Jiang Shuo was shocked: "When did I become the leader of thieves? Master... Master Zhao, please don't scare me."
Zhao Rui said: "What do you do as a member of the Jianghu Alliance?"
Jiang Shuo said, "I really don't know."
Zhao Ruixu said: "Jianghu refers to the three rivers and five lakes. It is said that in ancient times, the lower reaches of the river were divided into three streams and flowed into the East China Sea. Now the rivers have long merged into one. Therefore, the three rivers only refer to the lower reaches of the river, while the five lakes are the actual name. It refers to the five lakes of Dongting, Baqiu, Pengli, Juchen and Zhenze. The rivers and lakes are intertwined with water networks and the vegetation is luxuriant. Since ancient times, many heroes and warriors have gathered in the mountains and forests.
The first traceable bandit chief in history was in the Qin Dynasty. In the 28th year of the First Emperor's reign, "Historical Records" recorded that "when we arrived at the Xiangshan Temple, there was a strong wind and we could hardly cross." I asked the doctor: Who is the God of Xiangjun? The doctor said to him, "Yao's daughter, Shun's wife, was buried here." So the First Emperor was furious and ordered three thousand prisoners to cut down the trees in Xiangshan Mountain and destroy the mountains. '
It is said that the First Emperor encountered a big storm on Dongting Lake, and then became angry with the goddess Xiangjun, and even cut down all the trees in Xiangshan Mountain. However, "Dongting Lake Chronicles" records that the First Emperor encountered a storm on the lake, and the dragon boat almost capsized. He later threw the national jade seal into the lake to worship the gods. The wind and waves immediately calmed down, and he was able to escape. "
Jiang Shuo said: "I heard that in the fourth year of Zhenguan in this dynasty, Li Jing, the Duke of Wei, defeated the Turks. Empress Xiao of the Sui Dynasty and Emperor Yangdi Sun Zhengdao returned to the Central Plains, and the national seal was returned to the Tang Dynasty. How could it be thrown into Dongting Lake in the Qin Dynasty? What’s up?”
Zhao Rui said: "Yes, I have a good memory. The reason why the Jade Seal of the State is called the Jade Seal of the State is that it was passed down from generation to generation. The one in the hands of the saints of the Tang Dynasty today was used by the First Emperor, and the one made by Li Si was 'ordered by heaven'." , the seal of "Shou Yongchang". This is because in the autumn of the thirty-sixth year of the First Emperor's reign, an envoy passed through Pingshu Road in Huayin from Guandong at night, and met a person on the way who handed this seal to the country and returned it."
Jiang Shuo said: "Then what does this jade seal have to do with the bandit leader?"
Zhao Rui said: "The records on both sides seem to be a mythical story, but in fact it can be interpreted in another way. According to unofficial records, the First Emperor's jade seal was actually stolen on Dongting Lake. Otherwise, how could the First Emperor's jade seal be stolen because of his resoluteness and cruelty? Sacrificing ghosts and gods? The visitor also left a slip to write, "Qin Emperor is immoral, and he will be punished for stealing seals." The signature was Dongting Bandit Chief. The First Emperor lost his seal and ribbon, so he was so angry that he ordered people to cut down all the trees in Xiangshan Mountain, not to be with the goddess. If you can't get through, you just want to search the mountains and seas to catch the bandit leader."
Jiang Shuo said: "Then I must not have found it."
Zhao Rui said: "Of course I can't find it. People say that the Dongting Bandit Leader's martial arts skills are better than those of ghosts and gods. He would hide in the mountains and wait for people to catch him? Three thousand prisoners cut down Xiangshan Mountain and only got a bamboo slip. He wrote, 'The seal has been surrendered.'" Dongting is here, don't think about it.' The First Emperor was shocked and angry. He wanted to send the 700,000 prisoners who were building the tomb in Lishan to scoop up the Dongting Lake water, but Li Si and Meng Yi persuaded him, saying that the imperial tomb was a matter of eternity. There was no time to delay, and Dongting Lake was so vast that it was known as the Eight Hundred Miles of Dongting. Even if the whole country tried its best, it would be impossible to empty it out. The First Emperor gave up and returned to Guanzhong. It was not until eight years later that he returned to China again. I got this seal again on Yinpingshu Road."
Jiang Shuo said: "That's strange. Since the chief thief stole the seal, why did he return it to the First Emperor even if he didn't actually throw it into the lake?"
Zhao Rui chuckled and said: "He is putting a curse on the First Emperor. The bag containing the jade seal says 'This year the ancestor dragon will die'. Seeing such treacherous words, the envoy ordered people to arrest the person who presented the treasure. Where can I find it?" That person’s trace.”
