Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

The sky was just beginning to lighten.

With the city gates of Ningguo City open, various messages have been circulating recently. Especially given its proximity to Hangzhou, there is a deep fear of a surprise attack by the Qi army. As a result, the officials in the city are filled with anxiety and have increased their demands on the guarding of the city gates.

Only two gates are opened each day, and the four gates on the east, west, south, and north sides need to be rotated. Each gate is only opened for half a day, and so on, all to guard against the Qi army, which may appear at any time.

Then, the guards saw a suspicious-looking person run in today.

"Quick...take me to...the garrison commander here, there's important military news!" The figure shouted as he fell to the ground in front of a soldier.

A slight commotion broke out in front of the city gate.

……

The sound was blocked outside the city gate tower. The commander named Bu Liang strode in and saw a figure with white cloth wrapped around his body holding a rice bowl and quickly picking at it with chopsticks. Blood was still seeping out of the white cloth. Roughly counting, there were at least seven or eight wounds on the person's body.

"Heh... Looks like this starving ghost didn't get reincarnated and you brought him back." Bu Liang blinked and pointed at the person who had finished eating and started licking the bowl: "Even though he's injured like this, he can still eat so much. How long has he been starving?"

"Not much, maybe seven or eight days." The person who put down the bowl revealed Liu Zhengyan's face, sticking out his tongue to roll the rice bits stuck to his face into his mouth: "Excuse me, another bowl."

“I can give you food, but…” Bu Liang stepped forward, sizing up the man: “Who are you?”

Liu Zhengyan wiped his lips with his thumb: "You should know me, General Liu Zhengyan."

Bu Liang's eyes widened, and he couldn't help but step forward and grasp the sword hilt.

“I know the whereabouts of the Emperor.”

He lowered his hand from the sword hilt and stared at him coldly for a few moments: "Where is Your Majesty now?"

Liu Zhengyan didn't speak, but simply pointed to the rice bowl in front of him.

"Fill his bowl up!" Bu Liang shouted as he turned around, then looked at him and added, "Bring some more meat too."

Then, looking at the somewhat surprised Liu Zhengyan, he said, "Don't misunderstand. I greatly admire your father, General Liu Fa Lao. I'm only giving you some food today out of respect for him."

Liu Zhengyan suddenly realized, clasped his hands in a fist and smiled, "Thank you."

Bu Liang remained silent, watching the soldiers come in and put down the food, and then watching him finish eating before finally speaking: "How did you escape to this place? Where is the Emperor?"

Liu Zhengyan wiped his mouth with his sleeve: "The Emperor is still in the hands of the Qi army. I sneaked out the night before last, taking advantage of the guards' inattention, but I was discovered by their sentries."

He spread his arms to show the still-bleeding wounds on his body: "That's how it is."

Bu Liang frowned: "According to you, the Qi army shouldn't be far from Ningguo. How did they get here? How come no one noticed?"

“It’s right here in Xuanzhou.” Liu Zhengyan nodded in affirmation of his statement: “The Qi army hides during the day and moves at night, trying to travel through mountains and forests as much as possible. They also have special personnel to clear away their marching tracks, so although their movements are a bit slow, no one will be able to find them for a while.”

"I see... Wait, something's not right!" Bu Liang was about to speak when something suddenly occurred to him: "Didn't you and Miao Fu force the Emperor to abdicate? Why did you escape now and come to inform the court about the Emperor's situation? Shouldn't you be hoping he'd be taken to the north?"

Liu Zhengyan looked at Bu Liang and spoke after a long while: "My father fought for the country and made many military achievements. However, the old traitor Tong Guan was eager to make merit and forced my father to send troops against his will, which led to his defeat and death. Yet he blamed my father for the crime of forcing the troops to go to war and losing the country. Do you think I should hold a grudge?"

Bu Liang remained silent, unsure how to respond.

Liu Zhengyan seemed to be in pain from his wounds, so he changed his sitting posture and said, "My father spent his life guarding the western frontier, fighting against the Western Xia people, and repeatedly made meritorious contributions. He was a pillar of the country. Now that Your Majesty has fallen into enemy hands, as his son, I do not want the emperor to suffer the humiliation of another country. Therefore, I have come to inform you. Is there anything wrong with that?"

Bu Liang remained silent once again.

For a moment, there was no sound from inside the city gate tower, only the faint sounds of commotion from outside the city could be heard.

After a long pause, the garrison commander of Ningguo City finally spoke with difficulty: "In that case, I would like to ask General Liu to accompany me to see the magistrate and tell him what happened."

Liu Zhengyan readily agreed and followed Bu Liang out of the city gate tower, heading towards the county government office in the city.

The magistrate of Ningguo was named Du Zhang. He was not very talented, but he was quite diligent in his official duties. When he heard that Liu Zhengyan had been brought over by Bu Liang, he had just shown a happy smile when he heard that the Qi army had already arrived near Ningguo City and that the emperor was also there. He immediately stopped smiling and looked like he was facing a great disaster. He hesitated for a long time before speaking.

