Water Margin: The opening scene involves assassinating Emperor Huizong of Song and forcibly taking L

Even that tomboy disguised as a boy from earlier was charming and beautiful.

In terms of looks, the two women are not much different.

Gao Kan, yearning for the bliss of having multiple wives, abandoned all pretense of decency and began to act like a rogue.

"Grandmaster, you may not know this, but your grand-disciple was originally a rogue and scoundrel. Isn't he and this ill-mannered country girl a match made in heaven?"

"you......"

Chen Xizhen laughed in extreme anger.

Upon seeing this, Gao Kan immediately climbed any pole and tree he could find.

"Since Grandmaster has laughed, it seems he agrees to let his grand-disciple become your son-in-law and nephew-in-law?"

The surrounding imperial guards immediately offered their congratulations in unison.

"Congratulations to the Grand Commandant on your marriage!"

"Hehe, since this Grand Commandant is getting married today, you will all receive your share of the benefits,"

Gao Kan laughed heartily and said, "Sun Gao, Xue Bao, when you get back, give each of these brothers a reward!"

"Yes!"

Sun Gao and Xue Bao held each other's arms.

Although in their hearts they wished they could tear the girl who beat them to pieces,

But seeing that this young woman was about to become the wife of the Grand Commandant...

The two could only grit their teeth and swallow their anger, forcing smiles to congratulate Gao Kan.

"By the way, Father-in-law, where are my two fiancées now?"

Gao Kan pressed his advantage, saying, "My son-in-law's Grand Commandant's mansion is waiting for them to return for their wedding."

Only now did Chen Xizhen realize that he had underestimated this high hurdle.

When it comes to the thickness of one's skin,

This fellow is even more outstanding than his godfather, Gao Qiu!

"Father-in-law, why aren't you saying anything?"

Gao Kan waved his hand, and a group of imperial guards immediately stepped forward and surrounded Chen Xizhen.

"Should I personally send someone to welcome my two beloved wives?"

Upon hearing these threatening words, Chen Xizhen immediately felt a sense of foreboding.

For him, it was certainly not the right to push his daughter and niece into a fire pit.

If they could flee Bianliang now, they might be able to avoid this calamity.

But when I thought of what those immortals and Taoist priests at Yuxian Temple had said...

In another ten days or so, I will be able to successfully cultivate my Five Thunder Seal Technique.

If all our previous efforts are wasted because of mundane matters, wouldn't that be a pity?

Thinking about cultivation, Chen Xizhen immediately had a plan in mind.

"It is my honor that you, Grand Commandant, are willing to marry my daughter and niece. I am naturally pleased to agree."

"But there are certain rules for weddings and funerals. I was once the teacher of the Grand Commandant's godfather. Even if the Grand Commandant doesn't care about my face, he should at least consider the face of your deceased godfather. Now, without even a matchmaker, the Grand Commandant wants to force my daughter to marry him. If this gets out, won't we be ridiculed by the whole world?"

Hearing this scruffy old Taoist priest mention Gao Qiu again,

Even though Gao Kan was displeased, he could only reluctantly nod in agreement to publish it.

"Father-in-law is right, I will go find a matchmaker to propose marriage right away!"

“Besides the matchmaker, the three letters and six rites are also indispensable,” Chen Xizhen hurriedly said.

"Father-in-law, rest assured, I will do whatever you say!"

Gao Kan chuckled and summoned the Imperial Guard captain to his side.

"One group of you will take good care of my father-in-law, and the other group will go to his house to keep watch and keep an eye on those two young ladies, making sure they don't wander off!"

Chapter 259 Guo Ying Sells Horses

When Zhao Yuan and Jiao Ting returned to the passenger ship at the dock,

The others haven't returned yet.

The two then found some food and drinks in the passenger ship's kitchen.

They sat on the deck, drinking and chatting.

"I wonder if Brother Sun An has arrived yet,"

As Jiao Ting spoke, he picked up the wine jar and filled both of their wine bowls with wine.

There were two groups of people who set off from Liangshan this time.

In order to save time, Zhao Yuan and his men traveled by water.

Sun An, on the other hand, led two hundred cavalrymen disguised as merchants, traveling by land.

Their destination was not Bianliang (Kaifeng), but Chenqiao Town, northeast of Bianliang.

This Chenqiao Town is the same Chenqiao Post Station where Zhao Kuangyin's Chenqiao Mutiny took place.

Since Zhao Kuangyin's successful coup,

Chenqiao Post Station also prospered and gradually became a bustling market town.

Officials, nobles, envoys from the Song and Liao dynasties, merchants, soldiers, and other travelers came and went in an endless stream.

Chenqiao Town is located on the north bank of the Yellow River, facing Kaifeng across the mighty river. Ferry crossings are located on both banks.

After Sun An and his group arrived in Chenqiao Town, they would stay there and wait for Zhao Yuan's orders.

