White-robed Minister

0010 [This thing is so hard to get!]

Let's rewind to the first half of the night.

The bandit leader, Lu Daliang, led more than thirty small boats and secretly rowed towards Yinsha Wharf under the cover of night.

These small civilian boats are found all over the waterways of Lingnan.

Many Tanka people also lived along the riverbank. The small boats of salt bandits and Tanka people were mixed together and could not be distinguished at all.

Inside the boat, braziers were lit one after another, and the salt thieves covered them with cloth, making it difficult to see the firelight from the outside.

One by one, torches were placed into the brazier and lit.

The salt bandits wore all sorts of homemade leather armor, and some even carried bows and arrows.

"It's estimated that it's already on fire outside the county town."

Lu Daliang, holding a torch, came to the bow of the boat and shouted, "Raise the flag! Beat the drum!"

"Knock knock knock!"

Amidst the sound of war drums, the pirate ships raised their flags.

Flags and drums were important communication tools for ancient armies, as the idiom "equal in strength" suggests. These salt bandits, possessing both flags and war drums, were no ordinary thieves.

More than thirty small boats, carrying torches, beating war drums, and raising flags, rushed swiftly toward the temporary camp.

The patrolman on guard duty was awakened from his sleep.

He opened his eyes and cried out in terror, "The salt thieves are here! The salt thieves are here!"

Then, he turned and ran.

The camp quickly descended into chaos as everyone fled.

The deputy commander in charge of the troops here wanted to stop them, but found that the messengers could not be found, so he also ran away among the deserters.

Tax collectors, residents, merchants, and shop assistants in Yinshabu were all terrified and ran around in panic, wishing they had more legs.

Those trapped on the merchant ship, the bolder ones jumped into the river and escaped, while the less timid ones huddled in the cabin, trembling with fear.

The boatmen and boat people nearby, awakened by the commotion, remained calm. Some continued sleeping, some chuckled, and some simply peeked out to watch the spectacle.

They were the lowest class in the Song Dynasty. They were not only inferior to the fifth-class households, but even the customers were better off than them.

"Stop chasing! Surround and attack the Gang ships!"

The salt bandits set fire to the camps and shops, then stopped their pursuit, even bypassing various merchant ships and heading straight for the two commercial vessels.

If they manage to steal all the treasures on the ship, it will be enough for them to live a carefree life for generations to come.

"call out!"

An arrow pierced the night and struck the salt bandit in the chest.

"Archers! Archers!"

"Quickly throw the grappling hook, climb aboard, and seize the boat!"

"..."

These salt bandits were extremely fierce; seeing one of their companions wounded by an arrow, they charged even faster.

The salt bandits who had previously landed and set fire to the ships also rushed towards the dock from the ground. However, by nightfall, both ships had already retracted their ramps, forcing the salt bandits to use grappling hooks to climb aboard.

The military officer in charge of escorting the ship was named Chen Xiuqi. He led the transport troops in a frenzied hacking at the grappling hooks, roaring as he slashed: "I'll fuck your mother! You dare to rob the imperial convoy? You want to ruin my family? I'll kill you! Men, there's a reward of five strings of cash for killing a salt bandit. I'll sell my fields and houses to pay you the reward!"

If the salt convoy is lost, Chen Xiuqi will surely be bankrupt. He would rather fight to the death with the salt bandits here, hoping that the imperial court might exempt his family from paying compensation.

The two households responsible for escorting goods to the yamen were also fighting desperately against the bandits.

The brothers Yang Xun and Yang Shu, along with the brave men they had recruited, had already cut countless hooks and ropes.

Yang Shu even took the time to fire arrows, specifically targeting the torches, causing screams of agony to erupt below the junks.

The bandit leader, Lu Daliang, was already regretting his actions. He knew that it would be difficult to rob the Maritime Trade Route because the people on board would fight desperately and would not scatter like the government troops on the shore.

But this is fucking too hard to beat!

Lu Daliang ordered all his men on his boat to extinguish their torches and secretly sailed to the other side of the junket. He opened his mouth, bit a hand knife, threw out a grappling hook to hang on the gunwale, and then quickly climbed up the rope.

