Forty-one, Shang Liangshan

  Huanglong Mountain, located in central and northern Shaanxi Province, borders Luochuan to the west, Baihe, Chengcheng to the south, and Yichuan to the north.

  To the east of Mount Huanglong, the rolling Yellow River flows from north to south, dividing Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces into two sides. In other words, the Yellow River is the boundary between the two provinces, and Mount Huanglong is on the banks of the Yellow River, which is also at the intersection of the two provinces.

  It's not only at the intersection of two provinces, but also has a very complex terrain, with undulating hills as numerous as hairs on an ox's back, and intersecting gullies that are extremely difficult to climb.

  Zhu Yuanzhang didn't even need to think about it, he knew that this mountain was absolutely the most hated place for government soldiers to enter. The mountain road was difficult to navigate, and supply teams could not move freely inside. Various equipment was also difficult to transport, and artillery such as cannons and fire lances were prone to dampness and could not be used in the mountains... The environment was similar to that of the southwestern ethnic minority chieftains.

  The emperor was very worried about the Tusi in the southwest, and in most cases, he could only adopt a policy of appeasement. This is because many Tusi lived in the mountains, which were extremely difficult to climb, making it almost impossible for government troops to enter the mountains. As a result, they had to abandon their military campaigns and use a containment strategy to make the Tusi listen.

  Zhu Yuanzhang knew that as long as Zheng Yanfu entered the Huanglong Mountains, the local officials would definitely give up their pursuit and then find a way to cover up the matter. As long as Zheng Yanfu stayed hidden in the mountains and didn't come out, the government would take a see-no-evil attitude towards him.

  It's good for Zheng Yanfu to hide in the mountains, as Zhu Yuanzhang can control this righteous army through certain means. After a year, when the peasant uprising breaks out, he will have the capital to participate in this game. However, he doesn't plan to join the righteous army now, because Zheng Yanfu's uprising is not the sign of the Ming dynasty's peasant uprising. The real uprising will break out next year with Bai Shui Wang Er's uprising, and he wants to stay in Bai Shui until that day comes.

  "Remember my words... scatter, flee... take advantage of the gap when the government soldiers are on the move, and escape into the Huanglong Mountains. That will be your Liangshan...". Zhu Yuanzhang took out Zheng Yanfu's killing pig knife from his waist, cut off the cloth strip that bound him, and then placed the killing pig knife in Zheng Yanfu's hand: "Go!"

  Zheng Yanfu was already convinced of Zhu Yuanzhang's great "rebellious ability" in their brief conversation just now, and he couldn't help but salute him deeply: "Hero, why did you knock me unconscious last night and carry me here to tie me up for a whole night? You also said that you would hand me over to the government, making me offend this hero."

  Zhu Yuanzhang burst out laughing and waved his hand, saying: "Last night I saw you were hot-blooded and impulsive, so I deliberately knocked you unconscious and tied you up here to let you cool off for a night. Now, aren't you calm?"

  Zheng Yanfu bowed his fist and said, "Thank you! I will always remember these words of a good man. Before doing anything, calm down and think clearly about the consequences, so as not to harm others or myself. This kindness of teaching me today, I will repay in the future."

  "Hurry up! I've delayed you for a whole night, and there are still many villages to contact. Don't miss tomorrow's schedule."

  Zheng Yanfu inserted the pig-killing knife into his waist and turned around to leave with a swagger.

  As he watched Zheng En's back disappear into the distance, Zhu Yuanzhang let out a deep sigh and overturned the chessboard of the Ming Dynasty. It all started with Zheng En's pawn taking the first step, followed by the chariots, cannons, elephants, and then the ink would take the stage. And Zhu Yuanzhang would be the central piece on the chessboard, the most crucial one - the king!

  The morning light had dawned, and the people in the Qingliang Temple gradually got out of bed. The porters carried box after box of Third Miss's dowry from the temple and placed them on the open ground in front of the courtyard. Bai Shui Wang Er held a whistle stick and shouted loudly, when he saw Zhu Yuanzhang walking in from outside, he laughed and said: "Brother, where did you run to so early?"

  "Go to the woods and clear your mind, didn't do anything." Zhu Yuanzhang smiled and waved goodbye.

  Before long, Fang Huwei drove a black carriage over, and the fifteen knife-wielding guards were all mounted on horseback. The convoy began to move, heading in the direction of Cheng City.

  Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes couldn't help but lock onto the black carriage... The woman inside... looked exactly like his deceased Empress Ma, was this some kind of omen from heaven?

  At this time, the carriage also transmitted the faint cry of Zixincai, and the young lady was married, but the maid cried more than the young lady, which was also a strange thing. It was that miss who did not cry or make trouble, but felt more heart-wrenching.

  Don't worry! You won't be married off, I'm here, no one can marry you. Zhu Yuanzhang sighed in his heart.

  The wheels of the carriage kept turning on the official road made of yellow earth, and soon they had passed two more post stations, even passing a relay station. From time to time, one or two military colonies would appear by the side of the road, with most of the fields abandoned, occasionally with one or two military households or farming households busy in the fields, but Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't understand what they were doing, as there wasn't a drop of water within several miles around, what were they busy with?

  By dusk, Zhu Yuanzhang finally saw the county town in the distance. The city wall wrapped in bluestone was not high and magnificent, only two or three meters high, and the city wall had collapsed in several places, with several ugly mouths... This county town is similar to Baishui County, dull and lifeless, without a hint of vitality.

