Water Margin: The Tale of Li Erlang of Guankou

In fact, Li Hanxiao had specifically asked Lin Niangzi for this hairpin, just to make Gao Yanei believe him without a doubt!

"Young master, I have one more thing to say. If we are going, I think we shouldn't bring too many men. If there are too many people, there will be too much chatter and it will attract too much attention. If the father and daughter notice the commotion first, they will run away again!"

"Green Grass Snake," Li Si said deliberately.

"Yes, yes, Li Yuhou, come with me. Just take a few Imperial Guards with you!"

All Gao Yanei wanted was to see Lin Niangzi as soon as possible, hold her in his arms, and pamper her as he pleased; he didn't care about anything else.

Li Yuhou hesitated, frowning, and said, "Young Master, this isn't appropriate. Instructor Zhang is also a martial artist; what if..."

"What if, what if my ass! How old is he? What can he do? Besides, didn't he take several Imperial Guards with him? Who am I? I'm the son of the Grand Commandant. Even if he had a million guts, would he dare to lay a hand on me?"

Gao Yanei disliked the spoilsport Li Yuhou quite a bit, and with a wave of his hand, he gave Li Yuhou a solid slap across the face.

Li Yuhou was beaten senseless and dared not say anything more. He could only order a few imperial guards to cover their faces and remain silent, and follow Gao Yanei and "Green Grass Snake" Li Si to search for the person.

"Green Grass Snake" Li Si led Gao Yanei and his companions through almost half of Tokyo, wandering through streets and alleys until they were exhausted and their legs ached, until they reached this secluded spot in the city.

Li Yuhou couldn't help but get angry and said, "You rascal, are you just wandering around aimlessly? You've made us so tired! Are they really in such a remote place?"

"Nonsense, would they hide here if it weren't secluded? Quick, lead the way!"

Gao Yanei refuted Li Yuhou. Although he had been weakened by wine and women, he was still thinking about Lin Niangzi. He was exhausted and sweating profusely, and he was eager to leave so that he could see Lin Niangzi as soon as possible.

"It'll be ready soon! Young master, it'll be ready soon!"

Li Si, the "Green Grass Snake," deliberately shouted louder at the end, and several people quickly tumbled down from the eaves on both sides. Before Gao Yanei and his companions could react, three of the five imperial guards following behind had already lost their heads.

"what!"

Gao Yanei had never seen such a bloody affair before. His legs went weak and he collapsed to the ground.

It was Si Xingfang who made the move. He was holding a broadsword and had been lying in ambush on the walls on both sides. He leaped down and used the "Dragon Devours the Moon" move, which combined the kinetic energy and gravitational potential energy of his descent, to sever three heads in one fell swoop.

Just as the other two imperial guards were about to draw their swords, Wang Yin, who was already prepared on the other side, thrust out the spear in his hand. With a "bang," the spear pierced through the chest of one of the guards, pinning him to the earthen wall.

As for the last remaining Imperial Guard, Li Hanxiao's golden bow and silver bullets never missed. Two silver bullets struck his left and right eyelids respectively, piercing his brain through his eyes, and he died instantly.

Li Yuhou was at least capable of running away. He forcefully patted his leaden legs a couple of times, trying to escape, but was stopped by "Iron Flute Immortal" Ma Lin who drew two swords. Ma Lin held the sword in his left hand against Li Yuhou, while his right hand held the sword across Gao Yanei's neck.

"Ahhhh, sir, sir, I have plenty of money, please spare me..."

Before Gao Yanei could finish speaking, Ma Lin smashed the hilt of his knife into his face, knocking him unconscious.

"who are you?"

Li Hanxiao jumped down from the wall and asked Li Yuhou.

"I am Li Yuhou from the Palace Guard... This matter has nothing to do with me..."

Li Yuhou spoke with a clattering sound, like a machine gun firing. When Li Hanxiao heard it was Li Yuhou, he realized that this guy was no good either. With a wave of his hand, Ma Lin slit the throat of this treacherous villain without saying a word.

Having succeeded, Li Hanxiao immediately instructed everyone to divide the tasks and clean up the mess. The ruffians carried all the dead bodies away, threw them into the dry well in the deserted courtyard, and then wiped away the bloodstains.

Li Hanxiao and his men gagged Gao Yanei, tied him up like a pig, and carried him on their shoulders in a sack. They then sent someone to fetch Instructor Zhang's family, Li Shishi, and Ma Bian to leave the city from Guifanlou.

Once everything was ready, Ma Bian led everyone to the Ghost Fanlou. He took them to a deserted courtyard and had them all jump into a dry well, which led down to the Ghost Fanlou.

"who?"

As soon as Ma Bian led the group into the underground of Gui Fan Lou, two hunchbacked men popped out from the side.

The two men were hunched over, carrying short knives and torches. Their skin was like that of albinism patients, clearly indicating that they had never seen the light of day.

