After listening to Qian Shuisheng's story, Liu Shiyong's heart that he had just let go slipped up again, he was not worried about his honor and disgrace at this time, but he was afraid that he would delay the success or failure of this western expedition, ruin the emperor's major affairs, and even more disappoint His Majesty's trust. Think about the beginning of the little emperor's succession, the army of the Xing Dynasty was in the hands of Zhang Shijie, and it was difficult for the little emperor in every way, and he was ordered to monitor his whereabouts.

Later, although Liu Shiyong woke up in time, he was not a member of the Shuaifu army after all, and he was not as protective as the Jiang family to the little emperor. After the Battle of Yashan, after the Xing Dynasty moved to Qiong, he saw that the generals of the Xing Dynasty were almost all deposed, although Zhang Shijie still served as a privy envoy, but everyone knew that its symbolic significance was greater, and there were no soldiers to listen to his dispatch.

So Liu Shiyong thought that he could save his life and get a job to make ends meet. However, the little emperor took on a heavy responsibility and let himself join the Privy Council, and now he has made him lead the Yangtze River Water Army, which shows that he has great trust in himself. And Lu Wencheng, who was attached to the little emperor at the same time as himself, was not so lucky, and lost the opportunity to lead the troops due to his family's involvement, but His Majesty also treated him favorably and let him serve as Langzhong in the Navy Department of the Ministry of War.

The emperor's grace is vast, Liu Shiyong knows that he can only repay with death, and this time he led the western expedition with the determination to repay with death. But in front of him, the army of the Western Expedition was blocked by the dangerous beach, and he had to retreat to the south of the Yangtze River in a gloomy manner, and he was really shameless to see His Majesty again. And now he has no way back, even if there is a Longtan tiger's den in front of him, he has to break through.

After a day's sailing, the fleet sailed through the peaks and mountains, winding paths and secluded Ox Liver Horse Lung Gorge, Liu Shiyong looked ahead, Qingtan appeared in the field of vision, he knew that the morale of the army could not be discharged, and as the commander of the navy, he could not show the fear of difficulties, and he must take the lead in the face of difficulties, and must not retreat.

As he approached Qingtan, Liu Shiyong found that a town appeared in front of him, as Qian Shuisheng said, and it was more prosperous than he imagined. There are many inns and inns, commercial shops, teahouses and wine shops, temples and temples, blue brick houses, deep house compounds, and countless stilted buildings and thatched houses.

When we arrived at Qingtan, a sentinel ship reported that a merchant ship was crossing the beach, and the fleet could not move forward for the time being. Liu Shiyong took the binoculars to see that there were indeed more than ten cargo ships waiting to cross the beach in turn, and the wharf was also bustling, and some coolies were unloading the goods on board, and then moving the goods to the green beach along the road on the shore and reloading the ship. There are also slender men who tie ropes on empty boats and prepare to tow them across the beach, and there are even vendors selling food and drink on the docks to solicit business.

Liu Shiyong did not give the order to cross the beach, but ordered the fleet to anchor and rest on the shore, and sent a guard to prohibit all idle approaches. He also sent people ashore to purchase supplies and inquire about the news. He disembarked and went to a high slope on the shore to see how the boat crossed the green beach. Listening to a loud shout, a cargo ship that had been unloaded left the dock, and the six sailors on board rowed in unison, and more than a dozen slender men put ropes on the ship's mast and pulled the boat on the shore. With the joint efforts of more than 20 people, the ship went offshore and prepared to go upstream.

Watching the boat gradually sail into the green beach where the reef is lined with rocks and the rivers are rushing, Liu Shiyong can clearly see that the boat is swaying violently from side to side, and every time it swings, it will make a muffled sound of 'tom, tom, to......m' of the hull hitting the reef, which makes people feel that the boat may be sunk at any time, and even as a bystander, he can't help but secretly sweat and hold his breath.

Liu Shiyong's eyes turned to the slender men on the fiber road again, and he knew that pulling fiber was not only a hard work, but also a technical work. When the boat crosses the rapids, when the slender man goes into the water, where to start pulling the fiber, what road to take, and the adjustment of the strength of the fiber puller, etc., all need to be led by experienced slender men. This water-aware and technology-savvy slender man is generally a fiber head. When pulling the fiber, the fiber head walks in front, followed by the second fiber and the third fiber......

At this time, the rope is hanging on the rock, or stuck in the crack of the stone, or finding that the rope is not strong, or the thorns by the river are entangled in the rope, etc., someone needs to adjust the rope - this person is commonly known as "picking bowls". The "bowl picker" is responsible for clearing obstacles and arranging the rope so that the fiber can be pulled to the maximum effect. In addition, another major role of the bowl picker is to pay attention to the working condition of the rope, if he finds that the rope is about to break on the stone, he will immediately stop pulling the fiber.

