Water Margin: The Tale of Li Erlang of Guankou

Li Han smiled slightly, whistled, and then his hunting dog, leading a pack of large dogs, charged out from the side of the forest, howling as it ran.

The phrase "wolves running and boars charging" refers to the fact that dogs and wolves were originally one family in ancient times. Now, when a pack of dogs runs, their imposing presence is no less than that of a pack of wolves.

How did Li Hanxiao's hunting dogs end up with a pack of large dogs?

It turned out that Li Hanxiao had left his hounds and hawks near Niutou Mountain to roam freely. These large dogs were "underlings" recruited by Li Hanxiao's hunting dogs.

Ever since being revived by Erlang Shen, Li Hanxiao's hounds have been among the top predators of their kind; the dogs are kings, and the eagles are kings.

In Shandong and Hebei, where people are living in poverty, there are many stray dogs.

Legend has it that in the desolate wilderness, there is a kind of wild dog that eats the corpses of the dead. It is commonly known as the "red-eyed dog" or the "corpse-digging dog".

These wild dogs are enormous, ferocious by nature, with heads as hard as iron, bloodshot eyes, and an extremely sensitive nose that can detect the smell of corpses dozens of miles away.

With their sharp teeth and claws, they can dig holes in earthen graves. Once they find a coffin, they smash the coffin lid with their heads, then drag the corpse out, gut it, and gnaw it into a skeleton.

Sometimes, when they encounter a lone, vulnerable human, they will become aggressive, pouncing on them and tearing them to death before devouring them.

In ancient times, the cheapest coffins for the poor were nothing more than "three-inch cypress planks." These planks would be easily broken by a red-eyed dog bumping into them, so these thin coffins were commonly known as "dog-bumped coffins."

In chaotic times, human life is as worthless as grass. Due to the tyranny of the court, the common people were overwhelmed and countless corpses were left to rot in the wilderness, especially in the north. After all, there were various border troubles in the north. Once war broke out, the people on the border would inevitably be displaced. No matter where they were, there were corpses everywhere, so the number of wild dogs that ate the dead increased.

Because these dogs eat human flesh year-round, they are exceptionally ferocious and roam in packs, so even ordinary wolf packs dare not provoke them.

While Li Hanxiao's hunting dog was wandering near Niutou Mountain, it happened to encounter a large pack of scavenging dogs, numbering forty or fifty large dogs. Seeing that it was a lone dog, they wanted to kill and dismember it.

The result was quite unexpected. Li Hanxiao's hunting dogs not only killed the leader of the pack that charged at them, but also easily took down three large dogs that charged at them, intimidating the pack with their superior strength.

So, these scavenging dogs were taken in by Li Hanxiao's hunting dogs and brought back to Niutou Mountain.

Li Han smiled but didn't think it was a bad idea. He knew how to control dogs, and these were all good dogs. If he really needed them, dozens of big dogs could charge out together and even a tiger wouldn't survive.

"go with!"

Li Han gave a command, and the dogs pounced on Gao Yanei, tearing him apart. The scene was... extremely bloody.

In the end, Gao Yanei met his end in a dog's belly, which was a fitting end to his many evil deeds, including bullying innocent women and murdering to cover up his crimes!

"Happy! So happy!"

Lin Chong witnessed the entire process of Gao Yanei, a living person, being devoured by a pack of dogs. Although it was bloody, he didn't feel anything special; on the contrary, he felt extremely pleased.

"I'll just have to wait until I have the chance to kill that old scoundrel Gao Qiu, then I can consider it revenge!"

Lin Chong said.

"What Instructor Lin said is not wrong, but in my opinion, even if you worked under Wang Lun for three lifetimes, you would never be able to fight your way back to Tokyo and kill that old traitor Gao Qiu!"

Wen Huanzhang seized the opportunity to remind Lin Chong.

“Excellent, excellent, Brother Li. In that case, I will follow you to Liangshan Marsh to repay your kindness, how about that?”

After Lin Chong finished speaking, he bowed deeply.

"Very good, very good. With Instructor Lin's help, Liangshan will be a smooth road ahead. Instructor Lin, I would like to ask you to persuade Zhu Gui to join me as well. That way, he can send out a signal arrow to call for a boat to come over. We can then cross the marshland, seize the water stronghold, and then attack the mountain. How about that?"

Hearing Li Hanxiao's words, Lin Chong also said with great pain, "That's not difficult. Although Zhu Gui was promoted by Wang Lun, he has long been dissatisfied with Wang Lun. It shouldn't be difficult to persuade him."

"Alright, since that's the case, let's put this matter aside for now. Instructor, could you tell me in detail about the geography of Liangshan?"

If Li Hanxiao wanted to attack Liangshan, he needed to be very clear about the geography there. Although he had read "Water Margin" in his previous life, he had never seen a place like Liangshan before, so he needed Lin Chong to introduce it to him.

