Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

On the upper reaches of the river, clouds were pushed by the wind across the sky. Under the setting sun, water birds flew over at low altitude, making two shrill screams. They flapped their wings and broke through the water, grabbing the fish. The struggling fish threw out a string of water. Pearls glowed red under the red setting sun.

The Liangshan ship was docked in an inlet, surrounded by dense forests on three sides, blocking the distant view.

Chatting, fishing, and carrying supplies, the sailors on the boat were all busy with their own affairs. From time to time, they would say one or two swear words, and then someone would say something that would cause a burst of laughter.

Several small boats were sailing on the water in the distance. After a while, a sharp whistle sounded in the air. The village soldiers who heard the sound lowered the rope. The scouts who were out below grabbed the rope and climbed up a few times. Then the capable scout leader walked in. cabin.

The setting sun gradually sank in the distance, and the remaining light shone on several ships. The dark night curtain was gradually pulled down, and the light of the torch illuminated the deck. The lights were lit in the cabin, and there were voices in the main cabin. echoed in.

"Chief, strategist, this is what I heard."

Du Lisan stood at the bottom and explained everything he saw and heard today in detail, then stood there with his hands down and waited.

"It's been a hard day of running around, let's go down and rest first." Lu Bu, who was sitting upright, nodded and gave a gentle order. The scout leader quickly thanked him and left the cabin, leaving space for the people inside.

"I didn't expect so many things to happen in Jiangzhou." Li Zhu bared his teeth and looked at the figure above him: "Brother, it seems that if this goes on, Jiangzhou will probably be swallowed up by others. Can we take action? "

Lu Bu's eyes moved and he looked over there: "Brother Li Zhu, do you have any insights?"

"I have an idea. We don't have many troops here this time. We only have 300 people under Brother Qiu, and two brothers, Xiao Qi and Xiao Wu, as a naval force." The slits of his eyes were narrowed, revealing black pupils: "Yes. When a river dragon and a local snake fight, one of them will be injured. We may be able to be a hunting oriole, but we have to know when to intervene."

The light flickered, and Lu Bu turned his eyes and stared at the dim light over there, thought for a moment and said: "It may not be impossible, but my brother also said that there is a local snake waiting for him..." His eyes turned thoughtfully: "You Say...does that local snake know that I'm waiting here?"

Assistant Li raised his brows, thought for a while, and nodded slowly: "It's very possible that if I were him, and if I knew that there were outsiders prying at this juncture, I would definitely spread the word. Maybe the place where we stayed would have been exposed."

"Let the men below be more alert. Maybe that Li Fu has detected this place."

"Brother, do it." Li Assistant nodded and thought for a moment: "Why don't we also find out where the Manichaeism is? This group of people is not easy to worry about."

"Manicheism? What's the origin?" He glanced at Mr. Jin Jian in surprise. The name seemed to be a religion, but... could it be so troublesome with that horn?The Thirteen Prefectures of the Han Dynasty spread to eight prefectures at one time, and every county and every city was in urgent need as if it were yesterday. If this group of people could act like moth thieves...

Li Assistant took a sip of tea and thought for a while: "I don't know much about it. I only know that this group of people believe in a foreign religion..."

Lu Bu frowned, and Li Assistant saw clearly, smiled and said: "Brother, don't underestimate this foreign sect. After hundreds of years of development, it has absorbed the culture of the Central Plains sect and has become a unique school. This group of people is the best at instigating People's hearts have heard that not only the foolish men and women in the countryside believe in it, but also scholars, officials, and soldiers also pass on it."

The tall figure above him leaned over slightly, with an expectation in his expression that Li Assistant couldn't understand, but he continued: "I heard from my friends in the world that the God believed in by Manichaeism is called Mingming." Messengers are also known as Flesh Buddha, Bone Buddha, and Blood Buddha. Followers in this religion often wear white clothes and black hats. Messengers in the religion live in the countryside and often build houses called Zhaitang. They also gather waiters, listeners, aunts, and Zhaitang. My sister and others are preaching doctrines specifically to fool the believers, men and women, and they even preach not to eat unclean things, not to eat meat, drink fermented drinks, and gather late at night. This is why there is a saying that eating vegetables is a demon. And my little brother heard that This sect has many different names in different places. Huainan calls it Erzhuzi, Zhejiang and Zhejiang call it Muni Sect, Jiangdong calls it Siguo, Jiangxi calls it Vajra Zen, and Fujian calls it Mingjiao, Jiedi Zhai, etc. It has many changes. , combined together, the power is not small."

