Transmigrating to the Song Dynasty: Water Margin Business Management

Gao Ke's conspiracy was like a dark net, constantly tightening, attempting to wipe out all the Liangshan heroes in one fell swoop. This time, he set his sights on Zhang Liu, a relative of Zhao Tianming's wife, He Xiang.

Zhang Liu was a morally corrupt and greedy man who spent his days wandering the streets, addicted to gambling and already heavily in debt. After some investigation, Gao Ke's men secretly arrested Zhang Liu.

In the dark and damp cell, Gao Ke looked down at Zhang Liu, who was slumped on the ground, and said coldly, "Zhang Liu, your life is now in my hands. If you want to live, you'd better obey my orders."

Zhang Liu was terrified, his voice trembling: "Sir, I'll do anything you ask, just please spare my life."

Gao Ke's lips curled into a sinister smile: "I want you to get some information from He Xiang and then pass it on according to my instructions. If you do it well, not only will you save your life, but you'll also have a large fortune to pay off your gambling debts."

Zhang Liu seemed to have grasped at a straw and nodded hastily in agreement.

After being released, Zhang Liu racked his brains to come up with an excuse and hurriedly went to Zhao Tianming's house. He Xiang, seeing that it was a relative visiting, did not suspect anything and warmly welcomed him into the house.

"Cousin, I've heard your fur business is booming. I'm so envious," Zhang Liu said with a smile, but a hint of cunning lurked in his eyes.

He Xiang smiled and replied, "Cousin, it's just enough to make a living, I'm doing alright."

Zhang Liu's eyes darted around, and his face showed a bitter expression: "Cousin, to be honest, I've been living a miserable life lately. I'm drowning in gambling debts, and debt collectors are blocking my door every day. I can hardly go on living. I was thinking of joining you guys in the fur business to earn some money and pay off my debts."

Upon hearing this, He Xiang looked troubled and hesitated slightly. Seeing this, Zhang Liu immediately burst into tears, recounting how his creditors had driven him to desperation, even contemplating suicide. He Xiang, kind-hearted, eventually softened and revealed some details about the fur business.

Upon receiving the news, Zhang Liu was overjoyed and immediately relayed it as Gao Ke had instructed. Gao Ke, after obtaining the information, meticulously altered and fabricated a military intelligence report that was virtually indistinguishable from the truth.

This false intelligence eventually fell into the hands of a Song Dynasty general eager to gain merit. Eager for credit, the general hastily deployed troops based on this intelligence without careful verification and analysis.

On the battlefield, the Song army, acting on erroneous intelligence, found itself surrounded by the enemy. The battle cries were deafening, the air thick with smoke, and the Song army suffered heavy casualties and retreated in disarray.

When Emperor Huizong received the battle report in the palace, he was furious and immediately ordered Gao Qiu to thoroughly investigate the matter.

Upon receiving the imperial decree, Gao Qiu was secretly delighted, seeing it as a perfect opportunity to suppress Zhao Tianming and the Liangshan heroes. In court, Gao Qiu deliberately steered the conversation towards the relationship between Zhao Tianming and Liangshan, implying that the recent military defeat might be related to them.

Immediately, the imperial court was abuzz with discussion, and Zhao Tianming and the Liangshan heroes were thrust into the spotlight, facing suspicion from all sides.

Upon hearing the news, Zhao Tianming and He Xiang were as anxious as ants on a hot pan, running around in circles.

"This must be a deliberate frame-up. We need to find a way to prove our innocence." Zhao Tianming frowned, looking worried.

He Xiang was filled with remorse, tears streaming down her face: "It's all my fault. I was too soft-hearted and told Zhang Liu those things, which caused such a big disaster."

On the Liangshan side, Song Jiang and the others were also furious when they learned of this.

"This is clearly a conspiracy by those two treacherous villains, Gao Ke and Gao Qiu, to take this opportunity to eliminate us!" Lu Zhishen's eyes widened in anger as he brandished his monk's staff.

Song Jiang's expression was solemn, his gaze resolute: "Brothers, we must not act rashly at this moment. The most urgent task is to find evidence to clear our names."

Wu Yong gently shook his feather fan, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Brother, in my opinion, we should start with Zhang Liu and look for clues as to why he was used by Gao Ke."

Therefore, the Liangshan heroes quickly took action and secretly conducted a thorough investigation into Zhang Liu's whereabouts.

After a meticulous investigation, they finally discovered clues about Zhang Liu's secret contact with Gao Ke's men.

"With this, perhaps we can prove our innocence." Lin Chong gripped his spear tightly, his expression grim.

However, just as they were preparing to present the evidence to the court, Gao Ke once again resorted to despicable means.

Gao Ke sent men to sneak into the warehouse in Liangshan that stored fur goods at night, and secretly hid some prohibited items that were explicitly forbidden by the imperial court. He then arranged for someone to report them to the imperial court.

Upon receiving the tip, the imperial court immediately dispatched troops to search the area. Sure enough, they discovered contraband among the fur goods.

This discovery made Zhao Tianming and the Liangshan heroes even more suspicious.

After Emperor Huizong learned of this, his trust in them almost completely vanished.

"If we cannot find out the truth as soon as possible, we Liangshan people will surely be doomed." Song Jiang was extremely worried, his brows furrowed.

At this moment, Gao Ke was smugly imagining the tragic end that the Liangshan heroes were about to face in his mansion.

