The old things I repaired have become fine

Chapter 752 There's a mole inside; let's find some merit to atone for our sins!

Magistrate Zhou was certain, absolutely certain, and undoubtedly had never heard of the name sextant. However, the armillary sphere was a very famous one—

Even though he had never seen it with his own eyes, the magistrate had heard of the armillary sphere standing on the altar and knew that it was a huge circle with several layers that could be rotated, with the outermost layer having a circumference of 14 feet and 6 inches.

It is said that the armillary sphere is engraved with inner and outer grids, the North and South Poles, the ecliptic, the equator, the twenty-four solar terms, the twenty-eight constellations, etc., and rotates on its own, corresponding to the celestial phenomena, without the slightest error.

That was the glory of the Han Dynasty at its most powerful. Gone, never to return…

As Dong Zhuo entered the capital, he forcibly relocated all officials from Luoyang to Chang'an, "burning down all palaces, temples, government offices, and residences, leaving nothing behind within two hundred li." That precious artifact disappeared in the flames of war, leaving no trace whatsoever.

Magistrate Zhou's hands trembled slightly. He stared intently at the object in Shen Yuancao's hands. Although it was much smaller than the armillary sphere, its structure revealed a similar complexity—

There were fan-shaped wooden arms, large rings containing smaller rings, with markings on the rings, and other strange structures that he couldn't tell what they were at a glance.

Although I don't understand, maybe, perhaps, I really will be able to locate it?

"That……"

He opened his mouth, wanting to say, "Then I'll leave it to you," but his throat was dry and hoarse, and he couldn't make a sound. Shen Le, however, misunderstood and spoke first:

"Our clan migrated from the north, our ancestors..."

"Oh! Oh!" Magistrate Zhou nodded vigorously, not wanting to dwell on "what exactly your ancestors brought with them." He took a deep breath, then a deep breath, and finally grabbed Shen Le's arm and shook it violently:
"Come back alive!"

"...Your requirements are too low." Shen Le silently grumbled to himself, but when he spoke again, his expression was even more solemn:

"Don't worry. I'll do my best... to bring them all back safely. Every single one of them!"

He gathered all the modified ships, selected eighty of the most elite and valiant local militia, and brought them enough bows and crossbows, as well as gunpowder he had personally prepared.

The "Red Hare of the Sea" broke through the wind and waves, quietly leaving the harbor. The captain carefully pulled on the sail ropes, his brow furrowed with worry.

"Clerk, this ship... the waves are quite high today, can the ship handle it?"

"Don't worry." Shen Le spoke confidently, each word delivered with unwavering certainty and composure.
"You'll see once you row the ship back and forth. Our ship is much better able to withstand wind and waves than those pirate ships—if we can't withstand it, they certainly can't!"

The ability of Juexi's fishing boats to withstand wind and waves is historically proven. On May 14, 1954, during the peak fishing season, more than a thousand fishing boats of all sizes from across the province gathered in Damuyang to catch large yellow croaker.

In the afternoon, a sudden northerly wind of force 8-9 arose, causing strong winds and high waves. 103 fishing boats in the Wenzhou-Taizhou area were capsized in an instant, and 197 fishermen perished at sea, making it the biggest disaster in the history of the Damuyang fishing grounds.

The only exception was the Juexi fishing boat, which was strong in wind resistance and maneuverable. Although it was blown by strong winds to the Danmen and Changguo areas, it not only escaped unharmed, but also rescued many fishermen from Wenzhou and Taizhou along the way.

This information was all crammed into Shen Le during his modern classes. In short, with practical experience as a guarantee, there's definitely no problem!
Shen Le held a sextant, constantly aiming it at Polaris to measure the star's altitude and calculate the ship's latitude. He also recorded the ship's speed by continuously throwing buoys and ropes into the sea, and then plotted the data on the nautical chart.

The journey was winding and circuitous. As dawn approached, the prisoners bound to the boat began to struggle and cry out:

"Ahead! That island right ahead!"

Shen Le squinted and looked over. Beside him, his cousin had already struck the prisoner with a stick, causing him to scream in pain, followed by a barrage of curses:

"You're talking nonsense! You said before that even with a tailwind, it would take a whole day to travel, and it's only been one night!"

"Ouch! I'm not lying!" the prisoner cried out in protest.

"Your boat is fast! Much faster than ours! As for that one up ahead, I would never dare to speak nonsense—"

"He's talking nonsense." Shen Le squinted, gazing at the island ahead, and suddenly gave the order:

"Go around that island, head north, and keep going. That island ahead is definitely not a pirate's lair!"

