Water Margin begins as a captain in Yanggu County

Chapter 426 People like Su Wu will surely dig their own graves!
Shanshan Prefecture is now just a ruin. Duan Suxing, the former king of the Dali Kingdom, once undertook a large-scale construction project here, much like Emperor Huizong of Tang, building palaces and gardens...

It was once a riot of color and breathtaking beauty, but now it's a desolate wasteland...

It is evident how devastating the recent rebellion of the thirty-seven tribes has been.

Gao Liangcheng walked through the city of Shanshan Prefecture, his face contorted with pain. His Gao family had suffered heavy losses here, not only in terms of soldiers and resources, but also in the deaths and injuries of their own members.

This battle protected the state of Dali, but it has left Gao Liangcheng walking on thin ice today...

Wu Yong was also standing nearby, constantly saying, "How tragic, how tragic, how bitter..."

How could Wu Yong not be a kind-hearted person? His eyes nearly welled with tears…

There were also murmured words: "Building a city takes countless generations of hard work, but destroying a city is so easy..."

Gao Liangcheng remained silent. He had already come to check several times before, but now he lowered his head, spurred his horse, and rode away quickly, unable to bear looking any longer...

Even if we keep heading towards Yangjumei City, it will still take several days to get there...

From Qi, Su Wu's rear base camp was gradually completed, and all kinds of food, supplies and weapons began to be stored in the warehouses...

Sometimes Su Wu himself thought that if Huo Qubing had been in command of this battle, he certainly wouldn't have lingered here building any camps; his army would have already marched straight into the Dali Kingdom...

Huo Qubing didn't even think much about food and drink; he only cared about charging into the Dali Kingdom. After the city fell, supplies would naturally come his way...

Incomparable, truly incomparable. Su Wu felt there was still a gap between himself and Huo Qubing, a legend whose achievements could never be replicated...

The people of the Yeju and Luoxiong tribes also arrived. Su Wu wanted to see them, but he didn't say much. These were tribes that had suffered heavy losses and were on the verge of collapse. The arrival of the Emperor of Great Yan was their only lifeline...

There's no need to say more; the people of both tribes have already bowed down in worship. They weren't a large tribe to begin with, with only one or two thousand able-bodied men in total. Now, after suffering heavy losses, they can only muster six or seven hundred men. Now that the thirty-seven tribes have scattered and returned to the mountains, if the Dali Kingdom really comes to suppress them in the future, they will fight on their own. Who can stop them?

Su Wu did figure out one thing: why did all thirty-seven tribes rebel at the same time?

It turned out that the heavy taxes and corvée labor were indeed the reason why the officials in Dali were so oppressive...

The mountains are already poor, yet they have to constantly support the city, and even more so, they have to constantly support the monks…

Even supporting the city and supporting the monks are essentially the same thing. In this Buddhist kingdom of Dali, with its thousands of miles of mountains and forests, there are temples everywhere, and golden statues of Buddha all over the place. The monks do nothing but wait for offerings...

And what other grand ceremonies and rituals are there...?

How can the common people endure this?

Su Wu knew the suffering of religion, and the same was true for the Central Plains and the former Liao Dynasty. This matter needed to be controlled.

Religious matters are not necessarily forbidden, but they should not be promoted excessively. How could the persecution of Buddhism by the Three Wu and One Zong emperors be without reason?

They amassed wealth through excessive taxes and land acquisitions, kept slaves, engaged in usury, ran lotteries and lottery schemes—all forms of rampant corruption and illicit activities…

Temples, in effect, have become feudal landlords and capitalists, contributing nothing positive to social production and only dragging down the nation...

I don't know why, but whenever Dali is said to be a Buddhist country, many people seem to think that this country must be an extremely peaceful place, and that the people must be morally upright, prosperous, and happy...

If that were truly the case, how could there have been these rebellions? How could the wealthy Shanshan Prefecture have been reduced to such a state?
Perhaps, given the right opportunity, Su Wu will also have to do this...

The people of Ye Ju and Luo Xiong's tribes returned home, still needing to travel and contact various tribes for Su Wu. Su Wu absolutely had to enter Shan Chan Prefecture and Yang Ju Mei City...

These mountain tribes will one day be Su Wu's subjects, and sharing in this prosperous era will be a given!

In Yangjumei City, Wu Yong finally arrived...

A few more days...