Jiang Shuo asked: "Will Qin Shihuang die in that year?"
Zhao Rui said: "The year when the jade seal was sent back was the thirty-sixth year of the First Emperor. One year later, in the thirty-seventh year, the First Emperor really died in the Sand Dune Palace."
Jiang Shuo said: "You're so good. Is this bandit chief good at pinching or calculating? Or is he really good at spells?"
Zhao Rui said: "It must have been that the anti-Qin trend in the world was gradually taking shape at that time, and he knew that the First Emperor was already ill and was not as good as before, so he sent back the jade seal to deliberately provoke the Emperor. In his later years, the First Emperor believed in ghosts and gods, so this move is probably not good." It had some effect, but besides, this move was also to leave the jade seal to the new ruler of the world after the death of Qin. Only three years later, Prince Qin Ying held the jade seal in his hand and knelt down by the Xianyang Road to welcome Liu Ji."
Jiang Shuo said: "It seems that this bandit leader is not only highly skilled in martial arts, but also has a deep understanding of the people's hearts and understands the general trend of the world."
Zhao Rui said: "Yes, this bandit leader is also considered a hero. At the end of the Qin Dynasty, the world was in chaos. He did not attack the city and become a prince, but he unified the martial arts heroes in the three rivers and lakes. It was precisely because of his orders that the people of Jiangdong were defeated." In troubled times, there is less suffering from separation and chaos.”
Jiang Shuo couldn't help but be fascinated after hearing this, and said: "So this bandit leader is not a treacherous person."
Zhao Rui said: "Then we have to divide people. Since then, there has been a bandit leader in the world, or leader. Leaders are made by people. If they are people, they are thousands of people with thousands of faces. There can be heroic heroes, and there can also be despicable ones." Generations. Among the thieves of the past dynasties, there are heroic men like Ji Bu, brutal and murderous men like Guo Xie, wise and brave men like Jinfan thief Gan Ning, and flesh flying immortal Shen Guang. Those who help the tyrants to commit cruelty. In short, although there are many outstanding thieves, good and evil can only exist in one thought."
Jiang Shuo exclaimed: "These many heroes are actually leaders of the Jianghu Alliance?"
Zhao Rui smiled and said: "The leaders of the Jianghu Alliance are not ordinary people. Although the leader of thieves cannot show his name, there are still many people who have left their names in history. Brother Jiang Shuo, how are your kung fu?"
Jiang Shuo said: "I don't know martial arts. Xun Ni taught me some breathing techniques, but I don't know how to use fists and kicks..."
Zhao Rui said: "The leaders of the Jianghu Alliance are not all strong men in Kung Fu. Li Yong doesn't know Kung Fu, and Guo Pu in the Jin Dynasty doesn't know Kung Fu either. However, they are all men of extraordinary intelligence. They are famous all over the world and order the heroes from all over the world to fall." There is nothing wrong with it.”
Jiang Shuo said hurriedly: "Master, please stop making fun of me. I have no talent. Besides, if Zhuang Ge wants to kill me, I won't dare to go to the territory of Sanjiang and Wuhu anymore."
Zhao Rui smiled slightly and said no more about the bandit chief. He thought about it again and said, "From what you just said, there is something wrong with this Cheng Ang."
Jiang Shuo was shocked: "Brother Cheng is a good man. He is a stranger to me, but in order to save me, he even offended Master Ge and gave me the Black Dragon Pill..."
Zhao Rui said: "It's because we are strangers that we are suspicious. In addition, as Ge Ruliang said, all your injuries are external injuries. Why do you need this inner elixir?"
Jiang Shuo hesitated and said, "Maybe he doesn't understand medical science and did bad things with good intentions."
Zhao Rui frowned and said: "Think about it again, there were no disturbances in the Jianghu Conference after that. It was all Pinglu Yanzhuang's instigation. As you said, Yanzhuang's words can go straight to the point, but it is all thanks to this Cheng Lang. The huatou is there."
Jiang Shuo said: "This... Brother Cheng is just a little reckless, right? I don't think he has such a deep scheming..."
Zhao Rui laughed loudly and said: "If a little kid like you sees the scheming, can it still be called scheming?"
Jiang Shuo couldn't help but remain silent. He knew that what Zhao Rui said was indeed true, but he really couldn't imagine that Cheng Ang, who seemed carefree, was such a person with a sword and halberd in mind.
Zhao Rui said: "Okay, you are a child with no experience, so you naturally don't know the sinister nature of people's hearts. It's useless to say more. Where are you going to go next?"