  Zhu Yuanzhang looked towards the west of the city, and saw a small mountain about 200-300 meters high, with a huge stone on top that resembled a tiger's head. This was the Tiger Head Mountain where Zheng Yanfu had agreed to start the uprising... In a daze, Zhu Yuanzhang seemed to see hundreds of villagers rushing down the mountain slope, wielding hoes, wooden sticks, sickles and plows, charging into the county city gate...

  The escort hurried the carriage to the city gate, explaining that they had come to deliver the daughter-in-law to County Magistrate Zhang Douyao. The old guard at the gate hastily let them pass. The group entered the county town and proceeded slowly along the main road within the city walls.

  "Let's stay at an inn for now!" Fang Huwei shouted to the swordsmen, house servants, and porters behind him: "Although Miss has been sent over, she hasn't entered the Zhang family home yet, so we can't enter the Zhang family gate now. Otherwise, it would be disorderly and lose face for the Ma family. You few, go find a comfortable inn."

  "Yes!" The three knife-wielding men galloped off in three different directions towards the city, and soon returned with a convoy to an inn in the southern part of the city. This inn was perhaps the most luxurious in Cheng City, but the conditions were not particularly good either. A musty smell filled the room. Zixincai cleaned up and down for a long time before finally arranging for Third Miss to move into a room.

  It's now the evening of March 20th, and Third Miss and Zhang Douyao's son are scheduled to get married on March 22nd. However, Zheng Yanfu's plan to kill the official and rebel is set for March 21st. It's truly a case of one foot following closely behind the other, with no time to even catch one's breath.

  That night, Zhu Yuanzhang went to bed early, because he knew that the county town would be in chaos tomorrow, and he needed to face it with the best mental state. Tonight's rest time was extremely precious.

  A night without conversation.

  The next day, before dawn, Zhu Yuanzhang woke up and walked into the courtyard of the inn. He began to practice his fist techniques, stretching his muscles. The servants of the Ma family knew that Zhu Yuanzhang had a habit of practicing fist techniques in the morning, so no one felt anything out of the ordinary. However, no one knew that today, every punch and kick from Zhu Yuanzhang was filled with pent-up energy. Bai Shui Wang Er also got up and ran into the courtyard with a smile, practicing fist techniques alongside Zhu Yuanzhang. His red fist had a solid foundation, and his movements were powerful and energetic, which actually masked the tense atmosphere of Zhu Yuanzhang's actions.

  Before long, Fang Huwei also got up. He was holding a large red wedding invitation in his hand, apparently prepared early on. He walked into the courtyard and gathered the bodyguards together, instructing them: "You stay at the inn to protect Miss Three well. I'll go to the Zhang residence to inform Old Master Zhang that we're staying here, so they can come tomorrow to welcome the bride."

  "Yes!"

  He gave orders to the knife-wielding men, then turned around and said to Wang Er and Zhu Ba: "You two also cheer up and take good care of those porters, but don't let them steal the dowry."

  In these times, among the porters who help with carrying goods, there are quite a few scoundrels. They often take advantage of their masters' inattention and run off with their belongings. If the master runs slowly, they can't even catch up. There's a saying that goes "cart, boat, shop, foot, tooth, no crime but deserves to be killed", which refers to this kind of person, none of whom are good people, and even if they don't commit crimes, they should all be taken away and killed. Of course, this view is quite extreme, in fact most people are still good, it's just that occasionally a few bad apples spoil the whole pot.

  Wang Er snorted and said, "The brothers we brought this time are all good men, how could they do such despicable things? You're looking down on people with a dog's eyes."

  Fang Huwei was scolded by Wang Er, and he suddenly became furious. However, seeing that Wang Er had a red fist mark on his hand, he knew this guy wasn't easy to mess with. He snarled: "I'll go deliver the letter to Master Zhang first, then come back to deal with you."

  After finishing speaking, he held a memorial tablet in both hands and went towards Zhang Douyao's home.

  Zhu Yuanzhang smiled secretly in his heart: I wish you still have a life to come back with.

  He made a fist at Wang Er and said, "Wang Er Ge, I've never been to Cheng City before, and I'm quite interested in this place. Since there's nothing going on today, I'd like to go out and take a look around..."

  "Go ahead, I'll keep an eye on things here, there won't be any problems."

  Zhu Yuanzhang nodded, and with an air of ease, he walked out of the inn, turned two streets, then quickly squatted down, tightly tied his pant legs and sleeve cuffs with a rope, and put on a straw hat that had been prepared in advance. He patted the wooden knife at his waist, boosted his spirits, and headed towards the west gate of Cheng City.

  Arriving at the west city gate, the sky had just brightened up. Zhu Yuanzhang sat down under a tree by the city gate, using a grass hat to cover his face. His gaze went out from under the brim of the hat, passing over the low city wall of Cheng City, looking at Tiger Head Mountain outside the city...

  Today, Zheng Yanfu will lead hundreds of villagers to rush down from the mountain and into the county government office, where Zhang Douyao will be hacked to death by random knives. This is a historical event that has happened before. Logically speaking, it must happen again, and there's no need to worry about it. However, Zhu Yuanzhang got involved in this matter yesterday, and he doesn't know whether his involvement will change history! If it can be changed, what kind of outcome will it lead to?

  He wants to see with his own eyes how this matter unfolds and concludes... If history can't be changed by oneself, then there's no need to consider saving the Ming Dynasty, just muddle through this life. But if history will change even a little bit because of his participation, he has the confidence to rebuild the entire world with his own hands!

  They waited for a long time until it was almost noon when suddenly a loud roar echoed from the top of Tiger Head Mountain: "Kill!"

  Then... a surging tide of people, wildly rushed down from Tiger Head Mountain...