Water Margin begins as a captain in Yanggu County

Chapter 125 Bah! what!
Lu Junyi came back and first went to Dongping Prefecture, bringing with him a thousand horses. This was the final payment from the transaction between Su Wu and the Jin people. Of course, Su Wu also gave the iron to the Jurchens to make up the difference.

He also brought back a large amount of furs, pearls, and ginseng. It is difficult to estimate their exact value, but a rough estimate is around 150,000 to 200,000 strings of cash.

Zhu Wu finally made a statistics of all the treasures looted from Liangshan. He would wait for Lu Junyi to return before estimating the value of a large amount of the stuff.

Among them, the gold, silver and money amounted to about 900,000 strings of cash. A rough estimate of the additional items was that they were worth about 500,000 to 600,000 strings of cash, and they still needed Lu Junyi to sell them one by one.

Food is not included in this list.

Su Wu was on duty in the yamen, looking at various account books and listening to Zhu Wu's slow report.

Su Wu was naturally very happy about the huge harvest this time, but it did not relieve much of the pressure in his heart. A few months ago, Su Wu would have laughed out loud in his dreams if he had 1.5 or 600,000 strings of cash.

But now, Su Wu still has to be thrifty. Training and maintaining the troops is one thing, purchasing military equipment is another, and the real big thing is shipbuilding.

Just the shipbuilding issue was enough to give Su Wu a headache. Another thing was that Su Wu didn't understand the difference between seagoing ships and river ships.

If river boats can also go out to sea, that would be great and they can be used in the future.

If the river boats cannot go out to sea, they can only be used as merchant ships in the future. After all, the target of the attack tomorrow is the Liao Kingdom.

That would become a one-time deal, requiring huge investment and a very slow payback, but it had to be built; otherwise, Liangshan would be in vain.

Lu Junyi was standing by, smiling happily: "Brother, this trade route to the Kingdom of Jin is really good. I will go there again in the future. One trip can bring hundreds of thousands of guan of profit, and there is no danger. It's not so fast to pick up money like this."

Su Wu also replied: "It's a pity that I can't walk for too long."

The benefits are huge, but in Su Wu's mind, they are not that great. Even if he can earn 200,000 strings of cash in one trip, he can only make five or six trips a year at most, because he still has to prepare supplies, transport them by land, go out to sea, and come back, so it won't be fast.

In this way, it would only be about one million strings of cash a year.

Now Su Wu has become more ambitious, and time waits for no one. Just like when Tong Guan went to war with Liao, he started with 4 million strings of coins. If Lu Junyi ran like this, it would take him four years to earn as much as Tong Guan could with just a wave of his hand.

Su Wu, who was careless, had a headache. At first, he thought about making money from the regular store, and later he also thought about making money from the 叆叆. These things are not without money, but the money earned is not small.

But compared with Su Wu's current situation, this money is really not enough, just a drop in the bucket. Of course, the more money you earn, the better.

After thinking about it, Su Wu knew in his heart that it was faster to rob money!
Killing the chicken to get the eggs is the fastest way, but it is impossible to do.

Also, in the Song Dynasty, the entire court only spent 70 to 80 million strings of cash a year, which was actually not a small amount. However, we should know that in the Song Dynasty, the annual military expenditure accounted for most of the court's expenditure, which was probably over 50 million strings of cash.

This court...

Why does everything seem so... irrational?

Su Wu couldn't figure it out for a moment, and it was difficult for him to analyze it carefully, so he thought of Liangshan. Although Liangshan had lost more than half of its wealth this time, it should have gained several million strings of cash.

In other words, Liangshan's quick looting in Gaotang Prefecture would probably yield a little over 3 million strings of cash.

Liangshan must also have built ships, trained soldiers and manufactured military equipment. What they had to do was actually the same as Su Wu's.

But their situation was definitely several levels worse than Su Wu's, because Su Wu was an official soldier, with the governor above him and the richest man in Daming Prefecture below him...

Therefore, the direct and implicit costs of Su Wu's acquisition of everything were much lower than those of Song Jiang.

In terms of the quality of soldiers, Liangshan was far inferior to Su Wu, but in terms of the number of soldiers, Liangshan greatly exceeded Su Wu.

At this time, there must be more than 10,000 people on Liangshan.

Although Su Wu recruited a lot of soldiers, he only recruited about 3,000 new soldiers and was training them intensively.

As the army expanded, naturally many veterans began to be promoted.

