Chapter 67

"Although this black fellow lacks the ability to cut down generals and capture flags, his brute strength is astonishing. With his fierce appearance, he could be a good candidate for charging into battle. Why not bring him up to the mountain, brother?" Zhang San, who had been mixing on the streets for a long time and had seen many people, looked at Wang Lun with great puzzlement.

Wang Lun shook his head and said, "He is not the type to turn against his own side in battle. We'll consider it later!" Seeing that Li Kui and Chao Gai were not getting along, he was not afraid of Li Kui being subdued. Wu Yong had the intention but lacked the courage and resources. As for Song Jiang, there was no need to worry at all. Chao Gai, though deep in thought, would never allow his subordinates to bypass him to meet Song Jiang. Even Wu Yong, who had known Chao Gai for many years and was in the same small Yuncheng County as Song Jiang, had only seen Song Jiang's back when he hurriedly came to report the news about the birthday convoy. They had never even met face to face before.

"Brother, we're here!"

Li Shi, who was leading the front of the group, shouted, interrupting the two who were talking. Wang Lun looked up and saw that the main force had already turned into the village path. He couldn't help but recall the scene of bidding farewell to the villagers that night, and his heart warmed slightly. He hurriedly urged the group to advance.

It was almost noon, and an energetic old man was sitting at the village entrance, basking in the sun. Suddenly, he saw a group of soldiers enter the village and was startled, about to get up to avoid them. But then he heard two people in the ranks shout, "Old Master!"

The old man turned around quickly, looking in the direction of the voices. To his great joy, he saw his two beloved grandsons who he had been thinking about day and night. Without hesitation, he started running towards the group. Jian Gong and Jian Ye, seeing their grandfather, did not dare to leave the ranks on their own, so they looked at their brother-in-law. Li Shi waved his hand, and the two young men, like wild horses, ran quickly towards the old man.

Seeing the three generations talking for a long time, the old man finally noticed Wang Lun standing beside them, smiling. He was flustered and said, "I didn't expect the Great King to come in person. I am truly blind... blind..." Then he shouted to the village, "The Great King has come down the mountain! The leader of Liangshan has come down the mountain..."

Wang Lun stepped forward and supported the old man, saying, "Old Master, it's good to see you again! You are still as strong as ever! I have come to visit you again!"

The old man was so happy he didn't know what to say, just tightly gripping Wang Lun's arm with great force. At this moment, Jian Gong and Jian Ye stepped forward and said, "Grandfather, please let Leader Wang enter the village first!"

The old man nodded quickly and led Wang Lun and the others into the village. Villagers had already gathered, seeing their children, who were full of vigor and wearing armor, looking very impressive. Everyone was excited and surrounded them. The young men were also jumping around, their faces full of envy, gently touching the new and shiny armor of their older brothers.

The old man then came to his senses and said, "I am truly impolite. Please, Leader, rest for a moment at my house!"

Wang Lun smiled and said, "Old Master, not yet!" He pointed to the livestock brought down from the mountain. Li Shi added, "Old Master Ma, these are the animals our leader brought down from the mountain for the villagers to enjoy. Your house can't accommodate the whole village!"

The onlookers burst into laughter, warmly guiding the Liangshan group to the threshing floor. More villagers joined along the way, and by the time they reached the open area, most of the villagers were present. Li Shi then led out ten oxen and thirty sheep, ready to slaughter them. The old man sighed, "Oxen are the treasures of the farmers! What a pity..."

Zhang San, known as the "rat of the street," was about to step forward with his knife but stopped and said, "The meat in the stomach is where it belongs!"

Wang Lun, seeing his men using sophisticated language, sighed, thinking that Mr. Wen was truly skilled, having made these rough men devoted to learning in just a few days. Noticing the old man's reluctant expression, he stopped Zhang San and said, "Leave the oxen in the village. Just stew the sheep to satisfy everyone's craving!"

"Got it, brother!" Zhang San rolled up his sleeves and was about to step forward. At this moment, Mi Fei volunteered, "I haven't killed a sheep in a long time. Give me the knife, and I'll show you my skills today!" Zhang San, though a minor leader, was not afraid of Mi Fei, who was a higher-ranking leader, due to their special past. He said, "I don't believe I can't beat you in a fight, and I won't lose to you in killing a sheep!" Mi Fei replied, "You do it, you do it, let's see who is faster!" They both rolled up their sleeves and went forward together.

The villagers burst into laughter again, seeing these mountain kings preparing to provide them with meat. They were not surprised but very happy. After all, Leader Wang Lun was the focus of the village's conversations. Some people turned back to fetch pots and pans, while others went to get some side dishes. Soon, the open area was bustling with people sharpening knives, slaughtering sheep, setting up pots, gathering firewood, and fetching water.

