Chapter 92

Chapter 92

Song Jiang led his army in five divisions to attack Gaizhou. The scouts from Gaizhou, having confirmed the intelligence, rushed back to report to the city. The garrison commander Niu Wenchong had originally come from the greenwood; he had devoted all the gold and silver he had plundered in the jiangland to support Tian Hu's rebellion, joining him in seizing Song territory. For this he had been appointed to the post of Privy Councilor. He was accustomed to wielding a three-pointed, two-edged blade and was outstanding in martial arts. Under him served four fierce generals known as the "Four Mighty Generals," who assisted him in the defense of Gaizhou. Who were these four? Fang Qiong, "Mighty General of the Lion"; An Shirong, "Mighty General of the Pixiu"; Chu Heng, "Mighty General of the Tiger-Stripe"; and Yu Yulin, "Mighty General of the Bear."

Each of these Four Mighty Generals had four lieutenant generals under him, making sixteen lieutenant generals in all. They were: Yang Duan, Guo Xin, Su Ji, Zhang Xiang, Fang Shun, Shen An, Lu Yuan, Wang Ji, Shi Jing, Qin Sheng, Mo Zhen, Sheng Ben, He Ren, Cao Hong, Shi Xun, and Sang Ying.

Niu Wenchong, together with his principal and subordinate commanders, led thirty thousand northern troops in the defense of Gaizhou. Having recently heard of the fall of Lingchuan and Gaoping, he prepared on one hand to meet the advancing imperial army and on the other sent urgent appeals for aid to Weisheng and Jining. Upon receiving the report, he immediately dispatched the principal general Fang Qiong and the lieutenant generals Yang Duan, Guo Xin, Su Ji, and Zhang Xiang with five thousand troops to meet the enemy outside the city. Before they departed, Niu Wenchong said: "General, take heed. I will follow with troops to support you." Fang Qiong replied: "No need for the Privy Councilor's instructions. Those two cities were not lost for lack of strength—they fell to his treacherous schemes. Today I will not return to the city without killing several of them."

