Chapter 198: The Government Army Has Come

Seeing the Changfeng in the battle losing ground.

The remaining vessels of the Nan'ao naval force swarmed in from all sides, and for a time the rumble of cannon fire over the sea did not cease.

Muzzle flashes rose and fell one after another, like a field of red firecrackers bursting.

The Fire-Sail Battalion's Guangdong junks held a single line throughout, returning fire with their broadside cannons.

The Sea Wolf and the Number One Great Fujian Junk were struck by cannonballs one after another; screams mingled with the sound of splintering wood and carried far across the night sky.

The cannon duel lasted four hours.

The Nan'ao naval force suffered heavy losses—three ships had already exploded in sympathetic detonations and caught fire, burning like torches on the sea and illuminating the battlefield. Aboard the Number One Great Fujian Junk, the Ming army's flame banner snapped loudly in the sea wind, until at last it was swallowed by the flames.

The naval battle was too loud, and the battlefield lay close to shore.

The coastal folk of Changle County and Fuqing County were all startled awake and ran up the hilltops to watch.

Seeing a sea of fire on the water, with Great Ming warships burning in the flames, their hearts sank.

Many commoners even let out stifled sobs.

In the Fujian region, the ravages of the wokou pirates had been the most severe; counting back a few generations, every household had kin who had died at wokou hands.

Thus, when the people saw the Great Ming naval force losing, they recalled the horrors of the wokou raids, and their terror grew all the greater.

Some quick-thinking folk had already gone home to pack their belongings, planning to flee before the wokou came ashore.

Another two hours passed.

The Nan'ao naval force had fallen completely into Li Dan's encirclement. While the Fire-Sail Battalion's Guangdong junks pounded them with cannon fire, the smaller boats also closed in to fire muskets and arrows.

Though trapped in a desperate situation, the Nan'ao naval force fought with great valor, returning fire with Folangji cannons and fire lances.

This kept Li Dan's men from daring to board for a time; they could only exchange shots by the light of the burning Fujian junks.

Seeking imperial amnesty, Li Dan had dealt with the guard stations relatively lightly—burning their tents but not pursuing the fleeing garrison soldiers.

But facing his sworn enemy was a different matter.

Lin Qian had seized the Hirado market, killed his sworn brother Yan Siqi, captured his son Li Guozhu, and beaten the Fire-Sail Battalion until they threw away helmets and armor. If he did not avenge this, he was not fit to be called a man!

Thus he cared nothing for the expenditure of gunpowder, copying Lin Qian's tactics, determined to blast the Nan'ao naval force to utter annihilation!

Another two hours passed, and the eastern sky had begun to pale faintly.

On the sea, the Nan'ao naval force's resistance grew ever weaker—only the occasional scattered gunshot rang out.

Five more sea vessels had been set alight, drifting on the water like torches.

By the light of the flames and the dawn, one could see a layer of corpses floating on the water, all with faces gone deathly pale from cold, bodies stiff.

Lin Qian's flagship, the Tianyuan, had never appeared—a genuine pity.

But this battle had thoroughly crushed the main strength of the Nan'ao naval force; even if the Tianyuan escaped with its life, it could no longer stir up any waves.

Li Dan's face was wreathed in smiles as he said to the navigator, "Cease cannon fire. Capture a few prisoners."

After a while, five Ming soldiers, soaked through, were brought onto the deck of the Fubo.

Li Dan swept his gaze over them—all wore Ming army uniforms, their faces pale from cold, lips trembling without cease.

"Where is Lin Qian?" Li Dan asked.

"I'll fuck your grandmother!" one of them suddenly cursed.

Li Dan gave his subordinate a look. The wakizashi left its sheath, a flash of blade-light, and the Ming soldier's head tumbled off. Blood sprayed from the wound like a fountain, splattering everyone nearby.

In the winter dawn, the blood still steamed with heat.

Startled by the blood, one of the Ming soldiers seemed to snap back to his senses and immediately kowtowed without stop: "Chieftain, spare this humble one's life! This humble one will obey the chieftain in everything! That surnamed Yu deserved to die a thousand deaths—the chieftain killed him well!"

Another Ming soldier cursed: "Has your conscience been eaten by dogs? Commander Yu treated us so well, and you say he died well?"

Yet another Ming soldier hesitated a moment, then said in a low voice: "He treated us well only for the sake of his own official rank. We fought the battles, we sold our lives—what more does he want from us?"

"Fine, fine—you two ungrateful bastards, I—"

Before he could finish, a blade tip had already emerged from his belly.

