xymnovel Chapter 91 Shi Qian Displays His Skills
Chapter 91 Shi Qian Displays His Skills
The leaders of the Liangshan Flying Tiger Army, summoned by Wang Lun, were intensely discussing how to attack the Zhu Family Village.
The people from Zhu Family Village were not idle. At this moment, Zhu Chaofeng, Zhu Jialong, Hu Biao, and Luan Tingyu were also sitting together discussing.
Luan Tingyu suffered an injury to his lower abdomen. Although he applied medicine, he was still in some discomfort and felt listless.
"Teacher Luan, if you are not feeling well, you should go back and rest." Zhu Chaofeng glanced at Luan Tingyu, feeling somewhat displeased.
Luan Tingyu had been in Zhu Family Village for quite some time, and he and Zhu Chaofeng were as close as brothers. He also took the lead in designing the complex winding road, renovating the city walls, and teaching his three sons martial arts. He made invaluable contributions to Zhu Family Village.
But today, the seemingly invincible Luan Tingyu actually lost to Lin Chong, which made Zhu Chaofeng somewhat unhappy.
Luan Tingyu glanced at Zhu Chaofeng without showing any emotion, then shook his head and said, "It's nothing."
Zhu Long shouted, "The Hu Family Village actually dared to surrender to Liangshan! It's truly hateful! Once the siege of Liangshan is lifted, I will lead men to raid the Hu Family Village."
He glanced at Zhu Biao and said, "Sanlang, don't worry, I will take Hu Sanniang and give her to you."
Zhu Biao remained silent.
Zhu Chaofeng said, "With Hu Cheng in our hands, Master Hu will be hesitant to act rashly. It's good enough if he doesn't help Liangshan. We can deal with the rest later."
Everyone nodded.
"It's a pity that Li Ying was also injured in Sanlang's sneak attack, which created a grudge between them, so he probably won't send anyone to help."
Zhu Hu glanced at Zhu Biao, somewhat displeased, and said, "Sanlang didn't know his limits back then either."
Zhu Biao retorted angrily, "You're only saying this now? Why did we capture Shi Qian and refuse to release him back then? Wasn't it because we weren't afraid of Liangshan and wanted to compete with them? Now that they've come knocking on our door, are we scared?"
Since everyone was taken aback, Zhu Biao was right. The Zhu Family Village did indeed harbor ambitions to rival Liangshan. Especially after the government troops attacked Liangshan a few days ago, the Zhu Family Village had considered sending troops to cut off Liangshan's rear several times, but had never mustered the courage.
"We've come this far, everyone should be focused on fighting the enemy, what's all the fuss about?"
Zhu Chaofeng was having a bit of a headache; having too many sons meant they would inevitably quarrel.
When he gets older, he will leave this family business to his eldest son, Zhu Long. Zhu Biao, who is the most skilled in martial arts, will definitely be dissatisfied, and Zhu Hu, who has a fiery temper, will also be dissatisfied. That's when things will get chaotic.
He sighed softly and said, "Teacher Luan, what's your idea?"
Luan Tingyu could only slightly bow and say, "Now that a powerful enemy is attacking, and we only have two allies, Hu and Li, both of whom are facing problems, we may not be able to defeat them on our own. In my opinion, we should do three things immediately."
The four members of the Zhu family, father and sons, all looked at him. They knew that this Luan Tingyu was not only highly skilled in martial arts, but also very knowledgeable.
"The first thing is for the manor lord to write a letter to both Manor Lords Hu and Li, explaining the stakes. Our three families have long been allied, and as the saying goes, 'if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold,' none of us can afford to be harmed. We should unite against external threats. Perhaps this letter won't be effective, but it's still necessary to do it."
Zhu Chaofeng agreed, saying that it was indeed necessary to have a proper talk with the two manor lords, Hu and Li, as their support would greatly help in dealing with Liangshan.
"The second thing is to immediately send people to sell the properties of the Zhu Family Village in Yuncheng and Yanggu, buy all the grain, and transport it back by water as soon as possible to prepare for a long war."
The Zhu Family Manor, being such a large estate, naturally couldn't rely solely on robbery; it also had its own businesses, such as restaurants, pawnshops, and inns, which it operated in the nearby counties.