Thereupon they donned their armor, mounted their horses, and led their troops out of the East Gate, charging forward. The vanguard of the Song forces met them and spread into battle formation, their war drums thundering to the heavens. From the northern army's gate-flag formation, Fang Qiong rode out, flanked closely by his four lieutenant generals. Fang Qiong wore a curling-cloud cap, dragon-scale armor, and a green brocade robe, with a lion-shaped belt around his waist and green boots on his feet. A bow hung at his left, arrows at his right. He rode a yellow-maned horse and grasped a solid iron spear, shouting loudly: "You water-ridge bandits, how dare you use treacherous schemes to seize our cities!" From the Song formation, Sun Li bellowed: "Rebel traitors who aid a usurper—heaven's army has arrived, and you still do not know you are doomed!" He spurred his horse straight at Fang Qiong. The two generals fought amid the dust and the killing aura, battling for over thirty rounds, until Fang Qiong gradually began to weaken. In the northern army's formation, Zhang Xiang, seeing that Fang Qiong could not withstand Sun Li, drew his bow, nocked an arrow, and edged his horse to the front of the line. He loosed a shaft at Sun Li. Sun Li had already seen it coming; he pulled his horse's head up, and the arrow struck the horse squarely in the eye. The horse reared up on its hind legs. Sun Li leaped to one side, seized his spear, and came forward on foot to fight. The wounded horse bolted northward some dozen paces before it collapsed. Zhang Xiang, seeing that Sun Li had not fallen, flew forward with his saber to join the fight, but Qin Ming intercepted him. Sun Li wanted to return to the formation to change horses, but Fang Qiong's spear kept him pinned on all sides and he could not break free. Over on the side, the "Divine-Armed General" Hua Rong was roused to fury. "How dare the rebel general shoot a hidden arrow—let him know one of mine!" he cursed. Even as he spoke, his bow was fully drawn. He took careful aim at Fang Qiong and loosed a single arrow that struck Fang Qiong squarely in the face. Fang Qiong toppled from his horse. Sun Li rushed up and finished him with a spear thrust, then hurried back to the formation to change horses. Zhang Xiang was locked in combat with Qin Ming; Qin Ming's staff never left the area above Zhang Xiang's head, and Zhang Xiang could only parry and deflect. Then he saw Fang Qiong fall from his horse. Fear crept into his heart, and he gradually began to lose ground. From the northern formation, Guo Xin spurred his horse forward with spear in hand to aid Zhang Xiang. Qin Ming fought both men with no trace of fear. The three horses formed a triangle as they battled before the ranks. Hua Rong nocked a second arrow, drew the string, and took careful aim at Zhang Xiang's back. He opened the bow to the full moon, loosed the arrow like a shooting star, and cried out: "Know this arrow!" It struck Zhang Xiang squarely in the back, piercing clean through—the arrow passed straight through to emerge from his front. His helmet tipped backward, his feet kicked at empty air, and he crashed down from his horse. Guo Xin, seeing Zhang Xiang struck by the arrow, created an opening and wheeled his horse toward his own formation, with Qin Ming in hot pursuit. By now Sun Li had changed horses and returned to the field. Together with Hua Rong and Su Chao, he led his troops in a sweeping charge, throwing the northern army into chaos. Yang Duan, Guo Xin, and Su Ji could not withstand the assault and fell back in haste. Then a great roar arose from behind the northern troops—Niu Wenchong, fearing Fang Qiong had met with disaster, had ordered An Shirong and Yu Yulin each to lead five thousand men in a two-pronged converging attack. Hua Rong and the other four generals hastily divided their forces to meet them, but Yang Duan, Guo Xin, and Su Ji rallied their troops and turned back to attack. Caught in a three-sided assault, Hua Rong and the other four generals fought desperately to break through, but they were nearly surrounded at the center of the field. Then they heard killing cries to the east—the northern army was in chaos again. On the left, Dong Ping and seven other generals charged; on the right, Huang Xin and seven other generals charged. The two wings swept forward together. The northern army was utterly defeated, with great slaughter. An Shirong, Yu Yulin, and the others led their troops in a frantic rush into the city and shut the gates. The Song forces pursued them to the city walls, but rolling logs and catapult stones rained down from above, and the Song troops withdrew.

Presently, Song Jiang and the main army all arrived and encamped five li from the city. Song Jiang ascended his command tent and ordered Xiao Rang to record Hua Rong's meritorious deed first. Suddenly a strange wind arose, whirling dust and sweeping from west to east, so that all the banners were shaken and tilted askew. Wu Yong said, "This wind means the enemy will surely raid our camp tonight. We must prepare at once." Song Jiang said, "This wind is truly out of the ordinary!" He then ordered Ou Peng, Deng Fei, Yan Shun, and Ma Lin to lead three thousand troops in ambush on the left of the camp; Wang Ying, Chen Da, Yang Chun, and Li Zhong to lead three thousand troops in ambush on the right; and Lu Zhishen, Wu Song, Li Kui, Bao Xu, Xiang Chong, and Li Gun to lead five hundred troops in ambush within the camp—at the signal of a cannon, all were to charge out together. When the dispositions were complete, Song Jiang and Wu Yong discussed strategy by candlelight.

Now to speak of Niu Wenzhong, who upon seeing the loss of three generals and counting his soldiers, found he had lost over two thousand men. He was brooding in his tent when the "General of Fierce Might," An Shirong, offered a plan: "My lord, set your mind at ease! This band of Song Jiang's has won several battles in a row and is now swollen with pride and arrogance—they will certainly be unprepared. Tonight, let me lead a force to raid their camp. We can win complete victory and avenge today's defeat." Niu the Secretariat said, "If you go, I will personally lead troops to support you. I will order Generals Yu and Chu to hold the city firmly." An Shirong was overjoyed and said, "If my lord personally leads the expedition, we are certain to capture Song Jiang." When the plan was settled, at the second watch, Shirong, together with his lieutenant generals Shen An, Lu Yuan, Wang Ji, and Shi Jing, led five thousand cavalry and infantry. The men wore soft armor, and the horses' bells were removed. They issued from the city, moving with muffled haste until they reached the front of the Song camp. They raised a shout and rushed in together to storm the camp.

