The fleet of the Zhang Family and Wang Family went up against the mighty river. Li Xun's fleet followed closely behind. Li Xun ran to the main ship of the Zhang Family and Wang Family to stay. Old Man Yao, Old Man Pi, and Old Man Chang were also there. Old Man Liu took the collected information and left some people from the Ministry of Works to continue the research before returning.
It wasn't that the main ship of the Zhang family had a good view, but that it was the safest place, especially Li Xun. Even after being told that he might fall ill, he still insisted on traveling. Usually, when he could see Zhang Xiaobao, he would stay beside him. When Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were busy, they would bring along two doctors.
After the fleet traveled for three days, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan finally realized that something was wrong. Along the way, there were other ships joining old man Bi and old man Yao's fleet. None of the ships were small, and from the looks of it, they were very deep in the water.
The fleet of the Zhang Family and Wang Family was large to begin with. It wasn't because they wanted to make a scene, but because they had a lot of people. In addition, they also carried a lot of goods. Along the way, they had already attracted the attention of others. The ships upstream didn't need to be reminded and automatically made way for them, afraid of conflict.
The sun was shining brightly and the river breeze was whistling. When Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were flying kites with their younger brother and sister, another four ships that were waiting by the side joined the fleet.
"What do you mean? Have they been influenced by our personality and are preparing to follow us? " Wang Juan raised her Clairvoyance and stared at the four ships that didn't have any flags or symbols. In the past few days, 22 ships had joined, and they were all large ships. They were deep in the water, but no one came to greet them.
Zhang Xiaobao tied a small kite rope to his younger brother's waist and signaled the servant girl to take him to play. He also looked at the ships in puzzlement.
"There's no unspoken rule that ships must travel in groups on the Yangtze River, right? The ship also looks awkward. It doesn't look like a military ship, and it doesn't look like a cargo ship. It seems to be a dual-purpose ship. Let's go and find someone to ask. "
The two of them went to look for Li Xun with confusion in their hearts. Li Xun was playing mahjong with Liu 'er, Xin Er, and Weiwei. He was not as skilled as Zhang Xiaobao, and his opponents were not the so-called experts from the Ministry of Works. The three girls kept Li Xun at bay, and he could not even touch a single tile.
Li Xun's luck was not bad. After the start of the new round, he had already heard his tiles after five rounds. Hu Yao had four and seven, but he did not touch a single tile after three rounds. Liu 'er, his opponent, had already dismantled his table, but she still did not touch a single tile.
Li Xun did not know, but the most infuriating one was Weiwei. A four and a seven were both useless tiles. She put them on the side for Li Xun to see. Then, she played three consecutive tiles. Her meaning was very clear. "If you want to win, change it. Don't expect me to play."
Xin Er's opponent had 13 tiles on the table. She grabbed a tile and touched it with her small hands. Then, she glanced at Li Xun and gently flipped it to the middle.
Li Xun felt a lot of pressure. He grabbed a tile and looked at the tiles that had been played in the middle. There was only one that was the same as the one in his hand. He hesitated and did not know whether to play or not.
"Young Master Li, why don't you sleep first and see if you should play in your dreams? I'm sleepy. Let me remind you that I'm playing five and eight hundred thousand. If so, don't play."
Xin Er yawned and said to Li Xun.
"You said that last round, but the result was not at all. This round … I'll say it first. My heart is not good. If I play something else, you can't win, or else …"
"Or else you can stop playing. As the saying goes, all is fair in war. No one is forcing you to play. Being sick is not an excuse. Being weak is not an excuse. What are you afraid of? A single tile is only four hundred. It's not a big deal."
Xin Er looked like she was going to win, which made Li Xun even more worried. His hand holding the tiles trembled. Four hundred was not a big deal? The main thing was that he had already lost more than three thousand. If he continued to lose, he would become a poor man when he arrived at the destination.
At this time, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan finally appeared. Li Xun did not wait for the two to speak and said directly, "I thought you two forgot about that big thing. Come, come back to the cabin with me. I'll give it to you. That's all for today. We'll play another day."
After saying that, Li Xun prepared to leave. At the same time, she threw out the card in her hand.
"Fifty thousand. I win. You can't be like this. You cheated. We won't play with you next time. Four hundred. Even if you don't give it today, you have to give it tomorrow."
Xin Er took out the tiles and shouted at Li Xun, who was leaving behind a shadow.
"Young Master Li's tiles are getting better. You dare to play with the three of them. Even I can't deal with them. Young Master Li, look at the ship behind them. Do you know it?"
Zhang Xiaobao did not know what the three of them were busy with all day. It seemed that they were short of money recently. It was not the first time that people from the inner courtyard had come to say that they were cheated of money.
This kind of thing was up to them. What he had to figure out was the meaning of the ships that kept coming along the way.
Li Xun took the Clairvoyance and looked behind. For a moment, he could not figure it out. The ships were not of the same size, and they were also of different ages. The only thing they had in common was that they were very honest. They could also be used for military purposes as cargo ships.
