Chao Yong and his party did not deliberately avoid it, but they all wore sun hats. Occasionally, there was an interrogation along the way, and I saw a group of them dressed in bright clothes and angry horses, but they did not dare to inquire in detail, so there were no dangers along the way.
The road to Shijie Village was far away, and the Zhang family and his daughter had been working hard for days, so Chao Yong did not go to the Ruan family and took them directly to the Hulu Zhugui Hotel in the dry land of Lijiadaokou.
A few people tied up their carriages and horses, and when they entered the hotel, a bartender had already come to watch.
Behind the counter, Zhu Gui saw these people, old and young, with their wives, dressed in bright clothes and angry with their horses. When he was thinking about how to take away the money and horses, he saw one of the young men said to the bartender: "Chao, I'm in Dongxi Village. Yong, may I ask if Chief Zhu of Dryland Hulu is here?¡±
Zhu Gui was the eyes and ears of Liangshan. He also knew that Lin Chong led Chao Yong from Dongxi Village and Ruan Shixiong from Shijie Village to the mountain to have a drink some time ago. He also knew that secretly the leader Wang Lun was more wary of Lin Chong.
Zhu Gui wanted to make Liangshan stronger. When Lin Chong went up the mountain, it was Zhu Gui who persuaded Wang Lun to keep Lin Chong. Between Wang Lun and Lin Chong, he also favored Lin Chong.
At this time, I heard that this young man was Chao Yong, and he hurriedly came out and said: "It turns out that it is brother Chao Yong, and I am Zhu Gui."
Chao Yong saw that Zhu Gui had grown up and had a tall appearance. He was a good man, much better than Du Qian and Song Wan. He immediately introduced Zhu Gui to Coach Zhang and the Zhang family's master and servant.
Zhu Gui heard that it was Lin Chong's younger brother, and quickly ordered his men to send a message to Lin Chong.
Within a few moments, Lin Chong rushed in from the back door.
Mrs. Zhang was already looking forward to seeing Lin Chong. When she saw Lin Chong, who had become much thinner, she ignored the crowd watching and threw herself into Lin Chong's arms and started crying.
Lin Chong looked at the haggard-looking madam and listened to Mrs. Zhang crying about her lovesickness and helplessness after having her wife stabbed. He also had tears in his eyes and softly comforted his madam.
After a while, the two of them remembered that everyone was there. Lin Chong took his wife to see his father-in-law, came to Chao Yong, and said, "Thanks to Brother Yong for saving me, Lin Chong and his wife can be reunited. Please accept Lin Chong's three greetings."
Chao Yong quickly got out of the way, pulled Lin Chong up and said: "Since the younger brother and the elder brother are friends, the elder brother's wife is my sister-in-law, so it's not worth a trip."
Lin Chong was also a carefree person. He patted Chao Yong on the shoulder and said, "Good brother."
Chao Yong knew that they had a lot to say when they reunited after a long separation, so he clasped his fists and said: "Now that my brother and sister-in-law have reunited, I still have something to go to Tai'an Prefecture, so I won't follow my brother up the mountain. I will come back to bother my brother and sister-in-law again when I have time in the future."
Lin Chong said hurriedly: "Brother has traveled thousands of miles for his brother, so at least he went up to the mountain to have a rest, so that we, the couple, can talk and express our gratitude."
Chao Yong said with a smile: "I really have something to do. I will bother you again when I am free another day. Please don't bother me then."
Seeing that Chao Yong had decided to leave, Lin Chong had no choice but to pat Chao Yong on the shoulder and said: "Brother, be careful along the way. If there is any place where you need me, please have someone send a message."
Chao Yong responded to Lin Chong, made a bow and said: "I will regret it later."
Leaving the foot of Liangshan Mountain, Chao Yong and his two men took the road to Tai'an Prefecture.