They saw the camp gate wide open, and the camp inside brilliantly lit with lanterns and candles. An Shirong knew at once they had fallen into a trap and tried desperately to retreat. A cannon sounded in the Song camp, and from the left came Yan Shun and four other generals, from the right Wang Ying and four other generals, all charging in together. From inside the camp, Li Kui and six other generals led shield-bearing foot soldiers and rolled out of the camp. The northern army was utterly defeated and fled in every direction. Shen An was hacked to death by Wu Song's monk's blade, and Wang Ji was killed by Wang Ying. The Song troops surrounded An Shirong, Lu Yuan, and Shi Jing's forces in the center. They were in dire peril when Niu Wenzhong arrived with his lieutenant generals Cao Hong and Shi Xun to reinforce them. A confused battle ensued, and both sides withdrew their troops.

The next day, Niu Wenzhong counted his soldiers and found he had lost over a thousand. He had also lost Generals Shen An and Wang Ji. Shi Xun was gravely wounded, his life hanging by a thread. As he was grieving, suddenly a messenger arrived from Weisheng bearing an imperial decree. Niu Wenzhong immediately mounted his horse and rode out the north gate to meet him. The messenger entered the city and read the decree, which stated that recently the Director of the Imperial Observatory had observed the night sky and noted an aggressive star intruding upon the Jin territory. The city was to be defended firmly and without error. Niu Wenzhong explained that the Song court had sent Song Jiang and his troops to attack, and they had already taken two cities. The Song army had arrived here, and in yesterday's battle he had lost five officers of various ranks. If reinforcements arrived soon, then all might be preserved. The messenger said, "When I left Weisheng, there was no news of this. It was only on the road that I heard the rumor that the Song had sent troops here." Niu Wenzhong prepared a banquet for him and presented gifts. At the same time, he ordered the preparation of rolling logs, catapult stones, powerful crossbows, hard bows, fire arrows, and fire weapons, to defend the city firmly and await reinforcements—but of this, no more.

Now to speak of Yan Shun, Wang Ying, and the other generals, who routed the raiding enemy troops and returned to camp in victory. The next day, Song Jiang issued orders to repair siege engines and prepare for an assault on the city. He ordered Lin Chong, Suo Xuan, Xuan Zan, and Hao Siwen to lead ten thousand troops to attack the east gate; Xu Ning, Qin Ming, Han Tao, and Peng Qi to lead ten thousand troops to attack the south gate; and Dong Ping, Yang Zhi, Shan Tinggui, and Wei Dingguo to lead ten thousand troops to attack the west gate. The north gate was left unattacked, lest reinforcements arrive and the defenders sally forth, exposing them to attack from two sides. He ordered Shi Jin, Zhu Tong, Mu Hong, and Ma Lin to lead five thousand troops in ambush on a high ridge to the northeast of the city; and Huang Xin, Sun Li, Ou Peng, and Deng Fei to lead five thousand troops in ambush in a dense forest to the northwest. If the enemy should send reinforcements, they would attack from two directions. He ordered Hua Rong, Wang Ying, Zhang Qing, Sun Xin, and Li Li to lead a thousand cavalry as mobile scouts, riding between the four gates to gather intelligence; and Li Kui, Bao Xu, Xiang Chong, Li Gun, Liu Tang, and Lei Heng to lead three hundred foot soldiers to coordinate with Hua Rong's force. When the dispositions were complete, the generals departed to carry out their orders. Song Jiang, Lu Junyi, Wu Yong, and the other officers moved their camp to one li east of the city. He ordered Li Yun and Tang Long to oversee the construction of siege towers and flying ladders, and to deliver them to each unit for use.

