60

With spring plowing approaching and the time to repay previous debts, several villages along the coast of Dongning County have become busy, sorting out seafood, taking inventory of warehouses, and wondering whether they have enough to pay off their debts and how much money and grain they can get in return.

In Shakou Village, the village chief, Old Man Zhang, sat at home, rubbing his knees and looking outside eagerly.

He was waiting for someone, and he was getting impatient.

Last year, a large ship gang called the "Red Flag Gang" suddenly appeared on the coast. They not only came to collect seafood, but also sold them 30 stone of rice on credit.

That’s not all. This group of people actually led many villages to resist taxes, forcing the officials to give in and withdraw the deceptive salt tax.

What a great favor this is! Old man Zhang had already prepared the seafood for the debt repayment and was waiting for the debtor to come.

However, things were going well, but things have changed recently.

First, news came that a village was traitorous and wanted to frame the Red Flag Gang. As a result, they were attacked and the village chief and elders were killed, and their property was distributed among the villagers.

This news made many villages nervous for a while, but Old Man Zhang felt that it was retribution.

They were kind enough to save you, but you bit them back. Such a heartless person, what else are you waiting for but to kill him? They only killed a few village elders, which was already a mercy.

But after a few days, the news that came again made Old Man Zhang unable to sit still.

The Red Flag Gang actually defeated the bandits on Luoling Island and occupied the island! This, this can't be exaggerated, right?

Born in a fishing village, Old Man Zhang's biggest fear was pirates. These bastards either came ashore to cause trouble or committed crimes everywhere, making people afraid to go fishing.

Now that they are being wiped out, it is really a relief!

However, although he was happy, Old Man Zhang was still worried.

The Red Flag Gang has taken over Luoling Island, and their power has certainly grown even greater. They can deal with both the government and bandits. Where else can you find such a powerful boat gang? Just offering grain on credit can make them successful. If a few people in the village join the gang, wouldn't they have something to rely on?

The more he thought about it, the more exciting this idea became. Old Man Zhang still remembered the last time he went to the camp with him. The man from Nantou Village had no money to pay his debts, so he sent some people to do odd jobs for the Red Flag Gang. I heard that some of them also got on the boat and joined the gang.

How could such a good thing be monopolized by just one family? There were many young and strong men in his village. Picking a dozen of them to join him would be better than anything else!

Once this idea came to his mind, Old Man Zhang could no longer sit still. He told several families about the matter early on and also found a group of men who were willing to go out and work hard. Everything was settled and he just waited for the fleet to arrive!

But this wait lasted for several days. The debt collector was not in a hurry, but the debtor was almost going crazy.

Could it be that something delayed him?

Just as he was sitting there worrying, he saw a kid stumbling over to him, "Uncle, the boat is coming! The Red Flag Gang's boat is coming!"

Old man Zhang jumped up and said, "Hurry, hurry, hurry! Let's go meet them!"

As a result, as soon as the Red Flag Gang's boat stopped at the shore, they saw a group of villagers waiting there, almost beating drums and gongs, and lining the streets to welcome them.

The manager who came was the same one from last time. He got off the boat and smiled when he saw Old Man Zhang: "Why are you all waiting here? You're out of money, so you're hoping we can come and collect the fish?"

Old man Zhang quickly smiled and said, "Of course not. We're just looking forward to paying off the debt we owed last year. The Red Flag Gang saved the entire village, young and old. If the money isn't paid back quickly, I'll be uneasy."

It's rare to see someone so anxious to pay back a debt. The manager laughed and said, "Then there's no need to waste time. Thirty-five catties of dried shrimp and scallops are worth one stone of rice. Salted fish is worth fifty-five catties for one stone. Spanish mackerel is a bit cheaper, at sixty catties for one stone. We're not trying to undercut you; this is the price we've been paying since the beginning of the spring. You borrowed thirty stones before, and you have to pay an additional three stones as interest."

Old man Zhang nodded repeatedly: "Not expensive, not expensive, the price is right, we are lucky to have such a good deal!"

