Lord: Start with a book of Water Margin

Chapter 313 Battle of Shijie Lake

Without mentioning how Li Zhong and Zhou Tong conveyed the message, let's just say that in Liangshan County, after Zhao Zhen took Jin Lebo and Xiu Lebo as concubines, he stayed at their residence for several days in a row.

After a few more days, they took turns staying in each room.

On this day, Zhao Zhen was talking with Tang Long and Hou Jian in the hall. Zhao Zhen was seen standing around a piece of iron armor, with an excited look on his face: "Thank you two brothers for your hard work. This infantry armor has finally been forged."

Tang Long said: "Sir, after these days of trial and error, our craftsmen have finally mastered the forging of the armor plates. From now on, as long as there is enough iron material, we can continue to forge the armor plates."

Zhao Zhen laughed and said to the two men, "With two brothers here, there is no armor that cannot be made. How is the current production?"

Hou Jian said: "Sir, now we can make 100 sets of leather armor per month, 40 sets of iron armor, and 10 sets of infantry armor per month. However, there is not enough leather and iron to last until the end of the year."

"Brothers, just supervise the production. I will ask someone to buy the iron and leather myself."

After hearing this, the two stood up and said goodbye. Zhao Zhen then called Tao Youda, who was waiting on the side, to come in.

After greeting, General Tao You handed the cloth-wrapped item to Zhao Zhen, saying, "Sir, this is a cucumber vine armor woven in the shape of the hero Ouyang Shou. Please check it."

When Zhao Zhen took a look, he found that, like the jade gourd vine armor, this vine armor woven from cucumber vines was also a first-level armor with the same protective performance.

World Log:

Cucumber Rattan Armor (Level 1, woven from Level 1 cucumber vines, dipped in black lacquer, covered with black cloud sand, does not sink in water, and can protect against arrows.)
Characteristics: Protection +3, sturdiness +2; does not sink when dropped into water, resists heavy blows.

Zhao Zhen praised: "Manager Tao, your craftsmanship has improved. How did you handle the cane you brought last time?"

"Don't worry, sir. The rattan is being soaked in tung oil and dried in the sun. It will be ready for weaving in three or four months. During this period, you have also seen the skills of the apprentices we have recruited through weaving bamboo mats. They will be ready for weaving in the future."

Zhao Zhen nodded and said, "That's good. I will purchase another batch of rattan. You must carefully supervise the weaving of rattan armor and bamboo mats, and don't let the apprentices just do the job."

"Don't worry, sir. Apprentices are chosen from poor families who are hardworking and willing to work. They all cherish this opportunity. I am so happy to get a cool bamboo mat this time."

Zhao Zhen smiled and said, "It's also because of your hard work. You should be rewarded for your merits. You can't weave so many bamboo mats and not be able to use them yourself."

After seeing off Tao Youda, Zhao Zhen picked up the rattan armor in his hand and looked at it again. He asked Zhao Ji to put it together with the [Eight-edged Tiger Eye Steel Whip] sent by Tang Long, and drive a boat to Shijie Lake to deliver it to Ouyang Shoutong tomorrow.

Just as they were packing up, they saw Zhao Yuanli leading a big man in. It was not Ouyang Shoutong but that one.

Zhao Zhen smiled and said, "I was just thinking about going to Shijie Lake to visit you tomorrow, but I didn't expect you to come here first."

As he said that, he asked Zhao Ji to bring up the rattan armor and steel whip.

Ouyang Shou said, "Sir, the governor of Jizhou Prefecture sent Huang An, the militia commander, to lead more than a thousand people to Shijie Village to suppress the rebellion. We set an ambush and lured them into the lake. We killed or drowned most of them, and captured more than 600 people, as well as countless cattle, horses, and baggage. Captain Ruan Xiaowu sent me to report the victory."

After hearing this, Zhao Zhen immediately asked Wu Yong, Zhu Wu, Xiao Rang, and Pei Xuan to come over, and then asked, "How many soldiers were lost?"

Ouyang Shoutong said with a smile: "Don't worry, sir. This battle was very exciting. Except for a few who fell and got injured, there were no injuries to the soldiers."

