The rebels of Liang Shan Po steal a year's worth of taxes from Kuang Chow province. Kao orders Squire Kuang - a man rich enough to have a private army - to attack Liang Shan Po. The Squire sends a spy into the heart of Liang Shan Po: Ju Hai, a corrupt priest. Ju Hai befriends Lu Ta and enters the water margins on the pretext of exorcising the evil spirit behind a plague that seems to have afflicted the rebels. Ju Hai sketches the defences of Liang Shan Po in readiness for an attack - and sends Lu Ta away, for a fateful encounter with his dying mother.
