The water bandits occupied the first floor, but they did not rob the property of the boat passengers on the first floor or kill anyone. They only said that what they wanted was the gold and silver jewelry collected by the Marquis on the third floor and had nothing to do with the boat passengers.
There were the largest number of boat passengers on the first floor, with three to four hundred people. Seeing that there was no danger to life or property, things quickly became quiet.
The water bandits occupying the first floor of the passenger ship began to shout, "Rebel the government and rob the Marquis!"
"Revolt against the government and rob the Marquis!"
"Send down the gold, silver and jewelry quickly, or else the boat will be burned!"
“Burn the boat!…
The water bandits became more and more bold, and even ran up to the stairs of the second floor and started shouting. Dozens of soldiers on the first floor were all driven to the second floor.
Soon the Marquis's escort came down from the third floor and found the captain and the young lieutenant. They said that there was no need to worry. The Marquis had already sent a carrier pigeon. The navy at Jiangzhou Pier had received the message and would come to the rescue in two hours. Be sure to guard the stairs to the third floor and kill without mercy!
But the water bandits obviously won't give such a chance. Everything you can think of, others can think of.
Someone told the water bandits at the second floor stairwell that if the gold, silver and jewelry were not brought down within half an hour, the boat would be burned!
The news quickly spread throughout the ship, and it was also said that before burning the ship, passengers could be transferred to a nearby shore in a small boat for free. In short, it meant that the guests' property and personal safety would not be harmed, but the gold, silver and jewelry collected by the officials would be required.
"A righteous bandit! This is a righteous bandit!" someone among the boat passengers said loudly.
"This is a hero! Since ancient times, not many people dared to rob officials. This is the same as opening warehouses to release grain, robbing the rich and giving to the poor!"
…
The boat passengers are talking more and more.
Seeing that the soldiers' morale was wavering, the Marquis's guards from the third floor came down again and said that the Marquis ordered the water bandits on the first floor to be driven down the river quickly, repaired the oars, and headed for Jiangzhou in time.
The captain and the two lieutenants looked at each other, then smiled bitterly at the guards.
Suppressing the water bandits is not the responsibility of the boat boss, but of the local officials. There is no need for the boat owner to fight the water bandits. Besides, this is a Sangui area and has not yet entered the territory of Jiangzhou County.
Even if it enters the territory of Jiangzhou County, although the Marquis is the highest local official, he is not the immediate boss of the ship owner. The supervisor of this shipping line is the Water Department Yamen of the Ministry of Industry in the capital, and the ship owner directly takes orders from the Water Transport Governor of the Water Department Yamen.
If the ship sank due to water bandits causing trouble, it would be a serious crime and the ship owner would probably die.
Even if the ship is fine, if a major accident occurs on the ship, the ship owner will not be able to explain it to his superiors. It's a headache enough now that the ship's propeller room has been destroyed.
Seeing that there was no movement below, the Marquis was probably angry, so he sent guards down again, saying that he didn't listen to the Marquis's orders either?
The boat owner laughed along and said that he would listen, but he really didn't dare to do it. He would anger the water bandits, burn the boat, and everyone would be dead. Please tell Mr. Marquis that this ship is responsible for the lives of all guests.
The guard turned back after hearing this.
"Master Marquis, you have to obey me even when you get on the ship. Otherwise, if something happens, will he be responsible?"
As soon as the guard left, the captain began to grumble.
"That's right. The higher-ups are to blame for the big accident on the ship. We are the unlucky ones. The Marquis just slapped his ass and left!" Huang Jin was also beating the drum. He thought that he had to save his job first. He felt that this Marquis was not very good. Reliable, it seems that it is difficult to be the military doctor of the Marquis.
"At worst, I won't take his route to Jiangzhou County. At worst, I won't be the owner of this ship, and I can't burn all my employer's wealth."
The boat owner was very dissatisfied with the Marquis's attitude. This was on the water, and he, the Marquis, thought he was so powerful.
The captain immediately summoned some passengers and soldiers accompanying the ship to reveal the Marquis's intention to everyone to see how this matter would be handled.