This fellow had been robbing counties and prefectures for twenty years, honing his superb climbing skills, and in the blink of an eye, he managed to climb onto the fishing boat.

Several soldiers guarding the convoy rushed over upon hearing the commotion.

But it was too late.

Lu Daliang raised his knife and killed two soldiers in quick succession. Several salt bandits quickly climbed up behind him.

The officers in charge of escorting the barge were a father and two sons surnamed Luo, who led a group of brave men to stop them.

The father and his two sons were not skilled in martial arts, but they had no choice but to fight desperately, otherwise the family fortune accumulated over generations would be lost.

In a single encounter, the father was hacked to death.

"father!"

"You scoundrel, give me back my father's life!"

The two sons charged forward recklessly.

But the brave men they had recruited were now retreating. The salt bandits were too ferocious; the men were paid to do their bidding and didn't want to lose their lives.

In the blink of an eye, both sons died.

The brave men finally couldn't hold on any longer and jumped over the gunwale into the river to escape.

More and more salt bandits used this place as a breakthrough to board ships.

Military officer Chen Xiuqi led his remaining troops in a fighting retreat, gradually retreating into a cabin. They formed a defensive formation to guard the cabin door, and when the salt bandits came, they raised their guns and thrust them, killing or wounding several enemies in succession.

The remaining salt bandits dared not launch another attack, and the two sides remained locked in a standoff across the cabin door.

"I couldn't pry these small boxes open; I even broke the knife in the process."

"Haha, the big box is easy to open."

"Why is it just a pile of rotten wood? It smells quite nice, though."

"..."

From the other cabins, shouts of salt bandits could be heard continuously; they had found all sorts of treasures.

On another fishing boat, the Yang brothers were displaying their prowess.

The older brother, Yang Xun, brandished a stick with wrought iron at both ends. He swung it at anyone he saw, and a single blow would break at least one bone.

In the midst of the melee, the younger brother, Yang Shu, had abandoned his bow and arrows, instead gripping two short spears and thrusting repeatedly. He wielded his spears with great skill, and the narrow terrain actually made him more effective; every thrust of his spears resulted in the death or injury of the salt bandits.

The two brothers led their private army in bravery, fighting their way through enemy lines to rescue friendly forces, and even rallying surviving troops to launch a counter-offensive.

Before they knew it, no salt bandits dared to attack anymore; instead, they were so frightened that they jumped ship and fled.

"Brother, there are two bandits on that ship. Many of our brothers have been killed. We can't take it down at all!" A salt bandit rushed over to report the news.

Upon hearing this, Lu Daliang was enraged.

This damned shipping contract is so hard to snatch; no wonder no other company is vying for it.

They had already captured the ship, but the military officer in charge was still huddled in the cabin with his remaining troops, putting up a stubborn resistance.

The other boat was even more absurd; the brothers were actually kicked off.

Lu Daliang immediately ordered, "Forget about that other ship, take all the treasures from this ship. Take as much as you can! If we're too slow, the county town will definitely find out."

One by one, the treasures were brought out.

There are large boxes and small boxes.

There were also bamboo baskets, rattan baskets, cattail mats... all bound together in layers and sealed with seals from the Maritime Trade Office.

Different treasures have different packaging.

The small boxes are the most difficult to deal with; the locks can't be broken by smashing or pried open.

The salt bandits lowered the gangplank, first carrying all sorts of treasures ashore, and then moving them to their small boats.

Suddenly, a small boat on lookout duty sped up from the direction of the county town and the sandbar camp, blowing its horn loudly.

Upon hearing the bugle call, Lu Daliang's expression changed drastically. He immediately shouted, "Stop moving! Get out of here! Quickly sound the gong and retreat!"

His plan included ample time for evacuation.

However, the attack on the ship took too long, and Deputy Inspector Huang Bao had already led his fleet to attack.

Moreover, the salt bandits suffered too many casualties attacking the transport ships; otherwise, they wouldn't have dared to fight the patrol fleet again. Those patrol soldiers were all cowards who dared not fight to the death!

