Chapter 2011

Lu Kangtai didn't know how many casualties this night's fighting caused to the opponent, but his own losses were obviously heavy. According to preliminary statistics, even if we don't count the casualties caused by the previous musketeers' operations at the dock, only on this night

In the water pursuit battle, at least more than forty people were killed, and the number of injured had already exceeded a hundred. Some of the seriously injured people may not survive the life and death situation. As for the degree of damage to the ship, it was not bad, after all, the opponent also

No heavy weapons were used, and it was basically impossible to sink the pursuing ships.

What the Shanshan and Shaanxi salt merchants lost that night was not only the secret musketry team that had pinned their hope for a comeback, but also hundreds of elites temporarily summoned by several salt merchants, many of whom were regarded as

However, in tonight's battle, these people were easily killed by the opponent like chickens. Lu Kangtai's mind was in confusion at the moment, and he had no idea how to report to the council and participate in the meeting after he returned.

All salt merchants involved in the operation tonight will give their explanations.

Although this is not a catastrophic disaster for the Shanshan-Shaanxi salt merchant camp, it is indeed a very heavy blow. And after tonight's news spreads, it is also a question whether the Huizhou salt merchants will take advantage of the situation.

Something that has to be guarded against.

"Give me the order to block the news first. No one is allowed to mention tonight's incident to the outside world!" Lu Kangtai gave the order with a tired look. In fact, he also knew that the current situation could not be completely kept secret, with so many casualties in one night.

How can people completely cover the lid? The most it can do is delay the spread of the news. But as long as we can buy more time, maybe the severity of the situation can be alleviated a little, and the council can also

Arrange some necessary countermeasures in time.

There were many people in Yangzhou who had not slept a wink that night. Not only were there a large group of people in Hejiazhuang north of the canal who were anxiously waiting for news, there were also a group of salt merchants in Daijiazhuang south of the canal who were waiting for this confrontation.

the final result.

"Report——"

A long and drawn-out voice sounded outside the house, which cheered up the sleepy heads of the seven families. They had been gathering here since dark yesterday to wait for news. They were already exhausted and could not hold on any longer. But at this time

It's already getting dark outside, and it's almost time to have breakfast.

"The two ships of Ningbo Salt Merchant have successfully escaped into the Yangtze River. Lu Kangtai gave up the pursuit and was on his way back to Yangzhou City! According to observations, Lu Kangtai suffered heavy losses in this battle. When he set off from the canal dock, there were sixteen ships.

By the time we return, there are only six boats left."

Everyone was greatly encouraged by the news coming back from the front line. Although they were just watching the excitement and did not directly participate in it, it was a happy thing after all to see their competitors being frustrated. Not to mention the armed attack last night

The conflict was extraordinary. They knew that the Shanshan salt merchants had mobilized their strongest forces, and the fighting lasted all night, from the canal in the south of the city to Guazhou, dozens of miles away. It is said that people were fighting along the way.

Gunfire could be heard constantly. Such a fierce armed conflict has never occurred in Yangzhou in recent years. Although the two groups of salt merchants have fought from time to time, there has never been such a big fight.

"Don't rush to be happy yet!" Dai Yingda asked in a deep voice, "Has the government responded?"

Another person responded: "After the city gate was opened, a group of cavalry came out from the south gate and hurried toward the south. However, considering the time, we should be too late to make it."

Dai Yingda snorted coldly and said: "I guessed that they would use their official connections, but fortunately they didn't succeed... I'll go back and find out which adult took the initiative for them, so that I can be careful in the future!"

One of the reasons why the Huizhou salt merchants relied on their superiority in Yangzhou was their extremely well-managed official connections. Although these connections may not always be on their side, if they still choose to side with Shanshan at a critical moment

On the side of the salt merchants, this shows where their true position lies, and there is actually little point in spending money and energy on in-depth cultivation.

However, the government's response was similar to Dai Yingda's previous expectations. No one was willing to risk being held accountable later by opening the city gates in the middle of the night and leading troops out of the city to assist Shanxi salt merchants. If they waited until dawn to open the city gates before sending out troops, the daylilies would have already

Once it's completely cool, it doesn't have much practical significance.

