Late Ming Dynasty: The Counterattack Begins with Sea Pirates

Chi Honghai walked out of the room and asked Ai Si and Shen Er to call Pang San and Liu Qingjiang over to him.

To keep it a secret, the group went directly out of the village and onto the riverbank.

They didn't even light a lantern or candle; they started talking by the moonlight.

"The Mid-Autumn Festival will be in three days."

"Master, are you planning to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival with everyone?" Ai Si asked.

"Shouldn't it be?"

"Yes, yes, what would you like to do, sir?"

Of course, the Mid-Autumn Festival is the most important festival since ancient times.

With the holiday approaching, I can't just stand by and do nothing, and let the holiday pass by, can I?

If possible, then we should still express our gratitude.

However, Chi Honghai's idea was not simply to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival with everyone on the island.

Holidays are important, but so is the fact that one's good wife is not yet properly married.

How can you put it? She's a rich young lady, the woman of a pirate captain. How could she be so humiliated?

Chi Honghai paced back and forth, looked up at the moon, and then finally voiced his plan.

"Shen Er, Pang San, you and Qing Jiang will come with me tomorrow with the brothers we've trained to Guangzhou Prefecture. Buy plenty of fine silks and satins, especially red ones, and candles and such. Also, go to the surrounding areas and buy some chickens, ducks, fish, pigs, and a few sheep."

"Master, I know about buying livestock, but why are you buying red silk and satin?" Pang San asked from the side.

Ai Si tapped Pang San on the head: "Idiot, didn't you hear? Master is planning to marry our lady on Mid-Autumn Festival!"

"Oh? Madam, isn't this already..."

Before Pang San could finish speaking, Ai Si tugged at Pang San's earlobe, warning him not to say the wrong thing.

After thinking for a while, Chi Honghai was still not entirely at ease, so he asked Ai Si, who was always quite thorough in his work, to go to Guangzhou Prefecture as well.

"Ai Si, you'll come along tomorrow too. You've thought things through thoroughly, so this matter will be handled by you and Shen Er."

"Yes, sir."

After giving his instructions, Chi Honghai told everyone to go back to their rooms and rest, and that they would depart for Guangzhou Prefecture early the next morning.

Back at the house, Wu Wanruo was still waiting for him. When her husband returned, she didn't ask any questions.

I only gave Chi Honghai a heads-up while he was undressing.

"If you're going out, be extra careful. I'll be waiting for you to come back."

Chi Honghai led Wu Wanruo to bed and covered her with a blanket.

This gesture touched Wu Wanruo deeply, because in this era, it was generally the woman who served the man, not the other way around.

As Chi Honghai was about to get up, Wu Wanruo grabbed his hand.

"Where are you going again?"

He replied with a smile, "I haven't washed my feet yet. I'll fetch a basin of water and wash my feet."

After listening to Chi Honghai's words, Wu Wanruo propped herself up.

"Let me do it, you've been busy all day."

Chi Honghai gently patted and pushed his wife to help her lie down again.

"You don't want me to serve you like this?" Wu Wanruo's voice was tinged with a sob. After saying this, she couldn't suppress her emotions and cried softly twice.

"Are you upset that I acted on my own initiative today?"

Upon hearing this, Chi Honghai turned around in a panic, plopped back down on the bed, and held his wife's face.

Just as Wu Wanruo opened her mouth to speak, he bent down and kissed her.

"Don't overthink it, I'll be back in a couple of days."

……

The next morning, before the sun had fully risen.

Chi Honghai then called out the four people, along with those who were training.

First, they loaded the money they needed onto the ship, then set sail and headed out.

Upon arriving near the outskirts of Guangzhou, Chi Honghai instructed Shen Er and Ai Si to take men to buy goods, and reiterated his warning to be cautious and avoid any conflict.

Although none of them had any notices posted, this was government territory, so it was best to be careful.

However, Chi Honghai soon discovered that his handsome face was not on the notice issued by the Guangzhou government.

It seems that the shameful things done in Xin'an County are simply too shameful to be brought to the table.

Chi Honghai then took Pang San and Liu Qingjiang into Guangzhou alone.

"Sir, aren't we here to buy goods? Why did everyone go with Ai Si and the others? My brother Qingjiang and I can't carry that much."

"Who told you to move things? Have you ever suffered more following me than you have?"

As he spoke, Chi Honghai inquired among the vendors in the city about where famous painters in Guangzhou had opened their studios.

