It's not that Captain He has any grudge against the Nanhu water bandits, it's mainly because these guys are so annoying.
Instead of running away quickly, he stopped and cursed as harshly as possible.
Moreover, since Shopkeeper Ma was not found, Captain He could not give up just yet.
He didn't even catch a bandit's hair, and he didn't even see the shadow of shopkeeper Ma. He just went back in despair. It was really hard to explain to his employer.
The water bandits fled in such a hurry that they left so many boats behind, which they could use just in time. Anyway, Nanhu Lake is not very big, so we can surely catch them ashore!
"Dong Chuan, I heard that your Qingyang Battalion is training water warfare recently. It just so happens that you have your people rowing boats and we can catch up!"
Dong Chuan's scalp was numb.
I often take people to practice water skills on the Qingshui River near the county seat, and I also bought a boat for the soldiers to practice boating.
However, the training time was too short, and the soldiers were only able to row a boat and were unable to engage in real water battles.
"Captain He, my men can only row boats, but they don't know how to fight on the water."
"Fool!"
Captain He gave Dong Chuan a hard look and said, "Why are you such a waste? Forget it, it doesn't matter if you don't know how to fight in water. Our escort team has strong bows and crossbows. We can shoot them all into hedgehogs before they even get close. No need." For water battles, just let your people row the boats!”
"good!"
After all, Dong Chuan also wanted to destroy the Nanhu water bandits. Since the escort had enough crossbows, he was not afraid of the water bandits approaching to engage in a boarding battle.
The boats left behind by the water bandits are really good, most of them can hold a dozen people.
Not counting the four oarsmen, it can also hold ten or eight combatants.
Captain He was more cautious. He assigned eight men to each boat and separated those who couldn't swim from those who knew how to swim.
Once a ship capsizes, those who know how to swim can rescue those who can't.
Contrary to Dong Chuan's expectation, Captain He seems to be really not a novice.
Originally, Dong Chuan wanted to take advantage of the fact that he had trained in water fighting for a few days and watched Captain He's jokes.
It turned out that the man named He actually knew how to ask his subordinates to take off their armor.
Wearing heavy armor and getting on the boat, once the boat capsizes, no matter whether you can swim or not, you will definitely die and everything will sink to the bottom.
Dong Chuan didn't want to drown Captain He. He was planning to wait until all the escorts got on the boat before reminding him that he couldn't wear armor in water battles, thereby denting Captain He's face and stabilizing his shaky prestige in front of his men. .
Captain He's caution didn't stop there, he also left a hundred men behind to guard the horses and armor and baggage.
Humph, who are you guarding against? Do you think I will steal your things?
The boats were limited, and Dong Chuan's Qingyang camp was not fully on board. There were about 200 people rowing, and a hundred people were left to look after the house.
What made Captain He angry was that when he saw the water bandits boarding the boat here, they didn't even run away, and they were still cursing madly at his grandma.
"Dong Chuan, come up too!"
Dong Chuan originally didn't want to get on the boat to avoid being scolded by the man named He.
Unexpectedly, Captain He dragged him along, and he didn't know what his intention was.
Dong Chuan had no choice but to hold his nose and get on the same boat as Captain He.
"Sail the boat and catch up!"
As soon as Dong Chuan got on the boat, Captain He gave the order to sail the boat before he could stand firmly.
The people in Qingyang Camp were already very angry. When Captain He told them to start the boat, many people suddenly started paddling hard.
Thump thump thump…
Several guys from the escort team lost their footing and were thrown into the water by the sudden rocking of the ship.
Dong Chuan was also startled. If the two personal guards he brought with him had not helped him, he might have fallen too.
Dong Chuan is not a good person. Even though he was bullied by Captain He along the way, he looked like a big coward. In fact, he had already become cruel in his heart and must find an opportunity to secretly kill the person named He!
The boat started and rushed towards the water bandits on the distant water.
The water bandits were scolding vigorously and had no intention of escaping. It seemed that they were preparing to fight with less and more, giving full play to their advantage on the water.
Unexpectedly, when the two sides approached within a certain range, the water bandits started shouting:
"Brothers, run away quickly. These guys have too many crossbows, and we don't have shields. We can't hold them!"
"Yes, yes, run quickly. These guys are not good at water and cannot catch up with us!"
"The ideas are pricking your hands, the wind is tight, and it's pulling!"
"..."
Just when they were about to enter the range of the crossbow, the water bandits began to flee in panic. Captain He was so angry that he slapped the side of the ship: "Asshole, don't run away if you have the guts!"
Not only Captain He, but almost everyone in the escort team cursed.
To the surprise of Captain He and Dong Chuan, many people from Qingyang Camp also started to curse.
Captain He nodded,
It seems that these guys are not all useless, and they also hate the water bandits. Didn't you see that their rowing speed has increased?
Seeing their own ships chasing the water bandits away, the captains of the Qingyang camp began to call everyone to rest.
People in Qingyang Camp hid in the water village one after another. They had no choice but to do it because the sun was too strong outside.
The people left behind in the escort remained motionless, wearing their crowns and armor and guarding their horses and senior officials.
"Brothers from the escort team, it's such a hot day, do you want to go to the water village to rest?"
"No need, the water village is too small, so many horses can't enter."
"Brothers of the Guard, the weather is so hot and the bandits have run away. You'd better take off your armor and get some fresh air!"
"Need not!"
"Oh, brothers in the guard, don't look so dead. Look, there isn't even a broken tree in this place. You stay in the hot sun and wear such heavy armor. You will suffer from heatstroke in a short time!"
"It doesn't matter!"
…
No matter what the people in Qingyang camp said, the guys in the escort team were unmoved and didn't even drink the water they sent.
"Hmph, don't pay attention to these guys, let them do it, I don't believe they can keep going!"
"Yes, I don't believe it. These guys think that if human beings can stay in the sun, they won't suffer from heatstroke?"
"Quack, look, there are some guys who can't hold on any longer!"
"Hey, it's starting to shake!"
"Fall, fall, fall, fall, fall..."
"Wow, he really fell down!"
"..."
It’s the dog days of summer, it’s afternoon again, and the sun in the sky makes the ground look like it’s on fire.
The guards were wearing heavy armor, which was so tight that no matter how well they trained and how strong their physiques were, they would not be able to withstand it.
During the previous march, in order to prevent heat stroke, Captain He had half of the people wear armor and constantly replaced them with the other half.
Now that the number of people was small, they still had to take care of the horses and baggage. The remaining guards did not dare to neglect, and they were all fully armed.
Less than half an hour after being exposed to the sun, some people were already suffering from heatstroke.
And, as if it was contagious, within a quarter of an hour from the first person falling down, people started to faint one after another!
