The Great Wei Music Bureau

Chapter 137 Entering Liang

Last time, we talked about Li Yi's plan to act alone after entering the territory of Nanliang. However, the delegation is now blocked at the border. How can they enter Nanliang? Let's read on.

The Northern Wei and Southern Liang were mostly separated by water, with the Huai River and the Han River being the two main dividing lines. The area of ​​Jingxiang in the middle was where the two countries fought all year round, and it was also the headquarters of the Dingnan Army.

The last time Li Yi intercepted Yuwen Tian, ​​he reached the banks of Peng River, a tributary of the Huai River. Then, following the Peng River south and crossing the Huai River, he arrived at Shouyang City, an important military town in the north of Southern Liang. It was not only an important transportation route in the Jianghuai area, but also the seat of government of Yuzhou in Southern Liang, guarded by Shouyang King Xiao Yonghui.

The one who stopped the Northern Wei wedding delegation was not someone else but this King Shouyang. Liu Hong and the third prince Xiao Zonggang had both mentioned Li Yi to Xiao Yonghui, and he also sent people to sneak into Shangjing City to assassinate Li Yi at his wedding. So it can be said that he and Li Yi had a grudge against each other for a long time.

This time, King Shouyang Xiao Yonghui was instructed by Emperor Liang to refuse entry to the Northern Wei wedding delegation. The first test Li Yi faced during his mission to Southern Liang was how to get Xiao Yonghui to let them in.

The next day, the wedding delegation came to the ferry again, and the people, carriages, and betrothal gifts were loaded onto the boats, and then several ferries sailed to the other side. As expected, the fleet was stopped by the Huaihe River navy of the Southern Liang Dynasty halfway, and ten boats and a warship surrounded the ferry, and the scene was exactly the same as the last time the delegation was rejected.

Tuoba Li, Lu Yu and Li Yi stood at the bow of the boat, only to hear the generals of the Southern Liang across from them shouting, "Go back! Didn't I tell you, don't come to Daliang until Li Yi arrives!"

Tuoba Li pointed at Li Yi and shouted, "This is Li Yi, the Music Master of the Great Wei. He has arrived. Can we go over now?"

The general looked him up and down and said with a smile: "Do you think I'm stupid? You said he was him, and I said he was not!"

Lu Yu shouted, "This general is really Li Yi and Li Yuefu. He is the real thing. Let us cross the river!"

The general laughed and said, "How can you prove that he is Li Yi? You have to prove it to me. Hey, I heard that Li Yi can sing! Then sing a song for us to hear. If you sing well, it will prove that you are Li Yi!"

Li Yi smiled and said, "But if I sing and you say it's not good, so what? Since the general is deliberately making things difficult for me, you have to think of a good excuse! Li Yi is on the boat now, but you won't let us cross the river. One day when we reach Jiankang and meet Emperor Liang, Li Yi will demand an explanation!"

The general snorted coldly, "I am following orders! I will not let you cross the river until I see Li Yi! If you can prove that you are Li Yi, I will let you cross!"

How to prove that I am who I am is a difficult question. If we talk about it in a lofty way, it can rise to the level of philosophy. If we talk about it in a vulgar way, it can be said to be nonsense.

Tuoba Li and Lu Yu looked at Li Yi, who smiled and said, "I learned something from General Dugu Long, that when dealing with these crude warriors, we still have to use strength." After saying that, Li Yi rolled up his sleeves and was ready to take action.

Tuoba Li stopped him, saying, "Li Yuefu, we are here to welcome the bride, not to steal her. If you hurt someone, aren't you afraid of damaging the harmony and losing etiquette? Besides, this is on the water, and we are not good at water battles."

Lu Yu also dissuaded him, "Yes, Li Lefu, you must not act rashly, you must put the overall situation first!"

Li Yi smiled and said, "They just think we are too cautious, so they dare to make things difficult for us. If we don't teach them a lesson, won't the Liang people laugh at us Wei people for being weak? Don't worry, I know what to do!"

Li Yi turned around and shouted to the envoys' guards, "Keep your spirits up! If the soldiers from Nanliang dare to attack us, don't be polite. Just start fighting. If anything goes wrong, it will be my fault. Don't hesitate!"

Everyone said yes. Li Yi looked at the general opposite with contempt and said, "I am Li Yi. I don't need to prove it! I am going to lead the delegation across the river now. If you have the guts, sink our ferry on the Huai River! If you don't have the guts, get out of the way as soon as possible!"

