There were many boats coming and going on the Jingshui River, so no one would deliberately pay attention to these boats. When the three boats arrived at the intersection of the two streams in Dingping County, they followed the instructions and lined up diagonally. The people on the three boats also shouted that the boats were broken and so on.
They set up springboards and looked messy. The small boats coming from the Luoshui River were immediately swept away by the current. Fortunately, the people on the small boats reacted quickly. After a few strokes, the small boats spun around and headed downstream of the Jingshui River.
After being swept away for more than a thousand feet, they leaned to the side and looked in shock at the big boats in the distance.
When the small boats behind saw this, they all stopped and didn't dare to go in that direction anymore. On a small boat that also stopped, a group of people was drinking at the bow. When they saw the small boat being swept away like a leaf, many of them laughed out loud.
Only Mi Fan, who was sitting there and hadn't eaten a single bite, was pale. When the small boat was swept away, he felt his vision darken and couldn't see anything. He only recovered after a while.
He wanted to drink some wine to calm his nerves, but found that his hands were trembling so much that he couldn't hold a wine cup. He could only sit there and gasp for breath.
"Brother Weitong, are you feeling unwell again?" Guo Ren saw Mi Fan's expression and asked with concern. He had been like this since the beginning.
Mi Fan and Weiwei shook their heads. They actually really wanted to persuade the people on the boats to give up on this plan. They had never felt like this before. It was too scary. They didn't know what would happen.
But they also knew that it was useless to say anything now. The people on the boats wouldn't listen to them, even if they were very obedient in the past.
On the small boats waiting to pass, they already knew the situation in front and started cursing. Why couldn't three boats be broken? Why did it have to be that place that was broken? And all of them were broken together. Looking at the flags on the boats, they were from the Jingshui Boat Company. Some of the smarter people immediately guessed that the people on the boats were deliberately doing this.
Guo Ren and the others listened to the cursing and didn't care at all. So what if they cursed? They still couldn't pass.
Some of the people on the small boats cursed as if they did not know fatigue, especially those who were transporting seasonal vegetables and fruits. Every two hours of delay, there was a possibility that some things would rot.
However, there was nothing they could do. They could only wait for the three boats to leave quickly. Some of the bolder ones who thought they had better skills even tried to move forward. In the end, without exception, they were all swept downstream and obediently leaned against the shore.
An hour passed, and the three large ships that looked like nothing had happened were still there. The small boats that could have passed by also stopped. The small boats on the Luoshui River were also next to each other, waiting for the three large ships to leave.
"Hahahaha!" When they saw the anxious appearances of the people on the small boats that had stopped at Little Luoshui, the people on the boats once again began to laugh loudly.
Mi Fan listened from the side and felt even more irritated.
Just as some people were cursing and some were laughing, six large ships suddenly appeared from upstream. The people who had just arrived behind the three large ships immediately changed their flags to those of the Jingshui Boat Company.
The small boats that had stopped to transport goods now thought that the three ships that had stopped before were indeed broken, and the ships behind them were coming to help. Otherwise, they wouldn't be so close. However, the merchants on Mi Fan's side were puzzled. Where did the six ships behind them come from?
Just as everyone was deep in thought, the six ships had already stopped there in the same way as the three ships in front. They also connected to each other by gangplanks. At the same time, they also connected to the outermost ship of the three. Someone pulled a metal chain and came out of that ship.
While the people on the three ships were still in a daze, the three ships and the six ships were all connected by about twenty metal chains that weren't too thick.
"You guys are …?" The people on the three ships didn't understand what was going on. One of the ship's leaders pulled on a person who was still nailing the chains and asked.
This person raised his head and looked at him impatiently. "Listen to orders. You guys are just in charge of blocking the water. In a moment, someone will tell you what to do next."
As he spoke, this person had already nailed a few places in front of him that needed to be nailed. He turned around and ran back. The other people who came over did the same. The people on the three ships looked at the flags and looked at the clothes these people were wearing. For a moment, they couldn't stop them. They were indeed boat operators.
When the people on the six ships all retreated, they saw a few small boats being lowered from the ships. The people on the large ships all jumped onto the small boats. Using the current's impact, they disappeared downstream in the blink of an eye.
When the last boat was out of sight, the six big boats emitted thick smoke one after another. Not long after the thick smoke appeared, the people on the three boats saw the flames on the other six boats.
