"Nobody wants you to come with me. If you don't want to run around, then stay in Kuanglan City by yourself!" Li Jun replied irritably. Having just left Kuanglan City, he still felt a pang of reluctance to part with Mo Rong. Moreover, although he was slow to notice, he had noticed that Mo Rong's expression was somewhat off when they parted. On one hand, he was worried about Mo Rong, and on the other hand, he was restless and uneasy about his strange feelings for her. At this moment, Ji Su's words made him even angrier.
“You…” Ji Su’s eyebrows furrowed, and she glared at Li Jun with anger flashing in her eyes. She had only asked him a question out of kindness, but he treated her with such contempt. Was this man really cold-blooded?
"Don't get angry at him all the time. Sometimes men deliberately provoke you. Before you're sure that getting angry will work, you must control yourself. The more he wants to make you angry, the happier you should be, because it proves that he's paying attention to you."
The secret mental techniques Chen Ying had secretly transmitted echoed in her ears. She suppressed her anger, took a deep breath, and smiled at Li Jun, who was fully on guard against her sudden attack.
Li Jun was so frightened he almost fell off his horse. As Ji Su glared at him, hundreds of possible ways she might attack flashed through his mind, but he never imagined she would simply laugh it off. In fact, in his memory, Ji Su was known for her fiery temper, but not for smiling. Now, not only did she smile, but she smiled so brightly, right when they were having a disagreement.
"What's wrong with her? She's acting strange..." Li Jun couldn't help but think to himself. Then he had to admit that Ji Su looked much better after taking off that hideous helmet, and her smile just now was even more charming and beautiful.
A long silence followed. Li Jun was clearly distracted; he couldn't understand why his mind was filled with the smiling faces of Mo Rong and Ji Su, which frustrated him. Ji Su, on the other hand, was quite satisfied with the result of her smile, and began to recall the techniques Chen Ying had taught her for dealing with men, planning her next move.
Shortly after Li Jun's departure, Jiang Tang publicly announced the recruitment of sailors and soldiers in Kuanglan City to form the first naval force of the Peace Army, in order to deal with the Japanese pirates who were harassing Kuanglan City. The Hai Kuo, having escaped the pirates' clutches, brought the Peace Army definite news of the pirates, but also instilled fear and anxiety in the people of Kuanglan City. Although Li Jun had returned quickly and left again, the people, who had great confidence in him, assumed he had a foolproof plan. However, if they also had a powerful navy, the people of Kuanglan City would feel even more at ease.
Merchants like Jia Tong were well aware of the importance of driving out the Japanese pirates. The overseas trade of Kuanglan City over the past six months had brought them immense wealth, making the smooth flow of sea routes crucial. Upon learning of Jiang Tang's recruitment of a navy, they immediately lent their large ships to the Peace Army for naval use. Thus, within just a few days, a 2,000-strong navy was established, primarily composed of foreign sailors from the original merchant ships, supplemented by civilian soldiers. In this critical moment, as Kuanglan City's naval warriors, they could resume their former professions after the Japanese pirates were driven out. Moreover, since most were foreigners skilled in navigation and archery, training was much easier, and they could be immediately deployed to battle.
The naval commander was none other than Tu Longziyun. Although the name Tu Longziyun might be ridiculed among ordinary people, the barbarians who lived at sea for many years knew the power of Tu Longziyun, who could enter the deep sea and challenge the dragon. Moreover, this appointment was made by Li Jun himself, so they all obeyed him.
On the third day after the navy was established, Tu Longziyun swore an oath at the dock, declaring that he would go to the nearby seas to find the Japanese pirates and fight them to the death. This decision worried the wise men in Kuanglan City. Firstly, the navy was untrained and could be deployed in battle, but if they were to actually fight the main force of the Japanese pirates at sea, the odds were probably against them. Secondly, if the Japanese pirates fled at the mere mention of their name, their efforts would be in vain.
