: The Search for a Good Man in Dongchang Sparks a Turmoil in the Sale of Horses

The man laughed and said, "My name is Yun Tianbiao. What are your names, brothers?"

Wu Song laughed and said, "I am Wu Song."

Zhu Jing also smiled and said, "My name is Zhu Jing!"

Song Jiang took a sip of wine and said nothing, but his heart was as turbulent as the raging tide crashing against the rocks on the shore.

He naturally knew who Yun Tianbiao was. He was originally the commander of the land forces in Jingyang Town, Shandong. Later, he went to Shandong with Zhang Shuye, Chen Xizhen and others to suppress Liangshan and kill Liangshan heroes Li Ying, Yang Chun and others. He conspired with his subordinate Fu Yu to kill Guan Sheng with dirty tricks.

This guy is Liangshan's mortal enemy. He is highly skilled in martial arts and resourceful, making him a formidable opponent. Song Jiang was considering whether to kill him here to avoid future trouble. Song Jiang had no intention of recruiting him. First of all, he would never join Liangshan. Secondly, this man is extremely ambitious and would certainly not obey Song Jiang. It would be better to eliminate him first!

However, it would be difficult for Wu Song and Zhu Jing to kill him on their own. Regardless of their martial arts skills, if he wanted to run away, Wu Song and Zhu Jing would not be able to stop him.

Song Jiang slowly drank from his bowl, but he carefully considered the situation in his mind and realized that there was indeed no way to kill Yun Tianbiao, so he had to give up for the time being.

After finishing a bowl of wine and calming himself down, Song Jiang put down the bowl and said with a smile, "So it is General Yun, the commander of the land forces of Jingyang Town."

Yun Tianbiao was somewhat surprised that this short, dark-skinned man knew him. He knew that while the man's official title sounded impressive, it was actually just a minor, insignificant position. Thinking this, he abandoned his contempt and asked, "May I ask who this gentleman is?"

Actually, he didn't dislike Song Jiang, but he just didn't like Song Jiang. He couldn't explain why, but he just didn't like Song Jiang when he saw him.

Wu Song quickly said, "This is Song Jiang, the clerk of Yuncheng County."

Yun Tianbiao nodded and said, "You must be Song Jiang, the Timely Rain! I've heard so much about you."

Song Jiang could sense that this guy didn't like him much. Perhaps some things were destined. He didn't say much and smiled, "Since the three of you get along so well, why don't you have a good chat? My two soldiers and I will go to that table."

Just as Wu Song was about to speak, Song Jiang stopped him with a look, then smiled, picked up the bowl, and led the three soldiers to the table next to him.

Wu Song, Zhu Jing, and Yun Tianbiao were talking and laughing. Watching the two soldiers in front of them eating heartily, Song Jiang understood that these men had been carrying gifts all the way and were indeed tired.

After the two finished their meal, Wu Song and Zhu Jing continued drinking, and Yun Tianbiao seemed quite pleased as well. After a while, the innkeeper came up and said, "Sir, you've already drunk eighteen bowls of wine, would you like to drink more?"

Wu Song was taken aback for a moment, then looked at Yun Tianbiao. Yun Tianbiao smiled and waved his hand, saying, "I have official business to attend to in Yanggu County. We'll drink again next time."

Song Jiang took out a silver ingot, placed it on the table to pay the bill, and the group of six left the small shop.

Yun Tianbiao said, "I have some important matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now. Come find me in Jingyang Town when I'm done."

After the six parted ways, Wu Song approached Song Jiang and asked, "Brother, what do you think of Yun Tianbiao?"

Song Jiang laughed and said, "We're not on the same path after all."

Wu Song nodded and said, "That Yun Tianbiao is indeed a remarkable person, but unfortunately, he is only interested in fame and fortune, and he will be our enemy sooner or later."

Song Jiang laughed and said, "It's alright. Sometimes, the stronger the enemy, the stronger we become."

After traveling for some time, when they passed Yanggu County, Song Jiang asked Wu Song if he wanted to go into the county to take a look. Wu Song thought for a moment and then replied that they should go to Dongchang Prefecture first.

This was Song Jiang's first time visiting a prefecture. A prefecture was indeed much more prosperous than a county. He saw pedestrians coming and going on the streets, teahouses and taverns on both sides of the street filled with people, as well as pawnshops, cloth shops, rice shops, blacksmith shops, and so on.

There were many vendors on both sides, some hawking their wares, some introducing their wares to customers, and others smiling and talking to their fellow vendors.

It seems that the prefect of Dongchang Prefecture is indeed a good administrator. At least the people living here are quite happy. Sometimes, people's lives are very simple: they have enough to eat, warm clothes, and a place to shelter from the wind and rain.

Unfortunately, many times even such simple wishes cannot be fulfilled.

