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

Chapter 583 Wang Zuo: King Qi, so magnanimous! [1st update]

"Oh?"

Song Jiang and Wu Yong exchanged a glance, and Wu Yong pressed, "Why is that?"

Yue Zhen then said, with tears streaming down her face:

"Our five brothers took refuge in Woniu Mountain and gathered several thousand men. Even the government troops dared not provoke us."

"Who knew that one day, while robbing the rich to help the poor, I robbed the family of the King of Qi, which angered the King of Qi and led to the killing of all four of my brothers!"
"If it weren't for my quick escape, I would have already perished under King Qi's blade..."

"Hu Tianbao, Hu Tianqing, Xu Qing, Jin Biao, they were like brothers to me. We wanted to make something of ourselves together, but we all died tragically..."

At this point, Yue Zhen's eyes filled with tears, and he drew his sword, pointing it north:

"I am sworn enemies with the King of Qi!"

"Brother Yue Zhen, to tell you the truth, I am also sworn enemies with the King of Qi!"

Moved, Song Jiang grasped Yue Zhen's hands:
"Just stay here with me and one day we'll definitely avenge our enemies!"

Yue Zhen: "Brother!"

Song Jiang: "Brother!"

Wu Yong waved his goose feather fan and said nothing at the time, but later he summoned Kong Liang:
"Brother Kong Liang, I suspect there's something wrong with this Yue Zhen."

"I would trouble you to make a trip to Shandong and find out the details of Woniu Mountain to ensure everything goes smoothly."

Kong Liang accepted the order and left.

……

Qingzhou, Imperial Physician's Office.

Wang Zuo lay shirtless on the bed.

An Daoquan grabbed his left arm from behind and pushed him hard:
"Gaba!"

"Ow—"

Wang Zuo screamed in agony, breaking out in a cold sweat from the pain.

An Daoquan slapped him twice on the back:

"Alright, your left arm isn't injured."

“Apply one of my secret tiger penis plasters every day, take good care of yourself for a month, and you will be able to move around as before without any lingering problems.”

"Thank you, the miracle doctor!"

Wang Zuo said gratefully that he knew An Daoquan was Cai Fu's imperial physician, and that he was very fortunate to have him treat his injuries.

"How much is the consultation fee?"

"No need."

An Daoquan waved his hand, indicating that he could leave and that the next patient should be seen.

"How did this happen?"

Wang Zuo moved his left arm and was able to lift it again. He quickly said:
"The doctor's miraculous healing skills are truly remarkable; how could I not pay for his services?"

"Besides, there's also tiger penis plaster, which is made from rare and expensive herbs..."

"By order of the King!"

Seeing that he was persistent, An Daoquan had no choice but to explain to him in detail:

"All contestants in the World's Number One Hero Tournament receive free medical treatment at the Imperial Medical Hall!"
"The King of Qi will cover all your medical expenses, do you understand?"

"If you understand, please move aside. There are other patients in line!"

Is there such a good thing?
Wang Zuo could hardly believe his ears.

He had prepared himself to be extorted for several dozen taels of silver before he arrived.

Seeing a doctor at the Imperial Physician's Clinic is not like seeing a doctor at an ordinary clinic; I heard that treating a simple cold costs ten taels of silver.

Although it's expensive, the reputation of the miracle doctor is well-established. He's known for his miraculous healing skills and ability to cure diseases quickly, so many people are still willing to spend a lot of money to see An Daoquan.

In fact, Wang Zuo didn't think that several dozen taels of silver was much, since he needed to apply tiger penis plaster.

Tiger penis is something that's priceless and unavailable!
As it turned out, An Daoquan said that all the expenses would be borne by the Prince of Qi, and that he alone would need several dozen taels of silver. There were more than 300 contestants, and the Prince of Qi would be spending that money like water... Wang Zuo couldn't help but exclaim, "The Prince of Qi is so generous!"

"What do you think?"

A boy who had come to pick up his medicine said:

"Of the seven of us brothers, six are in the hospital!"

"Not only are all medical expenses covered, but food and lodging are also provided every day. I have never seen such a generous king as King Qi!"

Wang Zuo sized him up; he was young but as strong as a yak, with his left arm in a splint and sling around his neck.

