Fifty-five days had passed since the Jackdaw left port, and all sorts of rumors were flying around the island.
Some said that Zhang Heng and his crew were caught in a storm and lost at sea. Some said that they saw the navy capture them, and a fierce battle ensued. In the end, the Jackdaw was sunk. Some even claimed that they met mermaids, and the crew was lured into the sea by their singing …
Regardless of the rumors, there was one thing in common: they believed that the Jackdaw would never return. The supplies that Zhang Heng and his crew brought with them were no secret. One and a half months had passed, and even if they did not take into account the damage they suffered during the journey, the Jackdaw's food and water reserves were almost depleted. Since they had yet to return to port, it was highly likely that the Jackdaw was doomed.
Such occurrences were not uncommon among pirates, especially newly established pirate groups. However, Zhang Heng's warship, and the fact that he had made an exception to recruit a female boatswain, attracted even more attention.
The people on the island had mixed reactions to the final outcome. The gamblers who bet on the Jackdaw were naturally elated, while the majority of the onlookers felt a tinge of regret. Compared to such a boring ending, they would rather see the Jackdaw return empty-handed and Zhang Heng, the new captain, be overthrown by his men.
On the other hand, James was a lot more straightforward. When he heard the good news, he had a good drink at the tavern to celebrate the death of his love rival, Zhang Heng. However, when he remembered that Anne was on the Jackdaw as well, he couldn't bring himself to be happy. He had spent so much effort to lure Anne to the New World and invested so much money on her. In the end, it was all for naught. James suddenly realized that the rum in his glass was tasteless.
Harry was probably the only person on the island who truly felt sorry for the Jackdaw.
He had been feeling a little listless for the past two days. Without the red-haired demon, he could dominate the streets in the neighborhood. His pocket was filled with the copper sopees that the other imps had given him that morning. However, for some reason, he felt that something was missing from his life.
Harry put his hands in his pockets and kicked the pebbles at his feet in boredom. He even missed the time when he was pressed to the ground and beaten by the man.
The punches full of power and anger fell like raindrops. In Harry's own words, it was beyond the battle itself. Every punch of hers seemed to be conveying some kind of belief. Even if I was being punched, I could feel something burning in my chest.
Unfortunately, he would never see that figure again. Thinking of this, Harry could not help but let out a long, lonely sigh that did not match his age.
The two naughty kids behind him looked at each other in dismay, suspecting that their boss's brain had been beaten silly.
Just then, the three of them saw a figure running from the pier. That person ran straight into a casino not far away, shouting, "It's back! It's back! The Jackdaw is back! Hahahaha! I haven't lost yet! "
The two kids were shocked to hear that. During this period of time, everyone on the island had basically accepted that the Jackdaw had met with an accident. After all, if the Jackdaw could return, it would have done so a long time ago. According to past experience, a ship that didn't return after the deadline was basically in trouble. They did not expect things to turn out this way. When they looked at their boss again, he was long gone.
Harry sprinted to the pier in one breath. By then, the place was already crowded with onlookers. Taking advantage of his small size, Harry squeezed his way through the crowd. Finally, he managed to squeeze his way to the front of the crowd and saw the Jackdaw lowering a small boat and rowing towards him.
To his disappointment, he did not see Anne on the boat. Instead, it was another woman sitting at the bow.
By now, the onlookers were already numb to the sight of so many women on the Jackdaw. Compared to exploring Zhang Heng's private life, they were more interested in the Jackdaw's first voyage.
However, when the pirates on the ship sent Carina ashore, they returned to the ship without saying a word. Carina immediately looked for the captain of her transport ship and said something to him. After that, the captain hurriedly gathered the sailors to board the ship. During that period, no matter what the people around them asked, they didn't say a word as if they didn't hear anything.
Their unusual behavior piqued the onlookers' curiosity. Finally, someone recognized Karina as a black-market merchant. Some time ago, she had been in contact with other captains and merchants on the island. Unfortunately, she failed to join the newly formed black-market alliance. Many thought that she had left Nassau. Little did they know that she was with the Jackdaw, which had recently appeared.
After that, the Gentle Breeze sailed to the Jackdaw's side. The two ships were connected by gangplanks, and the Jackdaw's pirates began to move boxes of goods onto the Gentle Breeze.
Since they were still some distance away from the pier, the onlookers could not tell what was in those boxes. All they knew was that there were a lot of them. Other than that, they also noticed that Karina went to the merchant who was in charge of mortgage loans. She stayed in the merchant's house for about an hour.
After that, the merchant personally sent her to the door. By dusk, Karina boarded the Gentle Breeze and sailed out of the harbor. However, the Jackdaw's pirates had yet to disembark.
All Zhang Heng did was send a few tight-lipped old men to buy some food, drinks, and fruits from the ship to appease the restless pirates. Although there was an unwritten rule in Nassau that pirates were not allowed to touch the ships of black merchants, the value of the goods this time was too high. There was no guarantee that someone would take the risk when they heard about it.
Although the Jackdaw would no longer have anything to do with the Jackdaw after the transaction was completed, Carina's current assets were not enough to handle so many goods. She had no choice but to use two properties in New Hampshire and the Gentle Breeze as collateral to raise a down payment for the pirates on board. As for the remaining half of the Jackdaw's public funds, she would have to wait for Carina to sell the goods before she could make up for it.
That was why Zhang Heng had to ensure the Gentle Breeze's safety. Other than that, the two of them were now allies. This was not a one-time deal. He still needed Karina to help him sell his loot. He could not just watch her fall into danger.
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