Now to speak of Lin Chong and the four other generals at the east gate, who erected siege towers and flying ladders against the city wall. They sent agile soldiers up the flying ladders to scale the ramparts, while those below shouted to encourage them. But how could they withstand the fire arrows that flew from the city like a swarm of locusts? The soldiers could to dodge them. In no time at all, the flying ladders were burned and came crashing down with a great roar, killing five or six soldiers and wounding more than ten. At the southwest two gates as well, the attackers suffered casualties from fire arrows and cannon. Thus for six or seven days in a row, they could not take the city.

Finding that the assault on the city had failed, Song Jiang, together with Lu Junyi and Wu Yong, went in person to the South Gate to press the attack. They saw Hua Rong and five other leading warriors returning from reconnaissance, their mounted scouts riding from the west toward the east. On the city wall, Yu Yulin, along with the subordinate generals Yang Duan and Guo Xin, were overseeing the soldiers' defense. Yang Duan, seeing Hua Rong approaching the wall, said, "The other day he wounded two of our generals in a row. Today let me have my revenge!" He quickly nocked an arrow, drew his bow, and let fly at Hua Rong's chest. Hearing the twang of the bowstring, Hua Rong leaned backward in his saddle. The arrow came straight at him, and with a casual reach he caught it between his fingers, then placed it between his teeth. He slung his spear over his ring, took up his bow with his left hand, retrieved the arrow from his mouth with his right, fitted it to the string, took careful aim at Yang Duan, and loosed. The arrow struck Yang Duan squarely in the throat, and he toppled backward with a crash. Hua Rong shouted, "How dare such vermin shoot cold arrows! I'll have every one of you dead!" He reached for another arrow, about to shoot again, when a great cry went up from the wall and several soldiers tumbled from the tower. Yu Yulin and Guo Xin turned ashen and scrambled to take cover. Hua Rong said with a cold laugh, "Now you know the 'Divine Arrow General'!" Song Jiang and Lu Junyi cheered again and again. Wu Yong said, "Elder brother, we might as well go with General Hua to survey the city's defenses." Hua Rong and the others escorted Song Jiang, Lu Junyi, and Wu Yong as they rode around the entire circuit of the walls.

When Song Jiang, Lu Junyi, and Wu Yong returned to camp, Wu Yong summoned the Linchuan defector Gong Geng and asked about the roads inside Gaizhou city. Gong Geng said, "Niu Wenzhong has made the old prefectural offices his headquarters, right in the center of the city. To the north there are several temples, and the open areas are all grasslands." After hearing this, Wu Yong conferred with Song Jiang and then called Shi Qian and Shi Xiu to come forward and whispered to them, "Carry out the plan thus and thus—go secretly to General Hua Rong's army and transmit the orders, acting as the situation allows." He then summoned Ling Zhen, Zhen Zhen, and Zhen Bao to lead two hundred soldiers carrying the Heaven-shaking Mother and Child cannon in their various sizes, and sent them off with instructions. He ordered Lu Zhishen and Wu Song to lead three hundred drummers and trumpeters; Liu Tang, Yang Xiong, Bao Si, and Duan Jingzhu were each to lead two hundred soldiers carrying torches, and proceed to the four directions—southeast, southwest, northeast, and northwest—according to the plan. He also sent Dai宗 to the eastern, western, and southern camps to secretly transmit the signal: when fire broke out in the city, all were to attack with full force. The dispositions having been made, the commanders departed to carry out their orders.