"What kind of Lord, you just want to protect your own money, and don't care about the lives of other people on the ship!" Someone among the boat passengers shouted.
"Yes, yes, how could this be possible!"
"We can't listen to the Marquis, we want to save our lives!"
"No matter who you listen to, as long as it ensures the safety of our personal and property!"
…
Zhao Chuan watched for a while, then returned to his cabin and told Qi Yatou what had just happened.
Qi Yatou said that this situation is not good. If the water bandits really want to burn the boat, I will not know how to do it. Zhao Chuan said that although I can swim, without my spiritual energy cultivation, I am afraid I won’t be able to carry you and swim ashore safely.
Qi Yatou asked me why I hadn’t thought of practicing the Water Avoidance Art before.
While the two were talking, Huang Jin ran out from nowhere and opened the door in a panic.
"It's broken, the boat is going to be burned down below!" Huang Jin said.
"Don't worry, they won't burn it!" Zhao Chuan said.
"Just now you were hiding in the crowd and shouting that the Marquis did not care about the lives of other people on the ship and only wanted to protect his own money. I heard your voice. How dare you incite and instigate?"
Zhao Chuan smiled and said, isn't this what the Marquis did? I just want to disgust him, what's the problem?
Huang Jin said you are not afraid of Mr. Hou? This man was so hateful that even Han Qiaosheng and Master Han had to listen to him.
Zhao Chuan said, isn't he just a gangster? What's the big deal? I'm not afraid of him, I want to beat him.
Zhao Chuan felt uncomfortable when he mentioned officials. Last time on the mountain road of Lingyin Mountain, I treated his leg injury just to make money from him.
Huang Jin said that if you are really not afraid of him, the captain wants to find someone to talk to Mr. Hou and talk about the current situation. I think you are the most suitable person.
Zhao Chuan said there was nothing to talk about. The water bandits just wanted the gold and silver jewelry he had collected and brought it down to them.
Huang Jin said it wasn't that simple. What if the water bandits won't leave even if they get it? When the time comes to rob the guests’ belongings and burn the boats, wouldn’t they be fooled?
Zhao Chuan said what to do? Even if you don't agree to the water bandits' request, they will still burn boats and kill people.
Huang Jin said that he needs to find someone to talk to the water bandits. I still think you are the right person to go.
Zhao Chuan was stunned and said, I won't go. If I go, I will be punished as a gangster, won't I be in trouble?
Qi Yatou said that you are right, you can't let him go, so don't hurt him.
No matter what Huang Jin said, Zhao Chuan just didn't agree to be the negotiating ambassador.
Huang Jin turned around and left the cabin. After a while, he came in with the captain, lieutenant and several passengers.
Everyone analyzed the situation and said that the person to negotiate can only be found among the ship passengers. It is not suitable to go either from the water bandits or the ship owner. We have asked among the ship passengers and no one dares to go. I can only trouble Zhao Chuan to go. Let’s talk.
When Zhao Chuan thought about it, he was really the best candidate.
Because no matter which side he is on, he has people he knows.
He recognized Wang Ke from the water bandits, Huang Jin from the ship owner side, not to mention the Marquis on the third floor, that old guy must remember him.
Zhao Chuan looked at Qi Yatou, Qi Yatou rubbed her fingers, and Zhao Chuan immediately understood.
"If I succeed in this matter and let the water bandits retreat, what will be the benefit to me?" Zhao Chuan asked.
"As long as you don't burn the boat, you can make whatever conditions you want!" The captain didn't expect this young boy to make the water bandits retreat. Even the cannons on the ship couldn't scare away the water bandits. How capable this young boy could be.
"Okay, I'll give it a try. Half an hour is almost here. I want to ask the water bandit what he says first."
Zhao Chuan agreed.
In fact, Zhao Chuan knew very well that it would not be possible if the Marquis was not allowed to undergo extensive bloodletting this time.