The wakizashi was withdrawn, and blood gushed from the wound in his stomach, flowing in a steady stream, seeping into the deck planks; blood ran from the scuppers on both sides of the bow. The Ming soldier clutched the wound on his belly and cursed: "I'll be waiting for you down below—"

Before the words were done, he had already breathed his last.

The remaining three Ming soldiers were so frightened they dared not make a sound, kowtowing without cease.

But Li Dan's brows were tightly knit as he gazed at the expanse of Ming corpses across the sea, a bad premonition rising in his heart.

"Where is Lin Qian?" Li Dan asked, his voice trembling.

The three Ming soldiers exchanged glances. After a long while, one ventured: "To answer the chieftain, in our army... there doesn't seem to be anyone by that name..." "Whose subordinates are you?"

"Our superior officer is Yu Zigao, the Fujian Regional Commander—he's already a dead fish in the sea now." A Ming soldier said with a fawning smile.

As if a thunderbolt had struck, Li Dan's heart seized. He gripped the railing with both hands to keep his body from swaying.

"You mean Yu Zigao, the son of Yu Dayou?"

"Yes, yes, exactly. That surnamed Yu was a spoiled rich brat who got his post through his father's influence. Now that the chieftain has killed him, it's ridding the people of a scourge—the brothers all admire you greatly."

"Indeed, indeed—killed well! The chieftain's cannons are mighty beyond compare!"

Li Dan gazed out at the sea, his lips trembling: "Yu Zigao is truly dead—which ship was his flagship?"

The three Ming soldiers vied to point at a Number One Great Fujian Junk, which was at that moment engulfed in roaring flames.

"That's the ship! The chieftain's cannons are invincible—one shot blasted that surnamed Yu to nothing but ash!"

"It's over. It's over." Li Dan's heart turned to ice.

He had heard of Yu Zigao's reputation—the man's abilities were mediocre, but he had a good father, and he enjoyed no small prestige among the people of Fujian.

Killed by a stray cannonball through sheer misfortune, Li Dan's chances of seeking imperial amnesty were now slim indeed.

Unwilling to give up, Li Dan asked: "Those cannons and the Sea Wolf—where did they come from?"

"All copied from the Nan'ao naval force. That surnamed Yu's skill wasn't up to par—he only managed to imitate the surface."

Another Ming soldier immediately added: "Before the chieftain's fleet, the Nan'ao naval force is just the same mud chickens and clay dogs. With the chieftain's sturdy ships and powerful cannons, taking control of the southeast is within reach!"

"This humble one is well-versed in the southeastern naval defense arrangements and is willing to serve as a mere foot soldier, pledging my strength to the chieftain."

"This one too!"

Li Dan gazed at the heavens, thinking how fate played tricks on men.

Yu Zigao not only copied the ships and equipment of the Nan'ao naval forces, but his nighttime fire-ship ambush tactics were also exactly the same as theirs.

Had it not been so, Li Dan would not have admitted his mistake so readily.

What was to be done now?

Li Dan racked his brains in deep thought.

Since he had already offended the Fujian officialdom, there was no fear of burning bridges—his methods might as well be even more ruthless.

Whether by suppression or pacification, he must force the court to make its move quickly.

Before the Nan'ao naval main force could return from Hoi An, he had at most one month's time.

He had to use this time to solidify his advantage.

The best outcome would be to force the Nan'ao navy into open battle, where he and the Dutch could join forces to defeat Lin Qian—then the great matter would be settled.

With this in mind, Li Dan took out a prepared declaration and handed it to one of the Ming soldiers.

"Deliver this to the Fujian Governor. Now get lost."

Changle County sat right at the mouth of the Min River, closest to last night's sea battle.

When news of the Ming defeat arrived, the county's common folk abandoned even their New Year celebrations, scrambling to pack their valuables and flee for their lives.

By noon, nearly two-tenths of the county town's population had already fled.

The Min River separated Changle County from Fuzhou Prefecture, making crossing inconvenient.

Thus most of the fleeing populace surged into Fuqing County town to the southwest.

Many Fuqing folk had also witnessed last night's sea battle firsthand; public morale was already unsteady, and with the flood of refugees plus word of the Ming navy's defeat, panic spread through the crowd.

Rumors immediately ran rife through the town.

Some said Fuzhou had fallen and the Governor had died in battle.

Others said Nan'ao Island had rebelled, intending to march north and seize the throne.

Still others claimed the Tartar fleet had come, or that the wokou pirate fleet had arrived.

