Jin Shaoyan shook his head: "I won't go anywhere until Shishi is rescued."
"Can't you at least call your grandma? You heartless brat!"
Jin Shaoyan said awkwardly, "We've already fought it. The company is preparing to shoot a large-scale war film, and I've asked them to start preparing as well."
...
Back at Yucai, I tossed the car to Wang Yin and said, "Go fix the hood. Anyone who wants to go can go, as long as they're one of our people. You can make a few trips, then come back to pick me up."
Hearing there was going to be a spectacle, the eighteen heroes and the seven sages of the bamboo grove, not wanting to be outdone, scrambled to get into the carriage. Those who got in first wouldn't come out, and those who lagged behind were being pulled out. It was quite a scene of shoving and pulling, when Wang Yin shouted from the sidelines, "Don't push! Don't push! I'm coming back! Zhenjiang, help me!"
Fang Zhenjiang poked his head out of the car, squeezing in as he asked, "What kind of help do you need?"
Li Yuanba leisurely tied the cow dung hammer to the roof of the cart with a rope, then methodically pulled out the people crammed into the cart one by one. He only stopped when there was an empty seat, sat down, patted the window, and said in a muffled voice, "Let's go."
...
I stayed overnight at Yucai School, and when I woke up the next day, the old campus was almost deserted. Wang Yin was wiping down a car in the yard, and I asked him, "Who went there yesterday?"
Wang Yin said, "Didn't you see them? Almost all of them have gone."
I said, "Let's go then."
Wang Yin threw down the bucket and rag and said, "Then you'll have to drive. I've been driving all night. Our truck is too small. Yesterday, I wished I could just pull a rope from the back and use it to get all the trucks over at once."
Back in the Northern Song Dynasty, the Liangshan army had already set off in full force. Lin Chong led the Ruan brothers as the vanguard, while Wu Yong commanded the central army. Song Jiang also accompanied the army this time, and I was indebted to him. Actually, besides Jin Shaoyan, he was the one who should have saved Li Shishi the most, after all, Jin Shaoyan had helped him fulfill his wish in his previous life, and he had helped Liangshan secure its future.
Surrounding Wu Yong were a number of strange and unusual people, including the eighteen heroes of the Sui and Tang dynasties, the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove, and monks. There were also many fellows who looked remarkably like the generals of the Liangshan army: Fang Zhenjiang, Hua Rong, Fang La, and the Four Heavenly Kings. Even Xiu Xiu and Tong Yuan had come.
Qin Qiong and his men quickly became acquainted with the heroes, and many people were keen to accept a founding hero of the Tang Dynasty. However, based on my observation, their motives might not have been entirely pure, because Qin Qiong would soon be commanding an army of 600,000, and few bandits had ever led more than 10,000 men on their own. They probably wanted to share some troops with Qin Qiong for a bit of fun. This shows that those with potential are always welcome.
Luo Cheng and Lin Chong stayed inseparable from the moment Luo Cheng arrived. Through sparring, their spear skills became evenly matched, but Lin Chong was more experienced. Xuanzang now had three disciples: two Deng Yuanjue and one Lu Zhishen. When the four of them were together, they talked about Buddhism; when the latter three were together, they talked about war—the mad monk.
Tang Long was the only one who was extremely busy, as he had to remake the weapons for many people. Fortunately, the blueprints were complete, and he worked day and night, quickly arming Yang Lin and the others as well.
After two days of marching, we arrived outside Taiyuan a day ahead of schedule. The Jin army's camp remained firmly in place opposite us, and Lin Chong and Luo Cheng had already set up camp in the opposite direction. We arrived late at night, and the 250,000-strong army silently took up their positions. The Jin army made no major moves after receiving the news; Jin Wuzhu probably didn't take us seriously.
Just as dawn broke, war drums suddenly sounded, and someone loudly announced: Jin deputy commander Nianhan is leading 3,000 troops to fight and provoke the enemy!
Before I could react, countless bandits and a motley crew rushed out like starving ghosts who hadn't eaten for three days and were suddenly greeted by the sound of food. They mounted their horses and swarmed towards the front of the battle. In the end, the veteran general Yang Lin had to lead 3,000 men to hold the line.
On the battlefield, the Jin deputy commander, Nianhan, dressed in a sable coat, sat imposingly on his horse. His thin face, with eyes narrowed into slits, scrutinized us. Suddenly, he couldn't help but chuckle, pointing to the generals around him and saying, "Look at them, a bunch of peasants." The Jin generals burst into laughter.
Our equipment did indeed look rather shabby. Not only were the bandits and the eighteen heroes all wearing different armor, but even the Liangshan soldiers lacked uniforms. Some wore captured uniforms and protective gear, some wore leather armor, and many experienced veterans wore bamboo armor woven from bamboo strips…
But I bet this was absolutely the most formidable fighting force in the Northern Song Dynasty. They looked dilapidated, but they were all elite soldiers.
Nianhan said disdainfully, "Whoever can kill three of the enemy's generals in succession, I will give him the greatest credit."