Su Wu had only 5,000 soldiers under his command, not counting auxiliary soldiers. This was far from the 10,000-strong army agreed with Tong Guan. Su Wu wanted to raise a full 20,000, which was even further away.

It’s really a headache. For now, we have enough money to maintain the troops, but we lack people!

This Song Dynasty...

It’s not that Su Wu had never thought about recruiting soldiers from other places, but this was not something he could do. The imperial court had its own regulations. People could come, but you couldn’t recruit them properly. Unless there was an imperial decree, Su Wu could cross the line and do something.

In fact, they couldn't come anyway, which involved the household registration system, although the household registration system had been gradually relaxed since the Zhenzong era.

But in ancient dynasties, the household registration system was the cornerstone of social stability and would never be truly relaxed.

Of course, the household registration system cannot contain the so-called heroes, nor can it contain people with some money, let alone the educated class, but it can contain the lower-class people, and the lower-class people do not have the ability to travel far away.

Su Wu fell into a new state of distress.

How could it be possible in the Song Dynasty to make every household in a place enthusiastically join the army?
Su Wu had no idea how to answer this question for the time being.

But there are some ways to alleviate the situation. We still sent a letter to the various prefectures in Jingdong and Jingdong, and each prefecture sent a small team of people to set up recruitment signs everywhere, and also bring some money...

But I only want girls from good families.

Some states may not cooperate, but there is nothing we can do. Some places will still cooperate. At least Zhao Mingcheng of Laizhou will not fail to cooperate...

Hiring one more person is a good thing. This is a long-term task that needs to be continued.

This was also what Su Wu dealt with every day when he was in the government office. Who would lead the team, how much money they would bring, which state government they would go to with official documents...

There were a lot of official documents in front of Su Wu's desk, so he read them one by one.

Lu Junyi, standing aside, also shook his head: "Brother, this case is hard!"

Su Wu nodded and said, "Brother, you should help me find more talents. I am short of manpower in my government office."

Lu Junyi nodded: "No problem. Most people in Daming Prefecture are looking for jobs. If anyone is willing to come here and be a clerk, I will just give him travel expenses and a letter and let him come..."

"Okay!" Su Wu nodded, and then said: "We should also look for more talented people."

Lu Junyi thought for a moment and said, "There is such a person, named Xu Guanzhong. I have had some contact with him. He was also good friends with Xiao Yi in the past. Huangfu Duan also knows him. He is a talented person. He knows many languages, even Khitan. He likes to travel all over the country. He has a wide range of knowledge and is very knowledgeable. However, he is too casual. I don't know if he is willing to find a job..."

Su Wu felt that the words sounded familiar and immediately turned around and said, "Brother, please help me invite this person. Regardless of whether he is willing to work or not, please invite him to Dongping Prefecture. Doesn't he like to travel all over the mountains and rivers? Invite him to Dongping Prefecture to play..."

"Well, okay, I'll send someone to inquire about it when I get back. I'll first invite him to Daming Prefecture to play around, and then invite him to Dongping Prefecture to have a look..."

Lu Junyi nodded and took the matter to heart. He also knew that his brother's affairs were no small matter. Since he knew such a person, he would think of a solution.

Su Wu is actually in a very awkward situation now, as he cannot get any real honor or official position, and even those with real status in the army will not come to him.

Then we can only ask Lu Junyi to make friends widely in the world and look for talented people among the opposition.

There were even many people whom Su Wu knew vaguely in his heart, but some were too far away and he could not reach them. Although the Song Dynasty was not big, it was indeed not small. It would be difficult to find a person after traveling thousands of miles.

It is even more difficult to persuade people to come. Everyone has a hometown. If there is a decent job, who would be willing to leave their hometown unless they have nowhere else to go?
Now is not the time of real chaos, the world is really a mess.

How do you show your sincerity to impress people? Money? How much sincerity does it take to make a person with a decent life leave his hometown thousands of miles away to join the army in Dongping Prefecture?
If he really relies on money, and he gives up his hometown life and relatives and friends, and really comes, can he still be the loyal person in history?

Many things are helpless, but how could Su Wu not know that there is Han Wu in the northwest? There is Wang Bing in Wuzhou...

Even in Hebei, where there are hundreds of miles away, it is not easy to find a person. Even if you find one, if he is not having a good life, then he must be desperate. Why would he leave his hometown and join the army?

