Water Margin: The Tale of Li Erlang of Guankou

Although this method isn't exactly honorable, it's the best way Li Hanxiao can think of that won't cause too much harm to Sun Li.

"Emerging Dragon" Zou Yuan pondered for a moment, then said, "I've got it. There are two relevant people, but..."

Zou Yuan hesitated before speaking, and Li Hanxiao encouraged him, saying, "There's nothing you can't say, please speak."

“Alright, then I’ll tell you. My uncle and I are on good terms with a couple who run a cattle slaughtering, gambling, and wine shop outside Dengzhou City. We often meet with them. The man is called ‘Little Yuchi’ Sun Xin, the younger brother of the military commander ‘Sick Yuchi’ Sun Li. The woman is called ‘Mother Tiger’ Gu Dasao. They have the strength of thirty or twenty men who can’t get close to them. They might be able to help, but this…”

Li Hanxiao understood Zou Yuan's concerns and simply spoke up for him, "I'm just afraid that Sun Xin is Sun Li's younger brother, and his older brother works in the government. I'm afraid he won't be willing to help."

"That's right..."

Zou Yuan slammed his wine bowl on the table and said dejectedly.

"Now that things have come to this, there's no other way. We might as well go and ask the couple for their advice."

Deng Fei advised.

"Alright, then tomorrow I'll invite Chief Li to accompany me to their wine shop! You, Chief Li, are a renowned figure in the martial arts world; perhaps they'll help you out of respect for you!"

So everyone rested for the time being. The next day, Li Hanxiao and "Chu Lin Long" Zou Run went to the Sun family hotel, leaving "Fire-Eyed Lion" Deng Fei and "Golden-Faced Buddha" Qin Zhi to help guard Dengyun Mountain. If they didn't leave any leaders behind and lost their place of residence, it would be a matter of life and death.

Upon arriving at the Sun family's inn, the first thing that caught the eye was an extremely burly woman next to the well, using a large cleaver to scrape pig bristles, and occasionally sharpening the cleaver on the bluestone well platform with a "swish, swish" sound.

Li Han smiled to himself, "No need to ask, this is 'Mother Tiger' Sister-in-law Gu. Her physique is much stronger than that of female weightlifters in later generations. No wonder she can withstand the strength of thirty or twenty people and carry a whole pig with ease."

Li Hanxiao later adapted "Water Margin" and cast beautiful actresses to play the roles of "Mother Night Demon" Sun Erniang and "Mother Tiger" Gu Dasao. In the original novel, these two were the toughest of the tough women, and only "One-Zhang-Qing" Hu Sanniang was a beauty.

Thinking about it carefully, it makes sense. If a woman were really that beautiful, who would call her by nicknames like "she-devil" or "tiger"?

"Sister-in-law, it's been a while. I wonder if Manager Sun is home?"

Zou Yuan stepped forward to greet him.

"Oh, it's Brother Zou Yuan! It's a rare sight! He's inside. Did he come here today for drinks or gambling?"

When Sister-in-law Gu stood up with the butcher's knife, the sense of oppression she exuded was truly immense.

"I have some business to discuss with you two today. By the way, this friend is Li Hanxiao, the leader of Liangshan Marsh!"

"Oh! Chief Li, I've long heard that Liangshan recently defeated more than two thousand government troops. I've heard of your great name, Chief Li, but I never expected to meet you here today, my lord!"

Then Sister-in-law Gu shouted loudly, her voice like a tiger's roar, and called out "Little Yuchi" Sun Xin, and they exchanged names.

"So it's Chief Li! I've long heard of Chief Li's feat of breaking through four barriers at Yuxiang Tower. He's truly a master of both literature and martial arts. Come in and have some wine and food!"

Men and women have different focuses, and Sun Xin valued Li Hanxiao's outstanding qualities in the entertainment industry even more...

Once everyone was seated, Sun Xin asked, "Brother Zou Yuan, where is Brother Zou Runxian?"

"Sigh... It's a long story. That day, he went down the mountain for a drink and was ambushed by that new military officer, Zhuo Tianxiong, who's called 'Ghost Catcher'!"

"what?"

Mr. and Mrs. Sun were both very surprised when they heard this.

"I heard that guy comes from the Imperial City Guard, specializing in solving cases. He's a tough nut to crack!"

Sun Xin clicked his tongue in amazement.

"That's right. That fellow is no good. I heard that he had an affair with a woman from an official's family in Dongjing City. After being discovered, he couldn't stay in his job, so he came to Dengzhou to work. My uncle has been ostracized a lot since he came!"

According to Gu Dasao, the "female tiger," it wasn't just because of the capture of "Unicorn Dragon" Zou Run that her superiors felt "Sick Yuchi" Sun Li was incompetent; "Ghost Catcher" Zhuo Tianxiong was also at odds with Sun Li.

