Book 2 Chapter 7 - Fish in the Net
‘Splosh!'
Scowling miserably, Kou Zhong helped Xu Ziling tossing the twentieth sack of salt into the ocean. Only then did the seawater no longer attack the deck. Fortunately it was just a small storm; otherwise the boat would have been capsized.
Completely exhausted, the two boys sat on sacks of salt; they did not even have any strength left to laugh or to cry.
By the time the sun showed itself again, Kou Zhong suddenly burst out laughing like crazy. Naturally Xu Ziling also laughed with him until tears flowing out of his eyes.
Kou Zhong sighed and said, "We have lost at least enough money to stroll into low-grade brothel twenty times; Laotianye [God/Heaven] is really cruel.”
Xu Ziling sneered, "Didn't Bai Lao Fuzi often say we should feel contented with our fate? My Zhong Shaoye, one drink, one peck [the context is animal], everything is pre-destined. The Heaven has decided that we lost these twenty sacks of salt, chances are most of sacks won't be left for us either.”
Kou Zhong'e entire body, from head to toe, suddenly shook violently; pointing behind them, he groaned, "You are right, looks like the Heaven really destined us to be poor wretches; even the remaining fifty, sixty sacks will be taken away.”
Xu Ziling looked back in shock; he saw five three-mast big ships have just turned from the sea into the river. Not only that, the enemy's pursuing technique was clearly extraordinarily brilliant, because the two boys did not even realize their presence until they were only two li away from them. Judging by the pursuers' speed, at most it would only take the time needed to burn an incense stick before they could catch up with them.
The two boys looked up at their boat's flag first, it was embroidered with the fish pattern of the Haisha Bang flag. When they looked at the five pursuing ships, they groaned together, because they saw similar pattern on the mast of all of them.
Kou Zhong threw himself down on the sacks of salt and wailed, "Finished! All my sea sands are finished!” [reminder: haisha means sea sand.]
Xu Ziling pulled him up and called out, "Let's go! Before it's too late.”
Suddenly there was a tender laughter, and then they saw a small fast boat coming over; the one sitting on the bow was precisely the Buddhist nun they saw the other night. There were ten men rowing the boat, ten well-trained men, so that the boat glided on the ocean surface like an arrow.
The pretty nun called out, "You just think about escaping right now, it's really too late!”
The two boys noticed that she was wearing wetsuit, and it looks like she was ready to jump into the water to catch them. Their soul flew away and scattered, how could they still care about the sacks of salt? Immediately they turned around and jumped into the sea; they did not even have time to admire her clearly visible curves under the skin-tight suit, the body that could make the men who look at her pop their eyes and choke their throats.
The pretty nun laughed until her beautiful body shook uncontrollably. Gasping for breath, she said, "If I, the Mermaid You Qiufeng, ever let you, these two kids ever escape the net, I will never go down into the water again.”
Only after saying that did she jump into the water in an incomparably graceful posture. Compared to Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling's awkward jumped earlier, the difference was like night and day.
Under water, the sun rays looked like tens of thousands strands of silver thread, turning the clear, deep-blue seabed world into an array of infinite stereoscopic mirrors.
The nun, You Qiufeng, focused her eyes and immediately saw Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling about a hundred zhang ahead, desperately trying to swim toward the shore. The bottom of the sailboat looked like a strange clump of black cloud hovering overhead in the clear and brilliant ocean surface.
You Qiufeng twisted her waist, and like a wisp of smoke she darted forward with speed at least more than 50% faster than the ones she was pursuing.
Within Haisha Bang, whose domain was the sea, there was not a second person whose water skill was even close to hers; from this, it was clear how formidable she really was.
She did not understand at all how the two little demons were able to hold their breath underwater. Without first-class internal energy, it was simply impossible to do.
But this moment she was simply too busy to think. Their Bangzhu [clan/gang leader], the Dragon King Han Gaitian, had already issued a strict order to spare no expense in capturing them alive.
By this time Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling have already seen the pretty nun pursuing them from behind, but they had no way of escaping.
At first Kou Zhong was about two zhang ahead of Xu Ziling, but seeing the enemy rapidly approaching, he knew that very soon she would catch up with Xu Ziling, whose water skill was not as good as his. Therefore, clenching his teeth, he waved his hand to have Xu Ziling swim ahead, and then, with the saber in his hand, he turned around to face the enemy.
However, how could Xu Ziling be willing to let Kou Zhong face the enemy alone? Hence he also held his saber across as he turned around to fight the fast-approaching enemy.
Two sides rapidly approaching each other. Soon they would be engaged in close combat. Suddenly a quirly smile appeared on You Qiufeng's face as she reached toward her back. Waving her hand, a large net shot out like an arrow to meet the two boys head-on.
The boys saw the large net like a layer of black cloud coming fast at them. By the time they realized the situation was bad, they have already been captured inside the net; persons and sabers became the fish in the net.