This price was much better than selling it at the fish stall, how could he not understand it? Not to mention that they could buy the grain on credit in advance, saving the villagers the trouble of borrowing money at high interest rates.

It's only a 10% increase in interest, but you can't get it even if you beg for it.

The steward nodded in satisfaction and said comfortingly, "There will be no more pirates nearby. You can go fishing without worry. I'm afraid you'll have to catch more fish. I think the price will drop later."

Without the pirates, fishermen can go out to sea again, and the price of fish will definitely fall.

However, what Old Man Zhang cared about wasn't this, but the phrase "no bandits." His eyes lit up, and he asked hurriedly, "I heard that your gang wiped out those bandits. I wonder if the rumor is true. Could it be that this area will be under your control from now on?"

The other party immediately raised his chin: "Is this true? Where is the Red Flag Gang, where are they allowed to act so arrogantly?"

Looking at the crew members dressed in gray and black clothes with red cloth belts around their waists, Old Man Zhang felt his heart itching and hurriedly took two steps forward: "Manager, there are some strong children in my village. Can they join the gang too? It's not for anything else, it's just to repay a favor..."

Unexpectedly, the other party looked him up and down, shook his head and smiled, "Not everyone can join the Red Flag Gang, so there's no need to be so kind, old man."

Old man Zhang's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly slapped his lips: "I was confused and said the wrong thing. The village can't support so many people, so I want to go out and see the world and make a living."

"Sailing on the sea is a life-threatening endeavor. If you're not strong enough or tall enough, it's no use trying." The steward stretched out his leg and kicked the grain bag in front of him. "See? You have to carry a bag of one stone of rice for a hundred steps before you're qualified to board the ship."

Old Man Zhang's eyes widened. That was a stone of rice, how could he move it so easily? However, among the villagers he brought with him, a boy called out, "Brother, can you let me try?"

The steward looked at him, stepped aside, and reminded him: "You have to carry it with you. Carrying it on your back or on your shoulders doesn't count."

The boy was not afraid. He rushed up immediately, hugged the bag in his arms, and strode forward.

He had also been to the sea and fished before, so he was quite strong. He was also the first one to agree to join the Red Flag Gang with the village chief. How could he miss such an opportunity?

Unexpectedly, he was full of confidence and took more than fifty steps in one go when the bag of food in his arms began to slip down. His arms felt sore and swollen and were shaking violently.

After walking another ten or so steps, even his waist, abdomen and legs began to tremble. It was as if he was holding a piece of hot charcoal, heavy and hot.

He took a few more steps, panting heavily, but he could no longer hold on and stumbled to the ground.

At this, all the men on the boat burst into laughter, and the steward shook his head: "Father, this doesn't mean you won't give him a chance."

Old man Zhang never expected this to happen. His heart was trembling and he wanted to take off his shoes and beat the boy up.

Is this the time to show off? You can't move it alone, and you're blocking everyone else's path!

But despite this, his heart became more determined. With such picky rules, whoever could get on board must be a very powerful person. No wonder they were able to defeat those bandits.

If we can sneak in, wouldn't it be safer? Gritting his teeth, Old Man Zhang said, "Can I get another batch of rice on credit? I'll use the labor of these boys to pay for it!"

This was the method used by Nantou Village to buy things on credit last year. They just need to follow it!

Unexpectedly, the manager still shook his head: "Your village is not in trouble, this won't work."

Old Man Zhang was anxious: "The village really can't afford to support them. Please take a few of them away. Even if it's just for hard labor, just give them food!"

As long as he could infiltrate the Red Flag Gang, even if he didn't get on the boat, he would still be someone with a backer! He didn't expect to exchange it for food, as long as he could get in!

This made the other party ponder for a moment, and finally sighed: "My Red Flag Gang also wants to do long-term business in the county. Now that the father-in-law said that we are already here, it is not good to refuse. How about this, you can take the people with you, and help with some odd jobs in the camp to practice your body. Just provide food, no payment. After three months, if you can train well, or you are smart and obedient, you can stay. If not, we will send you back."

