温酒斩华雄
Slaying Hua Xiong Before the Wine Cools
Name: ________________ Date: ________
三兄弟带着他们的人，打了很多次黄巾军。过了几年，黄巾军没有了，可是一个更坏的人来了。他叫董卓。
董卓带着很多人进了都城，想让谁做皇帝，就让谁做皇帝。他还杀了很多人，大家都非常怕他。这时候，一个叫曹操的人给很多大人物写信：“我们一起去打董卓吧！”很快，十八个大人物带着自己的人来了，大家都听袁绍的。刘备三兄弟也跟着一个老同学来了。大家都不认识刘备，他只能坐在最后面。关羽和张飞站在他后面。
董卓那边来了一个大将，叫华雄。华雄又高又大，非常厉害。一个人出去打他，没打几下，就被华雄杀了。又一个人出去，也被华雄杀了。大家你看看我，我看看你，谁也不说话了。
袁绍说：“可惜我的两个大将颜良、文丑没有来！如果有一个在这里，我们还怕什么华雄！”
他还没说完，就有人大声说：“我去！我去把华雄的头带回来！”大家一看，这个人个子很高，脸是红色的，胡子很长。袁绍问：“他是谁？”有人说：“他是刘备的二弟，叫关羽。”袁绍又问：“他现在做什么？”“他在刘备那里当马弓手。”马弓手，就是骑着马射箭的小兵。
袁绍的弟弟袁术听了，马上大叫：“你是说我们这里没有大将吗？一个小兵，也敢这么说！快把他打出去！”
曹操说：“别生气。这个人敢这么说，就一定不简单。让他去试试吧，不行再说。”袁绍说：“让一个马弓手出去，华雄会笑我们的。”曹操说：“他看起来不像小兵，华雄怎么会知道呢？”关羽说：“如果我输了，就把我的头拿去！”
曹操让人倒了一杯热酒，送到关羽面前：“喝了再去吧！”关羽说：“酒先放在这里，我去一下就回来。”他拿起大刀，跳上马，就出去了。
很快，外面的鼓声越来越大，喊声也越来越大，好像天要掉下来一样。大家都很害怕，正想叫人出去看看，关羽已经回来了！他把华雄的头往地上一扔。那酒，还是热的。
张飞在后面大叫：“我二哥杀了华雄！现在不打过去，把董卓抓来，还等什么时候！”袁术又生气了：“我们这些大人物都没说话，你在这里大叫什么！出去！”曹操说：“谁做得好，我们都应该谢谢他，不要看他是大人物还是小兵。”可是袁术还是很生气。曹操就让三兄弟先回去了。那天晚上，他又让人偷偷给三兄弟送去了酒和肉。
华雄死了，董卓又急又生气。可是他身边还有一个人，比华雄还要厉害。这个人叫吕布。
Key words
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 可是 | kěshì | but; however |
| 更 | gèng | even more; more |
| 带 | dài | to bring; to take; to carry |
| 怕 | pà | to fear; to be afraid of |
| 只能 | zhǐnéng | can only; have no choice but to |
| 又 | yòu | again (it already happened again); and also |
| 如果 | rúguǒ | if |
| 脸 | liǎn | face |
| 马 | mǎ | horse |
| 骑 | qí | to ride (a horse, bike, etc.) |
| 马上 | mǎshàng | right away; immediately |
| 生气 | shēngqì | to get angry; to be mad |
Lesson plan: 45 minutes (for the teacher)
HSK 3 · Slaying Hua Xiong Before the Wine Cools. By the end, students can read it aloud, say what it is about and use 可是 and 更 in sentences of their own.
Warm-up 5 min
Write 温酒斩华雄 on the board. Ask what the class thinks it is about, then give the English: “Slaying Hua Xiong Before the Wine Cools”.
