In the summer of the tenth year of Jinghan, June 11th, Liangshan was hit by heavy rain.

The torrential rain, accompanied by dark clouds, occasionally illuminated by flashes of lightning and thunder, stirred the eight-hundred-li marsh into a chaotic state. Within this vast water expanse, the foothills of Liangshan jutted out, entrenched in its midst. Amidst the lightning and thunder, it resembled an ancient beast from primordial times, its massive body remaining steadfast and formidable in the dimness, enduring the wind and rain.

Since Song Jiang and others initiated their uprising in Liangshan, they had swept through the mountain strongholds near the water, forming alliances. Based in the strategic location of Liangshan, they repeatedly defeated invading government troops, and their momentum had soared since the battle of Zengtou City. Capitalizing on the aftermath of the Wu Dynasty's northern expedition and the failure of Fang La's rebellion, they consolidated their power and ascended rapidly. In the eyes of some, they were as fearsome as the giant island entrenched in the water, impervious even to the might of heaven and earth.

The reason for their defeat at the Battle of Dulonggang remained a mystery to many.

On the evening of June 8th, the main force of Liangshan broke through the Wu Rui camp's blockade. Throughout the night, several leaders worked hard to reorganize their troops and flee. By the morning of the next day, they gradually converged around General Ridge. Recalling the high spirits they had there just half a month earlier, it felt like a lifetime ago. After briefly regrouping at General Ridge, they proceeded to the already captured Wan Family Ridge. Counting the numbers at this point, less than 11,000 of the original 20,000 who had gone to Dulonggang could be accounted for.

Among the missing, more than half were dead, some were captured, and others had gradually fallen behind during the escape, with the hope that they would regroup later or return to Liangshan on their own. Among these people, it was also possible that some had become disillusioned with Liangshan. Without family ties, they could have taken the opportunity of being separated from the main group to run away.

At Dulonggang, only a little over 10,000 soldiers could truly be accounted for. This battle, which started as a smooth operation but ended with the loss of over 10,000 men, seemed like a farce. But there wasn't enough time to stop and conduct a review. They had escaped from the bizarre nightmare of Dulonggang, but the aftermath continued to ferment. Even with the most basic reasoning, it was clear that the Bloodhand Man-slayer Ning Liheng wouldn't stop his revenge at this point. He would inevitably gather his forces and launch a strong attack, taking advantage of Liangshan's weakness.

Strength wanes, and weakness grows.

The harsh reality was before them. Liangshan's men also faced an incredibly troublesome situation. The morale of the 11,000-plus men who had been regrouped was not entirely reliable. It would take time to restore them to their original state. The most troublesome aspect was that a considerable number of those who had been incited might be mixed among them.

However, on-the-spot rectification was impossible. Such things could only be done when winning battles. The more defeats they suffered, the more the authority of the leaders diminished, and the more the men below banded together. In Liangshan, where loyalty was the focus, any attempt to rectify the situation would be met with mutiny and rebellion from the heroes from all corners of the land.

Under the severity of the situation, these troubles could only be temporarily ignored. On the 9th and 10th of June, Song Jiang and others tried to arrange for the troops who had originally attacked Wan Family Ridge to transport various supplies from Wan Family Ridge back to Liangshan, followed by the more than 10,000 men from Dulonggang. By the end of the 10th, only one or two thousand people had been transported back to the mountain. On the 11th, heavy rain began to fall from dawn, and things had to be delayed. Wu Yong and others paid attention to morale, but in fact, morale was pretty good... or maybe it was pretty good.

They had won at Wan Family Ridge, but the reason for the defeat at Dulonggang was a point of curiosity for soldiers, leaders, and families who had not been on the battlefield. Some of them were well-informed and knew that the first few days of the attack on Dulonggang had been quite smooth. The sudden reversal was only known to the leaders in the army and the soldiers who had participated in the war. However, the soldiers who returned to Liangshan had almost unanimously chosen to remain silent about what had happened, not mentioning the events that occurred. But this effect actually stemmed from the trepidation and fear in their hearts.

When faced with the test of life and death, individuals in the situation began to choose the principle of rational deliberation for the sake of the overall situation, which finally appeared among the men of Liangshan. In a sense, it could also give a little comfort. In the storm, Zhu Wu also spoke with some calm when this matter was mentioned in a room on the side of the Gathering Hall.