Now, Niu Wenzhong had been expecting reinforcements day and night, but there was no news at all, and he grew deeply troubled. He added more soldiers and had timber and stones carried up to hold the walls. At dusk one evening, he suddenly heard the north gate rocked by a thunderous clamor of shouting and horns and drums. Niu Wenzhong galloped to the north gate and climbed the wall to look out, but the shouting and drums had fallen silent—he could not tell where the troops had been. While he was still puzzling over this, shouting erupted from the south as well, with horns and drums shaking the sky. Niu Wenzhong ordered Yu Yulin to hold the north gate and himself rushed to the south wall, but by the time he arrived, the shouting had ceased and the drums no longer sounded. Niu Wenzhong stared out for a long time and could only hear the faint watch-drums from Song Jiang's south camp—all was quiet and still, not a single firelight to be seen. He slowly descended from the wall and was about to go to his headquarters to make an inspection when he heard a string of cannon shots from the east gate, and from the west came a roar of shouting and a furious beating of drums. Niu Wenzhong ran east and west, and the commotion lasted until dawn. The Song soldiers then attacked the city again, withdrawing only at nightfall. At the first watch that evening, horns and drums and shouting were heard once more. Niu Wenzhong said, "This is a bluff—ignore them. We will simply hold the city walls and see what he does." Suddenly word came that the east gate was ablaze, with countless torches, and flying towers and cloud-ladders were pressing up against the wall. Niu Wenzhong rushed to the east wall and, together with Chu Heng, Shi Jing, and Qin Sheng, directed the soldiers to bombard the attackers with fire-arrows and cannon stones. Without warning, a great cannon shot rang out, shaking the mountains and valleys, and the wall itself trembled; the soldiers and civilians inside were thrown into a panic. After two nights of such torment, the Song soldiers attacked again at dawn, and the defenders could not close their eyes for a moment, while Niu Wenzhong himself patrolled the walls without rest. Then he saw to the northwest a forest of banners blotting out the sun, moving toward the southeast, and a dozen or so Song scouts riding as if flying back to the main camp. Niu Wenzhong concluded that reinforcements had arrived and ordered Yu Yulin to prepare to sally forth from the city to meet them.

Now, that army from the northwest was led by Tian Biao, the third prince and younger brother of Tian Hu, the garrison general of Jinning. Having received Gaizhou's plea for help, he dispatched his fierce general Fengxiang Wang Yuan with twenty thousand troops to the rescue. They had already passed Yangcheng and were advancing on Gaizhou. When they were still some ten *li* from the city, a cannon suddenly boomed, and from the dense forests on the eastern and western heights two columns of troops charged out. They were led by eight fierce warriors—Shi Jin, Zhu Tong, Ma Hong, Ma Lin, Huang Xin, Sun Li, Ou Peng, and Deng Fei—with ten thousand seasoned soldiers, sweeping down upon them. Though the Jinning army numbered twenty thousand, they were exhausted from the long march and could not withstand these forces, who had lain in ambush for over ten days and had been honed to a razor's edge, attacking from both sides. The Jinning army was utterly routed, abandoning countless drums, banners, spears, armor, and horses; more than half their soldiers were slain. Fengxiang Wang Yuan barely escaped with his life and led the surviving officers and men back to Jinning. But no more of this.

When Niu Wenzhong saw the two armies locked in combat, he hastily ordered Yu Yulin to lead troops out through the north gate to support them—the north gate was under no attack. Yu Yulin led his men out and had just crossed the drawbridge when he encountered Hua Rong's mounted scouts coming from the west. The northern soldiers cried out, "The Divine Arrow General is here!" and in a panic they scrambled to retreat, crowding back into the city in disorder. Yu Yulin, whose courage had already been shattered at the south wall, dared not fight either and fled into the city as well. Hua Rong and his men charged forward, killing some twenty men, but did not pursue—they let them enter the city. The gates were hastily slammed shut.

