Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

“Hiss… huh—”

The slightly hot water covered the back of his feet. Su Yuanjing closed his eyes comfortably and leaned back in the seat.

dong dong——

There was a knock on the door, but Su Yuanjing didn't even open his eyes. He just said calmly, "Come in."

creak-

The slightly old house opened its door, and the two brothers Dang Shiying and Dang Shixiong walked in with wine and food. Su Yuanjing opened his eyes when he smelled the aroma of food. There was a roasted chicken, two plates of wild vegetables steamed with batter, two steaming steamed cakes, and another person holding a wine jar and a wine bowl.

"Captain, these are the only things we have in this village. Please eat some of them."

Su Yuanjing smiled immediately. During this period of time, when he was traveling from Tokyo to Yingchang Prefecture, he had good food on the ship. The rest of the time, he had a mouthful of hot soup because these rough soldiers took care of him. As for food...

He didn't really want to recall the taste of military rations and jerky.

I should have known that I should not have rejected the kindness of those local people. Su Yuanjing had some thoughts in his mind. Looking at the steaming dishes, he couldn't help but feel his appetite grow. He stretched out his hand and gestured to the table: "Come on, come on, let's eat together."

The two Dang brothers looked at each other and nodded, "I will respectfully obey your command." Then they put their things down and sat down together.

Su Yuanjing stretched out his hand to grab the chicken leg, then suddenly stopped and looked at the two of them: "Have you paid the villagers here?"

Dang Shiying was stunned. The brother next to him had already poured wine for the general opposite him. He said, "I haven't paid yet. I will go out to settle the bill later." He raised his eyes slightly and looked at Su Yuanjing who was frowning. "I planned to pay for the accommodation of my men at the same time, so I didn't pay separately."

"It should be so." Su Yuanjing then started to tear off the chicken leg: "This village doesn't look very wealthy. If so many of us come here to disturb them at night, it might affect their work in the fields tomorrow."

While they were talking, Dang Shixiong had already poured the wine and handed it over. The two brothers looked at Su Yuanjing sincerely as if they were listening to the words of a sage. Before they could say anything, there was a sound of dogs barking and shouting outside.

"what happens?"

Su Yuanjing was holding a chicken leg in his hand and soaking his feet, looking a little confused.

The two Dang brothers also calmed down and stood up together: "We will go and take a look."

He walked out holding the hilt of the sword at his waist.

In the dark night, the sounds of dogs barking and chickens crowing became clearer and clearer, and a human voice could be heard faintly, but I couldn't make out what it was saying.

There was sporadic light in the village, not enough to illuminate the entire village. The two Dang brothers came out of the house and saw two men standing in the yard, dressed relatively cleanly.

He is the village chief and the family they are staying with.

Dang Shixiong stepped forward and asked, "What happened? Why is there so much noise?"

The two villagers were startled, turned around to see the two of them coming, and shook their heads: "This... General, I don't know."

"Useless thing." Dang Shixiong glared at him fiercely, and walked up with his brother to open the door of the courtyard fence, shouting: "Come on, let's go and see how to get back..."

whoosh-

bang——

"Thing!" The arrow was nailed to the wooden stake next to his head. The white arrow feathers were still trembling slightly, making a slight sound.

"..." Dang Shiying stood there, his head slightly turned, his eyes fixed on the arrow that almost pierced his head, and suddenly shouted: "Thieves! The imperial guards come out to meet the enemy!"

The voice was loud in the night, as if echoing him. In the distance, from the direction where the dogs were barking the loudest, a sharp scream of "Ah——" suddenly came.

Shadows began to move in every household, some people staggered out with weapons in their hands, and some houses had their doors closed, without any sound at all.

"Are there government troops?"

"It's an ambush!"

There was a figure swaying in the distance, and the same noisy sound came over, and sweat broke out on the foreheads of the two Dang family members.

If they were the only two leading the troops here, they would not be afraid of bandits with their martial arts and horses. However, now there is an additional palace commander, Su Yuanjing. If something happens to this man, their careers as officials will be over.

Let alone party disputes, those eight fallen brothers of the Song Dynasty... No, the big turbans would not care about factional disputes at this time. They only knew that someone died under their escort, and their superior, Marshal Gao, would probably not shield them from the attacks. Their fate would be either to be sent to Shamen Island or to be sent to Qiongzhou to be monkeys. How could they not be anxious?
"Get the horses!"

Dang Shiying shouted, quickly drew out the long sword from his waist and bent down. His brothers behind him hurried back. The boiling shouts in the distance were gradually approaching. The imperial guards came running over in twos and threes, each of them in disheveled clothes, holding swords and guns.

Dang Shiying had no time to get angry. The outline of a figure in the distance could already be seen in the darkness. Amid the surge of people, someone behind him lit a torch and walked over. The jumping flames dispelled the darkness in the space.

The brothers Qian Bin and Qian Yi walked forward holding bows and arrows in the firelight. They were shocked at first when they saw the government troops opposite them. But after taking a closer look, they found that these people were different from the soldiers under Zhai Jin. Their flickering eyes, untidy clothes and armor, loose formation and the way they held swords and guns all showed that these people were not used to fighting on the battlefield.