Some went even further, saying this was Wang Zhi's ghost returning, leading the vengeful spirits of wokou pirates to take revenge on the Great Ming.

The townsfolk's hearts were turning restless—if left to develop, the county town might descend into chaos on its own before any wokou even arrived.

The County Magistrate's abilities were limited, so he had no choice but to invite the local worthies and elders to the county office for discussion. Ye Xianggao, as a former Chief Grand Secretary, could hardly stand aside from such matters concerning his hometown, and came forward to reassure the people.

In the Ye residence, Lady Qin was directing the distribution of weapons to the servants—the weapons being garden and farm tools such as iron spades and hoes, better than nothing at all. Ye Heng pressed close to his mother's side, face tense, and asked: "Mother, will brother-in-law come to save us?"

Lady Qin smiled and said: "Silly child, your brother-in-law is a great hero. How could a great hero stand by and let villains run free?"

Ye Heng's expression relaxed considerably.

Lady Qin said: "What we must do is guard the residence well, so your grandfather has no worries behind him... We must not fall into chaos ourselves—we need to buy time for your brother-in-law."

"Mm!" Ye Heng nodded vigorously.

Lady Qin smiled affectionately, stroked her daughter's hair, and said: "Go keep your grandmother company."

Ye Zhu said: "I'll definitely protect grandmother well—don't worry, Mother!"

The situation in Fuzhou city was little better than in Fuqing—the common folk were equally terrified.

After all, the city sat right by the Min River, and wokou pirates could sail upstream at any moment.

In the Governor's yamen, Shang Zhouzuo sat in the seat of honor, overwhelmed and at his wit's end.

Officials of every rank were arguing heatedly in the hall.

"How much military funds did Commander Yu embezzle these past two years? How could the navy be so fragile? How long did the battle even last? Less than a single night, and the entire force was wiped out! I shall certainly impeach him!"

"Enough—if you want to impeach him, you'd best wait until he's alive to return. For all we know, he may have already died for his country by now."

"Regardless of what you say, Commander Yu did take the initiative to sally forth and resist foreign aggression. Even if he lost the battle, he should not be subjected to such criticism!"

"Heh heh. I think he's grown too used to kowtowing to his ancestors—he can't even straighten his back before sea bandits!"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Wasn't he just making a fuss the other day about building a shrine to Nine Thousand Years in the capital?"

"That's slander!"

"Enough!" Seeing the conversation sliding toward factional strife, Shang Zhouzuo roared and hastily called a halt. "The sea bandits are at our doorstep—does anyone have a plan to repel them?" The assembled officials fell silent.

After a long while, one man said: "Has Your Excellency the Governor summoned the Nan'ao naval forces north?"

Someone objected: "When Liaodong fights the Jianzhou barbarians, they use the Nan'ao navy; when Guangdong suppresses bandits, they use the Nan'ao navy; now Fujian faces sea bandits and we still have to summon the Nan'ao navy—is the Great Ming left with only this one fleet?"

No one picked up the thread. With the enemy at the gates, no one cared whether summoning the Nan'ao navy was appropriate anymore.

Shang Zhouzuo said: "The dispatch order was sent out yesterday."

Someone sneered: "Oh, so that's why Commander Yu was in such a hurry to give battle—he was afraid the Nan'ao navy would steal his credit."

By rights, Yu Zigao had his father's reputation behind him, and even a defeat should not have drawn so much criticism.

It was just that in the past two years, Wei Zhongxian—for whatever reason—had allocated Yu Zigao considerable grain and pay, enabling him to refit his cannon ships.

This should have been a good thing for Fujian's coastal defense, but many local civil officials resented the eunuch faction, hence the mockery and sarcasm.

Another said: "The Nan'ao navy received the dispatch order yet watches the fire from across the shore—their intentions are worthy of death."

Someone scoffed disdainfully: "Pedantic scholar, armchair general! Do you know how far Nan'ao Island is from Fuzhou? Fully eight hundred li and more! With yesterday's dispatch order, they haven't even covered three-tenths of the distance by now. Even at the fastest, the Nan'ao navy won't arrive for at least half a month."

"Half a month!" The officials drew in sharp breaths.

Given the current situation on the Min sea, never mind half a month—they feared they couldn't wait even a single day.

Someone offered a conspiracy theory: "Who knows—maybe this band of sea bandits is backed by Nan'ao Island."

"Mind your tongue!"

"Stop!"

The officials in the hall shouted in unison to halt him.

