Chapter 122: Reaping the Rewards

  Is she here to deal with this matter?

  One of the green-clad guards turned his head to look at Lu Yue, thinking that in this Jiangzhou land, she was unfamiliar with both the place and the people, and hadn't even figured out her opponent's details. As a weak woman, what made her think she could handle such matters?

  The nobleman also raised an eyebrow, seemingly gaining interest.

  Lu Xun said, "Those people set fire to the passenger ship when it was about to leave Jiangzhou. Firstly, they wanted to keep us in Jiangzhou for a few more days, making it easier for them to take action. Secondly, the timing of the fire was suspicious - it happened just as we arrived at the dock, which was meant to intimidate us."

  Here is the translation:

  At this point, Lu Xuan looked up at Guiren and said affirmatively: "I think that within these two days, they will take action against us... against Master and me." Because after these two days, those people can find other boats to leave Jiangzhou. This fire was just a ploy by the enemy to trap them here. To avoid prolonging the battle, their time for taking action would not be delayed too long.

  It seems that she has already confirmed that the mastermind behind this matter is none other than the young man on the black sail.

  At this time, Lu Ying was still saying: "Since we've confirmed the time they'll make their move and who will be making it... then what I need to do is set up a trap and wait for them to fall into it." She looked at him and asked: "What does Master think?" As she waited for his response, her dark eyes sparkled with a sharp light, thinking to herself: Once again after standing out, I can truly sit firmly in the position of his trusted aide. As long as I gain this person's trust and appreciation, even though the world is vast, it will all be a smooth path for me!

  In the midst of anticipation, the nobleman smiled and said, "Let's continue watching the play."

  Huh?

  Lu Xuan was taken aback and widened her eyes.

  Just as the passenger ship was completely enveloped in flames, the fire began to spread rapidly. Suddenly, a loud earthquake-like rumbling sound and deafening screams shook the sky!

  Lu Xuan hastily turned his head back.

  But it was from the northwest direction, and a large number of people rushed over in a black tide. Those people held knives and clubs, and although their clothes were tattered, they looked fierce. Amidst the crowd's cries on the dock, only the iron tower-like man who charged to the front shouted loudly: "Brothers, charge! These bastards dare to burn our boats, we'll go and plunder them until we're satisfied!"

  As soon as the man's voice fell, hundreds of people shouted in unison: "Grab enough to make a profit, grab enough to make a profit——" While shouting, these people excitedly howled and screamed.

  Lu Xuan was still in a daze when a wealthy merchant nearby shouted, "This is not good! These wandering sons are taking advantage of the situation again!" At that time, the war had just subsided, and during the decades of turmoil, countless merchant ships passing through this dock had been attacked by these wandering sons, who had plundered them numerous times. In the past, when the situation was chaotic, they would loot without reason; now that peace had just been restored, they were openly looting under the pretext of the passenger ship being burned!

  Like that rich businessman, many have come to their senses. At this moment, a chaotic cry of "Hurry up and set sail" rose, but the ship had not yet docked.

  "Guard - guard -" This is already docked at the pier and cannot set sail for the time being.

  In the midst of shouting and screaming, amidst the chaos, the dock had become a scene of utter turmoil. Meanwhile, those wielding knives and clubs, openly preparing to plunder the ships, were growing in number, and after hundreds of ordinary people from Jiangzhou joined in, they formed a massive tide.

  The flood surged towards the dock. Before Lu Yue could react, the noble had already pulled her hand back and retreated to a safe high place with the other two.

  Lu Yuang had just stood still, when he heard the sound of "splashing" coming from time to time. It was those good swimmers who jumped into the river one by one and swam towards the guest boat they were looking at. And the guest boats, at this moment, were in a hurry and disorder, with a loud crash, several ships that wanted to escape quickly collided with each other, blocking the entire river. The ships that were parked at the dock and wanted to leave had no way to retreat!

  Not far away, a rich merchant fell to the ground with a thud, his face pale as he cried out: "It's all over, it's all over..."

  Lu Yuexin's heart skipped a beat as she turned her head around.

  The owner of the black sail who was originally standing behind the crowd was no longer visible. No, she saw him, he was riding a horse, frantically rushing towards the direction of the South Street government office.

  This sudden change was not unexpected, as the passenger ship caught fire halfway through, and thousands of vagrants had already swarmed out. In a short while, they jumped onto the ships at the dock and started fighting with the guards left on board.

  The number of looters was extremely large and kept increasing. In less than a minute, a small portion of them successfully occupied half of the passenger ship, and some even started to move goods from the passenger ship and began to withdraw.

  Just then, a neat clip-clop of hooves and footsteps came from outside.

  However, from the southern streets, a large team of knights holding long guns and riding horses rushed over. Behind those knights were thousands of infantrymen.

  The government has sent someone over.

  It's really come quickly!

  Looking at the thousand-man squad composed of officials and soldiers, the nobleman standing beside Lu Xuan suddenly spoke up, "Protect Lu well, I'll go collect the net."

