Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

The mountain wind blew across Yue Fei's face, and the temperature, several degrees lower than at the foot of the mountain, made the wind feel like it was cutting his skin.

The path up the mountain wasn't steep, but these mountain bandits didn't bother to build any stone steps. They relied entirely on their physical strength to climb. Fortunately, Yue Fei, Wang Gui, and the others were trained, so they walked through these places as if on flat ground.

As he watched the figure moving forward, Yue Fei recalled the intelligence he had gathered over the past few days.

Wang Shan's rebel army was quite large. When they left Hebei, they learned from Zhang Yong that he had gathered more than 20,000 people and had strongholds in Jiangshan and Qinglianshan in Jiangzhou. These two mountains were quite large and had complex terrain. They were located to the south and north of each other, which made the government troops in Jiangzhou unwilling to send troops to suppress them.

This period was even more critical. The Qi State's western army was attacking Hedong, and many people fled south to seek refuge. This gave Wang Shan, who was recruiting soldiers, an opportunity to take advantage of the situation. His forces continued to expand, and it was impossible to say how many troops he had gathered. However, the people of Hedong were saying that he had become a force to be reckoned with and would soon attack Jiang County, which was nestled between two mountains.

Lost in thought, Yue Fei turned to look at Zhang Yong, scrutinizing him thoughtfully. The people from Tongzhou, sensing his gaze, craned their necks toward him and gave him a puzzled look.

Yue Fei didn't speak, he just shook his head without saying anything, which puzzled Zhang Yong. Since they were following behind him, they couldn't speak casually, so they could only keep their doubts to themselves.

They quickened their pace, passing through countless trees, and suddenly the view opened up before them. A wooden stockade came into view, and a dozen or so men carrying long spears stood at the entrance, looking over warily as people approached.

"Someone is looking for the chieftain." The bandit leader pointed his thumb backward. "He says he's an acquaintance of the chieftain."

“That chieftain knows a lot of people, haha—” The gatekeeper waved his hand: “Go in, the women in the kitchen made chicken soup today, drink some while it’s hot.”

"That's daring."

The group chatted and laughed as they stepped into the mountain village.

Yue Fei's heart stirred, and he glanced at Zhang Yong, signaling him to step forward and ask.

The man who had received the hint wasn't stupid either. He quickly took two steps and bumped into the man who had led the way: "Hey, brother, why are there still people coming to see my brother Wang Shan these past two days?"

"Yes." The man nodded: "The other day a refined man came down the mountain. He looked like a wealthy man. He also specifically asked to see the chieftain. At that time, someone else was on duty down the mountain and refused. His men took him down in a few moves."

“Oh…” Zhang’s eyes darted around: “Do you know what that person’s name is? He might be a mutual friend of mine and Brother Wang Shan.”

"How would I know?" The man shrugged. "I'm just a laborer watching the mountain path down there. I don't know anything about what the leaders up there are doing."

As they spoke, they had already walked quite a distance. Yue Fei looked at the sturdy houses and the clean, tidy ground, free of the stench of excrement and urine, and thought to himself that Wang Shan must have some talent.

Judging from a single spot, one can know the whole leopard. This person has managed to keep the village from going into trouble, so he must have some ability in leading troops.

While he was pondering, the group had already arrived in front of a large hall. Yue Fei looked up and saw the three characters "Hall of Gathering Righteousness" hanging above it. Someone went in to announce their arrival and then came out: "The chieftain invites you in."

Zhang Yong glanced at Yue Fei, Wang Gui, Tang Huai, and Zhang Xian, then strode forward. As the door opened, he laughed, "Brother Wang, do you still remember me, Zhang Yong?"

……

The cacophony of sounds continued to echo throughout this space.

Du Yun walked aimlessly here. All the way from Hebei to here, powerful figures such as Yang Jin, Wang Zaixing, Li Gui, and Wang Dalang, who either commanded tens of thousands of soldiers or had thousands of followers, had all bowed down and submitted to the State of Qi to join their army.

This also made him more active, thinking of recruiting two more strongmen to his side. He decided to continue eastward into Hedong. As long as Du Yun did not defect, his guards would not affect his decision. The other guard was also thinking that once the western army conquered this area, it would soon be his territory.

