The Black Sails of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 80 Brown Sugar Ginger Water
Lin Qian didn't care whether Li Kuiqi lived or died; his eyes were fixed on the torch.

The torch landed on the stern deck floor, and a burst of sparks suddenly erupted around it.

Lin Qian's pupils contracted.

At this moment, Bai Qing leaped off the gunwale and dived into the water like a fish.

Lin Qian shouted, "Stop her!"

Bai Langzai threw down his weapon and leaped into the water.

Neither of them resurfaced.

"boom!"

Li Kuiqi's ship suddenly exploded with a loud bang, and the stern of the ship burst open, bursting into flames.

Amidst the smoke and dust, countless silver sparks splashed into the surrounding sea, accompanied by the sound of pebbles falling into the water.

"Ding Dong! Ding Dong!"

Several silver specks also fell onto the deck of the St. Anna, creating several small dents. Everyone gathered around to take a closer look.

They were all newly minted ten-tael horseshoe-shaped silver coins.

At the stern of the ship, several boxes of silver ingots cascaded into the water like a waterfall.

Lin Qian looked around at the sea but couldn't see the siblings.

Just as I was getting anxious, I suddenly saw two heads emerge from the sea beside the boat.

The crew quickly lowered the rope ladder, and the siblings climbed up.

Bai Qing walked up to Lin Qian and said apologetically, "Captain, I was too late and failed to save the ship."

"Who told you to jump down!" Lin Qian kicked him.

Then he yelled, "White Wave Boy, come here!"

Bai Langzai stepped forward, but Lin Qian kicked him to the ground.

"Keep a close eye on your sister from now on. If she acts on her own again, I'll whip you!"

Bai Langzai got up and agreed, feeling a warm current flowing through his heart despite having been kicked.

Looking at the silver waterfall, Chen Jiao asked, "Captain, what should we do with all that silver?"

Lin Qian asked Bai Qing, "How deep is the water?"

Bai Qing was taken aback, then said in a hoarse voice, "About ten zhang..."

Lin Qian did the math in her head and realized it was equivalent to more than 30 meters, which was the limit for the Pearl River divers. Sending people to retrieve it was risking their lives for money.

The lives of his men are not so cheap.

Lin Qian then said softly, "Never mind, I don't want it."

“Captain…” Bai Qing felt a jolt in his chest and looked at Lin Qian in disbelief.

The one underwater is worth tens of thousands of taels of silver, equivalent to nearly a hundred top-quality South Sea pearls!

Having spent most of her life seeing high-ranking officials and eunuchs, no one could resist this temptation.

Lin Qian was the only person she had ever met who put the lives of the people of Zhumin before the pearls.

At Naozhou Pearl Field, she personally heard Lin Qian make a solemn oath to Mazu and the Third Granny.

Those bold words, "No more forced labor, no more lowly status, no more distinction between Tanka people and shore people," still echo in her ears.

Having witnessed so much treachery and deception, and so many instances of betraying friends for personal gain, she only half-believed these words.

She worked desperately to complete the task assigned by Lin Qian, even risking being blown up to jump into the sea to save the ship.

It was actually just to repay a debt of gratitude.

Lin Qian helped her and her brother avenge their mother's death.

Bai Qing accepted this kindness in his heart and felt that he would repay it even if it cost him his life.

Even if Lin Qian had just sent Zhu Min to sea to make money, she wouldn't have even flinched.

But Lin Qian simply said, "Never mind."

If the eunuch at the pearl market had said "that's enough," her mother wouldn't have died.

If the imperial court had simply said "that's enough," her father, her other brothers and sisters, and countless Tanka and Pearl people would not have died.

Thinking of this, Bai Qing felt her eyes burning, and her chest felt like it was blocked, unable to utter a sound. She could only stammer, "Master, I..."

The sound was so faint it was barely audible to Lin Qian. Lin Qian used her binoculars to look at the distant ship; the heavy rain had extinguished the flames on board, and the sea was filled with the acrid smell of burning charcoal.

In fact, the ship did not carry much gunpowder. Only the sterncastle was severely damaged, while the cargo hold was not badly damaged. Thanks to the watertight compartment design, the ship would not sink anytime soon.

Lin Qian estimated that there were still more than 20,000 taels left, and Li Kuiqi's head was also of some value. So she sent a crew member in a small boat to move the silver, cut off Li Kuiqi's head, and take the ghost-headed broadsword.

