Lord: Start with a book of Water Margin

Chapter 591 Confrontation
However, Lin Chong and others saw Ji Anbang and his gang on guard at the border, and following Zhao Zhen's instructions, they also set up camp and confronted them.

When Zhao Zhen arrived and saw him in the carriage, Ji Anbang became serious.

After all, with so many cavalry arriving at the same time, we will suffer a lot in the field battle.

As he was watching, Wang Dengbang, who had recently been promoted to the position of Tuanlianshi, raised his hand and pointed to the distance and said, "Sir, the man riding the white horse is Zhao Ze from Liangshan."

Everyone looked in the direction Wang Dengbang pointed, and sure enough, they saw a group of female riders surrounding a young general, also wearing a helmet and armor.

Ji Anbang looked around and said, "I didn't expect Zhao Ze to come in person. If you can capture him, each of you will be appointed as the military commander of a state."

After that, everyone went down the flying tower.

Ji Anbang said, "Wang Tuanlian, have you met this Prime Minister Zhao? Do you dare to challenge him?"

Wang Dengbang said, "Sir, this is not difficult. I will just go there for a while."

Soon, Wang Dengbang, wearing only military uniform and carrying a letter of challenge, left the camp and went straight to Zhao Zhen.

He met Zhao Zhen and issued a declaration of war.

After reading it, Zhao Zhen did not make things difficult for Wang Deng, and said, "You go back and tell your general that we will see the result on the battlefield tomorrow at dawn."

On the second day, both armies prepared meals at dawn. After a full meal, the soldiers put on their helmets and armor and went out of the camp to form a battle line. The two armies met each other, with their flags and drums facing each other, and each used a strong bow and hard crossbow to shoot at the battle line. Each blew the horn and started beating the drum.

Ji Anbang was the first to go into battle. On his left and right were the training envoys Zhang Jinbiao and Wang Dengbang, as well as two new military commanders Qian Taiju, the defense envoy Ye Yong, and officers of all ranks. They were all strong and muscular, and full of heroic spirit.

Ji Anbang held the sword in his hand, jumped on his horse and rushed out, shouting loudly: "Please ask the pacifier to come out and talk to me!"

Zhao Zhen heard this and also drove his horse out to the battle. The soldiers spread out their arms and lined up on the left and right. Everyone was handsome and heroic. When Ji Anbang and others looked, they saw a man in the middle. He had white teeth, red lips, handsome eyes, a very thin waist and broad shoulders, holding an elephant bone whip in his hand and a [Zhao Ye Jade Lion] under his crotch. Behind his horse was a large flag with the word "Shuai" fluttering in the wind, looking extremely majestic.

Just as the sound of war drums and horns were heard, a general from the Liangshan army had already come out, with a leopard head, round eyes, a swallow chin and a tiger beard. He was none other than the former instructor of the 800,000 imperial troops and now the deputy commander of the Liangshan army, [Leopard Head] Lin Chong.

Lin Chong shouted: "Corrupt officials, what do you have to say?"

Ji Anbang cursed: "How dare you, a group of people, invade my border?"

Lin Chong shouted, "You are greedy and have harmed the people. You should not harm the whole family of Dai in Liangshan. But we want to return the family's property. How dare you make excuses?"

Dai Quan heard this and rode out on his horse, shouting, "Give me back my family and my gold and silver, you dare to say no, I will chop you all into pulp today."

Ji Anbang was furious, pointing at Dai Quan and cursing, "You disloyal villain, stirring up trouble, you deserve to die by the sword." He looked around and asked, "Who will go out and capture this man?"

The new defense commander, Ye Yong, was seen heading out with a three-pointed, double-edged sword in hand, heading straight for [Golden-haired Lion] Dai Quan.

When Dai Quan saw this, he also drew his broadsword and rode forward.

Neither of them said anything, but both rushed forward. One was eager for revenge, and the other had just been promoted and was about to make a contribution. The two fought for less than five rounds when Dai Quan stabbed Ye Yong in the neck with a knife, causing him to somersault off his horse.