"...At least, if we really fight, the morale will be available. Everyone's families are on Liangshan, and most people don't want Liangshan to fall."

Many leaders were sitting in the room. When the door was opened, the wind and rain poured in, causing the burning torches to sway wildly. Behind the desk, Wu Yong supported his forehead: "After all, the men at Dulonggang have been depleted, and not many of them can come. If... if that Ning Liheng really gets the support of that treacherous minister, the Wu Rui camp will send troops, but in my opinion, they won't be so determined. As long as we can defeat the Wu Rui camp head-on in the first battle, we can still defend with Liangshan's terrain."

"We don't know how that person will make his move yet, but as long as we can win a battle, we can take advantage of the victory to start rectifying morale, and then everything will be smooth. In short, everything must be done towards this point."

"The thousands of people originally under Commander Huyan, as well as the 5,000 people we left to guard Liangshan, still have morale. Together, these 10,000 people, with the advantage of the terrain, should not have too many problems defending."

"We can hold a grand Buddhist mass for the dead brothers to boost morale..."

Since returning from Wan Family Ridge, everyone had been working hard to prepare for possible attacks, how to defend the surrounding islands, which leader would be better to use, how to control public opinion on the island, estimate the opponent's offensive, and so on. At this time, at least between Wu Yong and Zhu Wu, there was no longer the problem of who was repelling whom.

Xi Junyu had also been included among the others, but during this period, he chose to be low-key and silent. He also cried to Song Jiang that he had brought the disaster, causing the death of many brothers, but at this time, how could Song Jiang hold him responsible? He patted his chest and said that brothers should share good and bad fortune together. Xi Junyu was grateful and wept, and everyone also said that Brother Gongming was righteous.

They also understood that even if Xi Junyu was handed over, the other party might not let Liangshan go. At least the brothers who rushed into the Su family that day were probably on the revenge list over there. If these brothers could really be handed over, it would be more than just a matter of face. Liangshan, which valued loyalty, would collapse completely.

And in fact, there were already countless countermeasures on Liangshan on how to rely on the terrain to defend against government troops or enemies. It wouldn't help to think about it a hundred more times, but doing a little more now made everyone feel more at ease.

Distributing tasks to a group of leaders, telling the people who originally stayed on Liangshan that this was just an accidental setback, and doing all the preparations that could be done as quickly as possible was also the best way to boost morale. And by noon that day, the rain had slightly changed, no longer with lightning and thunder. When the first ship arrived at Liangshan, it brought news from the Wan Family Ridge area.

"The brothers who left the team and were lost on the road before, have reunited with several hundred people again this morning, but among them, some were released by that Bloodhand Man-slayer... Commander Huyan has settled them all together, and asked the small one to come back and ask what to do. He also asked the small one to bring a few people to ask the leaders and the strategist..."

Hearing this news in the conference hall, Wu Yong's hand trembled. He exchanged a glance with Zhu Wu. Although the situation was urgent, they actually had a number in their hearts. His lips moved, and he smiled: "Again, they were released?"

After a little questioning, they also knew how many of the hundreds of people who had gathered again on Wan Family Ridge had been released. Huyan Zhuo couldn't count them, but what he did was right. At this time, they could only temporarily isolate the released people. What Wu Yong and others were most worried about now was what the other party had done and said to these prisoners. They no longer took it lightly and quickly summoned several prisoners who had been brought to the island to make the most detailed inquiry about the entire situation.

Outside the conference hall, the rain was still heavy. This inquiry continued for several hours. By the afternoon, some soldiers came to report that someone had returned to the island by small boat in such heavy rain. The soldiers of the water village had stopped them, and the other party also said that they had something to report to the leaders.

When that person was brought up, the inquiry in the conference hall was still continuing. Everyone's spirits had begun to feel a little numb. When they let this person answer, this person had also been released. According to him, he thought the situation was serious, so he got a small boat and came back to report the whole thing as soon as possible. Everyone had questioned the other people several times, including the release of more than a thousand prisoners, including all the interrogation processes, and including the words that Ning Yi had said. Several soldiers had originally been a little hesitant about these words, but it was not until Wu Yong and others lost their temper that they finally said these words verbatim. Wu Yong and others were also able to understand the weight of those words.

"I'm coming to kill you, can you take it?"

