Transmigrating to the Song Dynasty: Water Margin Business Management

No sooner had Zhu Fu finished speaking than Zhu Biao shouted, "Enough talk, attack!" With that, Zhu Biao threw a punch at Zhu Fu. Zhu Fu dodged to the side and retaliated with a punch of his own, and the two instantly began to wrestle.

Zhu Fu was agile, dodging left and right to avoid Zhu Biao's fierce attacks, while simultaneously seizing the opportunity to strike Zhu Biao's vitals with a punch. However, Zhu Biao was no ordinary opponent either; he reacted quickly, blocking Zhu Fu's attack with his arm.

Upon seeing this, the villagers of Zhu Family Village cheered and encouraged Zhu Fu, while the brothers of Liangshan also cheered him on.

Zhu Fu fought with increasing ferocity, unleashing the Liangshan style of boxing, his punches whistling through the air. Zhu Biao, relying on his brute strength, met Zhu Fu's attacks head-on. For a time, the two were evenly matched.

However, Zhu Biao had the advantage in numbers. Taking advantage of Zhu Fu's momentary distraction, one of Zhu Biao's men attacked from behind. Zhu Fu sensed the danger and hurriedly turned to defend himself, but this left him vulnerable. Zhu Biao seized the opportunity and kicked Zhu Fu squarely in the chest.

Zhu Fu winced in pain and staggered back a few steps. Zhu Biao seized the opportunity and launched another barrage of punches. Zhu Fu gritted his teeth and fought back with all his might, but gradually his strength gave out.

Zhu Biao seized the opportunity and, with all his might, delivered a powerful punch to Zhu Fu's abdomen. Zhu Fu groaned, fell to one knee, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

"Hmph, you dare to fight me!" Zhu Biao laughed smugly.

When the Liangshan brothers saw Zhu Fu injured, they were filled with righteous indignation and wanted to rush forward. Zhu Fu, enduring the pain, raised his hand to stop them, saying, "Brothers, don't be impulsive!"

Zhu Fu was pale, but his eyes remained resolute. He stared fiercely at Zhu Biao and said, "The grudge we have today will surely be avenged by Liangshan!"

Zhu Biao, however, was unconcerned and said contemptuously, "Come on if you dare! Zhu Family Village is not afraid of your Liangshan!" With that, he waved for someone to take the wine away.

The Liangshan brothers could only watch helplessly as Zhu Biao swaggered away with the wine, their hearts filled with anger and resentment.

Zhu Fu, wounded, staggered back to the mountain stronghold. His clothes were torn and stained with blood, and his face was full of exhaustion and anger.

Chao Gai was discussing matters with the leaders in the Hall of Righteousness when he saw Zhu Fu's appearance. He was startled and quickly stood up to ask, "Brother Zhu Fu, what's wrong with you?"

Zhu Fu, panting heavily with anger flashing in his eyes, said, "Brother, I am incompetent. The wine was stolen by the people from Zhu Family Village, and I was also injured by them."

Upon hearing this, Chao Gai slammed his fist on the table in anger and shouted, "The Zhu Family Village and our Liangshan have always kept to themselves. Why did they rob us of our wine and even injure our people?"

Zhu Fu took a breath and recounted the events of the journey to Chao Gai in detail. "I was leading my brothers to transport wine through the Zhu Family Village when Zhu Biao suddenly led his men out and blocked our way, attempting to rob us of the wine without a word. I tried to reason with him, but he was unreasonable and insisted on leaving the wine for his grandfather's birthday celebration. I refused, and a fight broke out. However, they outnumbered me, and I was ultimately no match for them, being injured by Zhu Biao."

Chao Gai frowned, his eyes filled with anger: "The Zhu Family Village is too arrogant! How dare they bully my Liangshan brothers like this."

Wu Yong, standing to the side, lightly waved his feather fan and said, "Brother, this matter is probably not so simple. The Zhu Family Manor robbed us of our wine for no reason; perhaps someone is behind it."

