Is “Hou Cheng stole the Red Hare horse and presented it to Cao Cao” true?
In Chapter 19 of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, it is described that when Hou Cheng rebelled against Lü Bu, "that night Hou Cheng secretly went to the stable, stole the Red Hare horse, and galloped to the East Gate," presenting the Red Hare horse to Cao Cao. However, in the Records of the Three Kingdoms, Book of Wei, Biography of Lü Bu, Zhang Miao, and Zang Hong, it is only recorded that "his generals Hou Cheng, Song Xian, and Wei Xu bound Chen Gong and led their troops to surrender," with no mention of the theft of the Red Hare horse.
The novel fictionalizes the episode of Hou Cheng stealing Lü Bu's Red Hare horse, which is not mentioned in the official history.
This page was extracted from classical texts with AI assistance and revised; errors remain possible. Spotted a mistake? Tell us →