Zhao Gou was staying inside the city, while Cao Cheng, with three or four thousand rebel soldiers, was staying in a military camp outside the city. At this moment, Cao Cheng hurriedly entered the city and went straight to find Zhao Gou...

Zhao Gou belatedly added, "General Cao, there's no need to worry. Since the king has kept us here for quite some time, he won't easily send us away again. Just relax..."

Cao Cheng was genuinely anxious: "Your Highness, do you know that Su Wu's envoy has already entered the city..."

"What? Su Wu's envoy?" Zhao Gou was startled.

"It's Wu Yong, the strategist in Su Wu's army. He just entered the city a short while ago, along with Gao Liangcheng..." Cao Cheng was even more anxious. He had arranged for many people to keep watch everywhere, not daring to miss a single movement within the city...

It's a feeling of unease; if something happens in advance, you have to deal with it immediately...

“Gao Liangcheng…” Zhao Gou immediately recalled the day he met Duan Heyu, when Gao Liangcheng was the last to enter, saying something about discussing things at length. He gritted his teeth and said again, “This kind of person is likely to ruin our important plans!”

But Cao Cheng's face turned fierce. He raised his hand as if to swing a knife and said, "How about..."

How can the methods of heroes and powerful figures in the martial arts world be gentle?
"We must not act rashly. The Gao family holds a high position and wields great power in Dali, possessing abundant resources, provisions, and soldiers. We are outsiders and cannot act recklessly. In this matter, we must rely on the King, Duan Heyu..."

Zhao Gou was never a fool. He had been busy with many things these past few days and gradually gained some understanding of the affairs within Dali.

But then Zhao Gou said again, "Prepare the carriage, I want to see that king..."

Cao Cheng immediately turned around and went to do it...

At this moment, Wu Yong, through Gao Liangcheng's introduction, had already met the King Duan Heyu in person...

As an envoy from a superior country, there was no need for grand formalities. Wu Yong was even treated as an honored guest, sitting on equal footing with Duan Heyu.

He also had a letter of state in hand, which he handed to Duan Heyu to read. The content was actually quite simple. It first said that the Central Plains' divine artifacts were now easier to obtain, which was the will of Heaven and the way of Heaven, and had been so since ancient times. It then talked about how His Majesty the Emperor ascended the throne after worshipping Heaven and Earth, and how powerful and prosperous the Great Yan Dynasty was now...

This is a statement based on legal tradition.

Then they said that Dali has always been a close neighboring country, and that they should be allies forever...

They bestowed upon Duan Heyu the title of Military Governor of Yunnan and King of Dali. Duan Heyu had been granted such titles before, but those were from the Song Dynasty; this time, it was from the Yan Dynasty…

On the surface, Duan Heyu was also polite and courteous, and he even offered words of thanks.

Then, Wu Yong got down to business: "I heard that Zhao Gou, the former emperor of the dynasty, is here?"

Duan Heyu glanced at Gao Liangcheng, unable to hide it any longer, and nodded: "That is indeed the case..."

Wu Yong's tone shifted abruptly: "Given the current situation, how dare the King still harbor and protect this barbarian? His Majesty the Emperor's army is already at Ziqi. If it weren't for the desire for an alliance, the army would probably have already passed Shanshan Prefecture and was on its way to Yangjumei City by now..."

These words are a threat; it is only right to try diplomacy first and then resort to force.

Duan Heyu frowned upon hearing this, then looked at Gao Liangcheng...

Gao Liangcheng also spoke up: "Your Majesty, what the angel said is true. The reason I returned so quickly is because I met with His Majesty the Emperor of Great Yan in Ziqi. His Majesty was very angry. We should just send Zhao Gou to Ziqi. Wouldn't that be a way to maintain a lasting alliance and avoid war?"

Duan Heyu's expression was now unpredictable, as he looked Gao Liangcheng over and over again, as if he could see right through the boy's heart...

He also looked Wu Yong over and over again. Wu Yong, of course, had an arrogant demeanor and glanced at him sideways, scrutinizing Duan Heyu from head to toe...

Wu Yong also spoke arrogantly: "Your Majesty must not make a mistake! If you do not comply, the Heavenly Dynasty's army will arrive, and then it will be too late for Your Majesty to regret it!"

Could Wu Yong's appearance and words not be intentional?

Upon hearing this, Gao Liangcheng became extremely anxious and quickly tried to smooth things over, saying, "Your Majesty, His Majesty the Emperor is quite amiable and has not blamed Dali. He only said that no matter what, Zhao Gou must be captured... It's nothing serious..."

