I am Emperor Shizu of Song

Chapter 21: The Liangshan Heroes Are Also Killed
"Brother Zhao, be careful! Another pirate ship is coming towards us! It seems they've discovered that Envoy Yang has no valuables on board!"

Murong Yan drew out her sword and kicked the body of a thief she had just stabbed to death off the side of the boat. Then she spoke to Zhao Zicheng with a little anxiety.

Zhao Zicheng also personally dealt with a thief, and then said nervously and eagerly:

"Don't be afraid. In such a chaotic battle, the thieves can't command in a unified manner. Even if they knew the treasure was on our ship, they would just fight on their own and attack one by one.

We just need to hold on tight, and get those clay pots filled with kerosene. It's time to give them a hard time."

Zhao Zicheng has been practicing martial arts for a month. Unlike the first time he killed someone in Shisheng's house twenty days ago, Zhao Zicheng's skills have obviously improved to a higher level.

I have to admit that Duan Yuyan, who plays the role of his master, is really a genius in teaching martial arts. No matter how good someone's own martial arts skills are, he is extremely efficient in teaching others.

Twenty days ago, Zhao Zicheng still had to rely on Yang Zhi to control the enemy, and then finish off the enemy and kill the passers-by.

Now he can easily deal with those ordinary thieves on his own.

It is not easy to make such progress in such a short time.

Just now, when Zhao Zicheng first met the enemy, he was not in a hurry to immediately take out the can of fierce fire oil that he had secretly prepared before the battle. That was not because he was deliberately hiding it to create difficulties for himself, but out of consideration for keeping a low profile -

At the time, the bandits were still besieging Yang Zhi, believing that the valuables were all on his large ship. If Zhao Zicheng had revealed himself too early, he would have used a large-scale weapon to deal with the scattered bandits. Although he could quickly burn down one or two small pirate ships, it would also immediately make the bandits realize that "this ship is particularly well-armed and may contain valuables."

But the situation is different now. Since a considerable number of the bandits have realized that the good stuff is not on Yang Zhi's ship and have begun to send reinforcements here one after another, he should immediately take drastic measures, seek rapid killing, and deter the enemy.

As a time traveler from later times, Zhao Zi said that he had a deep understanding of a certain diplomatic principle:

To keep a low profile and make some achievements, you must be low-key enough and able to keep a low profile.

When you can no longer hide, you should immediately transform from a state of panic to a state of fear and let the enemy see your muscles.

"Bang! Bang!"

As a pile of clay pots filled with thickener-added kerosene were ignited, the oil-soaked cloth strips at the mouths of the pots were thrown out with all their might.

The two or three pirate ships closest to Zhao Zicheng's ship immediately caught fire. However, Zhao Zicheng's own ship was not worried about being spread by the scattered kerosene because its deck and sides were covered with thick hemp ropes soaked in mud.

In an instant, dozens of pirates were caught off guard and trapped in a sea of ​​fire. Zhao Zi said that the pressure on this side was immediately reduced.

……

When Zhao Zicheng launched the fire attack by throwing incendiary canisters, "Haisha Gang Leader" Shi Sheng also happened to be personally commanding the boat to arrive at the battlefield.

When he saw the clay pot flying towards him, he had no time to react before his own boat was on fire.

"The officers and soldiers actually have kerosene? Damn it!" Shi Sheng felt a surge of blood and rage rising up in his heart.

However, he was a martial arts expert and a local tyrant. Otherwise, he would not have been able to act as an insider and offer Suzhou to Fang La in history.

Among the heroes of Water Margin, his martial arts skills are at least above average, probably at the bottom of Tiangang and above Disha.

Such a ruthless man would not give in easily, even in dire straits. Although the incendiary canisters threw his bandits into chaos, it only aroused his own ferocity. He gritted his teeth and swung out his hook, dragging Zhao Zicheng's boat along, then leaped over with all his might.

While Shi Shengren was still in mid-air, he felt a flash of sharp knife light coming towards him. He quickly threw away the hook rope in his hand and subconsciously used the sword at his waist, which he had not yet unsheathed, to block it.