Old Man Zhang was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly, "Thank you very much, Steward! Come quickly, everyone, come and pay your respects to the Steward!"

The manager quickly waved his hand, "This is all for the sake of the villagers. There's no need to do this. Just remember to behave yourself when you get there. Don't break the rules of the gang. If you do, you'll lose your head."

Old Man Zhang naturally agreed and immediately said, "I know! These kids are all obedient. Just train them to death. No need to be polite!"

"If you really get on the ship and there's fighting and killing, and you want to ship goods by sea, you might still lose your life." The manager added.

Old man Zhang slapped his thigh and said, "You can drown while fishing. These old men know this, and the boys know it too. Don't worry, we will never forget your kindness!"

Seeing that everything was made clear, the manager stopped trying to stop them and told Old Man Zhang to go get the seafood and quickly exchange it for rice so that he could take his men away.

After finally taking the reassurance pill, Old Man Zhang smiled like a chrysanthemum. He happily urged people to move the goods and carefully gave instructions for a long time to make the boys obedient.

This was an opportunity they had worked so hard to obtain, so once they arrived at the camp, they dared not be negligent in the slightest!

As the Red Flag Gang collected debts from village to village, such incidents became more and more frequent. They gradually gathered a group of young and strong men who were willing to join them without having to spend any money, and the camp on the shore became more prosperous again.

"One, two, three, up!"

The two dark and skinny young men tensed their backs at the same time, picked up the heavy load, and walked quickly towards the dock.

The ground from the camp to the dock had been leveled long ago. The compacted dirt road was not painful to walk on, nor was it as stiff as sand. It was just moving some goods, so what was a big deal for these fishermen's sons who were used to doing heavy work?

"Catch it! Hold it steady! Okay..."

When they carried the load to the dock, someone would take it and deliver it to the cabin, and they would have to go back to continue moving the goods.

The warehouses are now located in the camp, and you can always see the high mound in front of the camp gate when you enter.

I heard this thing was called a "Jingguan," and it was filled with enemy corpses, covered with dirt. If you got close, you could smell the blood! Of course, no one dared to go up and smell it.

In the first few days after arriving, the Jingguan where corpses were buried and the heads hanging on the camp gate scared many people. But after staying there for a long time, the fear dissipated, and they felt that this camp was more and more powerful.

A hundred or so bandits are enough to flatten several villages and attack the county town at the same time. But in front of the Red Flag Gang, they are just a mound of earth. So what is there to be afraid of if they stay in the camp?

After four or five more moves, the morning's work was complete. All the menial workers who were loading and unloading the cargo hurried back. The camp provided for a lunch break, and even though it was only porridge, it was better than going hungry until night.

From a distance, the aroma of rice wafted over. Someone couldn't help but exclaim, "What's cooking? It smells so good!"

"I'm afraid it's meat porridge! The camp has given us meat!" The person next to him started running.

A group of people rushed to the dining room in a chaotic manner. As expected, many people were already holding their bowls and wolfing down their food happily. The waiter saw more people coming and shouted, "Everyone, line up and come one by one!"

These words were more effective than an imperial decree. Everyone hurriedly took their wooden bowls and lined up, waiting obediently for their turn. When they got to the front, they handed over their bowls, and saw the big wooden spoon turn in the pot, and a full spoonful of porridge was knocked into the bowl.

It was called "thin porridge," but it wasn't really that thin. The thick rice soup was filled with a lot of wild vegetables, with a layer of oil floating in it. If you were lucky, you might even see some minced meat. This must be made from pork bones! Without even using a spoon, everyone held the bowl, blowing on it and slurping it up.

After finishing a bowl of steaming hot vegetable porridge, someone finally opened their mouth and sighed, "The food in the gang is too good! We can only eat meat once every ten days!"

The person sitting next to him laughed out loud: "The meat is for the people on the boat to eat, you just drank some soup."

