Hadith No: 2
Al-Haythami - Majma' al-Zawa'id wa Manba' al-Fawa'id
Book of Virtues - Chapter on What has been Narrated Regarding the Virtues of Uthman ibn Affan (رضي الله عنه)
Chapter on His Affairs during the Battle of Badr, the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, and Others
Volume: (9) - Page Number: (83)
14514 - Al-Shuqayq said: Abd al-Rahman ibn Awf encountered al-Walid ibn Uqbah, and al-Walid said to him, "Why do I see you being distant with the Commander of the Faithful, Uthman?" He replied, "Tell him from me that I did not flee on the Day of Aynayn." Al-Walid said, "But [he was] in 'Asim on the Day of Uhud," and "I did not neglect the Battle of Badr," and "I did not abandon the Sunnah of Umar." So al-Walid went and informed Uthman of this. Uthman then said,
"As for his statement, 'I did not flee on the Day of Aynayn,' how can he reproach me with a sin that Allah has forgiven?" Allah, the Almighty, said: {Indeed, those who turned back among you on the day when the two armies met, it was only Satan who caused them to slip because of some of what they had earned, and Allah had certainly forgiven them. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Forbearing (Surah Al-Imran 3:155)} "And as for his statement, 'I did not neglect the Battle of Badr,' I was indeed tending to Ruqayyah, the daughter of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his holy progeny), in her illness until she died. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) had assigned me a share, and whoever the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his holy progeny) assigned a share to had certainly witnessed [that battle]." "And as for his statement, 'I did not leave the Sunnah of Umar,' I cannot bear it, neither can he." So he informed him of that. Ahmad, Abu Ya'la, and al-Tabarani narrated it with brevity, and al-Bazzar narrated it in full, similarly, and it includes Asim ibn Bahdalah, who is of sound narration, and the rest of the men are trustworthy.