Chapter 81: The Mysterious Goddess of the Red Sky (2)

Zi Rao's ink-like eyeliner swept upward slightly, a trace of coldness stained her brows, but a faint smile appeared on her lips.

Thunder, clouds, and rain are easy to disperse. It was only dark just now, but after half a day, there were already light clouds and green, and the thousands of miles were clear and broad.

The rain in the Chu River stopped, the clouds carried endless distant peaks, and the tide waves on both sides were vast. Boats were moored at the wharf by the river, and the black masts and wind cables were in clusters. Among them, the high-flying emblem flag of the Yue Ma Gang fluttered in the wind, making it look exceptionally eye-catching among the boats.

Not far away, a piece of shore rock stood tall, the river mist was slightly locked, appearing and disappearing. Two figures in black robes appeared on the high ground. Ye Xuanshang leaned lazily against a rock, looked at the scene of the wind sails like a forest by the river along Zi Rao's gaze, raised his brows and smiled, "I was wondering who it was, so it was the Yue Ma Gang that provoked our Nine Princess. Why, are you going to kill people or rob goods now? Princess, why don't you issue an order so that we can do it?"

Zi Rao withdrew her gaze and met the half-teasing expression of the man beside her. She endured it for a while, and finally revealed a smile, but her tone was still as cold as frost when she spoke, "Killing people and robbing goods are both too cheap for them. Today, I must make the Yue Ma Gang lose all face in the Jianghu." As her voice fell, her figure had already moved. Ye Xuanshang shook his head with a smile, and without seeing how he moved, he leaped into the air and landed with her on the river beach ahead.

Just as they landed on the shore, Ye Xuanshang suddenly reached out and hugged Zi Rao behind the reef, and asked in a low voice in her ear, "Hey, you aren't going to go up and pick their field like this, are you?"

The river wind blew fiercely, and Zi Rao's gaze swept casually, "So what?"

Even with Ye Xuanshang's impulsive style, he could not help but raise his sword brows high, but the smile on his face added interest, and his arm held her slender waist, "There are at least thirty heavy merchant ships moored there, plus eight warships for protection, adding up to more than a thousand people. You have to tell me which one to start with before we can do it, right?"

Zi Rao's phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, and a blade of enchanting wantonness appeared, "Who has the mood to entangle with them? Capture the thief and capture the king, fight quickly and decide quickly. I just want to sink that boat and take that flag."

Looking at the leader's seat boat of the Yue Ma Gang, which was parked in front of the crowd with high buildings and golden armor, and then looking at the red flag that was still flying in the wind, but didn't know what would happen to it in the next moment, Ye Xuanshang sighed exaggeratedly, "As far as I know, the warships of the Yue Ma Gang are known for being strong and sharp. The hull of this golden-toothed seat boat is made of giant wood that has been dried in the shade for several years, and the outside is painted and stitched with tung oil and sword hemp, and protected by double-layer copper armor. In terms of protection, it can be said to be solid as a rock. If you want to sink it from the bottom of the water, it is almost impossible."

Zi Rao said, "The number of heaven and earth, there is no solitary walk. If there is life, there must be mutual restraint. All ships are made of wood, not afraid of water, but are they not afraid of fire? If it cannot be broken from the outside, can I not start from the inside?"

Ye Xuanshang looked at the sky leisurely, "If you use fire attack, the wind is from the southeast today. It is best to start from the outer merchant ships. First, there are many goods on the ship that are easy to ignite, and second, once the fire borrows the wind, the ship formation will inevitably be chaotic, and the masters sitting in the main ship will be scattered to command the rescue. At that time, the main camp of the Yue Ma Gang will be empty. If you want to kill people, fold flags, or sink ships, wouldn't it be much more convenient?"

Zi Rao's eyes drifted, "Sound east and attack west, lure the tiger away from the mountain?"

"Hmm..." Ye Xuanshang had a lazy face, and even the smile was a bit bad, "Fighting without preparation can only use some strategies. If I had known you were coming to burn the ship, I should have prepared some fire thunder or something, so that we could watch the fire from the other side, which would be even more relaxed."

Zi Rao's true energy drifted beneath her sleeves, and ink butterflies flew and spun, circling her sleeves and dancing, asking him, "How about this?"

The flame butterflies flowed with gold, scattered with the wind, passed through the light clouds and mist, and landed on the ship's side like shadows and illusions, floating to the cargo hold, sticking to the wind flag, and flickering gently in the sun, turning into beautiful embellishments by the river after the rain. The butterfly wings trembled slightly, and the bright light kept splashing and shaking with the wonderful rhythm, as if something was about to break out of the cocoon. The charming and elegant hand beneath the black sleeves, slender and hooked like an orchid, small air vortices spun rapidly at the fingertips, just waiting for a light flick to be a magnificent landscape.

Zi Rao was preparing to trigger the "Flame Butterfly" technique when she suddenly saw someone walk out of the cabin on the golden-toothed seat boat, followed by the leader of the Yue Ma Gang, Yin Xiqing.

The river wind blew Yin Xiqing's hair, and also blew the blue shirt of the man like water. After the two exchanged greetings, Yin Xiqing turned around and summoned her subordinates, not knowing what she had ordered, but saw the flags on the observation deck of the seat boat change, and the orders were passed out. Then, more than thirty accompanying ships responded one after another, and then they pulled up the anchors and left the shore in an orderly manner, turning the bow of the ship with the wind.

The unrelated ships nearby sailed away one after another, so that this huge fleet could adjust its direction.