After making some inquiries, they learned that there was a Tongren Hall in Guangzhou Prefecture.

The quality of his paintings is the best in the entire Guangzhou region; his skills as the head of the household are such that he can be considered a master in the area.

Chi Honghai led the two as they walked and searched, and finally arrived at the entrance of an art gallery.

As soon as I stepped inside, the waiter came to greet me.

"Sir, sir, what kind of painting are you looking to buy? Our shop has everything from flowers and birds to landscapes. You can rest assured about the quality; not only in Guangzhou, but even in the Ming Dynasty, our paintings were among the best!"

Chi Honghai smiled and walked around the museum, where a waiter greeted him.

"Sir, which painting has caught your eye?"

Master Chi shook his head: "With paintings of this quality, they probably wouldn't even rank among the best in the Ming Dynasty, would they?"

"Hey, how dare you talk like that? We're saying that..."

As he spoke, Pang San shoved him and shouted, "How dare you speak to our master like that?"

Upon seeing the burly Pang San, the waiter immediately lost his breath and was too frightened to utter a sound.

Chi Honghai raised his hand and glanced at Pang San, then stood next to the waiter, took out some silver from his pocket, and showed it to the waiter.

"Where is your master? Take me to see him, and tell him we have distinguished guests."

After saying that, he handed the silver in his hand to the waiter.

Upon receiving the silver, his attitude instantly changed. He quickly greeted them and led the three of them, including Chi Honghai, to sit in the tea room, where he respectfully poured them tea.

"Sir, please wait a moment, I'll go inform our master right away, just a moment, just a moment!"

Not long after, Xiao Er returned and informed Chi Honghai.

"Sir, our master invites you to come with me."

Chi Honghai followed the waiter up to the second floor of the museum. As he climbed the stairs, he looked down and realized that the paintings that were originally on the ground floor were no longer visible. All he could see were the framed paintings on the walls of the second floor.

The paintings on the second floor are indeed of a much higher quality than those on the bottom floor.

The waiter led Chi Honghai to the door and knocked three times.

"Knock knock knock," "Master, the guests have arrived."

"Come in."

Chi Honghai told Pang San to wait outside, and then led Liu Qingjiang inside.

"You have a discerning eye, esteemed guest. May I ask what kind of paintings you would like to see?"

"To be honest, sir, I don't like any of the paintings on display in your museum."

After saying this, the head of the household turned slightly pale, but he also became somewhat interested.

"You're quite direct, esteemed guest. I presume you're not here to cause trouble for me, Mr. Li?"

"Hehe, you flatter me, sir. I don't have that skill, nor that interest. I inquired in Guangzhou and everyone said that the head of Tongren Hall is a master in his field, so I came to pay him a visit. I've come to ask him to paint a few pictures for me."

"I'm afraid my distinguished guest would find it difficult to accept my painting request."

"Name your price. We need a price to discuss things, right?"

"The head of the household extends his hand—minimum 50 taels."

"I'll give you one hundred taels!"

The man looked at Chi Honghai, not believing his ears for a moment. After all, who would raise their price when negotiating a deal?

It doesn't matter if it's not too big; this lift will double the amount.

He immediately greeted her with a smile, picked up a teacup, and poured tea.

"However, I'll have to trouble Manager Li to come to my place for a few days to paint. Don't worry about food and lodging, I'll take care of everything."

"What kind of painting has to be done at your place?"

"Don't worry about that. I'll definitely send you back after you finish painting."

Although the price was tempting, Li had been in the business for many years, and even when painting for high-ranking officials, he rarely spent time at their homes.

No one knew the name of the person in front of them, so naturally they became suspicious.

Manager Li shook his head repeatedly: "No, no, I won't do this business."

As he spoke, he put the freshly poured cup of tea into his mouth.

Chi Honghai strode forward, pulled out a small knife from his pocket, snatched the teacup from his hand and smashed it on the ground, then held the knife to his neck.

"I'm not talking to you about this. I could just kidnap you without wasting any more words."

"I'll give you the money, and I'll send the person back to you. But you have to tell me you're not taking this job!"

As he spoke, he forcefully pushed the knife into his neck again.

Hearing the sound of a cup breaking inside, Pang San hurriedly opened the door.

"master!"

I was worried that something might happen to the master, but I saw him holding that person by the neck.

"I'll go with you, please don't kill me...please don't kill me..."

Pang San confirmed that everything was alright and was about to close the door.

"Why are you closing the door? You're entertaining guests!"