It only took the two of them an hour to carry more than 40 bags of salt to the boat. They remembered that they had to move all night and put in a lot of effort before they could really feel their progress.
Before dawn, they set sail and set out to sea.
Kou Zhong said: "Let's try to go westward from the river to the inland. If that doesn't work, let's go overland again!"
Xu Ziling frowned and said, "Both you and I are masters at boating. We are no better than an ordinary boatman. There is no problem in the sea, of course! This only refers to calm conditions. If you enter the river..."
Kou Zhong said with a smile: "Why do you think so much? If the boat sinks in the river, we will fish it out. It won't be too late to take the land route. Don't forget that we are both masters of land and water."
Xu Ziling put his hand on the rudder and said with a smile: "It's your turn, I want to go into the cabin and sleep."
Kou Zhong said distressedly: "If I had known that we would capture a few boys from the Haisha Gang and force them to sail the boat, we wouldn't have to suffer now."
※※※
Xu Ziling woke up to the sound of war drums, and for a moment he thought he was on the battlefield. When he rushed out of the cabin, Kou Zhong was looking at the three ships approaching in a zigzag pattern in front of him. These ships were more pointed, narrower and longer than theirs. They had the upper hand in maneuverability, and their ships were no match after carrying salt.
Our own ship is heading towards the enemy ship.
Under the abundant sunshine, I saw dozens of people standing on each ship on the other side's deck. Everyone was holding bows and arrows, or holding trebuchets ready to go, or holding fishing rods and other tools to lock the ship, running back and forth. The sound is fierce.
A flag with the word "高" written on it was flying on the ship.
Xu Ziling came to Kou Zhong's side and frowned: "Who is this person?"
Kou Zhong showed a bright smile and said happily: "Just listening to the sound of the drums, you can tell that their fighting spirit is high, but looking at their scattered actions, I know that they are just a mob. They must be pirates who plunder everywhere, and they are the most suitable to be used as pawns." sailor."
Xu Ziling lost his voice and said: "What?"
Kou Zhong said: "I will handle everything. Now go to the cabin to hide from the arrows. When they board the ship, you can show these thieves some tricks."
"Bang! Bang!" There were two sounds. Pulled by the giant hook, two pirate ships came over from left to right, and the thieves swarmed up. Three of them threw themselves into the cabin, and the others checked and placed packages one after another on the deck and in the cabin. salt goods.
Another pirate ship took the lead and sailed ahead. For a while, the pirates seemed to be in control of the overall situation.
Three of them should be the pirate leaders, standing at the stern of the ship directing the actions of the thieves.
The tallest and strongest man has eyes like copper bells, long hair shawl, and a full beard. He has a rather powerful appearance. Two short tasseled spears about five feet long are hung crosswise on his back, adding to his power. It is unbelievable that he is among the pirates. There are also such characters.
At this time, he said "Huh": "Younger Lang has been in the cabin for so long, why haven't you escorted those two boys out yet?"
The short and thin middle-aged man next to him showed a solemn expression and said, "Let me go and have a look!"
On the other side was a sturdy young man, only a few inches shorter than the big man with loose hair, but already taller than the average person. There were two iron rings hanging on his waist, which seemed to be a strange weapon. He said: "I will accompany my second brother." "
The blond man nodded in agreement and whispered: "It's a bit evil, be careful!"
The young man laughed and said, "We in Sanyi, the East China Sea, have never seen any storms." After saying this, he and the short and thin man called the second brother went straight into the cabin.
When the big man with disheveled hair watched the two people disappear through the hatch, his men came to report: "Uncle! The deck is full of salt cargo."
The big man with disheveled hair muttered: "It's really unlucky, how much can these wastes sell for unless they are transported inland! But this ship is indeed a top-quality product."
A voice responded calmly: "Those three ships of yours are not bad, they can probably make us a lot of money."
All the thieves were shocked and pale.
I saw Kou Zhong sitting on the edge of the cabin roof with his legs crossed and his sword across his knees, his feet hanging above the hatch, swaying inadvertently, feeling indescribably freehand.
He had a smile as bright as the sun on his face, and his tiger eyes shot out unfathomable divine light. When he looked around at everyone, everyone had a terrible feeling that he saw in their hearts.
