Red Mansion Taoist

Chapter 68 Sailing
  The days on the boat were very boring. Jia Qiang had nothing to do except chat with Xue Tong and just look at the scenery of the canal.

On the third day of sailing, Jia Qiang noticed that there were boats coming and going nearby from time to time.

"Brother Xue, you often go boating, do you feel anything is wrong?" Jia Qiang found Xue Tong and asked.

His perception is very sensitive, especially to hostile gazes. The gazes from the boat a few times before made him alert.

"I also feel something is wrong, but my ship has visited the dock and is protected by the Cao Gang. No one should dare to make any plans on the canal!" Xue Tong replied with some uncertainty.

During the two days of chatting with Xue Tong, Jia Qiang had heard of the name Caobang.

The Caobang is the largest gang on the canal, monopolizing almost all the loading and unloading business along the canal. The Caobang also has its own cargo ships involved in transporting goods.

The Cao Gang claims to have 100,000 members. In fact, most of them are coolies, but with a large number of people, its influence is naturally not small.

At least on the canal, the Caobang monopolized many businesses. Without the permission of the Caobang, it would be difficult for others to make a living on the canal.

"You don't have to worry too much. There are more than twenty young and strong men on this boat, and there are also guys in their hands. Ordinary water bandits can't even get on the boat!" Xue Tong then comforted.

"I wish I was overthinking it!" Jia Qiang nodded.

He returned to the room and revealed the 'Zhentian Bow' and a pot of arrows from the equipment slot.

Arrows can be taken out from the inventory for use at any time, but if the 'Zhentian Bow' is not taken out in advance, it is really difficult to take it out in public when there are many people.

In the past two years, he continued to go through shops everywhere and customized a lot of arrows, a total of two hundred pots.

It's not that he doesn't have money and doesn't want to buy more, but he doesn't dare to blatantly buy a large number of arrows.

Even the arrows in the inventory are scattered and accumulated by buying them every once in a while.

If you really order thousands or tens of thousands of arrows at once, you may be targeted by the government immediately.

Of course, with Jia Qiang's current status, she doesn't have to worry about getting a first-grade title. It's not a big deal for the Lord's House to buy some arrows.

In the next two days, every time Jia Qiang appeared, in addition to the 'Qingfeng Sword' on her waist, she also had an extra bow on her back.

In Xue Tong's view, Jia Qiang was too timid, even if it was the slightest sign of trouble.

Jia Qiang was not as optimistic as Xue Tong. After two days of observation, he was 100% sure that the ship was being targeted.

I just don't know whether these people are targeting Xue Tong or him. No matter who is targeted, they are all in the same boat now and must fight against the enemy together.

"My boss, something is wrong. We seem to be surrounded!" When Jia Qiang and Xue Tong were chatting on the third-floor platform, the head guard named Xue An quickly came over and reported.

Xue Tong stood up suddenly and came to the fence on the third floor. The position here was the highest and he could see the surrounding water.

He saw a medium-sized clipper ship behind his big ship, two small ships on the left and right sides, and a large clipper ship in front of him that was slowing down.

Clipper ships are special ships on the canal. Due to the pursuit of speed, this kind of fast ship cannot compare with real cargo ships and passenger ships, whether it is transporting cargo or carrying people.

This type of clipper has a single purpose and is relatively rare on weekdays.

At this moment, there was one boat at the front and one at the front, plus four small boats on the side. Xue Tong knew at a glance that this was in trouble.

"Sound the alarm and let the guys prepare the guys!" Xue Tong issued the order with an ugly look on his face.

After Xue An agreed, his shouts and shouts came from the ship, followed by the noise of the crew.

"Brother Jia Xian, you are a scholar, so don't get involved in this matter. Even if we lose, I don't think they will make things difficult for us!" Xue Tong turned to Jia Qiang and said.

"Brother Xue is looking down on others. I can still handle a bow and arrow with one hand. Now that we are in a boat, please don't stay away from me!" Jia Qiang waved her hand and said.

Xue Tong did not go down to help, but stayed with Jia Qiang.

Even if we negotiate with the other party later, this place is very convenient. The most important thing is safety. It is impossible to get here without the obstruction of more than 20 crew members in the ship.

