Water Margin: The Tale of Li Erlang of Guankou

"Very well, then please come along, Brother Wang!"

So Ma Bian and Wang Yin helped the two men out of the courtyard. After several twists and turns and a long search, they finally stopped at a secluded courtyard.

"This is the place, but this doctor has an eccentric temperament and doesn't like to see outsiders, so I'll lead the two of them in. Brother Wang, how about you wait in the courtyard?"

"That would be perfect!"

So Ma Bian led Li Hanxiao and Wen Huanzhang into the house, but what they didn't know was that once they entered, they were led to two different rooms.

Although Li Hanxiao was blind, upon entering the room, he could smell a strange fragrance, faint and delicate, like an orchid in a secluded valley or a lotus in water, which was quite intoxicating.

Ma Bian led him into the room and slammed the door shut, leaving him alone inside.

"Dare to ask..."

Just as Li Hanxiao was about to speak, he felt a fragrant breeze and heard very light footsteps.

Judging from the footsteps, Li Hanxiao believed that the person coming was a woman, and that she was very light in weight.

"Please follow me, young master."

She was indeed a woman; her voice was clear, gentle, and melodious, rivaling even the silver bells and putting the nightingale to shame.

The woman reached out and pulled Li Hanxiao. As soon as their hands touched, Li Hanxiao felt that the woman's soft hand was like warm and smooth jade. Her fingers were truly delicate and beautiful. Although he could not see her face, he still blushed.

"Female doctor?"

Li Hanxiao was puzzled, but she was still led to a chair and sat down by her.

"Please wait a moment, young master."

A moment later, Li Hanxiao felt a cool sensation on his face. The woman used a silk cloth soaked in vegetable oil and mixed it with medicine to wipe the lime off his face.

After wiping the lime off his face, she used a hot handkerchief to wipe the vegetable oil off Li Hanxiao's face before speaking, "Young master, please open your eyes."

Li Hanxiao slowly opened his eyes, only to be greeted by a stunningly beautiful woman, who immediately captivated his eyes, which had been closed for so long.

nice!So beautiful!

The woman in ancient costume before him reminded Li Hanxiao of the celestial maiden in the later novel "Journey to the West." Her eyebrows were like wisps of smoke, seemingly frowning yet not frowning; her eyes were like eyes that seemed to be filled with affection, seemingly happy yet not happy; her face was like a silver basin; her nose was like a water apricot; her jawline was like a bowl or a cup, smooth and continuous; her eyebrows were like willow branches, and her expression was like the pain of a broken zither.

Indeed, her eyes, like those of a begonia in full bloom, could be both still and expressive, capable of conveying emotions and meaning. She was voluptuous yet slender, possessing an elegant demeanor, refined manners, and graceful bearing. Dressed in white robes with a gold belt, she smiled gently at Li Han.

That smile was absolutely stunning, a perfect blend of elegance and liveliness, a cool and aloof demeanor with an air of wealth. It was neither sharp nor superficial, leaving Li Hanxiao momentarily stunned.

"Shishi greets Young Master Li."

The woman gave Li Han a deep bow, and Li Han then realized that there was no female doctor at all; this was Li Shishi!

Ma Bian led me here...a trap! This is a trap!

"Miss Li, I am honored to meet you."

Li Han smiled and returned the greeting, but Li Shishi pressed closer, her breath sweet as orchids, and said something.

"Young master, why are you blushing?"

"Hmm...refreshed..."

Li Hanxiao blurted it out subconsciously.

With Li Shishi's eyes so alluring, if Li Hanxiao hadn't been a well-trained soldier in his past life, how could he have resisted this "most tempting thing in the world"?

“Miss Shishi, what brings you and Ma Bian to this place? I have important business to attend to and cannot stay any longer.”

Li Hanxiao's words disappointed Li Shishi. She had thought that Li Hanxiao had left after passing four levels because he hadn't seen her face. She was very confident in her appearance and believed that she could attract Li Hanxiao as soon as they met.