Ji Anbang was surprised: "Who will take revenge?"

When Zhang Jinbiao and Wang Dengbang saw this, they stepped forward and fought Dai Quan together.

In the Liangshan formation, two generals, Yan Shun [the Golden-Haired Tiger] and Zhou Tong [the Little Overlord], one wielded a gilded tiger-shaped iron sword, the other wielded a green heavy spear, rode out on horseback to meet the enemy. Four people, four horses, sword against sword, spear against spear, the two pairs fought in front of the formation.

When Qian Taiju saw this, he also shouted loudly, and rode out on a silver horse with a steel spear, shouting: "Disloyal and unfilial boy, do you recognize your grandfather?"

Dai Quan was furious. The two had a grudge against each other. When they met today, he was so angry that he could not contain himself and immediately rode his horse to meet him.

Six generals fought in three pairs in front of the battle array. After more than twenty rounds, Wang Dengbang was defeated by Yan Shun. He showed a flaw and rode away. Seeing this, Yan Shun did not chase him but reined in his horse and ran straight to Zhang Jinbiao.

Zhang Jinbiao was horrified and was about to turn his horse around to leave when Zhou Tong shouted at him, frightening him to death. He was so frightened that he didn't know what was going on with the gun in his hand. Zhou Tong shot him with the gun and knocked him off his horse. Yan Shun caught up with him and killed Zhang Jinbiao with a knife.

The two men seized the good horse and Zhang Jinbiao's body and rode back to the battle.

Only Dai Quan and Qian Tai were left fighting in front of the battle. The two of them gnashed their teeth and wished they could eat each other alive. The two of them fought back and forth, circling around, each showing off their martial arts skills.

After fighting for more than fifty rounds, Dai Quan was running out of energy and was about to lose, so Lin Chong rode his horse to help.

When Qian Taiju saw this, he shouted loudly, and killed Dai Quan with just one strike of his spear, then took over the fight with Lin Chong.

Lin Chong was furious when he saw Qian Taiju kill Dai Quan. He kept his spear in his hand and kept it close to Qian Taiju. The two fought back and forth for more than 40 rounds, each with his own might. The two spears flew and changed, shining with silver light.

People on both sides cheered secretly. In the shadow of the clouds and the sound of drums and horns, the two men had been fighting for more than seventy rounds. It was obvious that one of them was about to lose. Ji Anbang from Xingren Prefecture saw this and came to the rescue with the powerful axe in his hand.

In the Liangshan formation, Sun An, who had been ready to fight for a long time, saw this and came out to meet the enemy with two swords in hand.

The two fought for only ten rounds before Lin Chong shouted loudly and killed Qian Taiju with a spear. Deputy generals Peng Qi and Han Tao rode their horses to pick up the bodies of Qian Taiju and Dai Quan and returned to the battle line.

It happened in a flash. Ji Anbang was already anxious, and he swung the big chopping knife in his hand more and more quickly. Sun An's two long swords flew up and blocked each other. They fought back and forth for more than fifty rounds. Ji Anbang saw that he could not win for a while, and wanted to leave in a hurry. However, he was accompanied by Sun An's two long swords, and he could not get away. He became more and more irritable, and his sword skills were messed up.

Sun An was a martial arts master. Seeing Ji Anbang's weakness, he blocked Ji Anbang's sword with his right hand and stabbed with his left hand, hitting Ji Anbang in the throat and causing him to fall off his horse.

Zhao Zhen saw this and pointed with his whip, and the military commanders Wang Tianba and Tang Bin, the strong warriors of the mountain, led 3,000 cavalrymen to rush out. The cavalry and infantry soldiers behind them also rushed over.

But they saw people dying and horses falling, flags and drums flying. The Liangshan army rushed in like cutting melons and vegetables, and the militia commander Wang Dengbang had no way to stop them, so he hurriedly retreated. The cavalry and infantry soldiers chased them together, and drove the official army of Xingren Prefecture away like stars in the sky.

