Reborn in Liangshan: I built the strongest lineup

"Your father?"

Wang Qing was somewhat surprised. He straightened Tong Jiaoxiu in his arms and then looked at her directly.

"You mean, Tong Guan?"

“That’s right, Brother Qing, look at these people. They’re all ignoring you now. If this continues, you’ll have no say in Huaixi.”

Tong Jiaoxiu stretched out her finger and drew circles on Wang Qing's chest.

"Moreover, Huaixi is not a legitimate territory after all. Although Brother Qing is the King of Chu, it is still a makeshift organization. He can only have fun here."

"Jiaoxiu, I'm sorry to have wronged you."

Wang Qing knew, of course, that his Huaixi, although now part of the Great Chu Kingdom, was nothing more than a makeshift organization compared to the imperial court.

Tian Hu next door, just like me, also raised a flag and declared himself king, but what happened?

Even if the two families mobilized the entire nation's resources, they could only muster a little over 200,000 laborers. But what about the imperial court?

The mere deployment of two flanking forces was enough to overwhelm both families.

Although the Song Dynasty was already in decline, it still had 400 military prefectures and counties. Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse!

Compared to the imperial court, our organization is indeed just a makeshift operation.

"I'm not wronged. I'm willing to do anything to be with Brother Qing."

Tong Jiaoxiu wrapped her arms around Wang Qing's neck and said seriously:

“My dear Qing, others may not know, but I know you are capable. It’s just that because of me, you were exiled and had no choice but to become an outlaw.”

“But things are different now, Brother Qing. Although I haven’t divorced that guy from the Cai family yet, we’re practically unrelated now, which means I can be with Brother Qing!”

"Brother Qing, why can't you become the Tong family's son-in-law openly and honestly?"

"If Brother Qing were my Tong family's son-in-law, he could enter the imperial court and become a legitimate official. Wouldn't that be better than being a bandit here?"

"Moreover, with Brother Qing's abilities and my father's influence in the court, Brother Qing will be promoted very quickly. How glorious that will be!"

Tong Jiaoxiu's words left Wang Qing speechless.

To be fair, Wang Qing was tempted by what Tong Jiaoxiu said.

Although he was one of the four great bandits of the Green Forest, and also had the nickname Xi Xuan, it seemed to be a particularly prestigious title.

But only Wang Qing himself knows the true meaning of it all.

Don't be fooled by how glamorous you seem in other people's eyes; it's the result of hundreds of nights of sacrificing your kidneys!

Is this something to be proud of? Not at all, Wang Qing even felt it was a disgrace!

Moreover, the long-standing rule of the Song Dynasty's outlaws was that "if you want to be an official, kill and set fires and then be granted amnesty." Countless people set up strongholds in order to obtain a position in the Song Dynasty court, and then were granted amnesty.

Wang Qing had considered this idea before, but the generals in Huaixi were not very willing, especially Li Zhu and Du Xue, who were firmly opposed to being granted amnesty.

If those two disagree, it's useless for Wang Qing to have this idea; he might as well just obediently follow Li Zhu's plan.

Moreover, Li Zhu and his men did not mistreat Wang Qing, promoting him all the way to become one of the Four Heroes of the Green Forest in the Song Dynasty, which was quite impressive!

But now that Wang Qing has lost absolute control over the bandits of Huaixi, Tong Jiaoxiu has brought up the matter of surrendering to the emperor again, which has caused a certain emotion in Wang Qing's heart to begin to grow wildly!

Yes, why can't I, Wang Qing, be granted amnesty?

“Brother Qing, if you can lead the troops of Huaixi to surrender to the imperial court, and with my father pulling some strings for you, you will definitely be able to obtain a good official position.”

After seeing Wang Qing remain silent, Tong Jiaoxiu continued.

“Once you become an official in the imperial court, we can be together more openly and legitimately.”

"And by then, Brother Qing, you can marry me properly with a grand wedding procession! Brother Qing, don't you want to?"