Chao Gai nodded: "The strategist is right." He then turned to Dai Zong and said: "Brother Dai, go down the mountain quickly and investigate to see what's going on."

Dai Zong cupped his hands and said, "Brother, don't worry, I'll go right away." With that, he flashed out of the Hall of Righteousness.

Chao Gai then looked at the crowd and said, “Brothers, the Zhu Family Village has humiliated us so much, and we cannot let this go unavenged. But before we take action, we must find out their background and not act rashly.”

The leaders all nodded in agreement.

At this moment, Zhu Fu gritted his teeth and said, "Brother, once the truth is found, we must make the Zhu Family Village pay the price and get justice for our brothers!"

Chao Gai patted Zhu Fu on the shoulder: "Brother Zhu Fu, go down and recover from your injuries. I will definitely give you an explanation for this matter."

Zhu Fu clasped his hands in thanks and, supported by his two brothers, left the Hall of Gathering Righteousness.

Watching Zhu Fu's departing figure, Chao Gai secretly vowed to make the Zhu Family Village pay a heavy price for their actions. The atmosphere in the Hall of Righteousness was heavy; everyone awaited news from Dai Zong. A major battle with the Zhu Family Village seemed imminent.

After receiving his orders, Dai Zong used his extraordinary skill of speed to gather information everywhere. He first went to several villages near Zhu Family Village, befriending the villagers and subtly inquiring about the robbery of wine at Zhu Family Village.

Some villagers, upon hearing that they were from Liangshan, showed fear and remained silent; others, under Dai Zong's patient persuasion and the lure of some money, quietly revealed some information.

Dai Zong then mingled into the markets surrounding Zhu Family Village, pretending to be a passing merchant in taverns and teahouses, striking up conversations with people sitting and chatting.

He learned from a peddler that several mysterious guests had recently arrived at Zhu Family Village and had been discussing matters with the village head in a secret room for a long time.

To gather more information, Dai Zong sneaked into the home of a servant in Zhu Family Village at night. The servant was so startled by Dai Zong's sudden appearance that he almost screamed. Dai Zong quickly covered his mouth and threatened in a low voice, "Don't make a sound, or I'll take your life! I'll only ask you a few questions; answer truthfully and I'll spare your life."

The servant nodded nervously, and under Dai Zong's questioning, he finally revealed the truth: "They are people from Zengtou City. They instigated our master to take action against Liangshan."

Upon receiving this important news, Dai Zong dared not delay and quickly returned to Liangshan.

Inside the Hall of Righteous Gathering, Chao Gai anxiously awaited Dai Zong's return.

Dai Zong told Chao Gai everything he had learned: "Brother, I have inquired around and learned that the reason why the Zhu Family Village is opposing our Liangshan is because it was instigated by Zengtou City."

Upon hearing this, Chao Gai was enraged. He slammed his fist on the table, stood up, and roared, "It's that Zengtou City again! They injured my brother Liu Tang and stole our horses. I haven't avenged them yet!"

The leaders in the hall were also filled with righteous indignation.

Wu Yong gently waved his feather fan and said, "Brother, please calm down. Zengtou City has always been against our Liangshan. This time, they are instigating the Zhu Family Village, probably to weaken our strength through the Zhu Family Village."

Lin Chong cupped his hands and said, "Brother, if we don't avenge this grudge, what will become of Liangshan's reputation?"

Wu Song clenched his fist and shouted, "Who cares about Zengtou City or Zhu Family Village? They dare to provoke Liangshan, we'll take them all down!"

Chao Gai, his eyes blazing, surveyed the crowd and said, “Brothers, Zengtou City has repeatedly opposed Liangshan, and now they’ve instigated the Zhu Family Village. This is truly outrageous! How can we, the heroes of Liangshan, tolerate such insolence!”

