Chapter 141 Newcomer reward mechanism?

Su Yuanjing's offer of amnesty this time was approved by the emperor and there were no treacherous ministers like Tong and Cai to cause trouble, so the journey was smooth and safe.

The delegation stayed in Jeju for a day to rest, and on the third day they set off for Liangshan with the imperial edict, imperial wine and rewards. The imperial edict was announced, wine was given and rewards were conferred on that day.

Seeing that the court was sincere and that there were no troublemakers like Wu Song and Lu Zhishen, all the leaders gladly followed Song Jiang and Lu Junyi to accept the imperial edict.

After everyone drank the imperial wine, Song Jiang asked Song Qing to arrange a banquet in the Loyalty Hall. The 107 leaders took their seats in order and feasted until dusk, only leaving when everyone was drunk.

With the lesson learned from Gao Qiu last time, Song Jiang made careful preparations this time.

Song Jiang himself led Qin Ming, Hua Rong, Lu Fang and Guo Sheng, and was fully responsible for the safety of Su Yuanjing's accommodation; Lu Junyi led Lin Chong, Yan Qing, Yang Xiong and Shi Xiu to be responsible for Zhang Shuye's safety; Wu Yong led Guan Sheng, Hu Yanzhuo, Dong Ping and Zhang Qing, and led the team to patrol Wanzi City all night in different areas.

In addition, Song Jiang used the excuse that there might be evil spirits causing trouble and asked Ruyunlong Gongsun Sheng to be on guard all night, and asked Yang Chang, Wu Song, Lu Zhishen and Fan Rui to protect him.

As night falls, the Big Four each perform their duties.

Song Jiang personally helped Su Yuanjing to the guest room to rest. The bedding in the room had been replaced with new ones in advance, and even a charcoal basin had been prepared thoughtfully, for fear of neglecting the angel.

Although Su Yuanjing had been drinking for several hours, he only took a sip when urged to drink, so he was not drunk when he was helped back to his residence.

In the afternoon, Song Jiang introduced them to him one by one. Most of them were ferocious and rough men. Moreover, it was said that there were very few women on Liangshan Mountain. This made Su Yuanjing cautious. He was also worried that he would follow in Gao Qiu's footsteps, so he deliberately did not dare to drink too much.

In the guest room, Su Yuanjing saw that Song Jiang had not left, and he became suspicious and asked curiously: "It is getting late now, and the hero has drunk a lot today, so he should go back and rest early."

"Today, many of my brothers are drunk. I am worried that someone will disturb your rest, so I will stay here to guard you all night. If you are tired, please go to bed and rest."

As soon as Song Jiang finished speaking, Su Yuanjing lost his sleepiness.

"Is Liangshan so unsafe?"

"Of course not."

Seeing Su Yuanjing like a frightened bird, Song Jiang waved his hands and explained: "It's just that it's not easy to recruit Liangshan. I want to make sure everything goes well. I hope you can understand."

"Of course I understand, but the righteous man is the leader of the hundred men. I feel uneasy if you are personally in charge of the guard. It would be better to call Yang Chang. He has followed us all the way from Tokyo. He is familiar with the man and I feel at ease."

Su Yuanjing's words were kind and well-intentioned, but Song Jiang felt mixed emotions after hearing them.

He thought that the two of them first knew each other in Huazhou, and Song was the leader of Liangshanpo and the chief of a hundred men. However, the Taiwei said that he was more familiar with Yang Chang and more at ease with him. Does that mean that I, Song Jiang, am not as good as Yang Chang?
After working so hard for so many years, in the end it's Yang Chang who gets the benefit?
Song Jiang was unhappy, but he still smiled, and hurriedly explained: "My Lord, Captain Yang is a little drunk, and I'm afraid he can't take on this important task. Besides, he hasn't seen his wife for months, and it's not humane to ask him to guard the place now. If you think I'm not good enough in martial arts, there are Hua Rong and Qin Ming on duty outside the house. They are both brave enough, and it won't be a problem to replace them."

"Wait a minute, sir."