The big man with disheveled hair was shocked and said, "What did you do to them?"
Kou Zhong calmed down and said: "First tell your men not to act rashly, then I will be interested in studying whether to answer your question."
The big man with disheveled hair made a quick decision and shouted: "Everyone stop and come to my side."
The more than 20 pirates who boarded the ship hurriedly moved to the stern of the ship, and it became a confrontation between two parties, with the enemy and ourselves clearly distinguishable.
Da Mo, who had disheveled hair, was obviously a person who valued friendship and loyalty. His eyes flashed with cold light and he said coldly: "We are guilty of this trip. As long as you let me go, we will turn around and leave immediately. We will never break our promise."
Kou Zhong knew that the other party had become timid when he saw them taking care of the five people silently. He laughed and said: "It's such a cheap thing. Unless you all throw yourself into the sea and give up three boats, you will never survive to see tomorrow."
The sun. Humph! Since you resorted to robbery, you should have known that such a day would come."
All the thieves became angry and yelled, and everyone put on a brave attitude of fighting to the death.
The big man with shaggy hair yelled: "Shut up, I!" He slowly took off the two guns from his back and said in a deep voice: "This is called toasting and not eating, but you will be punished with alcohol. You name me, kid."
Kou Zhong said with a smile: "Old boy, you say it first!"
The big man with loose hair was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said: "A boy, an old boy, this is fair. Listen, I am the leader of the Three Righteousnesses of the East China Sea - Shuangqiang - Gao Zhandao."
Kou Zhong laughed and said: "Fortunately, the weapon you use is special. If it were a sword, wouldn't it be called - Single Sword - Gao Zhandao? You must have given this nickname yourself, right?"
This was the first time that Gao Zhandao and the thieves met someone who was still talking and laughing so freely even when they were facing each other. What he said was both funny and a bit crooked, and they all had a strange feeling in their hearts.
Gao Zhandao said angrily: "You are talking nonsense. If you refuse to give up, call your accomplices to come out and let us all fight."
Secretly, he signaled to the men next to him that as soon as another enemy hiding in the cabin came out, he would immediately start to rescue them.
This was Kou Zhong's clever move, he detained five of the opponent's men. Otherwise, if Gao Zhandao fled back to the pirate ship and launched another long-distance attack, their ship would be destroyed.
Kou Zhong suddenly calmed down, his tiger eyes were blazing, he stared at Gao Zhandao, and said calmly: "If I want to deal with you little thieves, I will need my brother's help. Gao Zhandao, if you still have some courage, just fight me alone.
As long as he can withstand ten blows, I will let him go immediately."
Gao Zhan shouted angrily: "Shut up! How can I, Gao Zhan, allow you to scream like a little thief on the left and a little thief on the right? You don't have ten moves. Let us see the real thing."
Kou Zhong said in a cold voice: "You boarded the ship to rob, what are you if you are not thieves? You bully the weak, and only dare to attack fishermen and common people who have no resistance. If you are not little thieves, what the hell are you?"
The men on the side of Gao Zhan Road retorted: "Aren't you also a thief? What kind of serious business is smuggling smuggled salt?"
Kou Zhongran burst into laughter and said, "What's so unfair? The northwest needs salt. We work tirelessly to transport the salt across thousands of rivers and mountains. We sell it and buy it openly. Both parties are willing. Isn't it better than taking away the money earned with hard work and hard work?" All the thieves were speechless.
Kou Zhong said impassionedly: "When a man is established in the world, the most important thing is to be ambitious and look at the world. After I make this money, I will use it to recruit soldiers and horses to fight all over the world and achieve an immortal cause. You guys only know how to grab left and right." How can this little thief understand?"
Gao Zhandao sneered, strode over, and shouted: "Nonsense! Let me weigh how much you weigh." When the thieves burst into applause, Kou Zhong had already jumped up and pounced down in the air, with the long knife in his hand like lightning. Banzhao slashed towards Gaozhandao with his face.
Gao Zhandao never expected that he would be so brave and brave. He would hit him whenever he asked, with a thunderous force. He could only grit his teeth and use the power of his crossed spears to withstand this unparalleled sword.