As for the silver at the bottom of the sea, Lin Qian said she didn't want it, but in reality, she would still send a ship with a trawl net to salvage it when she had time. After all, even a mosquito's leg is still meat.

But for now, compared to these trivial matters, there are still real treasures waiting for him in the lagoon.

Those were the remaining fifty-odd ships in Li Kuiqi's fleet.

The pirates on these ships had lost all morale and were drifting aimlessly through the lagoon like headless flies.

If they were in open sea, they could have scattered and fled.

Unfortunately, the surrounding coral reefs became a prison for these ships.

The only exit is behind the Santa Ana.

Lin Qian ordered the ship to anchor in front of the exit channel, and then everyone went into the cabin to take shelter from the rain, leaving only a few observation posts on the deck.

When the pirates in the lagoon are exhausted and utterly desperate, they will naturally come to surrender.

Lin Qian had already observed that Li Kuiqi's fleet mainly consisted of three types of ships: Haicang ships, Cangshan ships, and bird ships.

A Haicang boat costs nearly 1,000 taels, a Cangshan boat costs nearly 600 taels, and a bird boat costs 200 taels.

This is just the construction cost; the selling price is even more astonishingly high.

Moreover, the construction cycle of Ming Dynasty ships was extremely long. The Haicang ship took nearly ten months to build, and the Cangshan ship took five or six months. Shipwrights, lumberjacks, and timber were also needed, as well as shipyards and docks.

Capturing these fifty ships directly would save an immeasurable amount of time and trouble.

All things considered, this campaign to eliminate Li Kuiqi only resulted in the loss of 10,000 taels of firearms, gunpowder, and cannonballs, making it a huge profit!

Thinking of this, Lin Qian put away her binoculars and prepared to return to the cabin with the others.

As soon as I turned around, I saw Bai Qing and her brother still standing in the rain.

Lin Qian asked, somewhat puzzled, "Why didn't you go back to your cabin to avoid the rain?"

Bai Qing: "Captain, I..."

Lin Qian was puzzled. Bai Qing was usually more straightforward than a man in his speech and actions, so why was he being so hesitant today?

However, the overall situation is now settled, so we can talk things out slowly.

Lin Qian waved her hand and said as she walked, "Let's go back to the cabin first, dry ourselves off, and talk about it when it's time to eat. Bai Langzai, tell Uncle Chen to cook rice and make some brown sugar ginger water."

After saying this, Lin Qian walked down the stern deck and pushed open the door to the captain's cabin.

Only after closing the door to keep out the wind and waves did I realize how cold I felt.

The autumn rains are now chilly; it's not the season for taking a bath in the rain.

Lin Qian changed out of her soaked clothes, dried herself with a towel, put on dry clothes, and lay down on the walnut wood double four-poster bed.

After lying down for a while, someone knocked on the captain's cabin door.

"Come in." Lin Qian sat up from the bed.

A crew member came in carrying a food box, placed it on the table, and opened it. Inside was a bowl of steaming brown sugar ginger water.

The crew member brought out the brown sugar ginger water and placed it on the table, saying, "Uncle Chen has cooked a pot and asked me to bring it to the captain and the managers first."

"Thank you."

After the crew member left, Lin Qian carried the brown sugar ginger water to the window.

Outside the window, a torrential downpour was in full swing, with rainwater trickling down the windowpane in small streams. The sky and the sea were a dark gray, and occasional rumbles of thunder could be heard.

He felt refreshed and comfortable, and the aroma of brown sugar ginger water filled him with a sense of ease.

Lin Qian blew away the steam from the brown sugar ginger water, took a sip, and found it sweet, hot, and spicy. After swallowing, a warm current flowed into her stomach, and she felt warm all over.

Lin Qian moved closer to the window and observed the sea near the ship. She saw that the waves were only about a meter high, and the St. Anna was only rocking slightly.

With the current wind force, the waves in the open sea should be between two and three meters high.

Coral atolls are indeed incredibly resilient to wind and waves; no wonder a ship city could be built in the lagoon.

Lin Qian looked into the distance again and saw that most of the ship city fragments had sunk, with only a few scattered parts floating on the sea.

In the distance, one could still see the silhouettes of Li Kuiqi's fleet scattering across the sea.

(End of this chapter)