After they had fought for thirty miles, Zhao Zhen called for the horn to be sounded and the troops to be reassembled. They then set up camp at Ji Anbang's camp. All the generals came to offer their contributions. After counting the number of people, Ji Anbang and his men killed more than 4,000 soldiers and captured nearly 10,000. Only Wang Dengbang escaped. They seized countless armor, swords, drums, horses, and food and grass, and won a great victory.

Then Wang Dengbang led the remaining troops back to Xingren Prefecture. When Gao Yanei heard about it, he was horrified and quickly ordered the city gates to be closed. He also mobilized the men in the city to defend the city.

Seeing that the Liangshan troops had not come to attack, Gao Shide felt relieved. He summoned two guards, Wang Bin and Li Yan, and Wang Dengbang who had escaped. Without waiting for the three to greet each other, Gao Shide said, "Ji Anbang is also useless. What should we do now?" Wang Dengbang was terrified and said, "Sir, we should call for reinforcements now."

Wang Bin said, "Young Master, the Liangshan army has not yet attacked the city, so there may still be a chance to save the situation."

Gao Shide heard this and asked quickly, "How should we proceed?"

"Send Dai Chun and Dai Quan's son Dai Modai from the prison and their families and properties to Liangshan, and then pay some gold, silver, cloth and silk as compensation, and put all the blame on Niu Xin, Fu Ji and Ji Anbang. Yanei is the son of the Grand Marshal, so I think he wouldn't dare to do anything extreme." Wang Bin replied.

Gao Shide had already run out of ideas, and nodded his head after hearing this. He said to Wang Bin, "Go to the prison and release Dai Quan and Dai Chun's family, and comfort them with kind words. Put the two killers, Niu Xin and Fu Ji, in heavy shackles, and send them to the Liangshan army first, and then plunder their mansions and Dai Quan's family's property as an apology."

Then he said to Li Yan: "Li Yuhou, take three or five people with you and leave the city immediately to ask for reinforcements from my father in Bianjing."

After that, he pointed at Wang Dengbang and said, "The defense of the city still needs you to take charge. Patrol the city day and night, and don't slack off."

The three of them followed orders and acted on their own.

Gao Shide hesitated for a moment, then asked the steward of the mansion to urge all the servants to pack up the family's property, preparing to abandon the state government and flee back to Bianliang in case of any problems.

Back at the Liangshan camp, all the generals came to the army to ask for merit, and after their merits were confirmed, Zhao Zhen was promoted to the position.

In the big tent, all the generals were smiling happily, except Lin Chong, who was unhappy.

Seeing this, Zhu Wu consoled him, "Master, life and death are decided by heaven. Although we lost Brother Dai Quan, we also killed Qian Taiju and avenged him. Now there is only one general left in Xingren Prefecture, Wang Deng, and Xingren Prefecture has long been terrified. When the time comes, ask Xingren Prefecture to send Brother Dai Quan's family away, which can also be considered as saving his blood."

Zhao Zhen also said: "What a pity for Dai Quan, such a brave man."

As everyone was sighing, the patrolling camp [Blood Blade] Zhu Jing, led a group of people to the front of the tent and reported: "Sir, the envoy of Gao Yanei from Xingren Prefecture has come to ask for peace."

After hearing this, Zhao Zhen called someone forward.

Wang Bin came forward and prostrated himself on the ground, saying, "Sir, I am the Yuhou of the Taiwei Mansion. Following the order of the yamen, I have sent Niu Xin and Fu Ji, who instigated the quarrel between the two mansions, to apologize."

Wu Yong scolded: "Why are there only these two people?"

Wang Bin quickly told everyone about the two men's crimes against local gentry behind Gao Shide's back, but everyone just didn't believe him. Wu Yong said, "Who knows if it's true or not? Could it be that these two men were scapegoats pushed out by Gao Yanei when he saw that he was defeated? We have a large army going out to fight, and we have spent countless gold, silver, and food. What's the point of killing these two birds?"

"When two armies are fighting, envoys will not be killed. Just go back quickly and tell Gao Shide to make preparations early. When the army leaves the camp tomorrow, we will attack the city and naturally find out the whole story. At that time, the Dai family will be cleared of all charges."

