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

Li Shishi reached out and supported Pang Chunmei's shoulder.

"After killing the magistrate and Ximen Qing in Yanggu County, Dalang will definitely be ostracized by the government and will only be able to live the life of a bandit."

"Chunmei, it's not too late for you to regret it now."

"elder sister?"

Pang Chunmei paused for a moment before understanding what she meant.

She hurriedly shook her head and said, "Sister, how could Chunmei regret it! You and my husband have been so good to me. I'd be willing to follow you even if it meant...rebellion. Please don't send me away!"

Seeing that the girl was really anxious,

Li Shishi quickly pulled her into her arms.

"Don't panic, as long as you're willing, your sister won't chase you away."

After saying this, Li Shishi breathed a slight sigh of relief.

While Chunmei was speaking, she had been observing the girl's expression.

If there is even the slightest bit of forgery in it

Li Shishi then planned to summon Zhao Yuan and hand Chunmei over to him for disposal.

This decision, though cruel...

But since Li Shishi had already agreed to join Zhao Yuan in the rebellion,

Then he would never let himself or anyone around him drag Zhao Yuan down.

......

Zhao Yuan and his party continued on to Liangshan Marsh.

Three days later, in the Chuigong Hall of the Great Song Imperial City in Bianliang, the capital of the Song Dynasty,

Cai Jing was reporting on the situation in Yanggu County to Emperor Huizong of Tang.

"...The magistrate of Yanggu County suspected that Zhao Dalang was related to Zhao Yuan, so he summoned him to the county office for questioning. Unexpectedly, Zhao Dalang, who had killed the tiger, killed the magistrate of Yanggu County and more than ten yamen runners. Then, due to personal grudges, he tortured and killed Ximen Qing and dozens of other civilians before fleeing Yanggu County."

"After all this nonsense, I'll just ask you one question: Is the tiger-slaying Zhao Dalang really Zhao Yuan?" Zhao Ji said coldly.

"This... It is said that Zhao Dalang, who killed the tiger, had a dark complexion, a beard under his chin, and was about thirty years old."

Cai Jing reported the facts truthfully.

"Then it's not Zhao Yuan!"

Zhao Ji snorted angrily, "If that scoundrel Zhao Yuan had the ability to kill a tiger with a single punch, I would have..."

Seeing that the emperor was furious and about to expose his shameful secret,

Cai Jing hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, what should be done with this Zhao Dalang? Please give your instructions!"

"Do you need to ask me about such trivial matters? You can handle them yourselves!"

Zhao Ji said coldly, "I only want to know when Zhao Yuan will be captured?"

“Your Majesty, the Kaifeng Prefectural Government will be fully responsible for the pursuit of Zhao Yuan,” Cai Jing replied.

"Your Majesty, the men from the Kaifeng Prefecture have been heading north, but... they haven't found any trace of the thief."

Prefect Teng of Kaifeng Prefecture reluctantly beat the reporter.

"That traitor Zhao Yuan must have already left Song territory, or he went north to mislead us and may have already fled elsewhere."

"Useless! The mighty Song Dynasty can't even capture a criminal who attempted to assassinate me. What use are you to me?"

Emperor Huizong slammed his fist on the dragon throne in a fit of rage.

"You shouldn't be the Prefect of Kaifeng anymore. Go down and be a county magistrate!"

“Your Majesty, although Prefect Teng has made mistakes, is demoting him to county magistrate too harsh a punishment?” Grand Commandant Su stepped forward to plead for leniency.

"this......"

Emperor Huizong of Song (Zhao Ji) only said that in a fit of anger.

Now that I've calmed down a bit, I realize that the Prefect of Kaifeng is only a second-rank official.

However, it is indeed somewhat inappropriate to demote him to the seventh rank so suddenly.

He was about to change his mind when, unexpectedly,

Gao Kan, who replaced his adoptive father Gao Qiu and became Grand Commandant, suddenly stepped forward.

He immediately lay down on the ground and began to wail loudly.

"Your Majesty, my father was a close advisor to the Emperor, yet he was tragically murdered by Zhao Yuan. The Prefect of Kaifeng has been searching for him for half a month, but he can't even find where he is. How can I face my deceased father?"

Gao Kande said something,

This reminded Zhao Ji of the day he pulled Gao Qiu in front of him to shield him from arrows.

Thinking of Gao Qiu's unseeing, unclosed eyes...