Therefore, his entry into Hedong was very smooth, and even the owner of the stronghold, the notorious bandit Wang Shan of Hedong, treated him with great courtesy.

Unfortunately, it hasn't been explained to everyone yet...

However, it should be only a matter of time. When that time comes, will it be possible to head north to help General Du Xue of the Western Route Army?
Forget it, it's quite far from here, and it would be inconvenient to lead a group of rebels across the border.

With many thoughts swirling in his mind, Du Yun wandered aimlessly through the village, stroking his chin. As he walked, he heard a few words: "...people from the mountain..." "...government scouts..." He suddenly stopped in his tracks. The two guards behind him reacted quickly and stood still, looking at him strangely.

What? !

With a shout in his heart, Du Yun quickly turned around and ran towards the direction from which he had heard the sound. The two guards who came from the Qi army followed him without asking any questions.

Turning a corner, Du Yun saw two henchmen talking as they walked, and quickly called out, "Wait, you two, you two!"

The two men didn't realize they were being called, but when they heard the urgent calls from behind, they turned around and saw Du Yun running over and stopping: "Brothers, please wait a moment. I have a question to ask you."

The two men then realized that the speaker was addressing them. They knew that the chieftain had such a friend in the village, and seeing his scholarly demeanor, they dared not be negligent. They quickly cupped their hands and asked, "Sir, what brings you to our presence?"

"I just heard you two mention Song spies? Could you tell me what that means?"

"Just now, a group of people came up from the foot of the mountain. They were friends that the chieftain knew from his time in the martial arts world. Among them were some government soldiers. They said they could offer the chieftain an official position..."

Du Yun's expression changed, and he turned and ran. The man who had spoken reached out and said "Hey!" Seeing that Du Yun did not stop, he ran away with his guards and scratched his head, muttering, "He hasn't finished speaking yet, and the chieftain hasn't agreed. Why are you in such a hurry?"

Du Yunquan didn't listen and just kept running, with the two guards behind him also running non-stop.

After passing a few houses, the henchmen who came out saw his anxious running but dared not stop him. "Hey!" they yelled and stepped aside. Watching the three of them run past like the wind, they finally calmed down and cursed, "In such a hurry to be reborn!"

Not long after, Du Yun saw the Hall of Righteousness, where "Hahaha, come, come, Brother Wang, let me toast you!" "I have long heard of Brother Wang's heroic deeds, so I am just offering this wine as a token of my appreciation..." The friendly words between host and guest were heard. Du Yun was anxious and rushed in, saying, "Chief Wang, please wait."

"what?"

"Ok?"

Several surprised voices rang out, and Zhang paused in his pouring motion.

Wang Shan was inviting Zhang Yong, Yue Fei, and others to drink when someone suddenly ran in, startling him. He turned his head with his cup in hand and saw Du Yun's face, which made his heart skip a beat.

It's true that he wanted to take advantage of the war between Qi and Song to start a rebellion. However, after meeting Du Yun, he had a new idea: to sell himself for a good price. But now that Zhang Yong has arrived, this idea has changed to the highest bidder wins.

It's no wonder he's so opportunistic. In this situation, others are asking him for favors, and naturally, he wants to gain more benefits without affecting his own character.

Yue Fei gripped his wine bowl, his eyes narrowing as he looked towards the doorway, the veins on the back of his hand bulging.

Ignoring everything else, Du Yun stared at Wang Shan: "Chief Wang, I have no objection to you having friends coming from afar. However, matters of the world are not child's play. You should know about the war between our dynasty and the Song dynasty. Since our army crossed the border, we have been invincible. Countless famous generals from Hejian Prefecture, Daming Prefecture, and Bianliang have been killed, even someone as strong as Zong Ze..."

Clang—

The sound of a bowl being smashed drew everyone's attention. A figure darted out from the table, and before the others could react, he rushed to the weapon rack, drew a long spear, and charged at Du Yun at an even faster speed.

"My dear, be careful!"

Du Yun's two guards reacted quickly, immediately drawing their swords and blocking forward.

The figure holding the gun swung his arms, causing the gun tip to twitch into a large flower, and the red tassel turned into a ball of fire in the air.

Wang Shan was shocked and quickly reached out his hand: "Wait, don't..."

