Do you have the strength to force me to join the Liangshan bandits?

Chapter 181 Fang La [3rd update, please vote with monthly tickets and recommendations]

The next morning, An Daoquan had not returned yet, but Lu Zhishen's half-brothers arrived.

"Amitabha--"

Deng Yuanjue began by loudly proclaiming a Buddhist chant.

He is different from Lu Zhishen.

Lu Zhishen was a fake monk; he shaved his head purely to avoid being wanted by the authorities.

Lu Zhishen never recited scriptures or rang bells for a single day; at most, he ate vegetarian food for a few days.

Even in the temple, they drank wine and ate meat to their hearts' content, living a carefree life.

Deng Yuanjue did indeed work as a monk.

As long as you recognize his scarlet robe, you can distinguish him from Lu Zhishen, who prefers to wear a black robe.

Lu Zhishen went up and threw a punch, which made Deng Yuanjue exclaim "Good job!"
The two brothers are very close!

"Brother, how did you get here so fast?"

Lu Zhishen put his arm around Deng Yuanjue's shoulder and asked him.

The two bald heads looked so alike standing together that Cai Fu couldn't help but imagine what it would be like to sleep side by side:
With Lu Zhishen on the left and Deng Yuanjue on the right, the scene was too beautiful for him to bear...

Deng Yuanjue: "Yesterday, as soon as Brother Cai Fu arrived in Shezhou, Vice Minister Gao sent someone on horseback to inform Duke Sheng of Yuandong."

"I was helping Yuan Cave, so the Holy Lord sent me here overnight to invite Brother Cai Fu..."

At this point, Deng Yuanjue turned to Cai Fu and clasped his hands together in prayer:

"Brother, the Holy Duke is very grateful to hear that you have traveled a thousand miles to deliver the divine physician!"

"I specially sent my younger brother to invite you to Bangyuan Cave so that the Holy Lord can thank you in person!"

Hey? Still acting like an emperor to me?

Cai Fu immediately knew that Fang La had become self-conscious about his image after declaring himself king.

But that's also normal, since Fang La occupied eight prefectures and twenty-five counties, and had three to four hundred thousand soldiers under his command.

Although he was listed as one of the Four Great Bandits alongside Song Jiang, he was actually not on the same level as Song Jiang.

Moreover, Cai Fu was only the second chieftain.

However, since Cai Fu came to form an alliance with Fang La, it wouldn't hurt to keep a low profile on Fang La's territory.

Cai Fu then asked the eunuch in the Prince's mansion, who said that An Daoquan was still treating Fang Hou and couldn't leave.

"Alright, let's go help Yuandong first."

Cai Fu instructed Vice Minister Gao:
"Dr. An, please stay here for now."

"Once he has cured Uncle Fang, he will join us at Bangyuan Cave."

Vice Minister Gao repeatedly thanked Cai Fu for his understanding and reasonableness.

Pang Wanchun came to see Cai Fu off. Now that Cai Fu had been taken over by Deng Yuanjue, he was also going back to Yuling Pass.

Cai Fu asked him to borrow Pang Qiuxia for a while:
"Sister, Doctor An's wife... has something wrong with her head."

"As you can see, it's very inconvenient for us to have her with us."

"Please stay here and take care of her for a few days."

Pang Qiuxia originally didn't want to go back to Yuling Pass with Pang Wanchun, but she accepted the task without hesitation.

After everything was explained, Cai Fu led his brothers and Deng Yuanjue to Bangyuan Cave.

Bangyuan Cave is located in Qingxi County, Muzhou. Fang La built a palace in Bangyuan Cave, which can be considered the royal palace of the Southern Kingdom.

It's very close from Shezhou to Bangyuan Cave, even closer than Yuling Pass.

So Cai Fu and his group arrived at Bangyuan Cave in one day, working from morning till night.

Although it was dark when they arrived, Deng Yuanjue, as the National Preceptor of the Southern Kingdom, asked Cai Fu and the others to wait a moment while he went directly to the palace to report.

Cai Fu and the others were waiting outside the palace gates. Lu Zhishen said indignantly:

"He's just a local tyrant; we in Liangshan are no weaker than him!"
"He wants to see us, but he makes us wait here!"
"It's like putting on a grand ceremony in a snail shell..."

Before he could finish speaking, a grand procession emerged from Bangyuan Cave.
Golden gourds are scattered everywhere, and iron axes are lined up in rows.