After defeating the salt bandits, the brothers Yang Xun and Yang Shu stayed on the deck.

They couldn't pursue, nor did they want to.

Because they are only responsible for escorting this ship; the fate of the other ship is none of their concern.

But Yang Shu didn't stop.

He picked up his bow and arrows again, aimed at the torches in the distance, and shot down several salt bandits carrying torches.

"Hurry, hurry! The government troops' fleet is coming!"

The salt bandits, who had suffered heavy casualties, were in a state of unprecedented panic.

These bandits didn't even bother with their accomplices; after loading the treasure onto their small boat, they immediately set sail. Before the patrol boats could catch up, they quickly turned into the small river to the west to escape.

The salt bandits had completely lost their organization and were fighting independently in small boats.

"Put down the pedal!"

Yang Shu roared and decided to take the opportunity to pursue and kill.

He descended to the ground using the footboard, followed by a group of brave men shouting and cheering.

A salt bandit carrying a box, in a panic, lost his footing and fell into the river along with the treasure box, also knocking the small boat away.

Many salt bandits, pursued by Yang Shu, were too terrified to fight despite their numerical superiority. Some abandoned their treasures and fled to their boats, speeding away in small boats. Others, without even bothering to board, fled directly to the northern countryside.

Some, who valued money over life, realized they had no chance to board the ship and instead carried their treasures and ran wildly into the countryside.

Yang Shu caught up with several bandits in succession, thrusting his spear at them, but none of them could withstand his attack.

"Thirteenth Brother, stop chasing! Go back and guard our convoy!" Yang Xun shouted to his younger brother. "I'm afraid the local inspectors will cause trouble!"

Yang Shu turned around and asked, "What kind of reckless behavior?"

Yang Xun watched the bandit boats fleeing on the river, their torches receding into the distance: "The imperial convoy was robbed in Qingyuan County, and who knows how much treasure was taken away. To survive, the local inspectors will do anything. They might kill us all, then empty the convoy's ships of their treasures to bribe officials throughout Guangdong."

Yang Shu was stunned and said, "How could it be possible to bribe officials in Guangdong?"

"Who knows?" Yang Xun sneered.

"Brother, please don't joke," Yang Shu laughed dryly, then said to the brave soldiers of his private army and the surviving garrison troops, "Go back and guard the ship carefully. No one is allowed to approach. If any patrolmen try to board, kill them without mercy!"

As the two brothers spoke, Chen Xiuqi, the military officer who had miraculously survived, led the remaining soldiers off another cargo ship. Ignoring their injuries, they searched everywhere for the scattered treasure chests, recovering as many as they could.

Chen Xiuqi, already covered in wounds, clutched his bleeding abdomen and shouted, "Yang brothers, send some men to retrieve the treasure. Keep a close watch on the cargo ships; the local inspector is coming!"

……

In the darkness, several groups of salt bandits, unable to escape by boat, carried various treasures and fled north.

Someone accidentally stepped over the embankment and tumbled into the field along with the treasure. They cut through the layers of hemp rope binding the ivory, revealing ivory tusks inside. Each person pulled out one or two tusks, grabbed them, and ran, leaving the rest behind.

Some people, exhausted from running, cut open the straw mats they could only carry, and immediately smelled a rich fragrance. They didn't recognize camphor or ambergris, so they just picked out some at random, put it in their clothes, and ran away.

"What's in here? The box isn't big, but it's a bit heavy, probably weighing forty or fifty pounds."

How would I know?

"Open it and take a look. Pick a few things and take them; you can't run fast if you carry them all."

"It's locked, I can't open it."

"Pry it open."

"I tried to pry it open on a ship, but I couldn't. I'd probably have to smash it with a hammer."

"..."

The two salt bandits, carrying a small box, were panting and running slower and slower.

This box is shaped like a briefcase. It is covered with leather on the outside, with copper trim at the corners and copper pull rings on both sides.

Never mind what's inside, the box itself is worth a lot of money!

"call out!"

An arrow shot out from the darkness.