Lord: Start with a book of Water Margin

Chapter 265: The Living Flash

Zhao Zhen said, "Oh? Is there a new hero coming to the county? Bring him over quickly."

Wu Yong said with a smile: "Sir, there are not so many heroes. You all know the man I'm talking about. He is the brother of your newly married Sanniang, [Flying Tiger] Hu Cheng."

Xiao Rang said: "What the scholar said is correct. Hu Cheng not only has excellent martial arts skills, but he is also the young master of Hujia Village. He has been treating people well since he was a child. Now he is also the relative of a senior official. He is the most suitable person to manage the affairs of the caravan."

Zhao Zhen said: "You are indeed a scholar, thinking so carefully, but I wonder if Hu Cheng is interested?"

Zhu Wu said, "Since the great master is going to smuggle salt, Hu Cheng alone is not enough to take care of him. I chatted with the brothers in the county and thought that we should use [Ghost Face] Du Xing to assist him. The two of them can take care of each other, and Hu Taigong will have less worries."

Zhao Zhen said, "That's great. The roadside inn is now thriving. Fortunately, Brother Chao Gai is taking care of it. Brother Zhu Gui can take care of it alone, but it will be a lot of trouble. Why not let Brother Yun go here and help Brother Zhu Gui. We can find a smart waiter in Liang Village. Please ask Brother Xiao Rang to tell the two brothers. If Taigong is unwilling to let his brother-in-law go out, let Du Xing be the head of the caravan."

Xiao Rang responded, and just as Zhao Zhen was about to speak, Zhao Yuanli pushed the door open and came in, saying, "Sir, there is a man who calls himself Wang Dingliu from Jiankang Prefecture."

Zhao Zhen said: "Please come in quickly."

Wu Yong said: "Congratulations, great official, your words are as good as gold, and this hero is coming, isn't he?"

Xiao Rang and a few others also came forward to congratulate him.

After a while, Zhao Yuanli led a young man and an old man in. After they greeted each other, they sat down.

The old man said, "I have heard of your reputation for a long time. Recently, many people have come from the north and praised you when they passed by the Yangtze River. My son has heard a lot and kept talking to me."

"I have only this one son. When I saw him, I thought he loved to play with a stick in the water. He had tried to find a master many times but was not taught. He heard that there were many good men here, so he abandoned the riverside hotel and went north to join the master."

Wang Dingliu also spoke up, "Father, you pity me. You know that I am not interested in running a hotel. I have been trying to learn martial arts from people everywhere, but unfortunately I have never learned the true skills. In the Jiankang Prefecture, there was [Optimus Prime] Bao Peisong, who was very skilled in martial arts, but unfortunately he refused to teach me martial arts. That is why I had the heart to abandon my family business."

Zhao Zhen said, "I have many warriors with great martial arts skills here. You can learn from them. I see that you are small and thin. I have a set of secret manuals of Seven-Star Double Swords. How about you copy a copy and practice with it?"

Wang Dingliu knelt on the ground after hearing this and said, "If you think of me like this, I will repay you in this lifetime."

Praise for poetry:

The grasshopper has a pointy head and bright eyes, and the heron has skinny legs with no flesh at all.

Lu Yao walked as fast as flying, Wang Dingliu by the Yangtze River.

world log
Name: Wang Dingliu (Hero, the worst star on earth)
Nickname: Flashy
Race: Terran

Reputation: 25 (opening a hotel by the Yangtze River, making friends with good people)
Occupation: Xiangyong

Secondary occupation: shopkeeper
等级：2阶2级（武力20，统帅10）属性：力量20，体质23，敏捷30，精神18
Skills: Eavesdropping level 1 (getting information, agility +1), Water Combat level 2 (underwater fighting, strength +2), Boating level 2 (traveling on the river, flying, strength +2), Fishing level 1 (catching fish and shrimps, constitution +1)

Commander Skill: None
Martial Arts: Body Movement (skilled, speed +3, light as a swallow, can leap over nail boards)
Equipment: none
Monthly salary: 8 dollars

Zhao Zhen helped Wang Dingliu up and nodded to Zhao Yuanli. Seeing this, Zhao Yuanli left the hall to get the secret book.

Wu Yong also said: "Brother Wang Dingliu's nickname is very interesting. Doesn't Shanpo mean the Mother of Lightning?"

Wang Dingliu said, "Brother Wu Yong, you don't know that there are many alligators along the Yangtze River. People in my place call them pig dragons. They are small in size and agile in movement. Because I am thin and walk and jump fast, I got the nickname [Living Flash]." As he said that, he took out two rolled-up alligator skins from the package on his back and presented them to Zhao Zhen.

Zhao Zhen unfolded it for everyone to see. It was indeed quite different from the crocodiles they had heard about. This crocodile was only about six feet four or five feet long from head to tail, and it was completely different from the three or four feet long crocodiles that everyone often talked about.

Everyone laughed when they heard this. Xiao Rang asked, "Brother, you live by the Yangtze River. I guess you are familiar with the water?"

Wang Dingliu said, "Just as Brother Xiao Rang said, although I don't have great skills, I am a good swimmer. Few people in the river can match me. There are two people in front of my house who make a living by ferrying people across the river. One of them is called [River-Intercepting Ghost] Zhang Wang, and the other is called [Oil-Lit Loach] Sun Wu. In terms of water skills, these two are no match for me."

Zhao Zhen asked, "Can these two be invited?"

Wang Dingliu said: "These two are not good men. They often rob people in the river. They are cruel and kill people regardless of gender, age or status. They can't be said to be bad men. However, these two are not loyal. They often fight over the spoils. They are also unfilial. They never send the gold and silver they get home. They just have fun in casinos and brothels. No one in the riverside says anything good about them."

After hearing this, Zhao Zhen didn't mention it any further.

Wu Yong said: "Sir, since Wang Dingliu is familiar with water and has run a hotel, why not ask him to be the manager of the caravan?"

Zhao Zhen's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he said, "That's right. With the new two-masted merchant ship sent by Brother Meng Kang, the fleet now has nine large ships. This trip can transport more than 4,000 dan of salt, costing more than 5,000 guan. It would be good to have more people to take care of it."

"Brother Wang Dingliu, would you like to be a deputy captain in the fleet, transporting private salt, practicing martial arts in the farm when you are free, and guarding the ship when you are busy?"

Wang Dingliu said happily, "I am willing to follow your orders, sir."

Zhao Zhen said, "Brother, please choose a house in the village and live there first. Xiao asked me to sort out the fleet management in the next few days. When the time comes, it won't be too late for me to set off with the fleet."

As he was talking, Zhao Yuanli walked in, holding a secret book and handed it to Zhao Zhen. Zhao Zhen took it and handed it to Wang Dingliu, saying, "Brother, take this secret book and copy it and study it carefully. Besides me, Hu Sanniang has also learned this sword technique in the village. You can ask her for advice. If you want to learn the skills of spear and sword, you can also go to the brothers in the county to ask. As for teaching martial arts, Zhang, the instructor of Wanzi City, is the instructor of the Tokyo Imperial Army. If you can please him, he will naturally pass on your skills."

After hearing this, Wang Dingliu thanked him again.

Zhao Zhen thought that Wang Dingliu was from Jiankang Prefecture, so he couldn't help but say, "There is another good man in the county, his surname is Shi, his given name is Xiu, he is a man who likes to stand up for the weak, and is known as the Desperate Sanlang, and he is also from Jiankang Prefecture. He is now the commander of a battalion in the Snow Mountain Peak camp. He will be welcoming you these few days, and I will introduce him to you then."

(End of this chapter)