The Legend of Song Jiang in Water Margin

Chapter 119 Gongming said that before the storm came, there was calm.

Liu Gao sneered and said, "Chief Hua, why aren't you training your troops here? Why did you invite me here? Are you trying to curry favor with me?"

Hua Rong's expression shifted, suppressing his anger, and he said, "I have prepared a banquet at my residence to invite Magistrate Liu to discuss important matters!"

Liu Gao put on a show, wanting to hear what kind of nonsense Hua Rong could come up with. If it wasn't anything good, he would just report him to Prefect Murong!

Upon entering the hall, apart from Liu Gao and his wife, only Song Jiang and Hua Rong remained; the other servants had already been dismissed by Hua Rong!

As for Wu Song and the others, Song Jiang taught them some modern training methods yesterday, which greatly surprised Sun Xin. Since Hua Rong was not here today, Wu Song was asked to train them in his place!

Sun Xin also wanted to broaden his horizons. Today, Wu Song and Li Kui were training new recruits at the training ground, while Pang Wanchun was with them. As for Gongsun Sheng, he was meditating in his room!

Hua Rong let Liu Gao sit in the main seat, with Song Jiang sitting next to him, while he himself sat in the second seat. As for Liu Gao's wife, she naturally sat next to Liu Gao!

The servants had already brought in the food and drinks and placed them on the table. Knowing that the group had something to say, they closed the door and left.

Hua Rong filled the four men's cups with wine. Liu Gao looked at Hua Rong with a half-smile and said, "Chief Hua, we've never gotten along. I know perfectly well how you treat me. Why have you called me here today and are being so polite? What is the purpose of this?"

Song Jiang spoke on behalf of Hua Rong, saying, "You two are both magistrates of Qingfeng Village. Although one is a civil official and the other a military officer, it's just that your roles are different. We see each other all the time, and we're both working for the people. Why make things so tense?"

Liu Gao chuckled but didn't reply. Song Jiang's words sounded nice, but he didn't believe a word of them. Hua Rong wanted to reconcile? To improve their relationship? Pure nonsense!

Hua Rong was also a man of courage. Seeing Song Jiang being so humble, yet Liu Gao still ignoring him, Hua Rong was filled with anger. However, since Song Jiang had said he couldn't lash out, he suppressed his anger.

Seeing that Liu Gao remained silent, Song Jiang chuckled, raised his wine cup, and said, "Prefect Liu, you seem to have the heart of a tiger yet the delicate touch of a rose!"

Liu Gao's heart skipped a beat. He sensed that Song Jiang's words had a hidden meaning, but they were very vague. There was no need to put on airs now, since he had already embarrassed them anyway. So he picked up his wine cup and clinked it with Song Jiang's.

After drinking it all in one gulp, Song Jiang refilled Liu Gao's cup! Liu Gao felt a little smug. He hadn't expected Song Jiang to go to such lengths. He just didn't know what Song Jiang's purpose was, or what he was after. But Liu Gao was absolutely certain that it wasn't to curry favor with him. He just didn't know what Song Jiang was really up to!

After everyone drank some more, Liu Gao sensed the atmosphere was somewhat strained and couldn't help but ask, "I wonder what business Magistrate Hua has summoned me here for?"

Hua Rong bowed and said, "I wish to lead my troops to sweep through Peach Blossom Mountain. I hope Your Excellency will write a warrant and sign an approval document to allow me to send troops!"

Liu Gao's expression changed, and he scolded, "Hua Rong, Prefect Murong has strictly forbidden all nearby counties and villages from sending troops. Where do you put his words?" But then he suddenly realized that Hua Rong wanted to lead troops to suppress the bandits!

In fact, Liu Gao knew Hua Rong's abilities and was actually a little jealous of him. After all, Hua Rong was skilled, handsome, and cared a lot about the soldiers. He was well-liked and highly respected in Qingfeng Village!

He himself was only able to suppress him because of the imperial court's system, which allowed him to be a civil official, half a rank higher than the military official!

Hua Rong remained silent, his expression unchanged, while Song Jiang smiled slightly and clapped his hands!

A servant carrying a wooden box pushed open the door and entered!

Liu Gao was puzzled, wondering what was in the wooden box.

Song Jiang took the wooden box, and the servant went out again!

Liu Gao stared intently at the wooden box, his gaze never wavering. He judged that it must contain something valuable, based on his years of experience as an official.

Seeing Liu Gao's greedy gaze, Song Jiang didn't keep him in suspense and directly opened the wooden box!

There, a lifelike statue of Guanyin was placed in the box!

The Guanyin statue is about a foot tall, crystal clear, and transparent. Her kind smile is dignified and compassionate at first glance. She holds a jade bottle in one hand and a willow branch on the bottle in the other.

Liu Gao's eyes widened, wishing he could snatch it away! But the item was in Song Jiang's hands, and if he directly grabbed it, Hua Rong would probably fly into a rage on the spot!

Besides, it seems that Song Jiang gave this Guanyin statue to himself, so there's no need for him to act too out of line!