"How about... we send the message out first, and then discuss it again when the imperial army arrives?"

“Father and father, it may be too late by then.” Bu Liang stepped forward and bowed with his hands clasped. “The Qi army may leave Ningguo City at any time. If they disappear without a trace and the imperial army cannot find them, I’m afraid you will be blamed.”

"That's why I said it's a problem..." Du Zhang muttered with a livid face, then looked up at the general who was still standing with his hands clasped: "The Qi army has many soldiers. How can you defeat them and bring the Emperor out?"

"My lords are mistaken. This humble general has no intention of fighting the Qi army; my only aim is to reclaim the Emperor's residence," Bu Liang said loudly. He paused, then continued, "Besides, if we didn't know, that would be one thing, but now that we know where the Emperor is, if..."

"Alright, alright, alright." Du Zhang quickly interrupted him: "The court will definitely blame us then, won't it? Really, I wonder which court it is now, and whether they can still blame us. Tsk, what a hassle."

Bu Liang stood there looking like he was listening but didn't understand.

Du Zhang frowned and pondered for a long time: "Alright... fine, you lead the troops to rescue the Emperor. If things don't go well..." He opened his mouth, but swallowed the rest of his words and just waved his hand: "Go."

Bu Liang bowed and turned to leave.

"return."

Bu Liang turned around and faced the county magistrate.

Du Zhang sat up straight: "Then Liu Zhengyan..."

Bu Liang respectfully replied, "This humble general still needs him to lead the way."

"what……"

Du Zhang uttered a single syllable, leaned back, and waved his hand: "Go."

Seeing that he was alright, Bu Liang hurriedly went out.

Inside the county government office, Du Zhang sat for a long time, pondering what was wrong and trying to figure it out. Hesitantly, he stood up, paced around twice, and went to the door: "Someone come here!"

One of his trusted men ran over and asked, "Father and Father, what are your orders?"

Du Zhang looked around, took a step back to let him in, leaned close to his ear, and whispered, "Go find some white cloth, big enough to be used as a flag."

The man was taken aback and looked up at him: "What...what use is this?"

“If you’re going to come, then of course you should…” Du Zhang blurted out, then realized what he meant and kicked him: “Just go when I tell you to! Why are you asking so many questions!”

"Okay, let's go now."

The man responded and quickly ran out.

The county magistrate, finally relieved, went behind his desk and sat down, rubbing his chin with one hand: "I hope nothing goes wrong." ...

As for Bu Liang, after leaving the county government office, he hurriedly took Liu Zhengyan to the military camp. After three drumbeats, he gathered the military generals, appointed four commanders, and led 1,500 soldiers. By the time they left the city, it was already around 3 PM.

Liu Zhengyan, acting as the guide, walked ahead under the watchful eyes of five burly soldiers.

As the sunlight slowly faded and visibility began to dim, Liu Zhengyan, standing in front of a grove of trees, pointed ahead and said, "I escaped from here. It was dark then, and I don't remember the exact route."

Bu Liang looked at Lin Ye, then at the gradually rising mountains behind him, and suddenly felt his temples throbbing: "This place is so big, and you don't even have a clear location. Do you expect us to search every inch of it?"

Liu Zhengyan shrugged: "There's nothing I can do about it. I was running at night, so it's already good enough that I can remember this forest. What more do you want?"

Bu Liang stared at him for a long time, but couldn't detect any other expression on his face. He then thought that the man was now in his hands, had been captured by the Qi army before, and most importantly, his father was General Liu Falao. Moreover, what he said made sense...

The commander, lost in thought, once again looked Liu Zhengyan up and down, whose face appeared normal.

"Okay, I'll trust you this once."

Bu Liang spoke, then waved his hand: "Scouts, go into the forest to search first. The rest of you, keep an eye on your surroundings."

At that moment, dozens of men removed their leather armor and entered the forest in only cloth. Bu Liang's 1,500 soldiers dispersed into the forest and lay prone on the ground.

The sky grew even darker, the white clouds gradually turning leaden and then dark, drifting under the cool crescent moon.

There were slight noises around. Bu Liang glanced at Liu Zhengyan, who was sitting against a tree trunk, and then looked around. Seeing that some soldiers were eating dry rations, he didn't say anything. After being out for half a day, they were already tired and hungry. If something happened later, they wouldn't be able to fight on an empty stomach.

The rustling sounds echoed in the darkness, and after an unknown amount of time, the chewing sounds ceased.

As Bu Liang looked up at the sky, thinking that there was probably no hope tonight, a rustling sound came from ahead, and the person grabbed his spear.

An excited voice rang out in the night: "General, enemy activity has been detected ahead."

"lead the way!"

Bu Liang's spirits lifted, and he quickly gave orders, running forward with the others while constantly glancing at Liu Zhengyan. Seeing that the man was closely following him and surrounded by his personal guards, he finally felt relieved.

As they cautiously made their way forward, the Song soldiers dared not raise their torches. Bu Liang was also unsure if anyone might get lost in the darkness, but the die was cast and the arrow had to be released.

