Water Margin: The Tale of Li Erlang of Guankou

"Besides, as for food, there shouldn't be a shortage in another year..."

If Li Hanxiao didn't have potatoes and sweet potatoes, he really wouldn't have dared to do this. But with these two high-yield crops and a year to plant and breed them, the food problem would be easily solved.

However, in order to ensure that these high-yield crops would not be lost to outsiders, Li Hanxiao had no choice but to keep them under close supervision in Liangshan Marsh. After all, no one else had this stuff except Li Hanxiao. Only when it was unique could it be an advantage for Li Hanxiao. If it became commonplace, it would just be doing the work for others!

Li Hanxiao even planned that after the potatoes and sweet potatoes were harvested, no potatoes or sweet potatoes that flowed into the outside world should be allowed to be planted by others.

Either dry them directly and grind them into powder, or make them into vermicelli. In short, these two high-yield crops can only be controlled by Li Hanxiao and cannot be allowed to flow to other places.

Li Hanxiao was also helpless. The widespread availability of this stuff could indeed solve the hunger problem, but if the imperial court had it, and the entire country planted it, there would be no shortage of food and fodder, making it too easy to attack Liangshan Marsh.

Furthermore, although productivity increased, the decadent and extravagant habits of the Northern Song Dynasty's high-ranking officials should not be abandoned. In the end, their exploitation of the people and their incompetent and tyrannical practices would only intensify, and they would still be unable to escape their fate...

Moreover, once this thing gets out, can you guarantee it won't fall into the hands of foreign tribes? If it ends up in the hands of the Liao or Jin dynasties, then we'd be sinners for all time, essentially aiding the enemy!

Therefore, before he could guarantee that this thing wouldn't bring disaster to the Chinese nation, Li Hanxiao still had to find a way to control it.

As for the housing problem, Li Hanxiao also had a solution: try making traditional cement.

Although the hardness of traditional cement is certainly not as good as that of later concrete, it was still a game-changer for this era, and it could accelerate construction.

"Everyone in this world looks down on refugees, but only you, Brother Li, are willing to spend your own money to save people. I've never heard of such a thing before..."

Qin Zhi couldn't bear to see people suffer, but he knew he was powerless to change anything. He believed there were too many refugees in the world, and he couldn't possibly save them all by himself.

However, after seeing Li Hanxiao's actions today, he suddenly realized another possibility: that is, it is enough to do one's best. Saving one is saving one, and it doesn't matter how many there are. But saving one refugee means one less refugee.

"I sigh deeply and wipe away my tears, lamenting the hardships of the people's lives. I can only do what I can!"

Li Han smiled as he looked at this land, and thinking of the responsibilities he had to bear, he couldn't help but sigh.

Soon, Zhu Fu, the "Smiling Tiger" who brought back Li Kui's mother, and Zhu Jing, the "Sky-Piercing Spear" who captured "Death God" Bao Xu and led the remaining men of Zijin Mountain back to Liangshan, had all returned to Liangshan.

Li Hanxiao was about to begin his familiar work of persuading people to surrender.

Previously, there was another "Tianmu General" Peng Qi who was still locked up in the prison. Li Hanxiao knew that he was a former court officer and would not surrender so easily, so he could only keep him locked up for a while to temper his temper.

As for this "jinx" Bao Xu, Li Hanxiao was quite confident that he could persuade him to surrender.

In the Hall of Righteousness and Brightness, the henchmen pushed "the Grim Reaper" Bao Xu forward. Li Han smiled and asked, "Bao Xu, we have no enmity between us, why did you rob my troops?"

"I'm a robber, who can't I rob?"

Bao Xu retorted.

"Be bold!"

Upon hearing Bao Xu's extremely arrogant words, Ma Lin, the "Iron Flute Immortal," drew his steel knife from its sheath and pointed it at Bao Xu, the "Death God."

But Bao Xu, the "God of Death," was not afraid at all. He said to Ma Lin, "Come, come, draw your sword and kill me! I, Bao Xu, love killing more than anything in my life, and naturally I will be killed in the end!"

Li Hanxiao, however, was not annoyed at all. He stepped forward, looked at the "jinx" Bao Xu with a smile, and asked, "Aren't you afraid of dying?"

Bao Xu tilted his head, wearing a very arrogant expression, and said, "What's so regrettable about death?"

"You're not afraid of death, you're a real man. Would you like to join our Liangshan Marsh?"

Li Hanxiao asked.

Unexpectedly, the "jinx" Bao Xu spat on the ground, "Pah! Who doesn't know that your Liangshan stronghold's 'White-Robed Scholar' Wang Lun is a bunch of ten jealous and incompetent good-for-nothings? I wouldn't come here even if you begged me! Sigh, Wang Lun wouldn't happen to be you, would he?"