"This group of people is really bold. They rushed into Shijie Village without any hesitation, but they didn't know that we had already made a plan with Ruan Dian. We let Ruan Dian and others cry that a group of water bandits came to the lake, killed the military advisor Yazi, and forced everyone to fish and pay taxes. The fishermen hated the water bandits so much that they took the initiative to lead the way, provided boats, and lured them into the water." "Huang An is so arrogant. He heard from the head of Ruan Dian that there are only a hundred of us, but he actually left a hundred people to guard the baggage and horses, and the rest boarded the boat to wipe us out. These landlubbers dared to sit in the bed cabin on the boat, holding the boat's rope with both hands. How can they be our opponents?"

"Ruan Dian proposed a plan to encircle them, separating them in the reeds in the lake. My brother Ruan Xiaowu and I each led a team of soldiers, and in just half a day we killed all the resistance. Those who knew how to swim were drowned in the lake. Those who dared not go into the water were captured alive in the boats. We confiscated their weapons, tied their hands and feet, and put them in the boats."

Zhao Zhen asked, "How is Huang An?"

Ouyang Shou said: "This man is quite capable. During the battle, he dared to sail alone to meet the enemy. Unfortunately, his subordinates on the boat were weak. When fighting with Brother Ruan Xiaowu, he was stabbed in the chest by Ruan Xiaowu. He bandaged it haphazardly and kept it on the boat."

"How did you deal with this group of officers and soldiers on the road?"

Ouyang Shou said: "Most of the people on the road are old and weak. We will go ashore and surround them, and take them down without bloodshed."

Zhao Zhen laughed and said, "Brother, you two did a great job. A navy of less than 300 people wiped out more than a thousand bandit-hundred officers and soldiers without any damage. This should be credited as a great achievement."

As he was talking, Wu Yong and others pushed the door open and came in: "Master, what good news is this that makes you so happy?"

Zhao Zhen asked Ouyang Shoutong to repeat the preface again.

Zhao Zhen asked, "How about this news?"

Wu Yong also smiled and said, "It is indeed good news. After this battle, I am afraid that the Jizhou government will not dare to come and make trouble again."

Zhao Zhen nodded: "That's exactly what I want. It's getting late today, so tomorrow, Brother Pei Xuan and I will go to Shijie Lake with Brother Ouyang Shoutong to record the merits of the soldiers and distribute rewards."

"We have to have a plan to capture so many people. Also, the fishermen in Shijie Village have contributed a lot, so we need to reward them. Do you have any ideas?"

Xiao Rangxian said, "Of course, the fishermen of Shijie Lake must be rewarded, and the reward must be generous. Not only that, we must also ask the storytellers of the Wa Si to write a story praising the fishermen of Shijie Village for resisting foreign invasions. The great official will reward them generously and tell the story in various taverns in Liangshan County."

"As for rewards, in addition to gold and silver, rice, wheat, salt, and cloth are all acceptable. The average household in Shijie Village only has four or five acres of land, and they rely entirely on fishing to exchange for grain and rice."

Zhao Zhen listened and nodded. "What Brother Xiao Rang said is right. Since Shijie Village is short of food, the county should arrange for people to build a grocery store there and transport more rice and grain there so that the fishermen can fish with peace of mind."

Xiao Rang responded, took out a booklet from his bosom and handed it to Zhao Zhen, saying, "Sir, here are all the statistics of Shijie's villages, fields, and fishing boats. Please have a look."

Zhao Zhen took it and said, "There's no rush. I'll look at it later. We also need to discuss a rule for the prisoners. It's not good to kill all of them."

Wu Yong said, "Brother Xiao Rang, didn't you say that there is still a shortage of coal miners in Heihu Temple Town? Pick some strong ones and put them in shackles and send them there. Add some people to pound rice in the prison. Send the rest to Liangshan Horse Farm to raise horses. There are lakes all around there, so there is no need to worry about people escaping. Even if one or two escape, it's not a big deal. I want them to go to the city to spread the word about our methods."

"But Huang An is a bit troublesome. After all, he is an official appointed by the court, so it is not easy to deal with him casually. If he can recover from his injuries, I am afraid we can only imprison him."

Ouyang Shou said, "Military Advisor, Huang An is unlikely to survive. Brother Ruan Xiaowu did not hold back with his fork. When I came, he was already breathing less and breathing more."

Wu Yong said: "It doesn't matter whether he lives or dies, but we can't let him leave Liangshan County."

(End of this chapter)