Li Jie and others successfully arrived in Liaodong. In the original drama, the ship on which Lao Zhu's family was traveling rashly broke into the waters where Japan and Russia were fighting. As a result, the sails of the ship were destroyed by artillery fire and they could only drift with the tide.
In the end, a boatload of people almost starved to death at sea.
With Li Jie here this time, of course the ship would not break into the battle zone. Although Li Jie was not afraid of the ship being attacked, it was better to avoid it than to do it less. If he could avoid it, he would naturally avoid it.
The ship finally docked near a deserted beach. Since the surrounding water was too shallow and there was no dock, the passengers on the ship could only disembark one by one through small boats.
Although this is a little less efficient, it is more stable and everyone is used to it. After all, this is not the first day of the war between Japan and Russia.
During the period of war between the navies of the two countries, most of the ships heading to the Liaodong area did not dock at the dock, but found a random place to park and then transported them via small boats.
After a few days of getting along, Xia Yuanzhang had initially gained Wen's mother's trust, and the two parties even agreed to go to Yuanbao Town together.
On the ferry, Xia Yuanzhang said the words he had prepared in a gentle tone.
"Old sister, I have a small courtyard outside the city. You can stay there later. After I pick up my wife and daughter, we can set off together."
"Shop Manager Xia, will this be too much trouble?"
Wen's mother didn't know the private agreement between Xia Yuanzhang and Li Jie at all. She was thinking that she and shopkeeper Xia were not relatives, but just met by chance, so she felt a little embarrassed to live in someone else's yard like this.
.
Xia Yuanzhang waved his hand with a smile: "No trouble, no trouble. That small courtyard is actually just a receiving station. There is a war going on around Lushun, so that place has long been vacant. It is idle anyway."
Wen's mother remained silent and glanced at Li Jie. Although she didn't speak, the meaning in her eyes was clear. She wanted to ask the boss's opinion.
"I think I'll just stay here."
Upon seeing this, Wen's mother turned her eyes and nodded towards Xia Yuanzhang.
"Shop Manager Xia, I'm sorry to trouble you."
At three o'clock in the afternoon, the group arrived at the small courtyard that Xia Yuanzhang mentioned. As he said, this small courtyard was indeed used to stack goods.
Except for one bedroom and a simple small kitchen, most of the other rooms are empty. The occasional few rooms are not so empty, but they only have a few shelves inside.
After everyone put down their luggage, Xia Yuanzhang smiled apologetically.
"Sister, the conditions are limited, please bear with me."
Seeing Xia Yuanzhang being so polite, Wen's mother felt a little uncomfortable. She always felt that shopkeeper Xia was a little too enthusiastic.
Although this courtyard is a bit dilapidated, it has a roof, walls, and a kang. Living here is better than sleeping in the wild or living in a broken temple with drafts everywhere.
"What did you say? If you say that again, I will be embarrassed."
"Brother Xia, to be honest, the environment here is better than our hometown in Zhangqiu. I would never dream of living in a house like this when I am away from home."
Xia Yuanzhang smiled, did not take up the topic, and pointed to the guide wall instead.
"The firewood is covered under the oilcloth, which is used for cooking, heating and other things. In addition, there is some millet in the cellar of the room, which should be enough for several days."
"That won't work."
Hearing that there was still food to eat, Wen's mother immediately shook her head and said...
"Brother Xia, it's good that we can have a shelter from the wind and rain. We don't need any food. We have brought dry food."
"Old sister, please don't be polite to me. Brother Zhu and I hit it off right away. None of this is a big deal. Besides, there isn't much rice in the room, it's just for emergencies."
Faced with such enthusiastic Xia Yuanzhang, Wen Ta Niang didn't know how to deal with it for a while. After all, she was just an ordinary country woman.
On the other side, Xia Yuanzhang breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Mother Wen did not refuse again.
There is a reason why he is so polite. He will go to pick up his wife and daughter with Li Jie at the earliest this afternoon and at the latest tomorrow morning.
The road was full of chaos and chaos. His safety was all pointed at Li Jie. Could he be rude?
However, Xia Yuanzhang still knew too little about Wen Ta Niang. Wen Ta Niang did not refuse, which seemed to be acquiescence. In fact, she had already made up her mind.
She doesn't know how to eat a bite of food!
After all, the current situation is not good. There are natural disasters and man-made disasters. Food is more valuable than human life. They have no relationship with Xia Yuanzhang, so how can they eat other people's food casually?
After a while, the group tidied up the yard a little and finally settled down temporarily.
Xia Yuanzhang saw that the sky outside was getting darker and darker, and he became more and more anxious. If he continued to delay, he might not be able to leave today, but after all, he had something to ask for, so he couldn't rush him too much.
Li Jie saw all this.
But there is no way to hurry.
Now Japan and Russia are fighting fiercely in Lushun. Compared with the day, it is obviously safer at night.
In addition, this is not the best place to enter the city. Japan and Russia are near Lushun, and they are almost out of their wits. At such a critical moment, how can Maozi, the defender, let strangers enter the city?
However, Xia Yuanzhang must be very anxious at this time, and the other party will definitely not be willing to let him take a look in person.
Li Jie planned to take him for a walk around Lushun City tonight during the night, so that he could clearly understand what situation Lushun was in now.
At the same time, he also had to step in and prepare for the assassination in the next few days.
So, Li Jie glanced at Xia Yuanzhang covertly and gave him a calm look.
…
…
In a blink of an eye, night fell, and Li Jie found Xia Yuanzhang alone.
"Brother Xia, we have no idea what's going on in the city right now. That's what I think. When it gets darker and my mother and the others fall asleep, we'll set off."
"This time let's take a look first and explore the situation."
"Of course, if you can enter the city, then go directly to the city. If you can't enter, let's think of other ways."
"Well, it's okay, little brother is still thoughtful."
Before, he was anxious and confused. After a few hours, Xia Yuanzhang calmed down. He knew that what Li Jie said was the truth.
…
…
Outside Lushun City, the fortress headquarters.
Nogi Nogi looked at the sand table full of labels and frowned. Just two days ago, the base camp received news from the ally Britain.
The Bear's Baltic Fleet sets sail from the Baltic Sea!
This is definitely not good news. Although the Baltic Sea is more than 10,000 nautical miles away from the Bohai Sea, and although Port Arthur is about to be captured, this fleet will definitely not be able to catch up.
But Mao Xiong's war potential is far beyond our own.
Once the Baltic Fleet arrives in the Far East and regains control of the sea, Mao Xiong can definitely add more troops to the Port Arthur area.
By then, our side may be able to block the first wave, the second wave, the third wave, or even the fourth or fifth wave.
But if you defend for a long time, you will lose. We will definitely not be able to hold the Port Arthur Fortress forever!