There was a three-day banquet in Chengdu, in which the army and civilians were delighted, except Zhang Fei, who was unhappy.
Gan Ning, who had the most similar temperament to him, took his brothers to show off everywhere after the drinking contest on the first day. When they returned to Shu County, they were very proud and naturally wanted to show off.
Zhao Yun, who was on good terms with others, did not drink excessively. Pang Tong had social engagements, so others did not dare to drink with him. His eldest and second brothers were not around, so he felt it was very boring.
After sitting at home all day, he felt really bored, so he went to see Gan Ning again. This free and easy-going man was very much to Zhang Fei's liking.
When we arrived at the Jinfan Army camp, we heard a lot of laughter. Soldiers gathered in twos and threes, drinking, fighting, gambling, etc., and screaming from time to time.
Zhang Fei immediately spotted the tall and unusual-looking Shamoke in the crowd. He was watching a fight between several barbarian soldiers and Jinfan soldiers. There was a pile of copper coins on the table, and he was waving his fist to cheer.
Zhang Fei rolled up his sleeves and rushed into the arena, pulling Shamoke with him: "Come on, come on, let's have a fight too."
"No, no, no!" Shamoko shook his head like a rattle, "I am no match for you."
Zhang Fei became interested and said with a smile: "What's wrong with sparring?"
"General Zhang, if you want to watch the fun, I have plenty of wine and meat here. If you want to gamble, you can place a bet, but you don't need to get involved in the martial arts competition, right?"
Shamoke pulled Zhang Fei to sit down. Anyone who dared to fight with him would be killed by the fatal blows once they had agreed to stop at a certain point. Although it would not be fatal, the victim would still be skinned.
Zhang Fei still argued confidently, calling it "truthfulness is the most important thing". If we don't use our full strength, how can we make progress
It's easy to talk without any pain, but it turns out that you are the one who gets beaten
"Boring, gambling is boring!" Zhang Fei looked at it for a while and shook his head, then asked, "Where is Gan Ning?"
"Xingba?" Shamoko stood up, stretched his neck and looked around, pointing to an old locust tree in the northwest: "Isn't it there?"
Zhang Fei looked over and saw Gan Ning in casual clothes, with his chest half uncovered, shaking dice with his sleeves rolled up. There were many soldiers around him, and if one did not look carefully, it would be difficult to spot him. He was surprised and asked, "Why is Xingba playing with the soldiers?"
Shamoke laughed and said, "My brother-in-law is a spendthrift, but he is famous for his addiction and poor skills. He will not stop until he loses all the reward money."
Zhang Fei snorted coldly and strode over. He saw Gan Ning handing out a large amount of money amid cheers. He kept cursing Gan Ning, but his face was full of smiles.
Gan Ning was sweating profusely after losing. Seeing Zhang Fei approaching, he waved and said, "Ah, Yide, you've come at the right time. Come and play a few rounds and give my brother some money for wine."
"Gan Xingba, come here!" Zhang Fei grabbed Gan Ning by the collar, "I have something to tell you."
Gan Ning had no choice but to push the money on the table forward. The soldiers began to scramble for it and followed Zhang Fei to the side, asking, "General, what do you want from me?"
Zhang Fei's eyes widened, and he said in dissatisfaction: "I invited you to drink, but you said you had something to attend to, and you are here gambling with the soldiers. How can this be justified?"
"This is my socializing!" Gan Ning wiped the sweat off his face and said with a smile: "These are all my brothers. It's a rare opportunity to celebrate and rest, so of course I have to accompany them!"
"Gan Xingba!" Zhang Fei shouted, "You would rather accompany these little soldiers than drink with me. It's obvious that you look down on me, Zhang Fei!"
"What do you mean by little soldiers?" Gan Ning pulled Zhang Fei to sit under the shade of a tree in the corner and said seriously, "They are all my good brothers who have been through thick and thin with me."
"Brother?" Zhang Fei glared and said, "Then what am I?"
