Transmigrating to the Song Dynasty: Water Margin Business Management

After Yan Qing and several Liangshan brothers disguised themselves and sneaked into the capital, they were extremely cautious and dared not be negligent in the slightest.

They were scattered throughout the capital. Yan Qing found a bustling teahouse and sat down. The teahouse was filled with all sorts of people from all walks of life. Yan Qing ordered a pot of tea, but his ears were perked up, listening to the idle chatter around him.

"I heard that Grand Tutor Li was imprisoned. It's a huge injustice!" An old man in a long robe shook his head and sighed.

"Shh, keep your voice down, or Gao Qiu and Cai Jing's spies will overhear!" someone nearby quickly warned.

Yan Qing's heart tightened. After listening for a while longer but not hearing any more useful information, he paid the bill and left.

A guy went to a tavern, pretended to be drunk, and chatted nonsense with the people at the table.

"Hey guys, what exactly did Grand Tutor Li do wrong?" This guy's tongue was practically slurred.

"Hey, it's all because of those two treacherous officials, Gao Qiu and Cai Jing!" someone said in a low voice.

Meanwhile, in order to successfully rescue Li Gang, they also had to find a way to smooth things over.

Yan Qing, carrying the gold and silver treasures he had brought from Liangshan, found a minor official who had once received favors from Li Gang. In a secluded hut, Yan Qing placed the treasures on the table.

"My lord, I've come to you today to ask for your help." Yan Qing said earnestly.

The clerk stared wide-eyed at the pile of treasure, but hesitated, saying, "Brother Yan Qing, this is too risky. If we get caught, my whole family will be finished."

Yan Qing quickly said, "My lord, rest assured, as long as you can help with this, all this treasure is yours, and we Liangshan people will definitely remember your kindness."

After much deliberation, the minor official finally gritted his teeth and agreed.

Unexpectedly, Gao Qiu and Cai Jing had already anticipated this move and kept a close eye on Li Gang's former subordinates.

Yan Qing and his group almost got exposed several times, but luckily they were quick-witted and managed to escape danger each time.

Just as they were desperately searching for clues, a mysterious man appeared. This man claimed to be a loyal follower of Li Gang and said he knew some crucial information. Yan Qing and the others were initially skeptical and didn't quite believe him. But after observing him for a while, they decided it was worth a gamble.

The mysterious man said that Gao Qiu and Cai Jing were hiding something important in a secret house that might prove they had framed Li Gang. Yan Qing and his companions decided to investigate.

Upon arriving at the house, they immediately realized they had fallen into a trap. It turned out that Gao Qiu and Cai Jing had already laid an ambush with skilled assassins, just waiting for them to arrive.

A fierce battle ensued. Although Yan Qing and his men were brave, they were outnumbered and outmatched, and gradually fell into a disadvantageous position.

At the critical moment, Yan Qing quickly used the terrain and traps in the house to create chaos, which allowed him to escape with his brothers.

But this turmoil made their situation even more difficult. Gao Qiu and Cai Jing tightened control over the capital, making it almost impossible for Yan Qing and his men to move an inch.

Meanwhile, trouble also broke out at Liangshan. The imperial court dispatched a large army to completely surround Liangshan, trying to force them to abandon their efforts to rescue Li Gang.

Song Jiang was anxious. What could he do? After thinking it over, he decided to send Wu Yong to negotiate with the court's generals, hoping to stall for as long as possible.

When Wu Yong arrived at the imperial army camp, he tried his best to persuade the general. However, the general was unyielding and his attitude was very tough, so the negotiations stalled.

Just when everyone thought all hope was lost, Yan Qing and his men didn't give up. After some effort, they found a key witness who had helped Gao Qiu and Cai Jing frame Li Gang. This witness was originally a minor official who worked for Gao Qiu, but later, unable to bear the guilt, he decided to come forward.

Yan Qing and his men hurriedly fled towards Liangshan with the witness, but were pursued by assassins sent by Gao Qiu on the way. The witness was unfortunately seriously injured and was on the verge of death.

