Chapter 142

The reason Zhang Jie and his party were so relaxed while carrying Lin Chong and others who were wanted by Gao Qiu

was that Zhang Jie and his group were not afraid of Gao Qiu's warrants and pursuit:

On one hand, Wu Song, Lu Zhishen, and the others all possessed profound martial arts,

were physically strong, and were filled with a fierce aura; one look and they were clearly heroes walking the Jianghu.

Any one of them alone would give the local yamen a headache, and the three of them combined were greater than the sum of their parts.

If local authorities wanted to arrest them, they would have to mobilize at least dozens of constables.

And for local officials, this was a thankless task that required too much effort,

so even if someone recognized Lin Chong, they would choose to turn a blind eye.

Of course, Zhang Jie had no intention of going to war with the Great Song at this stage.

To prevent Lin Chong from being recognized, he personally performed a disguise for him.

Using the Murong family's disguise technique that Zhang Jie had learned from Abi in the *Heavenly Dragon* world, Lin Chong underwent a complete transformation.

Never mind those constables who could only rely on blurry portraits and features to identify people,

even Zhang Zhenniang was shocked when she saw Lin Chong after Zhang Jie had disguised him.

If it weren't for the fact that the husband and wife had spent every day together in the past and were intimately familiar with each other's various habits

and features, even she would have almost failed to recognize that this was her husband!

In this way, naturally, no one recognized Lin Chong, and if they couldn't recognize him, how could there be any talk of pursuit?

Besides Zhang Jie changing Lin Chong's appearance, there was also Zhang Jie's status as a top scholar.

Although he had been demoted by Zhao Ji, a top scholar was a top scholar after all;

he had truly entered the ruling class of the Great Song and was in the same tier as those "lords."

Those lords did not treat the common people as human beings, but they had to treat Zhang Jie as one!

Along the way, officials who occasionally recognized Zhang Jie's bearing even vaguely shared a sense of common hatred and intended to stand up for him.

If Zhang Jie were willing, he could completely rely on this status to become a leader of the scholar-official class, slowly building up his reputation,

and preparing for his return to the court after Zhao Ji passed away and the Crown Prince ascended the throne.

The representative figure of building reputation in the Northern Song was Wang Anshi.

He was already famous throughout the world before serving as Prime Minister; after resigning to observe mourning for his mother,

he did not serve in office for 30 years, during which he repeatedly refused the court's summons,

until Emperor Shen Sect of Song ascended the throne and directly appointed him as Prime Minister.

This laid the foundation for him to later lead the reforms: he accumulated prestige through long-term reputation building,

focused on winning the Emperor's support, avoided conflicts of interest in the officialdom, and won public approval through his personal integrity,

gaining the support of the majority of people at the time, from the Emperor down to the hundred officials.

All of the above were only secondary reasons; the most important reason was actually that Gao Qiu's influence was not great outside of Bianliang.

Compared to people like Cai Jing, whose students and former subordinates were everywhere,

the influence of Gao Qiu, this Marshal, was limited to Bianliang.

Or rather, whether he was willing or not, his influence could only be limited to Bianliang.

Otherwise, a Marshal who nominally controlled eighty thousand Imperial Guards—

if he were to stretch his hand into other places, what was Gao Qiu trying to do?

Was he trying to collude with local regions and learn from the military governors of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period?

Or was he trying to learn from the traitor Cao Cao, who could wear a sword to the palace, enter the court without hurrying, and not have his name announced?

Only if Gao Qiu dared to show even a hint of such a tendency,

the first person to take his dog life would be Zhao Ji, who had personally helped him onto the Marshal's throne!

After all, for the Emperor of our Great Song, one had to guard against Western Xia and also against the Great Liao in the north,

but what one had to guard against even more were the various warlords within the country who wanted to hold military power and act independently!

With so many measures taken simultaneously, Zhang Jie and his group were able to tour the mountains and rivers in a leisurely manner.

"Ahahaha, when I was in Qingzhou back then, I had also heard of the fish delicacies of this Shi Jie Village.