The man struck his sword's leather sheath with a blow, severing it in half. Seeing this, Shi Sheng, too lazy to draw his sword, simply engaged the man directly, holding his sword, which was only half sheathed and had its blade exposed.

"Besides Yang Zhi, there are actually other masters?" After a few moves, Shi Sheng couldn't help but be secretly surprised.

It turned out that the one who attacked him was none other than Deng Yue, the steward of the Murong family. Seeing that even after the young master and Mr. Zhao had launched a fire attack, some bandits actually joined them, he bravely stepped forward to resist.

Deng Yue's talent was mediocre, but after all, he had been a steward in the Murong family for many years and had learned some martial arts. In terms of real ability, his martial arts were definitely not as good as Yang Zhi's, but he had the advantage of being a native of Jiangnan and having a much better swimming ability than Yang Zhi.

Therefore, in the battle on the river, Deng Yue's actual performance was even able to slightly surpass Yang Zhi.

But Shi Sheng was also a veteran pirate, a salt smuggler by trade. He was equally skilled in martial arts on the river, and if he were to fight Yang Zhi in single combat, the outcome would be uncertain. If the wind and waves were stronger, and the boat rocked a bit, Yang Zhi might be vulnerable to ambush.

Shi Sheng lost the initiative from the very beginning and was caught off guard by Deng Yue's sneak attack, which suppressed his momentum.

After a few moves, his own ship caught fire because he lacked comrades and reinforcements. The other thieves were in chaos and only a few were able to board and support him.

Soon, the other thieves who had previously boarded Zhao Zicheng's boat were dealt with by Zhao Zicheng, Murong Yan, and other Murong family servants, leaving Shi Sheng in a desperate situation of being outnumbered. Seeing the situation was dire, and Deng Yue slashing at him with a fierce knife, while Murong Yan and Zhao Zicheng were also waiting in the wings, Shi Sheng's years of survival experience gave him a sudden inspiration and he took a risky move.

He actually threw his knife towards Deng Yue with all his might. Deng Yue quickly turned his head to dodge and swung his knife back to block, but he also lost his vision for a short time.

Shi Sheng's weapon fell out of his hand and he had no strength to fight back, but he took advantage of the opponent's lack of vision and the loss of accuracy of his moves, and tried his best to pinch the back of the opponent's knife, trying to fight with his bare hands.

At the same time, he used his other hand to grab Deng Yue's neck, trying to strangle him.

In his haste, Deng Yue lost sight of Shi Sheng's position. He only felt the sound of a gust of wind, and instinctively danced his sword in a small area, trying to force the enemy away. However, Shi Sheng remained ruthless and continued to advance without retreat.

With a light "swish" sound, the knife flower danced by Deng Yue cut off two of Shi Sheng's fingers, but Shi Sheng was so brave that he gritted his teeth and continued to struggle to grab the knife, holding down the back of Deng Yue's knife tightly, and his other arm also went to strangle Deng Yue's neck.

Zhao Zicheng and Murong Yan, who were standing nearby, didn't dare to join the battle immediately because they were afraid of being accidentally injured by the flashing swords of the two men. They also wanted to find a flaw and then launch a sneak attack from the side to kill Shi Sheng.

Unexpectedly, the accident came so suddenly. Shi Sheng and Deng Yue were already fighting with each other. One of them dropped his knife, and the other knife was snatched away by the two men. No one held it tightly and dared not let go.

Seeing that the opportunity was rare, Zhao Zicheng quickly jumped behind Shi Sheng, wanting to take advantage of the opportunity when Shi Sheng and Deng Yue were both locked by each other to sneak attack and kill Shi Sheng.

Shi Sheng was a very experienced man in the martial arts world. He caught a glimpse of Zhao Zicheng trying to get behind him. He knew that his life was at stake, so he used all his strength to rush forward, and he and Deng Yue both fell over the side of the boat and into the river.

Falling into the river offered a glimmer of hope. But being stabbed in the back was a sure thing. Shi Sheng could still make sense of this.

