Water Margin: I am Zhu Biao

Chapter 83 Today, no matter what, blood must be shed!

Yanggu is located at the border of Hebei and Shandong provinces.

After passing Jingyang Ridge on the east side of the city, continue eastward for about fifty li, and you will enter the territory of Qingzhou. Peach Blossom Mountain is not far ahead.

Only after arriving here can one be considered to have officially entered the Water Margin map.

Behind Peach Blossom Mountain are, in order, Qingfeng Mountain, Qingfeng Village, then Duiying Mountain, Erlong Mountain, Baihu Mountain, and Dulonggang.

Further east lies the territory of Jeju, including Yuncheng, Liangshan Marsh, and Zengtou City.

Returning east from Yanggu to Zhujiazhuang felt like plunging headlong into a bandit's den.

However, it was already late December, and the end of the year was approaching. There were few merchants and travelers on the road, and it seemed that the bandits had all gone into hibernation.

The key was that Zhu Biao and his group consisted of six riders, armed with bows and swords, and looked like they were not to be trifled with, so they traveled relatively peacefully along the way.

"Sanlang, why are you constantly scanning the mountain? Could it be that there are bandits entrenched in this mountain?"

Now, Wu Song was riding his horse quite well, gently tugging at its belly, and came to Zhu Biao's side, riding alongside him.

"Indeed, there is a den of thieves on Qingfeng Mountain, and among the thieves in charge is a beast who deserves to be torn to pieces."

The three bandit leaders of Qingfeng Mountain are Yan Shun, the Brocade-haired Tiger; Wang Ying, the Dwarf Tiger; and Zheng Tianshou, the White-faced Gentleman.

Among them, Wang Ying, that scoundrel, was not only a womanizer, but also habitually gutted people's hearts and livers to drink with—this is not a figure of speech, but a fact.

If things had unfolded as they originally did, this scoundrel would have eventually taken Hu Sanniang for himself.

Upon arriving in this land, Zhu Biao immediately put Wang Ying on his kill list, waiting for his troops to grow strong enough to wipe out Qingfeng Mountain.

There's something else that's quite interesting.

On Qingfeng Mountain, there is also Qingfeng Village, where the Martial Magistrate Hua Rong is known for his hatred of evil, superb martial arts skills, and exceptional archery abilities.

However, the fact that he was able to coexist peacefully with these two treacherous bandits is quite intriguing.

Moreover, Hua Rong was a staunch supporter of Song Heizi, not only blindly supporting him in killing officials and rebelling, but also later dying for him.

This is something Zhu Biao couldn't understand at all: why?

Upon hearing this, Wu Song was immediately filled with righteous indignation.

"In that case, why don't we charge forward and kill this scoundrel? That would be doing a service to the people."

"Heh~"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Biao raised an eyebrow and chuckled, teasingly asking, "Second Brother, would you dare to kill someone?"

"Sanlang! Don't underestimate me!"

Wu Song's face flushed red; this was his Achilles' heel.

In the current group, apart from the few beautiful young women in the carriage and Wu Da, everyone else has seen blood.

Zhu Biao, Pang Qiutang, Zhu San, and Zhu Wu, needless to say, are all seasoned killers.

Instructor Zhang came from the border army and fought against the Liao people in his early years. After his brothers died, he was also injured and returned to Tokyo to find a leisurely job as an instructor.

Even Su Fang, the youngest of the group, was hunted down by his enemies and fled all the way from Yulin to Wuzhi, during which time he fought and bled more than once.

"What are you saying, Second Brother? How could I possibly look down on you?"

Zhu Biao smiled.

"But most bandit dens are built in treacherous places, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and they have a lot of henchmen. There are not enough of us to charge up."

"Hey, sir, you're knowledgeable in military affairs. Every word you say makes perfect sense."

At this moment, Instructor Zhang flicked his whip in the air and took over the conversation with great interest.

"A mountain stronghold with three hundred henchmen, relying on the terrain, could not be breached even by a thousand elite soldiers without artillery."

He paused, then suddenly sighed.

"In this day and age, the officials in the government only know how to amass wealth, and the generals in the military are mostly afraid of fighting and dying. This has led to the proliferation of bandits, who have grown stronger day by day."

"ha!"

After hearing what he said, Zhu Biao smiled nonchalantly.

"Uncle Tang, there's no need to be sad. One day, when I have eight hundred elite warriors in good order, I dare not boast elsewhere, but I guarantee that there will be no more bandits in Qing and Ji prefectures, and the world will be bright and clear!"

He wasn't just bragging.

These miscellaneous mountain strongholds in Qingzhou are all future external support for Liangshan, so he naturally has to wipe them out one by one, cutting off one of Liangshan's arms first.

In addition, this was also the purpose of that old fox Murong Yanda in appointing him as the head of the Dulonggang militia.

It's like using one tiger to devour another—it's easy to understand.

"Young master, you have lofty ambitions. I eagerly await your arrival and am willing to do my part."

Instructor Zhang solemnly cupped his hands in greeting to him.

