Water Margin: The Tale of Li Erlang of Guankou

Upon hearing this, Wu Song became angry and couldn't help but cough.

"I, Wu Song, a dignified man with unparalleled martial arts skills, have been murdered like this. I am truly outraged..."

Li Hanxiao quickly reassured him, "Don't worry, the doctor said to eat more nourishing foods and take the right medicine. With your physique, you'll be fine in half a month. Instructor, take the doctor to get the medicine."

Li Hanxiao told Lin Chong to take the doctor out so he could say something.

After the doctor left, Li Han smiled and said, "Brother Wu, you can no longer go back to Master Chai's place. Is there anywhere else you can go?"

Wu Song was stunned for a moment. He thought that he had killed someone and was in a murder case, which was why he had fled his hometown. Now, apart from his brother in his hometown, where else could he go to seek refuge?

Seeing that Wu Song was speechless, Li Hanxiao spoke up, "Brother Wu Song, I heard that you committed a murder and that's why you've gone into hiding. You absolutely must not go back home. First, if the authorities catch you, you'll inevitably be exiled to the army. Second, it will also implicate your family."

Upon hearing this, Wu Song nodded and spoke worriedly of his elder brother, Wu Dalang, saying, "Wu Er only has one brother back in our hometown. Because of me, he must be in shackles and suffering terribly. I cannot go back..."

"Where else could we possibly go?"

"I...I...the whole world is so vast, yet there is nowhere for me, Wu Song, to find refuge..."

Even the eight-foot-tall Wu Song, overcome with grief, couldn't help but shed tears.

Although Li Hanxiao knew that Wu Song hadn't actually killed anyone, only knocked them unconscious, he didn't want to explain at the moment. If he let Wu Song go home, even if he could kill a tiger on the way, it would be difficult to change the fact that his elder brother Wu Dalang had died and that he had been convicted for avenging his brother.

Even if you told him beforehand that his sister-in-law might be having an affair, Wu Song wouldn't believe it. He might even think you were trying to sow discord, since his elder brother Wu Dalang is practically sacred and inviolable in his eyes.

If you interfere too much, not only will Wu Song be unhappy, but even if you change the established facts in the original story, Wu Song will not think you are right, because who can guarantee that something that has not happened will definitely happen?

It would be better to first establish a good relationship with Wu Song. After all, Wu Song has nowhere to go and is ill. We can take him to Liangshan to recover first. During this time, Li Hanxiao can foster a relationship with him. Wu Song is a grateful person. With this relationship established, Li Hanxiao can later persuade Wu Song to bring his elder brother to Liangshan as well, which would make things more satisfactory.

"I have a favor to ask. I have a small place in Jeju Prefecture, about 800 li in circumference, which is enough to accommodate you, Erlang. Would you be willing to come to my place to recuperate?"

Li Han smiled as he spoke.

"Eight hundred li? Brother Li, are you joking?"

Wu Song couldn't help but laugh.

Li Hanxiao straightened his expression and said to Wu Song in a very serious tone, "Brother Wu Song, to tell you the truth, I am Li Hanxiao, the leader of Liangshan Marsh. The instructor with the leopard head and round eyes was my brother, Lin Chong, the instructor of the 800,000 Imperial Guards in Tokyo, known as 'Leopard Head'."

"what?"

Wu Song was taken aback. He had heard a bit about the recent change of leadership at Chai Jin's manor, but he never expected that the person in question would be right in front of him.

“Brother Wu Song, I know you may not want to join the outlaws on this mountain right now, but you have nowhere else to go under the sun, and you are ill. You are a hero, you are Wu Erlang, and I am Li Erlang. I, Li Erlang, have always admired heroes and valiant men. If you think highly of me, come and stay at my Liangshan for a few days to recuperate. Once you are fully recovered, I, Li Hanxiao, will not interfere with where you wish to go. Whether you go south, north, east, or west, I will not ask. I will even provide you with travel expenses. On the mountain, you will not have to work, much less be a bandit. What do you say?”

Li Han smiled and spoke with utmost sincerity, which caught Wu Song off guard. He stammered, "I, I, I, in my entire life, apart from my brother, this is the first time anyone has treated me like this. Brother Li, I don't know how I have ever been so fortunate to have you think so highly of me!"

Li Han smiled and waved his hand, "It's all due to fate, there's no reason. I like you because you, Wu Song, are a hero. You are Wu Erlang, and I am Li Erlang. We are both second in line. You and I are friends who are silly together, and we have a friendship that is silly together!"

After Li Han finished speaking, he made Wu Song laugh heartily. He laughed so much that he coughed twice.

