Chapter 375: Silver Saddle Shines Upon the White Horse

In the last days of the fifth month of the twenty-seventh year of the First Emperor, to the endless drone of cicadas, the great gate of Desperate Land Long Wall slowly opened, and over a thousand black-clad Qin soldiers rode out beyond the frontier.

Riding at the very front was the commander-in-chief of the Black-Clad Brothers, Longxi Commandant Li Xin. Following not far beside him was Hei Fu, whom the First Emperor had appointed as River-Prayer Envoy—and this was the main purpose of their journey:

As the opening ceremony of the "Westward Expansion," the "White Horse and Black Hound" were to go to the upper reaches of the Great River to pray and perform sacrifices for the Emperor.

Their destination was roughly the area of later-era Lanzhou—neither very far, nor very near—and the state of the roads gave little cause for optimism.

War chariots, which could only show their might on flat ground, were useless here, so this force was composed purely of infantry and cavalry. Resupply beyond the frontier was difficult, and the nearest outpost was over a hundred li away, so they had not brought many men.

Hei Fu had originally intended to mount the tall, grand horse bestowed by the Emperor, but abandoned the idea after Li Xin advised against it: "Trust me, when patrolling beyond the frontier, mountains and ravines crisscross the land, and in many places there is no road at all. Sometimes we must probe our way through low thickets; when rain comes, horses' hooves slip easily. It is the worst terrain for riding a warhorse."

Warhorses have no patience and always want to gallop at full speed; for mountain paths they are far less reliable than old packhorses. Only when an alarm is raised midway and battle is joined do we switch to warhorses, so every cavalryman must have at least two horses.

"When we campaigned south against Yuzhang, the army was short of horses. I always led the soldiers on foot through the dense forests, so I did not know this."

Hei Fu thanked Li Xin for the reminder, while Li Xin's subordinates instinctively assumed that this dark-skinned young man from Nan Commandery probably knew nothing at all about cavalry warfare beyond the frontier.

"If you ask me, I doubt he can even sit steady on a horse."

Before setting out, Cavalry Commander Qiang Huang, who led two hundred horsemen, whispered privately with a few junior officers and aides. To these men, born and raised in Longxi and Beidi, southerners were only good at swimming and rowing; once on horseback, never mind drawing a bow and shooting, it would be a feat just to avoid falling off.

"When we reach the rough stretches, I rather want to see whether he'll be clinging to his horse's neck for dear life."

As he spoke, Qiang Huang placed his own saddle onto his horse's back.

Qin already had saddles. They were rectangular, the surface made of leather, stuffed with wool to thicken the cushion, and stitched around the edges with very fine leather cord, shaped like two pillows. Three straps bound it around the horse's belly, chest, and rump, fixing it firmly to the back.

It was said that this item was used by the northern Rong and Di peoples. Riding year-round, they discovered that padding the horse's back with something made it more comfortable. Later, King Wuling of Zhao, with his "barbarian dress and mounted archery," improved upon it, and it spread to Qin. With this item, large-scale cavalry numbering in the thousands and tens of thousands finally appeared in Qin, Zhao, and Yan. Qin military law also stipulated: "For commanders of chariots and cavalry, if the army's horses are not fully equipped, if saddles and bridles are not complete—execution."

Thus, preparing saddle and saddlecloth was a task every cavalryman had to complete before a march.

But in Hei Fu's eyes, this thing was less a saddle and more a rideable cushion—or a "low saddle." Low saddles could be folded up when not in use, which made them light and portable, but they were still not advanced enough.

In the past, Hei Fu had mainly fought in the south, traveling by war chariot, and had not ridden horses very often. But this time, accompanying the Emperor on his western tour, having already proposed the strategy of opening up the northwest, during the stop at Shanggui County he had someone make a new item in advance, precisely hoping it would prove useful beyond the frontier…

So, when readying the horses, Cavalry Commander Qiang Huang and the others, who had been waiting to see Hei Fu make a fool of himself, were astonished to discover that Hei Fu had his driver Sang Mu add an object to the backs of both their horses. It seemed to be made of wood, wrapped in leather, with both front and back raised high and the middle low. It pressed down on the saddlecloth and was also firmly fixed to the horse's back by three straps: the breast strap, the belly strap, and the crupper strap.

And on either side of this object, two flat-bottomed iron rings hung from leather straps…

They watched as Hei Fu steadied the horse, stepped onto the iron ring, and swung easily onto the horse's back, sitting steadily upon that object.

During the ride that followed, Hei Fu remained as steady as Mount Tai in the saddle. Where the terrain grew treacherous, the Longxi cavalry officers themselves had to clamp their legs tight to the horse's body while gripping the mane tightly with their hands just to keep from falling off.

Yet Hei Fu appeared completely relaxed and at ease, as if walking on level ground, and even had the leisure to gaze around at the scenery beyond the frontier. His riding skill seemed no less than that of the Rong and Di born and raised in Longxi…

"It must be because of that object on the horse's back."

The cavalry commanders whispered among themselves, but out of pride, none went over to ask Hei Fu about it. It was only after they crossed the Tao River that morning, while resting by the water, that Li Xin took the initiative to approach Hei Fu and ask.

"This is also a saddle—just call it a high saddle! It lets you sit much more steadily." Hei Fu did not keep it secret and generously told Li Xin.

"And this item is called a stirrup. It gives the foot a place to step while riding, so you don't have to clamp the horse's belly so hard, and your legs won't be sore and weak when you dismount."

After all, Hei Fu had many years of military experience himself. With that foundation, plus a saddle under his seat and stirrups to step on, giving his feet a base, riding was naturally far easier.

"My riding skill is not as practiced as yours, gentlemen. I was afraid of falling off and making a fool of myself."