Putting down the Clairvoyance, Li Xun shook his head. "I'm not sure. Since they are mixed in with Master Bi and Master Yao's fleet, why don't we ask the two of you why you haven't seen them in the past two days?"
"Who knows? Maybe they are in the wrong. "Wang Juan mumbled.
As soon as Wang Juan finished speaking, three old men walked out from the cabin onto the deck. Their eyes were all red. The first impression they gave was that they were suffering from a contagious disease.
Their eyes were red, but they were in good spirits. When the Old Man Pi saw Zhang Xiaobao and the others, he quickly walked over. He also looked behind and asked, "Xiao Bao, Cuckoo, and His Royal Highness, are you enjoying the breeze here? It's almost time to eat. I haven't tasted Xiao Bao and Cuckoo's cooking for many days. I'm really missing them. "
"Yes, they are. They keep blowing and blowing and blowing, and a few ships will appear. I reckon that by the time they reach Yizhou, there will be more than a hundred ships behind them. Grandpa Bi, are those ships your relatives? I wonder what kind of goods they are carrying. They draw quite a lot of water. "
Zhang Xiaobao handed over the Clairvoyance in his hand.
Old Man Pi took it and looked at it carefully. He looked like he was thinking. After a while, he said, "Maybe they see that your fleet is big, so they are following behind you. If they run into trouble, they can ask for help. If they eat the water, it means that they have a lot of goods. Merchants don't have it easy, so why bother with them?"
"That's true. Since they are going the same way, how about this? Grandpa Bi, I'll get someone to bring their ships in. It'll be safer to protect them on the side. I'll be a good person until the end. Every time it's time to eat, I'll call them over to eat something hot. I've seen them a few times, but they are only eating dry rations. How pitiful."
Zhang Xiaobao kept looking into Old Man Pi's eyes as he spoke. That fleeting gaze of his was really admirable. He was so old, but he could still look back and forth.
Old Man Yao stood up and said, "I don't think there's a need. Some people don't like to be helped. They are probably like that. Come, let's eat."
"Okay, let's eat. What a pity. That's right, Grandpa Yao. My family often makes machines. Recently, we have figured out a kind of oil that can be smeared on metal. It can better protect the metal. For example, as long as we use that oil, not only will it not smell bad, but it will also shine brighter after we wipe it with a cotton cloth. Do you want to take out a few buckets of it and maintain the weapons on the ships behind us?"
Zhang Xiaobao suddenly said when he was about to turn around and head back to eat.
"No need. Wrap them up in oil paper." Old Man Yao followed Zhang Xiaobao's words and replied.
"Oh! That's good. "Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan said at the same time.
This time, the three old men were stunned. Old Man Yao had a helpless expression. How could he make such a mistake normally? The comfortable life made him less vigilant.
Old Man Pi asked helplessly, "Xiao Bao, how do you know that the ships behind us are loaded with weapons?"
"I also know that the ships are not only loaded with weapons, but also with food and medicine," Zhang Xiaobao replied.
"How do you know?" Old Man Pi wondered.
"I knew as soon as you asked. The more certain you asked, the more certain I was. You asked me first to let me know that my family was used as a cover. Everyone knows that my family's fleet is big. It's so big that no matter how many ships there are, no one will suspect it.
So my father became a sacrifice. He had to stay in Yizhou for at least a year. If he fell sick there, who would make up for it? I guess that as soon as my family set out, someone in the capital would impeach my father. Then my father was sent away. The time difference was controlled well. My family's pigeons couldn't have flown with the ships. "
Zhang Xiaobao didn't know the situation at first, but after probing a little, he understood everything.
"Who will go if not your family? Don't your family want to seek justice for the people in Shuzhou who were washed away by the flood? Other than your family, no one else can take out such a big fleet. Other than your family, no one else can do the follow-up work. Other people are more likely to fall sick.
When we get there, I'll tell you why. There are too many people, and if the news is leaked, then all our previous efforts will be wasted. As long as everything goes well, your father can go to another place in at most a year. "
Old Man Pi didn't have a choice. He could only try to make his voice louder to sound reasonable.
Zhang Xiaobao nodded as if he had accepted his fate. He sighed and said, "It's really dangerous if you're not a local. Poor thing. My grandfather has lived for so long, but he still doesn't know what it's like to be a Rank One official. My grandmother doesn't even know what the clothes of a noble lady look like.
And Xiaobei, before we left, told me that he wanted to open a toy store in Shuzhou. He heard that there are skilled craftsmen in the Military Weapons Bureau. Unfortunately, this wish can't be realized. As a brother, I'm useless. Useless. "
"Me, my family too. As a sister … sigh!" Wang Juan also said at this time.
Old Man Pi and the other two looked at each other. Old Man Yao nodded helplessly and said, "There are arrangements, there are arrangements. Now, we'll go to Yizhou safely."
When he said this, he knew that he had to do something. It was his fault for not keeping his mouth shut. However, a Rank One official was definitely not allowed. Even a Rank One official was not allowed.
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