novelSusiti Chapter 138 Song Jiang's Three Letters
Chapter 138 Song Jiang's Three Letters
Although Li Kui was tall and burly, he wasn't a very good drinker.
After walking back with Song Jiang and being exposed to some wind, he felt a little drunk and his head was spinning.
He and Song Jiang lived together in a small courtyard arranged by Wang Lun. There were only three rooms in the courtyard, two of which were occupied by him and Song Jiang, with the remaining room being a kitchen.
The two returned to the house. Li Kui fell asleep immediately, but Song Jiang couldn't sleep all night. He tossed and turned and couldn't fall asleep. Finally, he got up and picked up his pen to write a letter.
At dawn, Shi Qian, like a monkey, leaped across the wall a few times and landed in Wang Lun's courtyard.
Although he was fast asleep at that moment, as soon as he appeared, about ten people immediately emerged and surrounded him.
They were all Wang Lun's personal guards, and every night they arranged for people to protect Wang Lun outside his house.
Shi Qian quickly laughed and said, "It's me, it's me. I'm used to climbing over walls, I didn't expect to have to use the main gate."
The leading young soldier stepped forward, looked at Shi Qian suspiciously, and asked, "What are you doing here?"
Shi Qian looked at the man and said happily, "Oh, don't you recognize me? I'm Shi Qian. What's your name again? I know you're Instructor Lin's disciple."
The young soldier said, "That's right, I am Zhao Ping'an, the second disciple of Instructor Lin. I am now serving as the chieftain's personal bodyguard on my master's orders. I know you are Chief Shi Qian, but I cannot enter without permission."
Zhao Ping'an was originally a commoner recruited by Wang Lun to come to the mountain. Because he was smart, Wang Lun decided to let him become Lin Chong's disciple. He practiced martial arts very hard and had always followed Lin Chong. This time, when Lin Chong went to war, he left him by Wang Lun's side as a personal bodyguard.
"Then please inform him that I have important business to attend to." Shi Qian had no choice but to back down; this young man didn't seem like someone to be trifled with.
After thinking for a moment, Zhao Ping'an said, "Wait a moment," and then whispered in front of Wang Lun's door, "Shi Qian requests an audience with the chieftain."
Wang Lun's house was divided into two rooms, an outer room and an inner room. Zhao Si lived in the outer room.
Upon hearing Zhao Ping'an's words, Zhao Si got up, only to see that Wang Lun had also gotten up. Wang Lun gave Zhao Si a wink, signaling for Shi Qian to come in.
Only after receiving the order did Zhao Ping'an allow them to pass.
Shi Qian clicked his tongue in admiration and said, "With a guard like you, even the strongest expert wouldn't be able to harm the chieftain in the slightest."
Wang Lun smiled and said, "Ping An is following his master's orders, so naturally he has to be more serious."
Shi Qian laughed along, and seeing Zhao Si guarding the door, he whispered, "Last night, Song Jiang hosted a banquet for the four leaders, Hua Rong, Dai Zong, Pang Wanchun, and Li Kui, at Cuiyue Tower. I hid on the wall and only saw them talking, but I didn't dare to go closer to eavesdrop."
Wang Lun nodded and said, "That's right. Hua Rong and Pang Wanchun are both experts with excellent hearing and archery skills. If they find out you're eavesdropping, they might just shoot you dead with an arrow."
Shi Qian nodded and said, "Afterwards, the group parted ways, and I followed Song Jiang back to his residence. I found that he did not rest immediately, but instead wrote three letters and sent them to the three men respectively."
He pulled the letter out of his pocket; it was still covered in blood, which was not yet dry.
"I have already killed the messenger."
Shi Qian spoke casually, adding, "Don't worry, Chief, the three messengers are not Liangshan soldiers, but people Song Jiang has become acquainted with in the city these days."
Wang Lun received the letters, only to find one addressed to Chao Gai, one to Xue Yong, and one to Qin Ming.
His face immediately changed color; he could roughly guess what the letter contained without even reading it.
Song Jiang had risked his life to deliver a message to Chao Gai in order to save him, so Chao Gai owed Song Jiang his life. He would agree to do anything the letter asked him to do.