Upon arriving at the Dongchang Prefectural Government Office, Song Jiang was stopped by soldiers at the gate who asked, "What are you doing here?"

Song Jiang bowed and replied, "When I was appointed magistrate of Yuncheng..."

Wenbin has come on my orders to request an audience with the Prefect.

The soldier said, "Wait a moment, I'll go in and inform them."

A moment later, the soldier returned and said, "Go in, the prefect is waiting inside."

Song Jiang thanked him and led Wu Song and the two soldiers inside.

Zhu Jingze waited at the entrance of the government office!

Upon entering, they saw the Prefect of Dongchang busy with official business. Seeing them enter, the Prefect put down his work and asked, "What brings you here?"

Song Jiang replied, "I have come on the orders of the county magistrate to present New Year's gifts to the prefect."

The prefect of Dongchang laughed and scolded, "Wenbin loves to pull this kind of stunt. Doesn't he know I don't accept gifts?"

Song Jiang bowed and said, "Lord Shi knows that you are upright and honest, and that you are incorruptible. However, he also remembers our past friendship, so he specially prepared a small gift to visit you. You can rest assured that it will not violate your principles."

The prefect of Dongchang smiled. Song Jiang's words were perfectly tactful, and he too was curious about what Shi Wenbin had given him.

Song Jiang waved his hand, and three constables came up with gifts.

Upon closer inspection, the prefect of Dongchang realized that there were two jars of wine and a few bolts of cloth.

The prefect of Dongchang shook his head and said, "Wenbin really put his heart into this."

Song Jiang clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Lord Shi, I wish you smooth sailing, soaring success, auspicious beginnings, peace in all seasons, five blessings at your door, great fortune in everything, good news from the stars, happiness from all directions, unity of hearts, and perfection in everything."

The prefect of Dongchang said happily, "Thank you for your kind words. Someone, bring twenty taels of silver."

A servant then brought out a tray with twenty taels of silver on it.

The prefect of Dongchang said, "You've all had a long journey. Here's a little silver for your travel expenses."

Song Jiang accepted the silver, clasped his hands in thanks, and said, "Thank you, sir. We'll take our leave now."

After leaving the Dongchang Prefecture government office, Song Jiang said to the two constables, "Captain Wu and I still have some matters to attend to here. You two can go back now."

The two nodded, and Wu Song took out the twenty taels of silver and said, "You've had a hard journey, so please take this silver."

The two men declined, but Wu Song sternly said, "This is an order." Left with no choice, they accepted and thanked Wu Song profusely.

Although Wu Song had only been working in the government for a little over a month, he was loyal, brave, and righteous, with outstanding abilities. He was very easygoing with the yamen runners, and most importantly, he was generous. He would often take the runners out for drinks or give money to those in need. As a result, his reputation and fame among the runners reached a very high level. Wu Song himself was unaware that he was not even twenty years old and was already respected by all the runners.

After the two constables left, Song Jiang and his two companions decided to take a good look around Dongchang Prefecture. Although shopping is a woman's favorite pastime, who says men don't go shopping? The main reason was that Song Jiang wanted to see if he could replenish some items that Yuncheng didn't have but Liangshan needed.

Dongchang Prefecture was indeed bustling and lively, far surpassing Yuncheng County. Looking at the bustling streets and noisy crowds, Song Jiang thought that he would be successful if he could develop Yuncheng County to the same extent.

At this moment, Wu Song spoke up: "Brother, there are many people gathered up ahead, why don't we go and take a look?"

Song Jiang looked ahead and saw a large group of people gathered together. It seemed that someone was hawking something, which was why people were watching.

Song Jiang went closer and saw that it was a man selling horses. The man was thin and burly, with red hair and a yellow beard, and looked very strange. But then he remembered that Ruan Xiao'er had green hair, so he understood. It seemed that none of these guys had normal black hair, and he wondered why.

Looking at the horse again, it was entirely purple, nine feet tall, with whorls of hair on its thighs resembling the sun and moon. Song Jiang found this horse extraordinary; horses with purple fur were rare in Chinese history, the most famous being probably Saluzi, one of the Six Steeds of Zhaoling Mausoleum of Emperor Taizong of Tang.

This horse is definitely a fine steed. To be honest, Song Jiang was indeed tempted. In ancient times, fine steeds were like modern sports cars. Men love sports cars just as much as they love horses. Riding a horse across a wide grassland is an absolute dream for men. Galloping across a vast open space, there is no other word to describe the feeling except "exhilarating".

Upon seeing Song Jiang, the purple horse let out an excited neigh and nodded in his direction. Seeing the horse's friendly gesture, the man smiled and said, "Brave warrior, this horse is a rare and fine steed. I wonder if you would be interested?"

Song Jiang laughed and asked, "What's the price of this horse?"

