Daqin Zhentiansi

Chapter 597 The sea is open to all rivers
Outside the city of Donghan County, at the Jiuchuan River wharf.

The river breeze, carrying the damp, fishy smell, wafted towards us.

Li Cheng stood on the mottled bluestone steps of the Jiuchuan River wharf, with a long line of grain transport boats behind him bobbing in the turbid waves.

Several shirtless gang members tossed the last few bags of grain onto the pier, the thick hemp ropes leaving bloody marks on their palms.

"Chief, are we really going to move our headquarters to this godforsaken place?" The bearded man wiped his sweat, a two-foot-long fish-scale patterned saber unique to the Yun Cang River wrapped around his waist. "Thirty-six water fortresses on the Yun Cang River, the brothers have been saving up for twenty years."

His words revealed resentment and disappointment.

Not only him, but most of the other people around him had similar expressions.

On the Yuncang River, their Changyun Gang was quite a force to be reckoned with, with hundreds of thousands of members.

The businesses they run, the riverside fortresses, and the docks, are all the result of a generation's hard work.

Now that they've given up for no reason, who wouldn't feel it's a pity?

However, the gang leader Li Cheng's cultivation level is here, and the Changyuan Gang relies on Li Cheng for support.

No one could or dared to oppose Li Cheng's decision.

"Boss, how about we—" another gang member spoke up, but before he could finish, the wooden planks of the pier suddenly trembled.

A dozen or so local river workers dressed in indigo short-sleeved shirts kicked over grain sacks. The scarred man leading the group had a blue-eyed crow perched on his shoulder. He stepped on the rolling rice sack and said, "Where did this outsider come from? It's the rule in Jiuchuan River that newcomers have to kowtow three times to Third Master!"

The members of the Changyun Gang drew their weapons with a clatter, the blades gleaming with a cold light like river water in the twilight.

Li Cheng caught a glimpse of the gleaming sticks reflected in the distant reeds and reached out to stop the deputy gang leader from drawing his sword: "Brother, the Changyun Gang is just trying to make a living..."

"Begging?" The scarred man suddenly lifted his shirt, revealing a bronze plaque with the character "Cao" embossed on it at his waist. "Do you know what the Jiuchuan River's surname is?"

Behind him, the river workers chuckled and raised their iron hooks, their cold gleam pressing against the throats of the Changyun gang members: "Thirty percent of the water will be pumped each month, not a single grain of rice less—"

A golden light flashed in Li Cheng's pupils, and the dragon-elephant aura made the bronze plaque vibrate.

The scarred man staggered backward, the blue-eyed crows ruffled their feathers and screeched, and suddenly a wave ten feet high rose up on the river.

Hundreds of men wielding harpoons rushed out from the reeds in the distance, but the waves crashed and shattered just three feet away from Li Cheng.

"The eastern border under the rule of Marquis Qingyang cannot tolerate bullying and monopolistic practices." Li Cheng's palm condensed into a vortex of qi, turning the waves into a shimmering water dragon. "Please make way, the Changyun Gang will follow the rules..."

"Rules?" the scarred man suddenly yelled, "Outside Jiang gangs are committing violence in the street!"

A crimson flame shot up from his sleeve, instantly illuminating the dock with torches.

Dozens of men wearing red turbans rushed out from behind the pile of goods. The old man in the lead crackled with the sound of his abacus: "This is the territory of the Thirteen Linked Forts of the Nine Rivers. Who gave you the right to run wild here?"

The members of the Changyun Gang were forced to the bow of the boat, and the grain sacks, soaked by the waves, were seeping with murky water stains.

The river breeze, carrying a damp, fishy smell, swept across the dock, and the bluestone steps beneath Li Cheng's feet shattered silently.

The aura of the Dragon-Elephant Realm rose from his body, condensing into a three-zhang-long crimson elephant phantom in the twilight, its long trunk causing the cargo containers to rattle as it moved.

The scarred man who had been shouting earlier staggered backward and sat down hard on the pier.

"Under the rule of Marquis Qingyang, are you allowed to exploit me to the bone?" A vortex of qi suddenly appeared in Li Cheng's palm, capturing the green-eyed crow and crushing it into a blood mist.

Behind them, the Changyun Gang members' blades clashed, and hundreds of water columns exploded on the river surface.

