Now one of his captains, Hou Chʻêng, lost fifteen horses, stolen by one Hou Tsʻao, who intended them for Yüan-tê. The owner found out where they were, went out after them and recovered them. And his colleagues congratulated him on his success. To celebrate the occasion he brewed a few catties of wine to be drunk at the feast, but thinking his chief might find him in fault he sent the bottles of wine to his palace with a petition explaining that by virtue of his lord’s warlike renown he had recovered his horses and asking that he and his comrades might be allowed a little wine at their feast. Lü Pu took it very angrily saying, “When I have forbidden all wine you brew some and begin to give feasts; you are simply defying me.” Whereupon he ordered the officer to instant execution. However, a number of his colleagues came in and interceded and after a time Lü Pu softened. “You ought to lose your head for this disobedience, but for the sake of your colleagues the punishment shall be reduced to a hundred strokes.” They tried to beg him off this, but only succeeded in reducing the number of blows to one half. When the sentence had been carried out and the offender was permitted to return home his colleagues came sadly to console him. “Had it not been for you I should have been put to death,” said Hou Chʻêng. Sung Hsien replied, “All he cares for is his family, there is no pity for any one else. We are no more than the weeds by the roadside.” Wei Hsü said, “The city is besieged, the water is drowning us out. There will not be much more of this for we may die any day.” “He is a beast, with neither a sense of humanity nor of right. Let us leave him,” said Hsien. “He is not worth fighting for. The best we could do would be to seize him and hand him over to Tsʻao Tsʻao.” “I was punished because I got my horses back again, yet all he trusts in is his own steed. If you two will betray the gate and seize Lü Pu I will steal the horse and go out to Tsʻao’s camp.” They settled how to carry out the plot and that very night Hou Chʻêng sneaked into the stables and got the Hare away. He hastened to the east gate which was opened to let him through. The guard made a pretence of pursuing him but only a pretence. Hou Chʻêng reached the besiegers’ camp, presented the horse and told Tsʻao what had been arranged. They would show a white flag and open the gates to his army. Hearing this Tsʻao had a few notifications written out, which were attached to arrows and shot over the walls. This is one of them:—“The General Tsʻao Tsʻao has received a command to destroy Lü Pu. Those who interfere with the operations of his grand army, whatever their rank, shall be put to death in the gate on the day that the city shall be captured. Should any one capture Lü Pu or bring his head he shall be well rewarded. Let all take note of this.”