"Alright, the terrain of Liangshan Marsh is high in the southwest and low in the northeast. It consists of four main peaks: Liangshan, Qinglongshan, Fenghuangshan, and Guishan, as well as seven branch peaks and eight mountains, including Hutou Peak, Xueshan Peak, Haoshan Peak, and Xiaohuangshan. The main peak, Hutou Peak, connects to a narrow mountain ridge to the north, which is Heifengkou. North of Heifengkou, it connects to Qisanshan. To the east of Qisanshan is Xueshan Peak. The eastern extension of Xueshan Peak is relatively flat, which is Xiaopingshan. Further east is Yuhuangding. The northern extension of Xueshan Peak is Xiaohuangshan. To the northwest is Donggouzhuashan. The western extension is longer, with three peaks from east to west: Goutoushan, Xigouzhuashan, and Haoshan Peak. There are also east-west trending peaks: Aozishan and Qinglongshan. From Aozishan, extending north is Xiaoliang Peak, also known as the back mountain."

Lin Chong, having been an instructor of the 800,000 Imperial Guards, was knowledgeable in military strategy and troop deployment. Shortly after joining Liangshan, he conducted an on-site survey of the terrain and discovered that it was indeed a strategically advantageous location, easy to defend and difficult to attack.

"Below the main gate, there are the two water fortresses, Jinshatan and Yazuitan. Further up, these are the first checkpoints, located in the valley between Liangshan Xiaohuangshan and Yazuitan. The city gate is two-story, consisting of two watchtowers and four drum platforms."

According to Lin Chong's description, after Li Hanxiao and his men captured Jinshatan and Yazuitan, they would soon face the first obstacle on the way up the mountain. However, this obstacle was now in Wang Lun's hands and had not been built to be impregnable.

Lin Chong also pointed out the fatal weakness of this pass: it was entirely made of wood and could not defend against fire.

Wang Lun had a narrow vision. He believed that no one would choose to use water to attack a mountain within an area of ​​800 li (approximately 400 kilometers) of Liangshan Marsh, since the first pass was entirely made of wood and not bricks or stones.

Once it's set on fire, this pass will become nothing more than a pile of firewood.

"The second pass is located in a place with steep mountains, deep valleys, and dense vegetation. It is a border outpost-style building with walls and gates made entirely of stone and built with dry rubble. It stands guard in the valley with a strong fortress and flags covering the stronghold. It is guarded by Song Wan, the 'King Kong in the Clouds'. However, this pass also has a weakness, which is on the suspension bridge!"

"The suspension bridge in this section uses ropes instead of chains. As long as the ropes can be broken, the suspension bridge will fall down, and there will be a smooth road ahead."

Lin Chong revealed his weaknesses one by one, and Li Hanxiao secretly memorized them.

Next, everyone acted according to the plan. Lin Chong left his family on Niutou Mountain, Li Hanxiao reorganized the troops, and Lin Chong returned to Lijia Pass to persuade Zhu Gui. Once Zhu Gui's side was ready, they would launch a major attack on Liangshan Marsh.

Meanwhile, Lin Chong, alone on horseback, returned to Li Family Pass and went straight into the tavern, where he met "Dry Land Crocodile" Zhu Gui.

"Where are the coach's family members?"

Zhu Gui asked curiously.

"Now Lin Chong is in such a predicament on the mountain... his family has come... and..."

Lin Chong sat down. Although he didn't finish his sentence, Zhu Gui understood what he meant and didn't ask any more questions. As a tavern owner, he was always busy welcoming and seeing off customers, so he had the ability to judge people's character.

"Ah, Brother Zhu Gui, you've treated me well. I shouldn't have kept Lin Chong's affairs from you. What do you think of Chief Wang?"

Lin Chong suddenly asked a question, which caught Zhu Gui off guard. Zhu Gui stammered and didn't know how to answer.

"I know that Chief Wang has been kind to you, but Liangshan will likely struggle to prosper under his control in the future..."

Lin Chong didn't finish his sentence because he knew very well that Zhu Gui understood the meaning behind his words.

"This...the matter of the mountain stronghold, it's all up to people, isn't it? We'll do our best to assist..."

Zhu Gui lacked the vision and ability to be a leader, and that was all he could think of, hence his statement.

"Brother Zhu Gui, have you ever considered whether Liangshan could prosper if a different person were to become its leader?"

Upon hearing Lin Chong's words, Zhu Gui glanced at Lin Chong with a meaningful look in his eyes, and then said, "I have truly thought that if you, Instructor Lin, were to become the leader of Liangshan, it would surely prosper. You, Instructor Lin, are a hundred times better than Chief Wang. Chief Wang is a down-on-his-luck scholar, while you are the instructor of 800,000 Imperial Guards. It's like heaven and earth."

Zhu Gui understood that Lin Chong was a capable man, while Wang Lun was incompetent. It was unrealistic to expect him to remain subservient for long. He had initially thought that Lin Chong would not harbor any disloyalty, but he had seen how Wang Lun had treated Lin Chong these past few days. Now that Lin Chong was saying these words, he thought that Lin Chong had become disloyal and wanted to replace Wang Lun.