So, when Lu Junyi mentioned Xu Guanzhong, Su Wu did not say anything to ask him to join the army. He just used his connections to invite him to come and have fun. He let him come first to see Su Wu's army, this kind of army, and this group of soldiers. He wanted to see if he could be interested. Then he could see if he was willing to stay.

People must first intersect with each other, then talk about friendship, and then talk about ideals, ideas, beliefs, and even interests and money, before they can come together.

It is also true that Su Wu’s name is not enough now. If one day he becomes famous all over the world, many people will come to him without him having to recruit them.

Therefore, many things cannot be rushed.

You have to make yourself really strong first, and then slowly, many things will be solved.

"Brother, I will go back to Daming Prefecture first and help you sell the property and find someone..." Lu Junyi stood up and bowed to say goodbye.

Su Wu nodded, stood up and saw them off.

As Lu Junyi was walking, he suddenly remembered something: "That Wanyan Wuzhu, your Jurchen brother, sent you another sixty people and brought them back. He said that the armor you gave him saved the lives of many of his brothers, so he gave you another sixty to make up the number of one hundred. He also said that he was short of people and couldn't send more, so he asked you to forgive him."

Su Wu was surprised to hear this, but he also felt warm in his heart. Under the complicated situation, he smiled bitterly: "Go again, and bring him another twenty sets of armor."

Lu Junyi smiled and said, "Brother, he doesn't need armor anymore..."

"What do you mean?" Su Wu asked.

"He now has four to five hundred armored soldiers under his command," Lu Junyi replied.

Really fast, too fast.

Su Wu nodded: "Then don't send him armor, just send him some food..."

"Food is quite good. There is not much farming in Liaodong, and the yield is not high. There is not much food stored in the city. He is short of food, so I will arrange it for my brother."

Lu Junyi bowed again.

Su Wu went to see him off again, and after he left the camp, Lu Junyi mounted his horse and left.

Su Wu turned around and called out, "Erlang!"

Wu Song came from the distant training ground: "Brother..."

Wu Song is also busy now.

"We have obtained sixty more Jurchens, both raw and cooked. Go find them and bring them back to the camp," Su Wu said.

Wu Song was delighted: "Great, great, these Jurchens are so useful and brave in battle. The more of them the better."

Wu Song said, and immediately went to look for wealth, horses, food, and personnel everywhere. The barracks were packed with them...

The military camp in the city is actually gradually becoming insufficient. When we build another large military camp outside the city, we have to start construction immediately.

Wu Song has been very busy lately. He is expanding the Vanguard Battalion to 500 people. This is not difficult, as even the soldiers know that the Vanguard is the leader.

Being a pioneer means merit and making money. Many people want to join the first camp of the vanguard, and they have to wait for Wu Song to select them one by one. Some people don't even want to be the leader of a squad, but just want to join the camp of the vanguard.

The general's money is really given!
Now, even if there were one hundred Jurchens, both raw and cooked, plus four hundred soldiers from Dongping Prefecture, a battalion of vanguard troops would be complete, not to mention iron armor.

Su Wu went to work again, and his butt was sore from sitting so much.

Zong Ze has already set out for Jeju, so we have to quickly load the money and transport it to Zong Ze, the sooner the better. The big logs from the south will come through the canal, and will arrive very slowly.

We also have to assign a group of bodyguards to Zong Ze to keep him company, so that this old man cannot be taken away by thieves.

Even if Zong Ze bumped into something or fell down, Su Wu would not be happy.

There are many bodyguards, each wearing iron armor, and four or five hundred horses, which also help Zong Ze improve the efficiency of sending and receiving information, and thus the efficiency of Zong Ze's work.

Grandpa Zong, you have to worship him.

The military training was in full swing with the sound of shouting and moving.

Su Wu buried his head in writing official documents. When the soldiers went out, official documents had to go first, and all the seals had to be complete.

It was Li Cheng at the door who reported: "General, the vanguard of the Jingji Imperial Army has arrived. Let us prepare food and fodder, and send people out of the city to welcome them!"

Su Wu slapped his head and thought, damn it, the imperial guards of the capital are just so prestigious that they can eat wherever they go and they have to be served well.

Of course, in theory, what is being eaten is the provincial capital, not Su Wu, but in reality, eating the provincial capital now is the same as eating Su Wu!
Okay, let’s not talk about others. Since Hu Yanzhuo is here, how can we not go and see him?

"Prepare the horses!" Su Wu waved his hand.

A group of horses rode out of the camp at full speed and went straight out of the city. "Master Jing," he said, "that's the boss."