It turns out that March 28th is the birthday of the Holy Emperor Dongyue Tianqi. As usual, there is a temple fair every year, and there is an endless stream of people from all over the world coming to offer incense. In order to make the annual temple fair a grand event, Tai'an Prefecture built an arena where heroes from all over the country danced with guns and clubs, and those who performed well were rewarded with financial rewards. Because it was unlucky to see blood, a sumo competition was held. Officials, wealthy households, and generous pilgrims in the city would give some money and gifts to the winner. Therefore, sumo wrestlers from all over the world competed every year, which was very lively.
This year¡¯s temple fair is even more lively, and this matter is directly related to Chao Yong.
In the early morning of February of the first year of Xuanhe, all the officials arrived. The leader of the church, Daojun and the Emperor, arrived belatedly. Although Zhao Ji tried hard to keep himself up, he still couldn't hide the sleepiness on his face.
This Taojun Emperor, the leader of the religion, can be regarded as an emperor throughout the ages. Unfortunately, he is not the civil and martial arts that most emperors value most. Instead, he is engaged in all kinds of juggling, such as piano, chess, calligraphy, painting, kicking and playing, playing bamboo, stringing silk, and playing the flute. There is nothing that Zhao Ji doesn't know how to play, sing and dance, and there is nothing that he doesn't love. Especially his accomplishments in calligraphy and painting can be regarded as a master of the contemporary era.
With all these hobbies, he naturally has less energy to deal with political affairs. In other words, he is not very interested in political affairs in the first place. When Zhao Ji was still King Duan, he would spend all day admiring flowers and moonlight and completely ignore the affairs of the court. If a wealthy and idle man were allowed to remain an idle prince for the rest of his life, he would probably have a happy death, and perhaps he would still be known among the people as a romantic prince and a master of calligraphy and painting.
Unfortunately, things are unpredictable. Zhao Ji's brother Zhe Zong died suddenly and left no heirs. For some reason, Empress Xiang fell in love with Zhao Ji, a wealthy and idle man, and made him the emperor.
Zhao Ji was a little happy at first when he suddenly changed from a wealthy idler to a great person.?But within a few days he got tired of it. When you are a prince, having fun every day is your business. When you become an emperor, you have to deal with many troubles every day. Today there is a locust plague in Jingdong, and tomorrow there is a flood in Jiangnan. There are always endless troubles to deal with every day. Being an emperor is not as satisfying as being a prince.
Fortunately, he later discovered Cai Jing among the civil and military officials. Not only was he a master of calligraphy, but he was also an able minister in governing the world. Within a few years of taking charge of three provinces, the treasury had accumulated 50 million yuan in property, and the people of the world were prosperous.
With a minister who can govern the world, he can live in peace and contentment, and leave all political affairs to Cai Jing.
When the eunuch saw Zhao Ji sitting down, he said sharply: "If you have something to do, you will leave early. If you have nothing to do, you will roll up the curtain and leave the court."
As soon as he finished speaking, Si Tianjian came out and said: "Your Majesty, a meteor fell on Jingdong last night."
When the emperor heard that the stars were changing, he did not dare to neglect him. He cheered up and asked, "Is there any sign of the meteor appearing?"
"The stars in the sky guard the sun and the moon, just like the officials and people in our world are attached to the emperor. Now that the stars suddenly fall, there is a fear that the generals will rebel and the people will be displaced."
Hearing this, the ministers immediately started discussing, and several civil servants also looked at Cai Jing thoughtfully.
Cai Jing also changed his expression. He is in charge of the three provinces. He handles most of the government affairs in the world. If the people are displaced, it is his responsibility.
If this statement is confirmed, the emperor will have to issue an edict. As a grand master, once he is attacked by others, he may have to retire from office. He hurriedly said: "Since the Holy Emperor ascended the throne, everything has been going smoothly, and occasionally there are small incidents. In the event of a disaster, the imperial court also provided timely relief, so people would never be displaced. According to Wei Chen, the birthday of the Holy Emperor Tianqi of Dongyue was approaching. It was thought that the Holy Emperor Tianqi came down to earth to enjoy the incense in the world, so the Holy Emperor issued an order to celebrate the day in Tai'an Prefecture. It¡¯s the birthday of Emperor Qi Sheng.¡±
Cai Jing, however, was a member of the Holy Family. The emperor specially allowed him to go to the capital hall once every five days to handle affairs. He could usually handle official affairs at home. Therefore, he had great power and many ministers in the court attached themselves to him.