Upon hearing this, the prisoner flinched, then continued to scream. Shen Le ignored him, continuing to stare at the island ahead.

He saw nothing on this island. Unlike the several inhabited islands he had traveled along the way, where he had seen faint, misty clouds—

It resembled a county town somewhat, and also a looted township, but much sparser, and much more peaceful. People lived there, clustering into villages, and a sense of life rose within them…

So, he shouldn't have seen nothing at all, given the pirate gang of over a hundred people, plus the women and children they kidnapped!
As soon as he uttered those words, the prisoner was struck several more times, followed by a deluge of seawater. Shen Le pretended not to hear, and only raised his hand to stop him when his voice was hoarse from shouting.

"Stop, don't let him die. Ah Jun, you take the sail, I'll calculate the position..."

The ships glided swiftly past island after island, past fishing boats casting their nets. By evening the following day, the lookout finally gave the signal:
"I see an island! I see another island! To the north, a little to the east—it looks like a coiled snake..."

Snake Coil Island? Shen Le gazed at the jagged island in the distance. The setting sun cast its rays upon the sea, and every now and then, golden scales would leap up and plunge back into the water with a splash, obscuring the surrounding rocks and reefs.

However, an unusual aura arose from that island: it was neither a peaceful and gentle mist nor a mythical beast like a giant dragon or a unicorn.

It gathered and churned, occasionally revealing a blurry shape before quickly disappearing. Its color appeared somewhat grayish-black with a hint of dark red; it looked filthy no matter how you looked at it.

"This is it," Shen Le declared confidently. Turning his head, he saw the prisoners bound on the ship, their faces deathly pale, their lips trembling, staring at him as if he were a demon.

"So this is it. Come on, don't go any closer. Let's slowly circle the island, take a look at the terrain, and see which side is easier to land on. We still have time, so tell me about the layout of your village—"

"Well said! You'll live. But if you dare lie to me even a single word, I'll slash you dozens of times and throw you straight into the sea! Even if I run aground, I'll still have time to throw you overboard!"

He gazed at the island's terrain from afar, repeatedly raising his fingers to estimate and sketch using the simplest methods. By nightfall, a rough sketch of the island had emerged on the paper Shen Le had brought, marked with numerous corrections:

Reefs, hillsides, fields, streams, dwellings, docks, beaches...

"Although there are still some imperfections, this is the best we can do." Shen Le stared at the faint lights on the island and gave the order in a deep voice:

"Have a hearty battle meal, and prepare to land on the island!"

Night deepened. A light mist rose from the sea, obscuring the movements of the boats. The fishing boats nimbly cut through the water, riding the wind forward.

The Juexi dredge skillfully weaved among the reefs. With the mainsail rolled up and only the foremast's triangular sail used, one man rowed while the others paddled, maximizing the boat's maneuverability. Before long, Shen Le led his men through the reefs and into a deep, recessed bay, silently making their way to Shepan Island.

The island was shrouded in a deep, dark silence, with only the half-moon of the nineteenth day of the lunar month illuminating the indistinct road and a single, weak flickering light. Shen Le moved stealthily, carefully making his way to the sentry post, and with a swift movement, he reached the top. His short sword was drawn, and he drew it with a sharp stroke:
The pirate, who had been dozing, made a gurgling sound in his throat, which quickly turned into the gurgling of blood as he slumped down. Shen Le listened intently for a moment, then leaned forward and beckoned downwards:

"Quick! Follow me!"

From behind the sentry post, a rugged, winding path led directly to the pirates' hideout. After walking for nearly two miles, they finally found a patch of barely flat ground in the middle of a mountain valley.

Two rows of shacks were scattered about, and within the shacks, three rooms were nestled. Shen Le sighed silently.
So what's so great about being a pirate? Even if he were a wealthy man in the countryside, he would still have a spacious and bright tiled house to live in. Unlike this house, only the middle room is a tiled house, while the two side rooms are mud-brick huts.

The sheds next to them were even worse; Shen Le didn't know whether to call them pigsties, cowsheds, or "rolling dragons"—

Those shacks made of bamboo, divided into rooms by straw mats, allowed residents to roll to the side and slip under the mats to another room...

By the way, even the kidnapped women and children didn't deserve to live in houses like this. According to the prisoners' confessions, they were placed at the foot of a cliff in a natural cave, and whichever pirate got the mood would drag one out...

He approached quietly, holding his breath. The shack was filled with heavy breathing, a cacophony of snores, except for some sounds coming from the tiled roof.

Just as Shen Le was about to turn around to greet them and let his men approach, the shack on the east side creaked open, and a pirate, still half-asleep, staggered out. He'd only taken a few steps when he cried out "Ouch!" and jumped up, revealing another one.
"Old ghost! What are you doing!"

