Zhoushan, the bay south of Shuangyu Island, is a secret stronghold of the Zheng family, which has never been known to outsiders.
Even though people from the Xia Kingdom traveled to Zhoushan many times, they never discovered this place.
In later generations, there was a name here, and it was called Pirate Bay.
Now all Zheng's warships are hidden in it.
In the pitch-black night, despite the scorching summer heat, the sea breeze was still chilly and chilling.
On the land on the shore, a blazing bonfire was blown by the sea wind like a devil's claws dancing wildly.
There was a deer on top, which was already cooked. The smell of meat spread everywhere, and many pirates were immersed in it.
The days of drinking from large bowls and eating large portions of meat are a fairy-like life for these pirates.
At this time, Zheng Zhilong changed into a coarse cloth robe, completely losing his former image of a wealthy family member and returning to his true character as a sea hero.
He opened his sharp teeth and bit off half of the leg meat in one bite. He pulled it into his mouth and swallowed it whole without even chewing it.
Beside him, Zheng Zhifeng reported the situation.
"An accurate message has been sent from Songjiang Mansion. That little thief Zuo Hua still doesn't know anything about it. He is sleeping in the dock at Waigaoqiao and is sleeping and dreaming."
Zheng Zhilong is very sober.
"Is it reliable?"
Zheng Zhifeng hurriedly slapped her chest.
"He is the old man in the family, absolutely reliable."
Zheng Zhilong drank the wine in the bowl in one gulp and took a long breath, forming a white line in the air.
At the end of the white line is the deep and misty night sky.
"Just because it is reliable, you have to be more careful."
"You have also dealt with Zuo Hua. Although that guy is young and vigorous, he is more cunning than a fox. It is impossible for him to be unaware of the current situation. If he is not prepared at all, then he is not Zuo Hua."
"Brother, what do you mean..."
Zheng Zhibao doesn't have much brains, he only knows how to fight. When encountering difficulties, just ask.
"The Waigaoqiao Pier must be attacked. Even if we can't kill Zuo Hua and the East China Sea Fleet and destroy his Xia Kingdom's port, Zuo Mengeng will definitely be injured."
"If Zuo Hua is not prepared, then we will win the battle; if Zuo Hua sets a trap, then we will give him an oriole behind him."
After eating and drinking, the Zheng pirates did not go to sleep, but returned to the ship one after another.
Although they could not see their fingers in the dark night, they still drove the warship into the sea.
When it came time to risk her life, Zheng was fearless.
Even if they are not afraid of death, what else can stop them?
The dark night will eventually pass, and when light shines on the world, there will be happiness and disaster.
The calm Yangtze River estuary was disturbed by the sudden appearance of overwhelming warships, and the alarm bells on Chongming Island in the center of the river were ringing in a panic and chaos.
Everyone in Waigaoqiao Pier was in a hurry, looking for a place to hide.
Zheng Zhibao was very proud of the chaos he created.
"Rush forward and blow up this place for me."
Although no warships of the East China Sea Fleet were found in the port, Zheng Zhibao was still furious when he saw the extremely prosperous dock.
Originally, all this wealth should belong to the Zheng family, but now that you dare to go against the Zheng family, it will be completely destroyed.
Zheng's warship raised its sails, and the sailors shouted loud chants, rowed the oars hard, and rushed against the current of the Yangtze River towards the Waigaoqiao Pier.
The Waigaoqiao Port is in a straight line and there is no bay surrounded by land. At first glance, it seems that there is no defensive capability at all.
As long as Zheng's warships rush over and the artillery fires, it seems that they can blow up everything here.
However, just when Zheng Zhibao was feeling proud, he saw groups of Xia army soldiers suddenly pouring out from every corner of the port.
They pushed the artillery to the shore, quickly set it up, and pointed the muzzle at Zheng's warship.
"There are also people in the north. We are ambushed."
Hearing the exclamation, Zheng Zhibao raised his eyes and looked towards Changxing Island to the north.
As a result, we saw Xia Army soldiers running out of the tangled grass on the island, and there were countless artillery pieces of all kinds.
All of a sudden, Zheng's fleet was attacked from two sides and fell into a passive position.
"Hmph, that little thief Zuo Hua is indeed insidious and cunning. Turn around quickly and look for opportunities again."
The mission given to Zheng Zhibao was to find an opportunity to blow up the Waigaoqiao Pier and destroy the East China Sea Fleet.
Since Xia Jun was well prepared, there was no need for him to put himself in danger.
After receiving the order, Zheng's pirates also knew that Xia Jun's artillery was sharp, so they used all their strength to turn the sailboat in the water and prepared to return to the original route.
And during this process, the Xia army's artillery had already been launched.
With the absolute range advantage, Zheng's warships had not yet approached the Waigaoqiao Pier, but the Xia army's artillery could already hit them.
There were hundreds of artillery pieces at the pier and on Changxing Island, and they roared together, creating countless water columns on the river.
Two unlucky warships were directly hit by bullets and shattered on the spot. The pirates on board did not even need to search or rescue them.
Zheng's pirate souls appeared in great numbers, so he quickly speeded up and just wanted to stay away from here.
"The Third Master has a boat coming after him."
Although Zheng Zhihu died in the battle when he eliminated Liu Xiang, Zheng's pirates still used to call Zheng Zhibao the third master.
Zheng Zhibao looked back and saw dozens of Xia Navy warships hurriedly coming out from the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.
And those ships are all old-fashioned warships that are almost different from those of the Zheng family.
Obviously, today's situation must be a trap set by Xia Jun.
Moreover, there are only old warships, and the four new warships of the East China Sea Fleet have not yet appeared, which means that there is still a follow-up to Xia Jun's arrangement.
"If you don't want to die here, just work harder. When you win this battle, everyone's reward will be doubled."
Since it is a pirate group, the best thing to boost morale is money.
The Zheng brothers have always believed that a brave man will be rewarded with a heavy reward, and Zheng Zhibao also played this trick at the critical moment.
Not to mention, when the pirates heard that the reward was doubled, they worked even harder.
On the downstream river, Zheng's team fled in front, and the warships of the East China Sea Fleet pursued behind.
Zheng Zhibao's mind was elsewhere.
"Let Shi Daxuan sail on the left wing. If we find those four new ships, we must block them no matter what."
As a veteran pirate, Zheng Zhibao was very familiar with maritime warfare. After briefly studying the topography of the Yangtze River estuary, he vaguely guessed Zuo Hua's arrangement.
Sure enough, just as they were about to rush out of the Yangtze River Estuary, Shi Daxuan on the left sent an urgent message.
Four new ships of the East China Sea Fleet actually circled out from the north of Chongming Island and were approaching them.
Zheng Zhibao couldn't help but break into a cold sweat.
Fortunately, there was no extra delay at Waigaoqiao Pier, otherwise they would have been dumped.
"Hmph, Zuo Hua, no matter how cunning you are, you can't escape from my Zheng family's Wuzhi Mountain. How can you be allowed to be arrogant on the sea?"
While Zheng Zhibao asked Shi Daxuan to try his best to slow down Zuo Hua's advance, Zheng Zhibao ordered the fleet to turn south, close to the coast of Songjiang Prefecture, and retreat all the way to Zhoushan.
He believed that Zuo Hua, with his arrogant heart, would never allow them to retreat calmly.