As Song Jiang was about to leave, Su Yuanjing stopped him and said with a smile, "I'm not sleepy yet, would you mind talking to me?"

"Hmm? It's Song Jiang's honor."

"Speaking of the Bright Heavenly Venerable Yang Chang, I heard that his wife is your adopted sister? She came to the hall to toast this afternoon. She is really tall and heroic."

Usually people in high positions always speak with ulterior motives. Song Jiang was well aware of this when he was a bailiff in Yuncheng. At this time, Su Yuanjing suddenly mentioned Hu Sanniang, which immediately made Hei Sanlang alert.

What does Su Yuanjing mean? Is he hinting at me out of lust?
Given Chief Yang’s temper, he would have skinned you alive.
Or is it just genuine admiration? This person in the capital should have seen the world, and he would not be as impatient as Wang Aihu. This must be the case.

"Hu Sanniang is indeed heroic and her martial arts are superior to many men. It was Xiaoke who arranged this marriage."

"Brought together by a righteous man? What a pity."

Song Jiang was so shocked that he couldn't believe his ears when Su Yuanjing suddenly interrupted him. He thought to himself, did I overestimate you just now? So he frowned and asked carefully, "What do you mean, Prime Minister?"

"I mean it's a pity for Yang Chang that such a handsome man got married so soon. If he was still single now, he would definitely be taken as a son-in-law by a nobleman if he was recruited to the capital, and he would be able to rise to a high position in the future."

"Ah? Haha, that's true."

Song Jiang's head was buzzing and he could only respond with an awkward smile.

What kind of drug did Yang Chang give you? Why are you so obsessed with this guy? Fortunately, he has married Hu Sanniang, otherwise he would definitely fall on your head in the future.

Song Jiang was still complaining in his heart when he heard Su Yuanjing continue to ask questions, as if he was particularly interested in this matter.

"By the way, how many years have they been married? How is their relationship? Do they have a son or a daughter?"

"Well, it should be almost four years. They have a very good relationship and I have never heard of them quarreling. But they don't have any children yet."

"That's it, cough cough"

Su Yuanjing pondered for a moment, then suddenly covered his mouth and coughed twice, then lowered his voice and asked in a low voice: "I have something, I hope the righteous man can help me."

"Please speak, En Xiang."

As the previous topic had been laid out, Song Jiang was very alert at this time and left himself room for maneuver in his answer. He just hoped that Su Yuanjing would not be tempted by his beauty, otherwise his plan to recruit him might fail again.

"I have a niece who is much more beautiful than Hu Sanniang. But when she was young, she was obsessed with storytelling and vowed to marry a hero. Now she is only 28 years old and has not yet married, but she wants to..."

"En Xiang, do you want to help your niece find a husband? We have many young heroes in Liangshan. How about I screen them tomorrow and then invite them to show to En Xiang?"

Song Jiang finally breathed a sigh of relief and thought to himself, you almost scared me.

Isn't it easy to help my niece find a man? I'm definitely not good enough with my appearance, but I can recommend a trusted brother to marry into the family, which will be a great help to me.

Thinking of this, Song Jiang was delighted.

However, Su Yuanjing's request left Song Jiang confused.

"To be honest, I have my eyes on Yang Chang, but unfortunately he is already married. Since you are Hu Sanniang's sworn brother, can you persuade them to divorce? Anyway, they have been childless for four years, and I will definitely thank you."

"This"

Song Jiang swallowed hard and replied with difficulty: "It's not that I don't want to help, it's just that this matter is very difficult to handle. Not to mention that they are both young and it's normal for them to have no children. If I forcibly separate them, I'm afraid it will cause dissatisfaction among the brothers, and then it will affect the recruitment of the amnesty."

"That's true. I'm just saying it. If it doesn't work, forget it."

Su Yuanjing had a high opinion of Song Jiang's prestige, so he did not force him after hearing the other party's polite refusal. He thought that he should first settle the matter of recruiting the emperor, and the official's private instructions should not affect the main business.