"What are you doing..." The one who had been stepped on and woken up barely opened his eyes, swaying unsteadily as he went around to the back of the shed. The one who had been woken up turned over, but couldn't fall back asleep, so he simply got up.

The two people, one in front of the other, relieved themselves with a splash of water, and inevitably began to talk:
"Tell me, how exactly did we lose this time? We calculated the exact time, but someone still managed to ambush us! Could there be a mole among us?"

"Surely not? Who would sell us out?"

"But how did that brat get here? We've calculated the timing perfectly, when to land and when to leave... Could it be that the government troops have acquired new fast boats?"

"You might as well suspect that the people on shore betrayed us! If you ask me, it was the one who gave us directions and led us ashore to rob us..."

"Shh! Are you out of your mind?! The boss said no one is allowed to mention this!"

"Seriously, did the boss anger the Dragon King this time? The offerings we threw in at sea a couple of days ago didn't sink for ages..."

Shen Le patiently listened to their nonsense, enduring the waves of stench that wafted on the wind. Only when the two pirates returned to their hut and resumed snoring did he cautiously turn back and whisper the order:

"Ah Jun, you're in charge of the people on the second ship. Keep an eye on those shacks. Form a defensive formation outside, but don't rush to kill anyone. Deal with them the way we agreed."

"I'll take half the men from the first ship and head straight for the bandit leader's hideout to capture and kill him. A-Yuan, you take the other half and guard the surrounding paths. Make sure no bandits escape!"

The arrangements were made, the teams split up, and each moved quietly. Shen Le led his elite squad straight to the door of the tiled house. The strongman swung his hammer, smashing the lock, and then a loud shout was heard from inside:
"Who?!"

Shen Le remained silent. The next moment, a shirtless, burly man, wielding a ghost-head knife in his left hand and a door bolt in his right, suddenly kicked the door open.
"who!"

The next moment, three or four spears came thrusting from all directions. The burly man was both shocked and furious, swinging the door bolt to block. His martial arts skills were indeed extraordinary; with several consecutive swings, the village militia's spears could not even get close to him.

Seeing that he was about to be killed, Shen Le lit the big firecracker in his hand, watched the fuse hiss and burn, and quickly shortened it. He then raised it and threw it at the big man's face!
boom! ! !
Even if it's a firecracker made of black powder, this explosion is no small matter. Amidst the thick smoke and deafening roar, the burly man screamed and swayed as if about to collapse.

Chaos erupted in the camp. The pirates, fast asleep in their huts, were jostled awake, frantically searching for their clothes and weapons, pushing and shoving as they scrambled out. Shen Le, however, ignored them and issued a command in a deep voice:
"Step forward—stab!"

"Step forward—stab!"

"prick!"

"prick!"

After three or four consecutive thrusts, the big man finally couldn't dodge and was shot in the ribs and thigh, blood gushing out.

At this moment, people began to emerge from the shacks on both sides. Shen Le's cousins, trusted servants, and other family members lined up, lit firecrackers, and threw them directly into the pirate group.
"The sky is thundering!"

"May he be struck by lightning!"

"By order of the General, we are to land on the island and wipe out the pirates! Five hundred government troops have arrived!"

"Kneel down! Kneel down! Kneel down and put your hands on your heads or you'll be killed!"

"The bandit leader, Hunhai Jiao, is dead! Those who surrender will not be killed!!!"

Firelight, explosions, and shouts of battle mingled together. The pirates, already demoralized from their failed raids and losses of men and ships, were no match for the government troops who seemed to descend from the heavens like divine warriors.

When Shen Le's men had stabbed the bandit leader seventeen or eighteen times, cut off his head, and brought him out, the open space was already filled with kneeling pirates, their hands covering their heads, trembling.

Shen Le's two cousins ​​were leading men to pull off their belts one by one, tie them up, and kick them every now and then.

“According to the laws of the imperial court, you thieves all deserve to die; you should all be executed in the autumn.” Shen Le slowly walked out, looking down at them:

"But I just said that those who surrender will be spared death, so I need to find some reason for you to live. How about this, who can perform some merit to buy their own life?"

A commotion quickly broke out on the ground. One by one, the pirates looked up, jostling and pushing:

"I'm innocent! I was only recruited by them last month, and I didn't even have time to do anything bad!"

"This humble servant knows where the gang leader, no, the thief's boss, keeps his gold and silver!"

"I know where all the people they stole are imprisoned!"

"I know who showed us the way and led us ashore to rob us!"

"Who?!"

(End of this chapter)