I am Emperor Shizu of Song

Chapter 59 Contacting Lin Chong
Zhao Zicheng was training his troops and maintaining his watch in Xuzhou, and before he knew it, more than half a month had passed.

As military discipline was tightened and the soldiers' morale was united, people in the surrounding counties and even Linzhou knew that a hero had emerged in Xuzhou, who had pacified the Mangdang Mountain bandits and reorganized the bandits' old forces into a brand new one.

In the surrounding counties, some good family boys with clean backgrounds who had learned martial arts and were trying to find ways to make a name for themselves began to gather information and see if they could join the army, and if so, what kind of treatment they would receive.

Those who have these ideas for the time being are mostly from good families, and none of them have already become bandits. The main reason is that people from good families are more flexible, have not committed any crimes, and are not afraid of being liquidated by the government.

However, during the Song Dynasty, the status of military personnel was low, and many soldiers had to have their faces tattooed. Good family men did not want to start as soldiers, so they were definitely very particular about their treatment. Therefore, these people often consulted and inquired more, but rarely made a real decision.

Fortunately, Zhao Zicheng always adhered to the principle of integrity and courtesy in his dealings with others. Time would slowly prove everything. After more than half a month of observation, he finally found a few talented people who were available, and they were gradually recruited by Zhao Zicheng.

Two of them, named Lu Fang and Guo Sheng, were martial artists from the two counties bordering Shandong and Xuzhou. After they tentatively came to visit Zhao Zicheng privately and talked with him several times, they were impressed by Zhao Zicheng's personal charm.

In Water Margin, Lü Fang and Guo Sheng were originally from good families and had never joined the bandits. At most, they could be considered wandering knights in the Jianghu. With such identities, it was normal for them to take the initiative to join the army.

Despite being a Taixue student and a member of the imperial clan, Zhao Zicheng possessed none of the airs of a civil servant. His conversation was also down-to-earth, and his perspective on the current state of affairs resonated deeply with the military. Lü Fang and Guo Sheng, after listening to his analysis for a while, were struck by his talent and decided to follow him.

The most terrible thing is that Zhao Zi said that he has been practicing martial arts for the past few months. He is still in the novice bonus period and has made rapid progress.

More than three months ago, when he was crossing the river in Zhenjiang, he met Zhang Heng. He was at a disadvantage in a one-on-one fight, and had to rely on the women around him to help him before he could barely kill Zhang Heng. He was deeply ashamed at the time. How could he rely on women to do it?

Over the past three months, I have been practicing diligently and having many opportunities to gain practical experience, and my practical experience has increased rapidly.

When Lü Fang and Guo Sheng first arrived, they used wooden weapons to spar with Zhao Zicheng. Because it was a brief demonstration, neither side forced a winner, and each fought for only twenty moves. Zhao Zicheng, however, was able to hold his own against both Lü Fang and Guo Sheng within twenty moves.

Such martial arts skills, as a civil servant, are already amazing enough. Lu Fang and Guo Sheng were completely convinced and obeyed Zhao Zicheng's arrangements for their treatment.

Zhao Zicheng also told them frankly that he only had one battalion at hand, and this battalion had only two captains.

Now the staff is full with two full-time captains and two deputy captains. Lu Fang and Guo Sheng were willing to work with him, so for now they could only serve as the first team leader. However, as long as they returned to Suzhou, they would find a way to fill the vacancies and take up the vacancies. By then, everyone would at least start at the rank of deputy captain. The rest would depend on their actual military achievements.

Even if they were to be captains now, it wasn't for nothing. Zhao Zi said there were conditions. First, the soldiers under their command had to be selected from the former Mangdang Mountain bandits who surrendered, and not from the old imperial guards brought by Yang Zhi.

Lu Fang and Guo Sheng were just boys from good families, and their military experience was not as good as those of the old soldiers of the imperial guards. Zhao Zi said that they could not be parachuted in casually, which would disrupt the rules and chill people's morale.

Bandits were originally somewhat sinful, so being controlled by a decent family was just right. But if the two of them wanted to win over the others, they had to fight against the former small leaders among the bandit surrenders, defeating them one by one and subduing them with force.

Lu Fang and Guo Sheng both thought this condition was very reasonable. They were proud of having practiced martial arts for several years. If they couldn't even beat an ordinary bandit leader, how could they have the face to ask for a position? They would just start from being a private.

In the end, Zhao Zicheng arranged a chance for them to compete in private, and they indeed won respect and obtained positions with their strength. They temporarily led 20 surrendered bandits each and started from the grassroots level.