Seeing that Su Yuanjing was a little disappointed, Song Jiang quickly clasped his fists and said, "Why do you only focus on Yang Chang, Prime Minister? There are many young heroes in Liangshan. You can take a good look at them tomorrow. If not, after we arrive in the capital, you can ask someone to help you make a decision. It's better than forcing a married man to marry you. What do you think?"

"You are right. It is settled then. The heroes will be screened first, and I will take another look tomorrow. But remember not to make this public. None of my entourage knows about it."

"Don't worry, my lord. I understand."

Zhao Ji wanted to find a son-in-law for Zhao Fujin, and asked Su Yuanjing to facilitate the matter. He thought Song Jiang's suggestion was pertinent, so he planned to give the emperor more candidates. However, he didn't know that this was like "recruiting by chance", and only Yang Chang met the requirements.

Only after Su Yuanjing fell asleep did Song Jiang leave the room and wait outside the door with Hua Rong and others.

Thinking that there was no point in keeping one more confidant with him, Song Jiang went back to his room to rest in the second half of the night, but he couldn't fall asleep when he lay on the bed.

Who should I introduce to Eun-sang?
Most of the Liangshan heroes are unmarried, but if you count them carefully now, there seem to be only a handful of them that are presentable.

People like Lu Junyi and Lin Chong are too old, while people like Yang Zhi and Liu Tang have defects in their appearance. Among the Tiangang, the only one who is truly talented and beautiful and unmarried is Zhang Qing. Among the Disha, there are Lu Fang, Guo Sheng, Kong Ming and Kong Liang, but they all look very different from Yang.

The east wind blows strongly in early spring, rustling at night.

Su Yuanjing, Zhang Shuye and others were careful when going to bed at night, and as a result, they had a peaceful and harmonious night.

They were supposed to leave the mountain in the morning, but because Song Jiang and others persuaded them to stay, they waited until after lunch before setting off.

Zhang Qing, Lu Fang and Guo Sheng were all on duty last night. Kong Ming and Kong Liang had no tasks and slept soundly. Song Jiang secretly ordered the five of them to take a bath and change clothes in the morning, and then they were led to toast Su Yuanjing one by one at the banquet.

Song Jiang specifically introduced several people who did not get married. After listening to them, Su Yuanjing remembered them one by one. Hearing that Zhang Qing defeated more than ten people from Liangshan in a row, he thought that this person was the best candidate and planned to recommend him to the emperor when he returned to Beijing.

The banquet ended at noon, and Song Jiang tried hard to keep him.

Su Yuanjing was in a hurry to return to the capital to report, so he declined everyone's kindness and insisted on leaving. Song Jiang also prepared gold and silver for each of them, and he accepted it after several refusals.

After sending off the amnesty team, Song Jiang was half relieved. He summoned everyone to the Loyalty Hall, gave an impassioned speech at the beginning, and finally expressed his intention to go to the capital to receive a title. However, the admission situation of the military academy under his command was complicated, and not all of them might be willing to go with him to serve the country. He promised that if they were unwilling to go, he would give them travel expenses and let them find a living on their own.

As soon as Song Jiang gave the order, the leaders, both big and small, counted their numbers to decide whether to stay or leave. Immediately, three to five thousand people resigned, and each of them was given a reward and left.

Yang Chang and Hu Sanniang had only two hundred military officers under their command. They were all willing to follow the couple to achieve great things, so they were the leaders who completed the statistics faster.

While all the camps were busy with inventory, Yang Chang brought Hu Sanniang to the back mountain. At that time, Yang De was preparing for spring plowing and sowing, and the family of three were busy in the fields.

Yang Chang saw this and hurried forward to stop him, saying earnestly: "Fifth Uncle, His Majesty has issued an edict to recruit us, and we will be heading to the capital soon. Don't grow the crops anymore. I will find a job for my brother Jian, and you can enjoy the good life with me."

