Water Margin: I am Zhu Biao

afternoon.

The footshop returned to its quiet state, and the tourists who had come to watch the spectacle had long since dispersed.

After Zhu Biao revealed the name of the Commander-in-Chief, the shopkeeper immediately knelt down to beg for forgiveness. However, he then dragged his pale-faced, fat wife back to their room to change her trousers.

Yue Fei and his son also moved to a different inn.

His father, Yue He, was an honest and simple farmer who was seriously ill with a high fever and cough, and was too weak to move.

After eating porridge and taking medicine, I managed to say thank you before falling into a deep sleep. At this point, my high fever had subsided a bit, and my breathing had gradually become steady.

"Thank you so much, Brother Tang, for saving my life! I will never forget your kindness!"

After carefully tucking the blanket around his father, Yue Fei turned to kneel, but Zhu Biao swiftly stopped him.

"Brother Yue, please don't do this!"

He truly could not bear the kowtow of Yue Fei in the future.

To be honest, being able to see Yue Fei in person and even lend him a hand already made Zhu Biao's trip to the Song Dynasty worthwhile.

For him, in the entire Song Dynasty, across both the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the only person worthy of his anticipation was Yue Fei.

"Brother Tang, please be sure to leave me a place to stay. I will definitely visit you to express my gratitude in the future."

Yue Fei's eyes reddened even more, and tears streamed down his face uncontrollably.

He is not yet the great hero who single-handedly saved the day; he is merely a thirteen-year-old farmer's son who has been driven to desperation.

"Uh~"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Biao was somewhat perplexed. Just now, he had used a false identity to help Yue Fei out of a predicament.

Tang Shaowu, the cavalry captain of the Pacification Commissioner of Daming Prefecture, a ninth-rank Baoyi Lang, was the unlucky fellow who died in the nameless black inn.

The cost of getting out of the predicament was much lower than I expected!

The father and son owed a mere 150 coins for three days' rent.

Repairing the gate and the house costs 250 coins; hiring a doctor and getting medicine costs no more than 600 coins.

As for the people at the foot shop, they were all beaten up by Zhu Biao and could only accept their bad luck, not daring to utter a word.

In this day and age, the rule of the government is that when a citizen sues an official, they are beaten first and then questioned. If you pay some money, it's common for them to beat someone to death.

It's no exaggeration to say that throughout history, very few people have won when they sue government officials.

In other words, Zhu Biao only spent one string of cash to help Yue Fei settle the matter, which was less than the amount of money he usually bribed at the gate.

Yue Fei's father's illness was not serious; it was just a cold that caused lung heat. It was not an incurable disease at all, but if left untreated, it would develop into a lung abscess and endanger his life.

The saying "Even a hero can be brought down by a penny" is absolutely true.

"Brother, may I call you that?"

Zhu Biao changed the subject, saying that Yue Fei was the only son in his family, and according to current customs, the more affectionate way to address him was as "Da Lang" (elder brother).

"Of course."

Zhu Biao pondered for a moment and said:

"Brother, to be honest, Tang Shaowu is an alias. My real name is Zhu Biao, and I am from Zhu Family Village, Dulonggang, Qingzhou."

To be honest, this was a decision made by Zhu Biao after careful consideration.

Yue Fei was upright and stubborn. Once this misunderstanding was sown and took root, it would be difficult to gain his trust again.

He was a brilliant strategist, one of the top ten strategists in history. Even if he couldn't be recruited, Zhu Biao didn't want to ruin his image.

Upon hearing this, Yue Fei was taken aback and looked at Zhu Biao with a puzzled expression.

"Brother, I cannot tell you the reasons behind this, but I swear that even if I use this identity, I will never do anything immoral or immoral."

To be honest, facing the living Yue Fei, even if he was only thirteen years old, Zhu Biao was so moved that he lost his composure somewhat.

Otherwise, they wouldn't be spouting nonsense like making oaths.

"Tang, no, Brother Zhu, you flatter me. I'll send you a message."

"good!"

Zhu Biao suddenly breathed a sigh of relief and slapped his thigh hard.

"Eldest brother, I am the third son in my family. How about you call me Third Brother?"

"Third Brother."

Yue Fei called out honestly, his expression still somewhat childishly shy, which made Zhu Biao laugh so hard his eyes disappeared.

"Third Brother, I absolutely cannot accept this money!"

As dusk fell, at the entrance of the inn, Yue Fei, his face flushed, pushed the money bag that Zhu Biao had handed him.

There were two silver bars and two strings of copper coins inside. This money was enough for his family to live on for more than a year.

"What's there to refuse?"

Yue Fei was truly gifted; at only thirteen years old, his strength was astonishing. To be honest, Zhu Biao really couldn't push him away.

"That won't do either, there are too many!"

Yue Fei's stubborn temper flared up, and he strained his arms, requiring Zhu Biao to exert all his strength to barely hold him off.

