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

Chapter 378 Wu Yong: Don't deceive me into thinking I'm illiterate; how could such a thing exist in this world? [2nd Update]

After several rounds of drinks and dishes, Ma Ling finally couldn't help but ask Shi Wengong:

"Brother Shi, how did Cai Daowang Duan acquire Mozhou?"

Although everyone said that Cai Fu only took over Mozhou by winning over Princess Tianshou, Ma Ling felt that things couldn't be that simple.

Especially after meeting Shi Wengong and Yang Zhi, Ma Ling felt even more strongly that there must be something fishy about this matter.

Shi Wengong and Yang Zhi were both outstanding men. How could their elder brother Cai Fu be a seductive vixen?
Shi Wengong then recounted to Ma Ling how Cai Fu had acquired Mozhou.

After listening, Ma Ling exclaimed in amazement: "So this is how dangerous and complicated it is!"
"Cai Daowang is truly a man of both wisdom and courage, a dragon among men!"

Shi Wengong seized the opportunity to win over Ma Ling: "Brother Ma, my elder brother's acquisition of Mozhou is a great achievement in expanding territory!"
"We are stationed in Mozhou, and in the future we will surely follow our elder brother and be remembered in history!"

"To be honest, my elder brother has lofty ambitions, and this little Mozhou is just the beginning!"
"Brother Ma's extraordinary ability to travel a thousand miles a day is rare in the world!"
“My elder brother is in dire need of manpower. Why don’t you stay and help us govern Mozhou?”

"If one day my elder brother rises up in rebellion, he may be promoted to a high-ranking position, or he may retire to Mozhou to live out his days!"
"Isn't this better than wandering the world?"

"Ah this..."

Ma Ling's heart fluttered.

If Tian Hu hadn't died, he probably wouldn't have been so tempted, since he was doing quite well under Tian Hu's command.

However, Tian Hu was already dead, and the State of Jin had been divided into three.

The State of Jin was once thriving, but now it is clear to everyone that it is on the verge of collapse...

Tian Ding didn't trust Ma Ling as much as Tian Hu did, and Ma Ling didn't have as much confidence in Tian Ding as he did in Tian Hu.

Even in Ma Ling's opinion, Tian Ding looked like a king who had lost his country.

The State of Jin has no future.

But Cai Fu was different. Although he had not yet declared himself king, his power was growing rapidly!
Even the Liao Kingdom lost a province to Cai Fu!

Whether it was Tian Hu, Wang Qing, or Fang La, they were all just cutting flesh off the Song Dynasty.

As for the Song Dynasty, let alone trying to outmaneuver the Liao Dynasty, it dared not reduce its annual tribute by even a single coin.

Such a stark contrast filled Ma Ling with confidence in Cai Fu!
Just as Shi Wengong said, even if Cai Fu fails in the struggle for supremacy, there is still Mozhou as a fallback option.

No matter what, she's still better than that good-for-nothing Tian Ding!

Yang Zhi also advised: "Brother Ma, a good bird chooses a good tree to perch on, and a wise minister chooses a good lord to serve!"

"Brother Cai Fu is destined for great fortune!"
"Before I was with him, I always lost battles, but after I was with him, my luck turned around and I was successful in everything!"

"If you're having any troubles, why not seek help from Brother Cai Fu? Brother Cai Fu will surely make things go smoothly for you!"

Most people in ancient times were superstitious, and Yang Zhi came to this realization after following Cai Fu for a period of time.

Before Cai Fu, he sent tributes of flowers and stones, which were lost; then he sent tributes of birthday gifts, which were also lost…

He tried to sell knives on the street, but failed to sell any and ended up in a murder case. Where can he go to seek justice?
But things changed after he followed Cai Fu. Yang Zhi discovered that he hadn't lost in a long time!
As time went on, Yang Zhi understood that it was all because he had chosen the right leader. Ah, what a painful realization...

Great luck?
Ma Ling is a Taoist practitioner, so of course he believes in fate:

"Could I make a decision after I've met Brother Cai Fu?"

He wanted to see for himself whether Cai Fu truly had great fortune, lest he follow Cai Fu only to have Cai Fu die...