Zhao Ji immediately became agitated and shouted angrily.

"My words are law and cannot be changed! Anyone who pleads for the Prefect of Kaifeng will be sent down to serve as a county magistrate to keep him company!"

The officials fell silent.

Only Prefect Teng returned to his original position, looking utterly miserable.

Gao Kan, however, was completely satisfied.

Previously, when Gao Qiu was dealing with Lin Chong,

It was Prefect Teng who went against Gao Qiu's wishes.

Lin Chong, who should have been executed, was instead exiled to the army.

That's how he escaped with his life.

Gao Kan was not a magnanimous person to begin with.

I've been looking for a chance to get revenge for a long time, and now I've finally gotten my wish.

The Prefect of Kaifeng was punished.

Emperor Huizong pondered for a moment, then instructed Cai Jing,

"Immediately issue my decree: Within the territory of the Great Song Dynasty, whoever captures Zhao Yuan and Li Shishi, and whoever hands them over to the authorities, will be rewarded with ten thousand taels of gold and granted an official title and a noble rank!"

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Chapter Sixty-Six: Liangshan Marsh, Zhu Gui's Inn (Seeking flowers and ratings)

Meanwhile, Zhao Yuan and his men left Yanggu and passed Shouzhang.

They traveled for another day.

Then they saw a large swamp ahead, overgrown with aquatic plants and reeds.

Just looking at the area of ​​that pool, it seemed to stretch as far as the eye could see.

Standing on the bank, I strained to look into the middle of the pond.

You can still vaguely see undulating mountains stretching for miles.

"This Liangshan Marsh is indeed a good place; just this eight-hundred-mile-long marshland alone can hold off thousands of troops!"

As Sun An spoke, he kept glancing at Zhao Yuan.

The group got along well during their journey.

Qiongying seemed preoccupied and didn't notice anything else.

Sun An was a shrewd and alert man.

After Zhao Yuan became familiar with them, he no longer concealed his identity.

In casual conversation, he couldn't help but reveal some of his later insights.

Many of them certainly earned Sun Anxin's admiration.

But it also made him realize that

Zhao Yuan was definitely not the kind of person who would willingly remain subservient to others and spend his life as a bandit.

That's why I occasionally make probing remarks.

Zhao Yuan did not answer him, pretending not to have heard.

The horse-drawn carriage continued along the path by the riverbank.

After walking for another half day, they came to see a stone tablet ahead.

The characters are blurred, and only the two characters "石碣" can be vaguely made out.

Shijie? Could it be Shijie Village, where the three Ruan brothers lived?

Zhao Yuan's heart stirred.

After passing the stone tablet, the group walked for more than a mile.

Then one could see a cluster of thatched huts on the bank of the lake.

Several small boats were moored behind the house.

However, a wine flag was hanging in front of the house, clearly indicating that it was a village inn.

"We've been traveling for half a day, so let's rest here for a bit."

Zhao Yuan made the suggestion, and naturally, the others had no objection.

The hotel wasn't very big to begin with; after a group of dozens of people went inside...

They immediately filled the store to the brim.

A tall, burly man emerged from the shop.

Wearing a high-brimmed warm hat and a mink fur coat.

He had a long, narrow face and three wisps of beard.

Seeing so many people enter the store,

The man hurriedly came over and asked, "Gentlemen, what kind of food and wine would you like? Please tell me first. This is a village shop, we only have wild game and local wine."

"Wild game from the countryside? That's perfect,"

Zhao Yuan smiled slightly.

"My brother and I have always enjoyed eating wild game. We heard that there are wild leopards in Liangshan Marsh, so we came here to meet them and have a taste."

The man paused slightly, then sized up the group.

Seeing that most of them were women, I was already surprised.

Even though Li Shishi wore a veil and a thin gauze, her beauty was still undeniable.

After a moment's thought, the man carefully examined Zhao Yuan and Lu Zhishen.

Suddenly realizing what he had done, he quickly clasped his hands in a gesture of respect.

"May I ask if you are Zhao Dalang from Tokyo and Lu Zhishen, the Flowery Monk?"

"Oh, you, a humble village innkeeper, actually know me?"

Lu Zhishen was somewhat puzzled.

“Brother, this is no ordinary village shop. Judging from its appearance, it must be related to Liangshan.”

Zhao Yuan finished speaking with a smile.

The man realized that his background had been exposed.