Water Margin: The opening scene involves assassinating Emperor Huizong of Song and forcibly taking L

Unexpectedly, at that moment, a soldier came to report.

"Chief, Chief Shi Xiu and Chief Zhang Shun have returned!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yuan and the others hurriedly left the cabin. As soon as they reached the deck, they saw Shi Xiu and Zhang Shun riding towards them from not far away.

"I wonder if they've finished what you asked them to do?" Ruan Xiaowu asked.

"Brother Shi Xiu is meticulous, and Brother Zhang Shun is diligent. With the two of them on the task, success is assured."

Zhao Yuan said confidently.

......

Just as Zhao Yuan said,

Shi Xiu and Zhang Shun returned to Shandong, and all their tasks had been successfully completed.

They not only obtained documents with forged handwriting by Cai Jing, Tong Guan, and others, but also a forged imperial edict.

Shi Xiu took the herbal tea from Ruan Xiaoqi, drank it all in one gulp, and then smiled.

“Brother, if Xiao Rang and Jin Dajian hadn’t been away from Jeju, Zhang Shun and I might have been able to return a couple of days earlier.”

"Oh? They're not in Jeju, so where did they go? And how did you find them?" Zhao Yuan asked, puzzled.

"Brother, you may not know this, but during this plague in Shandong, the families of Xiao Rang and Jin Dajian also contracted the disease,"

Zhang Shun explained, "So, as early as January, these two had already taken their families to the north bank of Liangshan to seek medical treatment."

"A month ago?"

Zhao Yuan was taken aback. At that time, he should still be in Daming Prefecture planning the birthday tribute.

Unexpectedly, Xiao Rang and Jin Dajian had already arrived at Liangshan.

"Um,"

Shi Xiu nodded: "After Zhang Shun and I arrived in Jizhou only to find no one there, we inquired with their neighbors and learned that they had gone to Liangshan to seek medical treatment..."

"After that, the two of us rushed to the north bank of the marshland, and soon found Xiao Rang and Jin Dajian."

Zhang Shun continued, "The families of these two men have all been saved by Doctor An. They are grateful for the kindness shown to them by Liangshan, and although they know that this is extremely risky, they still agreed."

"Once they produced the forged documents and imperial edicts, we obtained them and hurried back on horseback,"

Shi Xiu asked, "Brother, have we missed anything?"

"Don't worry, brothers, you've come back at just the right time."

Zhao Yuan looked at the two men, whose faces were pale and whose expressions were full of exhaustion.

Knowing they had been traveling for days and were exhausted, he quickly said,

"You two should go and rest. Leave the rest to us."

"Yes!"

Shi Xiu and Zhang Shun cupped their hands in greeting.

Knowing that nothing had gone wrong, the two of them immediately relaxed.

Exhausted both physically and mentally, even his steps became unsteady.

Zhao Yuan quickly had Ruan Xiaowu and Ruan Xiaoqi help them into the cabin to rest.

"Brother, Brother Shi Xiu and Brother Zhang Shun are truly exhausted."

Ruan Xiaowu said after returning,

"As soon as we put them on the bed, they fell asleep almost touching the mattress."

"These two really worked hard on version 2.0 this time..."

Ruan Xiaoqi also sighed.

No sooner had he finished speaking than he heard a "thud."

Everyone followed the sound,

Of the four horses that Shi Xiu and Zhang Shun rode back,

One of the horses was foaming at the mouth and had collapsed on the ground; it was clear it was beyond saving.

"We've all forgotten how much they've worked hard these past few days,"

Jiao Ting stroked the fallen, dead horse.

"Have the soldiers take them away and feed them well, give them plenty of good rations,"

Zhao Yuan gave the order.

Besides the one that died, the remaining three horses were also severely emaciated.

Especially the chestnut horse that Ruan Xiaowu and his group had just bought.

When I set off a few days ago, I was still plump and healthy.

Now, however, he is so thin that he looks like skin and bones...

Chapter 277 Zhao Ji and Tong Guan

"Chief, now that the imperial edict has arrived, let's use it to rescue Brother Xu,"

Wen Huanzhang suggested, "This imperial edict will be useless after this time. Since Yan Qing has already established a relationship with Grand Commandant Gao, we might as well keep it. It may still be useful in the future."

“Brother, using a fake imperial edict won’t implicate the young lady of the Liu family,” Yan Qing said.

Liu Huiniang's method was actually very simple.

The first step is to get Yan Qing and Gao Kan on good terms.

Once the time is right, find an excuse to lure Grand Commandant Gao to the prison, then switch the prince with a fake one.

Xu Guanzhong was made to change into Gao Kan's clothes, pretending to be unwell, and then carried out by the others.

Gao Kan, on the other hand, was given sleeping pills and kept in the prison.

Although there is a risk of being discovered, it is still a good method.

However, this would definitely alert the Song court if Gao Kan were to get into trouble.

When the investigation is conducted, Yan Qing and Zhao Yuan will definitely be found out, and Liu Huiniang and the others will naturally be implicated as well.