Inspired by his words, Wu Song clapped his hands and shouted, "Third Brother, what spirit you have! At that time, I, Wu Er, would gladly be your vanguard!"

"I am willing to give my all, even unto death!"

"Zhu San, Zhu Wu," Su Fang shouted at the top of his lungs.

Pang Qiutang didn't say anything, but her eyes were eerily bright as she gripped the bow in her hand. At this moment, she had already entrusted her life to Zhu Biao.

Let alone suppressing bandits, she wouldn't even flinch if it were a rebellion or even an assassination attempt on the emperor in Tokyo.

At this moment, the curtains in the carriage were also drawn back.

"My lord~"

Ruyi gazed at him intently, murmuring softly, her eyes almost glazed over.

Madam Lin nodded in agreement, while Pan Jinlian's gaze was the most complex, a mixture of fear, apprehension, curiosity, and a hint of admiration.

Of the entire group, only Wu Da looked bewildered, glancing left and right before lowering his head and nervously rubbing his hands together.

Even now, he feels like he's dreaming, with his brothers and wife by his side, so that's the only thing on his mind.

It was the steamer basket for making pancakes that had been left behind on Zishi Street.

The next two days passed uneventfully.

Zhu Biao and his group traveled non-stop and successfully reached Erlong Mountain, which was only a hundred miles away from Dulonggang. They were about to return home.

Just as they rounded a bend in the road and entered a valley, a sudden shout and the sound of fighting came from ahead.

They were quite far away, and with snow and dust flying everywhere, it was only barely possible to make out that two groups of people were fighting.

One of the larger groups numbered forty or fifty people. They wore various clothes and carried a motley collection of weapons, making them appear to be mountain bandits.

Another group, consisting of only seven or eight people, was surrounded on the inner side. However, they were well-equipped and their tactics were quite systematic, forming a semi-circular formation.

He fought against bandits who outnumbered him several times over and held his own!

"Third Brother, what do we do?"

Pang Qiutang rode up, his bow already in his hand, an arrow between his fingers, ready to be drawn and released in a moment.

The others also drew their knives, staring at him intently, silently awaiting his command.

Zhu Biao did not answer immediately, but frowned and pondered.

Whose territory is Erlong Mountain again?

Wu Song is currently by his side, the birthday tribute incident has not yet occurred, Yang Zhi is still working in Daming Prefecture, and Lu Zhishen has left the Xiangguo Temple in Tokyo and is probably wandering around.

Therefore, Deng Long should be in charge now.

This guy's nickname is something like Tiger, never mind, it's not important.

"Kill the bandits!"

Having figured this out, Zhu Biao's eyes suddenly narrowed. He grabbed his bow and began issuing specific battle commands.

"Su Fang, Uncle Tang, protect the carriage! Qiu Tang, follow me and harass them with archery! Second Brother, Zhu San, Zhu Wu, dismount and fight on foot!"

"Here you go!"

The crowd responded with a resounding roar.

Wu Song, in particular, was filled with fighting spirit. Today, he was determined to draw blood and strip away Wu Song of his virginity.

"Big Tiger, take a few brothers and stop these meddlesome bastards!"

Upon spotting Zhu Biao and his group rapidly approaching, a burly man who appeared to be the leader of the bandits shouted loudly from the midst of the chaotic battle.

This man was nearly seven feet tall, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, carrying a long-handled hammer. His eyes were peculiar, a dark yellowish-brown.

"good!"

A dark-faced man holding a spear responded and then led several familiar henchmen to separate into a group.

"Don't panic! Raise your spears and lances, and spear them off their horses."

shhhhh!

No sooner had he finished speaking than two arrows whistled simultaneously.

puff puff!

As soon as the arrow struck, the dark-faced man's throat and chest were pierced by the arrow at the same time, and he fell backward to the ground like a wooden stake without uttering a sound.

To catch the thief, first catch the king; Zhu Biao and Pang Qiutang had the same idea.

"Damn it, you horse archers!"

"He's a sharpshooter."

The henchmen following the dark-faced man immediately erupted into chaos.

Infantry are most afraid of cavalry. If it is lance cavalry, they may be able to hold on with their formation, but when they encounter horse archers, there is really no way to deal with them.

These mountain bandits, in particular, were completely defenseless, making them easy targets.

shhhhh!

The next moment, two more arrows flew in, one of the henchmen at the front was shot through the back, and the other was shot in the shoulder.

"Mother!"

The remaining henchmen immediately let out a shout and fled in all directions.

"Thieves, prepare to die!"

Just then, Wu Song charged forward like a galloping horse, roared, and swung his sword to strike.

puff!

Blood splattered everywhere. The henchman facing him raised his gun to block, but both he and the gun were cut in two by Wu Song's sword.

As expected of the Heavenly Wound Star, it bursts forth so violently the first time it sees blood.

However, Zhu Biao couldn't care less about that at the moment. He looked down from his vantage point and recognized the people surrounded by the bandits.

Zhu Jiu! And Luan Tingyu too!

The rest were all his Zhu Family Manor's soldiers. At this moment, their lines were already in grave danger. Zhu Jiu was covered in blood, and two of his soldiers had fallen.