Zhao Chuan went down to the first floor and explained his purpose. The water bandits saw that although he was a young man, he had an extraordinary bearing and showed no fear of stage fright, so they went to the bilge of the boat to report the incident.
Soon, someone came up and took Zhao Chuan to the paddle room at the bottom of the ship.
In the propeller room, two paddle wheels are rotating under the push of the water bandits. It seems that the water bandits have repaired part of the power.
A familiar figure with his back facing Zhao Chuan who came in was directing the water bandits to work through the sound transmission device stretched out from the deck.
When the man turned around, Zhao Chuan saw it was Wang Ke.
Zhao Chuan pretended not to recognize Wang Ke and explained his purpose.
Wang Ke also pretended not to know him, saying that there was no need to discuss it, and that the Marquis must hand over all the gold and silver jewelry he had collected.
Zhao Chuan said that the Marquis had been sending carrier pigeons for a long time, and an hour later a navy ship from Jiangzhou came to the rescue. Then he winked, meaning to accept it as soon as possible, and ask for less, maybe Marquis I agreed and wanted them all. Others may not agree if they consider their face.
Unexpectedly, Wang Ke laughed and said there was no rush, there was plenty of time to wait for the Marquis to bring down the gold, silver and jewelry.
As he spoke, he took Zhao Chuan out, climbed to the wheelhouse on the first deck, pointed to the river bank in the darkness, and said that without the two sticks of incense, the ship would sail into a fork of the river. Even if they came, they would be called There is no return.
Zhao Chuan returned to the second floor and explained the situation. The ship owner was greatly surprised. Firstly, he was surprised that the bandits knew how to repair and sail the ship. Secondly, he was surprised that the bandits were so arrogant and were not afraid that the official navy would do it openly. .
This place of neglect has many river crossings, and water bandits are a common occurrence. That's why so many artillery and soldiers were deployed on the ship. Unexpectedly, it was still robbed.
But this time I was robbed, which is forgivable, because in the past, we were all water bandits with a few small boats. At most, a dozen small boats and dozens of people were enough to hold up the sky. Like tonight, there are hundreds of small boats and thousands of people. This is the first time on this scale.
It seems that this group of water bandits came well prepared and planned for a long time. It seems that the Marquis is determined to get the gold, silver and jewelry.
Zhao Chuan asked what to do now?
The boat owner said what else they could do, they could only comply with the bandits' request. As long as the safety of the boat and people could be ensured, they promised not to confront the bandits.
Zhao Chuan said that now I want to go to the Marquis on the third floor to talk. I need someone from your side to go with me, otherwise the Marquis will not believe me.
The captain let Huang in, and Huang Jin waved his hands repeatedly, saying that he might have to go to Jiangzhou to hang out in the future.
Zhao Chuan sighed and said, "Uncle Huang, you still want to be promoted in the future, but you don't even have the courage to do so."
Zhao Chuan followed a young lieutenant to the stairs on the third floor and explained his purpose to the guard who was guarding him. The guard informed them and then let the two of them in.
Zhao Chuan looked around as he walked and felt that the guards brought by the Marquis were not many, only about ten people, but he estimated that there must be many capable masters.
Walking into the royal suite where the Marquis lived, the space inside was not large, with three bedrooms and two living rooms. But the strange thing was that it was full of young and beautiful women, and the Marquis was not there.
There are quite a few boxes in the third room and second hall, more than a dozen, all open, and they are all filled with clothes or supplies for women.
Apart from this, I didn't see any gold, silver or jewelry, because in these few rooms, it was clear at a glance that there was no place to hide anything.
How is this going?
There are only a few first-class cabins and one royal suite on the third floor. The Marquis had already booked the entire third floor before, because although this passenger ship passed through Jiangzhou City, its final destination was the capital.
Just as Zhao Chuan was puzzled and looking around, a familiar voice from the young woman came: "Boy, you are so brave, are you really not afraid of death?"
Zhao Chuanshun looked at the voice, "Oh, isn't this the sixteen or seventeen-year-old daughter of Lord Marquis?"
The girl's voice was still very crisp, still full of laughter and scolding.