"I heard from the people in the village below that after you are recruited, you will be the official army of the Song Dynasty. You will have to fight for the country in all directions. There is no fixed time in the wind and rain. It is useless for us to follow you. It is better to stay in the mountains and continue to farm." Yang De said while hoeing the land. He never thought of leaving with Yang Chang. Yang Chang was stunned and smiled and added: "Joining the army and fighting is uncertain. I will stabilize the job for Brother Jian, and then you will..."

"His father is right. We only know how to farm and don't know how to enjoy life. Besides, we are used to living here and don't want to live in the city."

"no."

Yang Chang took over Lu's words and explained, "You didn't understand. We have been recruited by the imperial court. The city camps of Liangshan will be demolished and everyone will leave. Xiao Rang has written a notice to sell goods at a low price to the villagers. After that, there will be no one here."

"If we don't leave, will someone come to drive us away?" Yang De straightened up and looked at him.

Yang Chang shook his head and replied, "That's not the case, but it's such a big island with only your family, and life is very inconvenient."

"As long as no one comes to chase me away, I'll feel relieved."

Hearing this, Yang De buried his head in the hoeing again, muttering, "Don't worry, Sanlang. We have experience living alone, so we don't care about whether it's convenient or not."

Seeing that Yang Chang was unable to persuade Yang De, Hu Sanniang came to Lu and said earnestly, "Aunt, it is indeed comfortable to live in seclusion in the mountains, but you have to consider brother Jian. He will have to start a family in the future. You should listen to Sanlang's advice and come with us."

Mrs. Lu did not dare to agree. She held the handle of the hoe and said with a smile, "Jian'er is only thirteen this year. How can he be assigned to the government office? He would be a burden if he follows you now."

"Brother Jian can follow us as an attendant, or even be a secretary in the army."

"Auntie knows that you two have good intentions, but now is not the right time. You should go and build your career first. If you ever grow into a towering tree, we will definitely find you."

Yang Chang ultimately failed to convince Yang De and his wife, but after thinking about it carefully, it seemed that there was no problem. He really did not have the ability to properly settle them down now. Instead of going through so much trouble, it would be better for him to live in seclusion in the mountains.

He had been traveling with Su Yuanjing before, and met Zhang Shuye in Jeju. Governor Zhang was deeply impressed by his ability to defeat a thousand men on horseback, and did not hesitate to praise Su Yuanjing.

Now Yang De wants to stay in Liangshan, and Yang Chang plans to go to the capital and pass by Jeju, so he asks Zhang Shuye to help take care of him.

The couple's persuasion failed, and before leaving, Yang De stuffed two chickens and some wind-blown dishes made by Lu herself into their mouths.

Following the mountain road to the top of the mountain, they soon returned to Wanzi City. Hu Sanniang raised the dried vegetables in her hand and asked bitterly, "Sir, we are leaving soon. Auntie gave us so much. If we can't finish it, we can take it with us on the way?"

"On the march, we should keep everything simple. Let's just make a clay pot chicken tonight and call my second brother, Zhu Jieji and the others over. We can get together again before we go down the mountain." Yang Chang pinched his chin and talked to himself.

Hu Sanniang nodded in affirmation: "This is a good idea. Sir, give me the chicken. I will go back and prepare it first. You go and invite them."

"Alright."

Yang Chang handed the live chicken to Hu Sanniang and reminded her, "Madam, wash the vegetables and heat the water first, and I will come back to kill the chicken for Tangmao."

"It's all up to you."

Hu Sanniang went home carrying the food in both hands, while Yang Chang went to invite Wu Song, Zhu Tong and others empty-handed.

At that time, Wu Song's door was open, and there seemed to be someone talking happily inside. When he got closer, he found that it was Hou Jian. He was taking a ruler to measure Wu Song's body, preparing to make new clothes for him to go to Beijing to meet the emperor.

As a Tiangang star, Wu Song can make clothes with the red brocade bestowed by the emperor.

Before either of them noticed, Yang Chang leaned against the door frame and asked with a smile, "Brother Hou, what style are you going to make for my second brother?"

"Saburo?"

"It's Brother Yang. I was just about to come look for you. The material given by the emperor is good. I plan to make a straight gown."