Key words 10 min
Teach 可是 (kěshì, but; however), 更 (gèng, even more; more), 带 (dài, to bring; to take; to carry), 怕 (pà, to fear; to be afraid of), 只能 (zhǐnéng, can only; have no choice but to), 又 (yòu, again (it already happened again); and also). Say each one, the class says it back, then ask for its meaning with the word covered. The rest are in the handout’s table.
Listen 10 min
Play it read aloud from mandarinthewild.com/library/read/slaying-hua-xiong-three-kingdoms-easy-chinese-2: once with the text face down, once reading along. Students tap any word there for its meaning.
Read and check 10 min
Students read it alone, then tell a partner in two sentences of Chinese what it says.
Use it 10 min
In pairs, each student writes two sentences of their own, one with 可是 and one with 更, and reads one to the class.
Homework. Students read it again at home and Review its words. Put it in a free class (mandarinthewild.com/teachers/class) and you see who read it.
English (for the teacher)
The three brothers and their men fought the Yellow Turbans many times. A few years later the Yellow Turbans were gone, but someone worse had come. His name was Dong Zhuo.
Dong Zhuo marched into the capital with a great many men and made whoever he liked emperor. He killed a great many people too, and everyone was terrified of him. Then a man called Cao Cao wrote to many of the great lords: "Let's fight Dong Zhuo together!" Soon eighteen lords had come with their own men, and they all took their orders from Yuan Shao. The three brothers came too, following an old schoolmate of Liu Bei's. Nobody knew who Liu Bei was, so he had to sit right at the back. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei stood behind him.
From Dong Zhuo's side came a great general called Hua Xiong. Hua Xiong was tall and huge, and terribly strong. One man rode out to fight him and, after only a few blows, was killed by Hua Xiong. Another rode out, and Hua Xiong killed him too. Everyone looked at everyone else, and nobody said a word.
Yuan Shao said: "What a pity my two great generals, Yan Liang and Wen Chou, aren't here! If either of them were here, why would we fear Hua Xiong!"
Before he had even finished, someone said loudly: "I'll go! I'll go and bring back Hua Xiong's head!" Everyone looked: the man was very tall, with a red face and a long beard. Yuan Shao asked: "Who is he?" Someone said: "He's Liu Bei's second brother, Guan Yu." Yuan Shao asked again: "And what is he now?" "He's a mounted archer under Liu Bei." A mounted archer was a common soldier who shot arrows from horseback.
Yuan Shao's brother Yuan Shu heard this and shouted at once: "Are you saying we have no great generals here? A common soldier, and he dares to talk like that! Throw him out!"
Cao Cao said: "Don't be angry. If this man dares to say so, there must be something to him. Let him try, and if it doesn't work, we'll talk then." Yuan Shao said: "If we send out a mounted archer, Hua Xiong will laugh at us." Cao Cao said: "He doesn't look like a common soldier. How would Hua Xiong know?" Guan Yu said: "If I lose, you can have my head!"
Cao Cao had a cup of hot wine poured and brought to Guan Yu: "Drink this before you go!" Guan Yu said: "Leave the wine here. I'll be right back." He picked up his great blade, leapt onto his horse, and rode out.
Soon the drums outside grew louder and louder, and the shouting grew louder and louder, as if the sky were falling. Everyone was frightened, and they were just about to send someone out to look when Guan Yu was already back! He threw Hua Xiong's head down on the ground. And the wine was still warm.
Zhang Fei shouted from the back: "My second brother has killed Hua Xiong! If we don't charge in now and grab Dong Zhuo, what are we waiting for!" Yuan Shu was angry again: "None of us great lords has said a word, so what are you shouting about? Get out!" Cao Cao said: "Whoever does well, we should all thank him, whether he's a great lord or a common soldier." But Yuan Shu was still furious. So Cao Cao sent the three brothers back to their camp for now. That night he also secretly sent the three brothers wine and meat.
Hua Xiong was dead, and Dong Zhuo was anxious and furious. But at his side there was one more man, even more fearsome than Hua Xiong. His name was Lü Bu.