Red Mansion: Seizing Jiangdong, starting with pirates

Chapter 9, Calling Friends

"Yong Wazi, no, Uncle Yong, you are not kidding? You really think so."

Fang Yong nodded and said softly:

"Of course, I keep my word. I have absolutely no intention of hurting anyone this time. I just want to ask Master Fang to support me with some money. As long as you give me the money, I promise not to bother you again."

Mrs. Fang was overjoyed when she heard this and said:
"There's money, there's money."

If Fang Yong had let her go without asking for anything, she would have felt uneasy. But now that Fang Yong wanted money, she felt relieved.

Mrs. Fang quickly took Fang Yong to the place where Mr. Fang hid the money.

Mr. Fang fled to the city and took away most of the money.

But the other party was in a hurry after all, and the Fang family had accumulated a lot of wealth over a hundred years, so there was still a lot of surplus that they were unable to take away.

Fang Yong led his men to take inventory and found that what was left were more than 800 taels of silver, a box of silk, some jade and pearls of average quality, six or seven good swords, and some porcelain and bowls of unknown value.

As for the most precious items such as gold bars and silver notes, they have disappeared.

After a brief thought, Fang Yong asked someone to take away the swords, knives and silks, and counted out eight hundred taels of silver to take away, while the rest remained untouched.

Then Fang Yong said to Mrs. Fang:

"Aunt, I, Fang Yong, always follow the rules. I only take what I need. These are enough. I won't touch the rest. I apologize for bothering you today!"

As he said that, Fang Yong clasped his fists and bowed slightly to Madam Fang, then waved his hand and retreated!
Only Mrs. Fang and the servants were left looking at each other in bewilderment. They really survived! And the other party had not taken away all their property!
Really, I met such a rare fool in the world!

Madam Fang was extremely proud. She said happily, "Go, Laishun, go to the city to call the master and tell him that the pirates have been dealt with by me!"

On the way back, Ma Laohei asked Fang Yong:

"Third Master, are you just going to let this matter go?"

Fang Yong shook his head and said:
"What's the point of making things difficult for a few old, weak, women and children? I did this on purpose to earn some money from Mr. Fang. We can take action later!"

Upon hearing this, Ma Laohei gave a thumbs up and said:
"Third boss, great!"

Fang Yong laughed.

When the group returned to the boat with their belongings, Fang Yong asked Ma Laohei in front of everyone:
"Old Ma, I'm new here and I don't know the rules of our village. May I ask how we should distribute the money we got according to the custom of our village?"

Upon hearing this, Ma Laohei explained to Fang Yong:

"Third boss, we don't have many rules in our village. Generally speaking, half of the spoils we get from going out belong to the public, and the other half is divided among ourselves. You are the third boss, so you take 30%, I take 10%, and the brothers take 10%."

Fang Yong nodded and said:
"In this case, I can't break the rules, so I'll just distribute it according to the convention."

Everyone was delighted when they heard this and divided the money together.

The twenty brothers, including two boat watchers, each received four taels of silver.

As the small commander, Ma Laohei received eighty taels.

Fang Yong got 240 taels.

Everyone was happy and there was no dissatisfaction.

Four taels of silver is not a small amount of money. An ordinary family may not be able to save two taels of silver even if they live frugally for a year. These four taels of silver are definitely a considerable amount of money for these ordinary bandits.

What's more, they didn't even contribute much in this trip, Fang Yong conquered Mr. Fang's house all by himself. It was like they picked up the money for free, how could they not be happy!
Ma Laohei's face was full of smiles.

He selected the best sword from the several swords he had robbed, presented it to Fang Yong, and said:

"Third brother, a good man deserves a good sword. Your skills are the most powerful that I, Ma Laohei, have ever seen in my life. Even this sword is definitely not worthy of you. Unfortunately, there is nothing better now. Please keep this one for now. I will definitely get you a sword that is worthy of you in the future!"

Fang Yong keenly noticed the change in the other party's address. Was this an acknowledgement of him?

After he showed his strength in front of the other party before, the other party did not immediately change his address. Instead, after he divided the money according to the rules, the other party's address instantly changed from Third in Command to Third Brother.

Although Ma Laohei may seem simple and mediocre, he is actually a wonderful person.

Fang Yong laughed loudly, took the knife, and said loudly:

"Okay, it's a deal!"

