Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 840 Winning
Firearms exploded one after another on the ship, and the thick smoke was mixed with the strong smell of blood.

Even though the owners had witnessed too much bloodshed, they were still horrified by the scene. After boarding the ship, those people pounced on them, using their own lives to drag them down with them.

The ship instantly became a living hell.

"Run."

"Run!"

Before the fifth manager could give the order, several boats began to row backward almost simultaneously. They had lost their will to fight and only wanted to get away as quickly as possible.

"Fifth Manager, let's go quickly!"

When the fifth shopkeeper heard the trembling voice of the person beside him, he wanted to say something, but when he opened his mouth, he was choked by thick smoke, and then he bent over and coughed.

Of the thirty-odd ships, seven or eight were captured in the blink of an eye, and the rest were either fleeing or hiding, having long forgotten that they still had weapons on board.

……

Xie Yuyan stared at the unusual movements on the sea ahead. Seeing that the owner's manager was about to take the boat away, she gave the order at the most opportune moment.

"Raise the flag."

She was more precise in her judgment than before because she cared about each and every life.

The people on Xie Yuyan's ship were already red-eyed with envy, wishing they could rush forward to help immediately. Upon hearing the order, the two men at the highest point of the stern tower suddenly tore off the tarpaulin covering the mast. With the help of the wind, the flagpole straightened up abruptly, and the flag was unfurled. The cloth made a "crackling" sound in the air, and a large flag embroidered with the character "Xie" instantly came into everyone's view.

Looking at the flag and the figure of Lady Xie, Puheluo suddenly felt a sense of disorientation. At this moment, he felt that this ship was even more impressive than the real navy of the Great Liang.

Madam Xie's imposing presence was no less than that of the generals of Daliang, and perhaps even more formidable. This was because he had personally witnessed how the boatmen risked their lives for Madam Xie.

People are willing to risk their lives to follow her because she is worth it.

It was this same woman who stopped the owner's thirty-odd boats at this point, filling them with fear.

What kind of person is this?

Puheluo felt that the closer he got to Madam Xie, the less he could see clearly.

But he was certain that from then on, as long as Madam Xie asked him to, he would not dare to refuse unless she asked him to betray Sanfoqi.

……

"Fifth Manager, that doesn't seem to be a government warship, it's...it's a Xie family merchant ship."

The fifth manager was reminded and immediately looked over. The flag on the large ship was unfurled, and the character "Xie" embroidered on it looked particularly imposing in the sunlight.

"Fifth Manager, have we been scammed? If it's a merchant ship...we..."

The fifth manager was stunned for a moment, then came to his senses and shouted, "Retreat! Retreat...!"

Upon hearing this, his subordinates dared not delay any longer and immediately went to give the order.

"Fifth Manager...why..."

Those around the fifth shopkeeper couldn't help but ask a question.

If it were a Xie family merchant ship, they might still have a chance. Why did the manager insist on leaving?
"We've already seen the tide turning against us, why are you suddenly raising your banner?" the Fifth Manager said. "Haven't you thought about that?"

The subordinate was taken aback: "Could it be that they deliberately tried to lure us into a trap?"

The fifth manager nodded: "They're afraid we'll run away." If they truly believed that the Xie family's merchant ships might risk staying to continue the fight, that's exactly the outcome they wanted.

"Otherwise, they wouldn't have disguised themselves as a merchant ship and hidden here to catch us off guard."

Once the fifth manager said that, his subordinates understood.

The imperial navy's intention was clearly to leave them all here.

As the two men were talking, another firearm was thrown at them, and the fifth manager hurriedly dodged. They were busy escaping and were in a vulnerable position, having no time to deal with the attack, so they were immediately hit squarely.

The other ships were in a similar situation. After the battle, everyone's ships had suffered losses, and most of the crew had gone to the oarsmen, which made them vulnerable to attack.

The fifth manager hid in the corner, his eyes red as if they were about to bleed. Even if they hadn't been fooled, their hasty escape would still cause great damage, at least half of their ships would be lost.

A dense whistling sound swept overhead, and the firearms were being thrown even more frequently than before.