After finally returning to Liangshan, the witness told Song Jiang and the others everything he knew before he died.

Upon hearing the witness's last words, Song Jiang and the others became solemn.

"Brothers, now that we have the evidence, we must rescue Grand Tutor Li and clear his name!" Song Jiang clenched his fists, his eyes resolute.

The crowd echoed in unison, filled with righteous indignation.

Yan Qing pondered for a moment and said, "Brother, the capital is heavily guarded now, it may not be easy for us to force our way in."

Wu Yong lightly waved his feather fan and said, "In my opinion, it would be better to send someone to spread the news in the capital that Gao Qiu and Cai Jing framed Grand Tutor Li, so as to arouse public anger and put pressure on the court."

Song Jiang nodded in agreement and immediately arranged for people to carry it out.

For a time, the whole city was abuzz with discussion about this matter, and the people were furious at the evil deeds of Gao Qiu and Cai Jing.

Gao Qiu and Cai Jing were terrified when they learned that the news had been leaked, and they hurriedly devised a countermeasure.

Meanwhile, Liangshan was also busy.

"Brother, I am willing to lead a team to sneak into the capital under cover of night and seize the opportunity to strike." Lin Chong clasped his hands in a gesture of respect and offered his command.

After a moment's thought, Song Jiang replied, "Brother Lin, this journey is fraught with danger, please be careful."

Lin Chong led a team of elite troops and set off for the capital under the cover of night.

They sneaked into the city and hid in an abandoned temple.

Meanwhile, at Liangshan, Song Jiang was also actively preparing for subsequent actions.

In the capital, Lin Chong and others closely monitored the movements of Gao Qiu and Cai Jing.

One day, Lin Chong discovered that a group of Gao Qiu's cronies were escorting a batch of important supplies.

"Brothers, this might be our chance," Lin Chong said in a low voice.

Everyone was eager to fight, ready to make their move.

They raided Gao Qiu's trusted men and successfully seized the supplies.

This action greatly shocked Gao Qiu and Cai Jing, and the situation in the capital became increasingly tense.

Emperor Huizong of Song also heard various rumors in the palace, and his heart began to waver.

Gao Qiu and Cai Jing hurriedly went to the palace to meet the emperor and tried to explain themselves.

“Your Majesty, this must be a conspiracy by the Liangshan bandits, attempting to disrupt the court,” Gao Qiu said.

Cai Jing echoed, "Your Majesty, you must not easily believe rumors."

Emperor Huizong of Song frowned and fell into deep thought.

Just then, the people sent by Liangshan petitioned outside the palace gates, demanding the release of Li Gang and the punishment of the treacherous officials.

Under pressure, Emperor Huizong of Song decided to re-examine Li Gang's case.

Seeing that things were not going well, Gao Qiu and Cai Jing secretly tried to sabotage the case and prevent it from being retried.

However, the Liangshan heroes had already anticipated their methods.

Yan Qing once again infiltrated the capital and made contact with some righteous people in the court under Li Gang, so that they could work together to fight against Gao Qiu and Cai Jing.

After some twists and turns, the case finally got the chance to be retried.

In court, Song Jiang and his men confronted Gao Qiu and Cai Jing face-to-face, carrying the witnesses' last words and the evidence they had collected.

Gao Qiu showed no sign of panic, but instead said in a sinister tone, "Your Majesty, there is more to this matter than meets the eye. All of this was secretly plotted by that lowly seventh-rank clerk Wang You. He was jealous of Grand Tutor Li's prestige and colluded with the Liangshan bandits, attempting to use this to overthrow loyal officials in the court and disrupt the order of the government."

Cai Jing quickly echoed, "Your Majesty, Lord Gao Qiu is absolutely right. Wang You has always harbored treacherous intentions, and this time it must have been his doing. I hope Your Majesty will investigate thoroughly."

Wang You, who was mentioned by them, turned pale with fright and hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed: "Your Majesty, I am innocent! I have never had such thoughts. It must be Gao Qiu and Cai Jing who framed me."