"A word is settled!"

Under the moonlight, two covered boats were gliding on the water, and the hearty laughter of the men could be heard from the boats.

Fang Yong thus began his career as a pirate.

Since he started out as the third in command, Fang Yong did not need to do too many trivial tasks in the water fort and had plenty of free time every day.

Gan Ba often trained soldiers in the military training grounds, teaching the bandits martial arts, battle formations and other skills. Fang Yong was a complete layman in this area, so he did not shy away from asking Gan Ba for advice.

Gan Ba also admired Fang Yong's humble attitude towards learning, and taught him swordsmanship, archery, and some knowledge about marching and fighting.

[Talent: Sword Skills (Beginner)]

【Progress: 1/10】

【Effect: Draw the sword and cut hundreds of times without losing your mind.】

[Talent: Archery (beginner)]

【Progress: 1/10】

【Effect: Draw the bow and shoot an arrow, which will penetrate three inches into the wood. 】

The talents for swordsmanship and archery were successfully awakened, but the talent for marching and fighting was not awakened. Fang Yong guessed that it might be because the talent for marching and fighting had high requirements, and he had learned too little so far and had not yet reached the conditions for awakening.

In the following time, Fang Yong consulted Gan Ba while practicing swordsmanship and archery.

Of course, he did not forget to practice water skills. These two things were not contradictory to him. He could practice sword or archery in the water.

[Talent: Water (Mastery)]

【Progress: 42/1000】

[Effect: Cross the river and ride the waves to sail. ]

Time passed slowly. During this time, no one knew who leaked the news, but the rumor about Fang Yong's abilities inadvertently spread in the village.

For example, he kicked a big locust tree in half with one kick, and lifted the tree to knock down the gatehouse. The rumors became more and more exaggerated. Some people said that he was the incarnation of Tai Sui God, while others said that he was the reincarnation of Ju Ling God.

Following this rumor, many brothers in the village came here to see if the third in command was as the legend said.

Fang Yong was not afraid of this either.

All his skills were acquired through his own hard work, so why should he be afraid of others watching?

In terms of archery alone, Fang Yong could be said to have gradually improved under the witness of all the villagers. It only took Fang Yong ten days to go from missing the target with his arrows at the beginning to hitting the target with every shot.

[Talent: Archery (Normal)]

【Progress: 1/100】

【Effect: The arrow can hit the target from a hundred steps away. 】

One step for each foot is called a step, and one hundred steps is roughly equivalent to one hundred and fifty meters. With such a long distance, even in the previous life, one could not guarantee to hit the target with a gun. However, Fang Yong can achieve such a goal without missing a single arrow, which is simply a miracle in this world.

The villagers in the village admired Fang Yong's martial arts very much.

Not only that, Fang Yong’s character is even more commendable.

He is even more friendly and easy-going when dealing with people, and never puts on airs.

Fang Yong treated everyone who came to see him as a brother, regardless of their status.

Fang Yong would generously invite others to drink and eat meat, ask for advice on martial arts, eat and live together, and treat each other with courtesy. If someone encountered difficulties at home, Fang Yong would even lend money to the other party to help them out.

In this era, even Ganba cannot treat people in this way.

Gan Ba even came to personally advise Fang Yong, saying that people should be distinguished by class. As the third in command, Fang Yong did not need to be too close to these lower-class villagers with mediocre abilities.

Fang Yong thought there was nothing wrong with what Gan Ba said.

In some cases, it is right to show off your status and maintain a certain distance from your subordinates.

But this is not what he should do now.

For Fang Yong now, although he has become the third in command with a higher status, he has no foundation in the village and is like a floating duckweed, drifting without support. In this case, it is useless to act like the third in command.

It would be better for him to put aside his empty airs in exchange for real support from the villagers. Once he gets enough support, the noble yellow robe will naturally be draped over him.

Fang Yong had received two hundred and forty taels of silver before. This was not a lot, but it was not a small amount either.

If he wanted to buy fine clothes, jade, precious fans, calligraphy and paintings like the boss did, even another 240 taels would not be enough.

But if it is used to call friends, drink and eat meat, and do good deeds, it can be used for a period of time.

In this way, Fang Yong's reputation gradually became known in the mountain village.

(End of this chapter)