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

Chapter 628 Lu Zhishen: It's not shameful to learn from my elder brother! [3rd update, please vote!]

"Good! Good! Good!"

Lu Zhishen helped Yan Qi up with both hands, accepted Yan Qi on behalf of Cai Fu, and then asked Yan Qi the same question:

Where did Yang Yao go?

Yan Qi said without any concealment, "Although Yang Yao still has two prefectures, Tanzhou and Dingzhou, he must have fled to Snake Coil Mountain!"

Lu Zhishen was taken aback: "What kind of place is this Snake Coil Mountain?"

Yan Qi: "There is a cave on Snake Coil Mountain called 'Hidden Gold Cave,' which is Yang Yao's lair!"
"Yang Yao's father, Yang Xiao, as well as his third son, Yang Bin, and fifth son, Yang Hui, are all in the 'Treasure Cave'!"

"Yang Yao arranged for Prime Minister Wu Tianmei, Marshal Yan Bixian, Marshal Yan Bida, General Guan Shiyan, General Shen Tiejian, twenty mountain guards, two thousand mountain warriors, and more than ten thousand henchmen to guard the Hidden Gold Cave and his family on Snake Coil Mountain!"
"The Second King Yang Fan went back to Snake Coil Mountain to visit Yang Xiao a few days ago, and has not returned since!"
"Therefore, I suspect that Yang Yao will definitely go to Snake Coil Mountain after escaping!"

Wang Zuo suddenly remembered: "That's right!"

"Yang Yao is a filial son; he will definitely go to see his father first!"

Lu Zhishen pressed on, "Where is Snake Coil Mountain?"

Yan Qi said helplessly, "Snake Coil Mountain is Yang Yao's lair, and I am of lowly status and have no way of knowing."

Wang Zuo also said, "I only know that Snake Coil Mountain is deep in the Hundred Thousand Mountains!"
"The entire route is through chaotic mountains and high ridges, dense bamboo groves, and complex paths, making it extremely difficult to identify!"

"That gold-hiding cave is even more rarely visited, and seldom trodden by people!"

"Only Yang Yao's clansmen and confidants know the location of Snake Coil Mountain and the Hidden Gold Cave..."

"Ok?"

Lu Zhishen, Li Zhu, and Feng Tai all looked at Qu Yuan, who quickly denied it:

"I do not know either!"

Lu Zhishen looked at Li Zhu, who shook his head slightly, so Lu Zhishen did not interrogate Qu Yuan.

The rest was simple: following the Qi army's pace, they integrated the surrendered soldiers and organized supplies...

Li Zhu came to Lu Zhishen alone and said, "Grand Commander, even if we find out that Qu Yuan was willing to commit suicide for Yang Yao, it may not be true."

Lu Zhishen frowned: "How should we deal with this scoundrel?"

"Let him go!"

Li Zhu's words stunned Lu Zhishen, who pressed for an answer:

"Why release him after we finally caught him?"

Li Zhu smiled meaningfully: "Has the Grand Commander forgotten the matter of Wang Zuo?"

"Yes!"

Although Lu Zhishen did not know Cai Fu's intention in releasing Wang Zuo, it brought him real benefits.

If Cai Fu hadn't released Wang Zuo back then, he wouldn't have been able to take over Dongting Lake so easily tonight.

"That's it!"

Lu Zhishen decisively decided to imitate his elder brother, thinking it wouldn't be shameful!
Without hesitation, Lu Zhishen did an even better job than Cai Fu, personally going to the water dungeon to retrieve Qu Yuan.

Qu Yuangong said stubbornly, "Grand Commander, there's no need to waste your efforts. I will not betray my lord for personal gain!"

"most!"

Lu Zhishen patted Qu Yuan on the shoulder with satisfaction:

"I admire loyal and righteous men like you!"

"Since you are so loyal, there is no use for me to keep you here, so I will let you go!"

Qu Yuan was stunned: "Release, release me?"

"Of course!"

Lu Zhishen personally untied Qu Yuan and had someone fetch clean clothes and money:
"Keep these for your journey, sir. Until we meet again!"

"Ah this..."