“Brother Sun An and his group will take at least three to five days longer than us by land,”

As Zhao Yuan spoke, he picked up his wine bowl and drank it all in one gulp.

"I hope that the rescue of Brother Xu by 180 will go as smoothly as the lucky draw we drew today."

"Don't worry, brother, I also drew a very auspicious fortune stick."

Jiao Ting wiped the wine from his lips and said with a smile,

"It's just that Miss Liu is unlucky; for some reason, she drew the worst possible lot."

The two chatted idly, and before long, more than half of the jar of fine wine had been drunk.

Just then, Zhao Yuan suddenly heard the clatter of horses' hooves.

Looking up, I saw a chestnut-colored horse galloping towards the dock.

"This red horse is truly magnificent; look at its galloping momentum, it's no less impressive than my brother's Jade Lion."

Just as Jiao Ting finished his sigh, he suddenly wiped his eyes, quickly stood up, and looked towards the direction of the red horse.

"Brother, that red horse looks like Brother Zhang Shun!"

"Zhang Shun?"

Zhao Yuan frowned: "Why is it that only he came back? Where are the others? Could it be that Li Kui, that dark-skinned bastard, caused trouble again?"

......

As the saying goes, good things don't work, but bad things do.

Zhang Shun, riding a chestnut horse, arrived at the dock.

Without even boarding the boat, he shouted loudly, "Brother, something terrible has happened! Tie Niu is in trouble!"

Zhao Yuan and Jiao Ting hurriedly jumped off the passenger ship.

"what happened?"

"Brother, this is what happened..."

Zhang Shun briefly recounted what had happened.

It turns out that after separating from Zhao Yuan and the others in Bianliang City,

Zhang Shun, Ruan Xiaowu, Ruan Xiaoqi, and Li Kui then strolled along the street.

These four men were all from rural backgrounds and this was the first time they had ever seen a magnificent city like Bianliang.

Everything he saw seemed new and interesting.

The four of them walked all the way to Beigu Bridge.

But there sat a sickly-looking man at the door, leading a chestnut horse and hawking his wares.

Of these four, Zhang Shun, Ruan Xiao Wu, and Ruan Xiao Qi were all naval commanders, while Li Kui was an infantryman.

Although he learned to ride horses at Liangshan, he knew nothing about judging horses.

But this chestnut horse was truly magnificent.

Even someone who doesn't know anything about judging horses would just think they're good.

Ruan Xiaowu thought of Liangshan now, though he passed through the horse market at Yinmachuan...

Every two or three months, they can acquire quite a few horses.

However, most of them were just ordinary military horses.

The only horse that could truly be called a divine steed was the Jade Lion that Duan Jingzhu presented to Zhao Yuan.

This chestnut horse looks truly majestic now; if it were presented to Zhao Yuan,

It would be perfect to pair it with the Jade Lion that shines in the night.

Thinking of this, Ruan Xiaowu stopped in her tracks.

Ask the man selling horses about the chestnut horse.

　(bica) This man was clearly very ill. Faced with Ruan Xiaowu's questioning,

He was about to answer when he suddenly coughed violently.

Hearing the commotion, someone in the courtyard quickly came out.

But it was a young woman.

She patted the man's back lightly while complaining.

"Husband, you're so ill, why did you go out into the wind again?"

"We're broke at home, so I'm thinking of selling this 'Cloud Piercing Lightning' to get some money. If it can save my life, that would be wonderful."

The man sighed with a sorrowful expression, "If this is truly my fate, then after I die, I will at least leave you some money."

"My husband..." The woman's eyes immediately reddened.

The man then looked at Ruan Xiaowu and said...

“My brave man, I am an instructor of the Imperial Guard. This horse was my beloved horse, but due to poverty and illness, I urgently needed money and had no choice but to sell it.”

"I originally bought this horse from the north. Because it runs extremely fast, I named it 'Lightning Through the Clouds'."

"I spent a hundred strings of cash to buy this horse back then. If you want to buy a horse, you must not spend less than that amount."

"When did Fifth Brother develop a liking for horses?"

Seeing her brother examining the maroon horse closely, Ruan Xiaoqi couldn't help but laugh.

"Fifth Brother, do you perhaps want to leave our navy and go try your luck with the cavalry?"

"Stop talking nonsense!"

Ruan Xiaowu glared at his brother: "I just thought this horse was very handsome. If I presented it to Brother Zhao, it would be a perfect match for the Jade Lion Shining at Night."

Upon hearing that it was to be given to Zhao Yuan,

Zhang Shun and Ruan Xiaoqi then put aside their joking thoughts and helped him watch the horses.

Although the three men were not experts in judging horses, they grew to like the chestnut horse more and more the more they looked at it.

"That Qiongying girl loves fine horses. After her brother's Jade Lion came up the mountain, she rode it for nine out of ten days."