knife

Chapter 751 Seaship
A dark line appeared on the distant horizon, undulating and stretching, which greatly pleased Xue Li on the ship.

That's a mountain.

By some miracle, after sailing on the high seas for nearly a month, he finally saw land again.

Not only him, but cheers erupted throughout the entire ship, and people from the cabins poured out, looking excitedly at the ink line that was becoming clearer and clearer in their eyes.

"General Guan, we're finally here!" Xue Li said happily as he watched Guan Shan stride to the bow of the ship.

Guan Shan also breathed a sigh of relief.

For a land-based general, being adrift at sea always brings a sense of powerlessness. It seems that only when his feet are on land can he find peace of mind.

This ship from beyond the Great Wall was not carrying any cargo this time, but rather a ship full of soldiers—the newly formed Azure Dragon Brigade, whose captain was none other than Guan Shan, the former leader of the Eagle Bandits.

The entire force of three hundred men, even the weakest among them, was at least at the sixth rank of Qi Control. They were iron cavalry on horseback and fierce soldiers on foot. Even on great rivers and lakes, these men were not afraid of anything. However, this time, they spent more than a month at sea, which was a completely new experience and allowed these proud soldiers to truly appreciate the power of the ocean.

"General Guan, we should arrive at our destination this evening!" Cai Tianyou, the naval commander in charge of the transport mission, said to Guan Shan with a smile. "I have fulfilled my mission. This trip has gone smoothly, and even the heavens have been on our side."

"A heaven-sent army will surely be blessed, General Cai, now it's our turn!" Guan Shan laughed heartily, "Just you wait and see!"

“You’re going deep into the Xiang family’s stronghold. Although there will be backup, it’s still like venturing into the lion’s den. If anything goes wrong, retreat to the designated backup point immediately. We’ll be patrolling this area the whole time and won’t stray far!” Cai Tianyou said.

"Don't worry!" Guan Shan laughed. "You just need to wait to load things onto the ship. I've heard that the Xiang family's base is incredibly wealthy. Just plunder a few of them and you'll have enough to fill a ship! The Xiang family used to be strong, but now, they're struggling to even have a fraction of their strength left. And isn't Zhu Zhen's army right in front of them?"

“The power and resources of aristocratic families should not be underestimated!” Cai Tianyou said. “Even a lion needs to use its full strength to hunt a rabbit, let alone this time when you are fighting behind enemy lines. As the saying goes in martial arts, the night before dawn is the darkest. The stronger the enemy’s counterattack is, the more cautious we must be. We shouldn’t perish before daybreak, that would not be worth it!”

Guan Shan laughed loudly: "Don't worry, I still want to win the title of Marquis of Ten Thousand Households!"

Turning around, looking at the team members around him, he shouted loudly, "Everyone, get ready!"

The Qinglong team members on the ship responded loudly, turned around and rushed into the cabin to pack their belongings.

Shawan was originally a seaside fishing village with dozens of households, all of whom made their living by fishing. However, last year, the village was attacked by pirates, who kidnapped everyone in the village and destroyed most of the houses. Since then, the village has been abandoned. In just over a year, the entire village has become overgrown with weeds, and even the roads have been completely covered.

However, at this moment, the desolate Shawan Village once again welcomed a group of people. "Second Young Master, everything is ready as you instructed!" A middle-aged man greeted Zhu Cheng, who was riding up on horseback, and took the reins, helping Zhu Cheng dismount as he reported.

Zhu Cheng simply nodded without speaking. Led by the middle-aged man, she pushed aside the weeds and headed towards a few dilapidated tile-roofed houses that looked somewhat intact amidst the ruins.

From the outside, it does look very dilapidated, but once you go inside, you'll find that it's actually been renovated quite well. Moreover, each of these tiled houses is filled with things like grains, vegetables, and meat.

Clearly, these things were prepared for some people who came from the sea.

The robbery at Shawan more than a year ago was actually intentional, with the aim of seizing Shawan, a natural harbor that was both accessible to large ships and particularly secluded.

Seeing that everything was ready, Zhu Cheng stepped out of the tiled house and looked up at the azure sea. Layers of white waves surged from afar, crashing against the rocks on the shore and splashing up more than a meter high. In the sky, seabirds circled and circled, sometimes shooting down like sharp arrows into the sea. When they took off again, their sharp beaks or claws always caught something.

The sea was as calm as ever, but Zhu Cheng's heart was far from at peace.

Some time ago, Luo Ying went to Danyang, ostensibly to discuss the next steps with the Zhu family, but in reality, it was an ultimatum to the Zhu family, forcing them to make a final choice.

Luo Ying was a confidant and trusted advisor of Zhang Qingyun, the deputy head of the Zhiguan Academy. His personal trip to Danyang meant that the Beiting Protectorate would no longer give the Zhu family any room to maneuver. From another perspective, it also meant that if they wanted to completely resolve the Southern Chu issue, they no longer needed the Zhu family to provide intelligence as inside agents.

Zhu Cheng was initially confused. Wasn't it said that Na Wei, Xiang Zhuang, and Linghu Ye would soon be besiege Jiang Qian? At such a critical moment, wouldn't the Zhu family, hiding in the shadows, be able to provide them with the greatest assistance? Why was Luo Ying so insistent that the Zhu family must launch an attack on Xiang Zhuang immediately after the outbreak of war?
Zhu Cheng didn't think this would be of much help to the main battlefield. Zhu Zhen's troops numbered only a little over ten thousand, just one force confronting Xiang Zhuang. Launching a war rashly would hardly inflict a fatal blow on Xiang Zhuang. Instead, it would expose the Zhu family to the light of day, making it impossible for the eldest brother to stay in Danyang any longer, and the entire Zhu family would have to temporarily hide in the shadows.

Is it really worth it?
However, after pondering for a whole night, the eldest brother Zhu Chi actually agreed to Luo Ying's request in its entirety, and then the entire Zhu family began to work diligently on this matter.

Fortunately, Zhu Chi, as the Minister of Revenue of the Danyang court, had enough power and means to cover up the matter.

It wasn't until the Zhu family began meticulously carrying out Zhang Qingyun's plan that Luo Ying told Zhu Chi that several other forces, led by the Jiang family, were also involved in the operation. These forces were all powerful and influential families in the Great Chu, and Zhu Chi didn't even know when they had become connected with the Northern Protectorate.

He came here today specifically to welcome a troop transport ship from beyond the Great Wall. The Azure Dragon Brigade, belonging to the Zhi Qiu Academy, will arrive today, and this brigade will be incorporated into the Zhu family's forces to launch an attack on Xiang Zhuang together.

As the sun gradually set and was about to disappear behind the mountains, a three-masted ship suddenly appeared in Zhu Cheng's eyes under the last rays of its light.

(End of this chapter)