As a result, Li Hanxiao remains unmoved, which is a great insult to Li Shishi.

Which man in the entire city of Tokyo wouldn't want to fall head over heels for her? Yet Li Hanxiao seems to have no interest in her. Is he some kind of reincarnation of Liu Xiahui?

"Does the young master find me ugly?"

Li Shishi immediately changed tactics and burst into tears, her face streaked with tears.

"No, no... If you're ugly, then who would dare call themselves beautiful..."

Li Hanxiao was a bachelor in his previous life and had no experience in dealing with women. When he saw Li Shishi crying, he didn't know what to do.

"Why is it that after breaking through four trials, the young master refuses to even see me?"

"This... Miss Shishi, what exactly do you want from me?"

Li Shishi's charming and alluring demeanor left Li Hanxiao somewhat bewildered, but he still couldn't understand why Li Shishi was so persistent in clinging to him.

She certainly didn't lack suitors; historically, she was one of Emperor Huizong of Song's women.

"Young Master Li, do you know about my background?"

Li Shishi then revealed her background, revealing that she was actually the empress.

Her ancestor was Li Zhongyu, the son of Li Yu, the last ruler of the Southern Tang Dynasty. After the fall of Nantang, he followed Li Zhongyu to Bianliang.

Later, Li Zhongyu wrote to Emperor Taizong of Song, requesting that he be sent to manage a prefecture. The emperor granted his request, and Li Zhongyu was appointed as the prefect of Yingzhou. Because of his kindness, benevolence, and simplicity, he was well-regarded in Yingzhou.

In the fifth year of the Chunhua era, Li Zhongyu passed away at the age of thirty-seven. His descendants were summoned back to the capital by the emperor, because if Li Yu's descendants fell into the hands of ambitious people with ulterior motives, they would become another puppet emperor.

From then on, Li Yu's descendants settled in the capital. By the time of Li Shishi, she should not have been sent to a brothel. However, because of her natural beauty, she was spotted by Cai Jing when she went out with her parents. Cai Jing discovered that she was a beauty among beauties and wanted to cultivate her into a rare gem to be presented to the emperor in the future.

Therefore, the old scoundrel secretly sent people to kill her parents and then sent her to the Imperial Fragrance Pavilion, where he taught her music, chess, calligraphy, painting, needlework, cooking, singing, and other arts, hoping that when his favor with Emperor Huizong of Song waned, he could regain his favor through this girl.

As for Ma Bian, he was a bodyguard planted in the Imperial Fragrance Pavilion by the old scoundrel Cai Jing. Otherwise, when he was an assassin, he had committed countless heinous crimes, and no amount of money could Li Shishi use to settle his cases. It was all because Cai Jing valued his skills that he kept him in the Imperial Fragrance Pavilion to protect Li Shishi and follow Cai Jing's orders.

Ma Bian was grateful to Li Shishi for saving his life and had become sworn siblings with her, so he naturally wanted to protect her. Secondly, Cai Jing already knew about his affairs, so he couldn't leave. However, Li Hanxiao's words today had awakened him. Although he was not a good person, he should no longer speak up for treacherous officials.

Therefore, taking advantage of the opportunity when Li Hanxiao's eyes were injured by Gao Yanei, he coaxed Li Hanxiao while secretly bringing Li Shishi out and arranging for them to meet.

"Since you are a descendant of Li Yu, and the woman Cai Jing specifically requested to be given to the emperor in the future, how could Cai Jing possibly allow you to break through the four gates in the capital city to have your hair combed?"

Li Han smiled to himself, thinking that Cai Jing wasn't wrong, so why didn't he send a virgin to Emperor Huizong of Song instead...right?

Upon hearing Li Hanxiao's words, Li Shishi burst into tears. "Young Master, this matter of breaking through the four passes was not what I wanted. Who do you think these four passes were originally waiting for..."

Although Li Shishi didn't say it explicitly, Li Hanxiao understood.