Xue Yong admired Song Jiang even more, and was willing to die with Song Jiang when they were in Jiangzhou. Now Xue Yong and Hou Jian are in Guan Sheng's army.
Qin Ming is Hua Rong's brother-in-law. Back in Qingfeng Village, it was Song Jiang who persuaded Qin Ming to join the outlaws. Although Qin Ming is now highly regarded by Wang Lun and leads a large army, Song Jiang's letter is bound to unsettle Qin Ming.
Wang Lun opened the letter and quickly glanced at it, his face expressionless. After reading all three letters, he folded the letter and said, "You've worked hard. He will be going to the farmland during the day, so you don't need to keep an eye on him. Go and rest first, and you can continue when he returns at night."
Shi Qian was ordered to step down.
Just as Wang Lun had predicted, after Song Jiang sobered up during the day, he took Li Kui out to inspect the land reclamation affairs again, just like before, without any change.
But when he returned from his inspection in the evening, he found that the soldiers at the city gate had been replaced and were all unfamiliar faces.
Song Jiang felt a little uneasy, but he still greeted them with a smile as usual.
After greeting them, the soldiers remained unmoved, as if they were made of clay.
Just as he was wondering, he saw a man strode down from the city wall, carrying a long spear, wearing armor, and exuding heroic spirit. It was Hu Cheng.
Song Jiang was a little puzzled. He remembered that Huang Xin should be on duty these days. He stepped forward, clasped his hands, and said, "General Hu, I didn't expect it to be you guarding the city today."
Hu Cheng laughed and said, "Yes, it was originally Brother Huang Xin's turn today, but he suddenly had a stomachache, so it was my turn instead."
Song Jiang remained expressionless, turned to look at the soldiers at the door, and asked, "What about these soldiers?"
Hu Cheng laughed and said, "Haha, what Yang Xianfeng meant was that the city gate guards are very likely to collude with bandits, so they should be rotated from time to time. And today is the day we rotated them."
Yang Zhi was one of the few people who did not accept Song Jiang's invitation to the banquet. When Song Jiang heard that it was Yang Zhi's idea, he knew that this man was always unyielding and only loyal to Wang Lun, so he did not say anything more. He exchanged a few polite words with Hu Cheng and then entered the city.
After entering the city, they turned two corners, but instead of returning to their own rooms, they led Li Kui through a small alley.
Li Kui asked curiously, "Brother, where are we going?"
Song Jiang said, "Didn't you hear what Hu Cheng said? Huang Xin has a stomachache. He's my brother, so I should go and see him."
If Huang Xin really did have a stomachache, that would be fine. But if Hu Cheng was lying, then it meant he was in danger and had to leave quickly.
He took Li Kui to Huang Xin's residence.
Huang Xin was the Right Vanguard of the First Route Army, holding a high-ranking position. Therefore, Wang Lun specially arranged a residence for him, and his house alone was equivalent to the courtyards of Song Jiang and Li Kui.
After Huang Xin's trusted subordinates reported to him, Song Jiang finally met Huang Xin, only to find him indeed pale-faced, weak, and slumped in a recliner, saying weakly, "Brother, please forgive me. I don't know what's wrong with me, but I have been having diarrhea. Even the medicine from Doctor An hasn't helped. Now I feel so weak that I can't get up to pay my respects."
Seeing that Huang Xin was indeed suffering from a stomachache, Song Jiang was secretly pleased and said, "We are brothers, there's no need for such formalities. Since Brother Huang has diarrhea, he should rest well. However, I remember that it was your turn to be on duty at the city wall today, but I don't know who you replaced?"
He always harbored suspicions about Hu Cheng.
Huang Xin said, "I've asked Brother Hu Cheng to take my place. If I'm still too weak tomorrow, I'll probably have to ask him to take my place again."
Song Jiang was relieved. He chatted with Huang Xin for a few minutes, told him to rest well, and then left.
Huang Xin joined the outlaws with Qin Ming after being persuaded by Song Jiang at Qingfeng Village. In fact, he and Song Jiang were quite close. Now Huang Xin is the Right Vanguard, second only to Yang Zhi in rank among the troops, and he also has his own soldiers.
In Jizhou City, Song Jiang's most trusted brothers are now Hua Rong and Huang Xin.