"Ahem, now that we've come this far, if I don't go, I'm afraid I, Wu Erlang, won't be a good friend."

Wu Song smiled bitterly, seemingly speaking as if it were going with the flow, but in reality, he was filled with helplessness. If he had nowhere else to go, why would a man as tall as eight feet like to bow his head under someone else's low eaves?

"Alright, since we're friends, promise me you won't say such unorthodox things again!"

As Li Han smiled, he handed a bowl of hot noodles to Wu Song, tilting his head up to indicate that Wu Song should eat.

Wu Song took the soup noodles and started eating them with a "slurp, slurp" sound. He held a mouthful of noodles in his mouth for a long time without chewing or swallowing.

"What's wrong, brother? I cooked these noodles myself. Is it not to your liking?"

Wu Song gulped down a mouthful of noodles and then said, "These noodles aren't as chewy as the ones my brother makes..."

"My cooking skills aren't up to par. If you want something else, I'll go find a restaurant for you."

Just as Li Hanxiao was about to get up, Wu Song stopped him, gulping down the noodles in one go. Then, looking at the remaining bowl of noodle soup, he slowly spoke.

"But this noodle tastes just like the one my older brother makes; he put his heart into it..."

Amidst the rising steam of the noodles, Li Han smiled as he looked at Wu Song's face, which was rather blurry. He didn't see a single tear quickly streaming down Wu Song's cheek, falling into the noodle soup and disappearing.

Immediately, Wu Song picked up the bowl and drank the noodle soup in one gulp. He wondered what the soup, now mixed with his tears, would taste like—salty? Bitter?

However, at least it can warm people's hearts...

"We won't be leaving today. You should rest here for a day. Instructor Lin and the doctor are back. I'll go and brew your medicine."

Li Hanxiao picked up the empty coarse porcelain bowl and was about to walk out.

Wu Song grabbed Li Hanxiao's hand and said urgently, "Second Brother Li, why do you have to go and brew medicine for me..."

"Haha, how can I be at ease with the medicine you take if I don't personally check how it's brewed? Have you forgotten how those farmhands harmed you before?"

Li Hanxiao tried to break free from Wu Song's grasp, but found that Wu Song held his hand firmly and he couldn't break free at all.

Wu Song stared blankly at Li Hanxiao, his face full of confusion. Finally, his voice trembled as he spoke, "I... I, Wu Song, have always disliked owing favors... Brother Li, I... I owe you so much, how can I ever repay it..."

Li Hanxiao placed the rough porcelain bowl on the table, freed his right hand, patted the hand that Wu Song was holding, and said with a smile, "Brother, no one asked you to repay me. You are my brother, Li Hanxiao's brother. It's nothing. You care so much about others being good to you, but why don't you treat yourself better?"

After Li Han finished speaking, he left the room, leaving Wu Song sitting on the bed, dumbfounded, as if frozen in place...

Li Hanxiao knew Wu Song very well. He grew up in a loveless environment, having lost his parents at a young age. Wu Dalang had to act as both father and mother to Wu Song and shoulder the burden of life. It was already a great hardship for him to raise Wu Song to adulthood, and he didn't have the extra energy to take care of Wu Song.

In particular, the two brothers were bullied a lot from childhood. Wu Dalang, with his small stature, was the one who was bullied. Wu Song witnessed the violence against his brothers from a young age, which also shaped his personality of liking to solve problems with violence: he was rude, prone to hitting people, had a very bad temper, and liked to solve problems with violence.

Wu Song's lack of love also made him realize that when someone was genuinely kind to him, he reciprocated wholeheartedly. He was a grateful person, and Song Jiang treated him well, taking care of him every day and even paying out of his own pocket to make clothes for Wu Song, treating him as a friend. He sincerely repaid Song Jiang by becoming sworn brothers with him and following him, eventually losing an arm in the process.

Later, when Zhang Dujian plotted to frame Wu Song, he first invited Wu Song to the back room to eat with him, allowed him to move freely between rooms, and pretended to treat Wu Song like a family member. He also had a tailor make Wu Song a complete set of autumn clothes, and said that he would marry his maid Yulan to Wu Song. He also tricked Wu Song into calling him "benefactor" repeatedly.

In general, Wu Song lacked love. Apart from his older brother Wu Dalang, no one had ever treated him well since childhood. Therefore, he did not know how to treat the kindness of others. When he encountered someone who was particularly kind to him, he would only express it in his own way, which was to be devoted to them, follow them for life, and even die for them.

Li Hanxiao had grasped this point, knowing that as long as he persisted in treating Wu Song well, Wu Song would eventually become his man.

Meanwhile, Wu Song ate a meal and took medicine at the inn, rested for a day, and the next day Li Hanxiao led Lin Chong, the Four Strongmen, and Wu Song back to Liangshan Marsh.

