Chapter 1068: They don't all seem to be normal people.

"What's so strange about Hu Mian coming?"

Lin Yuesha was already used to seeing Hu Mian appear. She didn't even need to report to the guards, assuming they were from the fishing village.

What does Miss Zhang mean by this?

They never mentioned marriage, and the two acted as if no one else was around, which made the Hu family very anxious.

Moreover, the Hu family did not know Zhang Qing'er's identity. They thought her parents were doing a small business in the south and did not value their daughter. They thought she was already twenty years old and they should hurry up and help arrange a marriage for her.

Despite Zhang Qing'er's repeated explanations, the Hu family did not believe her and felt great pity for her.

"Last year, there was a flood in the south. My godfather was so busy that he lost 20 pounds and couldn't sleep at night. He was so focused on people's livelihood that he didn't have time to see his prospective son-in-law."

After finally settling the refugees, Prefect Zhang fell seriously ill and grew increasingly thin. He was waiting to recuperate around the end of the year and was unable to travel far at all.

Zhang Qing'er frankly told the Hu family that her father was an official in the south, and they believed her. However, they assumed that Zhang Qing'er's father was just a ninth-rank clerk in the county government and didn't take it seriously.

"Sister Qing'er didn't hide anything, it's just that the Hu family didn't believe her, so it's not her fault."

As for getting married, the couple themselves aren't in a hurry, so outsiders shouldn't worry about it.

Judging from the current situation, Hu Mian's character is acceptable. Someone who is favored by Qi Heng is unlikely to be bad.

Qi Heng's only mistake was being swindled out of fifty taels of silver by a peddler, which Lin Yuesha promptly recovered.

Qingxing nodded thoughtfully; her understanding had been completely overturned.

Luo Wang simply refused to get married, indulging in a life of pleasure and debauchery, finding marriage too troublesome. Qingxing doubted his virility.

The Lord has been married for several years but has not consummated the marriage. He always avoids and runs away at crucial moments. Qingxing suspects that there is some obstacle in the Lord's life.

Xu Da was even more outrageous. Before marriage, he was a gentleman, but after marriage, he became a henpecked husband and a doting father to his daughter. It is said that people in the capital saw Xu Da being ridden like a horse by his youngest daughter more than once. Xu Da had long since lost all sense of shame.

As for Yuwen Kun of the barbarian tribe, he found two substitutes. He was so angry for the sake of a woman, or for a substitute, that he hurt the enemy a thousand while losing eight hundred of his own. He must be seriously ill.

In short, none of them seem to be normal people.

Qingxing accidentally blurted out her thoughts, and was extremely terrified.

"That makes some sense."

Lin Yuesha pondered this repeatedly. Indeed, the people around her acted rather unconventionally, perhaps because they had strong personalities, and some could even be described as rebellious.

"Young Madam, Young Madam, you..."

The master and servants were chatting when someone suddenly shouted from outside the courtyard.

Zhang Daya leaned against the courtyard gate, panting. Although the young mistress's maid had arrived in the fishing village, Zhang Daya still couldn't shake her habit of shouting to deliver messages.

"What's wrong?"

Lin Yuesha lifted the curtain and went out. When Qingxing and Qi'er saw this, they first helped Zhang Daya into the room.

"Have a sip of water first, then speak slowly."

Zhang Daya is an impatient person, and she always looks like this when she comes, even when it's not urgent.

"Young Madam, please go and see! A ship has come to the seaside, it's from the open ocean!"

Zhang Daya clutched her chest and shouted.

"A ship from the open sea?"

Lin Yuesha was shocked. Their ship was just one step away from entering the water, how could the ship from the outer sea have gotten there first?

Lin Yuesha rushed towards the beach, pulling on her skirt.

Upon receiving the news, the shipyard's craftsmen lost their will to work and decided to watch the spectacle first.

When Lin Yuesha arrived at the dock, she saw an unfamiliar ship moored there.

"Young Madam, what a joyous occasion! Carpenter Lu's family has returned."

Before noon, after receiving the news, the canteen added dishes, inviting the people on the ship to eat there and preparing rations for more than a dozen people.

Lin Yuesha suddenly realized that she had heard that Lu the carpenter's father and elder brother had gone to sea on a ship a few years ago and had not been heard from since. She never expected that they would actually return by ship.

The ships that came were not from the open sea, but were returning ships from the Great Qi.

After many years, when Lu the carpenter saw his relatives, he couldn't help but burst into tears.

"Second brother, you've really made something of yourself!"

Brother Lu, his face weathered by the elements, patted Carpenter Lu on the shoulder. There were still a dozen or so people in their group, and they had been without water and food for quite some time.

"Father, elder brother, please tell the young mistress about the situation."

Overwhelmed with emotion at the reunion with his family, Lu the carpenter stammered and had to ask Lin Yuesha for clarification first.

Lin Yuesha invited them to a private room in the dining hall and served them tea and snacks.

Carpenter Lu's father and elder brother, along with the old captain, began to feel uneasy. They had been away from Daqi for too long, and their lives at sea had been very difficult.

"Back then, I was optimistic about offshore trade and always wanted to go on a trip to the open sea, dreaming of getting rich as soon as I came back."

Brother Lu's face was bitter. Looking back now, he realized how naive he had been back then.

He persuaded his father, and the two of them went out to sea on a ship. They agreed that each of them would bring their own goods, and half of the proceeds from exchanging them at sea would go to the captain, while the other half would belong to them.

Lin Yuesha nodded. Actually, the deal was fairly fair.

After all, a trip to the open sea would cause wear and tear on the ship, and boats were their primary means of transportation.

"If only it were that simple."

Brother Lu shook his head. The nightmare was just beginning, and he still didn't want to think about it.

"We drifted at sea for several days and found that the ship was moving very slowly."

After examining the cargo, the captain discovered that they were severely overloaded, which would make the journey unstable and prevent them from following the planned route.

The captain found the crew and wanted to discuss with them the idea of ​​keeping the more valuable items for exchange and throwing the rest, which were less valuable and useless, into the sea.

"My father and I carried sealed tea leaves, wrapped in layers of packaging. They were very light and not among the things the captain cut off."

Brother Lu didn't pay any attention and went to bed early.

The next morning, Brother Lu discovered that the old captain was missing, which was very strange.

The ship was only so big, and with cargo and people crammed together, the old captain had nowhere to hide.

Everyone kept their mouths shut, and no one was willing to say anything.

Brother Lu was puzzled, but he had a bad feeling. Then he found bloodstains on the bow of the boat, but these bloodstains were not left from killing fish.

That evening, a man known as "Troublemaker" approached him and proposed an alliance.

"The troublemaker said that the old captain complained about the heavy cargo and was too talkative, so he was killed."

The goods brought were to be exchanged for money at sea, and not a single item could be missing. To reduce the ship's overloading, the only option was to throw people overboard.

Killing the old captain and dumping his body at sea would instantly reduce his weight by a hundred pounds or so.

It's terrifying when someone sets a precedent and everyone else reaps the benefits.

"The troublemaker asked me to form an alliance and protect each other, because the others might have a wicked plan and be thinking about cutting off heads."

Only by forming alliances and relying on each other can we protect ourselves and fight our way out.