Chapter 22

After many twists and turns, the three boats finally navigated out of the vast reed marsh. After rowing for a while on the Shijie Lake, they could finally see the land.

On the shore, there were about seven or eight thatched cottages haphazardly built. An old woman was pointing at someone and scolding them. The person was half-squatting on an empty tree stump by the lake, head lowered, not responding.

The old woman scolded, "In less than half a day, you lost everything, and now you're thinking about the hairpin on my head... You don't want to fish, you don't want to get married, but you just want to gamble! Do you really want to make me die of anger?"

Ruan Xiaqi, seeing that the old woman was only scolding on the shore and hadn't noticed that he had brought guests, shouted, "Old lady! Fifth Brother!"

The man squatting on the tree stump, upon hearing Ruan Xiaqi's voice, felt a surge of joy and quickly called out, "Seventh Brother, do you have any money on you? Lend me a few to turn the tide!"

Ruan Xiaqi laughed and said, "Fifth Brother, don't go gambling today. We have distinguished guests!"

Ruan Xiaowu, upon hearing this, looked at the boat. Wang Lun and Song Wan both stood up and bowed to him. Soon, the sailors jumped ashore to tie the ropes, and Wang Lun and Song Wan were about to disembark. Wang Lun approached the old woman and said, "Auntie, I'm visiting you today without any gifts, but I have this. Please accept it!" As he spoke, he took out a piece of garlic-shaped gold wrapped in red cloth and handed it to the old woman.

The old woman's eyesight was a bit blurry, and she carefully examined the hard, yellow ingot. Ruan Xiaowu, with his sharp eyes, called out, "Old lady, quickly return the gift to the guest. This gift is too valuable, it must weigh about seventeen or eighteen taels of gold!"

The old woman was startled and said, "No, no, I can't accept it!" She pulled Wang Lun's hand, trying to return the gold ingot. Wang Lun smiled and said, "Auntie, don't be so formal! It's almost the New Year, and I have nothing to offer. Please take this and make a bracelet. The rest can be saved for Fifth Brother and Seventh Brother to get married in the future!"

The old woman was deeply moved, with many words welling up in her throat, but she didn't know where to start. Wang Lun added, "Fifth Brother is usually very filial. If he gets married, it will be even better to take care of you!" Wang Lun knew that although Ruan Xiaowu liked to gamble, he lived with his mother, not relying on his married brother Ruan Xiaoe for support, showing that he was a sincere filial son.

The old woman, hearing the guest speak of her most proud son, held Wang Lun's hand and said, "I'm not afraid that the distinguished guests will laugh, but my Fifth Son doesn't fish well and just loves to gamble, making our family destitute. No young lady would want to marry him. But among my three sons, I like him the most, only he has me in his heart!"

Ruan Xiaqi, hearing this from the boat, laughed and said, "Old lady, you're scolding the monk in front of the temple! I've said many times, asking you to move in with me, but you refused. Now you're complaining here! Even Second Brother has come to persuade you a few times!"

The old woman replied, "You're not as good as Fifth Son! Not to mention Second Son, I can't argue with his wife!"

Everyone laughed, and Ruan Xiaowu came to support his mother, thanking Wang Lun on her behalf, and asked, "May I know the distinguished guest's name?"

Wang Lun bowed and said, "I am Wang Lun!" He pointed to Song Wan and said, "This is my brother, known as the Cloudy Diamond Song Wan!" Song Wan also bowed to Ruan Xiaowu, who hurriedly returned the gesture. Seeing Wang Lun's refined and generous demeanor and Song Wan's tall and robust figure, he thought, "These must be the leaders from Liangshan. I've heard that Wang Lun is narrow-minded and stingy, and we've discussed joining him several times but held back due to these concerns. But seeing him today, he's very different. It's true that what you hear is not as good as what you see, and the rumors in the world are often exaggerated!"

The old woman, seeing Wang Lun dressed like a scholar and hearing his surname, warmly invited everyone into the house for tea, saying, "Professor Wang, don't mind the simplicity of my thatched house. Please come in and have a cup of hot soup to warm up!"

Ruan Xiaqi jumped off the boat and shouted, "The distinguished guest has come to speak with my three brothers. Old lady, please go in first and put away the gold, so no one else sees it. We're going to accompany the guest to find Second Brother!"

Wang Lun also thanked the old lady repeatedly, persuading her to go inside. He then called the gang members to cut a fatty sheep leg, two chickens, and two jars of wine, and followed the old lady inside. Ruan Xiaowu thanked them repeatedly, while Ruan Xiaqi just smiled and said to his brother, "It's rare for Leader Wang to like us. Fifth Brother, don't be so hesitant, it will make Leader Wang lose face!"

Wang Lun laughed and said, "Ruan Xiaqi is a straightforward man, he really speaks to my heart!" Ruan Xiaowu, seeing the gang members leave, invited Wang Lun and Song Wan back onto the boat to find Ruan Xiaoe.

Ruan Xiaowu got on Ruan Xiaqi's boat, and the three boats rowed on the Shijie Lake. In less than the time it takes to burn an incense stick, they arrived at Ruan Xiaoe's house. A young woman in coarse clothes was cleaning fish by the shore, and a little monkey was playing by the water. Ruan Xiaqi shouted, "Big Sister, is Second Brother at home?"