The general looked at Li Yi but did not make any move. Li Yi sneered and said, "Drive the boat! Go towards that warship!"

Tuoba Li exclaimed: "Li Yi, you are crazy, that is a warship! It is specially used to attack the ship array! You want to use this ferry to ram it, do you want us all to be fed to the fish!"

Li Yi bowed and asked, "May I ask, Your Majesty, can you swim?"

Tuoba Li immediately shook his head. Li Yi smiled and said, "Then your Majesty must find a guard who can swim to save you. I can swim!" After that, Li Yi waved his hand and shouted, "We can't lose the face of the Wei Dynasty! Start the boat! Crash it!"

The boatman asked, "Sir? Is it really going to hit us? If it really hits our ferry, we won't be able to withstand it!"

Li Yi smiled and said, "Don't worry, if anything goes wrong, the court will compensate you for the boat fare! Listen to me, ram it!"

The boatman was still hesitant, so Li Yi reluctantly walked into the cabin and came to the oarsman's cabin. He gathered his righteous energy and used the method of persuasion to shout, "Brothers, we are a wedding delegation. If we are here to welcome the bride, we must cross the river in a lively manner! Row the oars together with my drumbeats!"

Inspired by the Confucian and Taoist magic, the twenty oarsmen in the cabin returned to their respective positions. Li Yi nodded and left the oars cabin to find Wu Bo, who was beating the gong to clear the way for the delegation. Li Yi said, "Bring your equipment and follow me to the bow! Beat the gongs and drums for me!"

The four of them said yes in unison. Then the two gong beaters and the two drummers followed Li Yi to the bow. He condensed his Qi and transformed it into a suona. He gathered his righteous Qi and shouted to the Liang army on the other side: "The Wei wedding delegation is about to enter Liang! Anyone who dares to stop us will be declaring war on our Wei! Sail!"

After saying this, Li Yi nodded to the gong and drum player, and the gong and drum sounded, which was the prelude to the song "A Man Should Be Self-reliant". Li Yi played the suona to the beat of the drum. With the strong and rhythmic music, the ferry slowly moved forward, and Li Yi exuded his talent, allowing the music to spread to the other side of the river.

The Nanliang navy on the other side was at a loss as to what to do. Seeing the ferry about to hit them, the soldiers saluted the general and said, "Commander Chen, if we don't move, we'll be hit! If things get out of hand, we won't be able to afford it!"

Commander Chen looked at the ferry and said coldly, "I don't believe they dare to ram us! They are from the north, how many of them can swim? If something goes wrong, they will all drown! How could they seek death? Besides, this is the military order from King Shouyang, what's wrong with us following the order!"

Just when the Northern Wei ferry was about to collide with the Southern Liang warships, Li Yi released his talent and controlled it to create huge waves to force away the Southern Liang warships and boats that were blocking the way, making way for the ferry to pass safely. Li Yi walked along the ferry plank while playing the suona, staring at the Southern Liang soldiers. The Liang people did not dare to take action until the ferry passed the fleet.

Li Yi retracted his energy and shouted, "Go tell King Shouyang to go out of the city to welcome the delegation. The marriage between the two countries must not violate the etiquette!" After saying that, he turned and walked towards the bow of the ship.

Tuoba Li and Lu Yu looked at each other and nodded. When Li Yi came back, Lu Yu stepped forward and saluted, saying, "Li Yuefu is so courageous!"

Tuoba Li also bowed and said with a smile: "Li Yuefu is really a man of great skill and courage. This king admires him!"

Li Yi returned the greeting with a smile, "You two are too polite. I am just sure that they dare not really do it. It's no big deal. But we have to enter Shouyang City, and the troubles that follow may be even greater. Shouyang King Xiao Yonghui is not as easy to deal with as these generals."

Tuoba Li straightened his body and said, "Xiao Yonghui is just a vassal king, why should I be afraid of him?"

Lu Yu waved his hand and said, "Your Highness, you don't know that the Prince of Shouyang sent people to assassinate Li Yuefu. It would not be surprising if he did something out of the ordinary."

Tuoba Li looked at Li Yi with an embarrassed expression. Li Yi smiled and looked at the ferry on the other side and said, "It's okay. If an enemy comes, we will fight him. If a flood comes, we will block it with earth. Why should we be afraid of him?"