Upon hearing this, Zhu Long was somewhat displeased and said, "Our stored grain is enough to last for two or three months. Are you saying we can't defeat Liangshan in two or three months?"
Zhu Biao nodded and said, "I think Teacher Luan is right. Just in case, if the Zhu Family Village runs out of food, we will collapse on our own."
Zhu Chaofeng nodded in agreement and asked, "And the third thing?"
"Recruit soldiers from among the villagers, the more the better. Increase patrols within the village and also increase guards on the city walls to prevent Liangshan leaders from infiltrating."
After Luan Tingyu finished speaking, Zhu Hu sneered, "Teacher Luan is joking. You designed this winding path, and only our people know how to navigate it. So what if the Liangshan bandits have infiltrated? Does anyone expect them to show the way?"
Luan Tingyu sighed inwardly. These four men, father and sons, were hardly outstanding individuals; they showed no sense of urgency even as disaster loomed.
Zhu Chaofeng also laughed and said, "Strengthening the city wall is indeed true, but recruiting people to patrol the village is a no-go. This Pantuo Road is so complicated, how can the Liangshan bandits do anything about it?"
Luan Tingyu could only remain silent.
"Alright, do the first two things immediately. Erlang, personally send people to sell off properties in various places and exchange them for grain to be transported in. Be quick and discreet, and don't let the Liangshan bandits find out."
As the head of the manor, Zhu Chaofeng began to summarize, "Eldest son, you are in charge of patrolling the manor. Although there is no need to recruit people, it is still necessary to strengthen patrols. Third son, you are in charge of guarding the city walls. Once the Liangshan troops attack the city, you must immediately send a message and never go out of the city to fight without authorization."
All three sons clasped their hands in agreement.
The meeting ended, and Luan Tingyu returned to his room alone. The maid sent by Zhu Chaofeng to serve him went up to change his dressing, only to find that his lower abdomen was covered in black marks. Lin Chong's attack had seriously injured him.
The maid immediately burst into tears: "How could you be so badly injured?"
Luan Tingyu reached out and stroked her hair, saying softly, "It's nothing, you'll be fine after a few days of rest."
As the maid changed his bandages, she whispered, "Are those Liangshan bandits very powerful?"
Luan Tingyu sighed softly and said, "I didn't think it was that powerful before, but since last year, it seems that Wang Lun of Liangshan has become a different person, which has made Liangshan grow rapidly and become very strong. Most of his leaders are also highly skilled in martial arts."
"So... do we have a chance of winning?"
"Don't be afraid." Luan Tingyu gently stroked the maid's cheek. "Even if we can't win, I will protect you and help you leave. Then we can roam the world freely. Wouldn't that be even more liberating?"
The maid nestled gently in Luan Tingyu's arms, feeling completely at ease.
It was late at night, and the two were already fast asleep.
In his sleep, he suddenly heard a loud "bang". Luan Tingyu sprang up from the bed and immediately grabbed the iron bar at the head of the bed.
Then there was a loud "bang," and the ground seemed to shake.
Looking out the window, flames soared into the sky in the distance, and countless people screamed and fled.
The maid woke with a start and cried out, "What's wrong?"
Luan Tingyu's face darkened: "You stay in the room, I'll go check on things."
He casually put on some clothes, picked up an iron bar, and strode out the door. He saw a chaotic scene of people running around in all directions, and the place with the firelight was the granary.
Luan Tingyu swayed, realizing something was wrong, and quickly ran over.
Upon reaching the vicinity, they saw that the granary had been blasted to the ground, with flames shooting into the sky. The grain stored in Zhujiazhuang had been reduced to ashes, and nearby houses were also ablaze.
Zhu Long then rushed over with his men, repeatedly asking, "What happened?"
But then a sneer came from a distant wall and disappeared in a flash.
Zhu Long shouted, "Where did this monkey come from?"
Luan Tingyu took a deep breath, suppressing his anger, and said, "That is Shi Qian, the Drum-Beating Flea."
Zhu Long was shocked: "It's that thief! Chase after him!"
He led his men to chase after Shi Qian, but there was no sign of him anywhere.