The Black Sails of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 87 The Mountain Overturned the Earth God Temple (Seeking First Subscription)

When the three boats had traveled less than twenty paces apart, someone shouted, "Lower the sails and stop!"

Manager Zhao and the fire chief both looked at the ship owner.

The boat owner nodded helplessly.

Soon three ships sailed up and surrounded the Fujian ship in the center.

The pirates all wore cloth masks and carried weapons. There were also more than twenty pirates carrying huge matchlock guns, aiming at the ship, with a matchlock tied to their right hand, which they would sometimes blow on to light.

Among the pirates, a man of extremely large stature stood at the bow of the ship.

His face was covered, his chest and arms were bare, his skin was dark, his muscles were bulging, and he carried a nine-ringed ghost-head broadsword on his shoulder, looking like a majestic door god.

The ship owner's gaze sharpened, his jaw nearly dropping in astonishment. He stammered, "Chief Li?"

The ship owner forced a wry smile: "Don't you recognize me, leader? I'm Xie Er, the ship manager from the Lin family in Huangyan."

The giant man stood motionless, like a black tower.

Xie Er continued, "Chief Li may not remember me, but he should recognize the Lin family's banner, right? Look, it's like a mountain has been overturned and the local shrine has been overturned; even family members don't recognize each other. It's all a misunderstanding, a complete misunderstanding..."

As Xie Er continued his rant, someone on the pirate ship shouted, "Everyone on board, throw your weapons into the sea!"

Xie Er looked at the person who was speaking and saw that the person was standing behind Li Kuiqi. He was rather thin, his face was covered, but his sharp eyebrows and phoenix eyes were visible. He had an extraordinary aura and was probably an important figure under Li Kuiqi.

Xie Er quickly cupped his hands and said with a smile, "Sir, I don't know if the Lin family has offended anyone that requires Chief Li to personally lead people to question them."

"Throw all your weapons into the sea! Or we'll open fire!"

Xie Er pleaded, "Sir, I've said everything I could..."

He was speaking when the man suddenly waved his arm, and more than twenty matchlock guns around him went off.

Several guards were covered in blood and fell into the water, while others were injured and lay on the deck groaning in pain.

After the smoke cleared, the pirates did not board the ship, but instead anchored in place, allowing the gunmen to reload.

Upon hearing the gunshot, the sailors shrank into the cabins below deck. Manager Zhao pushed them out forcefully, saying, "No one can survive if pirates board the ship. Fight on the deck, and you might save your life. Hurry up and get on the deck."

The sailors peered out of their cabins and saw several bloodied corpses lying on the deck.

Some guards were peering out from the ship's side, attempting to jump overboard to engage the enemy.

The three pirate ships were five or six steps away from the Fujian ship, making it impossible for them to cross. After hesitating for a long time, another burst of gunfire rang out. The few remaining guards also fell.

Xie Er, who had escaped by hiding in the stern tower, hurriedly said, "Chief Li, spare my life! Let's talk this over."

The pirate with sharp eyebrows and phoenix eyes said, "All of you, get on deck, empty-handed!"

Xie Er, Manager Zhao, and the remaining boatmen had no choice but to come out of the cabin and stand on the deck.

Two boats from Cangshan sailed forward, and the pirates boarded and tied people up with ropes.

The ship owner, Xie Er, and Manager Zhao were brought to the Haicang ship and made to kneel on the deck.

"How many people are on board in total?" someone asked.

"I..." Xie Er tried to look up to see who was speaking, but was hit hard on the head by the hilt of a knife.

"Speak with your head bowed!"

"A total of thirty-four people."

"How many boatmen, how many guards?"

"Twenty boatmen, twelve guards, and me and Steward Zhao."

After a brief pause in the questioning, footsteps thumped away into the distance.

After a moment, footsteps returned: "Including the bodies in the water, there are only thirty-three people."

"Ok?"

"Someone fell into the water!" Xie Er said hurriedly. "It was raining heavily at noon, and a boatman fell into the water and died while cleaning the sluice gate."

