Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

Chapter 1011 New Year, Worry

After the lively New Year's Eve, the weather is still cold as spring comes. It will take until mid-spring at least for the north to warm up.

In the southern State of Song, the weather does not become warm until around the end of spring.

A little bit of snow still exists on the withered grass, between the rocks and the sand.

The next moment, galloping footsteps stepped on the cold and hard ground, sharp arrows brushed against combat boots and shot into the ground, and the sounds of fighting and shouting broke the silence between heaven and earth.

The scarlet figure who was knocked unconscious by the stone suddenly got up, picked up a shield and raised it above his head.

bang——

The heavy force hit the still dizzy figure so hard that his legs went limp, but at least he managed to save his life.

"These dead maggots under the knife!"

With an angry roar, the veteran who had survived hundreds of battles wiped the blood from his forehead, looked at his comrade climbing up with a shield in one hand and a knife in his mouth, looked around, picked up someone's weapon from the ground, bit it, and walked into the ranks of his comrades.

Blood flowers bloomed on the top of the city wall, whistling stone bullets and crossbow arrows with sharp whistles kept falling, and the rebel soldiers defending the city kept falling from the top of the city wall. Several brave generals led their troops to charge and fight hard regardless of casualties, but they could not stop the decline of the city wall. Generals in iron armor kept jumping onto the top of the city wall and led their soldiers to tear a hole in the defense line.

Most of Mingzhou City was breached under Wang Bing's continuous attack. This was Dinghai, the last city of the rebel army on the land of Mingzhou. If they retreated further, they would reach Changguo City in the offshore archipelago.

The scarlet figure kept climbing, and the fireball with the ignited fuse flew out of the man's hand. Amid the roar of the explosion, there were the enemy's shrill screams and the cheers of the Song army's soldiers.

The whirlwind cannon roared, and the archer with the magic arm raised the crossbow at an angle. A few black shadows flew past in an arc in his eyes. The hanging knife was pulled, and the slender crossbow arrow made a strange "ji-" sound and flew out of the slot in an instant. Arrows also flew out from the top of the city, but the number was slightly less.

Screams and wails echoed each other from inside and outside the city.

Liu Yanqing and his son Liu Guangshi, wearing double armor, led their 800 soldiers to charge forward and, under the cover of the archers and whirlwind cannons in the rear, expanded the gap on the top of the city wall towards the brothers Wu Jie and Wu Lin. In the rear, Taoist Qiu, with a ferocious face, led the rebel soldiers who formed a forest of spears to meet them.

With shouts that were so strong that they almost screamed, the two father and son, who had completely given up on defense, brandished their swords and rushed into the forest of spears behind the rebels. In front of them, a forest of spears and guns pierced through them, leaving white scratches on the armor with their sharp edges. The faces of the Liu father and son suddenly turned pale, and then a fierce light flashed in their eyes. They swung their swords and shouted "Ahhh——" to deflect the stabbing long-haired spears.

The fierce soldiers of the Western Army in the rear also rushed into the forest of spears with shields held high and swords brandished. Amid the sound of metal clashing, soldiers of the righteous army kept rushing forward with red eyes and roaring. At this point in the battle, the fighting spirit, morale and situation of the two armies had already undergone earth-shaking changes. These people were still gritting their teeth and killing here, just to drag a Song army soldier with them before they died.

pity……

The shield blocked the spear, and the blade was swung to chop off the spear body. The Western Army soldier rushed forward with his men, and the hand knives chopped at the man's head and shoulders, making a "crack" sound of bone fracture. The whole person's limbs were shaking abnormally, and then with a "bang", another hand knife hit the vitals. As the person fell backwards, sticky blood with various internal organ fragments spurted out of his mouth.

"Kill them! Kill them!" Liu Yanqing's face was pale. He just relied on his armor to block the stabs from the opposite side, and several ribs were broken. Now he turned around and shouted at his son at the top of his lungs: "Whether you and I can be reinstated after the war depends on this battle! Kill--"

"kill--"

Liu Guangshi's injuries were relatively minor. Upon hearing what his old father said, he immediately roared like a tiger and pounced forward, carrying the knife in his hand. This dissolute second son of the Liu family was now risking his life to make his family rich again. He knocked the man flying with his armored body, and rushed over when he saw Qiu Daoren who was giving orders in the rear.

Countless weapons collided, some fell down, some moved forward, the splattering blood and fireworks filled the vision of the soldiers on the city wall. Then Liu Erlang raised the severed head with a smile on his face, as happy as if he was holding up his life and wealth.

The sounds of fighting on the battlefield became more frequent, and messengers were constantly coming and going. The flag of the Song army moved outside the Three Arrows Land and deployed its battle formation. Under the midday sun, the temperature was still very cold. The cloak stuck to the surface of the armor in the cold wind, and white steam kept coming out of Wang Bin's mouth and nose as he sat on horseback.