The Liangshan heroes were not defeated by their predicament. On the one hand, they continued to search for key evidence that could completely prove their innocence. On the other hand, they sent eloquent heroes to contact ministers in the court who were known for their integrity, hoping to gain their support and help.

Throughout this process, Gao Ke constantly sabotaged and created numerous obstacles. He bribed some officials to obstruct the Liangshan heroes' investigation in every possible way; he also sent assassins to try to kill key witnesses and destroy evidence.

But the heroes of Liangshan, with their unwavering faith, fearless courage, and close unity, never gave up.

Finally, in a perilous pursuit, they successfully protected a key witness and obtained crucial testimony from him. The witness detailed the entire process of how Zhang Liu was coerced and framed by Gao Ke, and how the placement of contraband in the fur goods was all part of Gao Ke's conspiracy.

During the court's renewed review, the witness testimonies were like a ray of dawn, finally allowing Emperor Huizong of Song to see the truth of the matter.

"So it was that traitor Gao Ke who was behind this; I almost wronged a loyal official." Emperor Huizong suddenly realized and was filled with remorse.

Zhao Tianming and the Liangshan heroes were finally cleared of suspicion and escaped the crisis.

However, through this incident, they also realized that the road ahead is still full of thorns, unknown challenges, and crises.

Inside Zhao Tianming's restaurant, the atmosphere was heavy. Song Jiang, Wu Song, Lu Zhishen, and Wu Yong sat together, discussing the current situation with serious expressions.

"Although we have been fortunate enough to be exonerated this time, as long as Gao Ke is not eliminated, Liangshan will never have a day of peace," Song Jiang said with a furrowed brow and deep concern.

Wu Song clenched his fist and slammed it hard on the table: "Brother is absolutely right. That Gao Ke is treacherous and cunning. If he fails to achieve his goal this time, he will surely come up with an even more vicious way to deal with us."

Lu Zhishen's eyes widened, and he said angrily, "I think we should just kill our way over there, capture that bastard, and get rid of him once and for all, so as to avoid endless trouble in the future."

Wu Yong gently waved his feather fan and shook his head slightly: "Brother Lu, don't be anxious. Gao Ke is in the imperial court and must be surrounded by guards. If we act rashly, not only will we fail, but we will also bring greater disaster to Liangshan."

Song Jiang nodded and said, "Brother Wu Yong is right. Gao Ke's conspiracy has been exposed this time, and he will definitely be more careful. We need to plan this carefully."

Wu Song frowned and said, "If we don't deal with this person quickly, I'm afraid he will collude with other treacherous officials and frame us again."

Wu Yong pondered for a moment and said, "Gao Ke has been able to succeed time and again because he has powerful backers and we can't figure out his actions. We need to send people to closely monitor his every move and find his weaknesses."

Song Jiang agreed, saying, "This plan is feasible, but we must proceed with caution and avoid being discovered by him."

Lu Zhishen snorted: "I don't believe he can hide in the shadows and do evil forever."

Wu Yong continued, "In addition, we need to strengthen our ties with upright officials in the court and have them speak up for us so that we will not be framed by treacherous people again."

Song Jiang sighed, "We are so grateful for the help of upright ministers this time, otherwise the consequences would have been unimaginable. But Gao Ke has been cultivating his influence in the court for many years and his relationships are complicated. It will not be easy to bring him down."

Wu Song said firmly, "No matter how difficult it is, we cannot sit idly by and wait to die. If we allow Gao Ke to do whatever he wants, the lives of the Liangshan brothers and the future of Liangshan will be in grave danger."

Lu Zhishen slapped his thigh: "That's right, we can't let that bastard continue to be so arrogant!"

Song Jiang stood up, his gaze resolute: "Brothers, if Gao Ke is not eliminated, Liangshan will never have peace. We must work together to find a way to completely eradicate this cancer and restore peace to Liangshan."

Everyone responded in unison, "We are ready to obey your orders, brother!"

With their minds made up, the Liangshan heroes are about to engage in a life-or-death struggle against Gao Ke.

After everyone left, Song Jiang kept Wu Yong behind to continue discussing countermeasures.

"Brother Wu Yong, do you have a more detailed plan for this matter?" Song Jiang asked.

Wu Yong stroked his beard and said slowly, "Brother, I have sent someone to infiltrate Gao Ke's residence to act as an informant. However, Gao Ke is extremely cautious, and the residence is heavily guarded, so it may be difficult to transmit messages."

Song Jiang nodded slightly: "We must proceed with caution in this matter and must not alert the enemy."

Wu Yong continued, "In addition, I plan to have Brother Shi Qian secretly investigate Gao Ke's daily whereabouts and look for an opportunity. However, Gao Ke has many guards around him, so this will not be an easy task."

Song Jiang frowned: "This Gao Ke is indeed a troublesome case, but I believe that if we brothers work together, we will definitely be able to come up with a perfect solution."

Just then, a lackey rushed in to report: "I just received news that Gao Ke has been frequently meeting secretly with several ministers in the court recently, and I don't know what they are discussing."

Song Jiang and Wu Yong exchanged a glance, both feeling a chill run down their spines.

Wu Yong said, "Brother, this matter may change, we need to act quickly."

Song Jiang stood up and paced back and forth: "Inform all the brothers that we will gather again in the Hall of Righteousness tonight to discuss the matter and come up with a solution as soon as possible. We must not let Gao Ke's conspiracy succeed again."

Wu Yong cupped his hands and said, "Yes, brother, I will make the arrangements right away."

As night fell, the Liangshan heroes once again pooled their wisdom and efforts to deal with Gao Ke's threat.