Water Margin: From a White-Robed Scholar to Donning the Yellow Robe

Chapter 73 Water Margin Guan Yu 2

Liangshan Marsh once again defeated the imperial army, capturing four thousand soldiers with almost no casualties and defeating Huyan Zhuo.

Wu Yong wrote this news again in the "Jianghu Daily," and it soon spread throughout the land. Local governments and bandits alike quickly learned of it.

The image of Wang Lun, the white-robed scholar from Liangshan, suddenly became much more impressive. Some people in the martial arts world even began to circulate the poems written by Wang Lun, such as "The moon in the sky is the most pitiful, one night it is like a ring, every night it becomes a jade pendant." Talented men and beautiful women alike applauded and praised him.

Wang Lun's poetic talent and military prowess were hailed by some as unparalleled in the world.

Inside the Tokyo palace, two people fell silent.

One was the Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty, Emperor Daojun Zhao Ji, who was deep in thought as he looked at the "Jianghu Daily" in his hand.

A beautiful young woman sitting opposite him, unable to hide her joy, remained silent.

The father and daughter sat in silence.

"Her hair disheveled and tangled in the wind, her arrival is always unpredictable. Leaning wearily against the magnolia tree, I gaze at the halo around the moon, her soft whispers drawing near with its fragrance. A gentle breeze rustles through the window screen, and my heart's longing is suddenly separated by the ends of the earth. From now on, I grieve for spring and parting, and at dusk I only face the pear blossoms."

Emperor Huizong recited aloud, saying, "Adding to that previous poem, 'One Night Like a Ring, Every Night Turns into Jade,' Wang Lun is indeed a talented poet."

He looked at Zhao Yupan across from him, and the joy on Zhao Yupan's face immediately disappeared. After all, the imperial court had been defeated, and according to common sense, she should not be happy.

"My son went to Jizhou with Huyan Zhuo and met Wang Lun?"

Emperor Huizong was somewhat angry that a royal princess would associate with a bandit.

Zhao Yupan lowered his head: "Yes."

"The highly talented person you mentioned before, is that him?"

"Um."

After a long pause, Zhao Yupan mustered his courage: "Father, he can write such excellent poems, comparable to the late Su Shi. He can also subdue a group of generals, easily conquering Jizhou and defeating Huyan Zhuo. With such talent in both literature and martial arts, isn't he a great genius?"

Zhao Ji nodded and said, "His poems are good, but they can't compare to those of Su Shi. You don't need to praise him to the skies. As for Wu Yao, it seems he does have some strategic acumen."

He looked at Zhao Yupan and said, "I can't control whether you know him or not, but you should be mindful of your status and not get too close to him."

Zhao Yupan's heart skipped a beat, but she didn't dare tell Zhao Ji about her relationship with Wang Lun, and only gave a faint "hmm".

Emperor Huizong sighed, "Let's see. If he is truly a man of both literary and military talent, I will disregard past grievances and give him an important position, and I will not allow you to be branded with the stigma of associating with bandits."

Zhao Yupan was delighted: "I thank Father Emperor on behalf of Wang Lun. Then, I wonder how Father Emperor intends to test him?"

"Zhang Shuye wrote to Grand Commandant Gao for reinforcements, and the imperial report has also arrived. After thinking it over, I have decided to grant Zhang Shuye and Huyan Zhuo's request and send another 15,000 troops, led by Guan Sheng, the patrol inspector of Pudong, to support Jizhou. I also grant Ling Zhen, the armory officer, permission to bring all the cannons with him and accompany the army."

Zhao Yupan frowned slightly, but wasn't too worried.

"If he can defeat Huyan Zhuo and Guan Sheng again, it will at least prove that he can hold a military position in the court." Zhao Ji did not hide anything and directly stated his intentions.

The Song Dynasty valued civil officials over military ones. Although Emperor Huizong only promised to give Wang Lun a military post, Zhao Yupan was already very happy.

After chatting for a while longer, Zhao Yupan left.

She met up with Qin He, the guard who was waiting outside, and asked, "Who is Guan Sheng, and how skilled is he in martial arts?"

Qin He said, "Legend has it that Guan Sheng is a descendant of Guan Yu from the Three Kingdoms period. His appearance does indeed resemble that of the legendary Guan Yu. He also wields the Green Dragon Crescent Blade. He is highly skilled in martial arts, especially adept at charging into battle among soldiers, possessing the courage of ten thousand men."