It could almost be said that the other party's terrifying image, along with these words, almost turned into a reality, appearing face-to-face in front of everyone. Because they could almost see the seriousness in these words, and the possible consequences.

Among the more than a thousand people, more than five hundred had been captured by the other party on both sides. Coupled with the other party's record of slapping Liangshan down from its peak state in three days, it was impossible to estimate how many people would feel the other party's threat this time.

Wu Yong's voice was dry. At this time, he remembered something again: "Let the water village be on alert, check... check how many people have returned to the island taking advantage of the heavy rain..."

After asking a few more questions, Song Jiang got up and walked out of the conference hall silently. The rain drifted in under the eaves, and he walked forward, leaning on the wall. Li Kui followed up with his axe, and heard Song Jiang murmuring in the rain: "I, Hubaoyi Song Jiang, have always been upright and have never done anything against my conscience, why..."

Li Kui thought he was angry about Xi Junyu's matter, and said: "I will kill that surname Xi now! This kind of person..."

"Tie Niu, you are not allowed to mess around!" Song Jiang turned back, "What is the use of killing him now, wouldn't it make my Liangshan people afraid. And how can we listen to the evil thief's one-sided words, Brother Xi, he, Brother Xi, he..."

He might not be angry about Xi Junyu's matter, but was just worried about the difficult situation. After saying a few words, he finally couldn't say anything. His eyes swept over the outside of the Gathering Hall, the entire Liangshan trapped in the rain, the houses, arrow towers, figures, and spots of light far and near, the pavilions entrenched in the mountains, and the big boats in the water, his eyes full of blood.

"This is going to... this is going to force people to death——"

He pressed his voice and roared angrily in a low voice.

At the same time, on the side of Liangshan in the rain, a small interlude was taking place.

Xi Junyu carried a small package, wearing a hat and raincoat, looking at the still not optimistic rain on the water's edge, but finally bent down and began to push a small boat into the water. Just then, a voice sounded from behind: "Brother Xi, are you leaving!?"

Xi Junyu's bent body paused for a moment, and after a long time, he finally got up and turned around: "This matter of Liangshan was caused by me. Although Brother Gongming and all the brothers are righteous, how can Xi still have the face to stay on Liangshan. That Son-in-Law of the Su family is all for me, maybe if I leave, he will track me down..."

His face was full of regret and sorrow. This explanation was actually a bit weak, but no one saw that at the moment he bent down to push the boat, the expression on Xi Junyu's face when the voice sounded from behind was not regret or sorrow, but a... weird smile, as if he had been waiting for a long time and finally waited for the situation to appear.

However, by the evening of this day, when the rain stopped, the news that Xi Junyu wanted to escape at this time still spread among the leaders, and Xi Junyu was therefore temporarily placed under house arrest. That night, there was good moonlight in the sky. Xi Junyu was sitting in the dark room. Finally, another figure came from under the eaves, quietly waved back the left and right who were guarding the door, opened the door, and entered silently.

"Brother Xi has been wronged."

"The matter was caused by me, what is a little scolding... Are they investigating?"

"They are already investigating."

The other party replied, and Xi Junyu nodded, looking at the little light outside, a hint of ruthlessness appeared on his face, and he laughed.

"Things have only just begun. Those who are so concerned about my leaving and staying now, either have thoughts of defecting to the imperial court, or are spies that Ning Yi placed among us from the beginning. In the scene this afternoon, the latter will definitely not be absent. As long as we follow the clues and peel them open slowly, we will definitely be able to find them..."

After he finished speaking, the other party nodded, and after a moment of silence, Xi Junyu raised his head: "I heard what those people brought, is it... a little late?"

This time, the other party looked out the window without speaking. The situation of Liangshan, the hearts of thousands of people, could no longer be estimated...

The moonlight shone on the earth. The mountain stronghold of Liangshan was like a city trapped by a huge water. People's hearts were flowing. The thousands of people released from the barracks were also making their own choices around this city. One by one, people who returned to the water by night were intercepted, or investigated and cleaned out, but there were also many people who had hidden in the darkness of the mountain stronghold, and were gradually infecting it with malice.

This time, it was not just a few cracks caused on the ice. If someone could see the whole situation, they would feel that the fortress belonging to Liangshan had begun to gradually split, peel off, and collapse from this moment on, before it had even been attacked, because of these cracks...