I was really afraid that something might come my way. The speed of the boat going upstream was too slow.
Even though they had used paddles to paddle, more than two hours had passed since they broke through the barrier, and they had only advanced less than six miles.
Under such circumstances, Jin Feng could not work with peace of mind, so he found a bright cabin to close his eyes and relax, thinking about possible accidents and countermeasures.
This cabin can be regarded as the cargo ship's mess hall. There is a big table. Tie Hui, Zhai An, the captain and others are also sitting at the table.
Jin Feng didn't speak, and they didn't dare to speak either. The atmosphere in the cabin was depressing and solemn.
An escort who was responsible for keeping watch on the deck ran in: "Sir, a group of government soldiers appeared on the shore. There seemed to be three or four hundred people. The leader shouted for us to stop the ship!"
"Ignore him, just pretend you didn't hear him." Jin Feng said without raising his head.
I stopped at this moment because my brain was squeezed by the door.
An hour after the escort ran out, he ran in again: "Sir, a big ship appeared upstream, blocking the way. There were two heavy crossbows on the bow. He shouted to us to stop the ship, otherwise we will be sunk!"
"Heavy crossbow?" Jin Feng frowned slightly, stood up and boarded the deck.
Just as the escort said, on the river in the distance, a large building ship larger than the cargo ship Jin Feng was riding appeared at some point, followed by more than a dozen other ships of various sizes.
Jin Feng picked up the telescope and looked over, and sure enough he saw two heavy crossbows with simple shapes on the deck of the ship.
The two smaller ships next to the building ship also have one installed each.
It is not that only Xihewan has heavy crossbows. Before Jin Feng came, Dakang already had heavy crossbows. However, due to the materials and technology, it was more difficult to make and the popularity rate was relatively low.
Since word spread about the heavy crossbow made by Jin Feng, other craftsmen in Dakang have also imitated it.
Although it is still not up to the level of Xihewan's heavy crossbow, it has been greatly improved compared to before. For example, the building ship opposite has added a winch, making winding faster and more labor-saving.
"Sir, what should I do?"
Iron Hammer saw that the winch on the opposite side had begun to turn, and turned to look at Jin Feng.
"What else can we do? Come out with a heavy crossbow and kill them first!"
Jin Feng said helplessly.
In fact, Zhai An's ship had always been equipped with heavy crossbows and catapults in the secret cabin. The baskets that Tie Hammer and others carried when they boarded the ship appeared to be dried yellow croakers, but in fact they were filled with weapons.
In order to hide their identity, they had not used it before, but now if they don't fight back, their ship will be sunk.
The world is in chaos, and human lives are like nothing. Jin Feng has no doubt whether the other party really dares to take action.
"yes!"
Iron Hammer quickly called the bodyguard to rush down to the deck.
After a while, several escorts came out carrying two wooden boxes.
Open one of the wooden boxes and assemble it skillfully.
Assembling a heavy crossbow is a required training subject for every escort. In less than two minutes, a majestic heavy crossbow is assembled.
Hammer opened another wooden box and took out an improved heavy crossbow arrow.
He filled the arrow into the launch hole and turned to look at Jin Feng.
Seeing Jin Feng nod, he picked up the wooden hammer and hit the trigger.
The arrow flew out with a roar, and hit the boat more than a mile away with a bang!
The next second, with a violent explosion, a big hole was blown out of the building.
The river water poured in crazily along the big hole, and the bow of the building boat sank at a speed visible to the naked eye.
On the deck of the ship, the soldiers jumped down like dumplings.
But anyone who has seen a shipwreck knows that after the hull sinks, a whirlpool will be formed, sucking in all the people who fall into the water.
In the end, the few who survive can only be left to fate.
On the deck of the ship on the left side of the tower ship, the captain quickly ordered the heavy crossbow to be fired.
Unfortunately, their heavy crossbows couldn't reach the range, so they just flew to the cargo ship and plunged into the water.
The hammer adjusted the base of the heavy crossbow and pressed the trigger against the ship.
Soon the ship followed closely in the footsteps of the building ship and sank slowly.
The other boats were frightened and fled in all directions.
But how can a ship outrun an arrow?
Now that he has taken action, the hammer will not stop, the heavy crossbows are fired one after another, and the boats are sunk one after another.
On the bank, a military officer looked at the river, his face as gloomy as water.
Some time ago, King Wu heard that King Chu was building a navy. In order to prevent King Chu from sending people down the river to attack him, King Wu also started building a navy.
This large ship and the surrounding boats were part of the naval formation that King Wu had just pulled up.
As a result, the entire formation was wiped out before the battle with the King of Chu.
"Why didn't anyone tell me that they have heavy crossbows?" the captain asked with a dark face.
He could now imagine how furious King Wu would be when he knew the news.
A group of team captains around him lowered their heads and did not dare to answer.
"A bunch of useless guys!"
The captain cursed for a while, turned over and mounted his horse.
There was a county town more than ten miles away. Such a big accident had occurred and his superiors had to be notified as soon as possible.
"There is a heavy crossbow on the cargo ship?" The county guard was quite surprised when he got the news: "Why have so many levels not been detected before?"
“It’s not that the lower level is not working properly!”
The captain cursed in his heart, but said: "I don't know!"
In fact, according to the rules set by King Wu, ships passing by should be searched at each checkpoint, but the soldiers at the lower checkpoints accepted bribes from Zhai An and were too lazy to go to the trouble. They just casually boarded the ships to have a look and then let them go.
The heavy crossbows are hidden in the secret cabin of the cargo ship. Even if you search carefully, you may not be able to find them, let alone just looking at them casually?
"I can get a heavy crossbow, and it can fire continuously. It seems that this cargo ship is not easy!"
The county guard shouted towards the door: "Xiao Anzi, go and ask Mr. Yang to come!"
After a while, an old man in a robe came in waving a paper fan.
"Master Mu, what do you want with me?"
He was one of the counselors under King Wu. Because this county bordered the territory of King Chu, King Wu sent him here to supervise the battle.
Although he has no official position, he is the confidant of King Wu. After seeing the county guard, he just bowed his hands and said hello.
The county guard was not angry and asked the captain to tell the story of the battle on the river again.
After hearing this, the counselor did not express his opinion immediately, but asked: "What do you think, Lord Mu?"
"Repeating heavy crossbows are only available at the Zhenyuan Escort Bureau and are basically not sold to the outside world, so I believe that these two cargo ships are probably faked by people from the Jinchuan Chamber of Commerce!" the county guard said coldly.
"That makes sense!" The counselor nodded and continued to ask, "What are you going to do next, Master Mu?"
"No matter whether they are from the Jinchuan Chamber of Commerce or not, if they dare to break through the checkpoints and kill our people, we must kill them, otherwise no one will dare to break through the checkpoints and kill people in the future!"
The county guard narrowed his eyes and said: "And if this ship belongs to the Jinchuan Chamber of Commerce, the goods it is pulling may not be ordinary goods. It must not be given to the King of Chu at a cheap price!"
"Lord Mu is right."
The counselor put away the paper fan: "The checkpoint is less than fifty miles from King Chu's territory. If Master Mu takes action, he must do it as soon as possible, otherwise he will be in trouble when they enter King Chu's territory!"