These four challenges are indeed difficult; theoretically, no one could pass them. These four challenges are designed to filter candidates. The first three challenges require exceptional talent to pass, and most people would not be able to pass the last one.

However, Emperor Huizong of Song prided himself on being a romantic emperor, and he was very fond of and highly skilled in things like music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. These first three challenges were tailor-made for Emperor Huizong and were not difficult.

As for the fourth challenge, if it were him, Ma Bian would just let it go. After all, Ma Bian is also Cai Jing's man, and he is the last line of defense. He would defeat others, but when he encounters this main figure, he would just feign defeat.

These four trials were originally supposed to be solved only when Emperor Huizong of Song arrived, but to their surprise, Ma Bian actually lost to Li Hanxiao, and in front of everyone, he couldn't deny it at all, as Li Hanxiao solved them first!

Even if Emperor Huizong knew that Li Hanxiao had broken through the barrier but had not entered the pass, he certainly could not go there again.

After all, if it were the emperor himself who broke through the four passes and spent a night with the beauty, people would call him a romantic emperor, and it might even become a legendary tale.

But if someone else breaks through those four barriers first, then it's a completely different story when he goes back. How can an emperor accept leftovers? Even nominally leftovers are unacceptable; it's not a good thing to say...

Although he quite enjoyed eating "leftovers" in the original story, he certainly wouldn't have that thought now...

Logically, since breaking through the four passes was a scheme orchestrated by Cai Jing, he should have sent people to keep an eye on things and prevent anyone from actually breaking through the four passes in front of Emperor Huizong of Song.

Unfortunately, such matters cannot be made public. If a troop of imperial guards were sent to stand guard at Fanlou, anyone with discerning eyes would immediately understand, and Emperor Huizong would lose the pleasure of sharing joy with the people.

Therefore, he simply made the four passes extremely difficult, without assigning anyone to guard them. Furthermore, he had absolute confidence in Ma Bian's strength.

It was precisely because of this carelessness that Gao Yanei caused a ruckus at Fanlou, and Li Han laughed his way through the four gates.

“Young Master, now that you have broken through four passes, you have ruined the plans of that old scoundrel Cai Jing. How could he possibly forgive you… And Brother Ma Bian and I allowed you to break through four passes without our permission. If you were to remain at the Imperial Fragrance Pavilion, my fate would be the same… Therefore, I implore Young Master Li to take me away from Tokyo as soon as possible. Just now, when you broke through the four passes, your character and talent were truly captivating. I, Shishi, am willing to serve you for the rest of my life and follow you to the ends of the earth, to be a pair of celestial lovers…”

Li Shishi tearfully recounted the whole story, including how Ma Bian stayed at Yuxiang Tower to repay Li Shishi for saving his life. In reality, he was secretly protecting Li Shishi. After Gao Yanei injured Li Hanxiao with lime, it was Ma Bian who came up with the idea to set up this scheme to bring the two together.

"It's a tangled mess, and once it starts, it's impossible to stop..."

Li Hanxiao never expected that Wang Yin's loose tongue would lead him into such a mess. This time, it would be really hard for him to get out of it! Because of Li Shishi, he probably already had a bad word to say to Cai Jing. In addition, Ma Lin had beaten Gao Yanei before. Well, he had directly offended two of the four treacherous officials.

"But, Miss Shishi, even if I wanted to take you away, I'm afraid the whole city is searching for us. How can we even leave the city?"

As Li Hanxiao was speaking, Wen Huanzhang and Ma Bian pushed open the door and entered, saying, "My lord, there is still a way to get out of the city. After we finish our business, we can try to leave the city."

Ma Bian cleaned the lime off Wen Huanzhang with vegetable oil and told him the whole story. At this time, he and Wang Yin were brought over by Ma Bian to discuss countermeasures.

It turns out that the road out of the city that Ma Bian mentioned was not on the ground, but "underground," which is the legendary "Ghost Fanlou" in the underground of Bianliang, the capital of the Eastern Capital.

