Transmigrating to the Song Dynasty: Water Margin Business Management

Zhang San, Li Er, Wang Wu, Zhao Liu, and Ma Zi sneaked into the kitchen of Zhao Tianming's restaurant. They tiptoed along, barely daring to breathe, for fear of making a sound and being discovered.

Upon reaching the kitchen door, in the dim moonlight, they saw the talisman pasted on the door. Li Er lowered his voice and said to Zhang San, "Brother Zhang San, it's that talisman."

Zhang San's eyes widened, revealing greed and eagerness. He spat on his hands and said, "Brothers, hurry up and peel that talisman off for me."

Wang Wu swallowed nervously and said, "Brother Zhang, will this work? What if something strange happens?"

Zhang San glared at him and cursed, "Look at you, you coward! What are you afraid of? I'm here!"

Zhao Liu chimed in, "That's right, with so many of us, what are we afraid of with a piece of torn paper?"

Ma Zi nodded in agreement: "Hurry up, let's get done and leave as soon as possible."

So, Zhang San cautiously stepped forward and reached for the talisman. Just as his fingers were about to touch it, a sudden gust of cold wind blew by, making everyone shiver.

Li Er was so frightened that he took a few steps back and said in a trembling voice, "Brother Zhang, maybe we should just give up. This wind is too eerie."

Zhang San cursed, "Coward! Don't scare yourself!" As he spoke, he continued to reach out to peel off the talisman.

Just then, a cat's meow came from somewhere, its shrill sound especially frightening in the quiet night. Wang Wu screamed "Oh my god!" and almost collapsed to the ground in fright.

Zhang San was startled by the sudden noise and his hand trembled, but he still tried to remain calm and said, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, it's just a stray cat."

The pockmarked man said, trembling, "Brother Zhang, I feel a chill run down my spine."

Zhang San gritted his teeth and said, "Stop talking nonsense and hurry up!"

Although Zhang San spoke with bravado, he was actually terrified inside. He shouted at Li Er, Wang Wu, Zhao Liu, and Ma Zi with a fierce but weak voice, "You guys, go and peel that talisman off!"

The group looked at each other, none of them daring to step forward. Li Er shrank back and said, "Brother Zhang San, I...I don't dare."

Wang Wu quickly waved his hand, "Brother Zhang, my legs are so sore, I really can't go."

Zhao Liu was so frightened that his voice changed: "Brother Zhang, maybe we should just forget about it. I have a really weird feeling about this!"

Ma Zi said, trembling, "Brother Zhang, look at my small frame, how could I have the courage and strength?"

Seeing this, Zhang San stomped his feet in anger and cursed, "You're all a bunch of cowards! Look at your pathetic self, I'll do it!"

Having said that, Zhang San steeled himself and stepped forward to peel off the talisman. His hand trembled as he reached out, and the moment his fingers touched the talisman, it was as if he were glued to it, and he was instantly unable to move.

Zhang San shouted in terror, "What's going on?"

He turned to the four people beside him and shouted, "What are you all standing there for? Hurry up and help!"

The four men then snapped out of their daze and rushed over to pull Zhang San away. Li Er grabbed Zhang San's waist and pulled him back with all his might, shouting, "One, two, three, pull!" But Zhang San didn't budge an inch.

Wang Wu grabbed Zhang San's arm, stomped his feet on the ground, and strained until his face turned red, but to no avail. He exclaimed, "Oh my god, Brother Zhang San, what kind of magic has been cast on you?"

Zhao Liu and Ma Zi also joined the "rescue" team. The four of them grabbed each other's arms and legs, creating a chaotic scene.

Zhao Liu, panting heavily, said, "No, Brother Zhang, it's like you're glued to it!"

Ma Zi also looked miserable: "Brother Zhang, we really can't pull you out. How about we get someone to come and rescue you?"

Zhang San was both angry and anxious, and cursed, "You bunch of useless things, you can't even save me!"

Just then, a gust of wind blew by, rustling the leaves as if mocking their disheveled state. Zhang San, increasingly frightened, shouted, "Give it your all, or we're all doomed!"

The four of them gritted their teeth and tried a few more times, but Zhang San was not pulled down. Instead, they themselves fell flat on their backs, covered in dirt and looking quite comical.

Ma Zi then said to Zhang San, "Brother Zhang San, I think you should be bold and cut off that finger."

Zhang San was so angry that his face twisted in rage. He pointed at Ma Zi and cursed, "What a terrible idea you came up with! Why don't you cut off your own finger?"

Ma Zi looked aggrieved and said, "Then what can we do? This talisman is stuck to your hand, like it's grown out of your hand. There's nothing we can do."

Zhang San glared and roared, "Nonsense, hurry up and think of a solution for me!"

The four men were frowning and racking their brains. Suddenly, Li Er said, "Why don't we just tear down this door first?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang San'er flew into a rage and said, "What? Do you expect me to go out with my hands glued to the door? Have you lost your mind?"

