cold。 Floating clouds covered the whole sky。 Before they had gone far; a bitter wind began to blow in their faces; and the snow began to fly。 Soon the mountains were of jade and the trees of silver。
〃It is very cold and the earth is frozen hard; no fighting is possible now;〃 said Zhang Fei。 〃Yet we are going all this way to get advice which will be useless to us。 Where is the sense of it? Let us rather get back to Xinye out of the cold。〃
Liu Bei replied; 〃I am set upon proving my zeal to Zhuge Liang。 But if you; my brother; do not like the cold; you can return。〃
〃I do not fear death: Do you think I care for the cold? But I do care about wasting my brothers energies;〃 said Zhang Fei。
〃Say no more;〃 said Liu Bei; and they traveled on。
When they drew near the little wood; they heard singing in a roadside inn and stopped to listen。 This was the song:
Although possessed of talent rare;
This man has made no name;
Alas! The day is breaking late
That is to show his fame。
O friends you know the Lu Wangs tale:
The aged man constrained to leave
His cottage by the sea;
To follow in a princes train
His counselor to be。
Eight hundred feudal chieftains met
Who came with one accord;
The happy omen; that white fish;
That leapt the boat aboard;
The gory field in distant wilds。
Whence flowed a crimson tide;
And him acknowledged chief in war
Whose virtues none denied;
That Zhang Liang; a Gaoyang rustic;
Fond of wine; who left; his native place
And went to serve so faithfully
The man of handsome face;
And one who spoke of ruling chiefs
In tones so bold and free;
But sitting at the festive board
Was full of courtesy;
And one; that was he who laid in dust
Walled cities near four score
But humans of doughty deeds like these
On earth are seen no more。
Now had these humans not found their lord
Would they be known to fame?
Yet having found; they served him well
And so achieved a name。