Master Jing is here to help you, Su Wu, suppress the bandits, so how can you be negligent?

Seven or eight miles outside the city, rein in your horse and wait, you will see flags waving, strong horses like clouds, and a large number of armors. It is truly majestic and stretches for who knows how many miles.

There was a big banner in front of it with two words written on it: Hu Yan!

Go ahead to meet them. Su Wu rode forward on horseback without blocking the road. He stepped aside first and let the army go forward, just waiting to see which one is Hu Yanzhuo.

There is also a quote from Su Wu: "I wonder who is General Huyan of Runing Prefecture?"

In fact, it is easy to recognize. It is a black horse given by the emperor. It is dark blue in color with white hooves. It is a tall and strong horse, obviously taller than the horses on its left and right.

What a good horse!

The man sitting on the horse also had an extraordinary appearance. He was tall and strong with a tough face. On the left and right sides of his waist, he had two copper whips, which were two large copper "sticks". He was looking at Su Wu with a sharp gaze.

Hu Yanzhuo was proud. He looked at Su Wu from the side, glanced at him, and asked, "Who is this person?"

How could he not be proud? He was the most powerful general personally appointed by General Gao of the Palace Guards, a direct descendant of a founding general, and someone personally summoned by the emperor, who showed him great favor.

When he meets a military general in a local area, if he is not proud, who will be proud?

Su Wu bowed and said, "I am Su Wu, the deputy commander of the two armies in Jingdong."

Hu Yanzhuo's pride faded a bit after hearing this, but he was still proud: "Oh, nice to meet you. I heard that you have defeated some bandits and have made some achievements."

That's right to say...

What could Su Wu say? He just replied, "They are just some petty thieves."

Hu Yanzhuo rode his horse out of the formation and came towards Su Wu, followed by two generals on his left and right and some personal soldiers behind him.

The horses did not stop and continued to move forward, so Su Wu could only follow Hu Yanzhuo.

Hu Yanzhuo said, "Killing the bandit is killing the bandit, but you cannot kill this big bandit, so I will come to kill him. Don't worry, I will bring a large army to help you wipe out the Liangshan bandits."

Su Wu just nodded and said, "Then I'll leave it to General Huyan."

"Have the food and grass been prepared in the government office? The capital has given early instructions that there must be no mistakes that will affect the plan to suppress the bandits." Hu Yanzhuo asked again. It was indeed his responsibility.

Su Wu just nodded again: "Prepare the necessary amount."

"Very good! All the prefectures and cities have made sufficient preparations, and the task of suppressing the bandits has just been accomplished successfully." Hu Yanzhuo acted like a big boss, and there was nothing that could be done.

Although Su Wu's official rank was not low, he was still no match for Hu Yanzhuo, who could even meet the emperor.

Su Wu did ask, "Please forgive me for asking this rude question, General. I wonder how General Huyan is going to suppress the bandits this time?"

Hu Yanzhuo curved his lips and said, "General Su, you have seen how elite the troops are under my command. Once the army arrives, the bandits will probably flee. I also know that Liangshan is surrounded by 800 miles of water. It doesn't matter. Just go to the back mountain and defeat it in one battle."

He was quite confident. Looking at the two people behind Hu Yanzhuo, one was the invincible general Han Tao and the other was the Tianmu general Peng Qi.

Logically speaking, these three people are all among the 108 Liangshan heroes who have seats, and their rankings are not low.

Su Wu replied: "Although the mountain behind Liangshan is connected to the land, the place where it is connected is extremely dangerous. The terrain is difficult to walk on and the pass is dangerous. I am afraid it is difficult to attack."

Su Wu also put himself in Song Jiang's shoes. If he were Song Jiang, he would be on Liangshan now, with plenty of money and food, and his troops have been trained for a long time. Even if tens of thousands of imperial troops from the capital came to attack, he might go into battle, but his main strategy and tactics would definitely be to defend the stronghold.

Hu Yanzhuo only replied: "Attack with force!"

Su Wu did not make fun of Hu Yanzhuo. He just waited for Hu Yanzhuo to go to the back mountain of Liangshan and he would naturally regret it. If the back mountain was really so easy to attack, why would Su Wu build a ship?
Even there, they couldn't even deploy a large number of troops, and they had to face steep hills and towering passes, which made people sigh with despair.

