nǐ zǎojiù zhīdào? Nà nǐ wèishénme hái pài wǒ qù?
Strategist... you knew? Then why did you send me?
- Zhuge Liang 因为你欠他的人情，总有一天要还。今天还清了，以后再在战场上见到他，你就不用再犹豫了。
Yīnwèi nǐ qiàn tā de rénqíng, zǒngyǒu yì tiān yào hái. Jīntiān huánqīng le, yǐhòu zài zài zhànchǎng shàng jiàndào tā, nǐ jiù búyòng zài yóuyù le.
Because a debt of kindness must be repaid someday. Now it's paid, and next time you meet him on a battlefield, you won't hesitate.
- Guan Yu 军师……多谢。我明白了。
Jūnshī… duōxiè. Wǒ míngbai le.
Strategist... thank you. I understand.
- Liu Bei 云长，你回来就好。天快黑了，大家先吃一点儿东西吧。
Yúncháng, nǐ huílái jiù hǎo. Tiānkuài hēi le, dàjiā xiān chī yìdiǎnr dōngxi ba.
Yunchang, I'm just glad you're back. It's getting dark, so let's all eat something first.
- Liu Bei 曹操走了，可是我们还是没有自己的城。军师，我们该去哪儿？
Cáo Cāo zǒu le, kěshì wǒmen háishi méiyǒu zìjǐ de chéng. Jūnshī, wǒmen gāi qù nǎr?
Cao Cao is gone, but we still have no city of our own. Strategist, where should we go?
- Zhuge Liang 荆州，主公。荆州就在前面。不过……周都督也在看着荆州。这一次，我们要比他快一步。
Jīngzhōu, zhǔgōng. Jīngzhōu jiù zài qiánmiàn. Búguò… Zhōu dūdū yě zài kànzhe Jīngzhōu. Zhè yí cì, wǒmen yào bǐ tā kuài yí bù.
Jingzhou, my lord. Jingzhou lies just ahead. But Commander Zhou is watching Jingzhou too. This time, we must be one step faster than he is.
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- What is the weather like on Huarong Road?
“天下起了雨，路上全是泥”
- Why does Cao Cao decide to take the small road?
“周瑜和诸葛亮，是想让我们走大路”
- Who is waiting for Cao Cao on the road?
“曹丞相，我等你很久了”
- What does Guan Yu do in the end?
“退后，让开一条路”
- Why does Zhuge Liang say he sent Guan Yu?
“你欠他的人情，总有一天要还”