Chapter 4 Bianliang Campaign

  Zhang Zeduan's "Along the River During Qingming Festival" depicts the prosperity and bustle of Bianjing, the capital city of Northern Song Dynasty, and the two banks of the Bianhe River. In fact, the development of commodity economy in Northern Song Dynasty has always been regarded as a leap forward in Chinese history. During this period, the prosperity of culture and the development of urban economy had a profound impact. All this is due to the national policy of emphasizing literature and de-emphasizing military affairs in Northern Song Dynasty. Good iron is not used for nails, good men do not become soldiers, and cultural prosperity directly promotes economic prosperity.

  On the way, Tang Song and Li Daimu chatted enthusiastically, and they even called each other brothers. From Li Daimu's mouth, he had a vague understanding of Bianjing City. However, after entering the city, Tang Song still couldn't help but praise it. The grandeur was completely different from what he saw in movies. Three layers of city walls surrounded the imperial city, with the inner city outside and the outer city further out. The outer city was a commercial district and residential area, and there was a buffer zone between the inner and outer cities to ensure the safety of the imperial city. The widest streets were two hundred steps wide, and even the narrowest ones were twenty-five steps wide. On both sides of the street, some merchants and acrobatic performers were scattered about, attracting the attention of passersby.

  Tang Song pointed to the small vendors on the street and asked Li Daming, "Brother Li, I see that the market is not far away. Why are these merchants doing business on the main street?"

  Li Daimu drove the horse cart, explaining without looking back: "Tang brother, you don't know that in the past it was indeed as you said, but this year since the spring festival, this 'invading the street' phenomenon has become more and more serious. The number of merchants in Bianliang City is increasing, and the streets are overcrowded, so some merchants occupy the streets to do business, which is also more convenient. The court is busy with war and doesn't have time to deal with these trivial matters, so it's still a bit chaotic. Look, that martial arts performer over there has almost occupied the middle of the road."

  Tang Song followed Li Da Mu's pointing and looked over, indeed there was someone performing the stunt of splitting stone blocks with his hands. Tang Song suddenly felt a sense of familiarity, all swindlers are one family, he also relied on cheating to tell people's fortunes, and had dealings with these performers of fake stunts. Tang Song then said to Li Da Mu: "Li brother, I'll get off here, you can give me the letter from the second wife. After you finish shopping, we two will meet at the wine house over there."

  Farewell to Li Dabao, Tang Song slipped into the crowd like a loach, excitedly watching the performance. Only saw that the black-faced old man in front of him was full of broken stones, and he had picked up another brick in his hand at this moment, with one finger on top of the brick, only to hear him shouting "Ah", his finger actually drilled into the brick and came out from the other end. The onlookers cheered, the black-faced old man smiled, dropped the stone, clapped his hands and made a fist: "Ladies and gentlemen, I, Zhao Si, have been traveling the world for thirty years, without a single wound on my body. It's all thanks to this copper skin and iron bones, with boundless strength. Today, I arrived in Bianliang City for the first time, bringing some small gifts for you all. The packages of medicine behind me are the secret recipes passed down from Old Master Dou, guaranteed to make you strong and energetic like him after consumption. Ten cents per package, limited quantity."

  "Really? Can I become invincible after eating it?"

  "Can you cure my broken leg?"

  "Can it cure constipation?"

  "Can you give birth to a boy?"

  ……

  The crowd suddenly buzzed with discussion. Zhao Si heard these absurd demands, dryly laughed twice and loudly said, "That's right! They can all be cured!"

  Tang Song couldn't help but laugh at this, these moves that seemed so clumsy to him were actually having such a great effect, it made him itch with excitement, and he couldn't resist shouting: "Old man, your skills are impressive! I wonder if you can let me try this brick-splitting move too?"

  As soon as this was said, the surroundings instantly fell silent, and everyone looked at Tang Song. The old man with a black face frowned, and the young man in front of him seemed to be up to no good, wasn't he here to cause trouble? But with so many people watching him, how could he refuse, so he made a please gesture and said: "This young master, don't be stubborn, it's not good for your face in public."

  Tang Song didn't waste any words, and directly walked up to the front. He picked up a brick and said to the crowd: "I'm Tang Liang, just a scholar who has just recovered from a serious illness and doesn't have the strength to tie up a chicken. Today, I happened to pass by and saw that you folks were being deceived by this old man. I couldn't bear it in my heart, so I came forward to expose him. Everyone, take a look! Cheers!"

  In the midst of everyone's gasps, Tang Song casually opened his hand and dropped the brick. He smiled as he looked at the dark-faced good fellow whose face had turned iron-green: "These bricks are all hollowed out or filled with brick fragments in the middle. As long as you find the center of gravity, anyone can do it. Old man, am I right?"

  "Th...th..." The old man was eager to explain, but he was speechless. To onlookers, the facts were already clear, and they burst into curses: "What a scoundrel! He almost got away with it!"

  "Take him to see the official!"

  "Don't run! Everyone chase!"

  Tang Song's vanity was greatly satisfied, and he happily pushed through the crowd to look for a rice shop.

  When they arrived at the rice shop, Tang Song handed over the letter to the owner and said it was a special request from Mrs. Cao An's second wife. Before the boss could say much, he heard a cold snort, and a stout middle-aged woman walked out of the inner room, saying in an unpleasant tone: "What did I say? Your cheap sister has indeed sent a letter, I think eight out of ten it's about that troublesome matter at their house."

