Chapter 43: Own Calculations
On the top of Xia Pi City, Liu Dai looked at the fleet that suddenly appeared and went down the Si River.

This fleet traveled day and night downstream at such a fast speed that it was almost as efficient as the messenger cavalry.

When Liu Dai received the news, he could only climb up the city wall and wait and see. He had no time to mobilize the army.

Not to mention coordinating the boats, he was unable to intercept them.

"This must be the White Goose Thief, not some merchant ship under Sun Quan's command."

Liu Dai sighed to his close confidants, feeling somewhat gloating over their misfortune.

It was said to be a merchant ship, but in fact, Sun Quan was bribing Cao Hong in the name of his cousin Xu Kun. Buying horses was also an objective fact, but Cao Hong would gain several times the profit.

Zhong Yao's management of Guanzhong has achieved results, and last autumn he sent more than a thousand military horses.

In order to compete for hegemony in Hebei, last autumn, elite officers and soldiers were selected from various armies to cooperate with this group of troops and horses from Guanzhong to start training the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry.

Without sufficient cavalry, crossing the river to attack Hebei would be a disadvantage.

Among the military horses sent by Zhong Yao, some were of inferior quality, and the armies in the Central Plains also had old and weak horses that were regularly dismissed.

It was no secret that Cao Hong bought them at a low price and then sold them to Sun Quan for a huge profit.

Liu Dai had been stationed in Xia Pi for two years. This deal was happening right under his nose. How could he not be affected?
It was dusk when the fleet arrived at Xiaxiang and anchored at the ruins of a dock.

This is the estuary where Suishui River merges into Sishui River. Although the upper reaches of Suishui River have dried up, Suiyang Canal has not been used for water since its excavation.

However, due to the drought this year, the water volume in the tributaries is very low.

By the time it flows to Xiaxiang and merges into the Si River, the water level is barely enough for a small boat to sail.

The fleet docked and drove the horses ashore to graze.

After his nap, Liu Ye climbed up to Queshi Tower to look into the distance. After crossing Sishui River, he would go to Huaishui River, then go to Feishui River through Shouchun and Chengde, and then enter Juchaohu Lake. After leaving Chaoshui River, he would reach the Yangtze River.

When passing through Chengde, it is time to return home to pay homage to parents.

Blinking his eyes, Liu Ye's gaze fell on the shore. In the distance, more than a hundred horses were foraging in groups, and nearby a black bear was picking a piece of pink Oxalis.

Soon, he picked a large handful, which looked like a flower ball in his hand.

The black bear was tied up with a straw rope before returning to the flagship.

After he left, the children on the boat dared to approach the lush Oxalis growing in the low-lying area and pick them.

In the cabin on the second floor, the dim fish oil lamp had been lit.

When the black bear came, Zhen Mi was still threading the needle to sew new clothes for her. Her long black hair was draped behind her head and a red ribbon was tied on her forehead, making her look gorgeous.

The sound of footsteps in the cabin could not be hidden. When Black Bear came in, she stopped sewing. Seeing the pink flower ball in Black Bear's hand, she smiled and said, "My dear, you are so thoughtful."

"This flower is delicate. It will be damaged if touched."

Black Bear handed her the Oxalis bouquet, and seeing that she was still wearing a formal dress with a curved hem, he complained that it was too complicated to put on.

Zhen Mi put the bouquet into the basket and turned around to see the black bear approaching.

He naturally accepted the attack of the black bear. Unlike standing in the morning, he rolled on the felt carpet this time.

A dim oil lamp was lit beside them, and they looked at each other without saying a word.

Untying the palm-wide jade belt, the complicated hem of her dress rolled up like a rice dumpling wrapper.

Zhen Mi pursed her lips and endured it. Black Bear used his fists and feet a little, but Zhen Mi became more proactive and suppressed him with a red face. Black Bear felt excited and felt that human hearts were deep, strange, changeable and terrifying.

He looked at Zhen Mi's face carefully, observing the changes in her expression.

Eyes facing each other.

Zhen Mi suddenly turned pale and looked at the black bear she was suppressing with fear.

"Do not be afraid."

Black Bear reached out and grabbed Zhen Mi's arm as she was about to stand up: "Why are you so smart?"

Zhen Mi waved her arms to try to break free, and only stopped struggling when the black bear sat up and they were facing each other. However, her tears kept flowing and she was trembling with fear.

"What you're worried about won't happen."

"I can't bear to kill you either."