As the two continued their conversation, Duan Heyu suddenly closed his eyes slightly and said, "I will decide on this matter tomorrow. Today is the time for Buddhist prayers, so please forgive me, Your Majesty..."

Wu Yong immediately flew into a rage: "Duan Heyu, how dare you! You still dare to make excuses now? You really won't shed a tear until you see the coffin. Just wait until the heavenly army arrives, and I'll make sure your Duan family has no place to be buried!"

Wu Yong was clearly doing it on purpose...

Duan Heyu immediately stood up, glaring angrily, and asked only one question: "You scoundrel, how dare you!"

How could Duan Heyu utter such words?
Recently, Zhao Gou has frequently sat opposite him. To demonstrate his continued usefulness and the continued existence of the Song Dynasty, Zhao Gou has gone to great lengths to belittle Su Wu and the Great Yan.

Su Wu, being a rough and uncouth man, was utterly shameless. He took pride in being the adopted son of a eunuch, going to great lengths to please him and win the favor of the eunuch Tong Guan...

Those under Su Wu's command, like Wu Song, were street thugs who took pleasure in street brawls. Lu Da was nothing more than a criminal who committed murder in the street…

Then we come to Wu Yong. Who is he? No need to say more.

Previously, these people were not well-known in the imperial court, but now they are famous far and wide...

Duan Heyu, no matter what, was the ruler of a country. How could he tolerate Wu Yong's provocative words?
Wu Yong deliberately added, "Your Duan family only established the Dali Kingdom because of the help of Gao and Dong. Later, you were just a bunch of incompetent people who made countless puppets and ultimately brought about the downfall of the country. If it weren't for the loyalty and righteousness of the Gao family, how could you be sitting here so comfortably? If you are still incompetent and unaware of your own mistakes, you will truly harm the country and its people and be oblivious to your own mortality!"

Duan Heyu was actually quite cultured. Although he was angry at Wu Yong's insults, he hadn't really lashed out. At this moment, he was even preparing to turn around and leave, but after hearing Wu Yong's words, he was truly unable to move his feet and had no choice but to turn back...

He stared intently at Wu Yong and asked without hesitation, "How many tens of thousands of soldiers do you have?"

Wu Yong flew into a rage and took a few steps closer: "What? You want to kill me? Come and kill me! If I die here today, the Emperor will avenge me! Come and kill me!" Duan Heyu, truly a man of refinement, waved his sleeve and turned away, saying: "Damn it, what a rogue, a scoundrel, a stupid woman from the street, an insult to all culture!"

Wu Yong was still unwilling to let the matter rest, but Gao Liangcheng quickly stepped in to stop him: "Scholar, scholar... this is not the proper way to conduct business, it cannot be done like this! Let me handle it, let me handle it, scholar, please go and rest. I have already given clear instructions, scholar, just go ahead... I will go and explain to the king, I will go, leave it to me..."

Wu Yongcai reluctantly gave up, and said angrily, "This is not the demeanor of a ruler. No wonder Shanshan Prefecture has suffered such a great calamity! If this continues, the fall of Dali will not be far off!"

With that, Wu Yong turned and left, but as he walked out the door, a glint of cunning gleam appeared in his eyes…

Gao Liangcheng, a bright young man of twenty, was now bearing a burden far beyond his years. Overwhelmed with worry, he hurried inside to find the king again...

Inside the Buddhist hall, beneath the towering golden statue, Duan Heyu sat upright on a futon, eyes closed, meditating and cultivating his mind...

Gao Liangcheng arrived and stood behind him for a while without saying a word. After a long time, he finally organized his thoughts and spoke: "Your Majesty, I'm afraid that from now on, the Central Plains will truly belong to the Great Yan..."

Duan Heyu, who was only shown his back, asked, "How do you know?"

“Great Yan, your army is truly strong and well-equipped… The Emperor is currently in Guangnan and has not heard of any unrest in the Central Plains. I fear that the nation and its people are truly secure. Therefore, I am certain of this statement…”

Gao Liangcheng spoke with genuine earnestness, emphasizing that this matter absolutely had to be resolved. He stressed that they could not afford to actually wage war against the Yan army and the emperor, as this was not a matter of victory or defeat, but rather a matter of endless unrest for the next hundred or even several hundred years!

But then the king said, "With these scoundrels and shrewish women? Judging by their so-called angelic appearance, this Great Yan will not last long!"