Jiang Shuo said: "Mr. Taibai and I have the status of master and servant, so I naturally want to go to Chang'an to find Mr. Taibai."
Zhao Rui said: "It's more than two thousand miles from here to Chang'an. How did you, a child, get there alone?"
Jiang Shuo hesitated: "But, but, I have nowhere to go..."
Zhao Rui said: "I am going to Maoshan, so please follow me to Maoshan. There are many Taoist priests from the Qing sect on Maoshan who have contacts with various Taoist temples in Zhongnanshan. You can find someone in Maoshan who goes to Zhongnanshan to visit Taoists, and we can go to Gyeonggi Province together." ”
Zhongnan Mountain is in the south of Chang'an, and it is not far from Chang'an. Jiang Shuo hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed in thanks, saying, "I would like to go to Maoshan with Master."
It was early summer and it was not very cold by the lake, so the two of them stayed overnight by the lake. At dawn the next day, the firewood had already been burned out. Zhao Rui licked her lips and let out a cry, which attracted many birds and chirped around Zhao Rui. , Zhao Rui also responded with bird songs, and the birds all flew away again. After a while, the birds came back with branches in their mouths, filling the stone stove as if they were building a nest. Jiang Shuo was amazed, and it goes without saying that he clapped his hands and applauded, and he started again He made a fire, reheated the dry food given by Xun Ni and distributed it to Zhao Rui. Then he went to the lake to get water and wet a face towel for Zhao Rui to wash up. Serve diligently and accept it in stride.
After the two of them had washed up, they set off for Maoshan. Jiang Shuo wanted to let Zhao Rui ride the old horse. Zhao Rui smiled and said, "Master, I have been sitting here as a black guard for a long time. He will definitely be unhappy if I abandon my horse." ." People in the Tang Dynasty called donkeys Wei. Because there were many donkeys in Wei, people in the world gave donkeys another name after the place name.
Jiang Shuo didn't know whether what Zhao Rui said was true or not, but Zhao Rui refused to ride, so he had to ride the old horse. Zhao Rui rode the black donkey and rode alongside the old horse. The two of them went north along the lake bank, and arrived at the lake in a day. In Kou County, Zhao Rui said: "When Tao Yuanming of the Jin Dynasty was Peng Zeling, the administrative office was at the mouth of the lake. There is a river outside the mouth of the lake. It is nearly a thousand miles to reach Maoshan. If you can boat along the river, you can reach it in three days."
Jiang Shuo heard that he was going to take a boat, and he couldn't help but feel timid when he thought about what happened on the Han River.
When Zhao Rui saw him hesitating, he understood the reason and changed his words: "But the boat trip is quite expensive, and we have nothing urgent to do. We might as well go north along the river, and we can reach it in less than ten days."
Jiang Shuo knew that he was thinking about himself, so he felt grateful. He crossed his hands on the horse and said to his heart, "I am willing to serve Master Zhao all the way as a young servant."
The two of them walked slowly along the river. The land south of the Yangtze River was rich and densely populated. There was no need for the two of them to sleep in the open. They could either go to a temple or stay overnight, but it was quite comfortable. It goes without saying that Jiang Shuo served Zhao Rui wholeheartedly along the way. Zhao Rui taught Jiang Shuo the art of animal language when he had nothing to do. Jiang Shuo didn't know internal skills and lacked Qi, so he couldn't attract the birds in the forest, so Zhao Rui first started to scream and gather. Come to the birds and let Jiang Shuo practice. The two of them were often accompanied by birds on the way, which attracted the attention of the villagers and was very interesting.
As for the horse language, it is much simpler. The old horse is by his side and there is no need to call him. Zhao Rui only taught him how to make sounds. Jiang Shuo tried to communicate with the old horse on his own. The so-called difficult ones are not difficult for those who don't know how. After Zhao Rui's guidance After knowing the trick, Jiang Shuo could communicate with the old horse in less than three days. When he was riding on the horse, he could make the old horse move or stop with just a few words, and he could move and retreat as if they were one person. The old horse and Jiang Shuo were also quite similar. They were so close that they talked to each other "Xi Xi" and "Lu Lu" on the road, and sometimes they actually ignored Zhao Rui.
After traveling like this for more than ten days, when they arrived at Dangtu, they turned east and walked east for two days before arriving at Jurong Township, Danyang County. Zhao Rui pointed to the distant mountains and said: "The mountains in the distance are Maoshan Mountains. As the saying goes, 'Looking from a distance' It’s getting late today, so we’ll go up the mountain again tomorrow.”