"Zhiro?"

Yang Chang frowned and shook his head, muttering, "Second brother disguised himself as a monk before because he had no choice, and he was not a real monk. Now that the court has pardoned his original sin and the golden seal on his face has disappeared, why should he still restrain himself with monk's robes?"

"This"

When Hou Jian looked around, Yang Chang said on behalf of Wu Song: "Let's follow our normal style. From now on, Second Brother will be reborn and become the tiger-fighting hero he used to be!"

"Just follow what Saburo says."

"Ok."

Since the main culprit Wu Song had spoken, Hou Jian naturally had nothing to say and took the opportunity to measure Yang Chang's size.

As for Hu Sanniang's new clothes, there is no need for outsiders to measure her body, she will report them to the "bedding factory" herself.

Yang Chang called Wu Song and Zhu Tong and hurried back home to light a fire and cook. He saw a flash of light in the kitchen from a distance and wondered when did Sanniang learn how to kill a chicken?

Cut throat, dripping blood, soup hair.
Although the process of killing a chicken was not complicated, Hu Sanniang had never done it before. Yang Chang was afraid that she would get covered in blood, so he hurried over to check.

As a result, she saw two bowls of chicken blood neatly arranged, and Hu Sanniang was preparing to make soup with the chicken hair that had been killed.

Who would have thought that a young lady from a wealthy family could now do these jobs?

She was influenced by Yang Chang. Yang Chang usually liked to cook for himself, as he felt that the people below him were not as good as him in cooking. Besides, there were not many entertainment activities in the mountains, so he always had to find something to do to pass the time. Studying food was one of his hobbies.

Every time Yang Chang cooked something delicious and saw Hu Sanniang enjoying the meal, he would feel the joy of feeding her.

"Ma'am, let me do it."

"So fast"

"When did you learn to kill a chicken?"

"It's not difficult. I can learn it after reading it twice. It's just that the master doesn't let me do dirty work."

"Haha. Not really."

Yang Chang laughed and didn't finish his words. When he reached out to touch the dead chicken, a drop notification came from his sea of ​​consciousness, which shocked him.

[Obtain camouflage feathers. Wear them on your head to blend in with the surrounding environment. Lasts for one hour.]

It turns out that pets can also produce something? Yang Chang hasn't touched the dead small animals for a long time, not only because he has no chance but also because he doesn't produce anything.

Now that he picked up another good thing [Camouflage Feather], he couldn't help but study the drop mechanism.

Do you remember the second [Throbbing Pill], which was obtained by Yang Jian when he helped to kill a rabbit? Now Hu Sanniang got the second [Camouflage Feather] when she killed a chicken. Does this mean that there seems to be a new player reward mechanism for the drops from these animals?

Seems reasonable.

I'll have to take advantage of this mechanism in the future.

[Camouflage Feather] is a good thing for invisibility. Now I need to get one more so that I can enter the palace and steal Zhao Fujin out.

"Sir, what are you laughing at?"

"Ok?"

Yang Chang laughed unconsciously, and when Hu Sanniang reminded him, he hurriedly explained: "No, I suddenly remembered something happy."

"What's the happy thing?"

"Uh, not my wife. I mean Su Yuanjing. I went with him to Jeju before. He kept asking about Gao Qiu's death and whether Li Kui really had a relationship with him."

"Is this funny?"

Hu Sanniang looked puzzled, and Yang Changze smiled and replied: "Madam, you didn't see his expression. He looked calm on the surface but was panicking inside. I guess he covered his buttocks when he slept that night when he stayed at Liangshan."

"Sir, this is your plan."

Hu Sanniang shook her head and sighed, "They were indeed vicious, but they were all bad people, and their deaths were not unjust. By the way, why didn't you tell Master Lin? During the time you were in Tokyo, he often asked people about Li Kui's whereabouts."

“The timing wasn’t right before.”

"Then when."

Before Hu Sanniang could finish her words, laughter was heard from outside the door.

"Brother Yang, we are here uninvited."

"Well, now we're here."

(End of this chapter)