The Sea Lion returned to Nassau after a month. Other than the lack of manpower and supplies, the mast was damaged during a battle, and the ship's speed was greatly reduced. They had no choice but to return to port for repairs.
Initially, Orff did not plan to let them get off the ship, but as soon as he gave the order, the entire ship went into an uproar. He wanted the men who had been stuck at sea for three months to stay on the ship when they saw land. It was like locking a cage of poodles together and expecting them to be pure.
In the end, Orff had no choice but to give in and remove the order. He only told everyone to keep the treasure a secret.
The result was gratifying. Within an hour after the first batch of pirates came ashore, the news that the Sea Lion was looking for Kidd's treasure spread across the entire island.
Up until now, every corner of the streets and alleys was discussing this matter.
However, it was not entirely a bad thing. At least, the Sea Lion's recruitment process became extraordinarily smooth. Generally speaking, if a pirate group lost more than 40% of its members in a short period of time, the people who wanted to join the group would have to consider if they were strong enough to survive the recruitment.
However, this time was obviously an exception. The scene of the Sea Lion's recruitment was unprecedentedly lively. Some small pirate groups with fewer members even wanted to join the Sea Lion. Applicants crowded the beach, and Owen had to transfer ten more people from the ship to maintain order.
When Anne heard the news, she ran out of the room anxiously, blaming Zhang Heng and Marvin for not telling her about it. In the end, she went out in high spirits, and as expected, she came back in the evening with her head hung low.
Because of the same reason, she did not even pass the registration stage, let alone the subsequent assessment. She even had a conflict with someone when she was queuing up. The girl was fierce. She did not back down even though there were four people in front of her. Instead, she raised her fists and fought them. In the end, two of them were beaten to the ground, and the other two were probably scared out of their wits. They helped their injured companions to retreat.
Zhang Heng opened the door and saw Anne standing outside. Her face was swollen, and her arms were bruised. He was speechless. However, he could feel that the red-haired girl's mood tonight was obviously different from before. He did not say anything harsh. "Dinner is ready. Let's eat together," he said.
He lowered his head and sat listlessly at the dining table. He no longer had the appetite he used to have. He picked up a potato from the plate, but when he held it in his hands, he did not eat it even after a long time had passed.
Then, out of nowhere, she suddenly said, "Why don't I marry you?"
Marvin, who was drinking his soup, almost stabbed the spoon into his esophagus.
"Don't misunderstand, I'm not disheartened by reality, and I don't want to be a housewife. I just feel a little bad for freeloading for so long." The red-haired girl grabbed her hair and said gloomily, "I originally thought that I would be able to earn money quickly with my skills, but now it seems that I was a little too optimistic."
She couldn't help but blush when she said that. She and Zhang Heng had agreed to share half of the loot from their first voyage. However, she only managed to snatch a pot, and it was a little embarrassing. Technically speaking, she couldn't share half of the loot with Zhang Heng. In fact, after she fell out with the Golden Swallow, she went into unemployment mode, gloriously becoming a freeloader.
During the day, she would wander around looking for a fight, and when it was time to eat, she would obediently come back to eat.
Other than fighting, she knew nothing else, including housework and cooking. Every time Zhang Heng and Marvin went out to sea, they had to prepare food and emergency change. When they came back, they couldn't help but wonder if there was a hurricane in their house. More than once, Zhang Heng found her underwear under his bed.
The red-haired girl was now dreaming of becoming rich overnight. That was why she was so excited when she heard about Kidd's treasure. She thought that her chance to make a comeback had come, but she did not expect to be stabbed in the back by her dog life.
Although Zhang Heng had always advocated for the girl to go home and be a good lady, after spending so much time with her, he had to admit that she did put all her skill points into combat. Objectively speaking, being a pirate was quite suitable for her. With her personality, it was unrealistic to expect her to stay in one place and not do anything.
However, the problem was that there was no reliable pirate group in Nassau that would accept a female.
Zhang Heng asked the red-haired girl, "What about after you marry me?"
The latter could not help but feel discouraged and mumbled, "… I don't know either, but at least I won't be living and eating for free anymore."
Zhang Heng put down the knife and fork in his hand. "How about this? If you can control yourself and don't cause trouble, I will let you on my ship."
"Your ship?" Anne was stunned. "Where did you get a ship? Wait, don't you plan to stay on the Sea Lion anymore?"
"Yes." This was the first time Zhang Heng revealed his intention to form a pirate crew in front of others. The farmer's son, on the other hand, could not help but open his mouth wide. However, he immediately thought of something and said, "Are you planning to work alone after you get your hands on Kidd's treasure? With this money, we can form a crew. But we will be rich by then. Why would we still be pirates? "
Zhang Heng's next words, however, left Marvin completely stunned.
"I don't plan to leave after I find the treasure. I asked Owen before. Newbies like us who came from captives can choose to stay or leave as long as we work on the ship for a year. So, once the deadline is up, I will apply to leave the ship."
"What if we still haven't found Kidd's treasure by then? You know that there are still two copies of the treasure map out there, right? "Didn't you see the scene on the beach this afternoon? Now, all the pirates in Nassau are trying to get a piece of the cake on the Sea Lion, and you're telling me that you're planning to give up and disembark at this critical juncture?"
Anne nodded. "Although I really want to go out to sea, I'm not in a hurry. Anyway, I've been here for so long. It doesn't matter if I wait for a few more months."
Zhang Heng was silent. His decision to leave the ship had nothing to do with Kidd's treasure. It was because of his keen sense of danger. Recently, he noticed that Orff's attitude toward him had changed slightly. Other than the first time they met, they did not interact much. Before that, Orff did not pay much attention to him. But for some reason, Zhang Heng felt like he was being watched. Including the previous few battles, it felt like there was always a pair of eyes watching him from behind.
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