Republic of China era: A hundred-year-old still practicing martial arts? Is that right?

Lin Ji raised his hand and pressed the earpiece in his left ear, whispering, "Jinluan."

"I'm here." Shen Jinluan's voice came immediately, with the whistling river wind and the shouts of the water patrol brothers in the background:

"I heard something's wrong in the city. They've already led the water patrol to assemble at the inner harbor. Are they about to take action?"

"Listen to me," Lin Ji replied, gathering his thoughts.

"Twelve armed merchant ships came down from upstream, fully loaded with explosives, intending to approach and blow up the three Jing-class ships."

"Immediately take the patrol team to the narrowest part of the channel to lay mines. Lay as many as you can. Under no circumstances should they be allowed to get close to the main channel in the middle of the river. Be careful to stay hidden and don't get discovered."

Shen Jinluan paused for a second, then replied crisply and decisively:

"Understood! I'll go make the arrangements right away. Be careful in the city, and don't try to charge in recklessly!"

The telepathic communication ended, and Lin Ji stood on the mudflat, facing the river breeze and gazing at the river surface.

The fog grew thicker, and the shadowy silhouettes of the twelve merchant ships drew ever closer.

Meanwhile, in the middle of the river, the three Jing-class ironclad warships remained quietly anchored, their dark hulls hidden in the fog, without making a sound, as if they were completely unaware of the approaching danger.

Lin Ji's brows furrowed even more.

Not right.

Something's really wrong.

The Yangtze River Fleet of the Executive Government, equipped with such sophisticated weaponry, couldn't possibly be a bunch of gluttons, could they? How could they be completely oblivious to the fleet approaching from upstream? And...

Does that mean they knew all along and deliberately held back?

Why would they do that? It makes absolutely no sense!

The sky was beginning to lighten with the first hint of dawn; daylight was approaching.

All the undercurrents that had accumulated overnight would erupt completely over Jiangcheng at dawn.

Lin Ji took a deep breath, turned around, and walked into the city.

……

The sky was just beginning to lighten, and the fog had not yet lifted.

Twelve armed merchant ships were lined up upstream, lying across the river like a floating city wall.

The ship's gunwale was lined with soldiers, a dark mass of them, their guns gleaming coldly.

With He Ze's three old ships in front, forming a pincer movement with the reinforcements, they actually sandwiched the three Jing-class ironclad warships in the middle.

Gun muzzles facing gun muzzles, ships facing ships.

The atmosphere on the river was tense, like a taut string ready to explode at any moment.

The city is in even more chaos.

Thousands of refugees surged toward the South Gate like a tidal wave, supporting the old and carrying the young, with hoes and carrying poles on their backs, shouting "Open the gate to live!" and "The government wants to burn us to death!"

Bricks and stones rained down on the city gate, causing the city gate tower's tiles to fall off with a loud crash.

The city defense soldiers stood against the city gate, their shoulders pressed against the door panels, their faces flushed red, and veins bulging on their foreheads.

The officer in charge shouted until his voice was hoarse: "Don't believe the rumors! It's not true! Go back!"

Nobody listened.

The crowd surged and pushed, those in front were shoved by those behind, crashing against the city gate with dull thuds that seemed to strike the hearts of everyone.

Some people took the opportunity to incite others, standing in the crowd and shouting:

"Commander He has come to rescue us! Only if he opens the door will we have food to eat!"

"Yes! Open the city gates!"

"If you don't open the door, we'll break it down!"

Shouts rose and fell, and the crowd surged forward like madmen.

The adjutant of the military governor's office ran all the way to the south gate tower.

"Mr. Lin! Commander Chen wants you to go back quickly! He... he says he can't hold out any longer!" The adjutant cried, "Commander Chen said, how about... how about surrendering the city? He Ze is still a man of Guanghua, it's better than the government coming to take his head! If this continues, the city gates will be broken down!"

