Zhao Xingde and others rushed to rush, stayed overnight in the morning, and finally arrived in Luzhou as scheduled. A medium-sized merchant ship from Fuhai was moored at the pier, and as soon as Zhao Xingde and others got on board, they immediately got anchored. The Yangtze River was still dry in early spring, and many reefs were exposed to the water. The boatman's roar and the ape hooves that stood tall in the mountains were rising and falling on the waterway. Several clear sounds of carvings sounded from time to time in the canyon, which made the northern soldiers such as Du Chujiao very excited. Regardless of the cold wind, they spent most of the day on the deck to watch the river view.

Most of the rivers pass by are cliffs washed out by the river for millions of years. Looking around, the top of the mountain is still covered with snow, and the woods under the mountain are full of green. Because the mountains on both sides are steep and steep, the goods exchanges between Shu and Jiangnan are all relied on this river. It goes down from the upper reaches very quickly, and it takes a slower walk from the lower reaches. Sometimes, boaters and mules and horses have to drag merchant ships. In addition to merchant ships and fishing boats, they also see cargo ships carrying from time to time. Occasionally, they meet Shu's river patrol warships, and the merchants on the ship submit the customs duties in Luzhou.

Tax invoices were released by the officials of the Cao Cao. This ship of goods was mainly old wines specialized in Luzhou. Because the Shu Road was difficult and the cost of transporting grain was high, the old grain was used to make wine over the years, and transported it to Jiangnan to sell it. Then, buy goods such as tooth and scented medicine, silk, satin, and other goods from Jiangnan to transport it back to Shuzhong. If these wines were not paid to the tax burden of the Song State, they were considered private wine, and sometimes they were considered private wine after paying taxes. Zhao Xingde was also a merchant at this time. In order to avoid trouble, they were trafficked in Shujin, and Du Chujiao and several soldiers from Shuzhong pretended to be his friends.

After the ship entered the Three Gorges section, the cliffs on both sides of the shore were thousands of feet high, confronting like walls. The mountains were rarely visited by people. As the channel narrowed, the river suddenly accelerated, and the ship was sailing downstream like lightning. At this time, the reefs in the river appeared and disappeared from time to time. Sometimes the ship seemed to rush straight towards the river, hitting a broken bone, and at the critical moment, passing by the river and the reef. The mountains on both sides were green, dangerous peaks were cut, sometimes like spring bamboo shoots, sometimes like screens, sometimes like bells, and sometimes like pen holders. The river was turbulent, accompanied by the roar of raging waves, and the river water was like broken jade, and the water splashed straight towards the boat. The continuous mountain trend changed greatly and retreated quickly.

Du Chujiao and other soldiers felt seasick, but the boatmen and merchants who accompanied the boat were at peace. Zhao Xingde sighed: "With the narrow river surface here, heavy artillery on both sides of the shore cross-firing the river surface, it is difficult for the navy to resist it. If a fort position is set up along the mountaintops and the firepower along the coast is continuous, the ships in the river will suffer heavy losses. It is almost impossible to attack these high mountains and ridges one by one on land. Xia State only controls the natural danger of the Three Gorges, and has become a solid force to the southeast."

After the river ran out of the mountain canyon like a rushing wild horse, the mountains on both sides gradually became wider and the river water gradually became flatter. Compared with the Three Gorges, there was no wind or wave on the water surface of Jiangling, and the river water was gurgling eastward. Du Chujiao and others breathed a sigh of relief, while ships and merchants became nervous. The ships left the Three Gorges and entered the border of the Song State. Generally speaking, merchants who often walked on the river had a bit of friendship with Jiangling Navy of Song State, and even the powerful and powerful bandits along the river. The so-called people died for money and birds died for food. The more turmoil, the more profit the trafficking of goods became. The merchants all knew that the Liao soldiers invaded the south and the southeast were in chaos. The news of bandits was full of news. They were looking forward to making a fortune, but they became anxious.

With the sake of the boss of the ship, the merchant ship successfully passed the investigation of the Navy of Song State and rested in Jiangling for a night. On the day, Yang Fan marched downwards. After passing Jiangling, the vast 800-mile Dongting appeared south of the river. From a distance, the water was boundless, and the dark clouds in the sky were drooping. It was gradually raining, and countless ripples appeared on the gentle river surface. It is not advisable to sail in the rain, so the merchant ship anchored on the north bank of the river. Zhao Xingde thought that once the ship passed Dongting, it would soon arrive in Ezhou, and his mood was not as good as before.

Anxious. He lit a light like a bean in the cabin. While thinking, he wrote the general structure of the Ezhou Military Control Commission on paper. He heard that Yue Fei was so arrogant that he was self-dedicated. In addition to firearms, he should not like too many others involved in military affairs. Zhao Xingde had no intention of fighting for military power with him. However, before the three armies moved, food and grass came first, and he could use more attention to solving military resources. He thought that as long as the general Yue Fei had soldiers and food, he would sooner or later defeat the Liao army. Personal gains, losses, honors and disgrace were second.

It was raining in Xiaoxiang at night, and the raindrops drizzled. Suddenly, Zhao Xingde frowned and put down his brush. There were waves of women crying from the shore, as if mixed with the cry of children. It was interrupted by the sound of rain, but it was lingering. He stood up and went to the boat boss to find out the situation with Du Chujiao and others.

The merchants accompanying the boat gathered in the cabin. Everyone looked at each other, no one spoke, some looked suspicious, and some were worried. The old road of the boat, perhaps it was the crying of people on the bank of the river, or it was a trap set by robbers, who specifically deceived the curious or lustful pedestrians on the river. Once they were merciful and included them in the boat, soon accomplices came, or falsely accused and abducted the people, or robbed the ship within. In order to prevent the thieves from cheating, all the people on the boat were among them.

