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

So he simply introduced himself.

"So that all the heroes may know, this village inn is indeed run by Liangshan, in order to gather information from all directions. I am the manager of this inn, known as Zhu Gui, the 'Dry Land Crocodile'."

"The two heroes killed the vicious tiger with a single punch on Jingyang Ridge, then burned down the county government office, killed the county magistrate and the local bully, and caused a great disturbance in Yanggu County. These events have already spread throughout Shandong, so we naturally know about them."

After everyone introduced themselves and greeted each other,

Zhao Yuan didn't beat around the bush either.

He frankly stated that he had a past relationship with Lin Chong on the mountain.

I hope to inform them so that old friends can meet again.

After Zhu Gui agreed,

They then planned to serve food and drink and arrange for everyone to rest.

Zhao Yuan disagreed, and instead inquired about the location of Shijie Village.

Although Zhu Gui was puzzled, he still answered.

“Follow the path outside the shop and walk another four or five li, and you will reach Shijie Village.”

"In that case, with so many people here, your shop won't be able to accommodate everyone."

Zhao Yuan said, "Tonight, we will all stay in Shijie Village. If Instructor Lin comes, please ask him to come to Shijie Village to meet us."

Seeing that he couldn't persuade him to stay, Zhu Gui had no choice but to agree immediately.

After Zhao Yuan and the others left,

He didn't ask anyone else; he boarded the small boat himself.

Return to Liangshan to report the news.

......

Here, the group followed the path towards Shijie Village.

On the way, Lu Zhishen asked in confusion, "Brother, why don't we rest at that village inn? Do you suspect there's something fishy going on there, like at Shizipo?"

“Brother, since we have revealed Instructor Lin’s name, even if it’s a shady inn in Liangshan, they shouldn’t harm us,”

Zhao Yuan explained, "The reason we are going to Shijie Village is because there are three heroes in that village. We can make friends with them there."

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Chapter Sixty-Seven: The Three Ruan Brothers (Available tonight, please subscribe)

As the saying goes, "Those who live near mountains live off the mountains, and those who live near water live off the water."

This Shijie Village is near Liangshan Marsh.

Most of the villagers made a living by fishing.

Even in the dead of winter, the lake remained unfrozen.

These villagers also need to fish by boat every day to support their families.

But this day,

When Zhao Yuan and his group arrived at Shijie Village,

A large group of villagers had gathered on the pier at the village entrance.

They were arguing and making a racket.

Just then, a fishing boat drifted out from behind the reeds in the distant water.

A man was standing on top, steering the boat.

The burly man had a dark complexion, despite the bitter cold.

Yet he still had bare arms and an exposed chest.

Seeing the man moor his fishing boat on the pier,

The villagers who had been watching immediately rushed over.

They asked all sorts of questions at once.

"Seventh Brother, have you caught the big fish that the government requires, weighing twenty or thirty catties?"

"Shoot a bird!"

The burly man angrily jumped onto the pier and roared,

"That Liangshan is too domineering. They don't allow anyone to get close to the depths of this marsh. Although I wanted to sneak in under the cover of darkness and catch ten big fish, enough to satisfy the authorities, I gave up!"

"But I was still spotted by those lackeys and they started shooting wildly with their bows and arrows! Luckily, I dodged quickly and jumped into the water, otherwise I would have been shot into a pincushion!"

After speaking, the man looked around.

Not seeing his two elder brothers, he asked where they had gone.

The villager standing nearby replied, "The government officials came again to urge us to catch the fish. We had no choice but to pool our money and buy some wine for Second Brother to have."

"Fifth Brother borrowed some loose silver from someone, saying he would use it as capital to get some money to deal with the officials, but he hasn't returned yet, so he's probably lost it gambling again!"

"Damn it! If the government dares to coerce us again, let's follow the example of Liangshan and find a place to become outlaws!"

Just as the burly man finished speaking, a villager nearby noticed the presence of outsiders.