Just as the debate raged on, a personal guard rushed in from outside the hall, carrying a document.

"Your Excellency the Governor, this was sent by the sea bandits through a captive."

Shang Zhouzuo reached out to take it but did not examine it, asking instead: "Where is the captive?"

The guard replied: "This subordinate has already interrogated him. The bandits have ten large cannon ships and over a hundred warships. Most of the sea bandits are armed with firearms—their strength is considerable. Additionally, Regional Commander Yu... has died for his country."

"What?" The officials' faces showed terror as they whispered among themselves.

While Yu Zigao was alive, the officials had mocked and ridiculed him; now that he was dead, they instead found themselves missing him.

Not because they thought his death a pity, but because they feared that they might be next.

Shang Zhouzuo waved his hand to dismiss the guard, unfolded the document, glanced at it, and his expression turned extraordinarily grave.

The officials were extremely curious but dared not ask, all staring wide-eyed at the Governor's face.

After a long while, Shang Zhouzuo set down the document, his expression extremely sour.

Finally, an official could contain himself no longer and asked: "Your Excellency, what do the bandits write?"

Shang Zhouzuo spread the document on the table: "See for yourselves."

The officials all crowded around.

It proved to be a declaration of war.

It stated that Li Dan's purpose in this campaign was to punish the "disloyal" on behalf of the Great Ming—and the "disloyal" naturally referred to Lin Qian.

The declaration listed a series of grave crimes against Lin Qian: wanton plundering, recklessly provoking conflict, violating the sea ban, cultivating a faction of partisans, plotting rebellion, and so forth. The arguments were based mainly on Lin Qian's deeds in Fujian, Guangdong, and Hirado, as well as the accusation that he had kidnapped Li Dan's son.

At the end of the declaration, the tone shifted, stating that so long as the court punished Lin Qian and had him return the hostage, Li Dan would have achieved his purpose, would willingly surrender to the Great Ming, and would offer up the profits of maritime trade.

It did not include grand declarations like "Behold today's realm—whose world is it after all! Send this proclamation to all prefectures and commanderies, that all may hear and know!"

This greatly diminished the momentum of the ending, making it rather anticlimactic—a strong start with a weak finish.

After reading it, the officials exchanged glances, at a loss for what to do.

Everyone present knew well what Lin Qian had done—after all, none of them were blind; the flourishing maritime trade of Fujian and Guangdong was plain to see. But to endorse the declaration raised questions of political stance. No matter how outrageous Lin Qian's deeds were, he was still a Ming official—there was no logic in cheering for the enemy. Moreover, the sea bandits were not to be offended—but was Nan'ao Island any easier to offend?

An official muttered quietly: "Lin Qian's conduct is far too reckless, bringing this calamity upon Fujian—and he sits comfortably in Nan'ao, avoiding all trouble!"

After Lin Qian's marriage alliance with Ye Xianggao, the matter of his enlisting under a false name had spread throughout Fujian, and officials referred to him by his real name in private.

Another hot-tempered official said directly: "This man has no regard for the law and acts with perverse arrogance—truly detestable."

After all the officials had vented their complaints about Lin Qian, they turned their gazes one by one toward Shang Zhouzuo.

"How should we proceed? We await Your Excellency's instruction."

"This subordinate notes that the declaration says Lin Qian has seized the son of the bandit leader Li Dan. If we order Lin Qian to return the hostage and then promise Li Dan amnesty and submission, matters should be easily resolved."

Shang Zhouzuo let out a long sigh: "It will have to be so."

He wrote up the matter of Li Dan's invasion and his request for amnesty as a routine memorial, and had a personal guard deliver it by fast horse to the capital.

The memorial contained no recommendation for action—it merely reported the facts—nor did it mention Li Dan's accusations against Lin Qian.

The guiding principle was: keep oneself out of it entirely.

After the memorial was sent off, Shang Zhouzuo said: "Someone must still go to appease the bandits. Which of you colleagues is willing to go?"

Every official fell silent, and the hall became terrifyingly quiet.

At that moment, another personal guard rushed in from outside: "Your Excellency, the sea bandits... the sea bandits have overrun Min'an Town Garrison..."

"Disaster!"

The officials' expressions grew even more panicked.

Min'an Town Garrison was located east of Fuqing and north of the Min River—practically on the riverbank already.

The garrison housed an inspection post and a guard station, and could be called Fuzhou's last line of defense. With this place fallen, Fuzhou's gates were thrown wide open. Shang Zhouzuo said urgently: "Supervising Secretary Wang, you will go and appease the bandit leader."