"Brother, Brother Zhu Gui, I won't say much more. I'll just ask you one question: if someone were to take over Liangshan and overthrow Wang Lun, would you be willing to follow them?"

"This...makes me betray Chief Wang..."

Zhu Gui hesitated. Although he had some dissatisfaction with Wang Lun, he was also a man of honor.

"Although I, Lin Chong, am not well-educated, I do know a little literature. Before Liu Bei entered Sichuan at the end of the Han Dynasty to seize the territory of his kinsmen, his strategist Pang Tong told him that in these chaotic times, one should not stick to the old ways but adapt to circumstances. Moreover, annexing the weak, attacking the obscure, taking what is against the tide and defending what is right, and repaying with righteousness are precisely what the ancients valued. As long as things are settled and a piece of land is returned to Liu Zhang, who can say that you have broken your promise? If you do not take advantage of this time to attack Yizhou, others will seize the opportunity."

Lin Chong's words were essentially telling Zhu Gui what to do, and Zhu Gui understood.

In fact, he was very clear that Wang Lun probably only wanted to make a small fuss in Liangshan Marsh and did not intend to develop it into a major power. This was because Liangshan was neither too big nor too small, and its influence could not extend beyond the 800-li marshland. In addition, the terrain was easy to defend and difficult to attack, so the government troops would not easily come to wipe them out.

Wang Lun was, after all, a down-on-his-luck scholar. He lacked any sense of crisis or ambition, and was content with his peaceful life in the mountains.

Therefore, to this day, there are only a few leaders in the mountain stronghold. The vast majority of the grain and money are still gifts from Chai Jin, or they are obtained through plundering and robbing passing merchants, engaging in small-scale raids.

Logically, occupying such a large territory, he could have focused on recruiting soldiers and horses, but Wang Lun didn't want to cause too much trouble and disrupt the balance with the government. In the end, the government sent troops to attack him, and he kept his number of followers below two thousand.

If things continue like this, even if the authorities don't intervene, the surrounding mountain strongholds will think Liangshan is weak and easy to bully, and they will come to attack sooner or later.

If we really change the leader and find someone stronger than Wang Lun, it might not be a bad way out!

So Zhu Gui asked, "Instructor Lin, according to what you said, it is indeed time to change the leader. As long as we treat Chief Wang well and don't kill him after the matter is done, it won't be considered ungrateful."

Zhu Gui's only obstacle was that he was someone Wang Lun had personally promoted. If he were to defect to someone else, he would inevitably have to watch Wang Lun be killed, and how could he live with that peace of mind?

"Yes, although Chief Wang and I don't get along, he is still somewhat ungrateful. Think about it, if the stronghold changes hands, but he can still live a life of comfort, isn't that a good thing? If he is still the chief, and one day he leads Liangshan into a fire, can he still survive?"

Zhu Gui nodded, seemingly lost in thought, and said, "That's right, just like those emperors who lost their kingdoms. Except for Emperor Xian of Han, who later became the Chai family of this dynasty and had a good ending, the rest all died..."

"So what do you think? To be honest, my benefactor Li Hanxiao has come with several hundred men and a dozen experts, intending to seize Liangshan to achieve his great cause. I also want to follow him. He has promised that after the matter is accomplished, he will not kill Wang Lun and will still treat him well. As for Song Wan, Du Qian, and you, you will also have a seat on the mountain. What do you think?"

"Alright, then so be it."

Zhu Gui's slightly furrowed brows finally relaxed.

Zhu Gui and Li Jiadaokou had already surrendered. Lin Chong sent someone to inform Li Hanxiao, who then mustered 500 elite soldiers and led Wen Huanzhang, Si Xingfang, "Standing Tai Sui" Ruan Xiaoer, "Short-lived Erlang" Ruan Xiaowu, "Living Yama" Ruan Xiaoqi, "Thunderbolt" Ling Zhen, "Better than Ren Gui" Guo Sheng, "Golden Wings on Clouds" Ou Peng, "Iron Flute Immortal" Ma Lin, "Fire-eyed Lion" Deng Fei, and "Brocade Leopard" Yang Lin to prepare to attack Liangshan Marsh, leaving Wang Yin to guard his family.

Li Hanxiao led his men to secretly arrive at the Li Family Pass. The Liangshan Marsh was completely unaware of this. Without Zhu Gui's tavern, Wang Lun was like a deaf and blind man.

"I, Zhu Gui, have met Brother Li Er and am willing to follow him from now on. I only ask that Brother Li Er spare Wang Lun, Du Qian, and Song Wan."

When Zhu Gui saw Li Hanxiao again, he immediately knelt down to show his sincerity.

“Alright, now is the time when we need men, so they naturally won’t kill us. Now tell me, how many soldiers are there in each of these two water fortresses, Duckbill Beach and Golden Beach?”