Tiger Owl

Chapter 4 Arrival in Xuchang
Gan Ning had another important task to complete: to eliminate Zheng Bao to prevent any unforeseen complications from Lu Su's side.

About ten miles from the east city, Gan Ning and three hundred men were lying in ambush on both sides of the waterway.

Before long, the sound of gongs and drums drifted from afar—they've arrived!

Gan Ning immediately shouted, "Prepare the bows and arrows!"

Gan Ning has always been ruthless, and even though he is a time traveler now, he has not been able to change the ruthless genes in his bones.

Three hundred men drew their bows and arrows, waiting for the passenger ship to arrive. Soon, the passenger ship arrived with gongs and drums, and the banner welcoming the talented Lu Su was so glaring.

Gan Ning gritted his teeth and ordered, "Fire the arrows!"

Almost simultaneously, his men released their arrows. Three hundred powerful arrows shot towards the passenger ship at once. The burly men who were beating drums and gongs were caught off guard and were hit by the arrows one after another. There were screams as the dense arrows pierced through the thin cabin. The boatman rowing at the back reacted very quickly and jumped into the river.

The large passenger ship circled on the river, the ship silent. Gan Ning waved his hand, and small boats surrounded him from all sides. Gan Ning jumped onto the large ship, drew his short halberd, kicked open the cabin door, and rushed inside.

The cabin was a mess, and a young man in his early twenties lay dead inside. He had a pointed face, a thin build, and was covered in arrows.

Gan Ning was taken aback. This young man was Zheng Tianwang? This didn't match his understanding! He felt that Zheng Tianwang should be middle-aged.

At this moment, Shen Mi pulled the boatman out of the water. The boatman was so frightened that his face turned pale, and he knelt on the deck, desperately kowtowing and begging for mercy.

Gan Ning squatted down and said, "I can spare your life, but you must tell me the truth. If you tell even one lie, I'll chop off your head!"

"This humble servant... will certainly report the truth!"

Who is the young man in the cabin?

"It's Zheng Bao's son, Zheng Huai!"

"Zheng Bao himself didn't come?"

"He had originally come, but when he passed by Jiangting, he heard that something big had happened there. Zheng Bao was afraid that Liu Xun would punish him, so he turned back with his men. He asked his son to come to Dongcheng County to welcome Mr. Lu on his behalf."

"So that's how it is," Gan Ning understood. Zheng Bao was worried that Liu Xun would think he had killed Yuan Shu and send troops to retaliate against him, so he hurried back to make arrangements.

He's lucky!
"Take these corpses back. Tell Zheng Bao to hand over the imperial seal to Prefect Liu obediently, or he'll be the one killed next!"

The boatman dared not disobey and cautiously steered the boat back.

Gan Ning then gave Shen Mi and Lou Fa a few instructions. Shen Mi and Lou Fa took most of their men to Chaisang to do business, while Gan Ning, along with Wang Ping and three other men, boarded a small boat and headed towards Xuchang.

..........
Shipping was highly developed in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The imperial court vigorously dredged waterways, creating a network of rivers that made water travel very convenient.

To get to Xuchang by water, you need to travel west along the Huai River, enter the Ying River west of Shouchun County, and then sail north along the Ying River until you finally reach Xuchang.

That morning, Gan Ning's small boat slowly approached the dock outside Xuchang City. There were many boats on the dock, moored haphazardly, and they couldn't get close enough to the side, so they left one person to watch the boat.

Gan Ning jumped from one small boat to another, and finally reached the shore, with Wang Ping and two other men following behind.

"The boats here are moored haphazardly, making it inconvenient to get ashore. It's far worse than Jiangdong."

Gan Ning heard a young woman complaining.

Gan Ning looked back and saw a large, ornately decorated official ship moored in the distance, with several other ships carrying swords following behind.

The official boat couldn't dock either, so they had to borrow another small boat to reach the shore, just like Gan Ning and his men.

There were four people in charge of the treasure ship, two men and two women, all of whom were quite young. The two men were only seventeen or eighteen years old, with handsome features. They were all dressed in white shirts, holding feather fans and long swords at their waists.

