A glimpse of opportunity: Start by marrying a mermaid bride.

Li Ji and the other two had a private conversation inside the house and finally decided on the plan of hiding people at the bottom of the boat.

They nailed a row of nails below the waterline on the side of the boat, hung a rope on it, and then tied Wen Mofang, who was in a state of apparent death, under the bed. Then Li Jitong found a corpse and loaded it onto the boat with Song Jin'ao, and headed out of the Dahong Bridge, saying that they were delivering the body to the deceased's family.

There's an old custom in Tianjin that corpses are usually transported at night to avoid disturbing passersby during the day, so the reason is barely acceptable.

As for the risks, there are definitely risks, but there is no other good way now. The monster serum poison on Wen Mofang's body can't wait, and we must leave Tianjin City tonight.

So they decided to take a gamble.

After the three finished their discussion, Song Jin'ao looked at Li Jitong and said, "Brother Jitong, I'm afraid this time we'll implicate you."

Upon hearing this, Li Jitong replied, "What do you mean by 'implicate'? To prevent the Chinese people from becoming foreign pigs and dogs, to prevent Chinese territory from being occupied by foreigners, and to prevent you and me from becoming slaves of a conquered nation, I, Li Jitong, am willing to do anything!"

Upon hearing this, Song Jin'ao exclaimed, "Brother Ji Tong is truly magnanimous!"

Upon hearing this, Li Jitong replied, "If I can do something for the country, I, Li Jitong, will dedicate myself to it to the utmost!"

Song Jin'ao nodded, and at this moment Wen Mofang, who was standing to the side, also clasped his hands and said, "Thank you both, righteous men. I will never forget your great kindness."

Upon hearing this, Song Jin'ao said, "Wen Langzhong, the three of us are all members of the Baoguo Society, and we should help each other. Moreover, this matter involves innocent civilians. I only hope that you can produce an antidote as soon as possible to save more suffering people."

Upon hearing this, Wen Mofang said, "If I can escape with my life this time, I would gladly die a hundred times over."

"Alright, in that case, let's do it this way. Jin'ao, come with me to get the boat. Doctor Wen, how long will it take to prepare your feigned death?"

"Fifteen minutes is enough!"

Upon hearing this, Li Jitong nodded slightly and said, "Perfect. Wen Langzhong, get ready. We'll set off as soon as we get back."

Wen Mofang took out silver needles from his bag, as the skill [Feign Death] required the assistance of silver needles.

Zheng Xuan overheard the discussion inside and frowned slightly. Hiding the corpse at the bottom of the ship was a good idea, but since the other party was a foreigner, it might not be so easy to carry out. He had to find a way to help them.

Thinking it over, Zheng Xuan got up and hid back in the ancestral hall. At that moment, Song Jin'ao and Li Ji went out together and disappeared into the darkness.

Zheng Xuan went out at this time. After thinking for a while, he went straight to the corpse retrieval team. He needed a boat, and the corpse retrieval team had one.

Upon arriving at the corpse retrieval team, they encountered Uncle Wang, the night watchman. Zheng Xuan had been accompanying Li Jitong to and from the team these past few days, and Uncle Wang recognized him, saying, "You must be Master Li's apprentice. What are you doing so late?"

Zheng Xuan said, "Uncle Wang, my master has figured out where the current might have swept the two bodies that our team urgently needs to find to, and he sent me to borrow a boat."

Upon hearing this, Uncle Wang said, "Master Li has his own boat."

Zheng Xuan said, "Aren't there two bodies? If they've rushed to two different locations, wouldn't it be faster to search with multiple boats?"

"That's true. The boat is right there; go and set it sail!"

Upon hearing this, Zheng Xuan immediately said, "Thank you, Uncle Wang."

After saying that, he jumped onto a small boat. Looking at Zheng Xuan's back, Uncle Wang asked in confusion, "Why is he carrying a shovel when he's retrieving a corpse? It's not like he's digging up a body."

