Looking at the fleet on the distant sea, Heiner's dark brown eyebrows furrowed into a perfect "V" shape, just like the cheeks that sagged down to the corners of his mouth beneath his bulbous nose.
He couldn't even identify which country the fleet of at least a thousand warships that appeared before him belonged to.
The flags fluttering on each ship resembled a cluster of burning flames; they were neither the sun flag of the Sasiri Kingdom nor the five-colored flag of the Delta Federation.
As for the kingdoms of Shenglu and Hunli, they neither carried such a flag, nor could they form such a fleet, much less sail together at sea.
The only remaining possibility is Tajikistan.
As a powerful nation at the "hegemon" level, Tajikistan's navy is indeed capable of forming such a fleet, but their flag is not like this.
Unless they change their flag, but that's obviously unlikely.
As all possibilities were ruled out, a sense of unease arose in Heiner's heart.
This is a fleet unlike any seen before, and it clearly comes from a nation with a powerful naval force.
Most importantly, he had never had any dealings with his homeland, the Kingdom of Mordenic.
This is alarming enough, after all, one's own country should never build such a fleet; it is only a small to medium-sized country.
When faced with a strange and powerful nation, those in subordinate positions will naturally show some fear.
Heineer knew that all the countries that came to participate in this grand undertaking were actually trying to get a share of the profits from this supposedly vast land.
Although their own country is not as powerful as the Sasiri Kingdom or the Delta Federation, following in their footsteps will still allow them to enjoy the benefits.
Therefore, as soon as he received the king's order, he immediately led the navy on a long journey to Daqian.
The navy under his command did not have many ships, only about sixty.
Although the number of ships is far less than that of other countries, the advantage lies in the speed of preparation. Unlike the fleets of those major powers, which have a large number of ships and manpower, they have to do a lot of preparation work before setting sail.
For this reason, he set sail with his fleet early on, and with the help of the strong winds, he accelerated his journey.
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, we should arrive in Dagang by tomorrow morning.
And now—
Clearly, an unexpected accident occurred.
"Waaah!"
The melodious sound of conch shells echoed across the sea, and Heiner put down his binoculars at that moment.
At the same time, Doug, the deputy beside him, looked nervously at Marshal Heiner, who was a head shorter than him, and said:
"Marshal, they're signaling us to stop the ship. What should we do?"
"We don't know them, nor do we know if they are friends or enemies."
Heiner turned to look at his tall second-in-command, Doug. This man was much stronger than him, had a better family background, and was even younger.
However, there is a reason why he has not been promoted despite being his deputy for so many years.
He's really not smart enough.
Heiner frowned and looked at Doug, saying:
"Pass down the order to stop the ship immediately."
“Yes, Marshal!” Doug never questioned any decision he made.
Heiner called out to him at that moment, and said, word by word:
"Also, Doug, what about the people on this fleet..."
"Regardless of whether you know them or not, you must treat them as friends, not enemies."
Do you understand this principle?
Doug straightened his chest and immediately said, "Understood!"
"They have thousands of ships, while we only have sixty-eight. If we were to consider them the enemy, we would all sink here today!"
Heiner was not satisfied with this answer, although it was correct, he clearly had not considered the deeper reasons.
He waved his hand, and Doug immediately gave the order.
After Doug left, Heiner stood on the bow, watching the approaching unfamiliar fleet, his palms sweating with nervousness.
As the distance closed, Heiner narrowed his eyes, then suddenly opened them wide.
He noticed that there were several ships from the Tajik flag in that fleet!
These few Tajik warships looked so out of place in this fleet, but the flags flying on them were not Tajik flags, which is why he didn't recognize them at first.
Upon seeing these ships, an absurd thought popped into Heiner's mind.
But he had no time to think further, as shouts came from the approaching fleet, signaling him to come over.
Heiner had dealt with countless countries over the decades and was well-versed in emergency response strategies. He knew that the other side was strong and he was weak, so he had to go along with their wishes.
He immediately took a deep breath, suppressing his fear, but his expression remained normal. He calmly ordered the soldiers to sail over.
As the numerous ships gradually separated, a shipping route appeared on the sea. Heiner sailed in, his eyes scanning left and right, his expression growing increasingly grim.
The people on the ship were not from Tajikistan, but a ship from Tajikistan was on board.
Clearly, something must have happened between this fleet and Tajikistan.
If the two sides are on friendly terms, then these warships were sold to them by the Taqi Kingdom. Conversely, if the two sides have clashed, then these warships are spoils of war they captured.
However, Heiner felt that the possibility was not high, and who would dare to have a dispute with the Taqi State?
After all, the Taqi Kingdom is not one to be trifled with. They are the ones who always take advantage of others, and Heiner has never heard of anyone taking advantage of them.
Amidst tension and trepidation, Heiner gradually approached the ship, and at that moment, his gaze was drawn to the man sitting upright in a chair on the main deck.
"hiss--"
Heiner took another deep breath, a bead of cold sweat quietly trickling down his temple.
On the main ship, Qin Ze raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead, then took off his outer robe, which Xu Zhu immediately stepped forward to take.
"The weather is nice today, such a bright sun," Qin Ze said with a light laugh as he watched the approaching ship.
"Our lord is about to return home, and it's been such a beautiful sunny day lately. It seems even the heavens are giving our lord face," Dian Wei, who had already taken off his armor and was showing his arms, replied.
Qin Ze shook his head and chuckled: "You used the wrong word."
"It's a sunny day, but not a calm and peaceful one." Qin Ze looked up at the flags fluttering in the wind on the opposite ship and said, "I think it's a storm brewing."
The words fell.
With a "plop," the approaching ship lowered its anchor.
"Let them come up," Qin Ze said expressionlessly, his smile fading.
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