A family of loyal martyrs, starting with nine wives to continue the family line.

As dawn broke, twelve black speedboats, like twelve razors, silently sliced ​​through the calm waters of the northern entrance to the Qiongzhou Strait.

Shang Wanqing stood at the bow of the flagship "Breaking Waves," the sea breeze making her clothes flutter. She hadn't slept all night, her eyes were bloodshot, but her spirits were unusually high.

Behind her were twelve elite warships she had carefully selected from eighteen ships. The crew of each ship were veterans who had fought alongside her all the way from Quanzhou, and the rams and crossbows of each ship were calibrated to their optimal condition.

Their mission was not a decisive battle, but a blockade.

It's like trapping Ke Zhenchuan, that old dog who's been lurking in the South China Sea for years, in his lair, preventing him from getting out or escaping.

"Madam Shang, there's movement ahead!"

On the flagship's mast, the lookout's voice broke the morning's tranquility, carrying a hint of barely suppressed tension.

Shang Wanqing raised her monocular telescope at almost the same time.

Through the telescope, on the west side of the huge island in the distance known as "Black Shark Island," a dense array of sails are emerging from the harbor and moving towards the strait.

She counted silently, her heartbeat not quickening at all.

Twenty ships.

Just as the intelligence report stated, these were the last remaining main warships of Ke Zhenchuan after his defeat in Quanzhou.

It seems they've also discovered this uninvited guest.

"That old fox, his reaction is quick."

Shang Wanqing put down her binoculars, her face expressionless, but in her mind she had already mentally rehearsed the entire battle situation several times.

She neither ordered an attack nor a retreat, but instead gave an order that surprised all the captains.

"All ships, spread out to the sides! Leave a channel in the middle!"

The order was quickly conveyed through flag signals, and the twelve fast boats, like a well-trained school of fish, quickly spread out to the left and right flanks, deliberately leaving a "safe passage" about two miles wide on the median line of the strait.

That passageway leads directly to the shallow waters between the main island and a small island next to it.

Ke Zhenchuan's fleet soon approached.

Instead of rushing headless into the passage that seemed like a trap, they stopped about three miles away from Shang Wanqing's fleet. Then, the seven or eight warships on the left flank suddenly accelerated and launched a probing attack on Shang Wanqing's left flank fleet.

"General, they're attacking!" a captain on the left wing of the flagship shouted anxiously.

"What's the panic?"

Shang Wanqing's voice came through the flag signals, cold and calm: "Fight and retreat, lead them to shallow water."

She knew very well that Ke Zhenchuan was a cunning old fox, and he wouldn't take the bait easily unless he tasted some sweetness.

The six fast boats on the left flank immediately began to retreat. The light crossbows on board kept making sharp noises, but the arrows they fired were not dense, more like harassment than a decisive battle.

The pirates' warships were indeed fooled. Relying on their strong ships and thick armor, they pursued relentlessly, and it seemed they were about to force the six new fast warships onto a shallow beach covered with reefs.

"No! The water's getting shallower!" A seasoned sailor on the pirates' flagship suddenly exclaimed.

Ke Zhenchuan suddenly realized that this body of water was completely unsuitable for their large, deep-draft ships to navigate!

"Turn around! Turn around now!" he roared hoarsely.

The pursuing fleet began to clumsily turn in place, the huge hulls appearing particularly sluggish in the narrow waterway, and two ships even nearly collided due to operational errors.

It's now!

Shang Wanqing's eyes lit up immediately.

"Right wing! Cut in from behind!"

The six fast boats on the right flank, which had remained stationary, suddenly sprang into action the moment they received the order. Their sails filled with wind, and like six arrows released from a bow, they pounced fiercely on the huge rear side exposed when Ke Zhenchuan's fleet turned.

"Throw!"

The cold command was given, and the sailors, who were already prepared, threw one lit oil canister after another with all their might.

Dozens of fireballs traced deadly arcs in the air, taking advantage of the wind to accurately strike the pirate warships that were huddled together and frantically trying to turn around.

"Boom! Boom!"

Flames roared up, and the sterns of the two pirate warships were engulfed in flames almost simultaneously. Thick black smoke, mixed with piercing screams, soared into the sky above the strait.

By the time Ke Zhenchuan realized that the left wing was just bait, it was too late to rearrange the formation.

His twenty ships were crammed together in the narrow strait, some fighting fires, some taking cover, and some changing course, as chaotic as a pot of boiling porridge.

Shang Wan-qing did not order the attack to continue.

She coldly observed the chaos on the sea, the two enemy ships ablaze, and issued an order that surprised everyone.

"Retreat! Retreat to the center line and maintain the blockade!"

Her deputy hesitated for a moment, then couldn't help but ask, "Madam Shang, let's rush in now and cripple them!"

"If we cripple them, they'll stay on the island and won't come out." Shang Wanqing shook her head. Her goal was never to annihilate the enemy at sea.

What she wanted was to drive Ke Zhenchuan mad, to force him to bring out all his ships and fight her to the death.

Only in this way will Liu Jingshuang on the shore have a chance.

Shang Wanqing's fleet slowly retreated to the median line of the strait, re-establishing its blockade posture. Like a group of cold-blooded guards, they quietly watched as Ke Zhenchuan's fleet, amidst the chaos, haphazardly dragged the two burnt-out warships back to the harbor of the main island.

On the sea, the two plumes of smoke rising into the sky, like two giant fingers, clearly pointed out the location of Ke Zhenchuan's main fleet to everyone.

Looking at the two plumes of smoke, Shang Wanqing knew that the first step of the plan had been completed.

She turned around and said to the messenger behind her, "Send a signal to the people on the shore that the fish have returned to their nests."

A specially made red whistling arrow shot into the sky with a sharp cry.

On the land north of the strait, in that seemingly quiet dense forest, Liu Jingshuang put down her binoculars at almost the same time.

She saw the red signal and the two plumes of black smoke that lingered on the distant sea.

"Shang Wanqing has paved the road."

She mounted her horse and, facing the eight thousand cavalrymen who had already assembled behind her, a dark, imposing forest of men, gave a brief command: "It's our turn."

"Order! All troops board the ships and cross the sea!"

The six speedboats, which had been waiting in the shallow water, quickly approached the shore like six giant black lotus leaves.

Without the slightest hesitation, the cavalrymen removed their heavy iron armor, leaving only their close-fitting leather armor and weapons, and boarded the fast boats in an orderly manner, led by their respective officers.

The entire process was quiet and efficient.

Apart from the sound of waves lapping against the ship's hull and the officer's hushed commands, there was not a sound of noise.

Before dawn, the last group of cavalrymen successfully landed on the beach on the north side of Black Shark Island.

Ke Zhenchuan's harbor is on the south side of the island, separated from them only by a low ridge that is not too high.

Liu Jingshuang stood on the beach, the sea breeze ruffling the hem of her plain-colored dress. Her gaze passed over the taxi drivers who were feeding their warhorses and taking a break, and landed on the dark mountain ridge.

She could smell a faint, acrid odor wafting from the other side of the island.

She knew that the moment of decisive battle was approaching.

She turned around to face the eight thousand elite soldiers behind her who were already ready for battle. Her voice carried clearly to everyone's ears in the pre-dawn sea breeze.

"The entire army dismounted and rested on the spot."

She paused, her gaze turning as cold and chilling as ice tempered by fire.

"After dawn, cross the mountain and flatten their harbor!"