the red hare has a more prominent role in the 14th-century historical novel "romance of the three kingdoms", which romanticises the historical events before and during the three kingdoms period. it is originally a prized steed of the warlord dong zhuo. after hearing a suggestion from his adviser li su, dong zhuo sends li su to present the red hare as a gift to lü bu and induce lü bu to betray his foster father, ding yuan, and defect to his side. lü bu is very pleased to receive the red hare. after li su convinces him to do so, he murders ding yuan and defects to dong zhuo, whom he pledges allegiance to and acknowledges as his new foster father.