Immediately afterwards, Tu Longziyun issued another instruction that was unacceptable to the people of Kuanglan City: "In order to ensure the success of the naval battle, the six thousand Silver Tiger Army soldiers guarding Kuanglan City and the Peace Army allied forces must also fight on the ships."
“This deal is absolutely unacceptable!” His decision was clearly not communicated to Jiang Tang beforehand, and he didn’t even care that it was done in public. Jiang Tang interrupted him and stood up to object, saying, “Kuanglan City cannot be without garrison troops. If Commander Tulong is not confident of victory on the water, he can postpone sending troops.”
Tu Longziyun's smile vanished instantly. He looked Jiang Tang up and down and coldly snorted, "What were Commander Li's instructions when he left?"
Under his piercing gaze, Jiang Tang recalled the joke he'd made on Jiaolong Island about "eating" him. At this moment, Tu Long Ziyun's gaze seemed to want to devour him. Jiang Tang said helplessly, "Commander Li says he'll listen to you on military matters... but this deal is far too risky..."
"No need for further words! If we cannot annihilate the Japanese pirates in one battle, how can we demonstrate the might of our naval commander, and how can we earn your respect?" Tu Longziyun interrupted him sharply. "Our navy is newly established, and the Japanese pirates have not yet received the news. If we disguise ourselves as merchant ships and set sail now, the Japanese pirates will surely be caught off guard. If we drag this out any longer, the Japanese spies will learn that Kuanglan City has a navy and flee far away. Where will I find them then!"
At this point, he seemed to realize he had spoken out of turn, glared fiercely at Jiang Tang, and then ignored Jiang Tang, going off to chat and laugh with the beauties from various ethnic groups.
The next morning, the large ship, which had already been flying the purple dragon flag of the Peace Army, reverted to flying the merchant flag. Naval soldiers disguised as sailors pushed carts of goods from the Peace Army camp, and then carefully loaded large bags of goods onto the ship at the dock.
The dockworkers watched all this with expressions of surprise and uncertainty. The argument yesterday between the newly arrived naval commander, Tu Long Ziyun, and Jiang Tang, who was quite popular in Kuanglan City, had already reached everyone's ears. The soldiers and civilians of Kuanglan City were deeply worried about Tu Long Ziyun's ambitious and boastful display of power. Today, it seemed Tu Long Ziyun was about to put his empty promises into action.
"Why won't you let us help them move these goods?" a middle-aged porter asked his colleague in a low voice.
"I don't know. That Tu Long Ziyun is acting all mysterious, who knows what he's up to. If he really transfers all the soldiers from Kuanglan City there, what if the Japanese pirates take advantage of the situation?" The older man being asked took a puff of his pipe, sighed deeply, and added, "It's a pity that Commander Li worked so hard to build this empire..."
"I don't think so. If he really wanted to mobilize the garrison of Kuanglan City for the expedition, he would never say it in public. What he said yesterday was just to mislead people."
The older porter shook his head and said, "I hope so. But seeing them carrying so much cargo from the Peace Army camp makes me feel uneasy no matter what..."
The middle-aged sailor smiled wryly and said, "I wonder what they're carrying... Where would the Peace Army get so much cargo?"
An older porter, seeing that no one was paying attention, stepped forward and said, "There's probably a person in the bag... a soldier from the Peace Army. They deliberately put him in a cargo bag to avoid being seen by the Japanese pirates."
"How do you know!" The middle-aged sailor exclaimed in surprise. "If that's the case, then that Dragon-Slaying Commander isn't entirely someone who talks nonsense."
"I'm just guessing, but it's not hard to confirm. Just go to the Peace Army camp and see if there are any fewer soldiers." The older porter took another deep drag of his cigarette, exhaled a hazy cloud of smoke, and fell silent.