As soon as Cai Jing spoke, all the party members came out to respond. Now is the time of peace and prosperity. How could there be rebellion among the generals and the displacement of the people?
Zhao Ji didn¡¯t know what else he was thinking about. When he saw all the ministers saying this, he said: "It is exactly what the grand master said. This year, Tai'an Prefecture will celebrate the birthday of the Holy Emperor Tianqi. All ministers, please retire without incident."
Several Qingliu in the court were still communicating with each other with their eyes, trying to see if they could take the opportunity to bring down Cai Jing. Unexpectedly, the matter was determined so quickly, and they could only continue to lie dormant.
When the emperor was still drunk and enjoying himself, he didn't know that the world had been turned into a mess by himself and other traitorous officials, and the people were displaced.
At the same time, the eunuchs and maids in the palace were discussing quietly. First, someone in Jinling Palace found the statue of Taizu crying, and then in the temple of the late Emperor Shenzong, blood flowed out from time to time between the gaps in the square tiles on the floor of the toilet hall. The flow has been like this for several days in a row, and many people think it is an ominous sign.
This year, due to the decree of the Holy Emperor, Tai'an Prefecture held a very grand event. The top sumo wrestler was rewarded with a thousand guan by the government alone, not to mention the money and gifts provided by many wealthy households and pilgrims. Therefore, it attracted sumo masters from all over the world. Come in droves.
¡°In the past two years, Jiang Zhong of Longde Prefecture was the top sumo wrestler. Because he was nine feet tall, he was nicknamed Jiang Menshen in the world. He is a good gun stick and is especially good at sumo wrestling. In the past two years, he defeated hundreds of sumo wrestlers from all over the world and won a lot of money and materials.
Although Chao Yong has never learned sumo wrestling, he is confident that he can defeat Jiang Menshen and come out on top thanks to his supernatural power and quick reactions. Chao Yong was not competing for some money or goods, but because of the large number of people coming from all directions to the temple fair.
The two of them traveled non-stop and finally arrived in Tai'an Prefecture on the 27th. The two of them arrived a little late. They checked several inns along the way, but they were all full. In the end, they had to pay more money and let a group of guests give up a room before settling down.
The two of them visited Daiyue Temple, burned incense, and took an early rest.
Around the third watch of the next day, a burst of drum music was heard, and all the incense officers and the holy emperor in the temple were praying for their birthdays. Around the fourth watch, Chao and Yong got up, cleaned up for a while, then left the shop and followed the flow of people.
Today, people who came to burn incense were really crowded. The huge Dongyue Temple was filled with people at once, and the roof beams were full of people watching.
A mountain shed was built in front of Kaning Hall. The shed was covered with gold and silver utensils and brocade grosgrain. There were five horses tied outside the door, all with saddles and bridles. They were all used by wealthy officials to reward the top sumo wrestler. .
On the high platform on the side, the Honshu magistrate personally led officials of all sizes to sit on the throne. An old official, holding a bamboo pole, went up to the altar to offer sacrifices. After worshiping the gods, he invited this year's sumo opponents to come out and compete.
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw a dozen people holding a sedan, lining up the crowd, and walked in swaggeringly. The door-god Chiang was sitting on a sedan chair, and twenty or thirty disciples came to the offering platform, shouting and cheering.
Jiang Menshen walked up to the stage and said: "Four hundred military prefectures, more than 7,000 county governments, good deeds and fragrant officials, respectful to the Holy Emperor, all help to bring benefits. Jiang Zhong received it in vain in the past two years. According to the usual practice, if he does it again this year I won the first prize, but I won't be able to do it next year. It's a pity that I didn't meet my opponent in the past two years. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west. The two suns and the moon merge into the universe and reach Nanman in the south. Beiji Youyan, do you dare to come out to compete with me this year?"
After saying that, I saw a man coming up with a bucket.