The Fanlou above ground is a landmark building in Tokyo, while the underground "Ghost Fanlou" is a place where filth and evil are hidden, also known as "Worry-Free Cave".

This place is located inside the deep and extensive underground drainage system of the capital. As vast as the capital is, this Guifanlou is also very large. It is a maze of interconnected passages, like an underground city. Many desperate criminals hide inside, as well as human traffickers who abduct women and steal women and branches. Although the imperial court often sends people to crack down on them, it cannot completely stop the problem.

In addition to canals, there is also an ancient city from the Warring States period underground in Kaifeng Prefecture. The people there also dug many tunnels leading out of the city. As long as you have acquaintances or can afford to pay, it is easy to leave the city through these places.

Ma Bian happened to have some connections in this Ghost Fanlou, so he could still manage to leave the city.

“I have been planning this for years, hoping to help her escape. Although today is not the only time she will have the opportunity to leave, she also wants to find someone she can rely on, which is why she came to you.”

As Ma Bian finished speaking, he looked at Li Hanxiao.

"Brother Ma Bian has helped Miss Shishi so much, and they've known each other for so many years, so why don't you be with Miss Shishi yourself..."

Li Hanxiao asked curiously, and Ma Bian seemed to have anticipated Li Hanxiao's question, replying, "Back when I was an assassin, I was severely injured and became impotent, so I can never have children..."

Li Hanxiao realized that he had inadvertently touched a sore spot, and quickly shut up.

“Brother Li, Shishi is a good girl. Although she has fallen into prostitution, she is still a virgin. Moreover, falling into prostitution was not her wish. In terms of family background and appearance, she is a good match for you, Li Erlang. If you are willing to take her away, I will go with you. I dare not say anything else, but with my sword Ma Bian, if there are pursuers, I will fight to the death to cover your retreat. What do you say?”

Ma Bian tried his best to bring Li Hanxiao and Li Shishi together, using almost every trick in the book.

"Alright, I'm not fortunate enough to receive such a beautiful woman's favor. I never expected that I, Li Hanxiao, would have this marriage by some twist of fate. But you should think carefully, because what I, Li Erlang, am about to do will defy the world and I will inevitably break the law."

"If you never leave me, I will stay with you through life and death."

Li Shishi said nonchalantly.

"My lord, Miss Shishi is a descendant of the last emperor of the Southern Tang Dynasty. If she were to marry you, what would happen to the former officials and people of the Southern Tang when others rise up in rebellion?"

Wen Huanzhang stepped forward and whispered something in Li Hanxiao's ear.

Wen Huanzhang's statement couldn't be clearer: although Li Yu, the last ruler of the Southern Tang Dynasty, lived a long time ago, the descendants of the former officials of the Southern Tang Dynasty still existed. Back then, Li Qing, a descendant of Li Yu, raised a flag and rebelled in the former territory of the Southern Tang Dynasty, and many former officials of the Southern Tang Dynasty gathered to respond.

Later, it was Di Qing and the descendants of the Yang family who led the Five Tigers to pacify the south. Moreover, some former officials of the Southern Tang Dynasty still live in seclusion in the mountains and forests and are not loyal to the Song Dynasty.

Wen Huanzhang was telling Li Hanxiao that taking this woman in was also a way to win over the hearts of the former officials of Southern Tang, a sure-fire deal.

"Alright, Brother Ma Bian, but I still have some important matters to attend to in the capital. After I finish them, how about we leave Tokyo?"

"Alright, then Shishi and I will hide here. You all go and do your business. Once you're done, we'll leave the city together through Ghost Fanlou. Oh, and you'll need these things."

Ma Bian handed a package to Li Hanxiao. When Li Hanxiao opened it, he found more than a dozen of the legendary "human skin masks" inside.

"Your images have been drawn; carrying these with you when you go out on business will make things easier."

Seeing how thoughtful and thorough Ma Bian was in handling the matter, Li Hanxiao couldn't help but thank him repeatedly.