Zhao Zicheng was about to find the right angle to stab with his sword, but he didn't expect the opponent to be so ruthless. He suddenly showed an attitude of dying together and rushing into the river. Zhao Zicheng wanted to take action again and again, but it was too late, and he couldn't help but feel regretful.

If only I had been bolder and more decisive just now.

Scholars who practice martial arts ultimately lack experience in the martial arts world. They only seek to play it safe and are not decisive enough.

"Brother Deng, will I be okay?" Zhao Zicheng couldn't bear it and asked Murong Yan beside him.

Murong Yan was also a little worried, but she knew Deng Yue's abilities better after all. After hesitating for just a second or two, she decisively comforted him: "Brother Deng is an excellent swimmer and he wasn't injured when he fell into the water. He'll be fine. We can just pull him out after the battle."

Zhao Zicheng thought about it and it made sense. Shi Sheng jumped into the river holding Deng Yue, more for self-preservation and survival. Shi Sheng's injuries were more serious when he fell into the water, and he should not have been able to kill Deng Yue underwater.

However, in this way, the strongest fighting forces of both sides were temporarily destroyed and retreated. Zhao Zicheng said that on the boat, he could only rely on himself, Murong Yan, and a group of servants to continue to hold on.

Fortunately, Shi Sheng's fall into the river dealt a heavy blow to the morale of the pirates. In addition, several pirate ships were burned by Zhao Zicheng with kerosene tanks, and the remaining pirates did not dare to move forward together for a while.

In other corners of the battlefield, as Zhao Zicheng stopped hiding his strength and smashed the kerosene tanks, Yang Zhi also stopped hiding and started using kerosene tanks to attack with fire, burning several pirate ships that came over. The entire battlefield situation finally tilted towards the government army.

……

"Brother Zhang, let's go. These government troops don't seem like ordinary trash soldiers. Shi Sheng deceived us. There's no need to get involved in this mess with him anymore!"

On the river surface dozens of feet away from Zhao Zicheng's boat, there were several small boats of local Yangtze River pirates, which were originally approaching this side.

These people were hired locally by Shi Sheng and Lu Xing'er at a high price. They were not as familiar with the situation as the Taihu pirates and their reactions were slow, so they only arrived at the battlefield on Zhao Zicheng's side after Shi Sheng fell into the river.

These people are not all professional desperadoes. Some are ordinary salt smugglers, while others are private traders who usually sell vegetables and also transport some private salt or other contraband when they have the chance. They are both businessmen and thieves.

Seeing that no one knew whether Shi was alive or dead, some of those who were usually less notorious and more cautious began to back off and wanted to persuade their companions to stop.

But not everyone is cautious. Some people are usually more radical and adventurous. Seeing that there is such a huge amount of wealth this time, and the strongest combat force on the enemy ship seems to have died together with Gang Leader Shi, how can they not take advantage of such a good opportunity?
It's worth it even if it costs my life!

"Li Jun, if you're a coward, don't come! I'll kill the remaining kids on the boat, and then you don't have to be jealous and come to share the gold!"

The man called Li Jun was also a little angry when he was accused like this. He immediately retorted: "Zhang Heng! I call you Brother Zhang to give you face! I'm not afraid, I just think there's something else going on. We have all been deceived and used by Shi Sheng. Why should we risk our lives for his personal grudge?"

After Zhang Heng finished speaking, he personally rowed his boat towards Zhao Zicheng's boat, wanting to take the opportunity to snatch the head.

-

PS: According to "Water Margin", Li Jun was from Luzhou, which is Hefei, and it is said that he made a living in the Yangtze River all year round.

The current plot in the book is far from the time when Song Jiang was exiled to Jiangzhou. I set up Li Jun, Zhang Heng and other private salt dealers and merchants on the Yangtze River not to travel from Anhui to Jiangxi yet, but to come to Nanjing from Anhui to seek work, which is reasonable.

The main reason is that I don’t want to design the local thieves of the Yangtze River anymore.

(End of this chapter)