"Brother, don't refuse, listen to what I have to say."

"My uncle needs money for medical treatment and medicine, and he'll need money for his recovery later. Besides, this money is a loan to you, and you have to pay it back!"

Upon hearing this, Yue Fei finally restrained himself somewhat.

Zhu Biao quickly pressed his advantage, saying:

"I have horses and an instructor at my manor. Once your uncle has fully recovered, come back to me to repay the money. At that time, we can ride horses and practice martial arts together."

"Third Brother~"

Yue Fei's throat tightened, and his eyes revealed a deep sense of anticipation.

It was already dark. There was no wind or snow tonight, and the moon was bright with few stars, making it a good time to travel. However, Zhu Biao seemed a little down and remained silent the whole way.

Pang Wanchun couldn't be recruited, and Yue Fei was even less likely to be recruited. He was only thirteen, still a child. What was the point of recruiting him?

Although goodwill has been established and promises have been made, who can say for sure what will happen tomorrow?

If he were to miss out on the talents of these two generals, Zhu Biao would feel as if his heart were being torn apart.

"Sigh~"

Without realizing it, he let out a long sigh.

"You think highly of that young punk."

The road was deserted. Pang Qiutang spurred her horse forward a few steps to ride alongside him.

Zhu Biao confessed that she was mute when outsiders were present, and she managed to do so, but after holding it in all day, she was half-mad.

"Um."

Zhu Biao responded with little interest.

"Why? Just because you're stronger?"

Zhu Biao rolled his eyes at her:

"Bigger? Have you ever seen a thirteen-year-old kid who could knock two adults flying and then smash through a door or wall?"

"What good is strength? Can it stop an arrow?"

Her voice was noticeably weak, but she was still stubbornly insisting.

Zhu Biao curled his lip:

"He is strong enough to draw a heavy bow. One arrow is enough to pierce through you and your horse. In addition, he can shoot several more arrows and kill you several times over."

"snort!"

Pang Qiutang was speechless. She glared fiercely at Zhu Biao and pouted.

Only in the dead of night, when no one is around, can she slightly reveal her girlish side. In fact, she is only three years older than Yue Fei.

After a while, the young woman couldn't suppress her urge to speak any longer, and after racking her brains, she picked up a new topic to talk about.

"Why are you rushing to Tokyo so urgently? Hmm?"

Her voice suddenly stopped, then began to tremble.

"What, what is that?"

Not far ahead, there was a bend in the road, and in the recessed part was a grove of trees. At this moment, several wisps of eerie blue flames rose from the trees, swaying left and right as they floated in mid-air.

"Don't be alarmed, it's just phosphorescence, blown away by the night wind."

His voice abruptly stopped.

Because those few clusters of eerie blue flames suddenly started moving, bouncing rhythmically, which was definitely not caused by the wind.

"Whoa~"

Zhu Biao suddenly pulled on the reins, and Pang Qiutang also quickly stopped his horse.

"We...we...could it be that we've run into..."

She didn't say the word "ghost".

But the distorted voice and the hand gripping Zhu Biao's arm were even more chilling than the words themselves.

Being a girl, she instantly lost her composure when faced with such a bizarre situation.

In fact, not only her, but even Zhu Biao felt a chill run down his spine. Could there be ghosts in this world? It seems that some of the Liangshan heroes are indeed skilled in magic.

Gongsun Sheng, Fan Rui, Dai Zong—these guys all have some extraordinary abilities.

The few balls of eerie blue flames leaped at a moderate speed, and in the blink of an eye, they had closed to within 150 paces, heading straight towards them.

"This...this might be a passage for ghost soldiers! Let's get out of here quickly!"

At this moment, Pang Qiutang's scratching of Zhu Biao's arm was painful, and her eyes were already glistening with tears.

"Ghost soldiers borrowing a path?"

Zhu Biao frowned, narrowed his eyes, and looked back at the way he came. Suddenly, his gaze sharpened, and the corners of his mouth slowly turned up.

"But I don't believe in ghosts or gods!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he shook off Pang Qiutang's hand, stood up, drew his bow, nocked an arrow, strung the string, and released the arrow in one smooth motion.

call out!

A whistling arrow flew towards the "ghost fire".

The arrow was too far away to hit the "ghost fire," but the "ghost fire" suddenly stopped.

One of them even fell to the ground.

"Hahaha!"

Zhu Biao burst into laughter, then shoved the bow and quiver into Pang Qiutang's hands, before drawing his spear and quickly assembling it.

"A bunch of pretentious scoundrels, daring to stroke my whiskers!"

He swung his ten-foot-long iron spear forcefully, turned his head, and whispered a shout at the still-stunned Pang Qiutang:

"Silly girl! Stop daydreaming, come with me to slay demons and monsters!"

After saying that, he spurred his horse and galloped off towards the "ghost fire".