How could it be that Song Jiang chose Liangshan as the place to live as a bandit without careful consideration?
Seeing that Su Wu was silent, Hu Yanzhuo came over to ask, "What's wrong? General Su, what did I say? Is there anything wrong?"

Su Wu replied: "General Huyan, please go and take a look at the situation behind the mountain first. Maybe it's not that simple."

But then he heard Peng Qi, the Tianmu general behind Hu Yanzhuo, say, "You can't get in, so you say it's difficult. We are elite troops, and cities and prefectures are no problem. The bandits are just a mob, so how difficult is it?"

I also heard the victorious general Han Tao speak up: "That's right. You can't suppress the bandits, so you come to tell us how difficult it is. Don't be so talkative!"

Su Wu looked at Peng Qi and Han Tao, and he was not angry at all. He just sighed, "Alas..."

In the story, these two people went into battle, one was captured by Hu Sanniang, and the other was captured by Liu Tang and Du Qian.

After being captured, he nodded and surrendered.

At this moment, in front of Su Wu, he was so arrogant...

What do you call this? Pride comes before a fall?

The imperial guards of the capital, do they really think that they are the elite among the elite? Do they really think that the bandits are just a mob?
Yes, they really think so!

What else could Su Wu say? He just said, "That's different. With all of you here, with such a large army, the Liangshan bandits are no problem."

Okay, you guys go do it first.

Hu Yanzhuo smiled when he heard this, and said, "General Su, you don't know that my two deputy vanguards are highly skilled in martial arts, the most courageous, and warriors are honest. General Su, please forgive me."

How could General Su not forgive him? He just bowed and said, "We warriors are naturally straightforward. It's okay, it's okay..." The younger brother boasted, and the elder brother also took the boast, but still said something about forgiveness.

How could Su Wu not understand this?

Even Hu Yanzhuo was obviously very arrogant at this time. However, he was truly a man of unmatched courage. His two deputy vanguards were far inferior to him.

Hu Yanzhuo also laughed: "General Su is also a straightforward person. General Su, just watch. This time we will go into battle and kill all the bandits without leaving a single piece of armor."

"I wish General Huyan a triumphant return!" Su Wu didn't have so many dark thoughts, so he didn't bother.

Even the three people in front of him were not competitors at all in Su Wu's eyes.

On the contrary, Song Jiang and Wu Yong on Liangshan Mountain are now considered rivals.

People like Song Jiang and Wu Yong are really not comparable to Hu Yanzhuo.

When Hu Yanzhuo's tens of thousands of elite troops and several thousand auxiliary soldiers arrived outside Dongping Prefecture, a place had already been chosen for them to set up camp.

Naturally, food and fodder would be sent out from the government office, and it would be the auxiliary troops of Dongping Prefecture who would transport them.

Then bring Hu Yanzhuo to the government office to meet Minister Cheng. After meeting Minister Cheng, neither Han Tao nor Peng Qi will pretend to be cool anymore.

That is polite and proper, bowing and smiling.

Mr. Cheng also smiled and gave some encouragement, blessings and praises.

Meng Niang was having another meal at the restaurant, but Mr. Cheng didn't even come to keep them company. Hu Yanzhuo was not unhappy about it, as it was normal.

With what status and position, why would he need Mr. Cheng, a pillar of the Song Dynasty, to accompany him for a drink?
It was Su Wu who came to accompany him. He just fed and drank enough and then sent him out of the city.

After the companionship was over and the people were escorted out of the city, Li Cheng, who was beside Su Wu, finally couldn't help but said: "General, are the imperial guards of the capital so rude?"

Su Wu smiled and replied: "Haha... don't worry about it."

Li Cheng was naturally concerned: "I don't see what's so great about them. Look at them setting up camp. They can't even set up camp properly..."

Who said no.

Su Wu just continued: "The imperial guards of the capital are different from those of our small town..."

"General, how can you not be angry? They are all so arrogant...Have they ever fought a war?" Li Cheng was really angry, but he had no right to lose his temper.

"Just because they haven't fought a war doesn't stop them from being arrogant. Don't worry about it. Just let them be..." Su Wu had to comfort Li Cheng.

This was the reason why Su Wu did not allow his generals to accompany him earlier. Not to mention others, Erlang's temper was such that he might have an outburst during the banquet today.

There is really no need for that. If there is any injustice, let Su Wu bear it alone. That's what the eldest brother has to do. However, Su Wu himself doesn't feel that he has been wronged.