The ferry stopped steadily, the planks were set up, and the welcoming delegation disembarked and lined up. Tuoba Li mounted his horse, straightened his body and said with emotion: "We have finally entered Nanliang, all thanks to Li Yuefu."

Li Yi bowed and said, "Your Majesty, now it's all up to you. You must show your dignity and stop at every post station. Don't get tired!"

Tuoba Li nodded and smiled, driving the horses slowly. Li Yi smiled and said to Wu Bo who was leading the way, "Please trouble me, please beat the gongs and drums louder and shout louder!" The four of them saluted and agreed. In this way, the delegation headed for Shouyang City with great fanfare.

It was less than twenty miles from the ferry to Shouyang City, which normally would take half an hour to walk. However, under Li Yi's instructions, the delegation did not walk fast. The accident happened when the delegation entered the middle of the Bagua Mountain Road.

Suddenly, two groups of robbers appeared from both sides of the official road and surrounded the envoys. There were about 500 people in the envoys' welcoming delegation, while there were less than 300 people and 200 guards. The situation was very unfavorable.

After all, Tuoba Li was a prince of the Northern Wei Dynasty, and he had his own blood. When he saw the robbers, he drew his sword and shouted, "You bold thieves! How dare you stop my Northern Wei envoys! Don't you want to live?"

The masked thief leader laughed and said, "We robbed the Northern Wei envoys. You brought betrothal gifts, right? They must be worth a lot of money! Leave the gifts behind and I'll spare your lives!"

Just as Tuoba Li was about to start scolding, Li Yi held out his hand to stop him, saying, "Your Highness, please be patient. I will come and talk to them. If they won't listen, then there is no need for you to do anything. How can you fight with these bandits when you are of noble status? Besides, if our delegation kills people right after entering Nanliang, I'm afraid people will talk about us."

Tuoba Li put away his sword and said, "It depends on who you kill. Killing the robbers is helping them get rid of harm."

Li Yi smiled and urged his horse forward to face the masked bandit leader, saying, "I asked the King of Shouyang to go out of the city to welcome you, but I didn't expect him to send a bunch of scum like you? The Southern Liang Dynasty has always regarded itself as the orthodox Confucianism and Taoism, but it seems like a joke!"

The thief leader shouted, "Stop talking nonsense! Do you want your life or money?"

Li Yi replied: "What if we don't want our lives or money?"

The thief leader asked, "What do you mean?"

Li Yi shook his head and laughed, "How could the King of Shouyang have such a stupid subordinate like you? What we want is face. How about you give me face and get out of the way? I will also give you face and spare your life, but not expose your identity?"

The thief leader sneered: "Who are you? Why should I give you face?"

Li Yi smiled and said, "I am the Li Yi that your Shouyang King sent someone to assassinate, the Li Yi who defeated Zhai Baishan, the invincible warrior in the Northwest Grassland, the Great Wei Music Bureau Commander.

Brother, your cultivation should be good, but it is not yet at the peak of the fourth level, right? How many moves do you think you can survive in my hands? I advise you not to be so stubborn. King Shouyang asked you to pretend to be robbers just to scare us, but you have seen that we are not afraid, so don't act! Let's go!"

The leader of the bandits shouted, "I don't understand what you are saying. We are just bandits from Bagong Mountain. What relationship do we have with the King of Shouyang?"

Li Yi glanced at the crowd and said with a smile: "You didn't expect the delegation to break through the boat array and reach the ferry, so you were not well prepared. Look, your soldiers are wearing the same boots. How can a bandit issue uniform boots?

Also, you all look very clean, and you don't have any banditry. I have seen real bandits, they don't talk much, they just start fighting!"

The thief leader glared and drew his sword, shouting, "Get your weapons! I want to see if you are really not afraid of death!"

At the command, all the bandits drew their weapons. Everyone in the delegation was shocked, and the guards were also ready to fight. Li Yi smiled and dismounted, walked to the bandit leader's horse, pulled the reins and said, "It seems that Xiao Yonghui is coming soon? Then Li Yi is offended!"

Li Yi first used his angry eyes to scare the horse, so that the thief's mount raised its front legs and turned to run, then he forced the horse to stop, and threw the thief off the horse in one go. Then he grabbed his neck and shouted, "All right, don't move. Let's just wait for King Shouyang to come and see how he ends up!"