"General, the brothers Wu Jie and Wu Lin killed the bandit chiefs He Conglong and Feng Xi, and Liu Yanqing and his son killed Taoist Qiu in battle. There is no resistance left on the west wall."

Before Wang Bing finished speaking, he saw the city gate slowly opening, and the Song army on and under the city walls cheered. Yao Pingzhong, who had not had a chance to take action since the war began, blew the horn of attack.

The deep sound of horns echoed in the sky, and hundreds of cavalrymen began to march along with their commander.

The third year of Jianwu in Qi Dynasty and the fifth year of Xuanhe in Song Dynasty, the early month of spring.

The Song army captured the last city of Fang La's remnants on Song territory. In this battle, more than a dozen high-ranking officials including the commander of the Daqu army Qiu Daoren, the right prime minister Zu Shiyuan, the assistant secretary Huan Yi, and the imperial guards teacher He Conglong died in the battle. The remaining forces, led by Fang Qifo, retreated to Changguo City on Zhoushan Island in the northeast sea.

In the second half of the first lunar month, Liu Menglong, commander of the Jiangnan Navy, led the navy to help 30,000 infantrymen cross the river and attack Changguo. The Jiangnan Navy defeated the rebel navy at sea. The four Zhejiang dragons Chenggui, Xie Fu and Qiao Zheng were killed in the battle, and Zhai Yuan's warship was sunk and his body was never found.

On the island, Fang Qifo and his men resisted for more than twenty days until they ran out of ammunition and food. The morale of the army was greatly reduced, the city was breached, and more than thirty bandit leaders, both large and small, were killed. The bandit chiefs Fang Qifo and Shen Shou disappeared.

Wang Bing immediately sent an express message of eight hundred miles to the capital, while leading his army back to Mingzhou.

At that time, the Western Army was somewhat war-weary after a series of battles. In addition, the entire Mingzhou was controlled by the bandit army. So with the tacit approval of several generals, these soldiers from the border stretched out their rough hands to this miserable place. Dozens of villages and wealthy families were destroyed, and all the valuables inside were looted.

By the time Wang Bing disciplined his subordinates, it was already three days later. However, these ruffians were so excited about the looting that their faces were beaming with joy, and the morale of the army was rising.

The horses galloped at a gallop, and the people did not rest even when they were resting. By the time the news reached Bianliang, it was already the end of mid-spring. After days of quarrels, the court of Zhao Song had gradually formed a unified ideology. However, for some reason, Zhao Ji, as an official, had no intention of giving in.

This did make Tong Guan, Liang Shicheng, Wang Fu and others who were linked together feel a little uneasy. However, compared with the latter two, Tong Guan, who was determined to be crowned king and leave his name in history, was even more uneasy.

"What exactly does the emperor mean? Most of the court officials have already changed their minds and supported the Northern Expedition, so why haven't you issued an imperial decree yet?"

"Why are the Western Army and the Imperial Guards being restrained here, fighting but not fighting, dispersing but not dispersing?"

"And Zhao Liangsi, who always said that he had persuaded the emperor and was waiting for the right opportunity to go north to join Qi, but now he is still at home, looking calm and composed, and has no intention of going on a long journey." "They are all a bunch of villains! Traitors!"

The anxious figure paced back and forth, his usual calmness and heroism completely disappeared from this eunuch. He was really impatient now. He had been in this imperial capital for nearly half a year. Although some of his Western Army had gone back, there were still 30% left in the capital.

For him, if the army could not return to Xiting to fight for him and add to his military merits, they should go north to win a royal title for him. What was the point of just waiting in Bianliang?

He walked quickly to his aide and said, "Tell me, what exactly does the emperor want to do?!"

"Master, please be patient." Dong Yun pondered and stroked his goatee from top to bottom, "The emperor's mind is as deep as the abyss of the sea. If you speculate rashly, you may sow disaster..."

He glanced at the somewhat irritable eunuch and lowered his eyes slightly: "However, at this moment, I have to make some bold guesses."

"Say it!"

Dong Yun subconsciously stopped his hand and said, "I have guessed before, maybe... it's because of the Southeast incident?"

Tong Guan was stunned: "Huh? Didn't Fang La die a long time ago? If there is a grave, the grass on his grave is three feet high. How can the government still worry about the affairs in the southeast? What's left there is just...

Wait, hold on..."

The eunuch stretched out his hand and gestured in the air, muttering to himself: "What you said is not impossible. The government has always regarded the southeast as a money bag. Whether rich or poor, they have to collect taxes from it. The war has not ended yet. In the eyes of the government, the thieves have not yet taken away all his money. Now he is probably dissatisfied with me for catching the thief. I shouldn't have felt sorry for the casualties in the fight..."

He rolled his eyes and put on an annoyed look: "Damn it, if it weren't for that treacherous Prime Minister Wang Fu, I wouldn't have been summoned back to the court so early. This incompetent guy, sooner or later I will settle this account with him."