Zheng Xuan rowed his small boat to the river, but it was dark and visibility was low, so he lost his way. At this moment, Zheng Xuan opened the water gourd he carried with him, moved his fingers slightly, and activated his skill [Drowning Soul] to release Erdan.

"Find!"

Zheng Xuan pointed his finger, and the next moment Erdan immediately led the way in front of the small boat. Soon they arrived at a reed marsh. They rowed their boat in the reed marsh. Their target today was Erdan's corpse.

That's right, it's the body that Zheng Xuan and the others buried.

The body was buried in the reeds, but the tide came in tonight and the burial site has been submerged by the river. If Zheng Xuan were to search for it himself, he probably wouldn't be able to find it. But with Erdan around, there wouldn't be any problem.

Erdan sensed the location of his own corpse. Zheng Xuan, holding a shovel, looked at Erdan in the water and said, "Have you thought this through? Are you sure you want to use your corpse to save Doctor Wen?"

Erdan nodded firmly and said, "Yes, I'm willing to save Uncle Wen."

Zheng Xuan said, "Alright, let's get started!"

Zheng Xuan jumped into the water and stood in the depression. The water was already up to his calves. He picked up a shovel and started digging.

……

Leaving Zheng Xuan aside for now, let's talk about Li Jitong. He found a river float and put it on the boat to cover his tracks. Li Jitong and Song Jin'ao were standing on the boat. Li Jitong was sitting at the bow, while Song Jin'ao pretended to be a corpse-retrieval apprentice and was steering the boat.

They had already tied Wen Mofang, who was in a state of apparent death, with ropes underneath their boat.

Song Jin'ao looked at Li Jitong and said, "We must cross the Rainbow Bridge in Duliu Town within an hour, or Wen Langzhong will go from feigning death to real death."

Li Jitong said, "As long as nothing unexpected happens on the road, we'll definitely make it in time."

Song Jin'ao then said, "Then let's go."

With that, the two rowed their fancy boat straight toward Duliu Town.

After rowing for half an hour, we finally arrived at Duliu Town, where the Great Rainbow Bridge was not far away.

But as soon as they arrived, they saw that a checkpoint had been set up at the Great Rainbow Bridge, where the Tianjin patrol battalion and foreigners' iron boats were moored.

The searchlights on the tin boat were so bright that it was impossible to open one's eyes.

The Haihe River isn't just home to corpse retrievers' boats; there are also fishing boats and cargo ships on it. This is the time when cargo ships transport goods and fishing boats deliver fresh fish to various markets.

Previously, the Haihe River was very wide, and everyone could do their own thing without any delay. However, now the magistrate of Tianjin County has colluded with foreigners and mobilized the patrol battalion to set up checkpoints on the only road leading to the Dahongqiao Bridge. All fishing boats and cargo ships passing by are inspected, and long queues have formed directly in front of the Dahongqiao Bridge.

When Li Jitong and Song Jin'ao arrived, they stopped their small boat and looked at the long queue ahead, both of them frowning.

Song Jin'ao looked at Li Jitong and said, "What should we do? Charge in?"

Li Jitong said, "The patrol battalion is on the left, and the iron-clad warships are on the right, armed with long guns and short cannons. Even if you were a martial arts master at the Transformation Realm, you wouldn't be able to fight your way out. And even if you did manage to fight your way out, you'd be exposed. How would you proceed from there?"

"Even two fists can't beat four hands. Do you think you can take on the entire Tianjin garrison and the foreigners all by yourself?"

After Li Jitong finished speaking, Song Jin'ao frowned, but there was nothing he could do.

Li Jitong said, "Don't rush, let's get in line first."

Time passed by, minute by minute. In the midst of the agony, half an hour was almost up. Song Jin'ao was sweating profusely with anxiety. If they waited a little longer, Wen Mofang's feigned death would be lifted. He was tied to the bottom of the water, and if he woke up, he would drown!

Thinking this, they finally finished inspecting the cargo ship in front of them, and it was their turn!