The boat they stole along with the salt suffered the same fate; it has become Haisha Bang's prisoner. It was towed behind Haisha Bang's flagship using a very thick rope, with its sail folded down.
Haisha Bang's big boss, the Dragon King Han Gaitian pompously sat on a special dragon chair. Behind his chair stood seven of his subordinates with law-protector level, who have been fighting from all four quarters with him. Their position was even higher than the eighteen helmsmen who were in charge of the eighteen coastal salt-producing divisions.
His dragon chair was set up leaning against the door of the cabin at the stern. He was waiting calmly for the two young offenders to be brought over.
Haisha Bang was one of three major gangs along the southeast coast; it share the same fame as the Shuilong Bang [water dragon gang] and Jukun Bang [gigantic leviathan gang].
The three major gangs were suspicious and envious of each other. Previously they were still able to delimit their respective territory and sphere of influence, hence they were able to maintain peace in general.
But since Sui Dynasty government became corrupt, the heroes all over the world [tian xia] arose, the three major gangs also began to stir, each conspired to expand their influence, and thus the power struggle gradually turned intense.
Shuilong Bang has always attached themselves to the powerful Song Clan of the south. But for their survival, Haisha Bang cast their lot to the Yuwen Clan and became one powerful claw and teeth of the Yuwen family.
Jukun Bang on the other hand, stayed independent. Nevertheless, in terms of fame and power they were not the least bit inferior. The hottest topic in Jianghu recently was after the former Clan Leader Yun Guangling was murdered and his daughter Yun Yuzhen took office, Jukun Bang's prestige has become even more dazzling.
This beautiful woman with the nickname ‘Clan Leader of the Fairer Sex' [orig. hong fen bang zhu - clan leader of rouge and powder] had a consummate martial art skill, even more outstanding than her father; she was considered as number one heroine of the southeastern Wulin world.
Meanwhile, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling, with their hands tied behind their back, were dragged toward Han Gaitian, and were pushed down to kneel by the four strong men who were in charge of them; the two boys hung their head dispiritedly.
The subordinate reported, "Both they and their boat have been searched, only twenty taels of silver found, there is no other things.”
Han Gaitian's eyes shot a cold ray. "Report your name!” he barked.
Kou Zhong called out, "I am Fu Zhong, he is Fu Ling …”
‘Pow! Pow!' Two long whips lashed out from behind, breaking the back of two boys' clothes, and tore into their flesh; their face's muscles twisted in severe pain.
Han Gaitian laughed aloud and said, "Still dare to lie to me? You are Kou Zhong, and the other Xu Ziling; both are criminals whose capture Yuwen Zongguan put in the wanted notice nationwide. Whoever can bring you back to Yangzhou and hand you over to Yuchi Zongguan will receive a thousand taels of gold as a reward.”
Standing on his right was the chief law protector, the ‘Fat Assassin'. This man was so fat that he looked like a ball, his eyes small and treacherous. Hearing the last sentence, he laughed eerily and said, "Human beings will die for riches just as birds will for food; if not for these two kids were greedy, stealing a boat load of sea sand, it would not be easy for us to get these thousand taels of gold.”
Feeling the pain on his back, Kou Zhong was apologetic toward Xu Ziling and could only look at him with bitter smile. The latter however, acted if nothing had happened; he said in low voice, "Turns out we are worth that much. If we had sold ourselves, wouldn't we be very rich by now?”
"Silence!” Han Gaitian roared.
While the two boys were frightened that they were trembling inside, the pretty nun You Qiufeng's tender laughter was heard, coming from inside the cabin. She had changed into a dry robe; surprisingly she also wore a wig with the hair rolled up in a bun, which was held together carelessly with seven or eight silver hairpins; she looked quite odd.
With hundred charms and thousand daintiness she came over to Han Gaitian, and then plopped her buttocks on his thigh, and wrapped her arms around Han Gaitian's neck, which was as thick and solid as a tree trunk. With a flatteringly sweet voice she said, "To lose at sunrise but gain at sunset; although this time Dong Ming Pai escaped great catastrophe, in the end we obtain these two valuable kids. Now Bangzhu [Clan Leader] have enough face to see Yuwen Daren.”
Han Gaitian reached out to caress the pretty nun's bottom; he patted it twice and then talked to Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling in grim voice, "Tell me! How come you, two kids whose smell of mother's milk has not yet dried, can be that valuable?”
The two boys deeply regretted the fact that they did not know Haisha Bang was related to Yuwen Huagu; moreover, they did not expect Yuwen Huagu would give secret order to the clans and societies working for him to hunt and capture them. If they knew this fact, they would not risk being captured.
Kou Zhong sighed and said, "If Bangzhu agree not to hand us over to Yuwen Huaji, we will tell you this secret.”
Han Gaitian tossed his head backward and roared in heroic laughter; gasping for breath, he said, "Did you see that? This kid has the audacity to bargain with us.”