Ma Bian gestured to the crowd not to act rashly, then stepped forward and made a thumbs-up gesture with his right index, middle, and ring fingers held together. This was a hand gesture used in the underworld: left hand for treasure, right hand for seal.

Seeing that Ma Bian was one of their own, the two men bowed deeply and began exchanging slang.

"Amidst the Three Mountains and Five Peaks, a single white lotus blooms, a beauty that graces the heavens and earth."

Ma Bian replied, "The fragrance soars to the heavens, and a young boy sits beneath the old mother."

The man then asked, "A riot of colors, is your domain like a sea of ​​flowers, Senior Brother?"

"A rare flower in its first bloom, a beautiful mountain village with countless wonders."

After Ma Bian finished matching the slang, the two men made a "please" gesture and led the group forward through the tunnel.

This was essentially an encrypted call, and no one else understood it either...

The tunnel was initially very narrow, barely wide enough for one person to pass through. After walking several dozen steps, it suddenly opened up, and after walking about a mile, one arrived at a large space.

But this place was actually an ancient city buried underground. Underfoot was the city wall of the ancient city. A huge space had been cleared out here, with dim candlelight everywhere. This underground world was just like the one above Tokyo City, bustling with people and even had a market!

"This is the legendary Ghost Fanlou. These two are disciples of Master Ge, one of the 'Eight Immortals of the Earth' in Ghost Fanlou. We will pay them three hundred taels of silver and they will take us out of the city."

Ma Bian explained.

"Are the Ma brothers really reliable?"

Looking at the people below, none of them seemed like good people, so Wang Yin couldn't help but ask.

"Brother, don't worry. This old man Ge and I are quite close friends, so there's no need to be afraid. However, the underworld is not like the surface world, and there are no equivalent laws. Women must wear thick clothes and cover their faces."

After all, this is a world of crime, where there is no law. If a woman is too beautiful, she's bound to be snatched up...

"Sister-in-law, Miss Shishi, please take some dust to clean your face, remove your jewelry, and put on a couple of thicker clothes!"

Although Li Hanxiao made these arrangements, looking at the diverse people in this underground world, he couldn't guarantee that none of them would harbor malicious intentions. He could only grip the golden bow tightly, ready to strike at any moment.

Fortunately, nothing serious happened inside the Ghost Fanlou. Perhaps Li Hanxiao and his group of burly men, along with a dozen or so ruffians, frightened the others. They wandered back and forth in the tunnel for more than half an hour, leaping and crouching, and finally crawled out from some unknown graveyard outside the city.

Although the escape process wasn't great, once they reached the ground, they could see that they were now outside of Tokyo.

“Instructor Zhang, Madam, we have already left Tokyo. I know you two do not trust me. If you wish to leave, I will provide you with travel expenses.”

Li Hanxiao felt it would be better to talk to Lin Chong's family first.

"Young man, wait a minute!"

Instructor Zhang stopped Li Hanxiao.

"Young man, I have a question for you. Do you really know my son-in-law?"

Instructor Zhang is a man who has experienced many hardships, and it's clear that Li Hanxiao probably doesn't recognize Lin Chong.

"Haha, old ginger is spicier, Instructor Zhang, I really don't know your son-in-law."

Seeing that Li Hanxiao had told the truth, Instructor Zhang asked, "Since you have no relationship with my son-in-law, why did you take such a risk to help my daughter and me escape from the capital, and then risk your life to kidnap Gao Yanei?"

Instructor Zhang couldn't understand. What was Li Hanxiao after doing this? If you said it was for profit, Lin Chong was now a fugitive, a bandit king. What could he possibly give him? Gold and silver? He probably didn't lack those either.

Could it be that he's after his own daughter? But that doesn't make sense either. He's with a stunningly beautiful woman by his side; she must be his woman. Compared to that woman, his daughter is far inferior.

If we're talking about friendship, these two weren't really friends. Although Lu Zhishen had once caused a ruckus in the Wild Boar Forest to save Lin Chong's life and even escorted him all the way to Cangzhou, it was because they had a prior relationship.

Instructor Zhang really didn't understand.

Li Han laughed and said, "Instructor Zhang, sister-in-law, although I have never met Instructor Lin, I have long admired him and know that he was framed for the sake of loyalty to the entire martial arts world, which is why I did this."

"But...you and my son-in-law aren't friends either, why bother?"

Instructor Zhang spread his hands, he couldn't believe that a complete stranger could help someone to this extent.

"Hahahaha! Instructor, you underestimate me, Li Han! Tell me, what was Nie Zheng's purpose in assassinating Xia Lei, a white rainbow piercing the sun? It was only to repay a friend. And what was Yu Rang's purpose in assassinating Zhao Xiangzi, unwavering in his resolve? What was Cheng Ying's purpose in replacing the Zhao family's orphan with his own son? Loyalty and righteousness. Do I need to explain the principles of a true man to you? Do you think those who are eager to help others always act with ulterior motives?"