Where did the fat sheep come from...

The two brothers looked at each other, their eyes shining, and they understood each other's meaning.

Dang Shiying's face changed in an instant. He looked at the arrow stuck on the gatepost between the fence, and then at the bow and arrow in the hands of the people opposite him. He couldn't help but regret not wearing his iron helmet.

They had not yet heard the news that Song Jiang had fled to Ruzhou, but it was no secret in the capital that this area had been devastated by Kua Tian. At this moment, seeing that many of the other side were wearing leather armor and their swords and guns were mostly standard equipment, they were startled and had no idea whether these men could fight against the enemy.

"Who are you?" Dang Shiying stared at the other party, trying to calm himself down, pointing the long sword in his hand: "Do you know that the palace commander Su Yuanjing is stopping here? If you offend him, the court will definitely cut you and other villains into pieces!"

"Oh, a high-ranking official of the imperial court." Qian Yi laughed. "I have killed at least seven or eight officials, if not ten, but I have never killed anyone who ranked high in the imperial court."

As they were talking, more and more thieves came rushing over with knives, guns and torches in hand, but many of them were biting hard on the cold, hard multi-grain steamed buns, and they looked very hungry.

"Palace General?"

A joyful voice came from behind, and the thieves in front quickly made way, revealing the figures of Lei Heng and He Ji.

"That's great." Lei Heng had a smile on his face. He glanced at the soldiers in front of him. He probably understood in his heart that these were the enemy's guards. He curled his lips and raised his hand.

Beside him, more than three hundred bandits who had gathered drew their swords and guns with a bang.

Dang Shiying was stunned for a moment, then he felt a little regretful. He had put General Su in a bad mood. He took a deep breath and said, "Don't mess around. Put down your weapons now. I will plead for mercy. You will be exiled thousands of miles away. If you are stubborn, you will end up being stabbed in the face at Caishikou."

"spit--"

He Ji held one hand up, laughed, and pointed at the officer who was speaking with his other hand: "Does he think that we men are all rookies?"

He turned around and slowly put away his smile, his expression a little ferocious: "We have traveled all over the country, and the number of lives we have lost is enough to make a trip to Caishikou. What are you talking about here?"

Oops…

Dang Shiying felt something was not right. Before he could say anything, he heard the sound of horse hooves from behind.

Lei Heng narrowed his eyes and said, "Go ahead, kill them, and keep that Taiwei."

The Qian brothers took a half step back, and a dozen bandits with bows and arrows tightened the bowstrings together.

The next moment, a deep roar of "Shoot!" appeared, and the bowstring trembled and made a slight sound. Bandits rushed forward brazenly. "Hide—" Dang Shiying had already fallen down when he was drawing the bow. He could hear the dull sound of the arrow piercing his flesh, and a few drops of warm blood splashed on the back of his neck, causing the instructor to roll away quickly.

Screams were heard from the imperial guards. Many burly soldiers turned and ran when they saw the dead. Some were so angry that they wanted to draw their swords and fight, but when they saw the people around them running, the blood and energy that had just risen in their hearts suddenly dissipated, and they turned and ran.

"Brother, get on the horse!"

A galloping warhorse came from behind, and the figure holding two iron spears on the horse let go of the warhorse, then raised his arms.

Dang Shiying also reacted quickly. He stood up when he heard the sound of horse hooves approaching. When his brothers shouted, he had already leaped onto the saddle and grabbed the iron spear in his hand.

On the other side, Dang Shixiong roared like a tiger and rushed towards the bandit fiercely. He shot one man to the ground and stabbed another one to death with another shot.

"So brave——"

Lei Heng, who was watching from behind, raised his eyebrows, stepped forward with a broadsword in his hand, leaped to Dang Shixiong's side, leaned down and slashed at the horse's leg with his broadsword.

At the back, the brothers Qian Bin and Qian Yi drew their bows and shot arrows at Dang Shiying at the command of He Ji, "Go forward and chop these two stupid guys into meat paste!"

Over there, one of the Dang brothers quickly stretched out his gun to block the incoming machete, while the other waved his gun to protect his head.

With the sound of metal colliding, the gun body blocked the metal blade, but the elder brother of the Dang family who had just mounted his horse was shot in the chest by an arrow.

Fortunately, his two brothers did not take off their armor in order to show off in front of Su Yuanjing. He had spent a huge amount of money to buy the armor, which had very good protective power. Only his chest was hurt by the force of the arrow, but there was no flesh injury.

"No, let's go——"

Dang Shiying was startled and quickly pulled the reins, turned the horse's head, lay down on its back and ran away.

Dang Shixiong felt the blow from Lei Heng was very heavy. He also saw bandits with spears surrounding him on both sides. He did not dare to show off his strength here without the protection of his soldiers. He turned around quickly and followed his brother to retreat into the darkness.

