novelSusiti Chapter 106 Dai Zongli Asks for Help
Chapter 106 Dai Zongli Asks for Help
The Song Dynasty's first attempt to offer amnesty to the emperor failed.
Zhang Shuye got drunk by Lu Zhishen and excitedly wanted to become sworn brothers with him. Fortunately, Lu Zhishen was not drunk and shouted that he refused.
"You scoundrel, I have no connection with the imperial court, how could I possibly become sworn brothers with an official of the court like you?"
Uncle Zhang was so sad that he got drunk.
The following day, Wang Lun personally escorted Zhang Shuye out of Jizhou City.
Zhang Shuye's failure to win the imperial pardon was actually expected. He then took office in Yunzhou to take charge of the overall situation. On the one hand, he cleaned up the wrongful cases in Yunzhou, and on the other hand, he arrested wealthy merchants who had bribed him based on the crimes of the previous prefect.
At the same time, soldiers were recruited in Yunzhou to form a force to defend Yunzhou.
Let's leave Zhang Shuye's matter aside for now.
After a few days of lively activities, Wang Lun and the others returned to their respective counties to take charge of the overall situation. The Liangshan Flying Tiger Army got back on track, intensified its training, and began to build city defenses.
This year was blessed with favorable weather, and the crops in the fields gradually grew taller. The people looked forward to the autumn harvest, and Wang Lun would occasionally lead people to inspect the military farms.
Their peaceful life was disrupted again in June.
However, it was a man named Dai Zong, known as the "Divine Traveler," who came to request an audience.
Upon hearing that Dai Zong was the fastest runner in the Water Margin, Wang Lun was overjoyed and ordered someone to bring Dai Zong to his study to meet him.
When Dai Zong saw Wang Lun, he secretly exclaimed, thinking that this "white-robed scholar" Wang Lun was indeed a scholar, but he didn't know how he could command 20,000 Liangshan soldiers and dozens of leaders, and now it was the largest mountain stronghold in the world.
Wang Lun was also staring at Dai Zong, thinking that this person was the fastest runner, the Divine Traveler, but he wondered if the Water Margin exaggerated his abilities.
"Chief, I was originally a jailer in the two prisons of Jiangzhou. When Song Jiang, the timely rain from Shandong, came to Jiangzhou, I admired him and became acquainted with him." Dai Zong greeted him briefly before getting to the point.
Wang Lun suddenly realized that it was because of Song Jiang. He thought about it carefully. It was June now, and Song Jiang was indeed in Jiangzhou. According to the original story, he should have already written the rebellious poem and would be executed next month.
Sure enough, Dai Zong kept it brief and recounted how Song Jiang had been imprisoned for writing a poem at Xunyang Tower.
"Chief, Song Jiang is a righteous man and a native of Shandong. He and Liangshan are from the same region. I have no one else to turn to, so I beg the chief to send someone to rescue me."
Dai Zong knelt down on the ground.
Wang Lun pondered for a moment and said, "Dean Dai, Jiangzhou is thousands of miles away. It is not difficult for the leaders of Liangshan to go and rescue Song Jiang, but there are still difficulties."
Dai Zong quickly asked, "What difficulties does the chieftain face?"
At this moment, four leaders—Lin Chong, Wu Song, Lu Zhishen, and Yang Zhi—were on either side. Wang Lun asked, "Brothers, what do you think?"
Lin Chong frowned and said, "I may know what you are thinking, brother. First, if we travel thousands of miles to provide a rescue and are surrounded by government troops, the rescue may not be successful, and we will also endanger our own brothers. Second, Zhang Shuye is currently recruiting soldiers in Yunzhou. If he finds out that we are going to Jiangzhou, we may be attacked by his army."
Wang Lun nodded and said, "That makes sense." He knew that Lin Chong and Song Jiang did not know each other, and most likely Lin Chong would not agree to provide assistance.
Wu Song said, "Brother, I met Brother Gongming when I was at Master Chai's mansion. He is a very loyal and righteous man. If you need to rescue him, count me in."
Lu Zhishen said, "I don't know this Song Gongming either, but since he says he's a good person, I'll help him out."
Yang Zhi also offered his opinion: "Song Jiang is far away in Jiangzhou. If we were to rescue him, he would not be able to lead a large army. We can only ask a few leaders to take some skilled brothers with them. It would be best if no more than a hundred people went, and they would have to travel separately."
