A white-haired old man appeared before the main gate of the imperial palace in Luoyang.
His clothing and appearance were utterly out of place among the people around him.
He looked extremely old, his beard entirely white, his back hunched, his cheeks sunken, and his eyes perpetually narrowed. His neck, however, was rather long, making him look at first glance like a vulture foraging for food.
Standing beside him was, of all people, a very small child who looked only five or six.
The little fellow showed not the slightest shyness as he stood there, excitedly looking around.
This father and son, separated by such an immense gap in age, were none other than Liu Bao, the Xiongnu Left Wise King, and his son Liu Yuan.
Liu Bao was exceptionally long-lived.
His grandfather was the Xiongnu Chanyu Qiangqu. When the Yellow Turbans Rebellion broke out, Chanyu Qiangqu had obeyed the Later Han emperor's command and sent his son Yufuluo to lead troops against the Yellow Turban Army.
Chanyu Qiangqu had enjoyed very good relations with Great Han and had been highly obedient to the Later Han emperor's commands. There had been considerable discontent with him among the Xiongnu, and after he disregarded their internal conflicts and insisted on sending troops, the tribes at home rebelled and killed him outright.
Yufuluo had been forced to remain in Hebei, where he proclaimed himself chanyu... No sooner had the Yellow Turbans Rebellion ended than Dong Zhuo's rebellion erupted. Seeing no hope of returning, Yufuluo led his troops to plunder Taiyuan, Hedong, and other places before finally establishing himself in the Henei region.
After Yufuluo died, his younger brother Huchuquan inherited the position of chanyu and appointed his nephew Liu Bao as Left Wise King.
Later, Cao Cao subdued the Xiongnu tribes, divided Huchuquan's