The footsteps went towards the Fujian ship again, and a moment later a shout came.

"It matches up."

"Drive the living into the sea; whether they live or die is up to fate."

A moment later, the sound of splashing into the water came from the side of the Fujian boat, followed by the sound of people paddling.

The question rang out again: "From which port did you set sail, and to which port do you intend to dock?"

"From Macau, returning to my residence in Huangyan County." "Not going to Yuegang? Is your boat a private vessel?"

The tone suddenly became sharp, which frightened Xie Er so much that cold sweat broke out on his neck. He lowered his head and smiled obsequiously, "Master, you know about what's going on in the manor. There's only one three-masted ship with a license plate. We haven't heard from it since it set sail after the New Year. This trip of mine was ordered by the head of the family to investigate along the way."

"Oh. Has the investigation been completed?"

"Alas! It ran aground and sank in the Lingdingyang, what a pity for that ship full of good cargo."

"Did someone see it?"

"Several local fishermen saw it, and from their description of its shape, I believe it is the same boat that belongs to our prefecture."

Judging from the situation today, Xie Er had already guessed that the disappearance of the three-masted Fujian ship was inextricably linked to Li Kuiqi and his gang, and it was very likely that Li Kuiqi had hijacked it.

So Xie Er, in a moment of quick thinking, lied and said that the ship he lost after the New Year had run aground. He figured that if he didn't cause any more trouble, he might have a better chance of surviving.

The voice paused for a moment, then rang out again: "How many boats does your household own in total?"

"There are six in total, all of them are two-masted, and there is only one three-masted ship."

The Ming Dynasty strictly prohibited the private construction of three-masted ships, so smuggling ships were usually two-masted or three-masted ships with detachable masts in order to avoid detection.

"Have the rest of the ships returned to port?"

"Yes."

"You guys are quite skilled at sailing."

"It's all thanks to Chief Li and the old man's help."

"Ha, you know how to talk."

The voice paused for a moment, then asked, "You said you are the boat manager of the manor, so what is Manager Zhao kneeling next to you doing?"

"He was originally the manager of the estate, but was temporarily transferred to handle the boats."

"The estate? He's never been to the Lin residence?"

"No."

"killed."

Upon hearing this, Xie Er felt his throat tighten and his legs go weak; he was so frightened that he shrank back into his balls.

Fortunately, the pirates took Steward Zhao with them.

Xie Er kept his head down, his whole body trembling like a leaf, desperately suppressing the sobs in his throat.

All he could hear was Steward Zhao begging for mercy, his cries sounding like a pig with its legs tied.

A moment later, a muffled sound of chopping meat rang in my ears, the shouts stopped abruptly, and then the sound of something falling into the water came from the stern of the boat.

Someone on the Fujian-style ship said, "Helmsman, we've checked the entire ship; there are no people hiding there, and there's no leak."

"Ah."

Judging from the voice, the one called "Boatman" was the one who asked the question.

The helmsman instructed his men, "Set sail and return to the island."

Then there was a sound of fabric rubbing together, which meant that the pirates had taken off their masks.

Even with his head down, Xie Er quickly closed his eyes tightly. He understood the pirates' rules: seeing someone's face meant certain death.

Now he could see that this group was clearly led by the helmsman, and the man standing at the bow was just a decoy.

"Look up," came the helmsman's voice.

Xie Er kowtowed on the deck and pleaded, "Chief Li, please spare my life. I promise to keep my mouth shut when I get back."

"Still calling him Chief Li?" the captain teased.

"I'll call you whatever Chief Li tells me to call me."

"A smart man, always addressing you as Chief Li," the captain praised. "Raise your head."

"No, no, this is a good reply from me."

"Zhang Chongsan, Wu Liu, do you recognize them?"

Xie Er paused, realizing that these two were the names of the ship owner and manager from the missing three-masted Fujian ship.

"That ship, that's the one I hijacked."

(End of this chapter)