Since Wu Song couldn't ride a horse, Li Hanxiao was worried that his body couldn't handle the long journey, so he asked Nie Gong to hitch up a large cart to take Wu Song and let him rest on the cart along the way.

“My brother lost his parents at a young age. Apart from my eldest brother, Brother Li has treated me the best. He is so kind and righteous. How can I repay him?”

After setting off, Wu Song lay on the carriage, facing the opposite direction, and tears streamed down his face. Yet he dared not utter a sound. This man of iron was crying like a child...

After traveling for several days, they had entered the territory of Jizhou Prefecture. Just as Li Hanxiao and the others were about to return to Liangshan Marsh, some more things happened on the way.

When they reached a hilltop, a gong suddenly sounded, and a group of men rushed out and surrounded them.

"Leave the horses behind!"

"Leave your weapons behind!"

Li Han glanced around and saw that there were about fifty or sixty people, all armed with knives and guns, and their faces were covered with cloth. It was obviously a robbery that had been planned in advance.

"If you know what's good for you, leave your horses and weapons behind, and I'll spare your lives. Otherwise, we'll kill you!"

From the crowd, a young-sounding voice emerged. This person was dressed in a red robe, which also covered his face. He gripped a halberd tightly in his hand, and a golden leopard tail fluttered at the top of the halberd in the wind.

"You dare to mess with the Grand Duke Jupiter! You're asking for trouble!"

Seeing this, Tang Bin, the "Mountain-Pulling Warrior," Cui Ye, the "Mountain-Moving Warrior," Wen Zhongrong, the "Mountain-Shaking Warrior," and Nie Gong, the "Mountain-Splitting Warrior," grabbed their weapons and were about to attack, but Li Hanxiao raised his hand to stop them.

Li Han smiled as he looked at the person in front of him. The person seemed somewhat familiar, and he could vaguely recall someone with a similar image in his mind. He wondered if this was the person in question.

"Who are you, daring to snatch things from my hands and hunt partridges? A man is born nameless and without surname, but his ancestors have names and surnames, just like a touch of a lip!"

Li Hanxiao spoke in slang, asking the person's name. In slang, he was letting him know that Li Hanxiao and his group were also involved in the underworld.

The young man was taken aback and spoke in a Hunan accent, "I never expected that you two would be traveling together, carrying goods in the wind. You have no choice but to leave something here. I have two mouths, may I ask which family you belong to?"

This kid meant that he didn't expect to rob a fellow thief, but he had no choice this time. Even though they were in the same industry, he still had to leave something behind. He said his surname was Lü and asked Li Hanxiao what his name was and which faction he belonged to.

“I live on the mountain where King Xiao of Liang rests in peace, and my surname is Shangmu Xiazi.”

Li Hanxiao said this because Liangshan Marsh was originally the location of the tomb of Liang Xiaowang, the brother of Emperor Jing of the Western Han Dynasty.

Upon hearing this, the man was greatly shocked and hurriedly asked, "May I ask if you are one of the heroes of Liangshan Marsh?"

"I will never change my name or surname; I am Li Hanxiao, the leader of Liangshan Marsh."

"A true hero should not deceive me!"

The young man in red pointed his halberd at Li Hanxiao, as if he would stab Li Hanxiao to death if he lied.

"Absolutely true, do you want me to swear an oath?"

Li Han smiled and said.

Seeing Li Han's confident demeanor, the young man in red dropped his halberd and, with a look of delight, led his men to kneel down. "I have long admired you, and today I finally get to meet you. 'Little Marquis Wen' Lü Fang greets you, brother!"

Li Hanxiao guessed correctly; this person was none other than Guo Sheng's good brother, "Little Wenhou" Lü Fang, from the original novel.

Lü Fang, whose ancestral home was Tanzhou, had some kind of quirk in the original story. He loved to emulate Lü Bu's character and thus learned to wield the halberd. People called him "Little Wenhou" Lü Fang.

I don't know what's so admirable about Lu Bu's character. Is there any room for Lu Bu's character to deteriorate further...?

In the original story, Lü Fang lost his capital while selling raw medicinal herbs in Shandong and was unable to return home. He temporarily occupied Dui Ying Mountain, robbing and looting. Later, he met Guo Sheng and Song Jiang's group and joined Liangshan.

This place was near the Twin Shadows Mountain, which is why Li Hanxiao encountered him coming down the mountain to ambush and rob people.

"We are not related, why do you bow?"

Li Han asked with a smile.

"Brother, it was Mr. Gongsun Yiqing who advised me to join the Liangshan bandits!"