Because Zhuo Tianxiong, the "ghost catcher," was eager to climb the ranks, while Sun Li was a local, senior figure with prestige and influence, so he was suppressing Zhuo Tianxiong.

So this kid secretly tried to make Sun Li fall out of favor with his superiors by spreading rumors that the reason why "Sick Yuchi" Sun Li couldn't conquer Dengyun Mountain was not because Dengyun Mountain was powerful, but because Sun Li secretly allied with the bandits of Dengyun Mountain and didn't actually fight them. He was just raising bandits to enhance his own power!

"Nonsense! Sun Li is even plotting to kill us brothers, how could he possibly be secretly colluding with us?"

Zou Yuan, the "Dragon Emerging from the Forest," scoffed at such absurd words.

However, in the eyes of his superiors, such a thing was not impossible, because there had been several times when bandits approached Dengzhou, and they were all scattered by Sun Li, the "Sickly Yuchi". In the end, only Zou Yuan and his nephew Zou Run occupied Dengyun Mountain, which they could not conquer for a long time.

Previously, he could still believe that what "Sick Yuchi" Sun Li said was true: Dengyun Mountain was easy to defend and difficult to attack, a natural barrier, so it could not be taken.

However, now this "ghost catcher" Zhuo Tianxiong has arrived, and with a little trick, he has captured "Unicorn Dragon" Zou Run and thrown him into jail.

If they really couldn't win, how come they saw immediate results when the other side arrived?

This situation can only mean two things: one is that Sun Li might really be secretly colluding with these bandits, and the other is that "Sick Yuchi" Sun Li is indeed limited in ability and unable to take down the enemy.

However, Sun Li's superior now clearly believes the former view and has begun to distance himself from Sun Li. He has even started to listen to the advice of "ghost catcher" Zhuo Tianxiong and has sent people to secretly monitor Sun Li's family.

"Therefore, Sun Li is now in a dangerous situation. This Zhuo Tianxiong is framing Sun Li, and his superior already believes him. If he exerts any more effort, Sun Li might be imprisoned. The charge of colluding with bandits is no joke..."

Upon hearing about Sun Li's current predicament, Li Hanxiao felt a mix of joy and worry. He was happy that he finally had a chance to persuade this Commander Sun to surrender, but worried that Sun Li had been framed by a villain and might not be willing to join the bandits, which would likely lead to a bad end for him...

"When a snake or scorpion enters your bosom, you must quickly loosen your clothes. Didn't Commander Sun defend his innocence? The enemy has already made their move, so we must retaliate, mustn't we?"

Li Han asked with a smile.

Sun Xin replied with a helpless expression, "My brother is a stubborn person. He just keeps saying that the innocent will remain innocent and the guilty will remain guilty. He has not done anything to betray the court. Sooner or later the truth will come out, and we can only let him be."

"That won't do. Don't forget, the prefect already suspects Commander Sun. They just need some evidence. Normally, this evidence wouldn't be hard to find, but don't forget, Brother Zou Run is in their hands. As long as they torture him and force him to confess that Commander Sun is secretly colluding with them at Dengyun Mountain, Commander Sun will be finished!"

Upon hearing Li Hanxiao's reminder, Mr. and Mrs. Sun immediately stood up and slammed their fists on the table!

Yes! According to Li Hanxiao's statement, even if Sun Li had a lot of mouths, he couldn't explain it clearly.

Moreover, we can't expect "Unicorn" Zou Run in prison to not be tortured into confessing. Who knows what kind of methods they might use on him? Besides, the two of them, uncle and nephew, have long been enemies with "Sick Yuchi" Sun Li. In order to suffer less physical pain, it's not impossible for Zou Run to confess directly.

"What are we going to do now?!"

Sister-in-law Gu slammed her hand on the table, causing the cups, saucers, plates, and bowls on the table to jump.

"I'm afraid my brother can't escape this time. This matter is hard to explain, and if he stays in Dengzhou Prefecture any longer, he might face imprisonment..."

Sun Xin, nicknamed "Little Yuchi," stroked his beard and pondered carefully.

"We came here today hoping you two could help rescue Brother Zou Run, but now it seems we are all in the same boat!"

Li Hanxiao glanced at everyone, and they all nodded.

"In that case, I have a plan: let's rebel!"

"Rebellion?!"

Mr. and Mrs. Sun asked in doubt.

"That's right. With a boss like that, once doubts arise, they will never be dispelled. What's more, there's a villain by his side. Even if we rescue Brother Zou Run, we probably can't save Commander Sun. Today, the charge of collusion fails, but in the future, there will likely be a second, third, and fourth time. Why not rebel? Let's break into the prison together, rescue Zou Run, and then take Commander Sun and his family to Liangshan. I'm not boasting, but Liangshan is eight hundred li in circumference, enough for everyone to settle down and take their seats."

