The Black Sails of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 43 Hostages
"Bullshit!" one of the boatmen couldn't help but curse. "I was right next to you at the time, and I heard that woman begging for mercy with my own ears. Her voice was hoarse from shouting."

Iron Palm Zhou retorted sarcastically, "You're the one talking nonsense. You think you're so innocent? If you really heard it, why didn't you come and stop it?"

"I..." The boatman was speechless for a moment and stopped talking.

It seems this wound medicine is indeed effective. Iron Palm Zhou was half-dead just moments ago, but after applying the medicine, he was immediately able to argue with people again.

The boatman was applying medicine to the drunkard, Lü.

Lei Sanxiang said to him, "Don't blame me for being ruthless. If I spare you today, I'll have to spare him tomorrow, and people's hearts will be scattered."

As the drunkard Lu Zheng applied the medicine, his face flushed red with pain and sweat pouring down his forehead, he managed to squeeze out a voice from his throat: "This time... I was wrong... I accept the punishment."

One of the boatmen, unable to bear the sight, told them about how the drunkard Lü had been forced to drink by a girl.

Lei Sanxiang laughed heartily upon hearing this.

"Hahahaha... I knew it! No matter how much you love drinking, how could you just drink and not do anything proper when you go to a place like that? So that's how it is! If you have to blame someone, it's because you're too green. Next time you go to a place like that, I'll take you myself, and I'll make sure you get your revenge on the girls for what you suffered today!"

Drunkard Lu was young after all. Hearing these words, which sounded like those of an older brother, his eyes reddened and tears fell. He cried out all the humiliation of being a virgin after leaving the pleasure boat, the grievance of being whipped, the pain in his body, and the bitterness in his heart.

Once she started crying, she couldn't stop; the more she cried, the louder she became.

Lei Sanxiang roared, "You brat, stop crying! Crying over such a small thing, you're not like a man of the sea!"

"Yes." Drunken Cat Lü responded, quickly shutting his mouth, but his body was twitching and he couldn't stop sobbing.

After being moved to tears by the drunkard Lü, the boatmen's goodwill towards Lei Sanxiang increased significantly.

After the medicine was applied, Drunkard Lü also clearly regained his energy and quickly said, "Brother Lei, thank you for bringing the medicine."

Lei Sanxiang laughed and said, "You're not so bad after all. But don't thank me, the medicine was given by the captain, so thank the captain if you want to thank someone."

Drunkard Lu added, "Thank you, Captain."

"Hmm." Lei San responded, then shifted his gaze to Iron Palm Zhou.

He caught Lei Sanxiang's gaze and quickly said, "Thank you, Captain Lei, thank you, Captain Lei."

"If you're alright, get some rest. You two can do less work until you're fully recovered. Taking care of your health is the most important thing."

After Lei Sanxiang finished speaking, he turned and walked towards the stern deck to return to his cabin.

Iron Palm Zhou stared venomously at Lei Sanxiang's back, lost in thought.

That night, Lei Sanxiang used the excuse of urinating to call out several crew members who knew Tie Zhang Zhou. While urinating, he subtly asked Tie Zhang Zhou a few questions.

Several crew members were drowsy and unsuspecting of Lei Sanxiang, so they all spoke their minds.

After relieving himself of the water, Lei Sanxiang yawned and chatted with them about women returning to their cabins, seemingly just having casual conversation.

……

In the following days, no one was late for roll call.

Many people even arrived on the deck at dawn to wait.

The boatmen now showed more respect for the officers, unlike before when they treated the pirates as brothers and were all smiles and friendly.

After all this ordeal, the boatmen finally internalized the importance of obeying their superiors and following orders.

With the daily supply of meat, eggs, vegetables, and rice provided by the gods, the boatmen gave up any thought of escaping from the ship.

At least, they won't fall apart in the next few months.

Lin Qian's three major plans are expected to be realized in just two months.

If all goes well, in two months he will have the money, manpower, and territory, which will lay a solid foundation for his future great undertaking.

Of course, the first thing needed to accomplish all this is money.

With the meager surplus in the public accounts, they struggled to make ends meet in casting cannons, building ships, recruiting soldiers, and developing Nan'ao.

Therefore, the key to the problem lies with José's "member of parliament friend".

Five or six days have passed since Zheng Zhilong boarded the ship last time.