Today, thanks to the Young Master, I can also satisfy my appetite!"

Hearing Zhang Jie's agreement, the accompanying Lu Zhishen rubbed his gleaming bald head and laughed heartily.

The group immediately headed toward Shi Jie Village, located on the edge of the Liang Shan water expanse.

"Shopkeeper, quickly bring us your signature fish soup!"

As soon as they entered the largest and only tavern in Shi Jie Village,

Lu Zhishen slapped a piece of broken silver onto the shopkeeper's table.

The shopkeeper, who had been drowsy, saw the silver emitting an alluring glow on the table,

and immediately became spirited, saying with a face full of smiles:

"Honored guests, please wait a moment.

The fish soup will be here immediately; I guarantee it will satisfy you all!"

Zhang Jie led the group to find a table by the window and sat down.

"Honored guests, your fish soup!"

Before long, the waiter brought over a steaming, milky-white basin of fish soup.

"Young Master, fish soup."

Wu Song was the first to serve half a bowl of fish soup for Zhang Jie.

"Hmm, thank you, Brother Wu Er."

After Zhang Jie thanked him, he used a spoon to scoop up a spoonful of fish soup and put it into his mouth.

Then, as he felt the taste of the fish soup with his taste buds, he could not help but frown.

"Young Master, is there a problem with the fish soup?"

Seeing this, Wu Song and the others immediately became nervous.

The nervous Lin Chong even subconsciously placed his hand on the hilt of his sword.

As long as Zhang Jie gave the order, he would draw his sharp blade and cut down anyone who dared to block them!

"There is no problem with the fish soup; I just feel it is not as delicious as the legends say, and I am a bit disappointed."

Zhang Jie's brow relaxed as he stated the reason for his frown.

Upon hearing this, Lu Zhishen and the others let down their guard,

and they also tasted the fish soup with their spoons, only to be greatly disappointed.

Although this fish soup was indeed delicious and better than what they had eaten in Bianliang,

it truly could not live up to its grand reputation.

How could the hot-tempered Lu Zhishen tolerate such behavior of deceiving consumers?

He raised an eyebrow and was about to call the shopkeeper over to give him a good scolding:

Was it because they saw they were guests from out of town that they deliberately passed off inferior goods as superior?

"Gentlemen, no need to ask; this is the best fish soup in Shi Jie Village right now."

At this moment, a man drinking alone nearby, who looked somewhat depressed, saw Lu Zhishen's thoughts and spoke up.

Although this man had a gloomy look, his eyes were like copper bells, and his hand gripping the wine cup was as solid as an iron rod;

on his exposed chest was a vivid tattoo of a leopard with its bloody mouth wide open,

as if it were about to jump out and eat someone the next second.

Zhang Jie looked at this man, who was covered in a fierce aura but not overbearing, and asked with some curiosity:

"I have only heard of dishes becoming better and better after improving the recipe,

or being completely lost due to a lack of ingredients;

I have never heard of what is called 'the best right now.'

Could it be that it was better or worse in the past or will be in the future?

I am very curious and hope you can enlighten us."

Wu Song and the others, who were equally curious, also focused their eyes on the tattooed man.

The tattooed man was stared at by so many people, including heroes like Wu Song

and Lu Zhishen, yet he showed not a hint of timidity and said lazily:

"Easy to say, easy to say."

"The reason our Shi Jie Village's fish soup used to be incredibly fresh and delicious,

with a far-reaching reputation, was because it included large fish weighing dozens of jin.

These large fish grew for many years, eating countless fish, shrimp, and crabs;

their scales were like iron, their tendons were incredibly tough, and their meat was delicate and fresh,

so the soup boiled with them as the main ingredient was therefore as delicious as could be."

Wu Song cupped his hands in respect upon hearing this:

"Brother, you are so familiar with these large fish; you must be an expert in this field, right?"

"That goes without saying!"