Ma Zhengping stroked his beard and responded: "Even if the government sends troops in time, it may not be able to retain those Ningbo people! You may wish to think about it, at least hundreds of people were dispatched across the river last night, including the musketeers. First of all,

After a fight on the pier and a chase for dozens of miles, but in the end we couldn't intercept the opponent's ship, what's the point of sending a team of cavalry?"

What Ma Zhengping said is true. The local garrison in Yangzhou actually had a navy, but the Shanshan salt merchants probably did not have enough energy to mobilize the navy, so in the end only a group of cavalry chased out of Yangzhou City, which was obviously impossible to intercept.

The two cargo ships that evacuated Yangzhou from the canal. Even if they catch up, they don't have to pay attention to the cavalry on the shore and just head down the Yangtze River. The cavalry can't chase them all the way.

Yang Chengye remained silent, but the shock in his heart could not be greater. Last night, he first heard that Lu Kangtai's musketeers were defeated by the canal. After one night, he heard that the second offensive commanded by Lu Kangtai also suffered a complete defeat.

, he was not only surprised at how powerful the opponent was, but also a little worried about how Lu Kangtai would shoulder the corresponding responsibilities after being defeated again and again.

Yang Chengye probably knew Lu Kangtai's status and influence in his camp. If he suffered such a big setback this time, some people would inevitably blame him for the failure. He was afraid that life would not be easy.

But what Yang Chengye didn't know was that the pressure Lu Kangtai was facing now came not only from within the Shanshan-Shaanxi salt merchants, but also from the partners who provided him with military support. The operation commanded by Lu Kangtai this time not only caused heavy losses to the Musketeers

All the weapons and ammunition were lost, and a large number of weapons and ammunition were lost, which will definitely make the partners who keep secret about this very angry.

After driving into the Yangtze River, Gong Qiqi and Ji Yuanqing finally breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that the other party did not continue to pursue them. Both of them suffered some skin injuries in this fierce battle that lasted all night, although it would not affect their actions.

, but when I stopped to rest, I felt unbearable pain everywhere in my body.

The two of them sat side by side with their backs on the side of the boat. Gong Qiqi used his uninjured arm to dig around for a long time. Finally, he took out half a pack of cigarettes, shook them out, then stretched out his hand to Ji Yuanqing and said, "Here are some cigarettes."

?”

Ji Yuanqing was injured on one shoulder and the other arm. He had difficulty moving both hands. He stretched his neck and took out a cigarette in his mouth. Gong Shiqi chuckled and lit the cigarette for him with a lighter.

"What a good thing!" Ji Yuanqing couldn't look away from the kerosene lighter in Gong Qiqi's hand.

Gong Shiqi lit a cigarette for himself, then flicked it coolly, closed the lid with a snap, held the cigarette in his mouth and showed off: "Isn't it beautiful? There are not many of these things, they are used as small gifts for the officials of the Ming Dynasty.

, it’s not sold on the market yet. I also need it for work, so I kept one for myself.”

Ji Yuanqing said: "I've always been curious when I saw a general using this little thing to light cigarettes. How about you think of a way to get one for your brother later?"

"Why are you waiting to turn around? This is ready!" Gong Shiqi directly threw the lighter in his hand to Ji Yuanqing: "Go on!"

Ji Yuanqing subconsciously stretched out his hand to catch it, but this movement pulled the wound on his body. The pain immediately made him grin, but he still held the little thing firmly in his hand without letting go. He then looked at Gong

Seventeen just started playing around with the way he lit the fire.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you that this thing is burning a special kind of kerosene produced in Taiwan. It must be added from time to time before it can continue to be used." Gong Shiqi reminded: "This thing is not available on the market.

If you have an acquaintance in the Ministry of Commerce, you might be able to think of something."

"...Then should I use it as a decoration? Forget it, give it back to you!" Ji Yuanqing closed the lid and gave it back to Gong Shiqi.

Gong Shiqi didn't reach out to pick it up, but grinned and said: "Keep it, just think of it as a souvenir of our happy cooperation this time. I will find a way to get the kerosene for you when I get back. If not for this mission,

If you come together, maybe I won't be able to leave Yangzhou alive."

When he said the last sentence, Gong Shiqi's expression became serious, and he didn't look like he was joking. In fact, he has been through life and death a lot in his career, but this is also the first time he has experienced such a long-lasting experience.