"Rebellion!" the old man in the red turban shouted, but suddenly the sound of horses' hooves, like muffled thunder, echoed from the reeds.

Three hundred black-clad cavalrymen, their armor gleaming in the setting sun, charged forward, their hooves pounding the cobblestones like the roaring waves of a great river. The vanguard general wore a black iron mask adorned with mythical beast patterns, and the "Martial" banner hanging beside his saddle fluttered wildly in the wind.

"The Marquis's personal guards!" The local gang members were overjoyed and quickly dropped their harpoons and knelt down.

The scarred man leading the group trembled as he gripped the bronze plaque in his hand: "Sir! We are river workers recruited by the canal transport office. These...these outsiders are trying to steal our jobs, and they're even...they're committing violence in the street..."

The faces of Li Cheng's gang members behind him were ashen.

Li Cheng clenched his fists, his expression solemn.

When Chen Wu reined in his horse, the horse reared up, its iron hooves, as big as bowls, hovering half an inch above the old man's head.

The voice emanating from beneath the mask carried a chilling metallic clang: "According to the records of the Grand Canal Transport Office, 700 shi of disaster relief grain were embezzled by the Thirteen Linked Forts last month."

With a flick of his whip, the black-clad riders simultaneously unleashed their standard crossbow bolts, the cold iron arrowheads forming a galaxy in the twilight.

The smiles on the faces of the local river workers froze.

Chen Wu removed his face armor, his face, angular from the river wind, turned to the Changyun Gang's awning boat, his gaze lingering on the brand-new banner that read "Carving Mountains to Connect the Sea" on the bow: "Which one of you is Gang Leader Li Cheng?"

The river breeze suddenly froze, and the members of the Changyun Gang were all stunned.

This guard of the Marquis of Qingyang actually called out the name of the leader of the Changyuan Gang?

Under the astonished gazes of the local gang members, Li Cheng stepped forward three times, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "This humble subject, Li Cheng, pays his respects to the General."

"The naval camp has vacated the warehouse on the east bank." Chen Wu threw out his black iron token and nailed it to the awning boat, startling several egrets.

"The Marquis ordered that the brothers from Beijiang be allowed to try the Jiuchuan Silver Fish Soup." Behind him, his personal guards carried in twenty earthenware jars sealed with the character "官" (official). When the jars were opened, the aroma of rice overpowered the fishy smell of the river.

The scarred man, who had just been so tense, trembled and immediately knelt down, crying out, "We were blind! We beg you, General..."

"The river management office is short of three thousand laborers to transport sand and gravel." Chen Wu's whip cracked through the air, creating waves three zhang away, startling the old man in the red turban who dropped his abacus beads to the ground.

"Tomorrow at dawn, go to the river administration office to sign the document—" He looked down at the trembling local gang members and suddenly chuckled: "The Marquis asked me to pass on a message: the Jiuchuan River can accommodate ten thousand boats racing, but it cannot accommodate even half a rat on a worm-eaten boat."

The members of the Long Transport Gang stared blankly as the hundred-man team that the Black Riders had split off from helped them tie the mooring ropes. Several young gang members hurried forward to help moor the boats.

As dusk fell, a long horn suddenly sounded from the Jiuchuan River, and twenty official boats flying the "Cao" flag were breaking through the waves. At the bow of the boats stood a foreman in a scholar's robe and a swordsman from the Jianghu.

"No wonder our leader came to Donghan County. It turns out he had already made contact with Marquis Qingyang."

"That's right. Our leader has been to the capital. You tell me, it's no big deal that our leader would be willing to come to Donghan County?"

"What's wrong? Our leader is at the Dragon Elephant Realm. How many people in Yun Cang River can match that? Of course, Marquis Qingyang values ​​him. Perhaps, he might even..."

The members of the Changyun Gang, who had initially been panicked and helpless, were now showing joy and anticipation.

They began to dream that perhaps they could really live a good life in Donghan County.
Li Cheng gazed at the faint outlines of the warships on the river, then looked at the county town not far away, a smile spreading across his face.

The sea is open to all rivers.

The charisma of the Marquis of Qingyang was on full display at this moment.

Li Cheng made the right bet!
"My lord, I will accompany you to see the Marquis." Li Cheng said with a smile, bowing slightly.

Chen Wu nodded, gestured for a soldier to bring a horse, and led Li Cheng straight to the prefectural governor's mansion.

(End of this chapter)