The two girls wore sun hats with veils around their heads, obscuring their faces. Judging from their figures, they were no more than eleven or twelve years old.

One of them was dressed in a red samurai outfit with a bow and arrow on his back, looking dashing and handsome. At first glance, he looked like a young man. The other was dressed in a green ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), with a jade bracelet on his delicate, snow-white wrist.

Two strong women supported two young women, one in front and one behind. Two young men had already come ashore, waving feather fans and discussing the surrounding scenery. "Third Brother, aren't you going to help A'Luo?" the archer girl complained.

"No, I can do it myself!"

The girl in the green dress lifted her skirt and, like a fawn, leaped ashore in a few quick movements. A magnificent carriage was waiting for them on the shore.

"My lord, let's go!" Wang Ping whispered to Gan Ning.

"Let's go!" Gan Ning then withdrew his gaze and led his three men into the city.

At this moment, the girl in the green dress saw Gan Ning and was slightly taken aback.

"Ah Luo, what are you looking at? Get in the car."

The girl in the green dress shook her head. "It's nothing. I just think that man looks a little strange."

The other three laughed. "A-Luo wants to tell fortunes again!"

...........
At this time, the world was in chaos, and there were surging refugees everywhere. Xuchang was no exception. No travel permit was needed to enter the city. As long as you were not a suspicious person, the soldiers guarding the city were too lazy to check you.

Gan Ning and his three companions were not questioned and entered Xuchang City without incident.

As soon as you enter the city gate, you are greeted by a bustling and lively atmosphere. The main street in front is the central axis of Xuchang City, Zhengyangmen Street. The ground is paved with stone slabs, and it was very clean after the rain.

The main street was bustling with commerce, with wooden shops of all sizes on both sides, all of which were relatively low. There were taverns, inns, general stores, cloth shops, silk shops, vegetable and food shops, and so on. All kinds of shops for clothing, food, housing and transportation were available, and flags of all sizes were everywhere.

Several women with heavy makeup stood in front of a courtyard gate, waving to passersby. This profession is a supplement to their livelihood; as the ancients said, "When people are well-fed and warm, they think of lust."

The vehicles on the street were mainly oxcarts, but there were also donkey carts for carrying goods. Most people walked, and they were mostly dressed in short clothes and cloth skirts, with monotonous colors, mainly blue, black, brown, and white.

Gan Ning's mind was still filled with images of private cars and electric bikes shuttling back and forth, neon lights flashing. But now it was the fourth year of Jian'an. Gan Ning sighed inwardly, knowing he could never go back.

"Excuse me, young master!"

Gan Ning turned around and saw a man who looked like a butler standing behind him.

"Looking for me?" Gan Ning asked with a smile.

The steward pointed to the carriage behind them and said with a smile, "My master would like to ask if you are from the southwest, young master?"

It turned out to be the same four people he had met at the dock earlier. The two girls had removed their veils, but the carriage windows were covered with veils, so he still couldn't see their faces clearly.

However, Gan Ning wasn't very interested; she was only eleven or twelve years old, a junior high school girl in the lower grades.

Gan Ning smiled and shook his head, "I came from Shouchun!"

"I see, sorry to bother you!"

The steward returned to report, and the carriage erupted in laughter. "A'Luo miscalculated this time!"

"How could that be? The divination clearly says he comes from the southwest."

Gan Ning's heart skipped a beat. This young lady was quite skilled at fortune telling; she had actually correctly predicted that he came from Sichuan.

The magnificent carriage started moving away, escorted by several mounted warriors. Through the gauze curtain, the girl in the green dress was still carefully observing Gan Ning.

Gan Ning wasn't interested in them, so he smiled at Wang Ping and said, "Let's find a place to stay first, and then go eat!"

　Thank you to the following readers for their donations: 20241017032538969, Feng Fengfeng, Jieao de Xiaoniu, Chufang Jiafeimao, 20220530121233074, Mihai Yifandu, dotphoeni, Yunlong Yuetai, 20241017032538969, Zheng Jinshan, and others.

　　Thank you all for voting and supporting Lao Gao.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)