Upon hearing Li Hanxiao's words, Mr. and Mrs. Sun frowned.

"In this world, there's nowhere to reason... We really can't stay in Dengzhou any longer..."

Sun Xin nodded, acknowledging Li Hanxiao's statement.

"Alright! Let's do it the other way around!"

Sister-in-law Gu slammed her hand on the table again, almost knocking it over.

"However, I don't think we can accomplish this with just the few of us. You need to call your two highly skilled brothers to come along. Also, Commander Sun has a brother-in-law named 'Iron Whistle' Le He, who works as a jailer in prison. If we can win him over as well, I think we'll have a better chance of winning!"

The two brothers of Sister-in-law Gu that Sun Xin mentioned were Xie Zhen, the "Two-Headed Snake," and Xie Bao, the "Double-Tailed Scorpion."

Sister-in-law Gu laughed heartily, "Honey, I didn't expect you to be of any use at this crucial moment. I'll send a messenger right away to tell my brother to come to our shop tonight to discuss this!"

“Alright, then I’ll go into the city first to find Uncle Le and bring him here to discuss this. But my brother is stubborn and won’t easily betray the court, so I can’t let him know first. But you can ask my sister-in-law, Madam Le, to be Le He’s older sister. I can ask him to talk to my sister-in-law first. If my brother refuses, we can just drug him with sleeping pills and take him away when things get tough. Anyway, with your two brothers helping, my brother won’t need to do anything.”

Li Hanxiao threw out a brick to start the conversation, and "Little Yuchi" Sun Xin began to plan his next move, proving he was indeed quite shrewd.

"Very well, our identities are not suited for showing our faces in public, so we will wait here for good news!"

Li Han smiled and said.

"Alright, I'll go to the kitchen and prepare a few dishes to entertain Chief Li!"

Sister-in-law Gu rolled up her sleeves, gave instructions to the waiters to inform the brothers Jie Zhen and Jie Bao, and then went to the kitchen to chop meat and cook. Sun Xin, on the other hand, took some wine and gifts and went into town to find "Iron-Called Le He".

About half an hour later, the shop assistant brought in two men who looked like hunters.

These two men, one wearing a leopard-skin hat and the other a wolf-skin hat, carrying bows and arrows on their backs and holding three-pronged lotus forks in their hands, were none other than "Two-Headed Snake" Xie Zhen and "Double-Tailed Scorpion" Xie Bao.

"My two brothers have arrived. Greetings, Chief Li Hanxiao!"

When Sister-in-law Gu saw the two men arrive, she stepped forward to introduce them. Upon hearing that it was Li Hanxiao, the two brothers bowed respectfully.

"We've long heard of Chief Li's reputation. He single-handedly raided a camp with a hundred cavalrymen, defeating two thousand enemies. How magnificent!"

Both Xie Zhen and Xie Bao were upright men who came from hunter backgrounds. Although they were skilled hunters, they didn't live a particularly good life these days, relying on hunting for a living.

Therefore, both of them harbored a certain yearning for the martial arts world and held Li Hanxiao in high esteem.

"Two-headed snake, two-tailed scorpion, I've heard so much about them!"

Just as Li Hanxiao met with them, "Little Yuchi" Sun Xin also invited "Iron Whistle" Le He over.

"Greetings, Uncle Lehe. My family is always busy and poor, please come inside and have some food and wine!"

Meanwhile, "Iron Whistle" Le He met with Li Hanxiao and the others. "Little Yuchi" Sun Xin had already told "Iron Whistle" Le He about the matter. Le He was a low-level jailer in prison and had seen all kinds of torture and forced confessions. He was very tired of the corruption in officialdom.

He also brought everyone a piece of news: "Unicorn Dragon" Zou Run was under his jurisdiction. Although he had never mistreated "Unicorn Dragon" Zou Run, "Ghost Catcher" Zhuo Tianxiong often interrogated "Unicorn Dragon" Zou Run, attempting to force a confession out of him.

It seems that it's only a matter of time before Zhuo Tianxiong gets that confession.

"If this fight continues, I'm afraid not only will Zou Run's brothers' lives be in danger, but Commander Sun's entire family will also be killed!"

Li Hanxiao thought for a moment and said, "The sooner the better. Here's what we'll do: tonight, Brother Zou Yuan will go back and ask for reinforcements, and Brother Le He will go and persuade your sister. We'll make our move tomorrow. Have your sister test the waters with Commander Sun. If she refuses... drug her with sleeping pills, send her out of the city, and settle her in Sun's old shop. We'll sneak into the city tomorrow morning. You can be our inside man in the prison. We'll break out of the prison and kill Zhuo Tianxiong along the way."