Liu Gao coughed and sat up straight. His wife, who was standing next to him, kept giving him meaningful glances, but Liu Gao pretended not to notice.

Song Jiang thought disdainfully to himself, "This corrupt official is quite composed!"

However, he said aloud, "As the saying goes, one should learn both literary and martial arts to serve the country. The banditry around Qingzhou is severe. My brother Hua Rongxian is full of passion and cannot bear to see the people being oppressed by bandits every day, living in dire straits. I hope Magistrate Liu will grant this request!"

Liu Gao glanced at the Guanyin statue, looking troubled: "But I really can't explain this to Prefect Murong. Who can bear the blame if he gets angry!"

Song Jiang laughed and said, "Prefect Murong only said those words in a fit of anger because Huang Xin failed to suppress Erlong Mountain. If Brother Hua Rong successfully destroys Peach Blossom Mountain, Prefect Murong will probably be overjoyed and would not blame him at all!"

Liu Gao naturally knew that what Song Jiang said was true. In fact, Murong Yanda was not blaming Huang Xin for the failure of the bandit suppression, but for the heavy losses. He couldn't even see the shadow of the bandits from Erlong Mountain. He couldn't accept such a disgrace!

Liu Gao feigned hesitation and said, "But if Prefect Murong were to blame me, I'm just a lowly magistrate; I'm afraid I can't bear the responsibility!"

Hua Rong clasped his hands and said, "Prefect Liu, if the bandit suppression fails, I, Hua Rong, am willing to offer my head in return. If we successfully pacify Peach Blossom Mountain, the credit will still go to Prefect Liu for his skillful command!"

Liu Gao frowned and said, "This!" but his eyes kept glancing at the Guanyin statue.

Song Jiang pretended to suddenly realize something and said, "Prefect Liu loves the people like his own children, so he probably won't refuse this request. I am not a Buddhist, and this Guanyin statue cannot protect me even if I have it with me. So I will give it to a kind person who is destined to receive it, so that I can pray for him day and night and keep him safe!" After saying that, he pushed the Guanyin statue over!

Liu Gao reluctantly took the box, then said righteously, "Fine, who told me to love the people like my own children, to suppress bandits and protect the people's safety? It's not good to attract the attention of thieves, otherwise I would never need Guanyin's blessing!"

Next, the atmosphere became harmonious, and Song Jiang stopped talking. Soon, after they had eaten and drunk their fill, Hua Rong went with Liu Gao to sign the approval documents and get the transfer order, planning to lead his troops to Peach Blossom Mountain the next day!

Before long, Hua Rong returned to the manor with the official document and transfer order in hand, where Song Jiang was waiting for his return! Wu Song and the others also returned from training their troops!

Now that everyone here is one of our own, we can say some things with peace of mind!

Hua Rong said, "Brother, I can't swallow this insult—giving such a valuable thing to Liu Gao!"

Song Jiang smiled slightly and said, "Brother, there's no need for that. Why bother arguing with a dying man?"

Wu Song also said, "What if the bandits from Qingfeng Mountain come and break their promise, burning and killing in Qingfeng Town?"

Song Jiang's eyes flashed coldly as he said, "Those who dare to kill innocent civilians, Qingfeng Town will be their burial ground!"

Hua Rong pondered for a moment and then asked, "Brother, is Qingfeng the thief trustworthy?"

Song Jiang shook his head and said, "That's not important. What's important is that we use them to get rid of Liu Gao, and then we can wipe out Qingfeng Mountain!"

Song Jiang frowned and said angrily in a low voice, "Compared to Peach Blossom Mountain, the bandit leaders Deng Long of Two Dragon Mountain and Yan Shun of Qingfeng Mountain are truly wicked. They spare no one who passes by, whether commoners or merchants. Murder and robbery are one thing, but they also eat human hearts and abuse people's bodies. They are worse than beasts. If it weren't for the later part of the plan, I would have killed those two villains, Yan Shun and Wang Ying, on the spot!"

Hua Rong sighed and said, "Taking Peach Blossom Mountain and Qingfeng Mountain is easy enough, but Erlong Mountain is truly difficult!"

Song Jiang knew that Erlong Mountain was easy to defend but difficult to attack, and there was only one dangerous road leading from the foot of the mountain to the top. If Deng Long acted like a coward, it would be really difficult to deal with him.

However, Song Jiang had a solution, and he laughed, "It's indeed difficult to attack from the outside, but what if we attack from the inside?"

Hua Rong asked in confusion, "From the inside?"

Song Jiang laughed and said, "Let me keep you in suspense for a moment, my good brother, how long will it take you to take Peach Blossom Mountain?"

Hua Rong held up two fingers and said, "In my eyes, Zhou Tong, the chieftain of Peach Blossom Mountain, is nothing but a coward. At most, in two days, even if they hold out to the death, I can take Peach Blossom Mountain!"

Song Jiang guessed that Li Zhong, the Tiger Slayer, was either wandering the Jianghu selling dog-skin plasters or teaching Shi Jin fancy martial arts at the Shi Family Manor. In any case, it would be another two to three years before Wang Jin left Tokyo, and Song Jiang had no idea where this guy was!