Clang, clang—

With a series of clanging sounds, two horizontal swords flew out, spinning to the left and right. The two guards were terrified, watching in horror as the spearhead spun and passed between them, the shaft still trembling slightly.

puff--

The spearhead entered Du Yun's body and emerged from his back.

"Uh...uh..."

Du Yun stared wide-eyed at the spear shaft piercing his chest, his gaze following the direction of the flowing blood. The blood trailed from the bottom of the spear shaft, past the backs of the two guards in front of him, the bloodstains wetting his hands that held the spear shaft, dripping onto the ground. His gaze swept over the blue hero's shirt, the broad chest, and then a familiar face came into view.

"Yue... Yue Fei! Cough—"

His eyes widened abruptly, and Du Yun coughed up a mouthful of blood: "How...are...you...here...?" "You scoundrel! Watch me avenge the Prime Minister today!"

With a cold tone, the spear was suddenly pulled from Du Yun's chest, and a spray of hot blood spurted to the ground with a "whoosh." Upon seeing this, the two guards holding their wrists gritted their teeth and wanted to step forward to fight him hand-to-hand.

The blood-stained spear spun around Yue Fei's side, and as it thrust out, his wrist flicked, causing the spear to dance in the air once more.

Chi-

puff--

The sharp spear tip sliced ​​through the throat of the man on the left, plunged into the neck of the guard on the right, and was pulled out.

puff-

Three corpses fell to the ground one after another.

With a flick of his wrist, Yue Fei sent the blood-stained red tassel spinning in the air, droplets of blood flying out and splashing a trail of blood across the hall.

The room was completely silent. Zhang Yong, who was pouring wine, froze. His arm tightened involuntarily, and the wine in the pot poured into the bowl with a "whoosh," overflowing and spilling all over the table in front of him before dripping down.

Wang Shan's eyes widened, and he uttered the words, "How dare you..."

Yue Fei suddenly turned his head, twisted his body, kicked out with his legs, turned to the side, and held the gun in one hand.

bass--

Stop.

The rusty spearhead stopped half an inch in front of Wang Shan's nose. The bandit leader could even feel the sharp metallic aura emanating from the spearhead. His cheek twitched involuntarily, and he raised his hands to his sides, saying, "Hero, wait a moment..."

"One word: come with me today or not." Yue Fei's expression remained unchanged as his gaze swept across Wang Shan's face: "If you join the army, I will guarantee you a bright future; otherwise..."

Weiwei glanced back at her: "Those three are your role models!"

"...Do I have any other choice?" Wang Shan smiled bitterly: "I am willing to surrender the entire village to him."

He didn't say anything about killing him and you still wouldn't be able to get out. Judging from how swiftly he struck, he's definitely not a kind person.

If he loses his life, what good will it do if the other party is torn to pieces?

He hasn't lived enough yet!

Yue Fei didn't speak, but just looked at Wang Shan. Wang Gui, Tang Huai, and Zhang Xian were the first to react. They got up, disarmed the stunned henchmen, and made them squat down to the side. Then they turned around and looked at the figure holding the gun.

Seeing that his brothers had subdued everyone, Yue Fei put away his spear. Wang Shan felt the chill before his eyes disappear and his tense body relaxed. He heard, "Go and summon all the leaders of your stronghold."

He paused, then looked at Zhang Yong beside him: "Zhang Yong, in a little while you will take some men and his messenger to fetch the people. If you speak carelessly..."

With a flick of his wrist, he pointed the gun again, stopping it right in front of Wang Shan, and uttered a booming "Kill!"

"Huh? Ah...wait?!"

Zhang Yong responded as if waking from a dream, then suddenly realized that the wine on the table had spilled all over his trousers, both of them were soaked. He quickly stood up, cursing, "Damn it, give me a pair of dry trousers!" He glanced at the expressionless Yue Fei, and a thought flashed through his mind: "Hurry up, I still have to deliver the order!"

At the same time, the notorious bandit from Hedong reflexively raised his hand, his face contorted in a pained expression: "No, no, I would never dare to play any tricks. I am truly surrendering to you."

"Hmm." Yue Fei nodded and put the gun away again: "It's enough that you know the risks."