Even if Wang Xiang didn't make trouble, didn't you think of it before?

Dong Yun thought to himself that it would be better to keep his mouth shut at this time. He did not want to provoke his boss at this time. In the Song Dynasty, death could be a serious matter.

Over there, Tong Guan was walking back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back. Before he could think of a solution, a chaotic noise was heard outside. The eunuch stopped, took two deep breaths, and his face returned to his usual indifferent expression.

dong dong——

There was a gentle knock on the door, and then the door opened to the left and right, and a young eunuch walked in: "Taifu, someone outside reported that General Wang Bing won a great victory in Mingzhou, defeated the remnants of Fang La on the island, and killed more than 50 bandit leaders who resisted. Only Fang Qifo, Chen Kutong, and Lu Shinang disappeared in the chaos, and I don't know if they are still alive."

Tong Guan's eyes suddenly widened and he clapped his hands: "Okay, I'll give you a pillow. Wang Zhengchen is indeed a general that I think highly of."

The staff who had been trying to reduce their presence at the back finally breathed a sigh of relief and clasped their hands: "Congratulations to the boss, now there should be no more shackles of the Northern Expedition."

"Hahaha..." Tong Guan laughed a few times before turning to look at Dong Yun. "Write a few letters and send them out. One letter to the king, telling him that I will do my best to confer a title on his son, but his official position is not high, so don't expect too much. If other sons of his family are willing to join the army, they will be treated better."

"Send a letter to that old fellow Liu Yanqing, asking him to come over and handle military affairs for me. If he fails again like the Liangshan before, I will kill him."

"The rest of the generals have made outstanding contributions in the battles. Let them return to their hometowns first and allow them to rest for half a month."

Tong Guan looked at his staff who were writing furiously, hummed twice, walked to the window and gently pushed it open, and cold air blew in. The eunuch took a deep breath, and the cool air entered his lungs, making him feel much more refreshed.

"Yan Yun..."

There was a burning look in his eyes as he looked out.

At the end of mid-spring, the news that the southeast was peaceful and prosperous was delivered to the court. Zhao Ji was very happy and the whole court was delighted. Then an imperial decree was issued, ordering the stored grain in the military states to be transported to Bianliang for storage, and summoning the Western Army that had returned to the border to reenter the capital. A northern man named Zhao Liangsi dressed in new clothes, took the imperial edict, boarded a boat, and headed for the familiar land in the north.

The troops returning from the southeast set out on the road from north to west. After fighting for hundreds of days, it was time for them to rest.

……

at the same time.

Fangshan's development has been much faster since Song Jiang came. First, Wu Yong offered a plan. On the grounds of "new friends can be made, old friends cannot be forgotten", he personally took Li Kui, Mu Hong and Mu Chun back to Jingdong. He used a trick to lure Lei Heng and Zhu Tong into becoming bandits. The two had nowhere to go, and with the invitation of Chao Tianwang and Song Jiang, they had no choice but to move to another place.

Song Jiang on the mountain was also unwilling to be lonely. While persuading Chao Gai to guard the mountain, he brought his own troops to annex small villages and destroyed several large families.

At one time, many heroes from the dangerous mountains and dense forests west of Beijing were defeated by him. Wang Lun and Du Qian, two rising stars in west of Beijing, were also defeated by him. But Wang Lun was a stubborn person. He was very unwilling to accept the defeat and was very resentful. Song Jiang let him go back to prepare his troops. He defeated him five times in a row but spared his life, and finally he surrendered.

Since then, many heroes in western Beijing were impressed by his magnanimity and were willing to obey his orders. Some heroes from the green forest also came here because of his reputation.

However, what made Song Jiang most proud was the surrender of the Golden Leopard Tang Long. This man was a good blacksmith and made a living by blacksmithing in the Wugang Army in Jinghu South Road. He came to find Song Jiang after hearing that he had become a bandit in Fangshan. Now many leaders in the mountain were holding weapons made by him, and he had won the hearts of the people.

Soon after, Shi Jin from Jiuhua Mountain committed a crime and was captured by the government. The second in command Zhu Wu asked for help from Fangshan, and Song Jiang immediately agreed. While the Western Army was marching south, he led a group of heroes to break through the city, rescue Shi Jin, and return to western Beijing with all the 500 to 700 followers and four leaders from Shaohua Mountain.

From then on, Fangshan in the western part of Beijing became more and more famous. Many outlaws came to join the stronghold, and the stronghold grew rapidly like a snowball.

Chao Gai, who was known as the Lord of Fangshan, sat in the room in silence, with Liu Tang, Wang Dashou, Bai Sheng and others sitting beside him: "Brother, if this continues, when people talk about Fangshan, they will only know Brother Song Jiang and not you..."

(End of this chapter)