Seeing Hua Rong's confidence, Song Jiang smiled and said, "I will set off from Qingfeng Village in two days to help you take Erlong Mountain. Then, it will be time to send Yan Shun and his gang of villains to hell!"

Actually, when Song Jiang encountered Wang Ying's robbery, it wasn't that he didn't want to kill Wang Ying and Yan Shun, but Zheng Tianshou wasn't around at the time. Even if he killed the two, Zheng Tianshou could still continue to wreak havoc in the area. It would be better to wipe them out in one fell swoop and eliminate them at the root!

Song Jiang genuinely disliked killing, perhaps due to the deeply ingrained humanistic values ​​of later generations. There's no need to be overly brutal unless absolutely necessary.

Therefore, Song Jiang did not want to expand Liangshan by robbing and plundering. Moreover, whether they were wealthy households or merchants, they were not necessarily all bad people. Song Jiang was not a person who hated the rich, nor did he intend to kill all these people and take their property for himself.

Those who are rich but heartless, who oppress the weak and force families to ruin and death, are certainly despicable, like the head of Xixi Village. Since he has a powerful background, if the officials don't care, Song Jiang will naturally step in! But there are also hardworking, honest, and frugal people who become rich through diligence and hard work. Their wealth is acquired through proper means, so what right does Song Jiang have to seize it by trickery and force?

Song Jiang's idea was that since he knew so much knowledge from later generations, if he couldn't make money in ancient times, then his life would have been in vain. Wouldn't it be better to take the money from these rich people, then use it to help the common people, so that they could have enough to eat, clothes to wear, and money to save? Why bother with swords and guns?

When Song Jiang first arrived in this world, he viewed the characters based on his understanding of the original story. However, he later discovered that people's personalities are multifaceted, especially given the butterfly effect of his arrival, which caused changes in many people's personalities or mindsets. Relying solely on his premonitions to judge people or problems would lead to biases, which is inherently unfair. Therefore, regarding Liu Gao, Song Jiang still needed to determine if he was the same Liu Gao from the original story. If he was merely a lazy or corrupt official, Song Jiang might not necessarily sentence him to death, even if he was at odds with Hua Rong!

Clearly, Liu Gao was still the same corrupt official, and his wife was still the same unvirtuous woman. However, the couple conspired to commit many evil deeds, driving seven or eight commoners or wealthy people to their deaths, simply because they coveted other people's daughters or money!

If people like Liu Gao continue to live in Qingfeng Town, the people will only suffer more and more each day. So, it's no pity that someone like Liu Gao is dead!

Wu Song and Li Kui still felt a little sorry for the Guanyin statue. The previous Guanyin statue was actually the third batch of glass products made by Song Jiang in the Liangshan workshop.

With Liu Huiniang's occasional guidance and exceptional wisdom, the craftsmen's skills became increasingly proficient. Although the first batch of glass artifacts was somewhat rough, Song Jiang gave them to Chai Jin as a favor.

The second batch of glass artifacts were actually quite exquisite, but Song Jiang was still not entirely satisfied. It wasn't until the third batch was fired that this Guanyin statue finally met his expectations! Unexpectedly, it came in handy this time!

For Song Jiang, the restaurant business was just a small part of his income. It was impossible to expect the restaurant to support the ever-growing Liangshan. So, Song Jiang also rushed to produce glass crafts! Who could blame him when this glass, which would be so ordinary in later generations, was priceless in ancient times?

Of course, all of this is inseparable from Liu Huiniang, a remarkable woman who is like a female Zhuge Liang. Just thinking about Liu Huiniang gives Song Jiang a headache!

Seeing the indignant expressions on their faces because of the Guanyin statue, Song Jiang suppressed a laugh and said, "Don't worry, the Guanyin statue is just temporarily being kept by Liu Gao. I'll get it back with interest later!"

Early the next morning, Hua Rong mustered four hundred men and, at Song Jiang's request, led Pang Wanchun and Li Kui to Peach Blossom Mountain in a grand procession. Song Jiang calculated that if Hua Rong succeeded, they could take Peach Blossom Mountain in three days at most. Then he would head to Erlong Mountain and return. After taking Erlong Mountain, Hua Rong would lead the main force back to Qingfeng Town and take Qingfeng Mountain. At that point, the mission would be more than half accomplished!

Following Song Jiang's advice, Hua Rong left a hundred men at Qingfeng Village, fearing that Wang Ying might break his promise and launch a surprise attack. His family and Song Jiang were all at the mansion, and nothing could go wrong!

At midnight, Wang Ying and Yan Shun led two hundred men and quietly infiltrated Qingfeng Town. They had arrived earlier and had been lying in ambush all around, waiting until midnight when everyone was probably asleep before they launched their attack!

Thank you everyone for your support and for your votes, especially Shanling Xiaotong, who sends votes every day. However, he usually sends them around 4 AM, so I hope he can get some rest and try to avoid staying up late. After all, health is the most important thing!