He walked to the table and sat down, leaning his spear against it. He reached for his chopsticks, picked up a piece of meat, put it in his mouth, and chewed slowly. He glanced at Wang Shan, who dared not sit down, and smiled kindly: "Brother Wang, please sit down."

"Huh?" Wang Shan was startled and quickly nodded, "Okay!" He sat down with his hands on the table, not daring to move.

Yue Fei reached out and picked up a piece of chicken with his chopsticks, then put it into Wang Shan's rice bowl: "I have offended you greatly, but our country is now being invaded by the Qi army, and the people in various places are suffering. I hope that you, Brother Wang, will consider the people's welfare and help Yue Fei to save them."

I'm a thief, and you're telling me this?

While inwardly complaining, Wang Shan put on a worried expression: "The invasion of our territory by the State of Qi is a cause for concern among us all. Now that Brother Yue is willing to take up the banner to fight against the Qi army, I, your humble servant, am naturally willing to follow in his footsteps."

He then sat up straight and bowed, saying, "The rise and fall of the nation is the responsibility of every citizen. Now that we are in danger, how dare I not serve the court!"

"Very good!"

Yue Fei nodded, and regardless of whether what he said was true or not, poured him some wine.

Wang Shan quickly stood up, accepted the drink with both hands, toasted him, downed it in one gulp, wiped his mouth, and asked, "I wonder where General Yue plans to go next?"

Wang Gui, Zhang Xian, Tang Huai, and others in the hall also looked over. Yue Fei pondered for a moment and said, "Return to Bianliang."

Seeing the puzzled looks on the others' faces, Yue Fei stood up and said, "You should all know that the Qi Kingdom is a wolf in sheep's clothing. Although they retreated voluntarily this time, their goal is to annex Hebei and Hedong. Once the rear is stable, they will definitely invade the south again. If I am not mistaken, they will attack Bianliang again next year."

bang——

He slammed his hand on the table: "How can the capital of a dynasty be insulted by so many people? We must do everything in our power to stop them."

The others nodded slowly with solemn expressions, but Wang Shan silently shed tears in his heart.

On that day, Wang Shan gathered more than a hundred of his subordinates, both big and small. Twenty-three of them were killed for disobeying his orders, while the rest were willing to follow him to join the Song army.

The crisis in Jiangzhou was thus resolved.

……

A patch of crimson light ignited in the western clouds.

A large banner bearing the character "齐" (Qi) fluttered atop the city gate of Hejian Prefecture.

Along the long street, the people had become accustomed to the Qi army's actions both inside and outside the city and the current government offices. The reduced miscellaneous taxes even made the smiles on people's faces much more genuine.

A series of strong, well-proportioned figures walked down the long street. Lu Bu looked at the people who had been driven to both sides of the street. There was no fear on their faces, only curiosity and a desire to explore. He smiled.

"It seems the people here are no longer hostile to us...that's a good thing." Among the guards, Lü Bu turned his gaze away from both sides and walked slowly with his hands behind his back.

Fang Xuedu stroked his beard and said, "Our dynasty collects less tax than the Song dynasty, and the amount of miscellaneous taxes is also less than that of the Song dynasty. We are also more effective in controlling the yamen runners and officials below us. There is no reason for these common people not to support Your Majesty."

As the sun set, Lü Bu looked at the flags on the city wall, then led his men up to the top. Gazing at the snow outside Hejian City, he said, "Next year there should be a good harvest here. Send a message to Yanjing and request that more officials be selected and sent to the south."

Yu Cheng, who was standing next to him, took out a piece of paper and wrote it down.

"The time is approaching, those leaving or entering the city, hurry up!"

The shouts of the soldiers below reached his ears. Lu Bu looked down and saw a heavily armored figure running quickly with his hands tucked in. He took a breath and patted the wall in front of him: "Has the military order been sent out? Du Xue's side has been stuck in Taiyuan Prefecture for long enough."

"The cavalry has already set off." Fang Xuedu exhaled a breath of white air: "I just didn't expect the garrison commander of Taiyuan Prefecture to be so tenacious, holding out for months without showing any sign of backing down."

"Hopefully, this reinforcement will bring about changes."

Lu Bu leaned against the wall and looked outside; several wisps of heat dissipated into the air. (End of Chapter)