Chapter 966: Lions, Tigers, and Deer-Pigs

Ding Zuodong shook his head: "I knew there was something fishy about it back then, but I didn't expect it to belong to Commandant Wu."

Lei Ni smiled: "You don't offer tribute to Commandant Wu, no wonder he makes things difficult for you."

"That is most likely Commandant Wu's ship. Anyone who wants to bribe him just needs to rent his ship. It’s an open rental, a willing transaction, and others can't say anything about it. Besides, those ships are indeed good ships; once rented, they are truly useful and perform well," Guan Ke added. "By the way, these ships are of course not registered under Commandant Wu's name."

He Lingchuan stroked his chin, lost in thought. If Dong Rui were here, he would be able to tell that he was brewing up some mischief:

"These ships must be very expensive, right?"

"Of course. Especially the large ships, which are capable of withstanding high-seas winds and waves. They come from a shipbuilding family in the east and are built with very solid materials; every single one costs a fortune." Guan Ke held up two fingers. "Commandant Wu auctioned off the smallest cargo ship a while ago, and it finally sold for two thousand silver taels."

Ding Zuodong nodded: "Only his ships could sell for that price, right?"

"Indeed," Guan Ke laughed. "In my opinion, even eight hundred taels would be too much."

After going through the motions of the official procedure and deducting the auction fees, one thousand taels were pocketed.

"Ten large ships, that’s at least twenty or thirty thousand taels and up," He Lingchuan said with admiration. "And that’s not counting the construction costs of the smaller ships. Commandant Wu is truly blessed with wealth."

These thirty-some ships alone were worth tens of thousands of silver taels, not to mention the other industries under Commandant Wu's control.

His rank wasn't high, but he held real power, and the kickbacks were incredibly lucrative.

Seeing that Master Wu was so wealthy, He Lingchuan felt relieved and asked Guan Ke: "Is there an auction house here too?"

"No," Guan Ke shook his head. "There used to be two. One was doing quite well, but the manager encountered a water serpent at sea and died. Once he died, the business under him collapsed. The other was poorly managed and went under six months ago. Now, if everyone wants to auction something off, they have to go to Bailie territory or just go to Platinum Island, which is very inconvenient."

"The authorities haven't thought of a way?"

"Blade Harbor seems to be preparing one," Guan Ke sneered. "They've been preparing for half a year, but there's been no movement."

He Lingchuan gave a hum and said to Guan Ke: "Come back to the main island with me later; there are a few things I need to entrust you to handle."

Guan Ke was overjoyed and immediately agreed.

Lei Ni reminded him: "My lord, the hurricanes at sea are fierce. It’s only been luck that none have come in the past three months; it doesn't mean there won't be any later."

He Lingchuan remembered encountering a hurricane while drifting across the ocean, where his ship nearly sank: "Are hurricanes frequent here?"

"From summer to autumn, there are at least two or three. In previous years, hurricanes would always hit the Yangshan Islands first before continuing north to make landfall. The palm harvest needs to be accelerated."

What He Lingchuan was thinking about, however, was the farm currently in progress.

The land had been leveled, the wheat had been planted, and the farm had been set up. If a few hurricanes came now, it would truly be fatal.

Farming means relying on the heavens for food.

He pondered for a moment before saying to Ding Zuodong: "Find me a dozen stonemasons."

His lord had his own reasons for doing things, so Ding Zuodong didn't ask for the cause and just said "very well."

He Lingchuan gave a few more instructions to Qiu Hu, then said: "You are responsible for this."

Qiu Hu nodded: "A small matter."

He Lingchuan finished his inspection, patted Qiu Hu on the shoulder, smiled at Lei Ni, and left with the other two.

Qiu Hu watched his retreating figure and sighed.

Lei Ni was a bit surprised: "You sigh too?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Qiu Hu's voice was so low that only Lei Ni could hear. "I hate parasites the most. If I could solve these troubles by knocking them dead with a single blow, I certainly wouldn't go soft."

Lei Ni laughed: "Is knocking them dead useless?"

Qiu Hu pressed his neck, which made a cracking sound: "The lord says that we must stand upright to have long-term development in the future. The problems that clubs can solve are limited, after all."

After boarding the ship, He Lingchuan stood alone at the bow, letting the sea breeze hit his face.

This was his exclusive spot. Seeing him close his eyes in meditation, the others consciously stepped back, not daring to disturb him.

With the vast sky and earth, He Lingchuan was thinking about the future.

The mirror in his bosom asked him: "Is it that hard for you to take down Bailie? Why must you endure the harassment from the Lu father and son?"

Its master had burned down the Star-Plucking Tower with a single fire; how satisfying that was at the time. Why was he now delaying his move against the Lu father and son?

"The game hasn't even started yet," He Lingchuan said without opening his eyes. "When the curtain rises on this round, do you think the one sitting across the table is Bailie?"

"It isn't?"

"Even if I take down the Lu father and son, even if I can snatch back Bailie, then what? Do you think the good days will arrive?" He chuckled. "I tell you, the real difficulties are all ahead."

The mirror was lost in thought.

"Once I take Bailie, to the Mou Kingdom, to the Qing Kingdom, and even to Beijia, I will no longer be a nobody," He Lingchuan said slowly. "Do you think the Mou Kingdom will sit by and watch me devour Bailie without asking?"

"Uh, they can't?"