...After subduing Lu Fang and Guo Sheng, several days passed in a blink of an eye. Zhao Zicheng's military training and reorganization had basically come to an end, and he could set out again on his journey back south.

Counting the days, it was almost the Mid-Autumn Festival on August 15th. The court had given him a deadline of three months to take office, and the deadline was October 1st.

So he still had a month and a half to spend on the journey. It wouldn't take more than a month and a half to get from Xuzhou to Suzhou, and both places were later considered within Jiangsu Province, never leaving the province. Zhao Zicheng decided to simply celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival in Xuzhou before officially setting off south. This would also prevent the local soldiers from feeling homesick, thus fully considering the situation on the ground.

On the Mid-Autumn Festival, Zhao Zicheng paid out of his own pocket to reward the soldiers, allowing them, who had been training hard for nearly a month, to have a meal of fish and meat and three bowls of wine each.

The people's hearts, which had been suppressed for many days, relaxed again and everyone was happy.

While they were drinking and chatting, Zhao Zicheng suddenly heard Li Jun come to report that another person had come to surrender. The man seemed unremarkable and did not seem to have any martial arts skills, but he said he had important news to tell him.

Li Jun has some organizational skills and good perceptiveness, so Zhao Zi recently put him in charge of receiving and pre-screening local gangsters who have come to surrender. Zhao Zi said he was worried that Yang Zhi, with his official airs and harshness, wouldn't get along with the lesser-known elements. Lu Da was also a military officer, so having someone like Li Jun, who has his own gangster roots, speak out would be more effective.

After listening to Li Jun's report, Zhao Zicheng immediately put down his wine bowl and went to meet him in person with great courtesy.

When he arrived at the main hall, Zhao Zicheng saw a burly man with a face full of short stubble as hard as steel needles. He was dressed in shorts like a butcher, and his legs were exposed with long black hair visible.

Li Jun immediately introduced him as Mr. Zhao, and the butcher-like man hurriedly thanked him:
"My surname is Cao, my given name is Zheng. I am a countryman, so the great sir will not know my name. But I am from Tokyo. I came to Shandong with someone to do business, but I lost all my money and cannot return home. When I was in Tokyo, I also heard of the great name of Yang Zhishi. My master was the Imperial Guard Instructor Lin.

Recently, I was in Linzhou and heard that Yang Zhishi had come to Xuzhou and had defeated the Mangdang bandits in Fengxian. I came here to inquire about his reputation. Later, I heard that there was a captain in the army who was good at using a Zen staff. I thought he was similar to my master's brother, Master Lu..."

Zhao Zicheng quickly understood that this was Lin Chong's apprentice, who happened to be nearby. He must have seen too many clues, so he took the initiative to inquire and contact him.

After waiting around Xuzhou for more than half a month, the reputation I had gained finally came in handy.

Zhao Zicheng had been looking for Lin Chong, and immediately said righteously, "You've come to the right place. Since you're Lin Chong's disciple, I'll tell you the truth. When I was in Tokyo, I saw injustice and couldn't bear to see a loyal and righteous man being bullied by Gao Qiu's yamen. By chance, I saved Lin Chong's father-in-law and his wife.

"I was worried about not being able to contact Master Lin, so I just sent someone to Cangzhou, Hebei to deliver a letter. Now that you've found this place, do you know where your master is? Have you contacted him?"

Cao Zheng was delighted to hear that his master's wife and father-in-law had been rescued from Tokyo. He quickly said, "I just contacted my master a few days ago. The case in Cangzhou is pressing, and even the great official Chai Jin couldn't take my master in. So, with the introduction of the great official Chai, my master headed south to Liangshan, hoping to join the gang."

If he had joined the group directly and smoothly, everything would have been fine. But he seemed to be unacceptable to the village chief Wang Lun, so he was stuck and had to go down the mountain several times. Later, I ran into him by chance and was able to find out about him.

So Lin Chong has already arrived at Liangshan? Now he is being forced to submit his surrender certificate.

Zhao Zicheng thought for a moment, then said to Cao Zheng, "Will you follow me and fight for your future? You're willing to help others and work hard for them. If you're willing to follow me, you can first lead a team in the army. Once we reach Jiangnan, we'll have other opportunities. I'll write a letter as soon as possible. Send it directly to your master so he doesn't have to worry about it. Why should we expect that narrow-minded Wang Lun to tolerate him? I'll arrange a future for Master Lin."

(End of this chapter)