Chapter 17: The Banquet and the Songstress

The Great White Shark fish-man thought for a moment and said, "You saved me, you are my benefactor. I, Gai Ou, am not a fish who forgets favors and violates justice. Since you sincerely invite me, then I will set sail with you. But I still have things left unfinished; if there is a chance, even if you don't help me, I will go do them myself."

"Of course, you are free. If you need help, look for me at any time. Welcome to the crew," Luo Di said with a smile.

Gai Ou nodded: "Captain, I want to be an executive. Test me."

You have spirit. Massive novels are on Tiantiankan Novels, ttk. tw, read as you please.

Luo Di gave his approval in his heart and looked at Xiao En: "You exchange a few moves with him."

"Yes, Captain Luo Di!" Hearing the order, Xiao En immediately stepped forward.

Gai Ou turned quickly and frowned as he looked at Xiao En; Xiao En remained motionless in place, just like he had faced A Nuo earlier.

Gai Ou took large strides toward Xiao En, and when he reached him, he clenched his fist directly and struck toward Xiao En's abdomen.

Xiao En still sidestepped, still strolling leisurely, as if he had already seen through Gai Ou's moves. Once Gai Ou's punch missed, he immediately delivered a whip kick like black lightning, smashing toward Gai Ou's arm.

Boom!

Everything was within Xiao En's calculations, and his whip kick landed in the anticipated position.

But Gai Ou remained motionless in place and grabbed Xiao En's leg with a backhand: "Too light, I didn't even feel it."

After speaking, he exerted force in his arm, wanting to fling Xiao En away.

Xiao En frowned, quickly borrowed force from the ground, lifted his other foot, and flipped his entire body in the air, barely breaking free from Gai Ou's hand, retreating a few steps due to inertia.

Gai Ou stepped forward with a large stride, his hand clenched into a fist, his momentum rising sharply.

"I lost." Xiao En hurriedly reached out his hand: "The strength of a fish-man far exceeds that of a human, and you are also proficient in water. I believe you will certainly be able to become an important force for Captain Luo Di."

"Ya ha ha ha ha, what a truly excellent fight!" Luo Di laughed wantonly, his hair dancing in the wind.

Seeing Xiao En say this, Gai Ou stopped. Xiao En walked to the front of Luo Di and said respectfully: "Captain, thank you for thinking highly of me and giving me this opportunity."

Luo Di patted his shoulder: "Work hard, I have high hopes for you."

After speaking, he walked to the front, suddenly turned around, and spread his arms: "Then, let's have a banquet!"

"Aha!"

"Alright!"

Hearing that there was a banquet, the crew members all cheered and were incredibly excited. There were over fifty people who had boarded the ship with Luo Di this time, and they had basically prepared themselves to lose their lives at any moment. Compared to the life of being oppressed by nobles in the past, the freedom they had now was what they truly wanted.

"Hey, Luo Di, I can't cook for so many people by myself. You hurry and find a few people to help, and besides, I'm not a chef. I still have to draw sea charts and observe the weather later," Ka Li Na pouted and said.

Luo Di nodded. Ka Li Na was currently holding multiple positions and was indeed too overworked. Although the ship they were currently riding, Hanke's ship, was much larger than the previous sailboat, it was far from meeting the standards if they wanted to go to the Grand Line.

The weather on the Grand Line changes in a thousand ways. Even without fighting other forces, there is a risk of sinking if one encounters natural disasters. They might not even be able to pass through Le Yuan, let alone go to the New World.

Now that they had a navigator, shipwrights, doctors, and chefs were all indispensable; they could only look again at the next island.

"Um, actually, I, A Nuo, am a chef." At this time, A Nuo in the back raised his hand.

"Right, this guy used to run a restaurant. It went bankrupt later; he said there was a problem with the ingredients and he was even fined by the Mayor," a crew member said.

"Fart! My, A Nuo's, ingredients could never have a problem. It was all that dog thing, the Mayor. He wanted me to be his personal chef; I hate these kinds of people the most and wouldn't do it, so he framed me," A Nuo said with hatred: "I, A Nuo, would never cook for that beast who killed my father!"

Luo Di smiled: "Can you cook for everyone?"