Wang Bin was terrified when he heard this. He said, "Why do you have to do this? The yamen has already ordered that all the family members of the Dai family in the city be sent out of the prison and returned to you soon. The Dai family's property has not been embezzled, so it will also be delivered. The yamen is preparing gold and pearls, and will send them over later as an apology."

Wu Yong said, "When you came here, didn't you know that Brother Dai Quan died in the battle today? Who will pay for his life?"

Wang Bin said, "General, calm down. Qian Taiju is already dead. He only has one son. When I came, the yamen had already ordered his house to be looted. Qian Shixiao resisted and was killed."

Wu Yong listened, then nodded and said, "There is no deep hatred between Liangshan and Xingren Prefecture. For the sake of the general, we have always restrained ourselves. Today's fight is unnecessary. When soldiers are dispatched, gold and silver will flow like water. It will take at least 100,000 strings of cash to settle the matter."

Wang Bin heard this and said anxiously, "I will go back and report to the yamen."

Wu Yong said, "It costs a lot to feed people and horses every day. Who has the patience to argue with you? Go back and tell the young master that we will send troops to break into the city in two days at most. We will take it ourselves. When the time comes, the swords and guns will have no mercy on us. Don't blame us for offending the young master."

After hearing this, Wang Bin left Niu Xin and Fu Ji behind and ran away in a hurry.

Looking at the two trembling men, Zhao Zhen said, "Just keep them in custody and wait for Dai Quan's family to be sent over. Then they will be sacrificed in blood."

At dawn, Li Yan drove his horse for 300 miles overnight and rushed into the Taiwei Mansion in Bianjing City.

After listening to Li Yan's account of the whole incident, Gao Qiu groaned inwardly and waved his hand, telling Li Yan to go down and rest.

Gao Qiu gave an order and hurried to the Grand Tutor's Mansion.

After greeting, Gao Qiu said, "Grandmaster, now Liangshan has sent troops to Xingren Prefecture, what should we do?"

Cai Jing frowned and said, "How dare Zhao Ze act like this?"

Gao Qiu said angrily, "This fellow has always been so bold that he would raise an army to retaliate for a small matter. General Ji Anbang was killed, and most of the generals, military defense officers, and militia officers were killed in the battle. My son is still in the city. The situation is critical. Grand Tutor, can you give me some advice?"

Seeing that Cai Jing was still frowning, Gao Qiu hurriedly told him about the conflict between the two parties. Hearing that Liangshan had not yet besieged the city, Cai Jing said, "Fortunately, this guy still cares about the face of the general. As for the current plan, only Tong Shumishi may be able to persuade him. There is no time to lose, the general should go quickly."

Gao Qiu heard this and said, "Now that Ji Anbang is dead, how do we explain it?"

Cai Jing waved his hand and said, "This is not difficult. Afterwards, just tell my nephew to report that he died of an illness, burn his remains on the spot, send the ashes, and then comfort his family. The area around Liangshan is not a safe place after all. When the incident is settled, transfer my nephew away."

Gao Qiu nodded again and again after hearing this. He immediately said goodbye to Cai Jing and went to Tong Guan's residence.

After talking about the matter, Tong Guan listened and said to Gao Qiu: "Before, he sent Tian Hu a forged crown for the emperor. I just thought he was respectful. I never thought that he would cause such a big trouble again."

Gao Qiu said, "The children are playing around, but they need the Prime Minister to mediate."

Tong Guan nodded: "You and I are officials in the same court, and we are close friends. How dare we not do our best? He can still listen to me, but he lost a great general, so I'm afraid he won't give up easily."

Gao Qiu told Tong Guan what Grand Tutor Cai had said. Tong Guan listened and nodded, saying, "This is the best."

After that, he wrote a letter, had Gao Qiu read it, stamped it, and asked one of his subordinates to go back to the mansion with Gao Qiu.

Gao Qiu took the man with him and said goodbye. After returning home, he called Li Yan, gave him a few instructions, and asked the two of them to take their companions and rush back to Xingren Mansion.

(End of this chapter)