Fierce fighting. If Ji Yuanqing hadn't been on board to direct the battle, he might not have been able to withstand the all-night pursuit by the salt merchants' armed forces.

Ji Yuanqing also smiled and said: "It's my duty to do my best. I also want to live a good life!"

After a pause, he continued: "If the canal has another ten or twenty miles to reach the Yangtze River, then we may not be able to survive. This is still somewhat luck."

In fact, when they sailed into the Yangtze River, most of the people on the ship, including the sailors who were not directly involved in the battle, were heroically injured. Many people, like them, relied on one breath to hold on until the end of the battle.

If the fighting continues, it's hard to say whether they can evacuate safely.

The last night would turn into such a dangerous situation, which they had not expected when they came to Yangzhou. Although they knew in advance that the musketeers they were looking for might be in Yangzhou, they never thought that besides the musketeers,

The second wave of counterattack organized by the local salt merchants cannot be underestimated. It is even more difficult than dealing with the unsuspecting musketeers on the dock.

If the ammunition they carry is reduced by one-fifth, or if the number of combat personnel on the ship is reduced by about ten people, or if Ji Yuanqing is not with them as Gong Shiqi hypothesized, then it is very likely that there will be no way

He persisted until he left the canal. Although Gong Shiqi was not a person who was afraid of death, he still felt a little scared when he thought about the fierce battle last night. This night was considered one of the best in his career.

It's one of the most dangerous.

Fortunately, the mission has been completed fairly well. The main goal of this trip is to investigate the ownership and source of weapons of the mysterious musketeers, and wait for an opportunity to attack them. At present, the witnesses and physical evidence are complete, and they were eliminated in one fell swoop in last night's battle.

The main force of the Musketeers was captured, and the mission objective was basically achieved. As for the remaining details, more valuable information will surely be uncovered when the survivors captured this time are interrogated.

After Ji Yuanqing played with the lighter for a while, he took the initiative to bring up the business: "Last night, when I directed them to get the dead and injured people on the dock onto the ship, I did see that one of them looked like a Westerner."

"Oh? There really is Xifan!" Gong Shiqi became more energetic when he heard this: "Then we need to interrogate him as soon as possible and learn his identity as soon as possible."

Among the intelligence previously obtained, witnesses of the attack said that there were members of the musketeers who were suspected of being Westerners and Koreans. The Ministry of Security believed that this information was probably related to the source of their weapons, so they also asked Gong Qiqi to go to Yangzhou.

After that, I focused on this detail, but I didn't expect that I actually discovered something.

"It's too late. He was already dead when I saw it yesterday." Ji Yuanqing shook his head slightly and said: "I was shot twice in the chest, both of which went directly through the back. I guess he was standing in the first row at the time, and he was too close.

.”

"He's dead!" Gong Shiqi felt a little regretful. Dead people can't speak, so naturally there's no way to provide them with more information.

"But we still have a lot of people alive, so we should still be able to dig out something." Ji Yuanqing comforted: "When we meet the ship in front, we will start interrogating the prisoners as soon as possible."

After leaving the canal and sailing toward the lower reaches of the Yangtze River for about two hours, they reunited with another ship that had evacuated first at the sandbank in the center of the river. However, Ji Yuanqing's plan to transfer to another ship to interrogate the prisoners failed to materialize, because the

Another ship needed to be transferred by boat, but both he and Gong Shiqi had injuries to their upper limbs and were unable to climb up and down the rope ladder on the side of the ship. In the end, they could only suppress their eagerness and wait patiently.

Go downstream to find a place where the boat can dock safely, and then build a springboard and walk directly there.

We waited until dusk in the afternoon when we arrived in Changzhou Prefecture. After confirming that there were no suspicious ships following us, we found a dock along the river and docked temporarily for a while. By the way, we asked the military doctor on board to go to a nearby pharmacy to purchase some hemostatic drugs.

and bandages for dressing.

Gong Shiqi and Ji Yuanqing also took this time to change ships and came to another ship to interrogate the members of the Musketeers captured last night. Although there were still many alive, everyone was injured. After being locked up in the cabin for a day and night,

, their physical condition was already very unsatisfactory, several people had fallen into a semi-coma state, and it was obvious that they would not be able to hold on for much longer.
Chapter completed!