Li Cheng felt very aggrieved and said, "General, wait and see if they can fight. Will they be as arrogant as they are today? I don't believe it. I'm watching. Even though they are dressed up, their ranks are not even straight. There are so many horses and many people can't ride them well... Humph!"

Su Wuzhen nodded: "Well, when the time comes, I'll take you to see it."

"General, is it true?" Li Cheng asked.

"Seriously, let's go and take a look together." Su Wu nodded.

"That couldn't be better. I have to go and see how they fight!" Li Cheng was holding back his energy, feeling very dissatisfied.

Even though he is Mr. Kyo from Tokyo, why is he superior to others?
Why do you look down on your own general?

Early the next morning, Li Cheng deliberately rode out of the city to see the lords of Tokyo packing up their tents and assembling their troops before leaving.

As he watched, Li Cheng on horseback said, "Pah! What the hell!"

So Li Cheng rode back, entered the army, and came to Su Wu: "General, I went to see, they are far worse than us..."

Su Wu smiled bitterly and said, "Why are you still going to see it?"

Li Chenglai replied: "I have to go and see. I just want to see. There are so many people, and I haven't seen them all yet..."

Li Cheng was really upset.

Wu Song came in at this time and asked halfway through listening, "What do you want to see?"

Li Cheng wanted to speak.

Su Wu waved his hand and said, "Then let's all go and take a look. Erlang, select 500 soldiers from the Xianzhen Camp. Let's learn how to fight from the Jingji army!"

Li Cheng looked depressed: "General, what can we learn from them?"

Su Wu said nothing, but went out, also shouting: "Du Xing, Du Xing!"

"I'm here!"

"Select five hundred auxiliary soldiers, prepare fifteen days of food and fodder for a battalion, and set out for the expedition!" Su Wu shouted.

Du Xing immediately bowed and said, "Yes, sir!"

Wu Song ran there first and heard the sound of drums in the camp.

Five thousand soldiers gathered from all over the place. The order to march came suddenly, but everything in the army was in order. They got their horses, armor, food and grass, and prepared their camps...

The generals on both sides also gathered together, but unfortunately they were all disappointed.

If five hundred men go, they will break into the camp and take no one with them.

Thousands of soldiers also had disappointed looks on their faces. They dispersed, dejected. The chance to make money did not fall to them.

Su Wu also went to report to Prime Minister Cheng first, saying that he would go with him to see the imperial army in the capital suppressing the bandits.

Then he came back and ordered Lu Da and Zhu Wu to temporarily take charge of the military affairs of the palace.

So, we really left as soon as we said we would, and it wasn’t far, just over a hundred miles.

Just as Su Wu's men left the city, the 10,000 troops outside the city were still being prepared.

Su Wu led 500 soldiers and more than 1,000 horses out of the city. Su Wu went forward to meet Hu Yanzhuo, but he did not bring anyone with him, he went alone.

Hu Yanzhuo was curious and asked Su Wu, "General Su has a group of elite soldiers under his command. Why does General Su have so many armored horses?"

Su Wu just perfunctorily replied: "General Huyan, how could he not understand military affairs? It is very difficult to raise these horses. Most of these horses were smuggled from Liao by horse dealers, and it was also because Prime Minister Cheng was willing to spend money to build the army."

Hu Yanzhuo nodded, and he understood that it was nothing more than falsifying the number of registrations to train elite troops.

Hu Yanzhuo also praised him: "I never thought that Minister Cheng would really spend public funds to build the army. It's rare to see such a senior official."

Su Wu laughed and said, "This time I am following the army to learn how General Huyan fights."

Hu Yanzhuo was very confident and just nodded: "No problem."

Peng Qi, who was behind, said, "General Su should learn from him. General Su doesn't know that General Huyan is a master of martial arts. He is truly invincible! It would be good to see him for yourself."

Han Tao said: "Well, you just follow behind, follow those auxiliary soldiers, and watch how we fight the bandits."

Su Wu had already said hello, and took 500 people with him, moving behind the group of more than 10,000 people.

The journey was quite pleasant, and Su Wu could even hum a little tune, the same one he had heard in Qingzhou last time, which was the "Yu Lin Ling" tune.

Wu Song understood: "Brother, why don't we go into battle?"

Li Cheng said angrily, "Second brother, why do you want us to go to the battlefield? Don't we have the imperial guards in the capital?"

Wu Song asked, "Then what are we doing here?"

Li Cheng said angrily: "Didn't the general say that we are here to learn how to fight..."