Lu Bu listened quietly, and when he stopped, he opened his mouth and said: "I heard some songs from him, such as...' Hair is like a leek, cut back to life; head like a chicken, cut back to crow. Officials don't have to be afraid. , The common people should never take it lightly' or..." He looked at Mr. Jin Jian with an uncertain look in his eyes: "The sky is dead, Huang Tian is standing... or something like that?"

Li Assistant's hand stroking his beard suddenly stopped, and he opened his narrowed eyes, lowered his head and thought for a long time: "Unfortunately... I didn't hear what he did. I only know that there are many people in Jiangsu and Zhejiang because of the Hua Shi Gang incident." Believe in him and wait, and the rest..." He slowly shook his head.

"That's it..." Lu Bu sat upright, his eyes calmed down, he clicked on the armrest beside him, and said in a soft voice: "Just follow what my brother said, let's go investigate first, you can go and do this. arrange."

"That's how it should be, little brother, take the order." Assistant Li handed over his hand.

As they finished speaking, the two of them looked at the cabin door. The footsteps outside stopped and they knocked on the door a few times. The moment it opened, Teng Kan's head stuck in: "Brother, it's time for dinner."

"Let's go." Lu Bu stood up and walked out: "Let's eat first."

Li Zhu nodded with a smile and followed the figure in front of him and walked out.

……

The night was dark, with only a bright moon hanging in the sky. The dark river surface reflected the cold light. As the water surged, several heads emerged from the water, staring at the Liangshan ship parked in the bay.

"Found it." The man with pimple scars on his face laughed and stepped on the water: "How about, I just said that these outsiders are hiding here, isn't this it?"

"Ah, yes, yes, you, Hu Yong, are the most extravagant." The somewhat polite man next to him snorted coldly, then turned to look at the shadow-like woods on both sides: "Swim to a darker place, don't worry. My eyes are hidden in this forest, and everyone will be watched when the time comes.”

"Just find it, what else are you looking at?" the man named Hu Yong said. He heard the sound of paddling in the water. He turned his head and saw the gentle man leading his accomplices to swim to the dark place, cursing. After saying this, he hurriedly said: "His mother-in-law Shi Quan, wait for me."

"Idiot, keep your voice down. How can you avenge Brother Jun if you let him go?"

"Damn it, Shi Quan, can't you hope for something better? Brother Jun is not dead yet..."

While cursing, the group observed for a while, and then swam out along the waterway. Not long after, a few dripping men got on the boat parked in the distance, and then took advantage of the darkness to row towards a fishing village. .

It was a quiet night, and when a dark cloud covered the clear moon, the group stopped the boat, took a sip of the ginger soup handed over by the picker to warm themselves, and then Shi Quan and Hu Yong walked into the village.

Night is supposed to be a time of complete silence, but there are still many houses in the village whose window lattice is illuminated by lights. In the dark night, in addition to the sporadic barking of dogs, the sound of swishing and rubbing, there are black shadows reflected on the windows. After stopping, the dark shadow held up the knife in front of his eyes, tried it with his hands, and then continued to polish it.

Shi and Hu didn't look sideways. They were like this in recent villages. They were used to it. They just ran towards the courtyard deep in the village. The moment they knocked on the courtyard door, someone gently pushed the door open and the lights were on. The dim light pierced the darkness, and Li Fu's strong body walked out of the door.

The smell filled the room, the smell of herbs mixed with the water vapor from the river, making people frown.

"Boss Li, we found it." Shi Quan took a step forward and said in front of Li Fu. "where?"

"It's over at Sanlin Bay in the north." Hu Yong answered: "Look at him waiting for the ship, there are a lot of people coming."

Li Fu snorted and waved his hand: "What's the use of coming in many numbers? There are only a few vegetarian guys who can fight. Let's have a good rest tonight. Come with me tomorrow to have a look. If possible, keep them all. "

"Just wait for these words." Hu Yong rubbed his nose and smiled.

Shi Quan glanced at the room: "How is Brother Jun?"

"What else can we do? It's just the same as before." Li Fu looked at the house with a sad look in his eyes, but he covered it up in an instant: "It's already late at night, you two should go back quickly."

Shi Quan and Hu Yong looked at each other and then left, leaving the old man staring at the bright moon in the sky for a long time, sighing, and then opened the door and walked in.

……

Under the same sky, in a wooden house by the Xunyang River.

The oil lamp exuded an unspeakable smell. Under the bright light, an old woman was lying on the bed with her eyes closed and her face was pale. The doctor sitting next to her was gently placing his fingers on her bowl.

Not far away, fair-skinned Zhang Shun looked at his mother worriedly, and looked up at the doctor from time to time, for fear of hearing something bad from his mouth.

