Flying Stone Gang
A gang that rose fast in recent years, taking in anyone regardless of background, a den of all trades and all sorts, good and bad mixed together, a gray gang that sits between the black and the white. The members may be local thugs, but they do honest work, hiring out manpower for hard labor.
The members know no Internal Skill, and in a martial contest they cannot beat the heroes of the righteous factions, but they win by numbers, and a thrown stone never misses. is famed for his extremely domineering external Hard Technique, and he is a good man who knows right from wrong.
For various reasons they have it in for the Tang Clan, and there are frequent small clashes.
Origin
Gang Leader Shi Gongyuan once joined the army, then deserted and turned outlaw on Tengyun Mountain, Tanzhou. While robbing for money he met the , who offered herself as collateral until the magistrate paid to redeem her. Fort Master Shi fell in love at first sight, treated her to good wine and meat, and kept his word not to touch the official's daughter, but her father thought his daughter had been dishonored and led troops to besiege Tengyun Fort.
In the melee the bandits scattered and fled. shielded the with his body in the fire, arrows bristling from him, and delivered her to the Imperial Soldiers; only when his brothers came to pull him away did he turn and flee. Lady Shi was a woman of deep feeling too: no sooner had she told her father she was safe than she turned and ran back into the sea of fire, fleeing down the mountain with , willing to wander the Jianghu at his side.
They came west all the way to Shu, not knowing how to make a living. They had to hide from the authorities and could not do business. The locals saw their fierce looks and their foreign origins and dared not hire them. Then the Tang Clan's Righteous Field took them in; the pay was not much, but enough to settle down and make a living, turning them back from the brink and making them give up thoughts of taking risks. In the end they stood on their own and founded the Flying Stone Gang, taking on hard labor and odd jobs for others to make a living.
Lady Shi Leaves Home
As the gang grew, Lady Shi began to think of moving against the Tang Clan. To be first in Shu, they would have to get past the Tang Clan, that high wall.
advised kindly, saying a person must not forget a kindness. The argument grew heated, and Gang Leader Shi, hard put to parry slap after slap from his Lady, raised a hand to fend her off, and his finger accidentally brushed her cheek. In that instant her heart filled with bitterness, tears brimmed in her eyes, and she stamped her foot and left. Gang Leader Shi stood tongue-tied, not daring to follow; by the time he came to his senses and gave chase, his Lady was nowhere to be seen.
Tang Buyi, who happened to witness it, followed and secretly protected Lady Shi. He talked himself hoarse before persuading her to give up the thought of throwing herself off a cliff, and found her a place to stay. But Lady Shi's temper was more stubborn than an ox's, and she truly sulked, refusing to come out for a long time. Gang Leader Shi thought the Flying Hero had carried off his lady, and a small family matter brewed into a feud between two factions.
In the end, to draw out Lady Shi, who was sheltering at Ciyun Nunnery, Tang Buyi arranged a decisive battle with at Woyun Ridge. If the misunderstanding is cleared up, husband and wife will later come to Tang Buyi's grave to burn incense and give thanks, and lead their people to join the Tang Clan's defenders. If not, Lady Shi, seeing Tang Buyi killed by Shi Gongyuan, will cut her hair in fury and become a nun, vowing never to see him again, and the two factions will keep fighting.
Secret Manual
Notes
- Deep♂Rock♂Fantasy: Link
- By year 3 of the game, by numbers alone, they have already surpassed the Cang Gang and the White Shark Gang, second only to the Beggar Sect, with at least tens of thousands of members.
- The Flying Stone Gang even works as sedan bearers; their sedans are new and their men brisk, leaving the other, half-aged sedan bearers with scant business. Not only in Shu: there is a Flying Stone Gang branch in Jiangling too, hiring many members at the Ferry Landing.
- Part of the Flying Stone Gang Members' grudge against the Tang Clan is envy. They all grew up in Shu and want to walk with the same swagger as the Tang Clan's finest. Once old grievances are washed away, they can march to the battlefield together, and count it an honor.
- If the Outer Fort is not bought back in the Western Wulin, the Flying Stone Gang will buy it back for the Tang Clan, flush with cash as they are.