You must know that even if you are a top-notch master, if you want to reach the peak of your skills, you must prepare and warm up, so that you can release your inner energy without reservation at a certain moment.
People like Kou Zhong, who had not gone through this process at all, exerted explosive power, immediately making the thieves stunned and shocked.
With a deep sound of "Poof!", Gao Zhandao staggered back seven steps before stopping his retreat. His face was as pale as death. But Kou Zhong secretly praised in his heart, knowing that this man was much smarter than his two brothers, how could he Blocking his fully charged attack, all the thieves saw that something was wrong with the leader and stopped in front of Gao Zhandao, but no one dared to step forward and take action.
Kou Zhong stood with his sword across the sword, moving with a bold and uninhibited movement. He curled his fingers on the blade and let out a lingering clear chant. He smiled and said: "If you can block my sword, now Zhao's business is over."
Only then did Gao Zhandao drive away the cold air that invaded Kou Zhong's body, and asked in shock: "What is your surname Gao?"
Kou Zhong said calmly: "My name is Kou Zhong, and my brother's name is Xu Ziling. It won't surprise you if you haven't heard of me before."
All the thieves were moved together.
Gao Zhandao suddenly said: "How could you not have heard of it? You just burned more than ten boats of the Haisha Gang. Even Li Mi can't do anything to you."
Kou Zhong was very happy and said: "You have good news. Did you hear it when you went ashore for a walk?"
The thieves were stunned, and another person said: "How could Mr. Kou even guess these things?"
Kou Zhong lost all fighting spirit. Seeing that all the thieves looked at him with admiration, he laughed and said, "Let us make a deal. We will release your five brothers, and you will be responsible for preparing a rich banquet of food and wine for my two brothers." Enjoy it and go your separate ways from now on, how about that?"
Gao Zhandao put away his guns and said happily: "This is the first time in my life that I, Gao Zhandao, have encountered a natural-born hero like Master Kou. Whether Master Kou blames us for being reckless, of course we are more respectful than obedient. Ha! Really. happy!"
※※※
It turned out that this group of pirates were soldiers of the Sui Dynasty. In February of the seventh year of Daye, Emperor Yang issued an edict to attack Goryeo. They were mobilized to Zhuo County and marched with the army to Pyongyang, the capital of Goryeo. The expedition was victorious and then defeated, and the morale of the Sui army was low. , and the military rations are no longer available.
Gao Zhandao's army of more than 300,000 people was defeated in an ambush, and only more than 2,700 people were able to return to Liaodong.
The first expedition to Goryeo failed, resulting in heavy losses in manpower and material resources. He should have rested and recuperated, but Yang Guang launched a second expedition to Goryeo in the ninth year of Daye. Yang Xuangan, the Minister of Rites, took advantage of Yang Guang's expedition, and the people hated military service and corvee, and the world
Thinking of chaos, they rebelled. At this time, Gao Zhandao and others rebelled against the Sui Dynasty and followed Yang Xuangan in rebellion.
Later, Yang Xuangan was defeated and died, and Gao Zhandao and others fled back to Kunling. Little did they know that his family had been implicated and had been beheaded, so they had to flee to the sea to become thieves.
The short and thin man was called Niu Fengyi, and the young man was called Cha Jie. Not only were they good at martial arts, but they had also studied and attended school, so they were promoted to be leaders along with Gao Zhandao.
The number of the entire pirate group has increased from the original fifty-two to the current number of two hundred and twenty-eight. Only 208 people went to sea on this trip, and the others stayed at their lair in Changshu.
Four ships formed a fleet and headed north along the coast.
It was getting dark, but the lights on the boat were brightly lit.
A banquet was set up on Kou and Xu's boat. Xu Ziling, Kou Zhong, Gao Zhandao, Niu Fengyi, Zha Jie and several leaders sat around the table, drinking and talking happily.
As for the responsibility of operating the boat, it is naturally left to the little thieves.
When Xu Ziling heard about their life experiences, he realized that he became a pirate only after the government forced the people to rebel, so he felt a little less disgusted. He also saw that these people were bloody men, so he said: "Brother Gao, there is no way you can continue like this. Have you ever thought about it?"
