Today, Liangshanbo Village is filled with gloom and mist. The high spirits of the past have long been gone. Even the apricot-yellow flag erected high in front of the Juyi Hall is weakly hanging on the top of the flagpole. Like the people in the village, etc. It was so lifeless.
In the Juyi Hall, Song Jiang and other leaders stared with big eyes, and no one spoke for a long time. Because the night battle had dealt a huge blow to them, not only losing their troops, but also taking away their last bit of courage. A feeling of despair and hesitation had spread in everyone's hearts.
Even Liu Tang, Li Kui and his like who had been clamoring all day long to take the initiative to kill people all turned into gourds at this time. The cruel reality has slapped the answer on their faces that the enemy is strong and we are weak, far from their opponents. No matter how reluctant they are, they have to admit that continuing to hold on is a dead end.
As the leader of the cottage, Chao Gai was even more ashamed at this time. Although Song Jiang led the team in the night battle, he made the decision, so if we really want to talk about it, he is the one who bears the greatest responsibility. It was his miscalculation of the situation that led to such an irreversible situation. Now everyone is afraid that they no longer have the confidence to hold on to the stronghold.
"King of Heaven, don't be discouraged. Although we were slightly defeated, the stronghold is still there, and most of the brothers are still capable of fighting. If the officers and soldiers really dare to attack, we can fight them back!" Song Jiang finally said after a long silence. Open your mouth, if no one speaks again, the brothers will be really upset.
But his words had little consoling effect, because everyone knew that the village was at its last moment, and it was not up to them to decide when it would be defeated, but it depended on Sun Tu at the foot of the mountain. As long as the other party gives an order, the officers and soldiers can march up the mountain as if they were walking on flat ground...
Just when everyone didn't know how to answer the question and Song Jiang was a little embarrassed, someone from outside came to report: "Gentlemen, someone from the bottom of the mountain sent word that Sun Tu is going to meet with Brother Gongming..."
As soon as these words came out, the impatient Tengdi jumped up and said: "What is there to talk about at this time? If Sun Tu has the courage, he will lead his army to kill him and go up the mountain. See if I don't chop off his dog's head." !”
"Isn't he just relying on the fact that he has more troops than us? If he dares to fight us with real swords and guns, we Liangshan brothers may not be afraid of him!"
These statements were just made casually, but even his own people could not believe them. After they shouted a few words, Song Jiang stopped in a deep voice and said: "Brothers, don't be impatient, since Sun Tu wants to meet me." , which proves that things can still turn around." After saying that, he looked at Chao Gai again: "King of Heaven, I mean to meet him, but what are your plans?"
Chao Gai gave a wry smile and said with a hoarse throat: "Since he is looking for you, you can just go. But be careful of his deception. This person has always been deceitful, so you must be careful."
"It's already here. He shouldn't do such a thing again." Song Jiang also smiled before getting up and walking out. Li Kui and other confidants also subconsciously got up and followed. In a moment, half of the people in the hall were gone. This made Chao Gai's face become more and more gloomy. His reputation as the master of the cottage was too unworthy of his reputation.
Chen Cang saw this in his eyes, but felt excited in his heart. He was finally going to escape from this thief.
I'm in trouble, I really hope that Sun Dujian can take down the stronghold as soon as possible, so that he can retire with success. You must know that during this period of time in Liangshan Park, he had to protect himself and stir up conflicts among the leaders without leaving any trace. He was really careful at all times and it was very hard.
As for some other people, they all had strange expressions at this time. Some were thinking about what to do in the future, and some were worried that they would be convicted by the government... Anyway, the vast majority of people here no longer have the idea of holding on to the cottage. .
Song Jiang no longer cared about what his brothers thought, and just walked slowly down the mountain road. As he walked, he thought about Sun Tu's intention of meeting him at this time. In the end, he came to the conclusion that the other party wanted to persuade him to surrender. Return to the imperial court. This made his mind a little more active again. If Sun Tu really had such an idea, there might be room for bargaining.
When he reached halfway up the mountain, his footsteps finally stopped. Because two arrows further down, Sun Tu was already waiting there. This situation is similar to the confrontation between the two sides more than a month ago, but time has passed, and now the situation of both sides has undergone earth-shaking changes. Song Jiang even has wounds and blood stains left after the previous failed night attack.
When he saw Song Jiang coming at the invitation, Sun Tu burst into laughter and said, "Song Yasi, how are you doing here?" The similar greeting now sounded a little more teasing, which made Song Jiang feel even more ashamed and bitter. After a while, he said: "Sun Dujian, your troops are indeed powerful. No one can defeat me but our Liangshan brothers. What can I learn from you today?" He obviously had no intention of rambling with the other party and let him get down to business.