"Quick, quickly cut the chains." When the person in charge of the third ship saw this, he immediately reacted and shouted at the boatmen. Some of the boatmen immediately went to look for tools, but before they could find them, the ship closest to them exploded with a boom and an area was blasted open.
The rain of fire fell from the sky. Some inevitably fell on the other ships. The fire was mixed with oil. When it fell on the deck, it began to burn.
The wind on the river was strong. The fire ignited the ship closest to them. In addition, the six connected ships exploded one after another. The boatmen on the three ships didn't care about cutting the chains anymore. They relied on their good swimming skills and jumped off the ships. They were swept downstream by the current.
The boatmen were indeed good swimmers. When they were in the water, they didn't stupidly shout for help. They held their breath and rushed forward for a distance. Only then did they reveal their heads to call for help.
One by one, they looked back in horror. They saw that the other ships were hopeless. The people on the three ships had all jumped off. They watched as the fire engulfed them, but there was nothing they could do.
The people on the small boats that passed by were dumbfounded. Mi Fan and the others were also dumbfounded. Fast, it was really too fast. The six boats stopped and caught fire in less than a quarter of an hour. Now, when they wanted to look for the people on the boats, they were long gone.
How did they get there? What happened? They didn't know. The only thing they knew was that the ships were on fire. Three of the six ships were on fire.
"How can this be? Where did the ships come from? Why are they using our ship's flag? "Guo Ren, who was in a daze, was the first to react. He looked at the burning ships and shouted loudly.
The other merchants also didn't understand. They followed suit and shouted. Once they shouted, their identities were exposed. The surrounding small boats were cursing people. They didn't have a specific target. Now, they found their target. They were the people on the ship.
Just like when the ships exploded, the people on the small boats also exploded. They started cursing at the people on the ship. They used the ships to block the other ships and didn't let them leave.
After cursing each other for two hours, the ships on the other side were completely on fire. It was impossible to save them. After a while, they would sink.
Just then, a few fast boats came from downstream. The bailiffs of the manor stood at the bow of the boats. There was also a portion of the manor's soldiers. Once these boats arrived, they began to control the people on the small boats.
Mi Fan and the others were no exception. They were also watched by a few people.
They didn't let them leave. They didn't ask any questions. They just watched. When the sky gradually darkened, the ships were almost completely burned. Other than the places that were in the water, the rest of the ships were either burned to charcoal or ash.
The bailiffs and soldiers of the manor didn't stay idle. They pulled apart the boats and fished up some things from time to time. There were tea leaves, rice, and salt in wooden barrels.
As the people under watch waited, the bailiffs and soldiers began to ask one by one, whose ships were these? Why were there salt and tea on the ships? There were even people who went to the places where the fire was still burning. They pushed away the burning planks and spread nets. When the nets were lifted up, there were weapons hanging on them.
It wasn't difficult to ask this kind of thing. The boatmen were still there. After asking, they learned that the ships belonged to the Jing Shui Ship Company. Immediately, someone found Mi Fan and the others and asked, "Why are there so many important things on the ships, and even weapons?"
"Sir, there's nothing on our ship. It should be the goods from the six ships that came after. It has nothing to do with us. Think about it. If it was our ship, how could there be weapons on it? How could it catch fire? "
A merchant from the ship company explained and even tried to reason with the person who asked.
"But we just asked. The six ships that came after also flew your flag. If they weren't your ships, why did they stop there at the same time? Besides, we don't know which ship the things that were fished up were from. "
This person asked again.
The merchant just now could only continue to explain, "Sir, how would we know why they flew our flag? Why did they stop there? Our three ships were damaged. That's why they stopped. "
"Oh? You don't know? That means you don't know them? Then why did you let their people board your ships? When we asked the others just now, they said that they saw the people from the six ships board the ship that was originally here. Are your ships really damaged? Do we need to ask a few boatmen to come over and explain? It seems that what you said is different. "
This person asked again and happened to ask something that others couldn't say.
"This … this …"
"I suspect that you are colluding with the enemy. Let's wait for the people from the manor to come. Now, no one is allowed to leave. Otherwise, we'll kill!"
"Kill!" The moment this person shouted the word 'kill', the other bailiffs and soldiers also shouted at the same time.
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