The brothers Qian Bin and Qian Yi shot two more arrows in the direction where the two brothers were fleeing. When they heard no screams, they cursed angrily, then put away their bows and walked towards Lei Heng who was standing in front of them with a broadsword in his hand.

Lei Heng didn't care when he saw the Dang brothers running away. He bent down to pick up a breastplate that someone had dropped on the ground, flipped it back and forth, and threw it beside him. He leaned on the ground with the long handle of his Pudao in one hand and shouted loudly: "Go and search all the soldiers in this village. The weapons and armor they carry are all good stuff. Since they don't dare to fight, let us use them."

The bandits around all responded in unison, and then, led by a few small leaders, ran towards the lighted house.

Lei Heng glanced at Qian Bin and Qian Yi escorting He Ji over, and grinned, "Let's go and see that palace commander."

He put his broadsword against his shoulder and said, "I admit that those two Zhai guys are difficult to deal with, but with this Su guy, no matter how good they are at fighting, they will have to stop."

The three people who came over also showed ferocious smiles.

Su Yuanjing was sitting in the room, feeling a little nervous when listening to the noise outside, but when he thought about it, the ones guarding him were the imperial guards in the capital, which were recognized by the officials in the capital as one of the strongest armies in the world, and the two commanders were the instructors of the imperial guards, so nothing should happen.

He then put his heart back in his stomach, ate and drank calmly, and waited for the Dang brothers to come and report.

bang——

There was a loud bang from the door.

Su Yuanjing looked up hurriedly, and saw two doors open quickly, and four figures flashed out from outside. Before he could see their faces clearly, the separated doors hit the wall and bounced back and slammed shut.

"..."

Who?
Su Yuanjing's mouth was full of grease. He tilted his head while holding the chicken bone. The speed was too fast just now. Except for the one leading him who could see him raising his leg to kick, the others behind him didn't look at his face, but instinctively felt that something was wrong. No one in the army dared to treat him like this this time.

creak-

The door opened again.

Lei Heng's purple face turned red until it turned dark red. He raised his hand and clenched his fist awkwardly, then put it to his mouth and cleared his throat with a "cough". Behind him, He Ji and the Qian brothers walked in with their heads lowered and their shoulders shrugged.

A "hum, hum..." sound was heard.

"Who are you?" Su Yuanjing's heart sank. He didn't recognize any of the four people in front of him. He knew they were not good people just by looking at their clothes and fierce faces. He had to bite the bullet and said, "I didn't know that I was resting here. Why don't you leave quickly?"

Lei Heng raised his head at this time: "Of course I know you are here because we just came here."

He strode forward and sat down opposite Su Yuanjing, leaning on his broadsword with one hand, taking the wine in front of him with the other hand and drinking it in one gulp: "Puff——"

The mist of wine spurted out of his mouth: "Tu Tu - where did the wine come from? Is this what the Grand Commandant in front of the palace drinks?"

"I... am not good at drinking, so I haven't drunk yet..." Su Yuanjing's mouth twitched, and then he straightened his waist: "No, where are the Dang brothers? Go call them over."

"Don't show off your power." He Ji came over with his hands hanging down, and sat down. He reached out and picked up the roasted chicken, put it to his mouth and took a big bite, puffing his cheeks and speaking vaguely: "You have guessed it, we are bandits, and the two rubbish you mentioned must have been beaten away by us."

Su Yuanjing suddenly became speechless.

Lei Heng snorted and stuffed the steamed bun into his mouth: "We still have use for you. As long as you stay here honestly, we promise not to harm your life. If you don't behave yourself..."

He smashed the ground with the machete in his hand: "Grandpas have killed many officials, you are not a big deal."

"This……"

Su Yuanjing shrank back. Qian Bin and Qian Yi came up, holding out their hands for food. They looked at Su Yuanjing and said with a smile, "This is the first time I've met a big shot in the capital."

"It's nothing special. It's just a head on a neck."

The two brothers chatted and laughed while eating a few bites. Qian Yi pointed at Su Yuanjing and said, "Hey, old official, what are you doing in Ruzhou?"

Lei Heng and He Ji were indifferent and ate and drank by themselves. Su Yuanjing looked at this and that and swallowed his saliva: "This official..."

"Huh?" X4
Su Yuanjing swallowed his saliva and looked at the eight eyes staring at him: "I, I'm here to seek amnesty..."

"Um...eh?"

The four of them paused as they heard Su Yuanjing's voice: "The government ordered me to come and recruit Song Jiang. Do you know Song Jiang? He's a very famous one."

The four thieves looked at each other, not knowing whether they should continue swallowing the food in their mouths. Lei Heng put down the steamed bun, He Ji threw away the roasted chicken, and the Qian brothers lost their smiles and stared at the general in front of the palace.

"What...what are you going to do?"

Su Yuanjing felt frightened by the gazes of the four people. He tried to shrink back and lifted his feet out of the basin, making a sound of dripping water.

Gumbling—

Lei Heng swallowed the steamed bun in his mouth, staring at him with bloodshot eyes: "Tell me...what are you doing here?!"

"Recruit...recruit?"

A less confident voice came from the person sitting there. (End of this chapter)