The Black Sails of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 82 Legend
The two disembarked.

Lin Qian ordered Uncle Chen to cook a pot of hot soup with pork bones.

The ship's galley was located at the very front of the gun deck, with a chimney venting the smoke out of the ship. When the broth was cooked, the whole ship was filled with its aroma.

The crew members, having eaten their fill of dinner, were already craving food, not to mention the starving pirates around the St. Anna.

These pirates separated from the ship city in haste, and most of their ships lacked water and food. Even those that did have food couldn't cook because their ships were too small, so they could only gnaw on dry biscuits while swallowing their saliva.

At this moment, the St. Anna lowered a small boat to its port side, and Bai Qing led a dozen men carrying weapons aboard.

The small boat slowly approached the pirate ship, and all the pirates stood up, looking tense.

Bai Qing rowed close to a pirate ship and said, "The captain has ordered that you come aboard for some mutton soup."

The pirates wanted to refuse, but the meat soup was so tempting that they couldn't refuse, and they had no weapons.

They all boarded the small boat, and the people Bai Qing brought from the small boat took over the pirates' Haicang ship.

When the pirates boarded the deck of the St. Anna, they realized there was no mutton soup in front of them, only a group of crew members armed with spears and rapiers.

The pirates were dumbfounded.

Some crew members brought ropes, tied the man's hands and feet tightly, and then piled him up in the cargo hold.

On the starboard side, White Wave did the same, and soon the pirates who had been tricked onto the deck were stuffed into the cargo hold one after another.

The pirates were cold, hungry, and unarmed, and they surrendered without much resistance.

Occasionally, a few people would hide daggers in their shoes, intending to suddenly attack and injure others, only to be stabbed into a sieve in an instant.

The heavy rain masked the sounds of fighting on the ship, and the other pirates had no idea what was happening on the deck, continuing to climb up the rope ladder.

By sunrise, the pirates from the fifty-odd ships, totaling about six hundred men, had all been crammed into the cargo holds.

Based on the Santa Ana's carrying capacity, it can only accommodate a maximum of 400 people; any more than that and there won't even be enough room for them to sleep.

Lin Qian simply didn't treat the captured pirates as human beings.

Treat them like cargo, and the problem will be solved.

In any case, the cargo on the large sailing ship has already been stored on Nan'ao Island, and the warehouse is now empty, more than enough to hold six hundred prisoners.

Including the prisoners in the ship's hold, the prize pool for this victory has increased considerably.

In the morning light, Bai Qing and her brother Bai Langzai were assigning crew members on the pirate ship.

Chinese-style rigid sails are easy to operate, and require few people if only for maintaining navigation.

By noon, all available crew members had been assigned to the Santa Ana, while seven or eight other ships were still without crew.

The boatmen then used ropes to tie these empty boats to the back of other boats and tow them across the sea.

With everything prepared, the Santa Ana was the first to raise its sails and leave the lagoon.

The sun was shining brightly, the sky was cloudless, and wooden planks and remains of corpses were scattered on the lagoon.

From then on, the South China Sea Ship City became nothing more than a legend.

……

On the way back.

Inside the captain's cabin of the St. Anna, Zhou Xiucai sat at a round table with account books spread out on it. He fiddled with the abacus while sighing with a worried expression.

He turned the abacus beads three or four times before sighing, "Captain... this situation is not optimistic."

There were less than 8,000 taels of silver left in the accounts, plus more than 1,300 taels found on the captured pirate ship.

All things considered, the surplus was ten thousand taels.

The next deal with the fat congressman is on September 15th, which is still more than half a month away.

During this period, all expenses, including crew bonuses, craftsmen's wages, water and food procurement, construction of Nan'ao Island, and repair of large sailing ships, required money.

According to Zhou Xiucai's simple calculations, with over ten thousand taels of silver in the account, it's impossible to do everything; some choices must be made. Moreover, the sea monsoon in August and September is unpredictable, making navigation extremely dangerous. Even if a batch of goods is successfully delivered in Macau on September 15th, the earliest the return to the island will be on September 20th.