It must be said that Tong Jiaoxiu's words were very attractive, and coupled with her pitiful expression, Wang Qing's desire to recruit her suddenly became even stronger.

However, he cannot surrender so quickly.

Because, as Tong Jiaoxiu just said, if he could surrender with the Huaixi troops, he would get a better official position!

If you surrender alone, then obviously you won't be as valuable!

He needs people!

"Jiaoxiu, give me some time, I'll go and gather some people!"

Wang Qing made up his mind; he needed to quickly win over a group of people—a group of people who were only willing to follow him!

"Brother Qing, you're so kind. For my sake, are you willing to accept the imperial pardon?"

"I'd do anything for you..."

……

"Girl, are you really done with Wang Qing? Or should we go beat him up?"

Duan Er and Duan Wu also returned to the Duan family mansion. They had also heard about the incident. Duan Er, who had a fiery temper, immediately declared that he would avenge his sister!

"That's right, sister, I'm going to go beat up Wang Qing right now!"

Duan Wu, the younger brother, also said that Wang Qing was really asking for trouble, daring to separate from his sister.

Beat the hell up!

"Don't go! From now on, our Duan family has nothing to do with Wang Qing!"

Duan Sanniang stopped her two brothers from doing anything; she didn't want to have anything to do with Wang Qing anymore.

"Sister, are we just going to let this pretty boy get away with it so easily?"

Duan Wu was clearly unhappy.

"You all need to hurry down there and recruit more people. We can't count on Wang Qing anymore. I'm going to take over Huaixi myself!"

Duan San Niang said that she was coming herself.

"Sister, are you going to learn from Liu E?"

"What Liu E? She's not worthy! Girl, are you trying to be the Wu Zetian of the Song Dynasty?!"

"That's right! If Wu Zetian could become empress, why can't I, Duan Sanniang? We both have 'mother' in our names! If she can do it, so can I!"

After being messed with by Wang Qing, Duan San Niang's mentality underwent a huge change. Now, she wants to become the master of Huai Xi!

"Second brother, fifth brother, take the money and try to win over as many people as possible, especially the leaders of the troops. Be quick about it!"

"I reckon that scoundrel Wang Qing will also try to recruit people, we must get there before him!"

When Duan San Niang mentioned Wang Qing, she still gritted her teeth in hatred, clearly indicating that Wang Qing had caused her great harm!

"I understand, girl!"

"Leave it to me, sister!"

……

"Boss Du, we still need you to put in a lot of effort to hold off the Western Army's attack."

Li Zhu followed Du Xue to the military camp, his expression very solemn.

"Strategist, you don't need to worry about that. So many brothers in Huaixi are following us, I can't just abandon them."

Du Xue is a very responsible and compassionate person. Even though Huaixi is in turmoil now, he still wants to protect ordinary people.

"Sigh, I never expected that the Alliance Leader would break with the Duan family. This is really not a good thing for Huaixi right now."

Li Zhu said that if Huaixi were to fall into chaos now, it would be completely swallowed up by the imperial court, and all their efforts over the years would be in vain!

"So, strategist, whose advice will you take? The King, or Consort Duan?"

Du Xue asked Li Zhu because Li Zhu had a high reputation in Huaixi.

"The Alliance Leader is a good person. He hasn't wronged me, and I can't just let him down like this, Boss Du, actually..."

“Strategist, I understand what you mean, but given the current state of the alliance leader, it’s hard for me to convince myself to trust him as much as before.”

Du Xue interrupted Li Zhu.

“I, Du Xue, can swear that I will remain neutral and will prioritize the interests of Huaixi. Once the alliance leader and Lady Duan have reached a decision, I will naturally follow orders. Is that acceptable?”

Clearly, Du Xue doesn't want to stand with anyone right now; he just wants to be a solid general in Huaixi.

Li Zhu opened his mouth, wanting to say more, but then swallowed his words back.

He then sighed deeply and bowed to Du Xue:

"Alright, I trust Boss Du's character. I will get the Alliance Leader to resolve these matters as soon as possible. I'll leave Huaixi in your care for now!"