Zhao Yupan asked with some concern, "Can Wang Lun's men defeat him?"

Qin He thought for a moment and said, "In my opinion, although Guan Sheng is strong, he is still no match for Wang Lun's men. Lin Chong, Yang Zhi, and Qin Ming are all experts in mounted combat."

Zhao Yupan sighed, "They are so capable, yet they cannot serve the court. Instead, they follow Wang Lun in rebellion. This shows that our Song Dynasty government is indeed rotten."

Qin He stopped talking. He was also forced into becoming a bandit king, so he naturally knew that the court was corrupt.

People become outlaws and occupy mountains as kings because they are forced to do so by the necessities of life. If the court were not corrupt, why would they need to become outlaws?

"I'll write a letter, and you can send someone to deliver it to Wang Lun." Zhao Yupan wanted to tell Wang Lun about Guan Sheng's upcoming military expedition as soon as possible so that he could make preparations.

"Yes."

Five days after Zhao Yupan's letter was delivered to Jizhou, Guan Sheng's army arrived.

The 15,000 soldiers were even more imposing, and Guan Sheng, carrying the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, was exceptionally handsome and awe-inspiring.

The troops entered Huyan Zhuo's camp, and Zhang Shuye and Huyan Zhuo warmly welcomed Guan Sheng and Ling Zhen.

Besides the two, there was another person, Hao Siwen, Guan Sheng's sworn brother. He held no official position and always lived in Guan Sheng's mansion, where he helped train soldiers and do other chores.

Unlike Guan Sheng, who was skilled in wielding the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, Hao Siwen was proficient in all eighteen weapons.

When Hu Yanzhuo heard that Hao Siwen was highly skilled in martial arts and saw that he was indeed not an ordinary person, he was overjoyed.

The people currently in the council are Zhang Shuye, Huyan Zhuo, Guan Sheng, Han Tao, Peng Qi, Ling Zhen, and Hao Siwen. Apart from Zhang Shuye, there are six military officers.

First, Huyan Zhuo recounted in detail the defeat he suffered at the hands of the Liangshan Flying Tiger Army, leaving the other generals looking at each other in bewilderment. One reason for Huyan Zhuo's defeat was that he underestimated the enemy and fell into their trap, being lured into a valley.

Another reason is that Wang Lun was indeed a good commander, and his generals were all powerful, including the Thunderclap Bomb and the Divine Arm Bow.

Ling Zhen's nickname is "Thunderbolt". Unexpectedly, Liangshan also has Thunderbolt. They immediately want to "make friends through thunder".

As they were discussing this, someone handed them a letter from outside the door. The envelope was sealed with wax and showed no signs of having been opened.

Zhang Shuye was overjoyed. He opened the letter and read it carefully. His face lit up with even more delight. He slammed his hand on the table and exclaimed, "The great undertaking is about to succeed!"

The generals all asked questions, and Zhang Shuye laughed and said, "Wang Lun sent someone to deliver medicine to General Huyan, trying to curry favor. Humph, but bandits are bandits. I bribed the messenger with two ingots of gold. This is his letter."

The group then passed the letter around and saw that it said Liangshan had several thunderbolts, several divine crossbows, and countless arrows. They were all astonished, never expecting that Liangshan had grown so powerful.

It also describes how Wang Lun trusted Chao Gai greatly, handing over the city of Yuncheng to Chao Gai after its capture, but failing to reward Yang Zhi, the meritorious official who conquered Jizhou, in any way.

The main reason Yang Zhi became an outlaw was because Chao Gai robbed the birthday gifts, so Yang Zhi already harbored hatred for Chao Gai. Now that Wang Lun was biased towards Chao Gai, Yang Zhi was even more unhappy. The other day, after getting drunk, he cursed Wang Lun.

The generals immediately understood: if they were Yang Zhi, they would also be dissatisfied with Wang Lun and Chao Gai.

Huyan Zhuo recalled Yang Zhi's martial arts skills and sighed, "Yang Zhi has truly mastered the Yang family spear technique; his martial arts are superb. If only..."

Zhang Shuye nodded and said, "That's why I said the great thing is about to be accomplished."

Guan Sheng cautioned, "But we must also be wary that this might be Wang Lun deliberately having Yang Zhi use a self-inflicted injury ruse."

Zhang Shuye nodded: "General Guan is meticulous and cautious, which is also what I was worried about."