Seeing the rather unfriendly look that "Death God" Bao Xu was giving him, Li Hanxiao knew what was going on. It was probably because this "Death God" Bao Xu did not know that Liangshan Marsh had changed hands and thought that "White-Robed Scholar" Wang Lun was in power. Since Wang Lun's reputation was so bad, he was probably killed because of this robbery.

After all, when they announced their names and identities, it was Wang Yin and Zhu Jing who said they were from Liangshan.

"Hahaha, Wang Lun is long dead. This Liangshan Marsh belongs to me. Now I am the master of Liangshan Marsh."

Upon hearing Li Hanxiao's words, "Death God" Bao Xu was stunned. It took him a while to react before he asked Li Hanxiao, "Since you say Wang Lun is dead, then who are you?"

"I am Li Hanxiao from Guankou, Xichuan. Have you heard of my name?"

Li Han smiled and looked at Bao Xu with amusement.

"Huh? You're Li Hanxiao?"

Bao Xu had clearly heard of Li Hanxiao's reputation, and his eyes lit up immediately.

"Replacement guaranteed."

"So... you're the one who broke through four passes in Bianliang, the capital of the Eastern Capital, rescued the family of 'Leopard Head' Lin Chong, and captured Gao Qiu's adopted son, Gao Yanei, alive?"

The words that Bao Xu, nicknamed "the God of Death," blurted out surprised Li Hanxiao. Apart from the first one, breaking through four checkpoints at the Imperial Fragrance Pavilion in Tokyo, which was widely known in the martial arts world, most people, except for the Liangshan brothers, were unaware of the rest of the events.

Where did Bao Xu, the "jinx," find out about these things? Or was there a mole within the company?

"Yes, but where did you find out about these things..."

Li Han asked with a smile.

"So it's Hero Li! If I had known Hero Li was the new leader of Liangshan, I wouldn't have dared to mess with him. I thought the leader of Liangshan was Wang Lun!"

Bao Xu's face was full of regret, which Li Han found quite amusing.

"There's no need for that. You still haven't told me where you learned all this about me."

Li Hanxiao still didn't forget to ask.

"It's like this, about ten days ago, a Taoist priest suddenly arrived at the foot of my Dry Tree Mountain, wanting to come up the mountain to see me. I didn't pay any attention to him at first, but when he realized I wouldn't see him, he actually flew up the mountain..."

After hearing Bao Xu's description, Li Hanxiao knew that it was probably the old Taoist priest Gongsun Sheng, the "Dragon Entering the Clouds".

Moreover, Gongsun Sheng, the "Dragon Entering the Clouds," was indeed aware of the things that Bao Xu, the "God of Death," had mentioned before.

With this explanation, Li Hanxiao was no longer surprised; this "Dragon Soaring into the Clouds" had gone to recruit talent for himself again!

"I saw that he was a great master, so I treated him with courtesy and held a banquet to entertain him. During the banquet, I asked him his Taoist name and learned that he was the Taoist Master Gongsun Sheng, known as the 'Dragon Entering the Clouds' in the martial arts world. I admired him greatly and, knowing that he was a master, asked him to give me some guidance on my future."

He said that the world is about to descend into chaos, and chaos will inevitably produce heroes. It is also an opportunity for those with ambition to make a name for themselves. There are too many mediocre people in the world. If you follow them, you will not get ahead and will even risk your life.

"Master Gongsun said that you, Li Hanxiao, are a rare figure, with both literary and martial talents, chivalrous spirit, and unparalleled courage. He also mentioned a few other things. I have heard that you, Li Hanxiao, are such a hero, and I admire you greatly. So I said that I would like to bring my men to join you."

"Upon hearing this, Master Gongsun was delighted and immediately took his leave and descended the mountain. However, I was drunk and forgot to ask Hero Li where he was. As a result, I couldn't find Master Gongsun, nor could I find any news of Hero Li in the martial world. So, while still on the Dry Tree Mountain, I encountered Hero Li's men..."

At this point, Li Hanxiao understood everything. It turned out that Gongsun Sheng only knew that this "Death God" Bao Xu was also the "Earthly Violent Star" among the 108 heroes, so he persuaded him to come and join him.

However, Gongsun Sheng did not tell Bao Xu where he was, and Bao Xu also did not find out where he was staying. So when he stopped the men from Zijin Mountain, they said they were from Liangshan Marsh. Bao Xu assumed they were Wang Lun's men and immediately started fighting.

"Now that you know my identity, are you willing to join me this time?"

Li Hanxiao helped Bao Xu up and asked.

"Yes, yes!"

Bao Xu answered immediately.

"it is good!"

Li Hanxiao immediately tore off the ropes binding "Mourning God" Bao Xu, which could be considered as showing off a little in front of "Mourning God" Bao Xu.