"Best friends, confidants!" Gan Ning said with emotion: "Confidants are hard to come by, one or two is enough, but brothers are good to share joys and sorrows, the more the better. Without them, how can I be Gan Ning?"
"That's not right!" Zhang Fei snorted coldly, "We fought in battles, won meritorious service and were rewarded. That was all earned with our own abilities, with every sword and spear. What does it have to do with them?"
"Yide!" Gan Ning sighed and advised: "Speaking of this matter, I have to mention again that you punished your subordinates for no reason after drinking. Not only me, but others have advised you many times. Why don't you change?"
Zhang Fei said unhappily, "They follow me and have no worries about food and clothing. They follow me to make contributions. We each have our own duties. What's wrong with occasionally beating and scolding them?"
Gan Ning looked at Zhang Fei and said sternly, "General, you swore brotherhood with Liu Xuande and Guan Yu in Taoyuan. I envy you for your loyalty to each other, but why does your brotherhood stop there? Although brothers are close, we are now separated. As the saying goes, a distant relative is not as good as a close neighbor. If you don't treat your subordinates as brothers, how can they share the same heart with you?"
Zhang Fei frowned, and after a while he said, "My eldest brother is a relative of the Han Dynasty, and has great ambitions. My second brother is righteous and has unparalleled martial arts. They are both heroes of the time. I, Zhang Fei, respect them, so I made friends with them. Are these little soldiers also brothers?"
"People have different abilities, but everyone has only one life! They follow you and me, charging into battle, and they all give their all. Which one of them is not risking their lives?"
Gan Ning shook his head and sighed, pointing at the soldiers who were laughing in the field, and said slowly: "They have entrusted their lives to me. That is their trust in me. Isn't this a life-long friendship? When making friends, it is not about status, but sincerity. Although Guan Gong has the ability to fight against ten thousand enemies, when you are in danger, it is still these soldiers who accompany you day and night!"
Zhang Fei was stunned when he heard this. He thought of his friendship with Liu Bei and Guan Yu, but that was only between the three of them. Compared with the joyous scene before him, his own camp was empty and dull. He suddenly felt lonely.
At this moment, several soldiers came running over and said, "Boss, we just bought a hundred rabbit heads from East Street. We'll treat you to some."
Gan Ning raised his eyebrows and asked, "Do you have any wine?"
"Of course!" Several people came forward and grabbed Gan Ning, "We must get you drunk today."
Gan Ning turned around and said helplessly: "Yide, I will accompany you another day, you must be more careful!"
The group went away laughing, and soon they saw Gan Ning eating, drinking, laughing, and dancing with everyone else. Later, he was caught and thrown into the air, causing the whole camp to cheer like thunder.
Zhang Fei sat alone in the corner, his big eyes full of sadness, thinking of Liu Bei's admonition to treat his soldiers well, Liu Qi and Pang Tong also reminded him many times, and Guan Yu seemed to smile at his subordinates...
After sitting in silence for a while, Zhang Fei suddenly stood up, strode out of the camp, went straight to his residence, picked up his sword and went to the backyard to chop down an old elm tree. Seeing his gloomy face, the guards were frightened and stayed away from him, not daring to ask any questions.
Zhang Fei cut ten elm branches as thick as fingers, held them in his hands, and called all his personal guards together. He saw that everyone's faces were pale and some were even trembling.
"Take out my twenty jars of wine and take them to the barracks!"
After giving his orders, Zhang Fei went to the camp alone. Although there were many people sitting around chatting and laughing, it was far inferior to Gan Ning's camp.
When the soldiers saw Zhang Fei rushing to the camp gate, they were startled and rushed back to the barracks like rabbits seeing a wolf. The huge camp was empty and deserted in an instant.
"All camps assemble!" Zhang Fei shouted and went to the generals' platform to beat the drum himself.
When the soldiers in the camp gathered together in panic, Zhang Fei dropped the elm branch on the table with a snap, and everyone trembled with fear.
Zhang Fei slowly scanned the entire place and said in a deep voice, "Everyone who has been hit by me, stand up!"