Duan Heyu is clearly a very cultured and refined person, with exceptionally high moral character!

I've seen many envoys from the Song Dynasty in the past, but I've never seen one like this before.
If this is what a celestial empire is, then this empire is surely doomed! How can such officials govern the country well? How can they ensure the people live in peace?

“Your Majesty, you may not know this, but he is terrified, which is why he spoke like that. He has been extremely terrified all the way here... First, he thought that Zhao Gou and Cao Cheng wanted to kill him, and second, he thought that if he failed in his mission, he would also be punished by the emperor. So he was filled with fear…” Gao Liangcheng explained to Wu Yong.

"If an emperor would severely punish his subjects for failing at such a task, then that emperor is nothing more than a foolish and incompetent ruler..."

Duan Heyu seemed to have made up his mind. Gao Liangcheng didn't understand why he was so determined.

Gao Liangcheng then asked, "Your Majesty, are you really going to refuse like this, and resort to arms against each other?"

"How many soldiers does the Yan army have?" Duan Heyu asked.

"There are about 30,000 armored soldiers, and another 30,000 to 40,000 mountain people from Guangnan..."

"That's just a bluff..." Duan Heyu said.

Gao Liangcheng quickly said, "Your Majesty, I'm afraid that's not necessarily true. If it were just a bluff, they wouldn't have conscripted so many mountain people. This is a genuine preparation for war!"

"It's precisely because so many mountain people have been conscripted that it's a show of force. They know they lack real strength, so they conscript like this, to make it seem like they have a lot of people and are powerful..."

Duan Heyu argued his case based on reason.

Gao Liangcheng was suddenly taken aback. In fact, he had not communicated much with Duan Heyu in the past. Although they had met many times, they had never had a real conversation.

Why? Because Gao Liangcheng is a junior; a few years ago he was just a boy who only met the king at occasions like banquets, where the king was naturally high and mighty...

The real discussions were between the elders of the Gao family and the emperor, not between Gao Liangcheng and the emperor.

Therefore, the high number of times Duan Heyu was paired with others in the past was actually filtered through a lens, after all, he was the ruler of the country, and naturally a person of exceptional intelligence and wisdom.

After a genuine exchange today, Gao Liangcheng suddenly realized that his own ruler seemed to be someone who knew very little about military affairs…

They actually believed that the Yan army had gone to great lengths to conscript so many men from the mountains just to put on a show of force...

Gao Liangcheng added, "Your Majesty, the rebellion of the thirty-seven barbarian tribes in the east has just ended, and now the Yan army is arriving. If war breaks out, those barbarian tribes will likely collude with the Yan army, making things even more difficult..."

Duan Heyu suddenly turned around and said, "Weren't the thirty-seven rebel tribes wiped out? It's all thanks to your Gao family!"

What is this nonsense?

Gao Liangcheng's heart pounded with anxiety, but he simply replied, "There are still quite a few remaining in the mountains and forests..."

"The remnants are nothing to fear..." The king turned his head back.

"Your Majesty, this is not a matter of one or two years. If we really go to war this time, it will be a matter of a hundred years to come!" Gao Liangcheng did everything he could to quell the matter.

But then Duan Heyu turned his head back and asked, "Did you have a secret conversation with that so-called emperor? Is that why you are so devoted to him?"

"Your Majesty, what are you saying?" Gao Liangcheng suddenly recalled Wu Yong's words from earlier. The king must have misunderstood. Gao Liangcheng quickly said, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. I wish to shoulder the heavy responsibility of my family and do not want it to decline. But this is a family matter, while what we are discussing today is a matter of long-term stability for the nation... These two things should not be confused..."

Young people know and understand everything, but they lack true shrewdness in handling matters...

Duan Heyu suddenly fell silent...

Beneath the golden statue of Buddha, the ever-burning lamp flickers back and forth.

Gao Liangcheng grew increasingly anxious and said, "Your Majesty, foreign affairs must be stabilized first, and the nation and its people must be secure. Only then can my affairs be discussed. If the nation and its people are not at peace, how can my family and my clan be secure? My loyalty is as clear as the sun and moon, as clear as Buddha!"

Duan Heyu spoke up: "Well then... you should get the marriage settled first. Take care of this matter in the next few days!"

Duan Heyu had previously arranged a marriage for Gao Liangcheng with his own daughter...

