Water Margin: Lu Bu sits on Mount Liang

The bright moon hung high in the sky, and a lantern with a burning candle was hung at the gate of the palace, illuminating every inch of the space.

In the distance, a team of guards were holding lanterns. Yu Cheng led two young men of different statures out and bowed to them: "Lü Diannong, Minister Lu, do you need a carriage to go back?"

Dedede——

"No need." Lu Yan shook his head and turned to look at the place where the sound of horse hooves came from. "We two have our own carriage. Thank you, General Yu, for seeing us off all the way."

"I should do what I should do." Yu Cheng said, pulling out the bronze plate from his waist: "This is the pass token for the night, please take it, Lu Diannong."

"Thank you." Lu Yan smiled and reached out to take it.

As he spoke, Yu Cheng watched the carriage coming from the corner take shape in the darkness. Two lanterns were hung in front of the shaft, swaying and emitting orange light. As the sound approached, it stopped in front of the Prince of Qi's mansion.

"Goodbye." Lu Yan and Lu Guan bowed, turned around, got on the carriage and got into the car. The driver outside cracked the whip with a crisp sound, and the wheels made a sound of rolling on the dirt road.

Yu Cheng stood at the door and took a look before stepping back and slamming the door with brass nails shut.

The weather was cold and few people were willing to do business in the dark in the biting cold wind, so Liaoyang Prefecture imposed a curfew. The already scarce pedestrians were now even more deserted. The light from the lanterns illuminated the road as the carriage moved forward, and objects on both sides could be vaguely seen. It was a bit creepy in the dark night.

"Brother..." Lu Guan's somewhat excited voice came from the car: "The king can finally use the family now. I thought I would have to wait for some time."

"Yes." Lu Yan's expression was somewhat relieved: "This is a good thing. If the king had always been resentful, my Lu family would really be in a dilemma. Now the clouds have been cleared and the sun has risen." He paused: "Is it possible for Sanlang to go home?"

Lu Guan rubbed his fingers, frowning slightly in the dim vision: "What do you mean, brother?"

"Although the king asked you and me to write a letter and have someone take it over..." Lu Yan sat up straight, leaned close to his cousin and spoke softly: "Although outsiders will not tell the family about the details of Liaodong, you and I can see it clearly here. As long as we get over the hurdle of money and grain..." He pointed to the ceiling and said: "At least Liaodong must be surnamed Lu."

His fingers stopped, and Lu Guan licked his dry lips: "In that case, I will go back!" He took a deep breath and said: "Let my family support the king with all their strength."

"That's right." Lu Yan nodded. "Han Duo went back a few months ago. I think my grandparents will also be affected. Let my father go and find out what they think. If the two families work together, maybe they can convince more people."

"I know, don't worry, brother."

"By the way, let the family prepare some food. Since the king is willing to accept the disaster victims, we should naturally support him more."

"Yes……"

The noise inside the carriage became quieter, with only the occasional sound of two conversations. Soon, it stopped at the door of the two people's home.

There was no words to say that night.

The next day, the two brothers got up early, had breakfast, and came to the palace again. They met Lu Bu and told him their ideas. Lu Guan took the opportunity to ask for permission to return to Nanjing.

Lu Bu had no objection, and immediately ordered Yang Lin, Ma Lin, Feng Sheng, and Sun Qi, four palace messengers, to accompany him to Nanjing.

The five men received the king's order, packed up their things, and took a dozen guards with them, riding their horses southward to Yaozhou that afternoon.

The snowy road is difficult to travel on, so it is more time-saving and labor-saving to take the sea route.

……

Fast forward a few days.

In the north, the streets of Huanglongfu were deserted after the wind and snow. The accumulated ice and snow made it difficult to walk. People walking in the city gate hung their heads and drove the carriages forward with difficulty. White mist floated out of the horses' mouths. The snow was deeper than the horses' calves, and the passing vehicles plowed two deep marks in the snow.

Because of the war, there were fewer young men in Huanglongfu than before the war. Many women walked out of the door with shovels and brooms to clean the snow in front of the door. They looked up and complained from time to time. When they heard the sound of the carriage, they looked up and then quickly shut up and turned around to clean the snow. These women lost the backbone of their families. Although their lives were tight, they could still survive. However, some of the work that men used to do was also put on their shoulders. Some of them had to take care of the old and young at home. They were inevitably tired. From time to time, they would talk to their neighbors to relieve the pressure.