Bao Xu, nicknamed "the God of Death," was secretly amazed. Each of the ropes binding him had been soaked in water and was extremely tough. He had struggled all the way but had not been able to untie a single one.

These ropes, now in Li Hanxiao's hands, were torn apart as easily as withered grass. His arm strength and hand power were indeed well-deserved!

"Good! Brother Bao Xu has now joined our Liangshan Marsh. From now on, you must abide by the rules of Liangshan Marsh and not kill innocent people or rob good people!"

Li Hanxiao patted the "Death God" Bao Xu on the shoulder with a serious expression. Li Hanxiao knew very well that the "Death God" Bao Xu had a similar problem to "Black Whirlwind" Li Kui, namely, a bloodthirsty nature. Bao Xu could only kill people in his life, otherwise, how could he be friends with "Black Whirlwind" Li Kui?

Although Li Hanxiao admired his bravery in battle, he was also fond of killing. If he indiscriminately killed innocent people, he would be courting death and walking into the line of fire. It was better to make this clear beforehand.

"Ah, that's alright. Although I, Bao Xu, have a lifelong love of killing, I never kill innocent people indiscriminately. I only kill to my heart's content during battle, haha!"

Hearing what "jinx" Bao Xu said, Li Hanxiao felt relieved, but then quickly added, "No, even on the battlefield, it's best not to kill civilians indiscriminately unless absolutely necessary!"

"Yes!"

Thus, "Death God" Bao Xu gave Li Han a big gift, and together with his Kushushan troops, he officially entered the ranks of Liangshan Marsh's troops.

After finishing with Bao Xu, the "Death God," Li Hanxiao still had to go check on Li Kui's mother.

Before going to see Li Kui's mother, Li Hanxiao first called over "Smiling Tiger" Zhu Fu to inquire about his trip.

"Smiling Tiger" Zhu Fu said that things went very smoothly. He arrived at his hometown in Yishui County and went straight to Li Kui's village, Baizhang Village. At that time, Li Kui's brother, Li Da, was still at home. "Smiling Tiger" Zhu Fu secretly put some sleeping potion in his water, knocked him unconscious, and then carried him out.

Then, Zhu Fu, the "smiling tiger," pretended to be Li Kui's friend, saying he had come to take Li Kui's mother to enjoy a life of luxury.

Since Zhu Gui and Zhu Fu were both locals from Yishui County and spoke with the Yishui accent, and Li Hanxiao had told the "smiling tiger" Zhu Fu about Li Kui's situation and appearance beforehand, the blind old lady was very happy to be fooled, but insisted on going with Li Da.

"Smiling Tiger" Zhu Fu had no choice but to say that Li Da had gone out to work and he didn't know when he would be back. He told Li Da to take the old lady with him for now and come back to pick him up next time before carrying the old lady away.

When they arrived at the market, "Smiling Tiger" Zhu Fu hired a large cart and brought Li Kui's mother back.

After hearing what had happened, Li Hanxiao felt confident and went inside.

Li Hanxiao noticed that Li Kui's mother had a thick layer of white, fluffy material in her eyes. This wasn't just blindness from crying; it was severe cataracts.

Cataracts are easier to treat in later generations, but in ancient times, getting one was almost like going blind. However, it is not impossible that there were skilled and highly capable doctors who could cure this condition.

However, the doctor on Liangshan Marsh was no good. He wasn't skilled enough. He could handle common ailments, but when it came to treating eyes, he was no match.

Li Hanxiao remembered that among the 108 heroes of Liangshan in the original novel, there was a "divine doctor" named An Daoquan, who was said to be able to revive anyone who was still breathing. If he could come, treating Li Kui's mother's eyes should be a piece of cake.

It seems we need to find a time and opportunity to bring this "miracle doctor" An Daoquan to Liangshan. Having a highly skilled fighter is certainly important, but everyone is subject to birth, aging, sickness, and death, so sometimes we really need such a skilled healer.

"Auntie, your nephew greets you!"

This was the first time Li Kui's mother had heard Li Han's laughter, so she asked, "Who are you?"

"Auntie, this is Master Li, a friend of Tie Niu. Tie Niu escorted a caravan for him to Guangdong and Guangxi. Before leaving, he specifically instructed him to bring you here so you can enjoy a life of luxury at his manor!"

"So this is the mountain villa. No wonder the ride up here was so bumpy... Master Li, thank you so much for giving my son a bowl of rice and for taking such good care of this blind old woman!"

As Li Kuiniang spoke, she tried to kneel down.

"Oh dear! This won't do! You're making me shorten my lifespan!"

Li Hanxiao quickly helped the old lady back to the kang (a heated brick bed) and comforted her, "Tie Niu's family is my family. He escaped to my place a few years ago, and I saw that he had some skills, so I made him the head of the guards!"