Li Er shrank back after being scolded, muttering, "Brother Zhang, I was just in a hurry and didn't think things through."

Wang Wu scratched his head and said, "Why don't we go find some oil? Maybe we can make the talisman slippery and then we can take Zhang San's hand off."

Zhao Liu shook his head and said, "Where are we going to find oil in the middle of the night? Besides, what if the oil doesn't work?"

The group fell silent again, discussing amongst themselves, but they couldn't come up with a reliable solution.

Zhang San stamped his feet in frustration: "You bunch of good-for-nothings, you're all good at bragging, but when it really matters, you can't even come up with a single idea."

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps sounded outside. Everyone turned pale with fright, and the pockmarked man said in a trembling voice, "No...we haven't been discovered, have we?"

Zhang San panicked: "It's all your fault, you useless bunch! Now we're all doomed!"

The footsteps grew closer; it turned out that Li Kui had arrived with government officials.

Li Kui held up a lantern, shone it, and pointed at Zhang San and his men, saying, "Brother Lei, these are the thieves who came to steal things in the dead of night."

The one referred to as Brother Lei was none other than Lei Heng, the Winged Tiger. Lei Heng crossed his arms and snorted coldly, "Hmph, we've caught them red-handed."

Zhang San quickly tried to explain, "Sir, it's a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding! We didn't come here to steal anything."

Lei Heng stepped forward, looked at Zhang San's stuck hand, and mocked, "Oh, not stealing? Then what's wrong with your hand? Are you getting intimate with this talisman?"

Everyone burst into laughter, and Zhang San was so embarrassed that he wished he could disappear into the ground.

Li Er quickly explained, "Sir, we've been framed. This talisman is strange; it's stuck to Brother Zhang's hand."

Lei Heng glared at him: "Stop talking nonsense here. If you have something to say, let's talk it out at the yamen."

Wang Wu said with a mournful face, "Sir, we really know we were wrong, please forgive us this time."

Zhao Liu also pleaded for mercy: "Yes, sir, we will never dare to do it again."

Lei Heng waved his hand and said, "Enough talk, take them all with you."

Several officers rushed forward to arrest him. Zhang San struggled, pleading, "Sir, please have mercy and take my hand off before you arrest me!"

Lei Heng laughed and scolded, "Dream on! We'll just take you with us like this and let everyone see your pathetic state."

And so, with talismans stuck to his hands, Zhang San, along with Li Er, Wang Wu, Zhao Liu, and Ma Zi, were escorted away by the officials. Along the way, they attracted the attention of passersby, who stopped to watch, pointed, and laughed.

Someone laughed and said, "These guys really tried to steal a chicken but lost their rice instead."

Some people said, "Let's see if they dare to do bad things again."

Zhang San and the others lowered their heads, wishing they could bury their heads in the ground. They were filled with regret, but it was too late to say anything now.

Upon arriving at the yamen, Lei Heng brought all the men before Song Jiang like chickens and said, "Brother Song, what do you think we should do about this?"

Song Jiang stroked his beard and said with a serious expression, "These men ran into Manager Zhao's restaurant in the dead of night; they must have something sinister up their sleeves. Moreover, I've long heard that there are evil spirits haunting Manager Zhao's restaurant, yet these men went to steal talismans. They must be in league with these evil spirits. Interrogate them!"

Lei Heng responded, "Yes, Brother Song!" So, they took Zhang San away first.

Zhang San and his men continued to make excuses, shouting, "We're innocent, sir! We really didn't do anything!"

Song Jiang roared, "I see you won't shed a tear until you see the coffin! Bring witnesses!"

Just then, Wu Yong walked in. Zhang San and the others looked towards the door and thought this person looked a lot like the old man who sold soy sauce. They pointed at Wu Yong and said, "Aren't you that old man who sold soy sauce?"

Upon hearing this, Lei Heng was furious. He stepped forward and kicked Zhang San hard in the buttocks, cursing, "What old man selling soy sauce? This is the famous Wu Yong, the strategist!"

Zhang San was dumbfounded, completely stunned. It took him a while to come to his senses. He slapped himself twice, muttering, "Oh dear, my blind eyes, my foul mouth! Of all people to mess with, I had to offend Wu Yong!"

Li Er, Wang Wu, Zhao Liu, and Ma Zi, who were standing nearby, were also terrified and turned ashen-faced.

Wang Wu stammered, "Brother Zhang, you've really gotten us all into big trouble!"

Zhao Liu cried out, "It's over, it's over, I'm definitely going to die this time!"

Ma Zi's legs went weak, and he almost collapsed to the ground: "What should we do!"

Zhang San was on the verge of tears, and kept bowing to Wu Yong: "Master Wu, I was blind to your greatness, please forgive us!"

Looking at their disheveled state, Wu Yong sneered, "Hmph, now you know to beg for mercy? Too late!"

Zhang San and his group immediately wilted like frostbitten eggplants.

Lei Heng snorted coldly and ordered his men to take them all back to the yamen.