"Ah? Learning how to fight?" Wu Song was puzzled. Do I need to learn this? Can't I learn it with my hands? I have fought so many times.

Li Cheng couldn't hold it in any longer and spoke bluntly: "Second brother, you don't know how angry I am... Listen to me..."

Li Cheng kept talking, and Su Wu didn't stop him.

Wu Song was furious when he heard this: "Brother, you are such a jerk. Let me go find them and see what skills they have."

"Erlang, forget it, we are about to go to the battlefield, there is no need to disrupt the morale of the troops." Su Wu said.

Wu Song realized it himself, but he was still indignant: "Then go and see, go and learn, learn how they fight."

Wu Song also learned to be sarcastic.

Su Wu smiled and said, "It would be easier if we don't fight."

The 10,000-strong army headed straight for the mountain behind Liangshan.

How could the people on Liangshan not know the news? They had known for a long time that Hu Yanzhuo's army was coming and had been preparing for battle for a long time.

At this time, Hu Yanzhuo's army was approaching and a major battle was about to begin.

The Juyi Hall was already packed with people.

Brother Chao made an opening statement: "Brothers, in this great war, we should all work together to win the battle."

The brothers nodded repeatedly.

Just waiting for Brother Gongming to speak: "We must win this time. Only then will the court know how powerful we are, and we brothers will have a good life. Brothers, just follow the military orders of Wu Xuejiu, and don't make any mistakes."

"Yes, sir!" The brothers bowed in response.

Wu Yong nodded and began to give orders: "This time the government troops have no ships and are coming by land. Although they seem to be outnumbered, as long as we hold the mountain stronghold pass tightly, the government troops will definitely not be able to break through!"

Everyone nodded, knowing what was going on.

Wu Yong said again: "But... this is also a great opportunity. Although we have plenty of money and food and weapons in our mountain stronghold, we are slow in acquiring armor. We have already learned that this group of government troops came from the capital and have a lot of armor. We should think of a way to seize some..."

Song Jiang nodded: "That's right, brothers, you don't know that this group of government troops not only have more armor, but also more horses. We are in need of good horses. If we can get some more good horses, we can come and go like the wind, and we can go between the prefectures."

As soon as the two words were spoken, everyone's eyes lit up.

Among them, Hua Rong, who was born as a general in the imperial army, said: "We must seize the opportunity this time and fight outside the city. Only in this way can we seize the spoils. As long as we get armor and good horses, we can train a cavalry and fight against Su Wu without any problem."

Wu Yong nodded: "That's exactly what I mean. The army of the mountain stronghold has been training for a few days. The most elite among them have been selected and gathered together. General Hua Rong and the two brothers Zhu Tong and Lei Heng will lead the troops and wait for the opportunity to go out of the stronghold for a battle."

"Understood sir!" Hua Rong, Zhu Tong and Lei Heng bowed.

"I want to go too!" Li Kui stepped forward to argue.

Wu Yong smiled and looked at Song Jiang, who also smiled bitterly. Then Song Jiang said, "You black bastard, I'll allow you this time."

Li Kui was very happy: "Hehe, Brother Gongming treats me well!"

Wu Yong spoke again: "Other brothers, just follow Brother Gongming to guard the mountain stronghold pass."

But then he heard the thug outside the hall come to report: "Report, there is news from outside the stronghold, saying that Su Wu from Dongping Prefecture is here too."

Chao Gai was startled and looked at Song Jiang and Wu Yong on both sides. Song Jiang was also startled and looked at Wu Yong.

Wu Yong hurried over to ask, "How many people did he bring with him?"

"Five hundred!"

Wu Yong looked at Song Jiang at this time. Song Jiang also felt relieved and waved his hand: "Five hundred soldiers are not a problem. They are definitely not the main force. Don't worry about it. Just find Hu Yanzhuo's weakness and win the battle. The enemy will collapse on their own. Even if Su Wu comes again, he can't do anything to us with his five hundred men!"

Hua Rong also said, "Brothers, don't worry. Even if Su Wu comes with only 500 men, there are countless brave men in the stronghold. Perhaps we can capture Su Wu."

Song Jiang said, "Okay, this time the army is ready. Brothers, we are united and will fight to the death. After this battle, our stronghold will be strong and we will not be afraid of anyone coming. Brothers, I bow to you and hope you will do your best!"

As he spoke, Song Jiang bowed to everyone around him.

Everyone hurriedly returned the greeting.