In just a moment, the flags of all the merchant ships and eight double-layer iron-clad warships of the Yue Ma Gang were changed, waiting for orders in the middle of the river, and the sails were about to rise, connecting front and back, and the huge formation was staggering.

Judging from the depth of the ship's draft, the ships in the river should be full of grain and rice, and even some "private salt" with the acquiescence of the Chu regime. These were important commercial goods sent by the Yue Ma Gang from the Chu capital to various places, and their value was quite high, otherwise the Yue Ma Gang would not have dispatched warships to protect them along the way. But at this moment, all the merchant ships were clearly departing at the same time, and it seemed that they were going to the same destination, which was quite contrary to common sense.

When the ships moved, the little flame light did not ignite the ship as expected, but drifted away with the wind, as if it would soon be hidden in the light river mist, and as if it was reluctant to leave, dancing endlessly.

At this time, Yin Xiqing had personally sent the man in blue off the ship to land, and led her trusted subordinates to cup their hands and bid him farewell.

A carriage was parked at the wharf, decorated simply but with a clear and noble air. There were no signs on the carriage, only the inconspicuous white dragon pattern in front of the door, showing the unusual identity of the owner. The man in blue bid farewell to the Yue Ma Gang and got on the carriage. For some reason, he suddenly stopped and turned his head to look at the river. The attendant in front of the carriage lifted the curtain to wait, but saw him standing still, his face seemed to change slightly.

The ink-like butterfly shadows drifted and disappeared from several merchant ships, leaving only a few ink butterflies flying back all the way. Ye Xuanshang crossed his arms on the side, watching the woman beside him with a smile, not asking, not urging, not speaking, just looking at her with interest, as if waiting for something just like her.

Sure enough, after only a moment, the sound of wind being broken arose by their ears. A blue shadow landed nearby like a light swan, gentle and elegant, with a jade-like grace. It was none other than the very person who had just been treated with such courtesy by the Yue Ma Gang, the legitimate young master of the Xi State, Su Ling. As his gaze fell upon Ye Xuanshang, Su Ling was clearly slightly surprised, then bowed to Zi Rao, "Princess!"

The posture of the man bowing before her always carried a gentle calmness, like the rising and falling of the Yangtze River tide, a persistence that would not change even after experiencing wind and rain.

The former Imperial Tutor who was whipped in the heavy snow and expelled from the palace, now the Crown Prince of the former country who moved among various countries, with an extraordinary status, training horses and soldiers, welcoming princes, wielding swords in the Jianghu, and strategizing in the court... No matter when and where, he always maintained such an impeccable demeanor, and an impeccable loyalty to that person.

Light ink marks, passing away on the background of the blue shirt. Zi Rao met a trace of worry in Su Ling's eyes when he raised his head, and she did not speak. She looked at Su Ling quietly, and the color of the river mist vaguely covered her eyes, a piece of clear, secluded, and unfathomable.

Su Ling's brows locked slightly, glanced at her sleeves, and then said slowly, "Princess."

The clear and stable words, if not carefully distinguished, could not hear the slight tension that clearly existed. Zi Rao lowered her eyes, and a few butterfly shadows drifted and disappeared between the phoenix cloud patterns on her silk sleeves, and she asked in a low voice, "What is on the ship?"

Su Ling said positively, "Twenty-four ships of rice, two ships of raw salt, and ten ships of herbs."

Zi Rao did not raise her eyes and asked again, "Where is it being transported?"

Su Ling answered, "Fuchuan."

Zi Rao was silent when she heard this, looked back at the middle of the river, but saw the white sails and strong masts, riding the wind and breaking the waves, and had already slowly submerged into the thickening river mist.

Starting from here, sailing north along the river, turning to the Wei River, entering the Mo River, it would take at most a few days to reach Fuchuan. On the return journey, the ships would also be full of displaced people, who would be evacuated to relatively safe places on the border of the Wangyu.

The land of Fuchuan, the seven cities were severely damaged, the war was imminent, and the sky would have no sun.

The city that the gods and demons of the three worlds did not ask about, the land that the princes of the human world abandoned and slaughtered, no one could save it, only he could save it, no one could manage it, and he wanted to manage it.

The towering Imperial Capital, the ten thousand miles of Wangyu, was ultimately the place where the common people of the world relied; and the person called the Eastern Emperor was not only her relative, her royal brother, he was born to be the god who protected the Nine Domains and the world. Zi Rao smiled slightly, that smile was silent, and had no trace, passing lightly on the red lips like cinnabar. For a time, there was only the sound of the river tide around, rising and falling, constantly washing the shore rocks that were once distinct, washing the vast earth, the inheritance that had not changed for thousands of years.

The wind was light and the mist was spreading, blurring the bright and charming face, and also turning the wind and waves like a tide in her eyes into a silent and boundless secluded coldness. Zi Rao turned back, just smiled at Su Ling, and said lightly, "Very good." After saying this, she flicked her sleeves, the last ray of ink butterfly light bloomed at her fingertips, passed away with the wind, and she also stepped away.

"Princess..." Su Ling had just opened his mouth, but saw Ye Xuanshang, who had been silent all along, wave his hand and make a reassuring gesture to him, and then followed.

After walking a few steps quickly, Ye Xuanshang walked side by side with Zi Rao, and did not ask her why she suddenly changed her mind, and smiled, "I'll treat you to a drink, how about it?"

Zi Rao said lightly, "The wine brewed in the Chu capital is light and tasteless, what's good about it?"

Ye Xuanshang said, "There is always good wine to be found, as long as you can say it."

As if she was also interested in his proposal, Zi Rao stopped her steps and looked at the East City of the Chu capital where the magnificent buildings were continuous.

An hour later.

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 82 =====