I've been waiting for you to say this!
Shi Wengong struck while the iron was hot:
"Perfect timing! I have a letter to give to my elder brother, so I'll trouble you to make a trip to Shandong!"
"See my older brother in person before you make a decision!"

Ma Ling can travel a thousand miles a day, which is no big deal for him.

He now wants to see if Cai Fu really has great fortune!

So Ma Ling immediately agreed: "That would be best!"

……

Erlong Mountain.

"Is there such a thing?"

Song Jiang couldn't believe his ears:

"Cai Fu actually seduced the Liao princess with his good looks?" Hua Rong and Qin Ming were also taken aback. "The Liao princess was so infatuated with his looks that she gave him Mozhou?"

Wu Yong even dropped his goose feather fan: "Don't think I'm illiterate, how could such a thing exist in the world?"
In fact, Dai Zong knew that things might not be that simple, but this was all the information he could gather.

He was just a gofer; gathering information and spying on military matters wasn't his specialty.

Dai Zong summarized it himself:

"I inquired around Mozhou City and asked at least thirty or fifty people, all of whom were local elders."

"What they said was pretty much the same, so I guess Cai Fu and the Liao princess must have actually happened!"
"I just don't know what brought the two of them together..."

Seeing Dai Zong's unwavering conviction, Song Jiang, Wu Yong, and Qin Ming had no choice but to accept this absurd fact.

Song Jiang was so jealous that Jill turned purple:

"The man surnamed Cai is rough around the edges, but he has an unusually strong luck with women!"
"First there was the Empress of the Southern Kingdom, then the Princess of the Liao Kingdom, and each of them even gifted him a prefecture!"
"This is simply... outrageous!"

Song Jiang cried out in his heart: Why not me?

Wu Yong was speechless: "He won over the girl with his own skills. Even if he were as brilliant as Zhuge Liang, he'd still be a lifelong bachelor..."

What criteria do you use to judge Sai Xuande?

Pooh!
What "Sai Xuande"? He's clearly Sai Mengde!

Hua Rong and Qin Ming, who had initially admired Cai Fu, were speechless after learning the "truth."

"Brother, I'll have to trouble you to make a trip to Tokyo again!"

Song Jiang, holding Dai Zong's hand, said:
"The news that the Cai family had captured Mozhou reached the ears of the imperial court!"
"Once the imperial court finds out about this, they will definitely offer amnesty to the Cai family, and then we'll finally be able to get ahead!"

Dai Zong naturally had no reason to refuse: "Brother, don't worry, it's all on my shoulders!"

Song Jiang patted Dai Zong's hand with satisfaction: "Brother, you've worked hard!"

Dai Zong clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Brother, you're too kind. Farewell!"

After Dai Zong left, Hua Rong shook his head in disappointment:

"I never imagined that someone surnamed Cai would be this kind of person..."

"What do you think?"

Song Jiang spared no effort in slandering Cai Fu:

"Taking Hu Sanniang as a disciple is a small matter; making her the prince consort of the Southern Kingdom is a big matter!"
"I'm not surprised at all that someone surnamed Cai would seduce a princess of the Liao Kingdom!"

"But it has fulfilled our wishes!"

Qin Ming said with a hint of sarcasm, "I wonder if he can handle so many women!"

The crowd roared with laughter.

Meanwhile, after leaving Song Jiang's house, Dai Zong re-tied his armor and headed straight for Dongjing (Kaifeng) without stopping.

They arrived in Tokyo in a single day. Dai Zong stayed at a roadside inn and sneaked into the city early the next morning.

He wasn't a professional at spreading information, so he could only follow the same pattern and look for old political commentators everywhere.

Fortunately, these old men can be found everywhere—on the streets, under bridges, in the fields—looking down on the world and pointing out its flaws.

Dai Zong soon found a group of old political commentators under a big tree.

Dai Zong listened for a while, and just then an old man started talking about Cai Dao Wang's three disturbances in Daming Prefecture.

"That's all outdated stuff!"

Dai Zong quickly interjected, "King Cai has done something big again!"

"real or fake?"

The old men were immediately intrigued: "Tell me more!"

【Don’t worry, there’s more to come】

(End of this chapter)