He quickly gestured to the man not to talk nonsense.

The burly man looked up at Zhao Yuan and the others, then strode over.

"Gentlemen, what brings you to our desolate fishing village?"

"We are traveling merchants, and as it is getting dark, we are looking for a place to stay. Please help us, brother."

After Zhao Yuan finished speaking, he took out two five-tael silver ingots from his person and handed them over.

"This is the money for lodging. Is it enough?"

The villager standing nearby was overjoyed upon seeing the ten taels of silver.

They all urged the big man to accept it.

"Seventh Brother, with these ten taels of silver, it will be enough to deal with the government officials and constables. We won't have to worry about the fish tax this year!"

The burly man frowned and did not take the silver.

Instead, he looked at the group and said,

“There are plenty of empty rooms in my village. It’s just for one night’s stay, and it won’t cost that much money. Just a few coins will be enough.”

Zhao Yuan saw that he genuinely didn't want it, and there were many people around.

So he didn't insist anymore.

He put away the silver and asked the big man to arrange food and lodging.

The man led the group into the village.

As we passed a small courtyard, the gate suddenly opened unexpectedly.

Two government officials, reeking of alcohol, staggered out.

Upon seeing the man who led the way for Zhao Yuan,

The constable then called out, "Ruan Xiaoqi, has the big fish the county government ordered been prepared?"

"Well... officers, it's freezing cold today. If we want to catch big fish, we'll have to go deep into the marshland, but that area has already been occupied by Liangshan..."

Before Ruan Xiaoqi could finish speaking, she was interrupted by the constable.

"Stop with the nonsense, I'm just asking you, do you have any fish?"

"no!"

Ruan Xiaoqi glared and snorted angrily.

"How dare you be so arrogant even without fish!"

The constable raised his hand as if to strike, and a man hurriedly chased after him from the courtyard.

She bears a resemblance to Ruan Xiaoqi.

Ink-black eyebrows, a square mouth—even in the dead of winter...

His arms were bare, revealing a tuft of blond hair on his chest.

The man quickly stopped the constable and made his brother apologize.

Ruan Xiaoqi gritted her teeth, her fists clenching so tightly they cracked.

He struggled for a moment, and just as he was about to bow,

Zhao Yuan couldn't stand it anymore.

He then took out the ten taels of silver that Ruan Xiaoqi had previously refused.

It was handed to the two government officials and their constables.

"Officers, this silver is the money we owe this brother for lodging and food. We'll hand it over to you now. Please use this silver to buy some big fish to appease the county magistrate. Is that alright?"

The constable couldn't take his eyes off the silver.

"Enough is enough!"

As he spoke, he quickly reached out and took the silver.

They each received a five-tael silver ingot.

"You can't..."

Ruan Xiaoqi was about to step forward to stop them, but Sun An pulled her aside.

The two constables glanced at Ruan Xiaoqi and said to Zhao Yuan,

"You're much more sensible than those blockheads!"

Then, he smiled at Ruan Xiaoer and said,

"This year, your Shijie Village's fish tax is all paid. We'll come back to collect next year's share after the New Year!"

.................................................. .................................................. ....

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Chapter Sixty-Eight: Accepting Ruan Xiaoqi (Available tonight, please subscribe)

After dealing with the two constables,

Ruan Xiaoer then cupped his hands in thanks to Zhao Yuan.

Ruan Xiaoqi, standing to the side, angrily retorted, "Even if you catch ten big fish weighing twenty or thirty catties each, it won't be worth a tael of silver. The rest will definitely be embezzled by those unscrupulous people!"

"My lord, please don't be offended. My brother here simply despises the government, that's why he speaks like this,"

Ruan Xiao'er quickly tried to smooth things over, and Ruan Xiaoqi also came over to apologize.

Zhao Yuan naturally wouldn't care about such trivial matters.

After this incident...

The Ruan brothers naturally treated Zhao Yuan with even greater enthusiasm.

After welcoming everyone into the courtyard,