He glanced at the Longxi cavalry commanders and officers craning their necks behind Li Xin and said with a smile: "So I can only rely on this object."

Cavalry Commander Qiang Huang, only eighteen or nineteen years old and the grandson of Grand Superior Qiang Lei, was somewhat unwilling to concede. He stirred the pot: "We all thought the Right Chief庶长 had superb riding skills. Turns out he relied on an external aid."

Before Hei Fu could speak, Li Xin had already glared fiercely at Qiang Huang: "Warfare is the way of deception! On the battlefield, knocking the enemy off his horse is victory—whether by bow and arrow or by tripping rope—who cares whether you relied on your own ability? If that were the case, why do we bother with thick armor and sharp blades, strong bows and powerful crossbows? Why not just go naked, with bare fists, and grapple with the enemy? Apologize to the Right Chief庶长 at once!"

Qiang Huang was thoroughly scolded and could only apologize to Hei Fu, stammering and not daring to speak further. Hei Fu, for his part, felt he truly had to see Li Xin in a new light.

That Li Xin who only knew how to charge recklessly and fight with brute force had died in the land of Jing and Chu. The man before him now was General Li—still brave and sharp, but with an added measure of steadiness and wisdom…

Hei Fu understood the temperament of these Longxi men and took no offense. He smiled and said: "General Li is right. Xunzi once said: 'He who borrows a carriage and horses does not have swifter feet, yet he can travel a thousand li; he who borrows a boat and oars does not know how to swim, yet he can cross rivers and seas. The noble man is by birth no different from others; he is simply good at borrowing from things.' With the high saddle and stirrups, a southerner like me can handle a horse no worse than a northerner or a Rong or Di who has grown up alongside horses!"

He looked at Li Xin: "And for someone whose riding skill is already superb, with these two items, it will be like adding wings to a tiger!"

"No wonder you are the Assistant Director of the Lesser Treasury who created hemp paper, and no wonder His Majesty says you often produce strange and brilliant ideas."

As a chariot and cavalry commander who had fought at the frontier for many years, Li Xin had already grasped the advantages of the high saddle and stirrups. The man he was now was long past being that arrogant youth who looked down on everyone; he caught the implication in Hei Fu's words and humbly asked Hei Fu to let him try them out.

Li Xin had someone lead over his beloved white horse. He fixed the high saddle firmly onto its back, his fingers gliding over the horse's mane. That silver mane matched his silver hair perfectly, possessing a kind of bleak, sorrowful beauty.

They watched as he stepped onto the stirrup and vaulted up in one motion! His feet barely even exerted force, and the reins in his hand did not even twitch, yet the white horse responded instantly, following its master's intent, neighing as it broke into a trot.

On both banks of the Tao River stretched a vast open grassland, perfect for fine horses to gallop. It was the fifth month; green grass covered the ground, spreading all the way to the distant high ridge, where clusters of small yellow flowers bloomed, trembling madly when the dry, fierce wind swept past. Among the thick grass and stones, there were quite a few foxes and hares.

The silver horse carried the white-haired general, crossing the grassland and ascending the high ridge. The horse was robust and swift, the general's bearing and appearance transcendent and peerless, and with the high saddle and stirrups, his hands were completely freed.

Li Xin took up the bow from his back, drew an arrow, and shot at full gallop. Nearly every time he drew the bowstring, a fox or hare fell dead to his arrow, drawing loud cheers and acclaim from the thousand-strong force.

Still not satisfied, he drew his sword and began performing difficult mounted maneuvers—forward and back, left and right, wheeling and advancing and retreating—extremely agile, dazzling the eyes.

When his speed reached its peak, man and horse became one, impossible to tell apart, silver saddle shining upon the white horse, swift as a shooting star!

Only the vermilion greatcloak billowing high behind Li Xin seemed like a pair of burning wings, ready to carry man and horse soaring into flight!

"Truly like adding wings to a tiger…" Qiang Huang watched, utterly entranced.

This was the charisma of a cavalry commander—even Hei Fu could not help but admire it. A phrase surfaced in his mind and burst from his lips!

"A true Flying General!"

"Indeed! Flying General!"

Qiang Huang and the other cavalry commanders who revered Li Xin loudly echoed the cry, cementing the title. Hei Fu thought it over carefully: Li Xin was, after all, the progenitor of the Longxi Li clan; Li Guang was his descendant. The great-grandfather stealing his great-grandson's title—nothing wrong with that.

Some of Li Xin's old comrades and former subordinates already had tears welling in their eyes. It had been so long since they had seen Li Xin gallop like this…

In this moment, that young general who had pursued Crown Prince Dan with light cavalry, leaping trenches, scaling hills, braving dangers, crossing great marshes, and slaying mighty foes—it was as if he had returned!

Only after a long while did Li Xin come galloping back from the high ridge, flanked by several mounted scouts who had been ordered to keep watch there, each carrying a pile of game—Li Xin's kills in that brief moment.

Just as Hei Fu was about to go over with the other cavalry officers to hear how Li Xin would praise the high saddle and stirrups, Li Xin's face was utterly grim as he shouted:

"The whole army on alert! Men to your horses! Crossbows stringed! Protect the Right Chief庶长 and the baggage train in the rear!"

Li Xin swept past the front of the troops, shouting a warning: "Qiang and Rong tribesmen are approaching us! They are already within ten li!"

PS: See the Qin saddle horse figurines in Pit 2 of the Terracotta Army, and the Taiping Yulan, juan 358, quoting the Six Bow-Cases: "For commanders of chariots and cavalry, if the army's horses are not fully equipped, if saddles and bridles are not complete—execution."

(End of Chapter)