Wang Zuo waited until he got the medicine, then pulled him aside and asked:
"Brother, what's your name?"

The boy, barely out of school, said, "My name is Meng Bangjie, what's yours?"

Wang Zuo: "I am Wang Zuo, from Huguang."

Wang Zuo struck up a conversation with Meng Bangjie and went to the ward he mentioned, where he indeed saw five or six teenagers lying in bed.

Through Meng Bangjie, Wang Zuo got to know these five or six teenagers, who turned out to be Zhuge Ying and his group.

During their first meeting, they only exchanged a few words. After confirming that everything was free, Wang Zuo left the ward.

Back at the inn, Wang Zuo told Wu Shangzhi what had happened.

Wu Shangzhi said admiringly, "King Qi is so generous, unlike our king, who sent us out to do such a big thing and only gave us fifty taels of silver!"

It turns out that the Great King Yang Yao was a very petty person. In the original story, he sent Wang Zuo to bribe Yue Fei.

At that time, Yue Fei had already killed the young Liang King with his spear and quelled the rebellion of Wang Shan, the Golden Knife King, and was appointed Chengxin Lang by the imperial court.

Yue Fei's fame spread from Hebei to Huguang, which shows that he was already famous throughout the world.

Yang Yao, having long admired Yue Fei's combined literary and military talents, sent Wang Zuo to recruit Yue Fei, offering the following conditions:
Ten horseshoe-shaped gold ingots, dozens of large beads, a scarlet battle robe, and a delicate jade belt.

It should be noted that in the original novel, when Song Jiang sent Zhang Shun to ask An Daoquan to treat his illness, he prepaid An Daoquan one hundred taels of gold and gave Zhang Shun twenty or thirty taels of silver as travel expenses.

Zhang Wang, nicknamed "River-Intercepting Ghost," robbed Zhang Shun of one hundred taels of gold. He then went to brothel with Li Qiaonu, spending ten taels of gold but only managing to sleep in the latter half of the night.

Is Yang Yao trying to get rid of a beggar?

Wang Zuo didn't initially think Yang Yao was stingy, but compared to Cai Fu, he realized that Yang Yao was indeed extremely miserly.

But he still had to protect Yang Yao in front of Wu Shangzhi:

"Didn't the king say that after achieving success, he would be granted a title and appointed a general?"

"We've already appointed you Grand Marshal, why would you care about these measly trifles?"

Wu Shangzhi pouted: "Brother, actually, the reason why the King of Qi convened this conference is to select the vanguard for the campaign against Liao!"

Even if we were to rebel, we shouldn't hold others back at this time!
"Your Majesty's actions are extremely unjust!"

Wang Zuo was speechless and could only offer a forced explanation:
"Your Majesty has ambitions for the world, and your vision is far beyond what we two brothers can match!"
"Brother, there's no need for further words. I am paid by the emperor, so I must serve him faithfully!"

Wu Shangzhi sneered repeatedly, wanting to say a few more words to Wang Zuo, when suddenly someone knocked on the door:

"May I ask if the two heroes, Wang Zuo and Wu Shangzhi, are in the room?"

Wang Zuo waved to Wu Shangzhi and went to open the door:
"What's the matter?"

The person outside turned out to be a government official. After ascertaining Wang Zuo and Wu Shangzhi's identities, he gave them invitations.

"This is the registration post for the second round of the competition. Please choose carefully and arrive on time after you have made your selection."

Wang Zuo and Wu Shangzhi received the invitation and opened it. The invitation detailed the information about the re-examination.

The second round of testing is divided into two tracks: one track is for archery and horsemanship, and the other track is for military strategy.

Wang Zuo was overjoyed: "I originally thought I had no chance, but I didn't expect that King Qi was so considerate and divided the re-examination into two tracks."

"In that case, I can go to the military strategy track, and you can go to the horse archery track."

"Let's try to win the championship in one of them!"

Wu Shangzhi laughed heartily: "Brother is wrong!"
"The archery course is in the morning, and the strategy course is in the afternoon!"

"I want to sign up for both, and I want to win both!"

Wang Zuo: (_)
(End of this chapter)