When Kuo Duan and his party arrived at Chuzhou Wharf, they saw many ships docked at the wharf, and many coolies were carrying goods.
Kuo Duan looked around and said to Ye Luxuan: "The Jin Kingdom's ship is missing! It seems that they have returned to the country, and we can't delay it any longer!"
Ye Luxuan nodded, "After Zhao Tai escaped from Lin'an, he went to the Kingdom of Jin non-stop! Your Majesty, we must force the Southern Song Dynasty to change its strategy before the Kingdom of Jin and the Southern Song Dynasty form an alliance!"
Zhao Tai and Zheng Qingzhi negotiated the terms, but for the treaty to take effect, the emperors of both parties need to see it, sign and seal it, and then exchange it with each other for the alliance to be concluded.
Once Song and Jin formed an alliance, it would be difficult to change it.
Therefore, Mongolia must take advantage of this window period to force the Southern Song Dynasty to change its mind.
Kuo Duanhui immediately ordered: "Go! See if there is a boatman willing to ferry us to the other side!"
"I'll go ask the prince for a place to rest!" Yeluxuan responded and left quickly.
Kuo Duan found a restaurant to sit down, but he didn't order food or drink, probably because Zhao Tai had a psychological shadow on him.
When the guests in the wine shop saw so many Mongolians coming in, they dropped their copper coins and left the wine shop.
At this time, Ye Luxuan came to the dock, looked around, came to a passenger ship, and asked: "Can the boatman ferry us to the north bank of the Huaihe River?"
The old man who was fiddling with the sail ropes on the boat didn't answer. He just waved his hand, indicating that he didn't want to go.
Ye Luxuan asked several ships in succession. They were either loading and unloading cargo or had other matters on board and did not want to go to the other side.
"This guest! Go and ask about that ship! They often run to the other side!" Zhao Tai, slightly disguised, pointed to a large ship not far away.
Ye Luxuan raised his hand and said, "Thank you, the shipowner!"
Zhao Tai smiled: "Why are you so polite!"
Ye Luxuan walked to the boat pointed by Zhao Tai and asked again: "Does the boatman go to the other side?"
Chengde, who was dressed as a boatman, waved his hands and said with a smile: "I'm sorry, guest, but the ship has to transport cargo tomorrow and can't accept business!"
Ye Luxuan frowned. He asked for a long time, unwilling to give up like this, "Aren't we going to ship the goods tomorrow? Let's get on the ship now, and you can send us there tonight!"
Chengde looked at the sky and asked, "Guests, how many of you are there?"
Ye Luxuan said: "More than seventy people!"
Chengde said: "It's not safe to sail at night. If you must go there, you'll have to pay extra!"
Ye Luxuan was delighted, "How much does it cost?"
Chengde said: "Two hundred coins per person, if you give me fourteen guans, I will send you there!"
"Fourteen strikes?" Yeluxuan's mouth twitched, but he still said: "Okay, get ready!"
Chengde said: "Guest! It's getting late and the Huaihe River is wide. You can finish your dinner before coming here!"
Ye Luxuan waved his hand, then turned around and left.
In the wine shop, Kuo sat there without asking for anything to eat. The shop owner dared to be angry but dared not say anything.
When Ye Luxuan came back, Kuo Duan immediately asked: "How is the situation?"
Ye Luxuan said: "Reply to the prince! I found a ship in my humble position, but the owner of the ship is very shady. Each person charges two hundred coins! A total of fourteen coins!"
Fourteen guan is a small thing for Kuo Duan, but Mongolian money does not come with strong winds, it is all exchanged for life.
Normally, the maximum fee for crossing the river is twenty cents per person, but this boatman has raised the price by ten times, which naturally makes people unhappy.
Kuo Duan sneered, someone actually dared to blackmail the Mongols, "Give it to him! When we get to the other side, we will detain this profiteer to the king and ask him to hand over one hundred and forty strings, otherwise we will kill him!"