The man thought for a moment and then said, "Such a fine horse, a thousand taels of gold isn't expensive, is it?"

Song Jiang almost spat out his water. What did he mean by "a thousand taels of gold is not expensive"? It was equivalent to ten thousand taels of silver.

Song Jiang shook his head and said, "This horse is indeed a bit expensive."

The man laughed loudly and said, "As the saying goes, a fine horse is a match for a hero. This valiant man looks extraordinary, and only a hero like him can do justice to this horse."

Although Song Jiang knew that the man was flattering him in order to get him to buy a horse—after all, he knew what he looked like and didn't look like a hero at all—the words still sounded quite nice. However, he couldn't possibly buy the horse on impulse just because of a few nice words.

It's not that the horse isn't worth that much money, but Liangshan is currently developing and needs money everywhere. Even though my brothers won't say anything if I spend a thousand taels of gold to buy a horse, I will definitely feel guilty towards them.

Thinking of this, Song Jiang still felt it was best not to buy the horse, so he said, "This horse is worth that much money, but I don't have enough silver, so I have no choice but to part with it."

The man was somewhat disappointed. He patted the horse's head without saying a word, and the purple horse nestled its head against the man's large palm, rubbing against his hand vigorously.

Song Jiang was moved by the deep bond between the man and the horse, shook his head, and was about to leave when a man spoke up: "How much is this horse? I'll buy it."

Song Jiang looked toward the sound and saw a middle-aged man leading two young men and a woman toward him. The man said as he walked, "I want this horse."

Song Jiang looked at that person and immediately froze on the spot, unable to come back to his senses!

It wasn't the middle-aged man who surprised him, but the woman next to him who was the same woman he had met at the Yunmeng Village tavern that day—the woman who had filled Song Jiang with fear—and he had actually encountered her again today!

Moreover, for some reason, Song Jiang suddenly felt disgusted with these people; it was an instinctive disgust. He felt a little better with the woman, but he even had the urge to kill the middle-aged man. Today, seeing the woman, his fear had subsided considerably, unlike when they first met.

The horse seller gently stroked the purple horse's head and said, "One thousand taels of gold, no bargaining, cash on delivery, no credit."

The middle-aged man frowned and said, "This horse is indeed a fine steed, but the price is a bit too high. I can buy it if you lower the price."

The horse seller thought for a moment and said, "If you really like it, you can take it for eight hundred taels of gold."

The middle-aged man said, "It's still a bit expensive. Two hundred taels of gold. I'll just buy it directly."

The horse seller shook his head and said, "I can't sell it for two hundred taels. Please leave."

Song Jiang was speechless. This bargaining was too ruthless. However, it's normal to bargain down to the spot when someone asks for an exorbitant price!

The middle-aged man said with a stern face, "Are you really not going to sell?"

The horse seller said, "Even fine horses recognize heroes. You are not destined for this horse, and I won't sell it for a thousand taels of gold now."

"This is interesting," Song Jiang thought with a smile. The horse seller had piqued his interest, especially his appearance, which seemed familiar, though he couldn't quite place it.

Before the middle-aged man could speak, one of the young men said, "Do you know who my father is? How dare you be so insolent?"

The horse seller gave a disdainful laugh and said nothing.

The middle-aged man spoke up, "Lin'er, do you like this horse?"

The young man who spoke replied, "Father, this horse is the best I've ever seen, so of course I like it."

The middle-aged man took out a silver note containing two hundred taels of gold, threw it on the ground, and was about to take the horse, saying, "I've paid the money, so I'll take the horse."

The middle-aged man's forceful buying and selling attitude drew whispers from those around him. Indeed, if someone thought the price was too high, they could bargain or not buy it at all. But when one party tries to reach an agreement while the other forces a sale, such coercion is likely to cause public outrage. However, this middle-aged man was clearly a local bigwig, and although the crowd was somewhat displeased, no one dared to say anything.

The horse seller laughed and said, "I'm not selling you the horse, so don't waste your time."

The woman said, "Father, since the shopkeeper won't sell, let's just forget about it."

Song Jiang looked at the woman. She was indeed a rare beauty, but her eyes were intimidating, as if nothing in the world could escape her gaze. However, the fact that the middle-aged man and the woman were father and daughter was quite intriguing.

The middle-aged man ignored the woman's words and insisted on taking the horse. Suddenly, the horse seller made a move and delivered a powerful kick straight at the middle-aged man's chest.

The middle-aged man quickly dodged the fierce kick, and at the same time took out a riding whip from his waist and lashed it at the horse seller's face.

"Erlang!" Song Jiang called out hurriedly.

"Snap!" There was no sound as expected. Before Song Jiang could even speak, Wu Song had already made his move. Wu Song had been unable to tolerate these people from the beginning, and now they were trying to steal his horse. Wu Song couldn't stand it any longer and finally took action.