This immediately caused a burst of laughter, but the man snorted: "It would be nice to have porridge. I can't even eat rice on weekdays."

There are too many families who rely on taro and sea fish to fill their stomachs. Not to mention meat, they don’t even eat rice often.

Unexpectedly, after arriving at the camp, I found that the food was really good. There were two dry dishes and one liquid dish a day, with fish and pickles, and I could even taste oil every few days.

Even if I don’t get paid, it’s worth it!

A boy suddenly interrupted: "I heard from the people in the camp that we can't just eat fish. We still have to eat some rice and vegetables, otherwise we will get gout when we get old."

Everyone was shocked and asked in unison, "Are you serious?" "Isn't gout caused by the sea breeze?" "If this could cure gout, we wouldn't have to save on rice at home!"

Gout is the thing that those people living by the sea fear the most. It causes the bones to become deformed and the whole body feels like it is being cut by a knife. Countless people who go out to sea have been tortured to death by this disease in their later years. If this tragedy can be avoided, what does spending some money matter!

Unexpectedly, one sentence caused such a commotion. The boy quickly said, "I heard it too! Those people on the boat also said that you should eat limes when you go out to sea. They can also cure diseases."

"Can limes cure diseases?" "Don't tell me some greedy person is talking nonsense." "Look at what you said. They have vegetables and meat, so what's the big deal about eating a few oranges?"

The group of people started talking again, but the envy in their words could not be hidden.

How many people these days could live such a comfortable life? They had enough to eat every day, their clothes were brand new, they had no fear of officials or thieves, they got a share of the profits when they went to sea, and I heard that they could even get rewards for their meritorious service. Alas, why didn't they encounter such a good thing sooner?

"I heard that about fifty people have already boarded the ship to Luoling Island. I'm afraid they'll be able to stay with the Red Flag Gang by then," a man couldn't help but mutter. "I just haven't walked a hundred steps yet, otherwise I would have boarded the ship too..."

"Oh, who doesn't want to get on the boat..."

This was the voice in everyone's heart. They were able to come to the Red Flag Gang's camp because the village chief and clan elders had sacrificed their pride to ask for it.

Originally, there were a few people who were reluctant to come here to do odd jobs, but when they arrived at the camp and saw the atmosphere of this boat gang, they immediately became interested.

Those men who could get on the boat were really powerful. They could climb up a pole several meters high in just a few steps, and they could dance on the heavy stone pillars with great vigor. They also carried guns and poked at straw men every day.

After just a few observations, I couldn't take my eyes off them. I just wished I couldn't fight like them and sail out to sea. I didn't ask for greatness, just making some money would be enough!

They felt like they had eaten a sour orange, and they lost all interest in eating. After a quick meal and a quick cleanup, they prepared to rest for a while and then get back to work when the afternoon assignment came. If they had been more diligent, would they have been chosen?

Unexpectedly, not long after, the person in charge of arranging the work suddenly came over and shouted, "Nothing to do this afternoon. Chief Li wants you to practice standing in formation. For the next few days, you have to stand for two hours every day. Those who can hold out and stand well will be sent to the island."

"What!"

The whole group of people were shocked, and many of them jumped up. "Brother Li, are you serious? Can you stay in the camp and not go to the island?"

Seeing everyone arguing, the manager shouted angrily, "What are you arguing about? You're lucky to be able to go to the island. If you're favored by Gang Leader Cheng Xi, you might even be transferred to the flagship. Practice honestly and don't embarrass me!"

Shocked by the word "gang leader", everyone really shut up and didn't dare to say anything more.

That’s Cheng Xi, the leader of the Red Flag Gang!

I heard that he was an eight-foot-tall strong man who held two large ring-handled swords. He could kill people as easily as cutting vegetables or melons. He was notorious for his brutality.

However, it sounded scary back then, but it makes people feel itchy today.

If I am really noticed by the gang leader and can work for him, can I also make a name for myself?

No matter what kind of training method the "standing in line" is, you can't lose to others!