As soon as the Peace Army's navy, disguised as merchant ships, set sail, dozens of soldiers blocked the road leading to the dock and said in a gentle tone: "Commander Tu Long has ordered that, in order to prevent Japanese spies from leaking the city's secrets, from today onwards, all ships, large and small, are strictly prohibited from going to sea. Violators will be dealt with according to military law! Only ships are allowed to enter the port, not leave. Any losses caused to the people as a result will be compensated by the Peace Army!"
"So even the Dragon-Slaying Commander knows that the true situation in the city must not be revealed." The older porter sighed again, "Commander Li has never made a mistake in choosing people. I hope he won't make a mistake in choosing this Dragon-Slaying Ziyun this time either."
"That's hard to say," the middle-aged porter sneered. "This Tu Long Ziyun is all about putting on airs. I get so angry watching him grin at the beauties in the city. You know, he's only been in Kuanglan City for a few days, and he already has hundreds of sisters and brothers..."
A pair of deep eyes watched everything happening at the dock. After a moment, the owner of the eyes hurriedly rushed to the Peace Army camp, then hurriedly returned to the dock. When he realized that the Peace Army had completely sealed off the dock, the owner of the eyes let out a contemptuous smile.
"What's the use of that? I have plenty of other ways."
After a while, a pigeon flapped its wings and took flight.
Section 3
A thin mist rises gently from the sea, and the glittering stars slowly disappear from the sky. A gentle sea breeze blows, and the pale sky prompts a rooster to crow, awakening the world.
The people of Kuanglan City began to get busy. The shadow left by Tu Long Ziyun's departure a few days ago had not yet dissipated in their hearts, but life had to go on. The early bird catches the worm. Although Tu Long Ziyun's sea ban had given many people some free time, for those who were busy making a living all day, this leisure was just a way to have time to do things that they hadn't had time to do before.
The Peace Army was buying significantly less grain and vegetables at the city's market. It seemed that Tu Longziyun had indeed transferred most of the city's garrison. The people were even more uneasy, speaking much more softly than usual, as if afraid that raising their voices would summon the Japanese pirates.
Morning is actually the busiest time of day, as people need to plan their day, wash up, and clean up the trash from the night before. Therefore, morning is also the time when vigilance is lowest, since the dangerous night has passed and daytime is much safer.
But the illusion of safety was quickly shattered. As the first rays of sunlight pierced the sky, the lookout on the harbor lighthouse was horrified to see six or seven medium-sized fast ships suddenly appear in his line of sight, as if emerging from below the horizon, their skull and crossbones flags fluttering in the wind like a call from the Grim Reaper.
He let out a mournful cry, saying, "It's over, it's the Japanese pirates!" He then rushed towards the alarm bell, but before he could get close, a strong hand grabbed him.
"What do you want to do?" the owner of the hand asked menacingly.
"Call the police! There are Japanese pirates!" The lookout tried desperately to break free from the man's grasp, but his efforts were clearly in vain.
"There's no need for that, you don't need to worry about it so much." The owner of the hand delivered a heavy slash with his left hand, aiming for the lookout's neck.
But his hand was grasped by another, stronger hand, and the lookout suddenly stopped struggling, turning around and looking at him with a smile.
"I still have a lot to worry about, so I don't want to rest yet," the lookout said.
The Japanese chieftain squinted his small eyes at the calm harbor, then grinned menacingly and said, "Today we will turn this City of Mad Waves into a sea of blood!"
Behind him stood an old man, dressed as a mercenary general. He appeared to be an ordinary person, but his eyes flashed with hatred as he said, "Exactly! We must turn this Raging Waves City into a volcanic sea of blood, so that Li Jun can only weep over corpses!"
"Do you really hate that person that much?" The Japanese chieftain's small eyes gleamed with a cunning and sinister light as he glanced sideways at the old mercenary, as if trying to gauge how much sincerity he truly possessed.
"Of course, I will never forget our commander's dying wish!" The old mercenary general's white beard trembled, and hatred twisted the wrinkles on his otherwise kind face, making him look like a vengeful demon from hell, even in broad daylight.
"Why don't you lower the pirate flag?" the old mercenary asked.