Change evil and return to righteousness?" Niu Fengyi said with a bitter smile: "Now that the world is divided, where can we live and work in peace and contentment? Now that we have gathered together to form a party, no one dares to mess with us at ordinary times. We are so prosperous that even if we want to stop, the brothers below will
I refuse to agree."
Zha Jie said solemnly: "We are just forced to fall into the grass, so unless we have to, we will never kill people indiscriminately, and we will be measured when we rob, and we will never attack poor fishermen. If Master Xu doesn't believe it, just ask the people around here and you will know
The way we, the Donghai Gang, behave."
Another leader, Wei Yuandao, said: "When we first saw the two men carrying the banner of the Haisha Gang, we thought they were fat sheep from the Haisha Gang transporting goods for Shen Faxing."
Gao Zhandao suddenly inserted a large bowl of wine into Xiang Zheng, who was eating a large piece of meat. Kou Zhong said, "Master Kou just mentioned that he aspires to dominate the world, but what's his big plan?"
Xu Ziling glared at Kou Zhong fiercely. Only he understood Kou Zhong's excellent management skills. Just now he had used all his skills to control the bandits of the Donghai Gang. He was soft and hard at times, frightening them into submission.
The most powerful thing is to deliberately arouse the other person's ambition and pretend not to care, so that people will beg him willingly. Kou Zhong drank the wine in the glass, put down the glass, and wiped the corner of his mouth with his sleeve
With wine stains on his face, he glanced at everyone with a flash of light in his eyes, and then said calmly:
"Tell me, who has the best chance and qualifications to win the world now?"
Gao Zhandao said without hesitation: "Of course...hey! I'm just talking about things. If we talk about prestige, of course Li Mi is the first."
Kou Zhong smiled and said: "He is just superficial. The biggest problem is that the east capital city has high walls and thick walls, and the elite troops of the old Sui Dynasty are concentrated. Also, it is led by Yang Shichong, who is talented in both literature, Tao and military strategy. Li Mi could not capture Luoyang before, but now it is even more difficult
If we cannot capture Luoyang, we will suffer defeat if we are not careful."
Zha Jie said in confusion: "It is said that Mi Gong is proficient in history, familiar with Historical Records, Han Shu, and skilled in the art of war. This can be confirmed by his repeated victories in battles. And the most powerful thing is that he knows how to win people's hearts.
If he cannot conquer the world, who else is qualified?"
Kou Zhongchengzhu said in his chest: "Don't forget that Dou Jiande is still in the northeast to contain Li Mi. What's more, Li Mi should never do it. He did the last thing he should do."
Niu Fengyi said in shock: "What's the matter?"
Xu Ziling knew what Kou Zhong was going to say, and secretly thought that with Kou Zhong's intelligence and charm, it would be easy to impress these three people.
Kou Zhong calmed down and said: "If you kill the big leader Zhai Rang, all the old generals who followed Zhai Rang will be dissatisfied and in danger. The Wagang Army will no longer be the united Wagang Army before."
Gao Zhandao said puzzledly: "But now that everyone has returned to the throne, all the heroes in the world have gone to Xingyang to attach themselves to Mi Gong in order to achieve a great cause. His strength should have increased unabated."
Kou Zhong laughed and said: "This happened to cause two big problems. First, the old people were afraid of being squeezed out by the new people, which added to the doubts of a group of generals who had a close relationship with Zhai Rang; secondly, the elite Wagang Army would be affected by this.
It has become a mixed bag of good and bad, and spies sent by various parties may have infiltrated into it. Huh! People say that Li Mi has extraordinary talents, but in my opinion it is just mediocre. If I were him, I would only put Zhai Rang under house arrest and let him be a
A figurehead."
Several people in Gao Zhandao exchanged glances with surprised looks on their faces. Xu Ziling sighed in his heart, knowing that Kou Zhong's intention to fight for supremacy in the world was already an arrow from the bow, and he would not look back. Li Mi and others had the potential to defeat many formidable enemies.
And dealing with Gao Zhandao and this group of pirates was just the beginning for him.