Wang Jin turned pale with fright, forcing himself to appear calm as he hastily clasped his hands and said: "To plead for the people is this subordinate's bounden duty, yet this subordinate is clumsy of tongue and dull of speech, and fears he may prove unequal to the task. This... er..."

Shang Zhouzuo said angrily: "Were you not just cursing Lin Qian for having 'no regard for the law and acting with perverse arrogance'? Surely you can speak well enough with the bandit leader. This Governor believes you are the most suitable choice."

Six days later.

News of Li Dan's advance on Fuzhou had already reached Guangzhou by fast horse.

In the Governor-General's residence, an aide hurried to meet Hu Yingtai, saying joyfully: "Your Excellency, we have just received word from Fujian that the Japanese pirate Li Dan invaded Fuzhou several days ago, proclaiming he would punish the disloyal, with his spearpoint aimed directly at Nan'ao."

"If Your Excellency wishes to submit a memorial of impeachment, now is the perfect opportunity."

Hu Yingtai was startled and asked: "How many ships and men has he brought?"

"Over a hundred vessels, with numbers somewhere between two and three thousand."

Hu Yingtai inquired further into the details, then immediately arranged Guangdong's defenses. Afterward, he had his aide send an official dispatch to the Nan'ao naval forces, ordering them north to resist the enemy. The aide asked: "Will Your Excellency not impeach the Nan'ao naval forces?"

Hu Yingtai said: "Would this Governor be the sort of man who sends his generals to fight the enemy without while tying their hands from within? Let Ma Chenglie first repel the foe—there will be time enough for impeachment afterward." Another five days passed, and the war report from Fujian reached the capital.

It happened to coincide with the full court assembly on the fifteenth day of the first month.

Outside the Gate of Imperial Supremacy, the eunuch faction seized the opportunity to launch a new round of attacks against the Donglin Faction.

Minister of War Cui Chengxiu said: "I ask all the ministers of this court—among those whose native homes lie in the southeast, whose family has not shipped goods overseas? The wicked Donglin partisans hold the nation's laws in contempt, stuffing their own coffers full, and have brought calamity upon the southeast. They deserve ten thousand deaths!"

Supervising Secretary Huo Weihua said: "The wicked Donglin partisans have monopolized power for years, spouting empty words and ruining the state, caring only for building their factions and private interests, leading to military neglect and hollow coastal defenses. Worse still, they traffic in bribes—and that is why we now face the calamity of sea bandits driving deep into our territory! They must be thoroughly investigated and severely punished!"

Wang Shaohui raised a memorial with both hands and said: "Your Majesty, your humble servant has lately been pondering affairs of state and feels deeply the evil of the Donglin faction in misleading the nation. I have labored through the night to compose a work titled 'The Donglin Roll of Appointment,' wishing to present it to the court, to cleanse the source and clarify the distinction between right and wrong."

A eunuch presented the memorial to Tianqi.

Tianqi took it, opened it, and browsed through it, seeing that it matched Donglin partisans with nicknames from the *Water Margin*—for instance, the first was Tian Kui Star Li Sancai, the second Tian Gang Star Zhao Nanxing...

Following them were Gao Panlong, Yang Lian, Zuo Guangdou, and others—every one of them given a nickname.

This manner of doing things greatly amused Tianqi, and he could not help but chuckle lightly.

Seeing this, the eunuch faction officials cursed all the more vigorously, abandoning even pretense of refinement—crude street language began to fly. The cursing continued through the court assembly until the morning sun rose, and not once did a single Donglin partisan offer a word of rebuttal.

It was truly because Yang Lian, Zuo Guangdou, and other high-ranking officials of the Donglin Faction had all been thrown into the Imperial Prison, leaving scarcely half a Donglin man on the entire court.

Not until the sun reached its zenith and the court session ended did anyone discuss the military situation in Fujian even once.

Instead, the conversation turned, and they began attacking Sun Chengzong for wasting grain and pay beyond the pass while hoarding troops to bolster his own power.

Tianqi listened half-convinced, but did not decide immediately, merely saying the matter would be discussed later. Then he withdrew from court, slipped back into his carpentry workshop, summoned Wei Zhongxian, tossed the Fujian war report to him, and said, "You handle it."

Wei Zhongxian was overjoyed. He found Wang Tigan and instructed: "Send an urgent letter to Fujian at once — those sea bandits must be pacified immediately. Agree to whatever terms they want!"

"Yes, this servant will see to it at once!"