However, sometimes it is just so cruel. Someone complained that Huanglongfu is not as good as before, and even cursed a few words. He was heard by a Jurchen noble passing by in a carriage. He was beaten half to death on the spot, and died when he was carried home after the people left. This matter was widely spread by women in the city, and since then no one in the city dared to gossip in front of the carriage.

The deerskin curtain swayed a few times, and the man driving the carriage pulled the reins, pressed the wide brim of his hat to cover his face, and stopped at the door of the restaurant. A waiter came forward, bowed and smiled, "Sir, since you are here, do you want to stop by or stay overnight?"

"Is it still possible to get a stop in this horrible weather?" A shrill voice came from inside the car.

"Master, you're right, I have such a broken mouth." He reached out and fanned himself lightly. Although the shop assistant was scolded, he was very happy to hear that. Because of the heavy snow, there were not many customers in the shop. Now that there was a guest staying in the shop, he wanted to offer him up as a sacrifice right away.

The curtain of the carriage was opened, revealing Shi Qian's sharp-nosed and monkey-faced appearance. He was wearing an otter fur hat on his head and a mink coat. He pulled down his leather coat with both hands, revealing two jeweled jade rings on his hands.

The shop assistant's eyes lit up immediately. Without asking the driver to come over, he took down the horse stool hanging on the shaft and put it on the ground: "Sir, be careful."

Shi Qian snorted, put his hand on the clerk's shoulder, stepped onto the horse stool and got off the carriage. He reached out and took out a handful of copper coins and silver and held them in his hand: "Take good care of this horse."

The waiter's eyes were also venomous. He looked at the silver between his fingers and his front teeth were bared with joy. Seeing that Shi Qian was short, he quickly bent down and held it up with both hands, ready to take it: "Don't worry, sir. I will pay attention to it."

Shi Qian moved his hands towards his hands, then took them back: "Use fine materials."

"Our store only uses the finest ingredients, soybeans and sorghum." The shop assistant stretched his neck as he watched the hand move away.

"Hmm." The flea on the drum snorted and moved his hand over. The other side laughed even more and suddenly retracted his hand: "Feed it with warm water. It's too cold in this plague weather. Don't freeze the horse's stomach."

The waiter's smile faded, his eyes followed Shi Qian's hand, he nodded mechanically, and said in a flattering voice: "Don't worry, sir, I will boil water for you myself."

Shi Qian rolled his eyes, and the driver behind him made a "cough" sound. Then he put the copper coins and silver into the hands and said, "This is a reward for you. Take good care of it."

"Of course I will be careful, of course I will be careful." Looking at the copper coins and three silver beans, the shop assistant smiled so hard that his eyebrows were not visible. He put a handful of them in his arms and hurried forward to pull the reins: "I will serve this horse now." After a pause, he straightened his back and shouted into the shop: "Is there anyone alive? Come out, there is a distinguished guest!"

Seeing someone running out, he picked up the horse stool with a smile and pulled the carriage to the backyard.

Shi Qian, along with the driver and the new waiter, walked into the restaurant. There were not many people in the front hall, only the shopkeeper standing behind the counter, frowning as he dialed the abacus and sighed. There were also a few well-dressed old men sitting in the hall, drinking and talking in low voices.

Shi Qian didn't waste any time. He looked at the waiter and said, "Open a room upstairs." He pointed at the driver behind him and said, "Open a common room for him as well. It would be best if our rooms could be next to each other. Is that possible?"

"Yes, yes." The clerk laughed and stretched out his hand to gesture forward: "Follow me, sir."

Leading the two to the back residence, Shi Qian found two rooms. He pretended to look around and frowned in disdain: "That's it. It's freezing cold and I'm too lazy to find another place. Go make some hot soup and bring it over, heat up a pot of good wine, and prepare some hot dishes."

"Okay." The waiter agreed, quickly closed the door and walked out.

Shi Qian twitched his ears, and when the person he was listening to walked away, he took off his mink coat and said, "Finally, we have arrived at Huanglong Mansion."

The driver took off his hat, revealing Du Lisan's somewhat ferocious face: "Brother Shi, what are you doing teasing that guy at the door? Be careful not to reveal your whereabouts."

Shi Qian chuckled and said, "I'm just bored, so I'm looking for someone to help me."

Du Lisan shook his head, walked to the window, opened it and looked, then retracted his head: "This place is not bad, it is close to the city gate, it is convenient for us to do things."

"When do we start?" Shi Qian stopped smiling when he saw that he was talking about serious matters.

"We don't have much time, and if we start, the Jin people will find us, so we must act quickly." Du Lisan narrowed his eyes and said, "Wait for everyone to arrive, rest for a night, and then act immediately." (End of this chapter)