The disciples of Chiang Men-god were all standing close to the sacrificial platform, and they were standing densely all around.
?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? out of the turban, and only the Shu brocade jacket was empty.
When everyone who came to compete saw Jiang Menshen, who was over nine feet tall and covered in fat, they were frightened at first, and for a while no one came on stage.
Seeing that no one dared to come on stage, one of Jiang Menshen's disciples said proudly: "People say there are many heroes in Qilu, but I don't think so. Master has beaten so many men from Qilu in the past two years, and no one dares to come on stage this year."
Another person also said: "That is, if you want to say that this sumo wrestling master is the best in the world. If you want to say that a good man is in Hedong, we have to look at our Hedong Guan Yu. Hedong Guan Yu is the best in the past. When I made a pilgrimage, as early as in Chongning In the first year of his reign, he was granted the title of Lord Zhonghui. In the second year of Daguan, he was granted the title of King of Zhaolie Wu'an. No hero in the past dynasties could have such ability."
The two said something, but it angered a man from Jingdong. He quickly stepped onto the stage, took off his shirt, cupped his fists and said, "Qingzhou Wang Li, please enlighten me."
However, Jiang Menshen set up a barrier. When the man couldn't bear his temper and came forward, he just put his arm around his shoulders and pushed him off the stage with a strong force, which caused a burst of applause from Jiang Menshen's disciples.
Several men came on stage one after another, but they were all pushed off the stage by Jiang Menshen with brute force. When an ordinary person comes on stage to compete with Chiang Door-god, he is just like a child or an adult, how can he resist his strength.
Seeing that the situation was gradually getting colder again, Jiang Menshen¡¯s disciples became more and more proud.
"It seems that the master is in the lead again this time. If we had taken the advantage early, we could have gone home earlier."
Chao Yong looked down for a long time, and saw that Jiang Menshen only relied on his strength to win, and felt relieved. If he were to compare strength alone, he would definitely beat Jiang Menshen, but he was not as big as Jiang Menshen and could not control the scene. , if you go up too early and beat Chiang Men-shen, and then another good sumo wrestler comes up, you may lose accidentally.
Chao Yong doesn¡¯t have Yan Qing¡¯s ability, so naturally he doesn¡¯t dare to be as high-profile as Yan Qing. After seeing through Jiang Menshen's falsehood, he and Chao San found a teahouse nearby to rest.
At noon, I heard the gongs being beaten over there, indicating that the sumo wrestling was about to end, and then I came to the stage again.
Chao Yong pushed his way through the crowd, walked quickly onto the stage, and took off his shirt.
Seeing that he was born in the 1700s and 1800s, Jiang Menshen said impatiently without waiting for Chao Yong to say anything: "Someone's little kid is here to join in the fun. Get off the stage. When the master gets the goodies, I'll give you some candies."
Chao Yong said: "I didn't want to come to power, but you masters and apprentices are too rude. I don't know the methods of the heroes of Qilu, but you boast about Haikou and say that all the heroes are in the east of your river. Chao Yong of Jezhou came to power today, not to fight for gains, but to In order to promote my reputation as a hero of Qilu, if Chao Yong defeats this Chiang keeper and comes out on top, I would like to exchange all the spoils for rice and give them to the poor people in the city."
"well said."
"Throw this Hedong man down and let him know that I, the hero of Qilu, am powerful."
Most of the people in the audience were from Qilu, and when they heard that he didn¡¯t want any favors, they couldn¡¯t help but cheer.
Hearing this, Door God Jiang narrowed his eyes and looked at Chao Yong. People who dare to say such things have some tricks, but Chao Yong is not very tall and young, so he doesn't take it seriously.
Chao Yong followed the example of the previous people and set up a portal, just waiting for Jiang Menshen to join.
After fighting for a long time, Jiang Menshen lost his patience and wanted to grab the spoils as soon as possible. Seeing that Chao Yong did not attack, he took a big step and grabbed Chao Yong's arms with his two big palm-like hands, wanting to do the same as before. Throw Chao Yong off the stage.