"Bailie was originally a dependency of the Mou Kingdom, contributing money and grain in exchange for its own survival. Conversely, the Mou Kingdom has a duty to protect Bailie." He looked up, feeling the slightly damp sea breeze. Having been here for over a month, he had already grown accustomed to the climate. "A great power like the Mou Kingdom hates changes in its surroundings the most, not to mention that the Ya Kingdom and Qing Kingdom are both restless; Bailie's importance to it naturally increases."

"And there is Beijia," he said slowly. "Once there is a change around the Mou Kingdom, Beijia will definitely pay attention, and that is when they will see us. What's more, there is still a pursuit force from Beijia behind Zhu Xiuer; I reckon they will be here soon too."

"After taking Bailie, we will have stepped onto the stage and walked into the light. When everyone is staring at you, you won't have a chance to retreat behind the scenes again."

Being swept along by the tides of the times is what it means to be helpless.

"While they still can't see me, I must seize the time to hide my light and secretly grow strong; when I join the card game, I must be robust and powerful."

At this stage, the main focus is on low-profile development, and it must be fast—both fast and low-key.

"Besides, the team I've newly assembled also needs to expand, needs to be tempered, and needs to grow," He Lingchuan sighed. "Whether it's governing the army, training troops, or managing business, nothing can be achieved overnight. A rookie like Bailie is just right for practice. Otherwise, if our territory expands further in the future, the situation will be even more complex. Without a mature team of talent, what will I rely on to govern?"

"Heh, you really aren't in a hurry."

"Why hurry? Lions and tigers are lazy all day, but they are actually conserving their energy, only putting in their full effort when hunting," He Lingchuan laughed. "Deer and pigs are always calling out and making noise, getting anxious at the sight of two mouthfuls of grass, not knowing that their only outcome in this life is to become someone else's meal."

"They think the grass they eat will turn into flesh and blood on their bodies? Wrong, this fat eventually grows on the tigers and wolves."

He asked the mirror: "Do you want to be a lion or tiger, or a deer or pig?"

"I just don't want to be eaten."

"That’s not up to you!" He Lingchuan laughed heartily. "Such is the way of the world; it’s either eat people or be eaten."

"To me, Bailie is a fence that can help block others' gazes; I don't want to tear it down too early. I just hope the Lu father and son are sensible enough not to let this fence collapse." He tilted his head slightly, seeing the clear autumn sky and hearing the wind and sea waves. "Cherish the current calm. I'm afraid there won't be many more good days like this in the future."

￥￥￥￥￥

The next day, sixty miles west of Blade Harbor, West Bay.

It was a very overcast day; the sun hadn't shown its face since early morning, but the wind and waves at sea were not strong, and the voyage was very smooth.

A sailor on the *Baoji* stretched and yawned in the wind.

So sleepy. Finally, almost there. After returning to Blade Harbor, he wanted to soak in the Yellow Fish Tavern for a few hours, then go find that little lady behind the half-door in the depths of Mud Snail Alley; the money he spent on her last time was well worth it.

Bang! The ship shook violently, and the sailor lunged forward, hitting the gunwale; he nearly knocked out his front teeth.

The ship stopped, and everyone rushed out to see: "What happened?"

Did they hit something? The sailor covered his mouth and said: "There are no reefs here!"

"The hold is leaking!"

It was indeed damaged, and the captain immediately sent men down to patch it.

But no sooner had he spoken than a splashing sound came from beneath the bow.

Everyone crowded to the bow to look down, nearly scared out of their wits:

"Wa—water serpents!"

Seven or eight water serpents emerged from the water, the largest one nearly two zhang long, its pitch-black body thicker than a giant python.

The *Baoji* had likely been intercepted by it.

Everyone looked down, just in time to meet their sinister gazes; all the old stories of water serpents destroying ships and eating people came flooding back to their minds.

"Oh my god! How could there be water serpents here?!" Water serpents had never appeared in West Bay.

The captain was still shouting "Protect the ship, quickly protect the ship," but more than half of the people around him were gone.

He turned his head and saw that everyone had rushed to the back of the ship, not to grab weapons, but to lower ropes to prepare to escape in a small boat.

The sailor covering his mouth shouted: "There are no water serpents on the sea behind us, run, run!"

The captain was furious: "Grab your weapons, quickly grab your weapons! This ship is carrying public grain!"

"With so many water serpents, and a big one at that, we can't win!" The sailor’s speech was a bit whistly through his teeth. "If you want to protect the ship, you stay; we’re leaving first!"

This voyage was exceptionally short, only four or five days in total, and they weren't carrying any valuable supplies. They only earned a meager salary and couldn't even buy two catties of good wine once ashore, so there was no need to risk their lives.

"They're coming up, they're coming up!" Everyone looked back and saw the water serpents climbing up, throwing one of the captain's confidants directly into the sea.

Once they climbed up, the deck immediately became even more cramped.

Just these few water serpents were enough to make the ship feel crowded.

Seeing them flicking their tongues and rushing over, everyone was even more efficient in their fear, fumbling to untie the ropes.

Someone rushed out and was the first to jump into the small boat.

Everyone looked closely and saw that it was actually the captain.

"Run, run!"

One or two water serpents, they could still handle.

Three or four, they could grit their teeth and fight.

But with so many water serpents, saving their lives was the priority.

￥￥￥￥￥

Two days later, at dawn.

Commandant Wu arrived at the Maritime Trade Office on time.

Over all these years, he rarely arrived late for work.

After taking a tour of the Maritime Trade Office and seeing that all his subordinates were at their posts, he nodded with satisfaction.

As the leader does, so do the followers; since he was diligent, his subordinates naturally worked hard.

(End of chapter)