"Master, I think we should suspend construction on Nan'ao Island and get through this period first," Zhou Xiucai suggested.

Lin Qian played with Li Kuiqi's nine-ringed ghost-head broadsword and said, "The construction of Nan'ao Island cannot stop. Winter is coming soon, and we can't let the islanders live in shacks."

The Little Ice Age at the end of the Ming Dynasty was no joke; even in the coastal areas of Fujian and Guangdong, people could freeze to death in winter.

Although the houses on the island are mainly made of wood, which can be sourced locally, the wages of the craftsmen and the helpers cannot be saved.

The cost of materials such as bricks, tiles, and lime is also a considerable expense.

This is largely thanks to the proximity of Nan'ao Island to Chaozhou, making sea freight cheaper. If it were farther from the mainland, these costs would have increased even further.

Lin Qian added, "Did you include the more than 20,000 taels that were rescued from Li Kuiqi's ship?"

Zhou Xiucai's worries turned to joy, and he slapped his forehead, saying, "I had completely forgotten about that! Now we have enough money!"

Lin Qian slowly shook her head: "The silver is only enough for now. We have captured fifty warships, and we need space for maintenance and repair. Building a dry dock must be put on the agenda. We also need silver to build granaries, reservoirs, and reclaim wasteland. In our line of work, there is never enough silver."

"What does the captain mean?" Zhou Xiucai's eyes lit up.

Lin Qian held the knife level with one hand: "Let's go rob it!"

It's almost the end of August, and judging by the days, the new emperor Zhu Changluo will soon pass away.

Historically, after Zhu Changluo's death, the court experienced the Red Pill Case and the Palace Transfer Case, plunging the entire capital of the Ming Dynasty into chaos.

This was Lin Qian's last chance to plunder recklessly, how could he possibly miss it?

Zhou Xiucai nodded slightly, also thinking that "open source" was the best way, but Lin Qian's next sentence made his expression turn to surprise.

Which villages and counties along the entire Fujian-Guangdong coastal area are wealthy?

"Captain, are you going to rob the land?"

Lin Qian placed the ghost-headed broadsword on the counter and said, "I want both Hai and Lu."

Just then, a crew member knocked on the door and came in: "Helmsman, we've arrived at Shen'ao Port."

Lin Qian: "Yes, tell Uncle Chen to prepare a few of his signature dishes. I'm hosting a banquet for distinguished guests tonight."

……

That night.

Lin Qian led her brothers into the General's Mansion.

All the soldiers took detours to avoid the area, and those who couldn't avoid it simply stood facing the wall.

The group strolled through the courtyards and swaggered all the way to the backyard.

Huang Hetai, the garrison commander of Nan'ao, hurriedly came out to greet him, cupping his hands in greeting from a distance and saying, "I was unaware of your arrival, Commander. I have failed to greet you properly."

"My brother has come uninvited, and I hope he will forgive us for disturbing you." Lin Qian also cupped her hands and said politely, "It has been a long time since I drank with Commander Huang. Today, I specially ordered people to prepare wine and food for us to get together."

Huang Hetai was polite on the surface, but inwardly he was suspicious and wondered, "This thief has been on the island for a month, and this is the first time he has been so polite, personally bringing wine and food to visit me. What is his intention?"

Do you perhaps want something from me?
Yes, now that the new emperor has ascended the throne and the country is at peace, he, as a bandit who has seized this island, must be feeling uneasy, so he has come to probe for information.

Although this thief's actions were somewhat extreme, he was generally generous; the blood coral he gave me alone was priceless.

Unfortunately, Nan'ao Island is protected by a general in the imperial court, and Li Kuiqi is eyeing it covetously in the martial arts world.

Even if I had a hundred lives, I wouldn't dare leave him on the island.

During the banquet later, I'll use Li Kuiqi to scare him and make him want to back out. Then I'll use the general to coerce him into sending another hush money before he leaves.

This way, it's a clean break, and it wasn't for nothing that I was scared by that scoundrel's pig's head.

(End of this chapter)