Water Margin official

Chapter 167 Traces of the Thief

Zhang Zhengdao helped the bartender and said bluntly: "Our brothers are here to destroy this group of thieves."

The bartender said happily: "If a good man can get rid of the harm for us, villain..."

The bartender gritted his teeth and said cruelly: "I'd rather not charge the heroes for their meals."

Luan Tingfang smiled and said: "You are a smart man."

Zhang Zhengdao frowned and said: "It's just that the whereabouts of the gang of thieves are unpredictable, and no one knows where they are staying, so it's a bit tricky."

The bartender is also in trouble. Although he is a store owner and knows some of the deeds of these thieves, he doesn't know where they are now.

Seeing that there was no solution to the matter, Zhang Zhengdao ordered: "Brothers, let's talk after you are full."

When Zhizhai spoke, these ten men opened their cheeks and started eating.

On weekdays, if you have a mouthful of food in the inspection village, it is very good. If you have a little bit of meat here and there, it is equivalent to the Chinese New Year.

Looking at the table full of pork and mutton, they were so greedy that they secretly swallowed their saliva.

Zhang Zhengdao chewed his food slowly and thought about what to do next.

Should we continue exploring the nearby countryside, or should we go directly to Daming Mansion?

Everyone was eating wine and meat when the door curtain was lifted and a thin man got into the room.

The man shouted: "Brother Liu San, something great is going to happen!"

The bartender recognized the thin man in front of him and asked quickly: "Brother Chen, what's the big deal?"

The thin man Chen Er sat on an empty seat, took off the sunshade hat on his head, and fanned himself to cool down the heat.

"Drink some water first." After Chen Er finished speaking, he focused his gaze on the desk of Zhang Zhengdao and his group.

The bartender poured a bowl of water, handed it to him, and asked with a smile: "Brother Chen, do you want two cents of wine?"

Chen Er swallowed his saliva and remembered that he had no money. He immediately shook his head and said, "Forget it, I won't drink wine today."

He picked up the bowl, drank all the water, and then breathed a long sigh of relief and said: "Do you know the gang of bandits who have appeared recently?"

When Zhang Zhengdao saw this man talking about this, he pricked up his ears and listened.

The bartender said with a grimace: "Brother Chen, if this group of thieves come out to rob the village, I'm afraid it will be difficult to save this hotel."

Chen Er said with a smile: "The thieves have been driven away."

The bartender asked curiously: "Where have you rushed?"

Chen Er replied: "I heard from Li Dutou of the county government that the gang of thieves had escaped from the wild boar forest and headed towards Daming Mansion."

The bartender was overjoyed and shouted: "Really?"

Chen Er said with a smile: "Of course it is true. This group of thieves harmed many passers-by. The county magistrate was also very worried. He arranged for soldiers from the inspection department to go to the wild boar forest to kill the thieves. But those soldiers bullied us.

The people were showing off their power, but if they really encountered thieves, their legs would be so weak that they could not walk."

"I heard that the Qi inspector led seventy or eighty people and wandered outside the forest for half a day, but they didn't dare to go in." Chen Er showed off the news he heard from the county government, then raised the empty bowl and said:

"Pour me some more water. Why is this God so inconsiderate of the people? He's so hot that he panics."

The bartender picked up the bowl and sifted out a bowl of wine this time.

Chen Er took a sip and saw that it was wine. He drank it all in one gulp and said with satisfaction, "I don't have any money to give you."

The bartender said: "I'm happy today, so I'll treat my second brother to a meal."

"Then have another bowl." Chen Er climbed up the pole.

The bartender smiled and said: "Okay, let me buy my second brother another bowl of wine."

After saying that, he sifted another bowl of wine.

This time, Chen Er did not drink it all in one gulp, but sipped it with a small mouth and savored it carefully.

"Brother Chen, what happened next?" the bartender asked.

Chen Er continued: "Later, the gang of thieves rushed out and hacked to death several slow-footed soldiers."

"Inspection Qi brought seventy or eighty people with him, but he didn't catch any of the thieves. He also killed several soldiers. The county magistrate was so angry that he jumped off his feet." When Chen Er said this, he shook his head and sighed: "These

The patrol soldiers are really useless."

The bartender asked: "Those thieves are very vicious. It is said that the one in the lead is very difficult to mess with."

Chen Eryi slapped his thigh and shouted, "Isn't that right? Later, the county magistrate ordered Qi to patrol the area and mobilize manpower to come to the wild boar forest to catch the thieves."

"Then Qi's inspection dares to come?" The bartender was curious.

"The county magistrate has given a strict order, how dare he not come." Chen Er said: "This time, we only brought fifty or sixty people. They stayed far away from the forest and did not dare to come near."

"This time, the gang of thieves did not come out. Qi patrolled and waited for half a day, but saw no movement, so he plucked up the courage and led people into the forest. After searching around, he didn't see any trace of the thieves." Chen Er said with a smile.

.

The bartender asked doubtfully: "Then how do you know that this group of thieves went to Daming Mansion?"

Chen Erdao: "Someone came back from the old town and said that a group of thieves robbed many pedestrians one after another, killed many people, and headed towards Damingfu."

"Could this group of people want to rob the area around Daming Mansion?" the bartender asked speculatively.

Chen Er shook his head and said: "I don't know about that. In short, it will be a happy event for the gang of thieves to leave here. Otherwise, I will never dare to go to the wild boar forest again."

"Since that group of thieves came, I can only collect some firewood from the surrounding area and sell it to the city. It is really difficult to hunt the profitable game." Chen Er poured the remaining wine in the bowl into his mouth.

, wiped his mouth with his sleeve, stood up and said with a smile: "Wait until tomorrow, I will go to the forest to hunt some good game, take it to the city to sell, and then come back and have a good time."

After saying that, he stepped out of the hotel and went to Xicun behind.

The bartender was overjoyed that the thieves who were weighing on his heart were finally gone.

Luan Tingfang said: "Zhizhai, if what that man said is true, I'm afraid these bandits have already gone to Daming Mansion."

Zhang Zhengdao said: "Daming Mansion is an important town on the East Road of Hebei Province. There are many merchants from all walks of life, and the surrounding countryside is rich. If we go there to plunder, it would be better than guarding this fierce forest with few people."

"It's just that the Daming Prefecture has a strong army. If it attracts the attention of the state government, it only needs to send a team of forbidden troops, and they will be killed one by one in an instant." Luan Tingfang said.

Zhang Zhengdao shook his head and said: "These thieves are probably not stupid. They may have taken the road to go north."

"Zhizhai, what should we do?" Luan Tingfang asked.

Zhang Zhengdao thought for a while and said: "Let's go to Daming Mansion too. If we find out any information along the way, we will get rid of this group of thieves."

The bartender heard these words and exclaimed: "What a chivalrous man."

After eating wine and meat, everyone paid their bills, left the village shop, and found an inn in a nearby village to rest for the night.

Early the next morning, Zhang Zhengdao and his entourage drove along the official road towards Damingfu in the northwest. Passing through the prefecture, they stopped in a hotel and stayed overnight, and from time to time inquired about the whereabouts of the group of thieves.

After walking and stopping for more than ten days, they arrived at the boundary of Daming Mansion. However, after passing the old town, the group of thieves seemed to have disappeared into the sea, and there was no news.

Seeing no news about this group of thieves, Zhang Zhengdao simply led his people to Daming Mansion in Beijing.

When I came outside the city, I saw that this important town in Hebei Province has a dangerous high ground, wide and deep trenches, majestic watchtowers, and a huge amount of money and grain. It is indeed a strong city and fortress.