"No problem." A Nuo patted his chest: "I, A Nuo, am a gold-medal chef. No one is allowed to mess around in the kitchen. If the food I make doesn't taste good, you can hang me up and feed me to the sharks!"

The crew members' gazes all turned toward Gai Ou.

"I don't have the hobby of eating humans," Gai Ou hummed.

The crowd naturally had no objections, and A Nuo went into the kitchen by himself.

After a round of looting, the supplies on the ship were still quite sufficient. Ka Li Na calculated the accounts with a few crew members; there was 60 million Beli in cash, and adding some jewelry and ornaments, it reached as high as 80 million. With these crew members, this trip could be considered a bountiful harvest.

The sunset fell in the west, and the clouds on the horizon were rendered a deep red, like fish swimming into the sea, still struggling to roll with golden scales of light.

A Nuo had finished preparing a pile of food, and a few crew members moved the food to the deck. A group of people sat in a circle, with Luo Di, Ka Li Na, and the two executives, Gai Ou, sitting in the center of the circle. Xiao En had already brought people to set up tables, chairs, and benches.

Everyone filled their wine glasses. Luo Di raised his glass, facing the howling sea breeze, and shouted: "Lads, the banquet, begins!"

"Oh ho!" The crew members all began to revel, downing the wine in their glasses in one gulp.

A Nuo wasn't bragging; his culinary skills were indeed excellent, clearly a grade higher than Ka Li Na's. However, every trade has its specialty; Ka Li Na's ability was beyond doubt, and having her cook before was a helpless move. He couldn't let him, the captain, do it himself, right?

Luo Di looked at Ka Li Na to the side: "Ka Li Na, you can sing, right?"

Ka Li Na was currently wearing a black dress, the cleavage at her chest was extremely eye-catching, and her straight, slender legs were in high-heeled sandals. Luo Di felt he should get her an OL uniform and silk stockings at the next island; that would fit the temperament of a secretary.

"Of course." The atmosphere had reached this point, and Ka Li Na was also in the mood. She immediately stood up and walked to the middle, looking at the sunset on the horizon, and slowly began:

"Yo ho ho ho, yo ho ho ho♪"

Ka Li Na hummed the prelude and placed a glass of wine in front of Luo Di.

"To deliver Binks's Sake to you♪"

The sea breeze blew her purple hair, and the waves swayed in layers, accompanying the singing.

"Like the sea breeze, doing as one pleases, riding the wind and breaking the waves♪"

The melodious and ethereal voice echoed on the deck. The crew members all raised their wine glasses, cheering excitedly, hugging each other and dancing. They had been suppressed for too long, and most had felt that their lives would just pass by like that. Now, the wild ambitions in their hearts were completely ignited, and at this moment, all their frustration and distress were swept away.

The banquet lasted until late at night.

Most of the crew members were already tipsy, supporting each other as they walked into the large room. There were many hammocks hanging in the large room of this ship, as well as some floor mats; everyone had a place to sleep.

Xiao En's face was flushed, but he remained rational. He led the crew members into the room, and after confirming that everyone had gone in, he came out to report to Luo Di.

Luo Di said: "Get some rest early, Xiao En. The road ahead is still very long. In a few days, I will teach you two moves of the Six Powers. As for what level you can learn them to, that depends on yourself."

"Many thanks, Captain Luo Di!" Xiao En's breathing quickened, and he returned to his room, suppressing the excitement in his heart.

There was a large bed in the captain's quarters; that was Luo Di's room. Behind it were a few small rooms, all with individual beds, which were the residences of the executives. Now, Ka Li Na and Gai Ou lived there.

"I'm heading back first, Luo Di. Today was very happy, haha," Gai Ou said, intoxicated by the wine.

Luo Di nodded, and after Gai Ou left, only he and Ka Li Na remained here.

The sea breeze blew gently, the night was somewhat chilly, and the moon seemed to be hiding in the clouds to rest, yet the starlight remained brilliant, the Milky Way illuminating the surface of the sea.

Ka Li Na was lying on the tabletop; judging by her posture, she had drunk a bit too much.

"Still not getting up? Are you waiting for me to carry you back?" Luo Di chuckled softly.