Chao Yong didn't know how to sumo, and he didn't dare to loose his steps. Seeing him step forward, he met Jiang Menshen's hands with both hands, clasped his fingers together, and competed with each other.
Jiang Menshen has been wrestling for three years, but he has yet to meet anyone who dares to compete with him. With a ferocious smile, he squatted down and compared his strength with Chao Yong.
"This young man is too reckless. With Jiang Menshen's stature, how can he compete with him in strength?"
"Yes, I hope Jiang Menshen won't be too vicious and hurt this young man."
"This young man seems to be smart, but why does he act so carelessly? Hurry up and admit defeat to avoid being poisoned."
When everyone was sighing for Chao Yong, they saw that Jiang Menshen¡¯s face was already red from holding back, and his neck was full of pain.His muscles were bulging, and it was obviously very difficult, but Chao Yong was smiling, as if he was just playing with others.
Jiang Menshen used all his strength, but he only felt that Chao Yong's hands were like iron pliers. No matter how hard he exerted force, Chao Yong's ten fingers were tightly clasping his hands.
Chao Yong raised his eyebrows at Jiang Menshen and said with a smile: "You defeated everyone with your brute force. Today I will defeat you with my strength, so that you know that there is heaven outside the world, and there are people outside the world."
After saying that, he suddenly increased his strength.
Jiang Menshen suddenly felt that Chao Yong's fingers turned into red-hot iron pliers, and his palm-like hands were instantly bruised. Drops of sweat fell from his forehead. He gritted his teeth and held on for a few breaths. Finally, he couldn't help but struggle and wanted to shake off. Take off Chao Yong's hands.
Chao Yong saw that Jiang Menshen was already in disarray, so he rushed in, released his left hand and inserted it between his legs, pressed his chest with his shoulder, and lifted up Jiang Menshen, who was more than nine feet tall. , shouted "Get off!", lifted up his left hand, released his right hand, and threw Jiang Menshen off the ring.
The four-to-five-foot-high ring, coupled with Chao Yong¡¯s forceful throw, made Jiang Menshen unable to move for a long time. Only then did he realize the feeling of the person he threw off the ring.
"good"
"What a divine power."
When everyone saw that Chao Yong defeated Jiang Menshen, they couldn¡¯t help but cheer.
Seeing that Chao Yong had won and the time was almost up, the magistrate of Tai'an Prefecture also wanted to make a good story come true. He immediately went on stage and personally announced that the sumo wrestling was over and that Chao Yong came out on top.
Seeing Chao Yong¡¯s miraculous power and being guarded by officers and soldiers, Jiang Menshen¡¯s disciples did not dare to cause trouble, so they carried Jiang Menshen back to his hometown in despair.
Chao Yong wore red flowers and paid homage to the Holy Emperor Dongyue. Hearing people say that the magistrate was honest in his work, he asked him to help exchange the spoils he won into rice and distribute them to the poor people in the city.
The money and goods provided by the wealthy households and pilgrims in the city was equivalent to one thousand guan, plus the 1,000 guan from Tai'an Prefecture, for a total of 2,000 guan, which could buy a big house in Tokyo, but Chao Yong exchanged it for white rice and distributed it to the people in the city.
Such a generous act naturally became the talk of the town. People from all over the world said that Chao Yong of Jezhou was generous and righteous, and his strength was comparable to that of Xiang Yu, the overlord of Western Chu. He was also nicknamed Little Overlord in the world.
(The regiment trained by Jiang Menshen in Water Margin is from Dongluzhou, but there is no Dongluzhou in the Northern Song Dynasty, or it refers to Luzhou. Luzhou was established by the Northern Zhou Dynasty. In the third year of Chongning, Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty, it was changed to Longde Mansion, which belongs to Hedong Road. The state government is in Changzhi City, Shanxi Province.
(The canonization of Guan Yu began during the reign of Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty. During his lifetime, Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty consecrated Guan Yu four times. After that, the emperor continued to consecrate Guan Yu, and it was only in the Qing Dynasty that he was revered as a Martial Saint)