Wang Lun nodded. He knew that besides Wu Song, Chao Gai, Hua Rong, and others were also on good terms with Song Jiang. If he really stood by and watched someone die, it might cause Hua Rong and the others to resent him. He had to save him, but he needed to think carefully about how to do it.
After thinking for a moment, he said, "Please go and rest first, Dean Dai. I will discuss a rescue plan with the other leaders."
Upon hearing this, Dai Zong knew that Wang Lun had already agreed to save the person, and immediately nodded in agreement.
Wang Lun then instructed, "Please invite the left and right vanguards of each army and several military advisors to come for a meeting."
Before long, the rest of the people had arrived.
Wang Lun first recounted what had happened, and as soon as he finished, Hua Rong immediately volunteered, "Brother, please let me go too."
Wang Lun smiled and said, "You'll get your share."
He looked at the crowd and said, "Since Song Jiang is from Yuncheng, he is also one of our people. Moreover, he is a righteous man and has known many leaders for a long time. Now that he is in trouble, we should rescue him. However, we must guard against Zhang Shuye's attack and also guard against the imperial court suddenly sending a large army to punish him."
All the leaders nodded in agreement. After all, Jiangzhou was a long way away, and if the imperial army were fast, they would have already captured Jizhou by now.
Wu Song clasped his hands and said, "Brother, you are the leader of Liangshan, so you cannot act rashly. Leave the matter of rescuing Song Jiang to us."
......
Wang Lun glared at Wu Song, thinking to himself, "You ungrateful wretch! Song Jiang hasn't even saved you yet, and you're already mimicking Song Jiang's speech."
It's important to know that in the original story, Song Jiang repeatedly told Chao Gai, "Brother is the master of Liangshan and should not be moved lightly." In the end, all the credit went to Song Jiang, and the other leaders only recognized Song Jiang.
Wu Song was puzzled by Wang Lun's glare, but he remained silent.
"I will personally lead the team to rescue Song Jiang. I haven't seen the scenery of Jiangnan yet, so this is a good opportunity to take a trip there."
Wang Lun first expressed his willingness to go, and then instructed: "When I go, Mr. Shi Wenbin will handle the affairs of Jizhou, and Lin Chong will be in charge of many matters of the Liangshan Flying Tiger Army. Please ask Brothers Yang Zhi, Guan Sheng, Hu Yan, and Qin Ming to assist me. Be careful when you encounter government troops, and discuss everything with them."
The group clasped their hands in response.
"Besides your daily training, don't be idle. Arrange for people to collect iron and saltpeter from the surrounding area, as Tang Long and Ling Zhen are short of resources."
Lin Chong replied, "Yes."
"Wu Song, Zhi Shen, Hua Rong, Gongsun Sheng, Shi Xiu, Yang Xiong, Shi Qian, Liu Tang, and Cao Zheng, please come with me."
The leaders present immediately nodded in agreement.
"Too many people will attract attention, so we'll split into three groups. One group will consist of me, Wu Song, Zhi Shen, and Gongsun; another group will consist of Hua Rong, Shi Qian, Liu Tang, and Cao Zheng; and the third group will consist of Yang Xiong, Shi Xiu, and Dai Zong. The three of you will go ahead and secretly recruit local thugs in Jiangzhou to await our arrival."
All the leaders accepted the order.
"Warn Shi Qian, he must not steal chickens or dogs and cause trouble along the way again." Wang Lun looked at Hua Rong.
Everyone burst into laughter. Shi Qian's skill in stealing chickens and dogs was impressive, but also very annoying.
"Go back and pack your things. We'll set off tomorrow. After we rescue Song Jiang, we'll split into several groups and return. We can't delay. Every day we delay increases our danger. We can't afford to lose more than we gain."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
After the meeting ended, Zhao Si, who was standing next to Wang Lun, stepped forward and said, "Chief, may I also go and broaden my horizons?"
Wang Lun laughed and said, "What are you saying? Where would I go without you? Without you, who would serve me tea and water, do my laundry, and make my bed?"
Zhao Si was overjoyed and eagerly poured Wang Lun another cup of water.
Wang Lun glanced outside; it was nearly dusk. He said, "Come on, follow me somewhere."