A cold sneer crossed Wei Zhongxian's face as he thought: "The Donglin Faction has fallen; Sun Chengzong is next. Ma Chenglie, you can wait a little longer for this old eunuch."

Meanwhile.

At the mouth of the Min River, Li Dan had grown increasingly impatient. He had been raiding Fujian for over ten days now, and aside from Yu Zigao leading troops to attack, he had not seen a single man of Lin Qian's forces.

Though it could be explained away by saying Nan'ao's forces were insufficient and dared not give battle.

Still, Li Dan's instincts told him something was off.

At this moment, Fujian's Circuit Intendant, Assistant Judge Wang, was still chattering endlessly on the deck.

Over and over, he spoke of how the pacification offer had been submitted to the court for approval, and how the hostages had been ordered released by Lin Qian.

Li Dan waved his hand impatiently: "Silence!"

Assistant Judge Wang shut his mouth awkwardly.

Just then, a burst of crying and shouting came from the neighboring ship: "Help! Help!"

Assistant Judge Wang followed the sound and saw a bird boat sailing in from the shore. A dozen or so young women lay sprawled across it, all in commoner dress, their hands and feet bound.

One of them had spat out the cloth gag from her mouth and was crying loudly for help, her eyes meeting Assistant Judge Wang's.

Seeing Assistant Judge Wang in his green official robe, hope kindled in the young woman's eyes: "Sir, sir, save me!"

A sea bandit on the bird boat flew into a rage and strode forward, landing two heavy slaps. The young woman was beaten bloody from mouth and nose, fainted dead away, both cheeks swollen high. Another bandit snapped angrily: "Why hit her face? Such a pretty one — what a waste!"

With a splash, he threw the unconscious woman into the water.

The bandit who had slapped her muttered aggrievedly: "Her face is swollen, but her lower half isn't—"

Another bandit teased: "If her lower half were swollen, that'd be just fine, hahaha..."

The other young women on the bird boat, seeing this, were terrified beyond measure. Their bodies struggled ceaselessly as they cast hopeful gazes toward Assistant Judge Wang, sobbing and whimpering. Assistant Judge Wang hastily averted his eyes.

Behind him, he heard the bird boat pull alongside the Cantonese ship, then ropes being used to send people up.

A bandit said: "One per ship — come collect them."

"I want that one, the fair-skinned one."

"You get whichever one you're assigned — no picking!"

Assistant Judge Wang saw that Li Dan's expression was extremely sinister, and said cautiously: "Chieftain, since you seek pacification, it would be best to do less of this sort of thing."

That was a pointless remark — how could Li Dan not know?

But he had sailed across the sea from a thousand li away — did he not need to replenish water and grain?

Since he had to come ashore, plundering women was unavoidable.

Refraining from wanton looting and burning villages was already the greatest restraint Li Dan could muster.

His men were, after all, sea bandits — not the Qi Family Army!

If this wasn't allowed and that was forbidden, what were they fighting for under Li Dan?

Moreover, physically, Li Dan's illness had worsened over the past two days — his edema was severe.

As for military intelligence, south of Haitan Mountain, the waters were all patrolled by Lin Qian's eagle boats, which fired muskets in unison at any of Li Dan's lookout boats, making it impossible to probe the movements of Nan'ao's naval forces. Hearing Assistant Judge Wang's words, Li Dan's irritation grew even greater, and his icy gaze swept over.

Assistant Judge Wang immediately smiled: "The fine men under the Chieftain are all men of passion — such matters are mutually agreeable, nothing—"

Before he could finish, he heard a woman's scream from the ship beside him.

A sea bandit cursed angrily: "Damn it, she's a chaste martyr!"

"Monkey San, how did you fuck her to death!"

Monkey San said: "She threw herself onto my blade — what could I do? Whatever, a dead one works just the same, even more convenient!"

Assistant Judge Wang felt a chill of revulsion run through him, thinking: "Sea bandits truly are a pack of evil ghosts and wolves. People always say Li Dan is a righteous merchant of Hirado, but now it seems he's nothing special — not even as good as that one on Nan'ao Island."

On shore, the common folk of Changle County, families in tow, were still streaming out of the city.

Today was the Lantern Festival, yet Changle County was desolate — the county town's population had basically all fled.

On the official road leading to Fuqing County, the column of refugees stretched over ten li, the atmosphere extremely oppressive, weeping audible all along the way.

Just then, a man came running swiftly from the seaside, panting heavily: "No... no need to run... the... the imperial army has come!"

Yahei

Fenyuan

Pen