Sun Tu looked at Song Jiang from a distance and found that there was deep weakness and exhaustion on the other's face, so he stopped going around in circles and said straight to the point: "Actually, with the current situation, it shouldn't be difficult for me to level Liang Shanbo. But this You have a good life, and you will not die for your crime, so I did not rush to order an attack on the mountain, just to give you a chance to change your ways. If you, Song Yasi, can lead everyone from the mountain to surrender, I can Guarantee your safety, and no one will die in vain. Song Yasi, what do you think?"
Sure enough, he came to persuade him to surrender, which gave Song Jiang a little more hope and confidence: "Of course I, Song Jiang, can understand Sun Dujian's good intentions, but my brother Liangshan has been persecuted by the government before, and he is really desperate. I just turned into a bandit, so I really can’t trust the government.”
"Haha, what Song Yasi said is wrong. I dare not say it to others, but I, Sun Tu, have always kept my word. When the men and horses in Erlongshan and other villages in Taohua Mountain surrendered to me, they did not hold them responsible for their previous crimes, so You can rest assured on this, as long as you come down from the mountain and surrender sincerely, I will definitely make the court exempt you and others from your guilt."
"This..." To be honest, Song Jiang was really moved.
In fact, his dream has always been to serve the country in court. As for becoming a bandit leader, it is completely helpless. Not to mention that now that they are in a desperate situation, surrendering down the mountain is the best option. The only thing that needs to be considered is how to get the maximum benefit.
Wu Yong, who was beside him, also understood Song Jiang's thoughts and said immediately: "We can naturally trust Dujian Sun as a person, but after all, this is
Brother Gongming doesn't want to make the decision on our entire copycat matter without permission, so I agree to it now. "
Sun Tu nodded understandingly: "Of course, I can give you two days to think about it. If you still refuse to surrender by then, don't blame me for ignoring my original feelings."
"Sun Dujian, don't talk too much. Although we, Liangshanbo, are at a disadvantage for a while, we are still far from the end of our rope, let alone something you can break. Not to mention anything else, we have been waiting for our brothers for many years. To rob the rich and give to the poor, and to do justice for heaven, you are not famous in Shandong. If you are really desperate to put me to death, I'm afraid you will have to pay a big price, and even the reputation among the people will definitely plummet! "Li Jun suddenly said loudly next to Song Jiang, seeming to refute Sun Tu's statement that he could easily break through Liangshan.
In fact, with Li Jun's knowledge, it was naturally impossible for him to say such words. This was all secretly given by Song Jiang in front of him. Because he knew very well that even if he wanted to surrender, there was a big difference between surrendering after being forced into a desperate situation and surrendering when he was still capable of fighting.
In fact, according to his original plan, he planned to have the imperial court come to the stronghold to recruit troops after defeating the official army. In this way, he and his brothers would have a better future, and their status in the court would also be higher. However, his wishful thinking failed in the end, and now he can only use this kind of words to intimidate.
Sun Tu didn't get angry after hearing this, but laughed out loud: "What you said is really taken for granted. Do you think you Liang Shanbo can really boast of being a good man under the banner of doing justice for heaven? You think you are calling yourself a hero? Can it really be accepted by the people of the world? This is really a big joke!"
"Superintendent Sun, what do you mean by these words?" Song Jiang couldn't help but frowned and asked rather unhappily. As the second-in-command of Liangshan, everything he did was to build the reputation of a hero in Liangshan. He also believed that the village was now very famous outside the country, at least more popular among the people than ordinary bandits and officers and soldiers.
But Sun Tu shattered his delusion: "Master Song Village, haven't you noticed the changes around Liangshanbo? In the past few years, the villages and towns within dozens or hundreds of miles around Liangshanbo have fled, and there are few pedestrians. You Have you never thought about the reason?"
These words immediately stunned Song Jiang and the others. They really hadn't thought about these details carefully. Sun Tuze continued: "Because of your existence, the people around you are in panic all day long. The only thing they can do is to leave their homes and escape from here! As for your attack on the local state capital, it caused the tragic death of countless innocent people. Even if You did indeed open warehouses to help the people afterwards, but the few who benefited were far incomparable to the number of people you harmed. What you call robbing the rich and giving to the poor is true, but the only poor people you can help are Guys, haven't most of the food wealth fallen into your own hands? Robbing the rich and giving to the poor is just an excuse for you to rob wealth and satisfy your own selfish desires!
"Look at how many acres of fields and fishing grounds there are inside and outside Liangshan Bo. Can the production here meet the needs of thousands of people on the mountain? You are not engaged in production. The only thing you can do to survive is to plunder the surrounding areas. This is what you call Do you think you are acting on behalf of heaven and making decisions for the people? You are not afraid of the wind flashing your tongue and making your magnanimous laugh!"