I haven't received a reply yet.

The people on the ship, especially José, were becoming somewhat anxious. He repeatedly suggested to Lin Qian that he write a letter to inquire about the situation.

Lin Qian remained calm, knowing that the councilor's actions were simply because he felt the price was too high and wanted to delay further to force Lin Qian to lower the price.

Once they write to inquire, they've given themselves away, letting the other party know they're eager to sell, which will lead to even more aggressive price negotiation.

The ship was carrying goods worth hundreds of thousands of taels of silver. It was impossible for the Macau legislators not to be anxious. It was simply a contest to see who would collapse first.

That morning, roll call had just finished on the ship.

The lookout reports that a small sluice-masted boat has appeared on the sea to the north.

Judging from the shape of the ship, it should be the same one that Zheng Zhilong rode on when he came before.

Upon seeing this, José and the others on the ship became very excited.

Lin Qian put away her binoculars and said, "Notify the entire ship to prepare for departure."

Everyone was used to following Lin Qian's orders, and even if they didn't understand why she was doing it, they still carried them out meticulously.

First Mate Chen Jiao shouted, "Prepare to weigh anchor! Everyone, get moving!"

Lei Sanxiang rushed down to the gun deck and shouted, "Everyone on deck, prepare to weigh anchor!"

The boatmen swarmed onto the deck and headed to their respective posts.

Soon, more than twenty people had gathered at the winch on the foredeck of the large sailing ship. They shouted in unison and worked together to turn the winch, and the anchor chain slowly tightened.

When Zheng Zhilong boarded the ship, he saw this bustling and busy scene.

Lin Qian only brought Bai Langzai to greet them.

After exchanging greetings...

Zheng Zhilong looked at the deck and asked, "Brother Lin, are you preparing to set sail?"

"Exactly."

Zheng Zhilong was surprised, but maintained a calm expression: "Brother Lin is no longer doing business with the councilor?"

Lin Qian feigned surprise: "What makes you say that? Didn't the councilor not want this deal?"

Zheng Zhilong said urgently, "How could that be? I came here today to deliver a message. Please, Brother Lin, slow down your journey and read the letter first."

Lin Qian sighed and rubbed her forehead, saying, "Oh dear, it's all my fault! I waited for so long without receiving a reply, and I thought the deal had fallen through. So I had to negotiate with a merchant surnamed Li in the north. Today was the day I was supposed to deliver the goods. What a huge blunder!"

Lin Qian's eyes were full of sincerity: "I am also a person of integrity. Since the agreement has already been reached, it is not good to change it. Brother Yi Guan, please go back."

Zheng Zhilong kept glancing at the winch, his eyes filled with anxiety. He said, "Brother Lin, let's stop the winch first. Why don't you take a look at the councilor's reply?"

Zheng Zhilong had no idea that a ship of this size would take nearly half an hour to retract its winch, and it had only been turning for a few moments; it was still a long way from setting sail.

Lin Qian chuckled inwardly, but outwardly she pretended to hesitate before telling her subordinate, "Tell Ikari to stop for a while."

"Stop!" Lei Sanxiang had been closely monitoring the situation and immediately ordered the anchorman to stop, and the winch to cease rotation.

Zheng Zhilong visibly breathed a sigh of relief, then cupped his hands to Lin Qian and said, "Thank you, Brother Lin."

He dared not delay and immediately took the letter from his pocket and handed it to Lin Qian.

"This is a handwritten note from the councilor. Please take a look, Brother Lin."

Lin Qian took the letter, checked that the sealing wax was intact, and then opened it. She was quite surprised at first glance that the letter was written in Spanish.

Although Portuguese and Spanish have similarities, they are not the same language.

When this congressman writes a letter to Lin Qian, he can choose to write in Chinese, which he can understand, or in Portuguese, which Zheng Zhilong can translate.

It was written in Spanish, seemingly to guard against Zheng Zhilong, the messenger.

Lin Qian looked down and, sure enough, it was true.

In the letter, the councilor expressed his desire to meet with Lin Qian at the Yuehai Tower in Guangzhou, on the tenth day of the seventh lunar month, five days later.

To show that he meant no harm, the councilor thoughtfully sent Zheng Zhilong to Lin Qian as a hostage.

(End of this chapter)