No matter if someone was sympathetic, he did not dare to help. The cabin was quiet as if no one was present, and only the faint crying sounds on the shore were heard, which was creepy. The boss of the ship advised the merchants to try to turn off the lights so that the thieves would not see the position of the ship. Zhao Xingde also turned off the oil lamp. He took a deep breath and looked out from the porthole. Occasionally, he could only see the rain on the river. There was a dark patch on the shore and nothing could be seen.

To prevent accidents, the people accompanying him gathered in the cabin where Zhao Xingde was. Zhao Xingde, Du Chujiao and Liu Zheng, and Shi Jingkui and three other soldiers of Shu Kingdom, were only six. Everyone took out the short crossbow and placed it beside them, and sat quietly cross-legged. The sound of breathing from time to time was heard in the cabin. About three quarters of an hour later, the crying of vague finally stopped. Everyone had just breathed a sigh of relief. Suddenly, the shouts of killing were loud, the torches were shaking, the flames and the swords were shivering, and the drizzle was extremely messy.

"No," Shi Jingkui's expression changed drastically, "I met a water bandit. Go out quickly!"

Zhao Xingde nodded, and the soldiers stood up and ran out of the cabin. The cabin was at the stern of the boat, and the boat was parked on the shore. Everyone just needed to go into the water to swim on the river bank. The cargo on the boat was generally not pursued by the fugitive guests. However, as soon as they left the cabin door, Zhao Xingde found that more than a dozen sergeants were on the stern deck, and more people were climbing up. Seeing Zhao Xingde and others, the thieves shouted together, each rushing towards this side, and more than a dozen arrows were whizzing and whizzing through the wind at the same time.

"Kill!" Du Chujiao used his sword to push away the arrow in front of him, kicked the thief in front of him to the ground with a kick. The other soldiers were not vague and fought and rushed forward in one go. The thief did not expect that there were such a group of evil spirits on the ship. Although there were many people, they were caught off guard and were immediately defeated by Zhao Xingde and others. However, this thief was very fierce. After coming back to his senses, more accomplices gathered to fight here. With a huge gap, Zhao Xingde and others were not interested in fighting and rushed to the side. Shi Jingkui, Wu Zonglian and Xu Dingshan used Zhuge short crossbow to launch crossbow arrows and temporarily forced the thief to retreat.

"Jump quickly!" Zhao Xingde shouted softly, patted Du Chujiao and Liu Zheng on the shoulders, and the two jumped into the water with a thud. Du Chujiao and Liu Zheng were also water-like. After the two got into the water, they swam desperately to the shore with Zhao Xingde. Behind them, three soldiers including Shi Jingkui also jumped into the river.

Although the river bank was not far away, there were more water bandits around the merchant ship. When they saw Zhao Xingde and others fleeing the merchant ship, the water bandits did not row near the boat, but jumped from the boat into the biting cold river water. There were even good people who knew water. They saw the location of Zhao Xingde and others, and did not breathe at all on the way. They swam over in one breath and started fighting in the water. Although Zhao Xingde and others knew water, they could not compare with these water bandits who lived in the rivers and lakes all year round. Soon, they were captured one by one. They drank a lot of river water. After their heads were dizzy, they were taken back to the merchant ship by the water bandits.

"You actually hide a crossbow and shoot the brothers in my village? Who are you?" A middle-aged water bandit shouted sternly. He was tall and had a scar on his forehead. A water bandit beside him roared: "I slaughtered these fat sheep, dig out my heart and liver to fry it." While saying, he used a short knife to lift the robes of the soldiers. Du Chujiao and others were soaked in the river water, and many old scars of the swords and arrows were exposed. The faces of the water bandits changed drastically, and several people whispered louder: "It's the spies of the government army! "Kill them!"

With a "bang", a leather bag fell from his arms. The leader of the siege looked slightly and ordered people to take the leather bag. He looked at the letters from Zhao Xingde's leather bag one by one, reading slowly first, then slowly, and his face changed several times. Zhao Xingde felt regretful and regretted not destroying this thing. There was no secret of the military secret of Xia Kingdom in the bag, but there were several letters of contact with Chen Dong, including the strategy of establishing the Military Guard. In addition, there were a stack of articles written in the past and a few photos of Fuhai Xingjiaozi.

"Brother Lu, what is it written on it?"

"Is it a spy from the official army?"

Several water bandits asked, but the leader named Lu raised his hand and silenced everyone. The water bandits did not dare to say anything for some reason, but only sharpened their swords and stared at Zhao Xingde and others fiercely. Most people thought that the village leader must have discovered the vicious plot of the official army. After the interrogation was completed, they took action together, first digging out the hearts of these spies, and then threw them into Dongting Lake to feed the fish.

The leader named Lu examined the leather bag before he walked to Zhao Xingde and whispered: "Mr. Zhao Yuanzhi?"

Zhao Xingde remained silent. Although he did not admit it, the leader of the pirates confirmed his guess from his expression.

The leader's eyes were full of shock, and he immediately leaned over and said, "It almost made a big mistake. Lu cannot refuse to blame him for his death. Dongting bandit Lu Mingyu, please give him a punishment!" In a daze, he only knelt down to apologize, but actually forgot to untie the rope on Zhao Xingde's body. Many gang leaders in the cabin, together with soldiers such as Du Chujiao, had a look of confusion on their faces and eyes.
Chapter completed!