Chapter 399

251, Japanese pirate leader Fujita!

"You're quick. Who gave you orders to act?"

Su Qiao frowned, glaring at Zhou Bingwen.

Zhou Bingwen jumped in fright, bowing his head in apology: "Mr. Su, we acted early for a reason—we originally planned to wait until you arrived, but they were extremely wary; after we sent out scouts, they tried to flee before we got any results, so we had no choice but to arrest them all."

Hearing his explanation, Su Qiao's expression softened slightly.

Zhou Bingwen felt the pressure vanish instantly, his body growing noticeably lighter.

He didn't understand why—Su Qiao looked like an ordinary man, though he'd heard he held great weight before Your Majesty.

But no one had ever said he held any official rank.

He was only chosen this time as the imperial envoy, tasked with handling affairs in the south.

Why then did he carry such heavy authority?

Zhou Bingwen racked his brain but found no answer; his back was soaked in cold sweat, and now a faint breeze made him shiver.

"Enough. Compile all these people's records and send them to me. Also, I brought 28 troops this time—perfect for sweeping up all these traitors!"

Su Qiao said coldly.

Zhao Xifang and Zhou Bingwen immediately bowed and replied, "Yes!"

…

Only after Zhou Bingwen left the study did he finally exhale in relief.

"Aren't they always saying Mr. Su is kind? Is this what you call kind?"

Zhou Bingwen had a good relationship with Ma Kui and the others; they'd done missions together before.

They were old acquaintances.

Otherwise Zhao Xifang wouldn't have recommended him.

Zhao Xifang shook his head, sounding innocent: "I don't know what's going on—maybe the approaching Japanese pirates have put pressure on Mr. Su. Normally, he's always smiling, even when joking."

Zhou Bingwen couldn't help grimacing: "So I just got unlucky?"

"Possibly!"

"Pah! Enough fooling around—let's get to work as Mr. Su ordered."

"Alright!"

…

While Su Qiao was mobilizing troops, on an island not far from Ningbo Prefecture.

Nearly three thousand Japanese pirates had gathered there.

Their clothes were disheveled, more like rags worn by beggars.

Many wore straw sandals, barely covering essential parts.

Others went barefoot, but all held weapons—Wu Shidao!

Though these Japanese pirates looked like paupers, only the top leaders wore armor.

Yet their eyes revealed cruelty and utter indifference to life.

They only bowed like slaves when facing those stronger than themselves—or those they deemed utterly unassailable, beyond their reach.

Otherwise, they were bloodthirsty wolves, always eyeing the carotid artery in your neck.

Su Qiao was mobilizing troops; the Japanese pirate leader, Fujita Goshirō, who harbored deep hatred for the Great Ming, was also waiting for news.

He had never been caught until now because he always received advance intelligence from within the Great Ming.

He hadn't moved yet for two reasons: his forces weren't fully assembled.

And he was waiting for word.

But now Fujita Goshirō sat in his wooden hut, visibly agitated.

In the past, his messages to the Great Ming always received swift replies.

But it had been nearly three days—why was there still no response?

Could something have happened?

His mind was in chaos.

He couldn't calm down.

Knock knock!

At that moment, someone suddenly knocked on the door.

Frustrated, Fujita closed his eyes and snorted: "Enter!"

"General!"

The man who entered was a ronin, dressed in attire resembling a school from Fusan.

No one knew why he had joined the ranks of Japanese pirates and bandits.

Hearing the voice, Fujita Goshirō's expression eased slightly; he opened his eyes.

Fujita held a degree of respect for the newcomer, Ogasawara: "Ah, it's Ogasawara-san. Apologies—I was in a bad mood just now."

Ogasawara waved it off cheerfully: "No problem. General Fujita is worried about the operation the day after tomorrow?"

"Yes. The intelligence from the Great Ming hasn't come through—I'm anxious. I want to send scouts, but I fear alerting them."

Fujita Goshirō made no pretense before Ogasawara, sighing honestly.

Ogasawara paused. "Then let me go scout. The operation is in two days—if we don't act soon, we may run out of time."

"You, Ogasawara-san?"

"Of course!"

"Very well—thank you, Ogasawara-san!"

Fujita Musashiro bowed deeply directly to Ogasawara.

"General Fujita, wait for my good news!"

Ogasawara said a sentence and left the room with great confidence.

After Fujita Musashiro stood up, a trace of relaxed and proud smile leaked onto his face.

Ogasawara's arrival was within his expectations.

Although Ogasawara respected him as master, his own men also had a group of powerful samurai experts.

Do not look at the fact that there are fewer people than Fujita Musashiro's, but their strength is very formidable.

Usually, Fujita Musashiro also needed to respect him.

Since the Great Ming intelligence had not been delivered in time, he was somewhat worried; if he sent someone else into Great Ming territory, he feared an accident might occur.

Ogasawara's men were actually stronger in power, making it twice as effective for them to investigate.

However, he could not issue a direct order, because Ogasawara's samurai only listened to Ogasawara alone.

So, he tactfully mentioned the difficulties he encountered.

Ogasawara agreed on his own.

After Ogasawara returned, he quickly selected three relatively clever samurai from his subordinates and changed into clothes of Great Ming commoners.

They rowed the boat quickly towards the Great Ming coast.

The Ningbo Prefecture area was closest to them.

So they also planned to go to Ningbo Prefecture first to investigate the news.

They alternated rowing to increase speed; it took about two hours, and finally, at midnight, they reached the shore.

After using the moonlight to identify the direction, the three slowly crept forward according to the marked points of the villages they had previously plundered.

They were not too close to the village, mainly because the boat had drifted slightly when stopping at night.

Additionally, hiding the boat took some time.

By the time they ran to the village entrance, it was already the second half of the night.

The entire village was pitch black and silent.

The silence was somewhat terrifying.

The three stood at the village entrance, hesitating whether to enter or not.

252, walking straight into a trap!

"Why does it feel like something is wrong with this village?"