After saying that, Kuo Duan asked again: "When can we leave?"
Ye Luxuan said: "After dinner, you can board the ship!"
Kuo Duan frowned. Ever since the tow mine was poisoned and killed, the Mongolian nobles have been extra careful.
This time Kuaduan was on an envoy, he brought his own cook, and the ingredients were carefully selected and only cooked for him after they were confirmed to be non-poisonous.
Kuo Duan stood up and waved his hand, "Forget it! We're eating across the river!"
After finishing speaking, he led a group of people out of the wine shop and walked straight to the passenger ship moored at the pier.
"Sir!" Hu Zhen said nervously: "The Mongols have been fooled!"
Zhao Tai nodded slightly and said in his heart: "This kid Kuoduan wants to kill me. This time I will let you all die in the belly of a fish."
"Get the fireworks ready and send the signal after dark!" Zhao Tai ordered.
Hu Zhen said: "Everything is ready!"
At this time, Kuo Duan and his party came to the side of the passenger ship. Chengde and others were eating. Seeing them coming, they hurriedly put down their bowls and chopsticks and asked, "Why are the guests here?"
Kuo Duan was a little impatient, and Ye Luxuan said: "We are in a hurry, eat quickly and send us across the river quickly!"
"Yes! But the Huaihe River is wide, and it takes a whole day to go back and forth. We don't have enough to eat, and we really don't have the strength to operate the boat. Please forgive me, guest, and we will finish our meal right away!" Chengde explained quickly.
When Kuo Duan heard the words, he didn't want to press any further. He winked at the guard beside him, and the guard walked directly to the passenger ship, wanting to board the ship for inspection.
A boatman next to Chengde stood up immediately and asked, "What are you doing?"
The two Mongolians reached out and stopped the boatman. Yeluxuan explained: "It's nothing. Our prince will let someone take a look at the condition of your boat!"
Hearing that he was a Mongolian prince, Chengde showed a look of fear on his face, "Guest, we will not do this business with you. I have never carried such a distinguished passenger before!"
But Ye Luxuan said: "Shipman, don't worry, you won't be short of money!"
At this time, the guard had already boarded the boat. He checked the boat and found nothing abnormal, so he walked to the side of the boat and nodded to the end.
Seeing this, Kuo Duan immediately led everyone on to the boat. When they got on the boat, he did not forget to urge, "Boatman, hurry up. When you get to the other side, I will give you a reward!"
Chengde repeatedly said yes, lowered his head and looked at each other with several subordinates, and then continued to eat.
They ate slowly, and when the sun was setting in the west and halfway down, they boarded the passenger ship amidst the urging of the Mongolians. Then they operated the passenger ship with some unfamiliarity, hoisted the spear and sail, and slowly left the dock.
At this time, it was getting dark, and lanterns were lit under the Chuzhou City, illuminating a large stage that had just been erected.
In order to help Sun Jiaban become famous, Zhao Tai asked Sun Jiaban to sing under the city wall for three consecutive days before the theater opened, free of charge.
Propaganda notices have been posted long ago, so the city of Chuzhou is bustling with activity, and people don't understand that murderous intent has emerged outside.
At this time, Zhao Tai, Sun Qiong and others were standing together. With a wave of his hand, his subordinates lit firecrackers, and fireworks shot into the sky and exploded.
Mr. Zhao arranged for all the fireworks and firecrackers in the city to be lively.
Sun Qiong looked at this scene with stars in her eyes. She was completely conquered by the man beside her. She grabbed Zhao Tai's arm excitedly and said, "Brother Zhao, you are so beautiful!"
Zhao Tai smiled and said, "Do you like it? I'll show it to you next time!"
At this time, on the boat that had just left the dock, Kuo Duan raised his head and looked at this scene, feeling a little confused.
More than ten miles away from Chuzhou Pier, in a reed marsh, Wanyan Chenglin and more than a dozen small boats lying in wait also looked up at the sky, watching the brilliant fireworks in the sky.