"Not good!" The cargo ship withstood the impact of the river in the mournful sound of the slender man and the hard paddle of the oarsman, turned the bow and slowly went upstream, but the journey was extremely difficult, after more than half an hour of struggle, the cargo ship finally crossed the two beaches, but ran aground on the head beach. The trumpets of the slender men were once again high-pitched, their bodies almost parallel to the ground, and they obviously tried to pull the boat out again, but at this time the taut rope was broken by the friction with the cliffs on the fiber road, and it was obvious that the 'picking up bowl' did not find it and stopped in time, he couldn't help but exclaim, and his heart sank.

The boat lost control in an instant, and spun under the impact of the river, and after three or four turns, the boat that had lost control was about to be swept away like an arrow off the string. At this time, Liu Shiyong couldn't help but be very nervous, the coolies who carried the goods on the beach and the waiting sailors and slender men also flocked to the beach, but no one made a sound, they just silently watched the ship rush to the reef in the middle of the river, obviously they had seen a lot of this situation, all they could do was to pray that someone would escape.

In the line between life and death, the sailors on the ship also burst out with superhuman courage, and at the moment of collision with the reef, several sailors at the bow of the ship threw their oars and hurriedly lifted their penny crutches to the reef to control the cargo ship. Several sailors held the penny with both hands, and Liu Shiyong could clearly see the green tendons on their limbs bulging, and their eyes bulging as if they were about to burst out.

With the support of several people, the cargo ship finally stopped its downward movement temporarily. Liu Shiyong exhaled at this time, but he also knew that he was not completely out of danger, and at this moment, a sailor jumped from the boat into the waves, and he struggled to induce the shore against the rapids, leaned close to the cliffs, and connected the broken ropes.

"Hey...... ......After the rope was connected, according to the sound of the trumpet, the slender man pulled up the boat again, and the sailors on the boat immediately adjusted the direction, and after the stern was adjusted, he immediately operated the oars and rowed, under the action of the two forces, the boat moved again, and slowly got out of danger, but this time it was much smoother, and finally broke through the head beach.

"It's dangerous!" Liu Shiyong saw that the ship was safely re-docked, and only then did he breathe a sigh, but he shivered, it turned out that the sweat had soaked through the battle clothes, and he felt cold when he was blown by the river breeze. He saw that the ship's escape was not only due to the skill of the sailors on board, but also because of its small hull, which made it easier to maneuver, and their ships were obviously much more clumsy.

"Du Shuai, those slender men just wanted to contact us and assist us to cross the beach, but they regretted it at the moment, not only offered a high price, but also demanded that all the goods must be unloaded, otherwise they would not pull the boat." At this time, Liu Jie, the commander of the advance detachment of the navy, said angrily.

"They're sitting on the ground!" Liu Shiyong didn't get angry when he heard this, but smiled and said. As soon as the fleet landed, the porters approached one after another, knowing that it was a big deal, and confident that without their help, they would never be able to cross the beach. He asked Liu Jie to contact him, but a thrilling scene happened in front of them just now, and they naturally realized that this was an opportunity to start the price, so they regretted it again.

"Du Shuai, this group of Diao people dare to entertain Wang Shi, it's really lifeless, let's arrest them all, and give them a penny!" Liu Jie's anger did not subside.

"No, our army is a teacher of benevolence and righteousness, how can we force ourselves to recruit people. If Your Majesty had known, he would have cut off your head! Liu Shiyong glared at him and said solemnly.

"They also know that the military discipline is strict, but they don't know how to help the king, but instead take the opportunity to blackmail, so where is the dignity of our king? I think it is difficult to establish authority without severe punishment! Liu Jie bowed and argued.

"Do you know why they dare to sit on the ground and raise prices even though they know that the official army is coming?" Liu Shi said bravely.

"Of course, I know that it is those people who are determined that we will not be able to cross the beach without them, if they are forced to pull the boat, they will either disperse in a hurry, or they will not be able to work, and finally they will have to ask to go to the door!" Liu Jie is not stupid, of course he understands, but he is still not angry in his heart.

"Since you know it, why should you argue with them, but it will ruin the reputation of our royal master." Liu Shiyong patted his shoulder and said.

"Du Shuai, I still feel like I am on fire!" Liu Jie crooked his neck and said.

"Your Majesty has already thought of a way to crack it, we can cross the beach without the traction of the slender man!" Liu Shiyong is confident.

"Oh, Your Majesty has already expected that we are in trouble today, thousands of miles away?" Liu Jie was surprised when he heard this. However, he had already believed in eight points in his heart, and as a veteran under the little emperor, he had witnessed many miracles created under his leadership.

"You're right away...... So ......," Liu Shiyong said in his ear.

"Hehe, they make things difficult for us today, and tomorrow we will smash their jobs, and we will go to the ministry immediately!" Liu Jie not only dissipated his resentment in an instant, but also smiled openly. He did not stop any longer, but immediately returned to the place where the ship was moored, ordered the engineering detachment to disembark and assemble at once, and unloaded a 'big iron lump' from the ship, and a dozen soldiers carried it along the side road for transporting goods to the upper reaches of the green beach under the eyes of many people......