A sturdy, golden-haired general beside him shouted sternly, "This humble general is willing to go!"
Nianhan didn't even bother to speak, simply waving his hand dismissively. The golden general spurred his horse and charged towards us, brandishing his broadsword: "Who dares to fight me?"
"Buzz..." I felt a jolt in my head, and the arguing started again. The Liangshan bandits wanted to go, Fang La's men wanted to go, and the eighteen heroes wanted to go too; the scramble was incredibly lively. The bandits argued that it was unreasonable to let the guests go first, while the eighteen heroes seized on this point, insisting that the guests should be given priority when it came to good things. They argued back and forth without reaching an agreement, their faces flushed red.
The Iron Tower General didn't understand what they were arguing about. He thought these "peasants" were pushing and shoving each other because none of them dared to take the first step. He shouted, "Come at me all at once! Are you all so afraid of dying?"
"Boo-hoo!" The Jin soldiers all burst into laughter. Nianhan and his generals laughed so hard they almost fell over, overjoyed.
Li Yuanba flew into a rage and shouted, "If anyone tries to steal it again, they'll have to ask my hammer first!"
Everyone fell silent. They all understood that in a fight, no one could match him, and the Jin soldiers were arrogant and overbearing; they needed a demon king like him to temper their arrogance. Qin Qiong said, "Yuanba, this is a one-time exception. I'll agree this time, but you're not allowed to fight us again!"
Li Yuanba was overjoyed. Without saying a word, he spurred his horse and charged towards the Jin general, wielding his cow-dung hammer. The Jin general, seeing a child charging towards him with something that looked like a white cotton ball, was taken aback. He then placed his broadsword on his horse and said with a smile, "Very well, very well, it seems you're the easiest to bully. They just kicked you out to die, so I'll give you a three-way handicap..."
Before he could finish speaking, with a loud thud, the man was sent flying by Li Yuanba's hammer. His massive figure shot into the clouds at a sharp angle, disappearing into the distance like a golf ball hit by a brute, never to be seen again…
Li Yuanba hunched his shoulders, shading his eyes with his hand as he watched, but the man didn't land after a long time. Losing patience, he said dejectedly, "I really liked his armor, but now I can't find it..."
silence……
Not only were the Jin soldiers trembling with fear, but the Liangshan heroes were also astonished. Their morale soared, and they cheered loudly.
Li Yuanba slung his dung hammer over his shoulder and slowly scanned the enemy. Every Jin general he looked at felt threatened. The foolish boy, after observing for a while, turned his horse back to camp, muttering, "Let's not fight anymore. None of the remaining armor is any good-looking!"
The Jin generals all breathed a sigh of relief and instinctively stroked the armor that had saved their lives.
As soon as Li Yuanba returned to camp, Yuwen Chengdu clasped his hands in a fist salute to everyone and said, "Brothers, please do me a favor. I'm going to fetch a suitable weapon."
Before people could understand what he meant, Yuwen Chengdu had already spurred his horse into battle, pointed at a Jin general in front of the formation, and smiled, "You also use a tangha, come over and have a go at it."
It was only then that I noticed Yuwen Chengdu was only holding a cleaver. The main reason was that making a halberd took too long, so Tang Long had postponed his order. However, there happened to be a Jin general who wielded a halberd, and seeing his familiar old buddy, how could Yuwen Chengdu not be tempted?
The Jin general, still reeling from his shock, was called upon again. Seeing that Li Yuanba had already returned, he felt relieved, let out a shout, and charged out of the ranks, his forked halberd pouncing. Yuwen Chengdu dodged the halberd, grabbed its neck, snatched it away, and then used the shaft of his weapon to knock the Jin general off his horse. He said with a smile, "Thanks, I'll spare your life since you brought me the halberd."
As soon as Yuwen Chengdu returned, Pei Yuanqing, spear in hand, rushed to the front of the battle line, looking around and shouting, "Anyone wielding a hammer?"
At the same time, those among the eighteen heroes who used unusual weapons ran out one after another, calling out like beggars: "Is there anyone who can use a mixed gold halberd?" "Is there anyone who can use a bronze staff?" "Who can use two spears? Come out here!" "Please, have mercy, let's have someone who can use a spear."
Chapter 154 Five Cents
What a disgrace! Is this a war or a beggar's quest? People say you need to sharpen your spear before battle, but here we are, going straight into battle to seize someone else's already-sharpened spear…
As soon as they came out, some of the Jin soldiers who couldn't hold back also grabbed their weapons and charged out. After all, they were all brave soldiers, and they couldn't stand this humiliation. In the midst of the chaotic fighting, the eighteen heroes said incoherently, "I want someone who uses a hammer, why are you fighting me with a knife?" "Hey, go and get someone who uses a stick."
About ten minutes later, the first batch of Jin generals returned empty-handed. Each of the heroes had surrendered three or four weapons and began dividing the spoils. Pei Yuanqing, holding several weapons high, shouted, "Does anyone have a hammer? I'll trade with him!" Shan Xiongxin hurriedly said, "I have one, I have one, give me your spiked club."...