It is indeed much faster to take the waterway down the Yangtze River than to take the land route.

And the possibility of being questioned by water is also small.

Although there will also be money gates set up at the key points, most of the officials who are interrogated will turn a blind eye to those who are carrying official ship lanterns.

This is exactly what Xu Huaiyuan is worried about.

He can put pressure on the government at all levels to increase their interrogation. But if you really meet the person who is being checked by the official ship, you are going through the motions.

He had already decided that kidnapping Yuyue Lingxue was Gao Yang's godson Gao Sheng's idea. Then it is easy to arrange an official ship to receive it with high energy.

He doesn't even need to really arrange an official ship, he only needs to borrow an official with an official rank and let him accompany him on a boat, which can have the same effect.

The breeze on the river was blowing slowly, and Ning Xiu only felt a burst of refreshment.

"Yang Shen chanted, 'Rolling Yangtze River East Passing Water, Waves Sweeping Away Heroes.'" I wasn't impressed at the time. Only by taking a boat in the river can you appreciate some of the meaning. ”

Ning Xiu stood on the bow of the boat with his hands behind his back and said with emotion.

Sun Wufan pursed his lips and said, "Brother Ning Xian is really a complete, we are not the same kind of people." ”

Ning Xiu raised his eyebrows and said, "Whether it's a or a businessman, the essence is not different." One seeks fame and the other seeks profit, both seeking a sense of identity. Brother Sun said yes or no? ”

Sun Wufan's eyes rolled, and he smashed his mouth and said, "You really seem to have a little truth when you say this." ”

"That's why I said Brother Sun should go to school. Your brains are so lively that you can definitely get ahead. ”

Sun Wufan rolled his eyes and said, "Brother Ning Xian, don't praise me." I have a few pounds and a few taels, and I know it in my heart. If I really want to read a book, do you think my dad will let me go into business? He wants to pave the way to my feet. Reading is really not for me. ”

After a pause, he suddenly patted his head and said, "I almost forgot, my father specially instructed me, saying that you should prepare some glass vases and send them to Wuchang Mansion as soon as possible, so that he can send them to Jingshi as a tribute as a local official." If this path is cleared, you can burn the Imperial Kiln! ”

Ning Xiu's eyes couldn't help but light up.

"Is that true?"

"Hey, look at what Brother Ning Xian said. Brother, when did I lie to you? ”

Sun Wufan patted his chest and said: "The princes of all parts of the Ming Dynasty can pay tribute to the Son of Heaven, and the same is true for the local officials." Your glass vase is a novelty, and I think His Majesty the Emperor will be very interested. ”

Ning Xiu was indeed very excited. He really didn't expect that the governor of Huguang had the power to pay tribute to the emperor. That being said, taking this line really helps the promotion of glassware.

Countless objects in history are famous because of their relationship with the royal family, and the fact that glassware can become a tribute definitely outweighs the disadvantages.

Recently, Ning Xiu has shared a piece of the Weaving Bureau through the relationship between the eunuchs of Jiangling Town and the Zhang family, and has become an imperial businessman. Now, if you can make a name for the imperial kiln through the relationship of Governor Sun, the road to business in the future will really be much smoother.

"Look!"

Ning Xiu was imagining, and he heard the little grandfather Xu Huaiyuan shouting. He hurriedly went to take a look, only to see a flat-bottomed sand boat faintly more than 100 meters away.

It happened to be foggy on the river, and the boat was far away, so only a vague outline could be seen, but the red lantern on the boat was very conspicuous.

It's an official ship!

Ning Xiu's eyes narrowed into a slit, and his fists clenched tightly.

Although the official ship does not mean anything, it at least raises a glimmer of hope in people's hearts.

"Grandpa Xu, let's stop that boat quickly."

Governor Li Rui offered advice.

"Yes."

Xu Huaiyuan now only wants to rescue his cousin, and it can be said that he would rather kill a thousand by mistake than let go of one. If there is no cousin on the ship in front, it is a big deal that he and the owner of the ship will apologize. But if my cousin was on that ship......

"Catch up quickly and stop the boat in front!"

The speed at which a boat travels down the river is largely determined by the speed of the current, not by the boat itself. Xu Huaiyuan's boat was also a big boat, and even if the boatmen rowed with all their strength, it only shortened the distance by a small part.

Xu Huaiyuan saw it in his eyes and was anxious in his heart.

"Fetch my bow!"

"Yes!"

Xu Zhao was the guard of the Duke of Wei, so he naturally obeyed the young master, and immediately took Xu Huaiyuan's bow and presented a carved feather arrow.

"Grandpa Xu, ...... are you?"