Li Hanxiao's righteous and awe-inspiring words made Coach Zhang burst into laughter and apologize repeatedly.

"I never imagined that in this world, there would still be someone like you, a chivalrous figure from ancient times. How utterly disrespectful!"

"Old man, how can I accept your apology? Please get up!"

Just as Li Hanxiao helped Instructor Zhang up, Madam Lin came over and asked, "My benefactor, is my husband really at Liangshan Marsh...?"

"Indeed, Instructor Lin is currently at Liangshan Marsh, suffering all the humiliation from Wang Lun. To be honest, I am leading a group of brothers to Liangshan Marsh to seize it as our base. But please rest assured, I will not make things difficult for Instructor Lin."

After hearing Li Hanxiao's words, Instructor Zhang and his daughter exchanged a glance. After a moment, Instructor Zhang said, "Alas, we have received your great kindness. How can we, father and daughter, not repay your kindness? Now there is nowhere for our family to go. Since you want to take Liangshan Marsh, we will go with you. We will persuade my son-in-law to come and join you in becoming kings of the mountain. I can then enjoy a peaceful old age, and the couple can be reunited."

After weighing the pros and cons, Coach Zhang finally made this decision.

"Old Instructor, this is for the best. This is not the place to linger and talk. Please come with us first."

Li Hanxiao thought he should meet up with Ou Peng and the others first, so he led everyone to set off immediately to find Ou Peng and the others.

Because there were too many people and not enough animals, the horses were given to Li Shishi, Lin Niangzi, and the elderly Instructor Zhang to ride behind him, with Gao Yanei in tow. Most of the others followed on foot. After traveling twenty or thirty miles, they bought a few more mules and horses and a carriage in a nearby village, which made them travel faster. They traveled all night and found Ou Peng and the others who had been waiting for them for three days as dawn broke.

"Brother, how was your trip? You've been gone for several days, and I was so worried about you!"

Upon seeing Li Hanxiao return with his group, Ou Peng, Deng Fei, Jiang Jing, Yang Lin, Guo Sheng, and Tao Zongwang all gathered around, offering their concern and greetings.

"I'm sorry to have worried you all. Things have progressed rapidly. Let me introduce you to this woman, who is the wife of Instructor Zhang. She is a relative of Instructor Lin Chong, the 'Leopard Head'. Please treat her well."

"Greetings, father-in-law and sister-in-law."

They had all heard of the formidable reputation of "Leopard Head" Lin Chong and knew about Li Hanxiao's plan, so naturally they dared not mistreat Instructor Zhang's family.

"This is Wen Huanzhang from Anren Village. Mr. Wen is a highly skilled strategist whom I have invited to serve as my military advisor. Brothers, from this day forward, all of you except me must follow Mr. Wen's orders. He is our Jiang Shang, Jiang Ziya, Zhang Liang, Zhang Zifang, and Zhuge Kongming. Do you understand?"

"It is already known!"

"These are the heroes and valiant men we've recruited in Tokyo. This is Brother Si Xingfang, this is Brother Ma Bian, and this is Brother Ling Zhen..."

Li Hanxiao introduced them one by one, even the ruffians spoke up. Ou Peng and the others were overjoyed to see so many heroes joining them. The ruffians thought that if they followed Li Hanxiao, they could live a life of luxury and wouldn't have to beg for a living like they did in Tokyo. They were all happy too.

"Brother, who is this young lady...?"

As a scholar, "Master Calculator" Jiang Jing demonstrated keen observation skills. Li Hanxiao had just introduced everyone, but not Li Shishi.

Li Shishi's beauty alone was enough to attract everyone's attention, even without her saying a word, which aroused Jiang Jing's curiosity.

"Ah... this is..."

Li Hanxiao was still pondering how to introduce Li Shishi when Wen Huanzhang chimed in, "Brothers, this is Li Shishi, a descendant of the last emperor of the Southern Tang Dynasty. She is the lord's concubine, Huaiyuanchahu."

In ancient times, "Huaiyuanchahu" was generally used to refer to a fiancée, but the brothers below were not very literate and did not understand.

"What? Longan?"

"What do you mean?"

"Check who?"

"She's my fiancée!"

Jiang Jing, who was somewhat literate, quickly explained to everyone.

"Oh~"

Everyone then understood, immediately changed their expressions to smiles, and bowed in unison, saying, "Congratulations, brother! Greetings, sister-in-law!"

Hearing what everyone was saying, Li Shishi blushed slightly, but she didn't act coy like a typical woman. Instead, she walked up to Li Hanxiao and stood next to him, seemingly to "declare her dominance."

"Hey you guys...you're naughty, making a fuss!"

Li Hanxiao was both amused and exasperated, but he figured he wasn't at a disadvantage. After all, Li Shishi was a descendant of royalty, and in terms of looks and talent, she was one of the best women. He had been a bachelor in his previous life, but in this life, he was able to marry such a beautiful woman, so he hadn't lived in vain.