It was indeed a trap. The Fifth Manager was thankful he hadn't fallen for it. Now, his task was to send back the news that the Liang navy was disguised as merchants. The court's aim was to deal with his employer; he couldn't let his employer be schemed against like him. The two fleets clashed on the sea for a long time before the Fifth Manager finally escaped with a dozen or so ships. Guo Xiong led his men to clean up the mess, leaving a bloody stain on the sea and dragging over a hundred people out of the oars.

After binding these people, Guo Xiong turned to search for the surviving wounded at sea. He saw that his brother's ship was on fire, but he didn't know what had happened to his brother.

However, when he went to check, he found that his own fleet had already started rescuing people, pulling many people out of the sea one after another, and carrying several people off the burning ships.

Guo Xiong rushed to inquire about the situation but found no trace of Guo Chuan.

"Don't rush," someone whispered, "We have so many boats, maybe they're on another one."

The battle was won, but many were lost. As the bodies were carried out one by one, everyone felt extremely heavy-hearted.

Guo Xiong went from boat to boat but still couldn't find Guo Chuan. Then, with red eyes, he jumped onto Xie Yuyan's large boat and whispered, "The remaining boats have already escaped far away. Should we follow them?"

If we don't catch up, it might be too late.

After all, we still have to deal with our employer later.

“Several ships were badly damaged, but fortunately the ones they left behind are usable,” Guo Xiong said, trying to keep his composure. “We can pack up and continue our journey within half an hour.”

They still needed to go to the island to retrieve the military supplies that had been placed there in advance, and there were many other things to prepare. Guo Xiong's mind was suddenly filled with these thoughts, and he dared not think about his younger brother, Guo Chuan.

“No rush,” Xie Yuyan said, looking at Guo Xiong. “They’ve already taken the message back. Let’s find someone before we leave.”

Guo Xiong's nose suddenly stung with tears. He wanted to say something, but his throat felt blocked. He took a deep breath and calmed down before realizing that Su Man and the others who were by Madam's side were gone.

These guards were always by Madam Xie's side; their absence now could only be due to Madam Xie's forceful orders to do things.

A sound came from the sea, and someone floated to the surface, but they couldn't be pulled out.

Guo Xiong knew in his heart that if he really fell into the sea... so much time had passed, there was little chance of survival.

"There's one more."

Someone on another boat shouted, and then people were brought aboard.

Guo Xiong saw that face; it was his younger brother, Guo Chuan.

As soon as Guo Chuan was brought aboard the ship, someone immediately came forward to check on him. Guo Xiong kept a close eye on him, afraid that bad news would come. Finally, as he boarded the ship and approached, a faint sound was heard.

Guo Chuan opened his eyes, his gaze unfocused, and it took him a long time to truly come to his senses.

"Second brother," Guo Xiong's voice came.

Guo Chuan looked over and smiled. Guo Xiong had just breathed a sigh of relief when his gaze fell on Guo Chuan's arm. His left hand was burned black, and his fingers were twisted strangely, clearly indicating that he had suffered a serious injury.

"It's alright, it's alright," Guo Xiong tried to comfort his younger brother. "Let the doctor give you a proper check-up, you'll definitely get better..."

“It’s alright,” Guo Chuan said, more open-minded than Guo Xiong. “My second aunt knows, she won’t look down on me.”

Despite the horrific scene, the two brothers laughed.

Because they felt they were already very lucky, at least they were still alive to see each other again.

"Don't worry, I'll avenge you."

When Guo Xiong said this, the people around him echoed, "Yes, revenge."

"revenge!"

……

Su Man searched the area around the sea and inside the damaged ships again to make sure no one was left behind before the fleet moved on.

Xie Yuyan said, "We need to get the injured people ashore to recover; we can't stay too long."

Su Man responded.

Xie Yuyan and Abbess Jingyuan entered the cabin, picked up a cup of hot tea, took a sip, and calculated the situation on the shore. Sun Yuan should have already discovered something.

The final battle is about to begin, and she will finally be able to meet her master who has been hiding in the shadows.

(End of this chapter)