"Hmm..." After a long time, the doctor diagnosing the pulse over there removed his hand from the old woman's wrist, opened her mouth and eyes to look at her, then touched her beard and said nothing.

"This... I dare to ask the doctor, what happened to the villain's mother? Is it serious?" Zhang Shun couldn't hold his breath when he saw that the person was silent for a long time. He took a step forward and said anxiously: "If you need precious medicinal materials, please feel free to do so." Feel free to write the prescription, even though the house in my house is a bit dilapidated, I still have some savings."

Hearing this, the doctor put down his hand and looked at him: "That's not the case..." He turned to look at the old woman, and said thoughtfully: "Your Majesty's disease is quite rare. I have been practicing medicine all my life, but I am not good at what I have learned. There is not much certainty in curing this disease.”

"Then... what should we do?" Zhang Shun suddenly became a little impatient, and quickly took a step forward and knelt on the ground: "Please show mercy and save my mother-in-law, how much does it cost me..." His expression became fierce, and he gritted his teeth and said, "Even villains can find ways to make it happen."

The doctor waved his hand repeatedly: "It's not about the medical expenses. This disease is really difficult to treat. I can't help at all."

"Then... Do you want me to make my mother feel uncomfortable when I see you?" Zhang Shun's face was a little ugly, and he looked at the middle-aged man in front of him pleadingly: "Please give me a good hand and help." As he said this, Shun held his arms in his arms. He took out five taels of silver and put it in his hand: "It's a small thought, but it's not respectful. Please accept it. The clinic fee will be calculated separately."

"You... oh, this is not a matter of money." The doctor stood up, stamped his foot, looked at Zhang Shun's pleading look, his face changed color, waved his hand and said: "Come on, after all, this disease is still there. Someone can cure it.”

Zhang Shun looked up with joy on his face. The doctor over there touched his beard and said, "Go to Jiankang Mansion. There is a man named An Daoquan there who is known as a famous doctor. People often say that his medical skills are comparable to those of Hua Tuo and Hua Tuo. If you are able to compete with Bian Que, no one who goes to seek medical advice will be disappointed. You may want to take your daughter to try."

Hearing this, Zhang Shun felt as if he had been saved: "Is this... so magical? I will invite him here now."

"Then it's too late." The doctor shook his head: "Take your majesty and go as quickly as possible. Maybe it's still too late. If I wait for you to come back again and again, my condition will worsen, and I may have to worry about it."

Zhang Shun's expression suddenly changed when he heard this: "Thank you, doctor, for the tip." Then he stood up and handed the money over: "Please accept it."

The doctor didn't take it. He flicked his sleeves and turned around to leave: "I haven't been able to help you with anything. I'm not receiving any reward for my efforts. I'm leaving!"

Zhang Shun's face was awkward for a moment, and he quickly picked up a torch and lit it as he walked: "I send you my condolences, little man."

The doctor did not refuse this time, and when he left the courtyard, he did not let Zhang Shun see him off any more. He only asked for a fire to carry him away. Bai Tiao turned around in the room, looking at his mother with her eyes closed, and at his own house. The eldest brother hasn't come back yet. I know he is looking for a place to gamble. He will not come back until he loses everything.

Without any hope at the moment, he gritted his teeth, found a quilt and wrapped the old woman up, then found a strip of cloth to carry the woman on his back, then found a torch, opened the door and walked to the boat.

To go to Jiankang Mansion, it would be better to leave overnight. Who knows if it will be the right time to leave tomorrow? If it is late, who will he cry to?

……

small lonely mountain.

In the Juyi Hall, Bao Daoyi was wearing a Taoist robe, sitting in Zhang Kui's seat with a cold face. Zheng Biao was still standing beside him, Zhang Kui and Ma Xiong were sitting on both sides of him, and Li Li was sitting there. Below Ma Xiong, since the village owner changed, he ordered the judge to be qualified to take the seat, and he was quite grateful to the two masters and apprentices.

"I didn't expect that there are so many heroes in Jiangzhou, but many of the masters in the sect have been injured." The Taoist patted the handrail and looked at the night outside with a somewhat unkind look.

"Why don't we let our elder brother use more official power to drive Li Fu out of here..." Ma Xiong raised his hands and said his plan.

"No need!" He waved his hand and Bao Dao Yi straightened up: "The one I can't trust the most is the government. I can cooperate once or twice, but if I cooperate more, I'm afraid that all the bones will be chewed and swallowed by him."

The people below looked at each other in confusion, then turned around and said, "Then... what will the envoy do..."

"No need to worry too much." Bao Dao Yi smiled ferociously and pinched the armrest: "Pindao has sent a message to the church, and someone will come to help soon."

The night wind is blowing, and the moonlight is like a hook. (End of chapter)