Wu Yong opened his mouth and shouted: "Brothers, go and do your job! Don't make any mistakes, otherwise you will be punished by military law!"

"Order!"

Even in the mountain stronghold, everyone was really ready to fight. They had been feeling aggrieved and resentful for so many times that they had already started to show a bit of a desperate attitude. But now it was different from the past. There was a surge of anger in their hearts that they were ready to vent!

The whole Liangshan had been preparing for war for many days, and everything was in order at this time.

Two days later, Hu Yanzhuo's army officially arrived at Liangshan and set up camp.

Hu Yanzhuo led everyone to check out the Liangshan Pass. It wasn't that he didn't know how to fight, but he had never fought before. He had only done some work of chasing and capturing criminals, and this was his first time on the battlefield.

As soon as he saw the terrain at the back of Liangshan Mountain, Hu Yanzhuo frowned.

Apparently what Su Wu said was true. The terrain here really gave people a feeling of one man blocking a pass against ten thousand men. The pass was built according to the terrain of the mountain, with towering cliffs on both sides...

There is not just one pass, but four stacked up one after another along the way. Although the mountain is not high, the terrain is really dangerous.

The road was not easy to travel on. If one really wanted to go up the mountain, there were only small paths, and it was obviously impossible for a large army to pass through.

This is much more difficult than attacking the city walls.

Hu Yanzhuo sighed and left.

But Peng Qi behind him had already spoken: "General, tomorrow just challenge them to a fight and see if they dare to come out to fight. If they don't, we will destroy their morale first."

Hu Yanzhuo nodded: "This is the only way for now. If this doesn't work, we should recruit craftsmen from nearby prefectures to build climbing equipment..."

Han Tao said, "I don't know how long this will last... I think the people in the mountain stronghold are just bandits. They are brave but not wise. We can definitely trick them into fighting. In this way, we can win a great victory."

Hu Yanzhuo nodded and said, "We will take it one step at a time. Let's challenge them to a fight tomorrow. If they are too cowardly to come out, we can try to lure them in."

As he was talking, Hu Yanzhuo suddenly asked, "What about Su Wu?"

Peng Qi also asked, "Why did the general look for him?"

"He is a local, so I have to ask him if there is any small path leading to this mountain village?" Hu Yanzhuo said.

Peng Qi replied: "Even if there is, he probably won't tell us."

"Why?" Hu Yanzhuo didn't beat around the bush.

"General, how can the court not blame them for their ineffective suppression of the bandits? If we win in one battle, won't it show their incompetence even more? How can they really help us?"

Peng Qi answered.

"That's right. He said he came to learn how to fight from us, but maybe he just came to laugh at us." Han Tao also said.

Hu Yanzhuo frowned and said, "Then send someone to ask the local people if there is a path to climb up the mountain."

"Well, I'll send someone to ask."

After asking around, I found out that there are no mountains or rivers, so where is the path?
In desperation, I could only wait until early the next morning.

Hu Yanzhuo's army got up early and began to deploy their troops at the foot of the mountain. There were flags flying, strong horses like clouds, armor shining, and they were very powerful.

Su Wu's battalion of soldiers put on their armor and mounted their horses, but they did not move forward. They just watched from afar, without even raising a large banner. They only saw Hu Yanzhi's flag towering in the distance.

Wu Song said: "It's a waste of effort. Will the thief come out? Just build a long ladder..."

Wu Song is quite experienced.

Su Wu said, "Erlang, the thieves may come out..."

"Ah? Brother, teach me quickly..." Wu Song immediately became interested.

Su Wu Zhen taught: "If you don't use the training, what's the point of training? How can you not train soldiers for battle? If you don't really go into battle, what's the point of training for a long time?"

Wu Song thought about it and nodded immediately, "Brother, are you saying that the bandits will come out to fight and train their troops like this? Just like we did in the past?"

Su Wu nodded and said, "How can we not be tempted by so many fine horses, armors and weapons? Don't the bandits know that these imperial guards are just like them, and are only going into battle for the first time?"

Wu Song understood and was excited: "Brother, you are smart. If I were the leader of the bandits, I would also fight. What's there to be afraid of? We are all in the battle for the first time. Who is better? As long as one side is motivated, the other side will be defeated. This is really the truth. I have learned it again."

Su Wu smoothed the reins and smiled, "Wait..."

(Brothers, I don’t know what to say today. I’m a little tired, so I’ll just record it. It’s the 27th day of 10,000 words.)
(End of this chapter)