Emperor Huizong sat on the dragon throne, his expression shifting between light and dark, seemingly unwilling to delve into the matter.

Seeing this, Gao Qiu continued, "Your Majesty, Wang You has always coveted a high position and harbors resentment towards Grand Tutor Li's achievements. The Liangshan heroes also want to take this opportunity to take revenge on the court. The two sides hit it off and devised this vicious plan."

Cai Jing then said, "Your Majesty, we are utterly loyal to the court and would never dare to utter a single falsehood. Wang You has a history of misconduct, and this is certainly his fault."

Song Jiang glared at them angrily: "Gao Qiu and Cai Jing, stop making false accusations! You were the ones who framed Grand Tutor Li, and now you're trying to pin the blame on others."

Yan Qing also said, "Your Majesty, Gao Qiu and Cai Jing are treacherous villains, and their words should not be easily believed. The evidence all points to them, so how can we allow innocent people to be wronged?"

However, Emperor Huizong seemed somewhat hesitant, saying, "This matter is complicated, and I need to think about it some more."

Gao Qiu and Cai Jing were secretly pleased, thinking they could get away with it again.

At this moment, Wu Yong stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, “Your Majesty, if this matter is not thoroughly investigated, I fear the court will fail to uphold justice and will lose the hearts of the people. Moreover, Wang You is merely a minor official; how could he possess such great abilities? This is clearly a sophistry by Gao Qiu and Cai Jing.”

Li Gang's righteous advisors in the court also spoke out: "Your Majesty, Gao Qiu and Cai Jing have committed numerous evils. If they are not punished this time, they will surely cause even greater disasters in the future."

Emperor Huizong frowned, and began to re-evaluate the pros and cons in his mind.

When the people of Liangshan heard that Gao Qiu and Cai Jing had slandered a mere seventh-rank clerk, they were immediately outraged.

Yan Qing stepped forward and said loudly, "How could a mere seventh-rank official have the power to manipulate events? Gao Qiu and Cai Jing, you two treacherous officials, stop trying to mislead the Emperor!"

Song Jiang, his eyes blazing with anger, bowed to Emperor Huizong and said, "Your Majesty, Gao Qiu and Cai Jing's actions are clearly an attempt to cover up the truth. How could a lowly seventh-rank registrar, with such a low position and little power, possibly have orchestrated such a shocking conspiracy? This is utter nonsense!"

The Liangshan heroes echoed their sentiments, shouting in unison, "Traitors are in power, wronging innocent people! This is an outrage against Heaven!"

Gao Qiu and Cai Jing merely sneered, a hint of ruthlessness in their eyes.

Gao Qiu glanced sideways at the Liangshan bandits and said coldly, "Hmph, what do you bandits know? This Wang You may seem to hold a lowly official position, but he is actually very ambitious. He secretly colludes with various forces, attempting to overthrow the court. His heart is wicked!"

Cai Jing then said, "That's right. As important officials of the court, how could we speak nonsense? The intricacies of this matter are beyond the comprehension of you uncouth people."

Yan Qing roared, "Shut up! You treacherous officials will stop at nothing to escape punishment, spouting nothing but lies!"

Gao Qiu, however, remained unperturbed and continued to sneer: "You Liangshan people are nothing but traitors and rebels. Now you are trying to exonerate Li Gang, which shows your sinister intentions."

Cai Jing said sarcastically, "Your Majesty, the Liangshan people have a close relationship with Li Gang, so their words should not be taken too seriously."

The Liangshan heroes were so angry they gritted their teeth, but they still argued their case.

Song Jiang said, "Your Majesty, Gao Qiu and Cai Jing have framed loyal officials and are now trying to pin the blame on others. If they are not severely punished, it would be an injustice to Heaven! I implore Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly and give Grand Tutor Li and that innocent registrar justice!"

At this moment, the atmosphere in the courtroom was extremely tense, with everyone staring intently at Emperor Huizong, awaiting his decision.