Global colonization began with Ming Dynasty pirates.

Li Kui pretended to be a country bumpkin who had just arrived in the village and wandered around.

There were many people on the island today, and he wasn't the only stranger coming and going, so he didn't stand out.

Li Kui quickly discovered that these houses were obviously newly built, with traces of fresh wood still visible in many places.

There are many houses in the village, but they seem to be arranged neatly according to a unified plan.

There was no garbage or excrement commonly found in the pirate stronghold of Gantang Island on the streets.

There are wooden bins for garbage on every street corner, and people wearing red armbands and carrying wooden sticks patrol the streets from time to time. If they see someone littering, they will beat them up.

Li Kui's eyelids twitched as he watched these people occasionally grabbing passersby for questions. Fearing he would be exposed, Li Kui would discreetly leave whenever he saw them from afar.

After many twists and turns, Li Kui arrived at a strange place. There were two red lanterns hanging at the entrance, and a brightly dressed woman was sitting at the entrance yawning.

The woman's eyes lit up when she saw Li Kui, and she stood up and greeted him loudly, "Grandpa...coming to have some fun?"

"So this is the place." Li Kui breathed a sigh of relief, then straightened his collar and strode over.

He definitely needs to give this kind of place a good critique.

After Li Kui entered the Red Chamber, one of the people behind him turned around and whispered, "Go back and report that the target has entered the Red Chamber. The rest is up to the girls there."

"Damn it, this kid got off easy. If you ask me, we should just arrest him and interrogate him."

"Stop talking nonsense and get going."

"Okay, I'll go right away. Keep a close eye on him and don't let him get away."

......

While Li Kui was indulging in a life of debauchery at the Red Mansion, Yin Zhilu, the current prefect of Fuzhou, was rubbing his head in frustration at the Fuzhou Prefectural Government Office.

In the past two days, a large number of gentry have come to visit, all saying the same thing: pirates are harassing the area, and they are pleading with the governor to send troops to suppress them.

"Bohe, have there been any recent incidents of pirates harassing the people of Fuzhou?" Governor Yin asked wearily, leaning back in his armchair in the reception room.

The person being questioned was seated to the lower left; he was his chief advisor, surnamed You, a member of the staff he had brought from his hometown in Southern Zhili.

"Your Excellency, this is not true. I have heard that some merchants' goods were robbed, but it seems that no civilians were affected."

"More maritime merchants. No wonder so many people are coming to find us." Governor Yin sighed. Having stayed in Fuzhou for so long, he understood that in Fuzhou, anyone with a bit of ability was a maritime merchant.

"But why is the Zhang family also coming out to lobby, and even specifically pointing out that it was the Lin family that robbed their goods?" Governor Yin thought for a moment and then asked.

"I don't know about that, but Your Excellency, we can't ignore the opinions of the gentry. We must resolve this matter as soon as possible," Yu's advisor suggested.

"Didn't I send people to arrest the Lin family a while ago? Why are they still causing trouble now?" Governor Yin frowned.

"Just as we were about to report to the governor, Captain Shen, who went to capture the Lin family and their colluding pirates, has returned. According to his report, the Lin family and the pirates are hiding on different islands. After they eliminated the Shuangfeng Island pirates who were colluding with the other side, they encountered a great storm. Only one tenth of their fleet survived, and only one ship returned to the water fortress with the head of the pirate leader. They were too weak to go out to sea again."

"Encountering storms? What a coincidence." Governor Yin frowned, instinctively sensing that something was amiss.

"Your Excellency, this should be the truth. According to reports, the ship that returned to the water fortress was in dire condition and sank shortly after docking. The people of the water fortress witnessed this firsthand, and the head that was sent by the other party has been verified to be that of Zhou Daye, the pirate from Shuangfeng Island," said Advisor You respectfully.

Typhoons are common in the waters off Fujian. Prefect Yin has served here for many years and knows how terrifying typhoons can be. Since he has been identified as a pirate leader, it seems there is no doubt about it. At this point, all that can be said is that the Lin family is lucky.

"It seems the Lin family is really lucky. The Fenghuo Gate Water Fortress might be mobilized again?" Governor Yin continued to ask.

"I'm afraid that won't work. As you know, Your Excellency, the water fortress only has a few ships available, and now that they're damaged, we'll have to wait until the ships and personnel are fully replenished." Upon hearing this, Advisor You breathed a sigh of relief, knowing the matter was over, and subtly patted his chest. With the matter settled, the silver notes were now his.

Yin Zhizhou had no idea what his staff was thinking. In fact, he was aware of the situation below. It was already a great achievement to be able to send them out once. After suffering such losses, sending them out again had become an impossible task.

In reality, the other party was already doing him a favor by getting back a pirate's head. Afterwards, he could write a report to claim credit, and everyone would get what they wanted. He couldn't possibly hold the other party hostage.

"Then what should we do with the Lin family? We can't just leave them to fend for themselves," said Prefect Yin helplessly.

"Your Excellency, perhaps we should report this to the Governor and have him dispatch the navy..."

"No! Absolutely not!" Prefect Yin shook his head vigorously. Then he said emphatically:

"We absolutely must not report this to the Provincial Administration Commission. Right now, in the waters off Zhangzhou, Yuan Balao and Li Zhong's gang of pirates are causing a huge disturbance, and the Governor is having a real headache over it. Yuegang is right in Zhangzhou, and the merchants there are suffering terribly. The Governor must be under immense pressure. We shouldn't trouble him with our little matter."

Governor Yin shook his head. Things weren't urgent enough yet, and he didn't want to risk getting into trouble.

That old man Yuan would often come ashore to plunder towns, so the Lin family was nothing compared to him. If it weren't for a few gentry families coming to him, he wouldn't have bothered with them at all.

Anyway, he will leave within the next two years no matter what.

He was a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) of the year Gui Chou (1593) in the 41st year of the Wanli reign (1594), ranking among the top ten. According to the established rules, he should have returned to the capital after serving one term as a prefect. He should have been transferred back to the capital to serve in one of the Six Ministries after his three-year term expired, but due to rampant piracy at the time, he stayed an extra term. However, it was impossible for him to serve a third term.

He just wants to wait quietly for his transfer back to the capital, and he doesn't want any trouble at all.

Unable to defeat the enemy or summon reinforcements, Prefect Yin's headache worsened.

"Has the Lin family made any moves lately?" Governor Yin asked.

"No, they only made that one move, and then there was no news. There were no reports of incidents at the coastal police stations," Yu replied after a moment's thought.

"Then let's leave it at that. Keep a close watch on them, and deal with any unusual movements." Governor Yin waved his hand, deciding on the strategy.

"How do we explain this to the gentry?" Yu asked cautiously.

"Tell them that the navy suffered heavy losses in a storm. Once the ships and personnel have been re-recruited, I will send troops to wipe out the pirates as soon as possible. If they urge us, ask them to assist the navy with provisions and supplies; that will speed things up."

"Your Excellency is wise. If these people are unwilling to part with money and provisions, then we can naturally stall for time. If they are willing, then the navy can recover quickly and make a great contribution by capturing pirates. We will be even more successful." Advisor You flattered him without hesitation.

"We can't just do nothing either." Governor Yin pondered for a moment, then said, "Send someone to Dongluo Island to contact the Lin family and tell them that if they are willing to accept the offer of amnesty, the past can be wiped clean."

"The Lord is so kind," Yu's advisor exclaimed.