Stepping on the rocks, he stumbled along, turning several corners, until the view suddenly opened up. He wasn't sure if he was halfway up the mountain; looking up, all he could see was darkness, while looking down, he saw a flickering light in a deserted forest.

Several bonfires were surrounded, with figures dressed in Song army armor and carrying weapons on the outer ring. Inside, there were three groups that were clearly being guarded, and one could vaguely make out the people dressed in ordinary clothes.

“That’s the Emperor.” Liu Zhengyan leaned over and pointed to one of the bonfires: “The one sitting next to him is that old bastard Zhu Shengfei, and over there are Commander Miao Fu and Ma Rouji of the Red Heart Army. The other two are Ministers Zhang Cheng and Li Bing.”

He paused for a moment, then looked at him with a strange expression: "Now that I have escaped, the defenses below have been greatly increased. Do you still dare to go down under such circumstances? You might as well turn back and wait for the main army to gather before coming to rescue us."

Bu Liang took a breath, remained silent, quickly considered his options, and gritted his teeth before speaking: "The Emperor is right in front of us, there's no reason to give up." He clenched his fist: "Once the army is assembled, the Northern bandits will surely notice. They'll then use the Emperor to threaten us, and we'll still be hesitant to act. We might as well take a gamble!"

He summoned two commanders from the army and said, "When the battle begins, you two will lead your respective units to draw the attention of the northern bandits, while the rest of you will follow me straight to the government's location."

After watching the two quickly turn back and give their orders, Bu Liang took another deep breath, looked at the sky, closed his eyes to rest for a while, and when a messenger came to report that everything was ready, he immediately opened his eyes and shouted in a low voice: "Charge!"

In the darkness, footsteps suddenly sounded. Bu Liang ran down the mountain, his eyes flashing past trees and bushes. Just as he could see the firelight ahead, he suddenly heard a voice from the other side: "Who goes there!"

"Kill!" Bu Liang roared, raising his spear, "Rescue the Emperor and bring him back to court!"

"Rescue the Emperor and bring him back to court!"

The 1,500 burly soldiers who followed him spoke up, drew their swords and spears, and ran forward quickly. Behind them, someone picked up a bow and arrow and shot at them. The whooshing sound of arrows cutting through the air rang out in the night, and one after another, arrows stuck into tree trunks.

"Enemy attack!"

A shout came from the other side, and soldiers dressed in the crimson armor of the Song army quickly assembled by the firelight, their arrows flying towards them.

In the darkness, screams rang out continuously. Bu Liang burst out of the bushes with a "whoosh," and the soldiers on both sides roared as they rushed forward to desperately block the incoming arrows.

"Beware the officials!"

"Don't shoot this way!"

The Song soldiers shouted loudly, and the faster ones were already close to the figures around the bonfire. Bu Liang, who was running, was initially in high spirits, but as he got closer, he suddenly realized something was wrong. The people around the bonfire...

Why isn't it moving?!
"Stop! Stop! Something's wrong! Something's wrong!"

Bu Liang shouted loudly, but the Qi army's arrows flew fast and fiercely in front, and all around were shouts. At the same time, a roar came from the front: "Fake! It's a straw man!"

Woohoo——

The bugle sounded suddenly, and Bu Liang stopped in his tracks, covered in cold sweat, desperately trying to retreat: "Retreat! There's an ambush! Run!"

Turning my gaze, I saw the surging crowd behind me stop at the sound of the bugle, looking around in a panic.

In the darkness, a voice rang out, "Release!"

In the crowd, Bu Liang cursed under his breath, grabbed a shield without hesitation, and crouched down, trying to hide his body under the shield as much as possible.

Arrows shot in from both sides and the front, striking the shields with a series of cracking sounds. Screams echoed through the clearing in the woods. Bu Liang, gritting his teeth, crouched down and suddenly remembered Liu Zhengyan. He quickly and carefully turned his gaze to look for him, but all he could see were shields and his own screaming soldiers. A bad feeling crept into his heart.

chi chi-

Several arrows struck the ground beside him in succession, and after a long while no more arrows came flying. Amid the painful groans around him, a series of footsteps marched in unison toward him.

Bu Liang loosened the wooden shield, which had become twice as heavy, and peeked out from above it. In his view, torches stretched out in a long line through the woods, and his armor was half crimson and half black in the darkness.

"I am Han Shizhong, the General Who Guards the West of the Great Qi. You are surrounded. Lay down your weapons and surrender!"

The groans stopped for a moment. Bu Liang mustered his courage and turned around to look around. He saw that he was surrounded on three sides. He looked back and saw several fire dragons rushing towards him from the mountaintop. Judging from their height, they were already past the halfway point of the mountain.

"Commander... Commander..."

"General."

The surrounding soldiers watched him cautiously. Bu Liang's expression shifted, but before he could speak, a familiar voice came from the other side: "General Bu, the Emperor is here. If you don't come to pay your respects, when will you?"

"Liu—Zheng—Yan!" (End of Chapter)