True to his hunting background, Mi Fei quickly finished slaughtering the sheep, with the bones completely clean. Zhang San was almost done as well. Mi Fei watched him for a while, and then Zhang San finished too. Seeing Mi Fei finish first, Zhang San was surprised and muttered, "Such good skills, why not be the head of the kitchen!" The surrounding people wanted to laugh but didn't dare, as they didn't have the same history with Zhang San and Mi Fei.

Putting aside Zhang San and Mi Fei's quarrel, many villagers had already brought out their large pots and placed them on the platforms they had set up. They worked together to put the cleaned mutton into the pots, added water and side dishes, and started cooking.

Wang Lun chatted with Old Master Ma for a while and suddenly smelled the aroma of the mutton. The large pots were surrounded by villagers, who couldn't help but swallow their saliva. Even though some of them raised sheep, it didn't mean they could easily enjoy meat.

Mi Fei tasted a piece of mutton and said, "It's done!" Wang Lun then invited the villagers to serve themselves. Initially, they were polite and didn't move, but under the lead of Jian Gong and Jian Ye, they finally gathered around with large bowls they had been holding, competing to scoop up the rare delicacy.

Wang Lun ate a few pieces of meat and stopped. The old man beside him said, "Great King, you should eat too!"

At this moment, Jian Gong and Jian Ye were standing beside the old man and said, "Grandfather, we eat this every day in the mountain. This is what Leader Wang brought down to satisfy everyone's craving. You eat yours!"

The old man exclaimed, "Good, good!" His long beard was already soaked with mutton broth. Jian Gong carefully wiped it for him, and the family and relatives around the old man praised the child, saying he had grown up and become sensible.

Halfway through the meal, Zhang San stood in the center of the field and clapped his hands. Everyone fell silent, focusing on what the mountain kings had to say. Li Shi, with Wang Lun's nod, stepped forward and said, "Villagers, don't just ask the children! We came down this time to bring the savings of the two hundred or so brothers who didn't come down, back to the village!"

The villagers were overjoyed. They had already experienced Leader Wang's generosity. That night, he not only gave each family ten stones of life-saving grain but also rewarded those who helped transport the grain with ten strings of coins. This made them speak well of the mountain for months. Although many villagers had already heard from their children, they were still excited to hear Li Shi's words.

Li Shi then invited a bookkeeper to come forward, respectfully said a few words, and the bookkeeper nodded, flipping through the papers in his hand. He read out, "Li Ergou, 74 taels of silver, 500 copper coins; Ma Dayou, 74 taels of silver; Liu Sanfu, 59 taels of silver, 700 copper coins..." The amounts varied, mainly because not everyone participated in every raid. The distribution was 15% of the loot for those who went down the mountain and 10% for those who stayed, accumulating over nearly ten raids.

When the names were called, the families and relatives of the young men were stunned. Is this about my son? The clumsy boy who couldn't even speak clearly had saved 70... 70 strings of coins in just two months! Am I dreaming? They were all stunned. The bookkeeper, seeing no one coming forward to claim the money, stopped and looked at Li Shi questioningly.

Li Shi quickly scanned the crowd and saw a man in his fifties nearby. He hurriedly went forward and said, "Uncle Ma, what are you standing there for? Your son Dayou didn't come down this time, and we brought his reward. Go up and claim it! Oh, and don't forget to put your fingerprint on it, we need to take it back to show them!"

Hearing Li Shi's words, the old man came to his senses, nodded repeatedly, and took a few steps. He then hurriedly returned to hand the bowl of mutton broth to his wife and rushed to claim the money. The people distributing the silver were also from the village, and they all respectfully called him Uncle Ma, handing him the already weighed silver. The old man, holding several pounds of silver, his eyes instantly moistened, and he exclaimed, "He has grown up, he has grown up..." He lowered his head, not even looking where he was going, almost stepping on the feet of the surrounding villagers, causing a burst of friendly laughter.

Seeing this scene, the other villagers were truly prepared. When their names were called, they didn't hesitate, first bowing to the bookkeeper before going up to claim the silver their sons had earned. The bookkeeper, seeing the chief present, didn't dare to be arrogant, bowing to each person as they came forward. After bowing nearly 180 times, his back was sore, and he handed over the list, sitting aside to catch his breath, thinking this task was too hard and he would never do it again.

After the money for those who didn't come down was distributed, the remaining silver was for the young men present. They didn't need to call their families to claim it. Each person went up to take their money and then hurriedly ran to their excited parents. They were immediately stopped by their relatives and friends, who asked, "Do you get this every month?" The young men smiled and explained, "This is the reward for going down the mountain to borrow grain, distributed according to a ratio. You don't get it if you don't go down. It's not a regular allowance!" The crowd didn't let