Xue Tong was also wondering at this moment who wanted to harm him.

This section of the canal is far away from the city and the river is wide, making it the most suitable for attacks. He took out a monocular telescope and began to observe the clippers in front and behind.

"I'm sorry, Brother Jia Xian, it was me who harmed you. This time it was someone from the Zhao family who bribed the water bandits!" When he saw a figure on a large speed boat in front of him through the monocular, he apologized to Jia Qiang with self-blame.

That is a steward of the Zhao family. Since the steward of the Zhao family is here, it means that he is related to the Zhao family.

"Why do the Zhao family want to harm you?" Jia Qiang asked aloud.

He was not angry about being implicated. It was inevitable to encounter some trouble when going out.

"The Zhao family and my Xue family are both royal merchants. Recently, the Zhao family is competing with the Xue family for the purchasing rights in the palace. I just didn't expect the Zhao family to be so ruthless." Xue Tong gritted his teeth.

"Since we know we are enemies, I won't be polite!" Jia Qiang said lightly.

He took out the "Zhentian Bow" from his back. When the "Zhentian Bow" was held in his hand, Xue Tong's eyes couldn't help but widen, and he looked at the "Zhentian Bow" in disbelief.

As an imperial merchant, how could Xue Tong not recognize the treasured bow made of metal? Such bows could only be made in the palace, and the output was extremely low.

The most important thing is that the only people who use the metal treasure bow are those who have practiced the art of general body refining, otherwise they will not be able to draw the metal treasure bow at all.

Jia Qiang is wearing a Confucian shirt but using a metal bow. It feels so inconsistent.

Jia Qiang ignored Xue Tong. He didn't want the battle to turn into a water battle.

He is not good at fighting in water. Most of his strength is gone when he enters the water, which means he can still use his great strength.

But even with great strength, he couldn't guarantee how many water ghosts he could deal with underwater.

So he planned to fight at a long distance and not let the opponent enter the water.

There were six boats, large and small, in front, behind, left and right. It was extremely difficult to prevent the people on board from entering the water.

Jia Qiang took out six special arrows from the arrow pot. The arrows in front of these arrows were flat, like chisels.

He held six special arrows in his right hand, each held between several fingers.

He first aimed at the medium-sized clipper behind him, drew his bow and released the arrow. This special arrow flew out like lightning.

Then I heard the sound of wood breaking from the medium-sized clipper ship behind me. The mast of the medium-sized clipper ship was severed from the root, and the mast fell heavily.

He shot another arrow at the large clipper ship ahead, and this time it was the mast of the large clipper ship ahead that fell.

The thick mast was penetrated by an arrow like a chisel head, cutting half of the mast. The mast itself was under the force of the wind, plus the weight of the mast itself, how could it not fall down.

The two clippers before and after lost their masts, and the clippers became floating objects on the canal and could no longer escape.

Jia Qiang shot out the remaining four special arrows in her hand, breaking all the masts of the four small boats on the left and right.

"How can the Xue family have a sharp archer on the boat?" the bandit leader roared.

The ship sent this time was his entire family. It would be extremely troublesome to repair the damaged mast. More importantly, without the clipper, he couldn't even escape.

Even if the Xue family merchant ship is eliminated, if an official ship passes by, he will be surrounded and killed by the officers and soldiers.

"It shouldn't be. The Xue family only has the head of the family, Xue Tong, and twenty-four boatmen this time, and no one else!" Manager Zhao shook his head and said.

The intelligence was provided by the Zhao family. He was still on the bandit's boat. If he said a wrong word, let alone anything else, the bandit capital would not let him go.

"Send me a message and ask the brothers to go into the water and scuttle the Xue family merchant ship for me!" the bandit leader gave the order with some pity.

There is a lot of property on the Xue family's merchant ship. The value of these properties has plummeted when exposed to water, but now this is the only way. Otherwise, if they really fight on the water, they will be shot one by one by sharp archers.

The first ones to prepare to enter the water are the water ghosts, which are the water ghosts among the water bandits. They have lived in the water all year round and have developed the ability to hold their breath underwater for a long time and swim long distances.

The reason why they are called water ghosts means that they become as scary as ghosts after entering the water, and no one can control them.

(End of this chapter)