Rows of halberds and banners embroidered with dragons and phoenixes stand in formation.

Banners and pennants, green and red fluttering in clusters; jade stirrups and carved saddles, adorned with clusters of pearls and emeralds…

Beneath the nine-curved yellow parasol, on a jade-bridled horse, sat the outlaw Fang La. He wore a bright gold turban with upturned corners, a robe embroidered with the sun, moon, clouds, and nine dragons, a gold-inlaid and jeweled jade belt, and a pair of double-gold-stitched cloud-patterned boots.

If it weren't for the fact that such a grand procession came out of a cave, Cai Fu would have really thought he was a king or nobleman.

Lu Zhishen, Wu Song, and the others were also astonished.

Why was Fang La so outstanding among the four great bandits?

For some reason, Lu Zhishen and Wu Song both had the same thought in their minds:
My older brother can take his place!
"Your Majesty, this is Brother Cai Fu, the second leader of Liangshan Marsh, known as 'Sai Xuande'!"

The Imperial Advisor Deng Yuanjue introduced Cai Fu to Fang La. Fang La immediately dismounted, stepped forward, and grasped Cai Fu's hands, his sincerity overflowing.

"I have long heard of Cai Daowang of Liangshan, who is known for his righteousness and integrity, and his promises are worth a thousand pieces of gold. I only regret that I have never had the chance to meet him!"

"Today, King Cai Dao has traveled a thousand miles to deliver the divine physician; I am deeply grateful!"

"I have no way to repay your kindness in saving my uncle, so please accept my bow!"

As he spoke, Fang La was about to bow down to Cai Funa.

He has no elders left, only his uncle Fang Hou.

Because he and Fang Hou were as close as father and son, he appointed Fang Hou as the Imperial Uncle King and sent him to guard Shezhou.

Fang La was from Shezhou, so having Fang Hou guard Shezhou was like guarding his own home, which was of great significance.

If Cai Fu saves Fang Hou this time, it will be the same as saving his father. Fang Hou's worship of Cai Fu is also an expression of filial piety.

"Brother Fang, there's no need for such formalities!"

Cai Fu supported Fang La with both hands.

Good heavens, he hadn't even exerted any effort yet, and Fang La had already gotten up.

No, it should be said that Fang La didn't even kneel down, he just bowed slightly...

Even so, the people of the surrounding southern region, including Deng Yuanjue, were all moved by Fang La.

"King of Blades, please!"

Fang La affectionately took Cai Fu's hand, and without even riding his horse, they walked hand in hand into the palace.

Lu Zhishen and Wu Song exchanged a glance, both thinking that Fang La was being too pretentious, but he had the right to be...

After all, they had truly carved out their own territory!

Fang La led Cai Fu into a grand hall, where a banquet had already been prepared and was waiting for Cai Fu to take his seat.

Fang La and Cai Fu sat down as host and guest, respectively.

Because Fang Hou was still undergoing treatment, there was no singing and dancing performance; they just had a simple meal.

However, since Fang La had already declared himself king, his entourage was rather extravagant.

After several rounds of drinks and several dishes, Fang La got down to business:

"Knife King, I have heard that the imperial court has repeatedly sent large armies to attack Liangshan Marsh!"
"But they suffered repeated defeats, for Liangshan was indeed a place where hidden talents roamed!"

Cai Fu chuckled: "Not at all, not at all. It can't compare to Brother Fang's grandeur of establishing his own kingdom and ruling as king in the south."

"It's not easy."

Fang La sighed:

"We were collectively referred to as the Four Great Bandits by the imperial court."

"Tian Hu is in Hebei, Wang Qing is in Huaixi, Dao Wang is in Shandong, and I am in Jiangnan."

"Each is fighting its own battle, and each has its own difficulties; none of them are having an easy time."

Huh?
Cai Fu's eyes narrowed:
Fang La didn't actually say that Song Jiang was in Shandong!
Is this a test?

However, Cai Fu could guess why Fang La was testing him like this; it was because his reputation had already surpassed Song Jiang's.

In fact, even in the Hebei and Shandong areas, when people talk about Liangshan Marsh, they mostly mention Cai Fu.

Many people only know Cai Fu, but not Song Jiang.

The chief of the stronghold was not necessarily the real ruler, not to mention that Liangshan Marsh had this fine tradition.

Therefore, Fang La needed to assess Cai Fu's position before deciding on the next level of their conversation.

The next chapter might be released very late, so please vote and then take a break.

(End of this chapter)