The woman looked up, seeing Ruan Xiaowu and Ruan Xiaqi, along with many guests, and quickly said, "Yes, yes, I'll call him!" She left the playing child and went into the house.

Everyone got off the boat, and Ruan Xiaqi picked up his nephew. The little monkey, seeing many strangers, was not afraid but looked at them curiously. Suddenly, he smelled something fragrant, sniffed hard, and broke free from Ruan Xiaqi, heading straight for the food box.

Wang Lun saw this and smiled, calling the gang members to open the food box. The child, ignoring the mud on his hands, reached for the roasted lamb. Ruan Xiaowu slapped the child's bottom, and the child, looking pitiful, went to the water to clean his hands, staring at Ruan Xiaowu.

Wang Lun found this amusing, picked up the child, and had the gang members cut a piece of lamb, giving it to the child. The little monkey smiled, took the lamb, and started eating, drooling all over, making everyone laugh.

At this moment, Ruan Xiaoe and his wife came out of the house. Seeing a scholar holding their child and eating, they quickly said, "We didn't know distinguished guests had arrived, we were still sleeping, please forgive us!"

"Second Brother, you don't know, these two are the leaders from Liangshan, Wang Lun and Song Wan. Today, Leader Wang came, and I met him, and he wants to speak with us three!" Ruan Xiaqi said quickly.

Ruan Xiaoe hadn't replied, but his wife was startled and quickly took the child from Wang Lun, apologizing. Wang Lun smiled, handed the child back to her, and bowed to Ruan Xiaoe, saying, "I've heard that the Ruan brothers are heroes. I've always wanted to meet you with Du Qian, Song Wan, and Zhu Gui, but I've been busy. Today, I finally have the chance to come with Song Wan. Please don't think I'm being abrupt!"

Ruan Xiaoe was stunned and quickly returned the gesture, saying, "Leader Wang, what are you saying? It's cold outside, please come inside and talk!" Ruan Xiaowu and Ruan Xiaqi also warmly invited everyone into the house. Wang Lun instructed the gang members to carry the wine and meat inside, and he and Song Wan followed the hosts into the house.

After everyone was seated, the woman warmed the wine and meat, and the gang members helped bring them out. The little monkey, holding a fatty chicken leg in one hand and a piece of lamb in the other, was playing in the house. The woman, seeing that they had things to discuss, took the child into the inner room.

After some casual conversation, Ruan Xiaoe asked, "May I know what important matters Leaders Wang and Song have come for?"

Wang Lun put down his wine bowl and smiled, "First, I've heard that you three are heroes and wanted to meet you. Second, our camp has received many new members recently, and the children are not eating well, so I came to trouble you three!"

The three were puzzled. If the children weren't eating well, why come to them? Was it to borrow food? But it didn't seem like that. Ruan Xiaqi, being straightforward, said, "Leader Wang, please speak clearly. If there's anything we can do, we'll do it, no matter the difficulty. But if your camp has designs on our village, please drop the idea!"

Wang Lun and Song Wan laughed, making the three brothers puzzled. Wang Lun then said, "Ruan Xiaqi, you misunderstood! I came to discuss a business deal, to buy some fish!"

The three brothers were surprised but felt a bit disappointed. After a moment, Ruan Xiaoe said, "This is a small matter. Fishing is our livelihood. How much do you need, Leader Wang?"

Wang Lun saw the disappointment in their eyes but didn't say anything, just said, "One thousand eight hundred pounds per day, each fish must weigh at least half a pound, no limit on the larger ones. As long as they are delivered by noon, we'll pay in full copper coins. Are you interested?"

The three brothers looked at each other, surprised. Ruan Xiaowu said, "If we mobilize the whole village, we can meet this quota. But may I ask what Leader Wang needs so much fish for?"

Song Wan, who was in charge of the kitchen, was excited. Improving the diet of the gang members was his responsibility, so this trip was actually helping him. He then explained the measures taken by the leader on the mountain, which left a deep impression on the listeners.

After Song Wan finished speaking, Ruan Xiaqi said, "Leader Wang treats people like family, the brothers on the mountain are fortunate!" He sighed, revealing his ambitions, "It's a pity that no one recognizes us three. Otherwise, we would have given our loyalty to them!" Ruan Xiaoe and Ruan Xiaowu nodded in agreement.

Wang Lun, seeing their willingness to join, said, "I won't hide it from you three. On land, we have Du Qian, Song Wan, and Zhu Gui. We don't worry about that. But we lack a capable leader for the navy. I've long wanted to invite you three to join us, but I feared you wouldn't want to join the outlaws. I apologize for my boldness, but today I invite you three to join us and each take a seat in our camp. What do you say?"

Ruan Xiaqi slapped the table and said loudly, "Why not? We've been living here in frustration, and our skills are no worse than others. Why can't we live a good life like Leader Wang?"

Seeing his brother speak his mind, Ruan Xiaoe and Ruan Xiaowu looked at each other, stood up, and said to Wang Lun, "If you will take us in, we will give our lives to you. If we ever have a second thought, may we be struck by lightning!"

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