The prefect Li Rui's face was pale, and his voice was almost crying.

"They don't stop, when will we catch up?"

Xu Huaiyuan raised his eyebrows and said: "I will shoot an arrow to the boat and tell them to stop the boat and dock!" ”

Then he asked for a pen and paper to write down his identity, and wrapped the note around the carved feather arrow.

Xu Huaiyuan took a deep breath and aimed his bow and arrow at the flat-bottomed sand boat in the mist.

But at the sound of a whoosh, the arrow departed from the string and was shot at the ship in an instant.

Ning Xiu secretly applauded, and Xu Huaiyuan was worthy of being behind the gate, not to mention the accuracy of this archery, just saying that this posture was by no means comparable to stinky fish and rotten shrimp.

After Xu Huaiyuan shot an arrow, the front boat responded quickly, but it did not dock on the shore but continued to sail forward, and there was a faint intention to shake off the rear boat.

Xu Huaiyuan was furious, took a feather arrow and shot it again, he shot three arrows in a row, and the boat turned a blind eye.

Now even the good old man Li Rui, the prefect of Jingzhou, can't stand it.

"How can this be true, how can it be true? If it weren't for the thief's weak heart, why didn't the people on the ship dare to dock and go ashore to be searched? ”

Xu Huaiyuan sneered and said: "It seems that eighty percent of it was this group of people who kidnapped Xu's cousin, and I ask you to make more efforts to catch up." ”

It's easier said than done. This ship was larger than the previous one, carried more people, and therefore sank.

Also going down the river, if you want to catch up with the boat in front, you have to row a light boat.

Therefore, Ning Xiu suggested: "Young Master Xu might as well let the soldiers chase after him in a small boat, so that the possibility of catching up is much greater." ”

Xu Huaiyuan hesitated: "Small boat? But the boat can't stop them. ”

Ning Xiu was really about to faint in anger. This Xu Huaiyuan is really a dead brain, he shouldn't want to use this giant ship to stop the front ship alive, right?

"Grandpa Xu, we don't have to stop it alive. We can take advantage of the speed of the boat to go to the checkpoint first and notify the inspection officer to lower the water gate and block its way. ”

Ning Xiu woke up the dreamer with a word. Xu Huaiyuan suddenly realized: "What Friend Ning said is reasonable, Xiao Ke was really dizzy just now. ”

After a pause, he said to the prefect Li Rui: "Please also ask the prefect Li to give a certificate to the soldiers, and order him to rush to the checkpoint first to inform the inspection officers and soldiers to put down the water gate and block the way of the boat in front!" ”

......

......

Yu Ningxue accidentally saw the true face of the bandit who kidnapped her.

At that time, she had just been carried off the carriage and was about to be transferred to the boat, when the wind on the river blew off the black scarf on the bandit's face, but it made Yu Lingxue see clearly.

This person was born with a face of Chinese characters, and his face was fair and very rich. Just from the body size, Yu Lingxue can judge that this person is a fat man, and now combined with his appearance, he has confirmed the original judgment.

It's just that why does this person look so kind? Seems to have seen it somewhere......

But she couldn't think of exactly where she had seen this fat man for a while, and she was angry.

The fat man's face was stunned for a moment, and then he sneered.

That's the same, now he's just afraid that he thinks it's foolproof, right? Even if the real person shows his face, can Yu Lingxue still fly out of this flat-bottomed sand boat with the lantern of the official ship?

Yu Lingxue was directly and rudely thrown into the bottom cabin by the two big men, as if she were treating a cargo.

Yu Lingxue was naturally very dissatisfied, but she also understood the truth that people are swordsmen and I am fish and meat. If you want to escape this place, you have to endure it.

The cabin is airtight, with no access except for a wooden door leading to the second floor.

Yuzu Lingxue had been loosened at this moment, and she circled around the cabin to find that the bilge was filled with a lot of silk cloth.

From this, she judged the ship to be a merchant ship that trafficked in silk cloth. As for why the merchant ships wore official ship lanterns, it is not difficult to understand.

Although the commercial tax of the Ming Dynasty was low, there were many kinds of bad rules and regulations.

These bad rules and conventions can be compared to a commercial tax of thirty taxes at any time, let alone add them together.

In order to avoid these bad rules and conventions, businessmen will use the banner of official ships. Of course, this tiger skin is not casual, there must be officials on your ship, otherwise if it is found by the inspection officials at the checkpoints along the way, it will have to suffer a big lawsuit.

So there's an official on this ship? What does he have to do with his captors? Are they complicit?

Questions flashed through her mind, and Yu Lingxue only felt dizzy......