Qu Yuan held the bundle in both hands, hardly believing his ears. Could he really leave?
Lu Zhishen gestured for us to meet again: "I hope that when we meet again in the future, we can also share a drink and have a good time together!"

Qu Yuan glanced at Lu Zhishen and then at Li Zhu, and seeing that they were indeed serious, he left the main hall. He changed into clean clothes, carried a package full of silver coins, and walked to the lakeside, where he found a boat already prepared.

A small boat carried Qu Yuan to the other side of the lake, but he was still dizzy even after his feet touched solid ground.

"Even the King of Qi's brother is so benevolent..."

Qu Yuan stood by the lake, somewhat dazed:
"Could it be that King Qi is truly a benevolent and righteous ruler?"
"wrong!"

Qu Yuan suddenly realized a possibility:
"They must have arranged for someone to follow me, hoping to find the king through me!"

"I can't fall for their trap!"

Qu Yuan believed he had guessed the truth, so he went to Snake Coil Mountain because its terrain was too secluded.

He thought it would be much easier to shake off his pursuers on Snake Coil Mountain than outside.

As it turned out, Qu Yuan realized he had been overthinking things. He was extremely careful the whole way, but no one was following him at all...

Upon discovering this, Qu Yuan was filled with shame, realizing that he had been judging a gentleman by his own petty standards.

Qu Yuan found a hidden spy in Snake Coil Mountain and had his henchmen escort him to Yang Yao's treasure cave.

Inside the treasure cave, Yang Yao suddenly remembered something he had forgotten:
"Oh dear! The strategist reminded me, but I completely forgot!"
"If I had sent someone to keep an eye on Wang Zuo, we wouldn't have suffered this calamity..."

"That's all!"

Yang Yao's father, Yang Xiao, put his arm around his son's shoulder:

"Where there is life, there is hope!

"As long as my son is safe and sound, that's all that matters. We can always take back the lost empire!"

Yang Yao felt much better. Family is the best; it's like a harbor where his broken ship can find rest.

A burly man who looked remarkably like him also said:

"Don't worry, brother! I'll lead my troops to retake Dongting Lake tomorrow!"

This man is Yang Yao's second brother, Yang Fan, known in the martial arts world as "Little Overlord," who possesses the courage of ten thousand men!
To fight a tiger, you need brothers; to go into battle, you need fathers and sons!
Yang Yao was very happy with his brothers' support:
"Second brother, this matter cannot be rushed!"
"Lu Zhishen is quite formidable; we need to plan this carefully!"

Yang Fan didn't take Lu Zhishen seriously. He curled his lip and was about to say something when suddenly a bandit soldier came to report:
"Your Majesty, the strategist has returned!"

"military adviser?"

Yang Yao looked puzzled: "He wasn't caught by Lu Zhishen?"

Others might not know, but Yang Yao certainly did; Qu Yuan had been made completely numb by him with just one cup of wine.

When he escaped, Qu Yuan should still be asleep; he was definitely captured alive by Lu Zhishen!

How could I possibly be back here?
Yang Bin spoke his mind:

"Brother, could Qu Yuan have been a spy for the Qi army?"

There were no outsiders here at the time, only Yang Yao's family, so Yang Yao no longer hid himself:
"It's hard to say..."

"Better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free!"

Yang Fan snorted coldly: "Big brother, let's test him with words first!"
"If he reveals any weakness, I'll teach him a lesson with my Overlord Spear!"

The elderly father, Yang Xiao, made the decision on this matter:
"My son, your own brother would never harm you, so let's do it this way!"

"My child obeys!"

Yang Yao then made up his mind to test Qu Yuan Gong as Yang Fan had suggested.

Soon, Qu Yuan was brought in.

Upon seeing Yang Yao, Qu Yuan's eyes filled with tears, and he immediately bowed down in reverence.
"Your Majesty, I have returned..."

Yang Yao asked indifferently, "How did the strategist return?"

"Ah this..."

Qu Yuan was stunned: This moment is just like that moment!

Goodnight, please vote with monthly tickets or recommendation tickets, or 2 more~

(End of this chapter)