Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

"Tell Qin Ming that no matter who he is now, he has brought shame to his ancestors by joining a bandit. If he still knows how to write the word shame, he should go back to the ancestral hall and kneel down to beg for forgiveness!"

"A bunch of thieves, even if they put on official robes, they are still thieves!"

"You are the same, betraying your country and not repaying the emperor's kindness. You can never get rid of the label of thief. If you still have a conscience, you can give up Liaodong early and ask for forgiveness from the emperor."

……

The sun was shining brightly on the river, shining on the inflated sails. The chilly wind blew the cloak on the body tightly against the side, the sleeves of the clothes fluttered, and the speed of the boat gradually increased.

The sound of water splashing in the river came into his ears, but it could not cover up the harsh words just now. Hua Rong watched the general standing on the shore slowly become a small black dot, and then looked at the large flag with the word "Song" fluttering in the distance. Then he gathered his cloak and turned back to the cabin.

Sailors walked between the decks and cabins, and the shouts of adjusting the sails echoed throughout the ship.

Their sailors did not need to worry about this voyage, and there were towns along the Jingdong Road for supplies, so they did not have to worry as much about the journey as they did at sea.

With a frown on his face, Hua Rong went all the way to the cabin below, knocked on the door of Li Shanqing's cabin and walked in. The envoy who came this time and Shan Jinglong were in the room. When they saw him enter, they stood up at the same time: "General Hua."

Li Shanqing reached out and picked up the copper jar, pouring out the still steaming soup: "The Song people sent some hot soup over, drink some to warm your body." He reached out and put the cork back into the copper jar and placed it on the table.

"Thank you, Mr. Li." Hua Rong smiled gently, took the water and drank it, then sat down again.

Shan Jinglong watched him sit down, then sat back in his original seat and sighed: "I didn't expect that General Qin Ming had a cousin in Qingzhou. If I had known at the time...", and slammed the table hard.

"oops--"

boom--

The table was thin and the copper jar was placed outside. He punched it and it fell to the ground with a "clang". Fortunately, the wooden cork was pressed tightly and the water did not spill out. Shan Jinglong was so panicked that he quickly put the copper jar back and then patted his chest and let out a breath.

Li Shanqing's mouth twitched, and he looked at Shan Jinglong and saw that he didn't say anything.

Hua Rong ignored him, put the bowl back on the table, and frowned, "I'm afraid it's not that simple. This man is quite hostile to us. I wonder how General Qin Ming would feel if he knew about this."

"If I had a relative like this, I would stab him with my sword and stab him several times." Shan Jinglong crossed his legs and walked away from the table, cursing, "He's like a dog, barking so loudly. The general should have shot him with two arrows just now, so that he would shut up."

"Forget it." Hua Rong shook his head: "After all, he is General Qin's cousin. We can't rashly make enemies with him before he speaks. Let's just say a few words."

"General, you are wrong." Li Shanqing couldn't help but speak up: "We are here to represent the reputation of Qi. If someone provokes us..." He looked around at the two of them and said, "It would be better to punish them."

Hua Rong pondered for a moment: "If it were anyone else, Hua Rong would have taught him a lesson about the anger of a common man, but this man is special..." He shook his head and sighed: "Forget it, let's not talk about him. When we get to Bianliang, the officials will have to argue with those big turbans. Do you have any ideas?"

"General, rest assured." Li Shanqing was also a sensible person. Seeing that he changed the subject, he knew that he didn't want to talk more. "We need money and food support. Song has always boasted of its wealth, so this should not be difficult. But their request for Han territory is too rude, so we need to discuss it."

"Li Langguan just needs to know the answer."

Hua Rong nodded, and the three of them talked for a while before returning to their cabins to rest.

Sailing is always boring, and the ship is full of rough guys from the army. Hua Rong and the other two can only chat with Ma Zheng about the scenery of Liaodong and inquire about the court situation. After all, Hua Rong and Shan Jinglong have been away from Song for a long time, and Li Shanqing is a Bohai person who grew up in Liaodong and knows little about this place, so the four of them talked enthusiastically.

But when they learned that Liu Fa of the Western Army led his troops to attack Xixia Tong'an City in the spring half a year ago and died in battle, they could not help but feel deeply moved. Even a country man like Shan Jinglong had to sigh: "When it comes to famous generals, Liu Fa must be the leader. Even a city man like me has heard of this. What a pity... I thought I would have a chance to meet him after the alliance."

Hua Rong also nodded in agreement, but Ma Zheng's expression did not change much, he just looked at Shan Jinglong with some disdain. ...

The beginning of winter.

When the sand ship entered Bianliang, the bone-chilling cold wind blew on people, giving them an immediate chill. The slowly moving ship broke through the water and docked in front of the inland river wharf under the gaze of more than a thousand pairs of eyes on and under the ship.

Rows of imperial guards wearing exquisite armor stood upright like pine trees, holding their spears. The cold wind blew across the flags, making a rustling sound. An official named Zhao Youkai stepped forward and talked to Li Shanqing in the front with a big laugh.

Hua Rong and Shan Jinglong fell behind, ignoring the repetitive greetings in front of them, and just looked at the imperial guards behind them.

"I've heard that the Imperial Guards are elite, and today I see that they are indeed worthy of their reputation." Shan Jinglong moved closer to Hua Rong and lowered his voice: "Look at these people's strong bodies, it will be no problem to send them to the Xianzhen Camp one by one."

"All show and no substance." Hua Rong tilted his head slightly and spoke softly, "General Shan, you only see these people as strong and sturdy on the surface. Look carefully at their armor, it is polished to a shine, but there is not a single scratch on it. There is no sense of having been on the battlefield in their eyes. They are all just for show. I am afraid they can be defeated with just a charge."

Shan Jinglong hurriedly focused his attention to look. In the whistling wind, the robes of the imperial guards were fluttering. Although their faces did not change much, their eyes were looking at nowhere. After a while, he nodded: "General Hua still has good eyesight...", and then curled his lips: "Damn it, someone always told me that the imperial guards are the essence of the army and the pillar of the country. Pah——" He lowered his voice: "It looks like pig shit to me."

Hua Rong smiled. Li Shanqing and his companions had just finished their greetings and then took this group of people from Liaodong to Duting Posthouse. After all the hassles, it was almost dusk, so Ma Zheng and Zhao Youkai said goodbye and left.

"These people don't even have a banquet!"

"Don't worry, General Shan. We will have wine and meat for you later." Li Shanqing looked a little tired, but he still tried to comfort him, "We are new here and tired from the journey. We need to rest for a day before someone comes to greet us. Today is the day for you and me to rest."

"Oh……"

Shan Jinglong nodded in realization, but Hua Rong's eyes flickered: "In that case, I have somewhere to go."

Shan Jinglong looked over hurriedly: "Do you want the young general to come with you?"

"No need." Hua Rong shook his head: "I can go by myself, you two can rest well here."

He immediately changed into winter clothes, put on a fur hat, wrapped himself in a cloak, and went out.

……

the other side.

The imperial guards walked along the street towards the military camp outside the city. Zhao Youkai and Ma Zheng walked slowly behind them side by side, asking, "Brother Zhongfu, are you still energetic?"

Ma Zheng turned and looked at him.

"Before coming to pick you up today, the emperor said that he would arrange for those Qi people to bring you into the palace for an audience."

"Of course there is." Ma Zheng stood up straight, his expression brightened: "Hurry up, don't let the emperor wait too long."

The two of them didn't say anything more and walked quickly towards the imperial city.

Soon, a eunuch came out and called the two of them in. (End of this chapter)