"You follow the code of conduct for women. What does fighting between men have to do with you?"

Black Bear whispered as he reached out to touch her smooth, soft belly, squeezing it very tightly and scratching it with his fingertips, but failed to elicit a smile.

Zhen Mi raised her hands to cover her cheeks and just sobbed.

She stopped struggling and was instead pinned down. She kept her hands covering her face tightly the whole time, fearing that the black bear would see her.

Neither resisting nor cooperating, it was like a Cold War confrontation.

About half a minute later, while Zhen Mi was dizzy, she heard Black Bear continue to say: "It is difficult to live in this world. How can we have everything? I am satisfied that I can rescue you from Hebei."

I tried to pry Zhen Mi's hands apart with my hands, but she covered her face tightly and refused to let me see.

Hearing her nasal voice, I didn't want to continue bullying her.

The soundproofing on the boat was too poor, and footsteps from far and near could be heard.

I didn't want to embarrass her, and I also felt that this tug-of-war confrontation was boring, so after a while everything returned to calm.

The oil lamp was swaying, and Black Bear could only feel the slight shaking of the flagship by lying flat on the deck.

After putting on his clothes again, he picked up the bucket and went to fetch some water.

There is no need to say many things face to face, because the words spoken will be engraved in the heart.

The longer the time goes by, the harder it is to forget.

This is not a bad start, as the future will see too many and complex changes.

There's really no need to worry about such a small matter.

When she came back with the bucket, Zhen Mi had already stood up. Her complicated dress with curved hems had been folded aside, and she was wearing only a white silk undershirt and leggings.

Her cheeks flushed and she felt a little embarrassed.

"You should have a good rest. If you feel sleepy, eat a peach to replenish your energy."

Black Bear took out a peach and put it in her hand, smiling and comforting: "Now that things have come to this, nothing before is important anymore."

Zhen Mi was still somewhat frightened and timid, so she responded in a low voice, "Yes, I will follow my husband's instructions."

Her intentions were discovered, and strictly speaking, execution would be the lightest punishment for her.

Even if it was for self-protection, once it succeeded, this kind of deception would be no different from destroying a family or seizing their inheritance. At this moment, Black Bear said that he didn't care, but how could Zhen Mi dare to believe it easily?

If this happened to her brother or child, she would beat him to death.

Leaving her some time to think about it, Black Bear went back to his compartment to put on his leather armor, and then returned to the wooden platform in the bird room.

During this time, a fire had been lit on the shore, and the aroma of cooking food filled the air.

The black bear found this quite boring, so he took out a bamboo pole, fishing line and fish hook, hung a handful of internal organs on the hook and started fishing.

The fish didn't take the bait for a long time, but Xu Lin's heavy footsteps came over: "Commander Qu, there is a disturbance in Xiaxiang City, someone is coming with a fire."

"You mean set sail?"

"Yes, we have traveled day and night to get here safely, thanks to our commander's night navigation. If we are short of sailors, where can we recruit them?"

Xu Lin pointed to the south and said, "Once we enter the Huai River, we can go upstream and recruit the poor people from Huai River and Huai River."

Black Bear nodded: "In that case, gather the horses and board the ship first, and set sail after dinner. When we reach Jiujiang, we can stop the ship and recruit refugees."

"Yes!"

Since you have decided to settle in Jingzhou, you should try to bring as many people from other states as possible with you.

When integrating into a strange environment, people from other states have no one to rely on and can only survive in groups, making it difficult for them to be broken up.

As for agreeing to let Xuanliang stay for two days...

Just because Xuan Liang is shameless?

The prime minister ordered the lieutenant to send people to investigate at night, which meant that the situation had changed and the strategy had to be changed.

Black Bear gave up fishing, climbed up to the main mast lookout, and commanded the Taoist soldier Lu Bu to roam around and conduct reconnaissance.

The distance was too far and he couldn't see clearly.

If the people sent by Xia Xiang extinguished their torches and sneaked away, they would not be able to be observed and would not be able to accurately control the Taoist soldiers remotely.

Therefore, they could only issue a vague and general killing order and allow the Taoist soldier Lu Bu to patrol back and forth; if any armed personnel appeared within the range, they would launch an attack.

The investigators sent by Xiaxiang County extinguished their torches halfway through the journey, which put pressure on other members of the fleet.

After quickly collecting the horses and bringing back the pots, pans and cooking utensils, the fleet set sail, leaving only bonfires of varying sizes still burning on the shore.