If it weren't for Su Wu's incident, the struggle between the Gao family and the Duan family in the future would still have been fierce. For example, Duan Heyu once exiled members of the Gao family, and members of the Gao family also attempted to assassinate Duan Heyu.

But eventually, the two families gradually reached a certain balance. In the end, Gao Liang became the prime minister and took control of the court. He also married Duan Heyu's daughter, and Duan Heyu became the king. As before, the country continued to exist in this way...

Given this situation, who really backed down and who lost? Perhaps Duan Heyu did lose because he failed to achieve his desired goal, while the Gao family rose again from the ruins.

Finally, Duan Heyu simply retired from public life and became a monk, living to his nineties in a temple...

But then Su Wu arrived, making it impossible for Dali to continue living in such a balanced and complacent manner.

At this moment, the Dali Kingdom is a rotten egg full of cracks, how could Su Wu miss it?
Gao Liangcheng was extremely anxious; how could he possibly be in the mood for marriage these past few days? Looking at the king's retreating figure, he said in unison, "Your Majesty, the marriage isn't urgent. The matter at hand is of utmost urgency. The Emperor of Great Yan is a powerful ruler from a military background; he cannot afford to delay any longer..."

Duan Heyu said quietly, "I understand. Go back and rest for a while, calm your mind, and we can discuss it again tomorrow... One day is not too much of a delay..."

With the king's words, Gao Liangcheng had no choice but to bow and leave. Resting was out of the question... He still needed to see Wu Yong and keep him calm. He absolutely had to avoid sending any letters back to the Emperor of Great Yan...

Here, Zhao Gou came again, and the two met in the Buddhist hall.

Surprisingly, Zhao Gou was also well-versed in Buddhism...

Of course, this was during the Song Dynasty. Almost every scholar knew something about Buddhism, just to varying degrees. Even Emperor Huizong of Song, despite being the leader of a Taoist sect, understood Buddhism...

How could Zhao Gou not understand?

However, people like Su Wu and Wu Yong didn't seem to have much knowledge of Buddhism...

Clearly, Duan Heyu and Zhao Gou have found a lot in common these days, not only in terms of Buddhism, but also in their similar personalities...

If Emperor Huizong (Zhao Ji) were to come, he would likely hit it off immediately with Duan Heyu, and they could become close friends.

This was largely due to the atmosphere of the entire society in the past; Emperor Huizong (Zhao Ji) and Emperor Gou (Zhao Gou), and Duan Heyu were all of the same kind.

What could Duan Heyu say? Could he not just criticize Wu Yong, that bandit?
Zhao Gou joined in the tirade, his hatred seething, finding pleasure in each additional curse.

After all that, Duan Heyu couldn't help but remark, "That kid probably really wants to bring in powerful reinforcements..."

Zhao Gou simply nodded: "That must be it! These powerful ministers and troublemakers are naturally in cahoots, and it's incredibly easy for them to make peace."

Zhao Gou's words were not merely a simple provocation; he genuinely empathized with Duan Heyu, putting himself in Duan Heyu's shoes and thinking from Duan Heyu's perspective. This empathy was perfectly natural.

“The so-called Great Yan is bound to not last long!” Duan Heyu said with certainty. Perhaps it was not because he was stupid. Sometimes, people just resonate with each other’s values. In Duan Heyu’s mind, the Great Yan did not conform to his ideals, so it was bound to not last long.

“Yes, people like Su Wu are bound to not last long…” Zhao Gou deeply agreed, but he was also worried: “I just don’t know when the time will come, and I don’t know when we can truly set things right!”

“The world has its own consensus and its own judgment. The Buddha has eyes. Everything in this world, every drink and every bite, is a matter of cause and effect.” Duan Heyu actually looked up at the golden Buddha.

Zhao Gou also looked up at the Buddha and nodded: "Indeed, Your Majesty's words are exactly what I think. The affairs of the world depend on the hearts of the people. People like Su Wu will surely dig their own graves!"

What appears to be a curse is actually Zhao Gou's true thought.

Zhao Gou then bowed and left, saying, "I thank Your Majesty again for your kindness today!"

"This is the way of the world and people's hearts, this is the difference between good and evil, this is the justice of Heaven!" Duan Heyu said earnestly. Zhao Gou could put himself in Zhao Gou's shoes, so how could he not put himself in Zhao Gou's shoes at this moment?

Traitors can't possibly get away with this!
Those traitors who collude with each other will not fare well either!

At this moment, their interests inexplicably aligned!

(End of this chapter)