At that time Shi Shi and Shi Qian, having donned the uniforms of the Northern army, had already slipped into the city. Shi Qian and Shi Shi passed through the city gate and, amid the chaos and clamor, slipped into a narrow alley. Turning down that lane, they came upon a shrine, with a plaque that read: "Shrine of the Local Land God." Shi Qian and Shi Shi crept inside and saw a Daoist priest warming himself by the east wall. The priest, seeing two soldiers enter the shrine, said, "Sir, what news from outside?" The soldier replied, "We were just ordered by General Yu to go into battle, but we ran into that divine archer—General Yu didn't dare cross swords with him either. We rushed into the city in disorder, and I took advantage of the confusion to slip in here." He then took out two pieces of loose silver from beside him and handed them to the priest, saying, "If you have any wine stashed away, just give us two bowls to drink—we're really cold." The priest laughed and said, "Sir, you don't know—these past few days the military situation has been so urgent that not a single stick of incense has been offered to the god. Where would I get even a drop of wine?" He pushed the silver back to Shi Qian. Shi Shi held the priest's hand and said, "Take this small amount for now—we'll talk more about it later. We've been guarding the city for days on end, working hard, not getting a moment's sleep. Tonight we'll just rest here and leave at dawn." The priest shook his hand and said, "Forgive me, gentlemen! General Niu's orders are strict—he'll be here to inspect soon. If I let you stay, neither of us would come out clean." Shi Qian said, "If that's how it is, we'll figure something else out." Shi Shi moved close to the priest's side and also began warming himself by the fire. Shi Qian looked around and, seeing no one nearby, gave Shi Shi a look. Shi Shi secretly drew his saber. The priest, absorbed in warming himself, was taken unaware as Shi Shi struck from behind with a *gecha* stroke and cut off his head. They then barred the shrine door. By then it was the hour of *you* (late afternoon). Shi Qian made his way around the sacrificial table, and found a door in the rear wall. Outside was a small courtyard, with two piles of tangled straw stacked beneath the eaves. Shi Qian and Shi Shi carried the straw out and covered the priest's body with it. They opened the shrine door and climbed up onto the roof from the courtyard behind. The two lay prone on the ridge and looked up at the sky, where dozens of stars shone bright and clear. After lying there for a while, they slipped back down to the ground and went outside the shrine to look around—not a single soul was passing by. They crept a few steps further and looked left and right. Though there were a few households nearby, all had their doors shut tight and quiet, with the faint sound of weeping coming from within. Shi Qian crept further south, turned past a stretch of earthen wall, and came upon a large open space with dozens of piles of firewood and straw. Shi Qian thought to himself: "This is the hay and firewood yard—why are there no soldiers guarding it?" The truth was that the officers and men in the city had been wholly occupied defending the walls and had no time to come inspect this place. The guards, having heard that the Song army had routed the relief force, figured the city was lost and had each fled to save their own lives beforehand. Shi Qian and Shi Shi went back to the shrine, took some fire, and lit the straw covering the priest's body. Then they slipped into the hay yard, and each went a separate way, setting six or seven fires in succession. Before long, the hay yard burst into roaring flames that shot up to the sky, and the shrine too began to burn. To the west of the yard, a resident heard the fire and came out with a torch to investigate. Shi Qian rushed up and snatched the torch from his hand. Shi Shi said, "We're going to report to Marshal Niu." The resident, seeing that the two of them were soldiers, dared not resist. Shi Qian took the torch and ran south with Shi Qian, shouting all the way that they were reporting to the marshal. Wherever they saw a house that was easy to set alight, they started two more fires, then dropped the torch and slipped away. The two men took off their Northern army uniforms and hid in a secluded spot.

When four or five fires were seen blazing in the city, pandemonium erupted at once. Upon seeing the hay yard on fire, Niu Wenzhong hurriedly led officers and men to put it out. Outside the city walls, seeing fires within, they knew Shi Qian and Shi Shi were acting as inside allies, and redoubled their assault. Song Jiang and Wu Yong led Xie Zhen and Xie Bao at a gallop to the south of the city. Wu Yong said, "The other day I noticed that section of the city wall is somewhat lower." He ordered Qin Ming and the others to bring the siege towers close to the wall. Wu Yong said to Xie Zhen and Xie Bao, "The bandits have lost heart, and their soldiers are exhausted. Brothers, make the effort to get on the wall!" Xie Zhen took his broad saber up the siege tower, scaled the parapet wall, and leaped up onto it. Xie Bao followed, vaulting up as well. The two gave a shout, swept down the parapet, and hacked about them with their blades. The soldiers on the wall, already worn out and terrified, and seeing Xie Zhen and Xie Bao fighting with such ferocity, all scrambled and tumbled down from the wall. Chu Heng, seeing the two men on the wall, leveled his spear to fight, but after a dozen bouts Xie Bao thrust him through with his broad saber. Xie Zhen rushed forward and cut off his head. By then over a hundred Song soldiers had scaled the wall from the siege towers. With Xie Zhen and Xie Bao in the lead, they charged down together, shouting: "Anyone who advances will be chopped to mincemeat!" They killed Shi Jing and Qin Sheng, cut down the gate guards, seized the city gate, lowered the drawbridge, and Xu Ning and the other generals led their troops pouring in. Xu Ning and Han Tao led soldiers rushing to the east gate; An Shirong could not withstand them and was speared to death by Xu Ning. They seized the gate and let Lin Chong and the other generals into the city. Qin Ming and Peng Qi led soldiers to storm the west gate, letting Dong Ping and others into the city. Mo Zhen, He Ren, and Cao Hong were killed in the chaos. Bodies lay strewn across the marketplaces, and blood filled the streets. Niu Wenzhong, seeing that all the city gates had been seized, had no choice but to mount his horse. He abandoned the city and, together with Yu Yulin, led over two hundred men out through the north gate and fled. Before they had gone a mile, out of the darkness burst "Black Whirlwind" Li Kui and "Flowery Monk" Lu Zhishen—one a fierce general, one a wild monk—blocking their path. Indeed:

*The heavenly net is spread so wide, there is no stepping aside;*

*The earthly snares are cast so high, how can one slip free?*

As to whether Niu Wenzhong and Yu Yulin would survive, listen to the next chapter for the answer.

# Chapter 92

Wu Yong and Zhu Wu discussed their strategy together and said, "The terrain around Luzhou is all low-lying marshland, with water everywhere. There are only two main roads leading south and north, both of which the enemy have heavily fortified with stockades. Our army cannot advance directly. How can we find a way to draw them out and defeat them?"

Zhu Wu replied, "If they won't come out to fight, we should send a challenge to provoke them. When the enemy comes out, we can use our tactics."

Wu Yong approved this plan and said, "That's exactly what I was thinking." He immediately summoned Ruan Xiaoqi, Ruan Xiaoer, and Ruan Xiaowu, the three Ruan brothers, and gave them secret instructions. The three brothers took three thousand men and set out quietly at night. Wu Yong then arranged for the other commanders to take their positions accordingly.

Meanwhile, in Luzhou, the military governor, Lü Heng, had received intelligence that the Liangshan army was approaching. He summoned his officers and said, "The bandits from Liangshan Marsh have come in great numbers. We must defend our position firmly and not give them any opportunity. Let them come and exhaust themselves against our fortifications."

His officers agreed. Lü Heng then dispatched scouts to watch the roads and report any movements.

That night, the three Ruan brothers led their men through the marshes by a hidden path and reached the outskirts of Luzhou. They set fire to several of the enemy's outposts. The flames lit up the sky, and the garrison was thrown into confusion.

Lü Heng, hearing the commotion, mounted his horse and led his troops out to engage. But the three Ruan brothers, following Wu Yong's orders, retreated as soon as the enemy appeared, drawing them further and further from their fortifications.

Wu Yong, seeing that the enemy had taken the bait, gave the signal. From the left flank, Lin Chong and Hua Rong led a charge; from the right flank, Li Kui and Shi Xiu burst forth. The enemy forces, caught between the two attacks, were thrown into disarray.

Lü Heng realized he had fallen into a trap and tried to retreat to the city, but Ruan Xiaoqi and his brothers had already circled around and blocked the road back. Lü Heng fought desperately but was no match for the coordinated assault. He was captured alive by Lin Chong.

The remaining soldiers, seeing their commander taken, surrendered on the spot. Wu Yong ordered the troops to enter Luzhou, and the city fell without further resistance. The people of the city, who had long suffered under the corrupt officials, welcomed the Liangshan army with joy.

Wu Yong entered the city and immediately posted notices to reassure the populace. He confiscated the government granaries and distributed the grain to the poor. The soldiers were strictly disciplined, and not a single civilian was harmed.

After settling affairs in Luzhou, Wu Yong summoned the officers and said, "We have taken this city, but we must not grow complacent. The court will surely send reinforcements. We must prepare our defenses and continue our campaign."

The officers all agreed, and Wu Yong began making arrangements for the next phase of their operations.