The people from Xiaxiang were chasing and approaching. The county military officer led the team. He relit the torch and looked around: "The pirate ship is very large, I think it is from the Jiangdong fleet."

He was very puzzled, and kicked the wood beside the fire into the center of the flames with his foot, saying to those around him, "Could it be that the white goose thieves are passing through?"

"The White Goose Bandits had already entered the Huai River, so how could they possibly come along the Si River?"

The subordinates ruled out one possibility, but they were also confused and puzzled.

It was very unusual to see a fleet in those days. Xuzhou's commerce had been abolished and there was no merchant fleet.

Official transport ships will be notified in advance before passing through, and the county will send personnel to participate in river patrols.

This is a fleet of large ships, not a fleet of fishermen's sampans.

Seeing that there was no profit to be gained and the other party had run away early, these people had no choice but to give up and return home in disappointment.

This is the second time I have walked the Huaishui Road, and Black Bear was also relaxed along the way.

It’s just that the weather was a little cold when I came here last time. Now it’s the transition from spring to summer, and the southeast wind is quite strong at night, making it difficult to use the wind.

Therefore, the fleet drifted downstream at night and did not arrive at the mouth of the Si River where the Huai River flows until dawn the next day.

The fleet turned around, hoisted full sails, took advantage of the southeast wind, and sailed against the Huai River...the speed was even a little faster.

Black Bear returned to the cabin on the second floor and saw Zhen Mi sleeping on her side with her arms around herself. He lay down beside her, closed his eyes and fell asleep.

As soon as he fell asleep, Zhen Mi opened her eyes.

It was bluish-white outside the firing hole in the cabin, and not much light was refracted in.

She could barely see the outline of the black bear, so she simply lay down on her side and continued to sleep with her back to the bear.

But then she felt that it was inappropriate, so she turned around and hugged Black Bear's arm.

Just before going to bed, she discovered that the black bear's arms were not as slender as she had imagined, but instead were strong, thick and round.

This sleep lasted for more than two hours.

Black Bear woke up feeling refreshed and energetic. He sat cross-legged and saw Zhen Mi sitting beside a bamboo basket sewing clothes.

She was still wearing a plain white silk gown with a dark pattern. She stopped sewing and turned to look at Black Bear: "My dear?"

Black Bear rubbed his face, leaned back against the wall and said with a smile: "Fate is wonderful beyond words."

As he spoke, he opened his arms and Zhen Mi approached him cautiously. She raised her hand and stroked half of his leather armor, asking, "Have we reached the Huai River yet?"

"Yes, the Huai River runs east-west, unlike the Si River, which runs southeast."

"I hate boats. I'll go to Jingzhou early and find a mountain. I want to be with you day and night."

Raising his hand to stroke Zhen Mi's thick long hair, Black Bear said again: "After things are settled, find a beautiful mountain area to build a school, and then recruit some girls to be your students."

"My dear, you live in seclusion in the mountains, and have no intention of competing for supremacy?"

"I have no reputation, come from a humble background, and have no capable ministers or generals to assist me. How can I win the support of the people?"

He just held Zhen Mi in his arms, and said with a smile: "Cao Cao has not done everything yet. When he does, I will have a foundation of followers, and it will not be too late to come out. When we go to Jingzhou, I will take you to see a genius who is extraordinary. Who knows, you may even live next door to him."

He had originally planned to go to Dongting Lake in order to seize the four counties in southern Jing.

But in Dongting Lake, once Jiangdong conquered Huang Zu, they would station troops in a corner of Dongting Lake to control the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

As long as we go to Dongting, we will immediately fight to the death with Jiangdong.

The spirit and energy left by Sun Ce is still there, and the current Jiangdong Army is not easy to mess with; when the imprint of the Sun Ce era disappears, the remaining Jiangdong Army, even if it has 100,000 people, will be nothing to worry about.

It’s not that I’m afraid of the Jiangdong Army, but this kind of rotten battle is meaningless.

When it comes to water fights, black bears are not afraid at all.

Zhen Mi's mood gradually calmed down, so she asked, "My lord, you praise me so highly, is this genius an extraordinary person?"

"He is more terrifying than the aliens, but also more respectable. I only master the minor art of the Dao handle, but he is able to merge his body with the Dao and become an incarnation of the Dao."

"So you can use special techniques?"

"He doesn't need this kind of means. I am not talented enough and need special skills to survive."

(End of this chapter)