A look of pride could not help but appear on the tattooed man's face:

"Think of me in the past, roaming the eight-hundred-li water expanse; never mind those large fish weighing dozens of jin,

even large fish bigger than a person and weighing over a hundred jin could not escape my fishing net!"

Lu Zhishen asked suspiciously: "Brother, since you have such skills, why does this shop lack large fish?"

The tattooed man's eyes were filled with resentment upon hearing this:

"I do not fear any large fish in the water, but the human heart is more vicious than any flood or wild beast!"

"Large fish are huge and have high requirements for water depth; only in the deep waters located in the depths of the water expanse can they be found."

"But a few years ago, a gang of bandits came to Liang Shan in the depths of the water expanse,

controlling the waterways and not letting any fisherman go in to fish;

if anyone disobeyed, they would be beaten, and their fishing gear, which they relied on for a living, would be seized!"

"Although I have some strength, I am no match for dozens or hundreds of bandits,

so I can only withdraw from the depths of the water expanse and come to this shallow area to catch some small fish, shrimp, and crabs to maintain my livelihood."

"The bandits in the depths of Liang Shan..."

Zhang Jie tapped the table lightly: 'It seems that would be Wang Lun, Du Qian, and Song Wan.'

He pondered slightly, made a plan, and smiled:

"I have a plan that can make those bandits give up the blockade,

but I wonder if you, brother, are willing to lend me a hand?"

"Oh? Does this Young Master really have confidence?"

The tattooed man was somewhat moved.

The reason he struck up a conversation with Zhang Jie and the others was that he saw their extraordinary nature.

If nothing else, the Jianghu aura on that big monk was so thick it was almost tangible.

The others were also extraordinary, and Zhang Jie, who could have these people follow him, was naturally even more extraordinary.

"That goes without saying." Zhang Jie nodded affirmatively.

"Good!

Since the Young Master has such boldness, then I, Ruan Xiao Wu, will risk my life to accompany you!"

Seeing Zhang Jie so confident, the tattooed man, or rather Ruan Xiao Wu, felt a surge of boldness in his heart and agreed immediately.

"What a 'Short-Lived Wu Wu Erlang,' truly heroic!"

Zhang Jie could not help but praise Ruan Xiao Wu's heroism.

To make a promise after three cups of wine, to treat the Five Sacred Mountains as light—these are true heroes!

And this "Short" character is synonymous with "Broken"; the "Short-Lived Wu Wu Erlang" is actually the "Life-Breaking Wu Wu Erlang"!

"Has the Young Master heard of my name?"

Ruan Xiao Wu asked curiously.

"The name of the three Ruan heroes resounds throughout the eight-hundred-li Liang Shan water expanse;

I had heard of it long before I came to Shi Jie Village." Zhang Jie smiled.

Seeing that such an extraordinary Zhang Jie appreciated the three brothers so much,

Ruan Xiao Wu felt in his heart that the legendary "a scholar dies for his confidant" was probably just like this!

He stood up and solemnly cupped his hands in a salute to Zhang Jie:

"Ruan Xiao Wu is willing to die for the Young Master!"

Zhang Jie waved his hand: "You and I are brothers; why speak of dying?"

"Ruan Xiao Wu greets you, Brother!"

Ruan Xiao Wu, deeply moved, had tears in his tiger eyes.

'This stacked charisma is simply terrifying!'

At the same time, Zhang Jie was also sighing in his heart.

In the past, he never quite understood what it meant when a protagonist released his "kingly aura" and others immediately knelt and pledged allegiance.

But today, Ruan Xiao Wu's performance let him know what it meant to kneel and pledge allegiance.

This had already risen from mere appearance to the level of personality charisma.

Typical examples of great personality charisma:

A peddler who weaves mats and sells shoes sends you an invitation:

"Kongming, help me restore the Han Dynasty!"

A failed art student shouts in a beer hall:

"Do you know how much a loaf of bread costs?

A full five hundred thousand marks!"

Someone with a Hunan accent says kindly:

"Only through sacrifice can we show our great ambition, daring to make the sun and moon shine in a new sky!"