Li Kui jumped out and shouted, "Brother, I, Tie Niu, am willing to be the vanguard and kill them all without leaving a single one alive!"

Chao Gai nodded and said, "But we must not act rashly this time. Brother Wu Yong, do you have a good plan?"

Wu Yong pondered for a moment and said, "Brother, in my opinion, we can first send someone to the Zhu Family Village to reason with them. If they are willing to return the wine and compensate Brother Zhu Fu for his losses, this matter may be resolved peacefully. If they remain obstinate, it will not be too late for us to send troops to attack."

After a moment's thought, Chao Gai said, "Very well, let's follow the strategist's plan. Let's first be courteous, then use force, and let them know that Liangshan is not to be trifled with!"

Therefore, Liangshan began to prepare countermeasures in earnest, and a storm was about to break out.

Zhao Tianming ordered his shop assistant to bring over silver and medicine. Upon seeing this, Chao Gai quickly stepped forward, clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Thank you so much, Manager Zhao, for your timely help. We are deeply grateful." After saying this, he rewarded the shop assistant with some silver and sent him back to deliver a message, saying, "Thank you for your generosity, Manager Zhao. Once I have finished dealing with this matter in Zengtou City, I will definitely visit his shop in person to express my gratitude."

After listening, the waiter bowed to Chao Gai and turned to leave. Wu Yong then stepped forward and said, "Brother, Manager Zhao's restaurant still has many unresolved issues. If there's nothing else, I'd like to go and help him."

After a moment's thought, Chao Gai said, "Very well, strategist, you can take Brother Song Jiang, Commander Lu Zhishen, Brother Wu Song, and Brother Shi Xiu down the mountain. Zengtou City is just a small town, I don't need to bring many men, with Instructor Lin with me, that's enough."

Wu Yong nodded and replied, "Brother, don't worry, we will definitely go and return as soon as possible to resolve Manager Zhao's troubles."

Afterwards, Wu Yong led the group to pack their belongings and prepare to descend the mountain. Lu Zhishen, carrying his monk's staff, shouted, "I want to see which blind fool dares to cause trouble in Manager Zhao's restaurant!"

Wu Song tightened his belt, a cold glint flashing in his eyes: "I'll make them know what's what."

Song Jiang then cupped his hands in farewell to Chao Gai, saying, "Take care, brother, and wait for our return."

The group descended the mountain in a grand procession, heading straight for Manager Zhao's restaurant. Meanwhile, Chao Gai and Lin Chong remained at the mountain stronghold to prepare for any potential threat from Zengtou City.

The news that Zhu Fu had been injured by Zhu Biao quickly reached the ears of Wang Zhiqiang and Gao Yanei.

On this day, Wang Zhiqiang and Gao Yanei met in a luxurious mansion.

Wang Zhiqiang narrowed his eyes, a sinister smile playing on his lips, and said, "Brother Gao, have you heard about the Liangshan and Zhu Family Village incident?"

Gao Yanei picked up his teacup, took a small sip, and replied, "I've heard a little about it. Why?"

Wang Zhiqiang leaned closer to Gao Yanei and whispered, "The Zhu Family Village injured Zhu Fu from Liangshan. This is going to be quite a show."

Gao Yanei's eyes lit up. He put down his teacup and laughed, "Haha, that's excellent. Both sides are formidable opponents. Let them fight to the death, and we can sit back and watch them fight."

Wang Zhiqiang nodded repeatedly, his face full of pride: "Exactly, the fiercer they fight, the more advantageous it is for us. Once they are both exhausted, we can reap the benefits."

Gao Yanei stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and said, "However, we also need to be careful about the situation and not let them discover our intentions."

Wang Zhiqiang cupped his hands and said, "Brother Gao, rest assured, I understand. We just need to observe secretly and wait for the right opportunity."

The two men exchanged a smile, as if they could already see the fierce battle between Liangshan and Zhu Family Village, while they waited on the sidelines for their chance to seize the greatest benefit.