Lin Ji stood on the city wall, his hand resting on the city bricks. His gaze swept across the river and then over the dark mass of people below the city. His face was ashen.

"What's the panic?" His voice wasn't loud, but it carried a steady quality: "Liang Yanqing has already gone to the west city with the Xinghua Society to appease them. They'll be here soon. Have the city defense troops fire into the air to intimidate them. Anyone who dares to lead the charge will be taken down immediately."

"What about the river?" the adjutant asked, trembling. "He Ze's ships are all lined up. What if a fight breaks out..."

"My men have already taken the patrol team to lay mines at the channel entrance," Lin Ji said calmly. "They won't have it so easy to get in."

He knew in his heart that these were all temporary measures.

With twelve armed merchant ships and three gunboats, if they really tried to charge in, the mines wouldn't hold them off for long.

The homeless people in the city are like ticking time bombs, ready to explode at any moment.

"What about Du Qingyi?" he asked Li Shuwen, who was standing next to him.

"No movement." Li Shuwen's face was grim. "That old fox is still watching and waiting to see who wins."

Lin Ji sneered.

Du Qingyi had a good plan; he wouldn't offend either side, and whoever won, he could turn the tables and continue being his local tyrant.

Just then, a "whoosh" of a ship's horn suddenly came from the middle of the river.

It wasn't He Ze's ship.

It's the Jing brand.

The three dark gray ironclad warships, which had been quietly moored downstream, suddenly moved in unison.

The steam turbines emitted a deep roar, and the ship slowly turned around, not towards He Ze's reinforcements, but towards Jiang Cheng.

The eight rapid-fire cannons slowly rose, their muzzles cold and menacing, aimed at the south gate tower.

The people on the city wall were all dumbfounded.

The adjutant slumped to the ground with a thud: "It's over... Are the government troops going to bombard the city?"

The crowd below the city was stunned for a moment, then went even crazier, crying out, "The government troops are going to fire!" Instantly, they pushed forward even more fiercely.

Chen Tianze stumbled and climbed up the city wall. When he saw the ironclad warships turning their cannons on the river, his legs went weak and he almost collapsed to the ground.

"It's over, it's over..." he muttered to himself, "I knew they wouldn't let me go... They'll pin the label of 'collaborator' on me, and then bomb Jiangcheng too..."

Lin Ji's brows furrowed sharply as he stared at the three Jing-class ships.

wrong.

wrong.

If the government wanted to bomb the city, it would have done so yesterday.

They waited all night until Heze's reinforcements arrived before turning their guns around; their target was not Heze at all.

They deliberately forced He Ze's troops to the outskirts of Jiangcheng, intentionally creating a crisis of being besieged, and then, under the pretext of suppressing the rebellion, legitimately marched into Jiangcheng and swallowed up this important waterway town.

He Ze is a pawn, the National Salvation Association is also a pawn, and Jiangcheng is the chessboard.

Just then, the loudspeaker of the Jing-class flagship rang out.

It was neither an order to open the city gates nor a denunciation of traitors.

His voice was deep and resonant, carrying the robust strength of a soldier, and it came through the river clearly:

"Mr. Lin Ji of Jiangcheng, listen up—"

One sentence, and the whole room fell silent.

The officers and soldiers on the city wall, the crowds of refugees below, and the two sides facing off on the river were all stunned.

All eyes immediately turned to the city wall.

"Admiral Zhang Zhengting, please invite Mr. Lin to come aboard the ship for a chat."

After the sound faded, the river surface fell into a deathly silence.

Even the refugees below the city walls forgot to make a fuss and stared blankly at the city tower.

No one expected that the naval commander of the Executive Government would travel thousands of miles in his ironclad warship, not to see Governor Chen Tianze, nor to see the traitor He Ze, but the first person he wanted to see was Lin Ji.

Li Shuwen instantly stepped forward, blocking Lin Ji's path, his hand on the gun handle, his face grave: "We can't go! This is clearly a trap! They have no good intentions!"