“Chief, leave the task of forging the imperial edict to me,” Wen Huanzhang volunteered.

"Sir, regarding this matter..."

Zhao Yuan hesitated for a moment.

Forging an imperial edict also carries risks, and Wen Huanzhang is not skilled in martial arts.

If he is recognized at 18, he will be helpless and captured.

"Chief, to forge an imperial edict, one must first be literate, and second, be able to adapt to any situation,"

Wen Huanzhang laughed and said, "It's perfect to leave this matter to me. As long as I find two more brothers to accompany me and act as guards, we're sure to succeed."

"Professor Wen, in those plays, aren't the ones reading the imperial edicts always eunuchs?"

Ruan Xiaoqi asked doubtfully, "Even if the professor were to dress up as a eunuch, he probably wouldn't look convincing, would he?"

Everyone else was also suppressing their laughter as they looked at Wen Huanzhang, clearly imagining what he would look like disguised as a eunuch.

"Brothers, there's been a misunderstanding,"

Wen Huanzhang explained with a wry smile, "It is not necessary for the imperial edict to be read by a eunuch. Generally speaking, when the emperor drafts an imperial edict, a Hanlin scholar will be specially appointed to write it and read it. Only when the emperor specifically designates it will the edict be read by a eunuch."

"So that's it..."

Zhao Yuan nodded in sudden realization. Influenced by television in his previous life, he had always thought that those who announced imperial edicts were eunuchs.

"In that case, Fifth Brother, Seventh Brother, and ten soldiers will accompany Professor Wen to the Censorate to rescue people,"

Zhao Yuan instructed, "Everyone else, get ready. Once Brother Xu is rescued, we will leave Bianliang immediately."

"By the way, Brother Shiqian, go and tell Ah Xiu about what's going on here."

Wen Huanzhang stepped forward and falsely conveyed an imperial edict to save people, so naturally Liu Huiniang and the others were not implicated.

Therefore, there was no need to forcibly take Chen Liqing and Chen Xizhen away.

As for getting rid of Gao Kan's entanglement

Liu Huiniang was intelligent, and both Chen Xizhen and his daughter were skilled in martial arts.

Gao Kan was naturally not a problem for them.

As for me…

Zhao Yuan sneered.

"It's perfect timing to head to the entrance of Fanlou and witness the martial arts of those Jurchens!"

.......

With everything arranged, everyone went about their respective tasks.

Zhao Yuan, accompanied by Jiao Ting, rode their horses to the entrance of Fanlou.

As in previous days,

The arena was still surrounded by a dense crowd of people.

When Zhao Yuan and his companion arrived,

A golden man was standing on the arena, speaking loudly in fluent Chinese.

"Fellow citizens of Song, we are here only to await the day when the Song people who killed our comrades will challenge us again!"

"But now it seems that the Song man was a coward, a piece of trash!"

......

The third floor of Fanlou

Two richly dressed people were standing by the window, looking down at the arena.

If Zhao Yuan were here, he would surely recognize the leader.

This is Zhao Ji, the current emperor of the Song Dynasty.

Serving behind Zhao Ji was the now incredibly powerful eunuch, Tong Guan.

Emperor Huizong (Zhao Ji) came to Fanlou today after court, intending to relax and unwind.

Now, listening to the Jurchens shouting that the Song people were incompetent and cowardly,

As the emperor, Zhao Ji was naturally humiliated and felt even more displeased.

"Your Majesty, these Jurchens are only saying this to provoke the dark-faced man who killed their comrade that day,"

Seeing that Zhao Ji was displeased, Tong Guan quickly explained on behalf of the Jurchens.

"I heard that a few days ago, didn't these Jurchens kill two Song people in the arena?"

Zhao Ji frowned and said, "They only lost one of their companions, and it's already caused such a commotion. What about the three Song people who died? Should we also hold them accountable?"

"Your Majesty, these barbarians are ignorant of etiquette, how can we stoop to their level?"

Tong Guan quickly said, "Besides, this arena is a life-or-death arena. If you're not good enough after going up there, you'll be beaten to death, and that's your own fault."

"Even if this golden man wants revenge, he can only stand on the arena and wait for that black-faced man from that day to challenge him again."

Three people died a few days ago, and six died yesterday alone.

Nine Song people have now died on the arena.

These men who stepped onto the stage were all disgusted by the Jin people's arrogance, which is why they challenged them to a duel.

In Tong Guan's mouth, however, they all became incompetent fools who were not capable enough and deserved to be beaten to death.

"But if that person doesn't show up, will these Jurchens just keep running rampant here?" Zhao Ji said unhappily.

"Your Majesty, rest assured, if that dark-faced man doesn't appear in another two or three days, this old servant will select 190 skilled fighters from the Imperial Guards to go and compete in the arena."

Tong Guan replied, "As long as we defeat this group of Jurchens, they will naturally have nothing to say."

"By the way, how's the alliance with the Golden Men going?"