"Eat, eat."

At that moment, the wooden door suddenly opened, and a thin skeletal woman stepped down from the second floor.

The woman carried a tray with three or two cold dishes and a bowl of white rice.

The rice is cold, and the cold dishes are even a little rancid. If it is placed in normal times, Yuyue Lingxue will not even raise her eyes to take a look.

But now that she has been hungry for a day, she has to put away her eldest lady's temper for the time being and compromise with reality.

I haven't eaten since I got on the boat. It's not that she and the fat man are on a hunger strike, it's that the fat man didn't send anyone to bring her food.

This made Yuzu Lemon Snow puzzled.

It stands to reason that the fat man kidnapped her just to get some kind of benefit?

Although Yu Lingxue doesn't know what the fat man is going to do, this kind of interest must require her to be a living person, right?

In case she really starved to death, the fat man couldn't explain, this guy really could afford to take this risk.

"I ......"

Yu Lingxue bit her lip, clenched her fingers and said, "Can I ask you for one thing?" ”

The skinny skeletal woman was stunned for a moment.

"What did you just say?"

"Eldest sister, I want to ask you for something."

"Haha, hahaha......" The woman raised her eyebrows and said in a fierce voice: "Do you really think that the old lady is here to serve you?" Hurry up and finish these meals, and the old lady will come back to collect them in half an hour. If you don't eat it...... Hey, then you're hungry! ”

Then he turned and left.

"Wait......"

The woman scratched her head and snorted coldly: "What are you talking about, be careful to annoy the old lady and take your food away." ”

"Can you, can you please help me get a night pot......"

Yu Lingxue's face flushed, and she wrung her hands and whispered.

Belch......

The woman was at a loss.

That's not too much to ask, isn't it? She is also a woman, and naturally understands the difficulties of women on the ship.

The old man unbuckled his trousers and stood at the bow of the boat, but the girl's family couldn't be so casual. This is something that even a spicy woman can't deny.

After a moment of silence, she nodded lightly, "Okay, I'll go get one now." ”

Yuzu Lingxue also breathed a sigh of relief.

She was afraid that the wretched woman would see the flaw, but it seemed that she didn't need to worry about this for now.

Of course, she asked the woman for the night pot not only for 'convenience', but more to observe the ship as much as possible through the opportunity of the woman's entry and exit.

Only the moment the woman opened the door and entered the bilge, she could observe the view of the second deck. That's why she did everything she could to get the woman to come to the bilge.

The bad woman would definitely not agree to other needs, but this 'convenience' is human nature, and Yu Lingxue decided to take a gamble.

She firmly believes that her cousin must be trying to rescue her, but she can't just sit here and wait for her cousin to come to her rescue, even if there is only the slightest chance she is willing to give up.

Yu Lingxue, who was waiting, picked up the bowl of white rice, sandwiched a few side dishes and swallowed the rice.

This rice is very rough japonica rice, far less delicious than the rice in Nanjing, but Yu Ningxue can't take care of it at the moment, she is too hungry. I had been enduring it before, but now that I opened the Chew Head Five Organs Temple, there was smoke, and I couldn't help her.

Yuzu Lingxue ate all the three stacks of side dishes and a bowl of white rice at the speed of the wind, and there was not even a single grain of rice left.

She burped in satisfaction, lay on her back on the haystack and closed her eyes.

It was so comfortable that she forgot for a moment that she was a 'prisoner' and imagined that she was sleeping on a carved bed.

But this sweet dream did not last long, and she 'woke up' to the creak of the wooden door.

The skinny woman carried a night pot in her hand, and when she entered the bilge, she saw empty dishes neatly arranged in the tray.

She stood there dumbfounded, not saying a word for a long time.

This little girl eats too fast, right? It had only been so long for her to go back and forth, and this little girl was able to finish all the meals......

In the end, it was Yu Lingxue who spoke first: "Well, let's put this night pot here." Big sister, thank you. ”

Yulemonxue's voice was as warm as a pool of spring water, and the sound of 'big sister' made the woman crispy.

"I took this bowl of chopsticks and plates first...... If you need to call me again. ”

Not wanting Yu Lingxue to see her weak side, the woman hurriedly picked up the tray and turned her back to leave.

But with a thud, the wooden door closed again.

Although the wooden door was opened for a short time, Yulemon Snow still made a very important discovery.

There were dozens of people sitting in the cabin on the second floor, including the fat man who kidnapped him. Except for the fat man, most of the rest of the people were big men with five big and three thick, except for the middle-aged man in a green shirt......

What exactly are the identities of these people? How did they come together?

......

......