  The boss of the rice shop listened and only raised an eyebrow, opening the letter. As he read on, his eyebrows furrowed deeper and deeper, finally closing the letter, taking a deep breath, and looking at Tang Song asked: "Have you recovered from your illness?"

  "Thank you boss for your concern, I'm fine now."

  "That's good" The owner of the rice shop handed the letter back to Tang Song and said, "Go back and tell that little sister of mine that our Pan family can't even protect ourselves, let her take care of herself." After finishing speaking, he turned his back and walked back into the inner room.

  Something happened at the Cao residence? Tang Song's heart skipped a beat, thinking that he must ask Second Madam when he returns. Now that he was living off others' charity and relying on Old Master Cao's kindness for food, he might be able to help with something after all.

  As they walked out of the rice shop, Tang and Song saw that it was still early for their agreed meeting time, so they took a stroll around the street. When they arrived at the entrance of a gambling den, they saw two people arguing. One of them was naked, with only a loincloth covering his body, shouting: "Boss Du, I only have this one piece of cloth left to cover my shame, won't you let me go?"

  Another man in a fur coat, holding a pile of clothes said: "You're willing to gamble and lose, from last year on, you've owed me over 200 taels including principal and interest. Now with this pile of clothes added, you've only paid back 20 taels, leaving 180 taels remaining!"

  The man suddenly became furious and said: "Do you really want to take away even my fig leaf?" Then he suddenly realized: "Du Hong, you are trying to humiliate me!"

  Du Hong burst out laughing and said: "Fool, you finally understand. Two hundred taels are just a drop in the bucket for me, Du. Today, if you run naked around Bianliang City, let all the men, women, old and young see it, we'll consider this account settled. Otherwise, I'll sell you to the beehive to pay off the debt!"

  Tang Song's body suddenly had a chill. He had once seen an article online that mentioned the prevalence of male prostitution in the Song Dynasty, and as a result, many men would gather together to fight for business, and these places were called beehives.

  The man angrily said: "Du Hong, I would rather die today than be humiliated by you!" Before he finished speaking, the snow flea jumped onto the roof and glared at the crowd, saying: "You all laugh at me, none of you are good people. Even as a ghost, I will not let you off!" After that, it jumped down from the roof, convulsed twice after falling to the ground, and then stopped moving.

  Du Hong shouted and ordered his men to take away the body and clean up the bloodstains. The onlookers dispersed, leaving only Tang Song standing in place. This was the first time he had seen someone die right before his eyes, and he still remembered the dying man's resentful gaze. Two accomplices lifted the Snow Worm's body and walked away, with Tang Song following behind them. When they reached a corner, the two men lazily threw down the body and left. After they were gone, Tang Song approached the body, took off his outer coat, and covered it with the garment. He sighed: "You sought your own demise, but do you know how your family is doing? Don't be a gambler in your next life." As he stood up to leave, he accidentally tripped over the body, stumbled, and pressed his hand on the corpse's private parts. Before Tang Song could react, he heard a pained cry from behind him, and the body suddenly moved, throwing him aside. Tang Song stared at Snow Worm in shock as he jumped around, clutching his crotch, with tears welling up in his eyes. Suddenly, Tang Song couldn't help but laugh: "You're a master of deception! Your acting skills are truly impressive!"

  Xueli Chong's heart was filled with anger as he scolded Tang Song a hundred times, and looking at his smiling face made him even more hateful. He squatted on the ground, huffing and puffing, saying: "Where did this bird come from, daring to provoke me, Snow Dage? Aren't you afraid I'll kill you and silence you?"

  Tang Song has a fearless expression, opening his arms and saying: "You say I turn around and run now, will you chase or not? Haha, no matter what the outcome is, news of your survival will spread out, and at that time, it's going to be troublesome for you."

  As soon as he heard this, Xue Li Zhuang immediately wilted and put on the overcoat that Tang Song had handed him. He said, "Alright, alright, you can go now. We won't interfere with each other's business. I'll just borrow this overcoat to wear for a while, since you've already given it to me anyway."

  Tang Song smiled and said: "Snow brother, I am Tang Liang, the manager of Cao's mansion in Caojiazhuang. Today, meeting you is like old times, Snow brother's skills are admired by me, Tang. If there's any trouble in the future, come to Caojiazhuang to find me, and I will do my best." After finishing speaking, Tang Song took big strides away. Xue Li Chong gazed at Tang Song's back with a thoughtful expression: "This person doesn't seem like a manager, but rather someone from our circle. Forget it, today I've accepted his kindness, in the future when we meet again, I'll return his favor. My fake death has four parts of truth to it, still, let's wait until night falls and hurry to find a place to steal some valuables to buy medicine to treat my injuries." Xue Li Chong thought this through, then lay down in the snow, motionless, just like he was really dead.

  Tang Song returned to the tavern, and Li Da Mu had already brought back a cart of goods. The two simply ate dinner and set off on the road again. As night was approaching, they returned to Caojiazhuang. Tang Song felt that his body was exhausted, and he was just about to go to bed when someone came to visit. Tang Song opened the door and saw that it was Xi Er from the inner courtyard. Xi Er only said one sentence:

  "Tang Guan Shi, both ladies have an invitation."