  "Yes, milord."

  Looking at the crowd of unknown origin, watching the nobleman jump onto his horseback and rush away under their escort, Lu Xuan lightly asked: "Is the master going to the government office?"

  The young girl, except for that moment of stunned expression, had regained her usual clarity and cleverness. She nodded in approval: "Not bad. The elite troops from Jiangzhou Prefecture have been deployed, and our people can take advantage of the opportunity to enter the official residence." After a pause, he thought about his master's appreciation for this intelligent young girl and explained seriously: "The black-sailed ship and its crew you saw that night are a group of bandits who have been roaming along the Yangtze River, committing crimes in Jiangzhou, Hangzhou, and other places. They rob the salt, iron, grain, and money transported to Luoyang from various places, and collude with local officials. Our master has been planning this for a long time, and this is the opportunity to take action." He pointed at the soldiers who were fighting against the bandits on the guest ships: "We don't have many people, if we didn't deploy this troop, the leader of the Jiangzhou thieves would resist stubbornly. If not handled properly, it could even lead to Jiangzhou falling back into the hands of the thieves."

  He paused for a moment and then continued: "There are our people on the black sail ships, that night you didn't come up with a plan, they couldn't do anything to Master."

  Luoyue understood that there were their people on those ships, and when the time came, they would be surrounded. At worst, it was just a premature attack.

  While the two were talking, the officials and soldiers rushed up, watching them dash towards the boats with swift movements, starting to fight with the wandering sons. Lu Xuan said: "Are we going?"

  "Let's go."

  Luoyin was taken by Wu Anrang into an inn.

  The next day, Lu Xuan found that Jiangzhou City had completely changed when he was having a meal at the inn. Occasionally, fully armored soldiers could be seen on the streets, and the coming and going of prison carts were also occasionally visible.

  In the midst, Lu Xuan heard many discussions, "This time, several big families in Jiangzhou have been overthrown." "Yes, it's a complete reversal." "It is said that officials and bandits colluded, embezzling official grain." "The number of heads cut off this time, there are at least thousands." "It's because a big shot came from Luoyang. Who would have thought that the Chu thief had been operating here for many years, but as soon as the noble person from Luoyang showed up, they were defeated without a fight."

  After listening for a while, Lu Xuan thought: So the matter has become so big. In a twinkling of an eye, she thought again: Since Jiangzhou has fallen so many officials and families, I'm afraid we won't leave this place for the time being.

  "Can I go for a walk around?" she asked Zi Wu.

  She asked if Jiangzhou City was completely under his master's control and whether it was safe for her to travel now.

  Zi nodded and said: "Alright. I will protect the young lady."

  Since he said it was okay, Lu Yue ate dinner and then strolled onto the streets.

  The great earthquake in the officialdom of Jiangzhou obviously did not affect ordinary civilians. On Lu Xuan's way here, he found that except for a few streets, other places were still bustling with people and horses coming and going.

  As they walked, Lu Xuan suddenly remembered something he had promised to do and said: "Zi Wu, do you still remember that big-eyed, petite girl on the boat that day? She likes you and asked me to ask if you're married yet." At the time, she was going to ask the noble directly. But now the noble is busy with who-knows-what, so naturally she can't go disturb him.

  He snorted and said, "I've been married for a long time." After a pause, he said in a dull tone, "Do you also like to do such boring things?"

  What's wrong with her? She was a woman after all, and this kind of thing wasn't boring in her eyes.

  Lu Yan lazily said, nodding: "I know."

  At this time, Zhiwu suddenly said: "My wife is the eldest daughter of Fan in Luoyang." Seemingly smiling, Zhiwu slowly said: "The master's identity is noble and cannot be spoken of. Even if it were us, it would be enough to match the eldest daughters of various families. Miss Lu, you seem to still not understand what it means to stand by the master's side even now."

  Lu Xuan was taken aback.

  She was stunned, thinking: Ah, I really did underestimate him. This man can stay by his side in such a situation, he must be extremely valued by him. His identity is that of a bodyguard, but this is a noble's bodyguard. Such a person, and I casually offered to arrange a marriage for him, I really looked down on him.

  "Lu, although the master is warm and close to you, you must always remember his identity. If it were another girl who could get a moment of warmth from the master, she would be grateful and devoted, even if it meant death! Lu, you actually never understood."

  Lu Xuan understood what he meant. He was saying that the nobleman had always been warm and close to her, so Lu Xuan didn't have much reverence for him, and she even didn't know how precious the nobleman's warmth and closeness were. Moreover, she still looked at everything about him with a commoner's perspective, forgetting the distinction between their social classes and the difference between nobility and inferiority.

  These five words serve as both a warning and a reminder.

  Lu Xuan thought for a moment, smiled and said: "I understand." She said she understood, but her expression was still so casual. He stared at her for a moment, not saying anything more. But in his heart, he couldn't help thinking: Forget it, this little girl will understand my words once she follows the master to Luoyang.